Female chess player Sara Khadem, from the Islamic Republic of Iran, is the latest Iranian athlete to compete in an international event without the required hijab.
Iranian news portals Khabarvarzeshi and Etemad reported that Khadem had competed in Almaty, Kazakhstan, at the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships without the hijab, the headgear required by Iranian law.
According to the official website of the International Chess Federation, Khadem, also referred to as Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, is currently ranked number 804 globally. She was mentioned on the website for the Dec. 25-30 tournament as a competitor in both the Rapid and Blitz rounds.
Images published by both publications reportedly show her without a hijab during the competition. Khabarvarzeshi also shared a picture of herself wearing a hijab, though she did not specify whether or not the two were shot at the same venue.
According to Sky News, Atousa Pourkashiyan, another Iranian chess player, also competed at the tournament without a hijab.
Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman, was arrested by Iran’s “morality police” in September for not wearing the country’s customary headscarf; she died in police detention the same month. Her death sparked months of deadly protests in Iran.
Women have been at the forefront of the protests, taking off and even setting fire to their headscarves in some instances.
An Iranian female climber was placed under house detention in October after competing in a South Korean competition without a headscarf. Her childhood home was reportedly demolished in December.
In recent years, we’ve seen some national sports teams avoid singing the national anthem before big games, most notably before Iran’s opening match in the FIFA World Cup, although they sang before their second and third games.
The government of Iran has responded harshly to the protests, which they claim are foreign-instigated riots. The Iranian regime has carried out executions in reaction to the protests, and at least 24 people are thought to be on death row for their role.
As of Thursday, 507 protestors, including 69 kids, had been slain, according to the activist HRANA news agency. There have also been fatalities among the security personnel, with 66 reported dead.
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