After bravely donning a hijab to accept her gold medal during the 2024 Olympics’ final medal ceremony, long-distance runner Sifan Hassan from the Netherlands was showered with praise from supporters.
In the last 250 metres of the women’s marathon, the Dutch runner showed an amazing late kick that allowed her to win gold in an Olympic record time of 2 hours, 22 minutes, and 55 seconds. Three seconds later, Tigst Assefa of Ethiopia crossed the finish line to win silver, and Hellen Obiri of Kenya finished in 2:23:10 to win bronze.
Given that Hassan had already won bronze in the 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the Paris Games, her overwhelming performance is all the more amazing. She became the only athlete to medal in all three long-distance events at the same Olympic Games.
With her victory, the athlete declared: “I feel like I am dreaming… At the end I thought, ‘This is just a 100m sprint. Come on, Sifan. One more. Just feel it, like someone who sprints 200m.’”
On bravely wearing hijab in France
Hassan accepted her gold medal while wearing a bright orange tracksuit and a maroon hijab. Many supporters were moved by the display right away, pointing out that France forbade its own athletes from competing in the Olympics with head coverings.
In September last year, French Minister of Sports Amelie Oudea-Castera declared that, in accordance with the nation’s secularism principle and regulations prohibiting the showing of religious symbols at athletic events, athletes representing France at the Paris Games would not be permitted to wear the hijab.
Afterwards, the French Ministry of Sports made it clear that although competitors may not wear the headgear while competing, they could wear hijabs in public and in the Olympic village.
However, the Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation immediately expressed disapproval of the rule, stating that it contradicts the principles of equality, inclusivity, and respect for cultural diversity that the Olympics stand for.
Source: The Mirror