No apolitical sportsmanship for Iran: Iranian athletes are turning their competitions into scenes of solidarity with the people
#MahsaAmini #مهسا_امینی #IranRevolution #IranRevolution2022
Athletes in Iran, especially those who get to compete at international stages, must pertain to political principles imposed by the regime. For example, Iranian athletes are forbidden to compete against any Israeli athletes. As such, sports are made a political tool both by the government and in the eyes of the people. In recent weeks, Iranian athletes are finding creative ways to reclaim their stance and to show their solidarity with the Iranian people - from female athletes who competed without hijab, to teams who refused to sing along to the Islamic Republic’s anthem, to symbolic gestures made by athletes after their victories.
As of November 14, five national teams have refused to sing the national anthems: the beach soccer team competing in the Beach Soccer Cup in Dubai; the water polo team at a competition in Thailand; the soccer team at a friendly game against Nicaragua; the basketball team at the World Cup selection game against China; and the sitting volleyball team after a championship in Sarajevo. Some people are comparing refusal to sing the national anthem to the kneeling of American athletes to peacefully protest police brutality and unfair treatment of Black Americans. Other acts of resistance came in the form of athletes not celebrating their victories, a common act in sportsmanship. Super Cup winners Esteghlal FC refused to celebrate their championship without breaking into cheers. The national TV that was broadcasting the event immediately cut away from live streaming once they realized it was an act of resistance. Besides group solidarity acts, some individual athletes took it upon themselves to show what they stand for: Saeed Piramoon, a beach soccer player, imitated cutting his hair after scoring a goal; Fatemeh Adeli, a soccer player, covered her eyes & her mouth after a goal, a nod to censorship & repression of Iranian women; and Parmida Ghasemi removed her hijab during the award ceremony. A couple of athletes also imitated a gesture after scoring goals that resembled the inhumane treatment of a Baluch man known as Khadour Lajjei at the hands of the regime forces, such as Hashem Shirali & Mi’aad Yazdani. It is reported by a few human right activists that Shiarali has been arrested after the game.
The Islamic Republic has vowed to deal with athletes who are breaking the “law.” For example, on November 13, a women’s team of taekwondo players, Me'raj, was banned from competing in the Premier League after its members removed their hijab and chanted “woman, life, freedom.” The team was showing their objection after a few players who were wearing black ribbons in honor of recent victims were immediately excluded from the match. Security guards were heard saying that players who protest “will be persecuted & banned from competition up to a year.” As the government intensifies pressure on the athletes, people are showing their support of them by creating art and illustrations.
Other References:
CNN: See Iranian soccer player appear to protest during tournament
CNN: Iranian football federation says players who protested during international tournament will be ‘dealt with’
TRT World: Iranian athletes protest by not singing anthem – social media
Swimming World Magazine: Iran Men’s Water Polo Team Declines to Sing National Anthem in Sign of Protest
News in France: In Iran, the winner of the Supercup refuses to celebrate his victory in support of the demonstrators