(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - A Muslim civil rights organization has urged the American Olympic Committee to intervene in the case of a Pakistani-American Muslim weightlifter in the US state of Georgia who is being banned from tournaments because she wishes to compete wearing a hijab.
In a statement on Friday, the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said the athlete, 35-year-old Kulsoom Abdullah, who was born in the US to Pakistani parents is, be allowed to compete in the US Weightlifting Senior Nationals to be held this July in Council Bluffs, Iowa, pending the outcome of a formal hearing on her request for reasonable religious accommodation.
Ms. Abdullah, who competes in the 48kg and 53kg weight class in the women’s senior division, reported to CAIR that US Weightlifting prevented her from participating in the American Open in December 2010 due to her desire to wear modest Islamic attire covering her hair and body with the exception of her face, hands and feet.
The ban on Ms Abdullah’s competition has been maintained despite her requests for accommodation and her willingness to work with US Weightlifting officials on a solution to the issue of attire that will satisfy the legitimate requirements of all parties.
In a letter sent today to US Olympic Committee’s Chief Executive Officer Scott Blackmun, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad wrote in part: “US Weightlifting has apparently rejected Ms Abdullah’s repeated requests for accommodation of her sincere religious beliefs and practices. Officials of US Weightlifting cite International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) rules in rejecting any accommodation and in refusing to discuss a mutually-agreeable solution that would allow Ms Abdullah to compete while maintaining her religious principles and without giving her an advantage over other competitors.
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