Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/UK: An Iranian chess player took part in an international tournament without hijab, the latest of several Iranian sportswomen to appear at the competitions defying the mandatory dress code for females.
Iran has been swept by the demonstrations against the country’s clerical leadership since mid-September when 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini died in the morality police custody who detained her for “inappropriate attire”.
Iranian news outlets Etemaad and Khabarvarzeshi, in reports on Monday, said that Sara Khadem competed at the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan, without a hijab a headscarf mandatory under Iran’s strict codes of dress.
According to Reuters, there has been no comment on Khadem’s Instagram page about the tournament or the reports, and she did not immediately respond to a direct message from Reuters.
International Chess Federation
Khadem, born in 1997 and known as a Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, is ranked 804 in the world, according to the International Chess Federation website. A website for the Dec. 25-30 event listed her as a participant in both the Rapid and Blitz competitions.
