A research paper by the Birmingham Academics highlighted the
prevalent prejudice against
Islamic sportswomen as the high ranks had a
Decalogue which did not accommodate the Islamic clothing. Though there has
always been a political, cultural and religious resistance to participation
which has deterred the participation of Muslim women in international sports.
For the first time, in the Bejing Olympics in 2012 women
from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei participated in a number of events. Roqaya
Al-Gassra, a runner from Bahrain participated in a special one-piece garment and
a headscarf and won the sprint. This was a precedent, and Saudi sportswomen
will take part in the Olympics for the first time in one-piece-garments. The
participation itself was sycophantic. This was a good sign for Islamic women as
sometime after this the London Olympic Committee and the International Olymplic
committee talked about letting Muslim women participants wear hijab during
their football matches. Their argument against this was that it is unsafe to
wear Islamic clothing owning to the use to safety pins which now has been
diverged by using stickers in place of pins. Can this be looked upon as
encouraging the participation of Muslim women in sports? Georgy
Tvaltvadze, a sports analyst supports the argument by stating that external
appearance of an athlete should not distract him/her from the competition and
moreover, disrupt them.
New fashions open new opportunities for women who are
restricted by religions in choosing their dresses. Unambiguous advents such as
upcoming clothing lines for women who are also sports enthusiasts reflect the
change of winds. Online shopping stores and other shopping avenues are making
available sports wears for Islamic women. Designers are exploring the untapped
mines of explicitly designed sportswear and swimwear for Islamic women.
Muslim sportswear concurs to the law of hijab laid down in the Qur’an. The sports and swim wears are made available in vibrant colors and waterproof material at a number of Islamic clothing online stores. They are also available with spandex hood swimwear with white lowers to match. With options available in color combinations, the stores offering Islamic styles clothing online would give a reasonable deal on their offering too. Women searching for Muslim sportswear online have found a number of avenues (e.g
Haya Islamic Clothing) that catalogue modest sportswear for Muslim women. Women looking for Islamic sportswear can now go online and order appropriate sportswear and swimwear for themselves.
Till sometime back the notion hijab carried with itself was
of suppression of Islamic women which is now transforming is what the society
considers liberating. Young Muslim girls and women with much devotion to their
respective religion are looking for ways to integrate it with the present culture
of their respective societies. They would wear hijab in the form of appropriate
sportswear and swimwear which though perceived oppositely to the regular
definition of the two, uphold the virtues of
modesty.