Iran's dream of competing in the London 2012 Olympic women's football tournament have been crushed by an unexpected ruling that their Islamic dress broke Fifa rules, said a football federation official in Tehran.
Iran is complaining to the world ruling body after its women were banned from playing, moments before an Olympic qualifier against Jordan last week, due to their full-body strip that includes a head scarf.
The head of women's affairs at Iran's football federation said the country had made changes to its women's kit after a Fifa ban last year and believed it had been given the approval of the world federation and of its president, Sepp Blatter.
"We made the required corrections and played a match afterwards," Farideh Shojaei said. "We played the next round and were not prevented from doing so, and they didn't find anything wrong. That meant that there are no obstacles in our path, and that we could participate in the Olympics."
Fifa's rules for the 2012 Olympics state that: "Players and officials shall not display political, religious, commercial or personal messages or slogans in any language or form on their playing or team kits."
In order to comply with the Islamic dress code which is mandatory in the Islamic Republic, Iran's women footballers play in full tracksuits and head coverings that conceal their hair. » | Reuters | Monday, June 06, 2011
