Simin Rouzgar

Solmaz Sharif, who has years of experience as a sports journalist in Iranian media, launched the weekly magazine “Shirzan” in 2007 after immigrating to the United States. This was the first independent media outlet dedicated to women’s sports, with the aim of filling the gap in coverage of this field in national and sports newspapers in Iran. The team behind this magazine waited for 4 years to receive a license from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance of the Islamic Republic of Iran, but ultimately, no such license was issued.

“Shirzanan is currently not being published weekly, but has been transformed into a non-profit organization with the goal of supporting and promoting women’s sports in all Muslim countries and operates in English. Those interested can follow Shirzanan through the website or social media platforms if they are proficient in English.”

In light of the special topic of this issue of the peace line, we have had a conversation with Ms. Sharif regarding the obstacles and solutions for the development of women’s sports in Iran.

Mrs. Sharif, as someone who has worked in the field of women’s sports for years, what do you know about the most important obstacles to the development of women’s sports in Iran?

Lack of education and promotion can be considered the most important obstacles to sports in Iran. In most countries, the government provides information to citizens about the importance of sports, and for example, includes this topic in the education system, schools, and universities in a planned and systematic manner. If the government does not directly provide educational activities in this regard, it allocates budgets to independent organizations to address this issue. Unfortunately, in Iran, we do not see any education or promotion about “why sports is important”. There is no specific and emphasized discussion about any of the multi-layered and extensive dimensions of sports, including physical health, mental health, or being a profession. This issue is more evident in women’s sports, although the situation is the same in men’s sports. In Iran, there is professional sports for men, but for example, there is no education about sports for all.

Can cultural issues be counted as a barrier that leads to the lack of public interest in professional women’s sports (compared to men)?

Women’s sports in the professional sector is less important than men’s sports in the professional sector, but the way officials handle it seems as though they are doing women a favor by allowing them to participate. This way of thinking and looking at things diminishes the value and status of women’s sports and is also prevalent among the general public. There are many cases within Iranian families where, for example, if a girl wants to pursue sports professionally, her family will ask her why she is wasting her time. This never happens in advanced countries around the world. The reason for this is that professional sports are taken very seriously by governments because their policy is to compete with other countries at an international level in the field of sports. The number of medals a country wins in the Olympics is a very important issue for advanced countries. A clear example of this is the medal race between the United States and Russia, which is a testament to the importance of the issue for these two countries’ governments.

In a country like Iran, the focus is only on football and recently volleyball – only for men – which shows the difference and inequality and this feeling is naturally imposed on society like all other events. It should not be forgotten that in Iran after the revolution, it was women who insisted on playing sports and fought for their right to do so.

Iran has been successful in presenting the model of veiled female athletes, but to what extent has it been able to gain acceptance from the international community?

If we judge fairly, we must say that she has been able to do this to some extent. Hijab is mandatory in Iran and if a woman wants to participate in professional sports in Iran, she has no choice but to accept it. In past Olympics, we have seen the presence of Muslim women from countries like Egypt who were not necessarily veiled, but Iranian women have no choice but to appear with a hijab. We must not forget that Iranian female athletes, because they want to participate in sports fields, make double efforts. The fact that women are currently trying to not only qualify for the Olympics, but also win medals, shows that a great change has taken place in women’s sports. I say this because, after all, most female athletes in Iran have participated in the Olympics with a white card for a long time. Of course, the white card is important and, as they say, it is built bit by bit, but as you know, this card means that they did

Some Iranian female athletes, such as members of the national basketball team, have been left behind from participating in international competitions due to the barrier of clothing. How do you evaluate the performance of Iranian officials in this regard and whether the issue of clothing should be considered a challenge for women’s sports in Iran?

Yes, definitely this is a challenge that Iranian athletes are facing. For example, one of the reasons for the popularity of combat sports in Iran is that they have more comfortable clothing and athletes can participate in international competitions with that clothing. Although judo uniforms are not designed to comply with hijab regulations, our athletes cannot participate in all international judo competitions as a result. Or in regards to swimming, even though Islamic swimsuits have been introduced, they do not allow a female athlete to compete in international fields with such clothing. There was a woman who had swam in the Caspian Sea and had overcome various difficulties and challenges, but her record is not considered.

Currently, both Muslim and non-Muslim countries are discussing the issue of dress code and hijab in sports; even Muslim athletes from America. For example, an American weightlifter – who is also part of our magazine’s ambassadors – a few years ago when she wanted to compete in weightlifting competitions with hijab, such conditions did not exist, but gradually a situation was implemented that she could also participate in competitions. In fact, we are in a period where there are conflicts and controversies between the two sides. For example, regarding FIFA, a few years ago this organization was short-sighted and said that they accept hijab and of course set conditions that are in line with FIFA’s standards and rules. Iran initially accepted these conditions, but after sending the team, they saw that the agreed upon conditions were not implemented and as a result, the team that had worked so hard was left out of the competition. Therefore, this issue requires a two-way conversation and interaction, which of course a country

Recently, there has been a lot of controversy over the reluctance of American athletes to wear hijab in order to participate in the Women’s World Chess Championship, which is set to take place in Tehran in February. However, at the same time, female futsal players from Russia can compete in Tehran without wearing hijab with Iranian women. What is your opinion on this matter?

See, unfortunately women’s sports, like many other issues in Iran, is political and that’s why we see such dichotomies and in general it must be said that the Iranian government deals with this issue in a very dualistic way. For example, women from all other countries can attend stadiums, but Iranian women cannot. Someone needs to explain how this is happening! As you say, the Russian team can play in Iran without hijab – even in futsal – but an American chess player cannot. Although aside from these dichotomies, it must be considered that this issue is also related to the performance of various federations and everything is not cohesive and organized. By looking at different sections of Iran’s performance, we can see that everything is not cohesive and there are different gears; of course, it’s not that anyone can do whatever they want and there is a filter that everyone must pass through.

These dualities are very confusing for both the international community and the athletes within Iran. On one hand, it creates pressure in various places. For example, international organizations have been discussing and interacting with federations such as basketball and volleyball for a long time to ensure that rules are followed through them.

In recent years, despite all limitations, Iranian female athletes have succeeded in achieving championship titles at the international level; the most important and recent example of this is Kimia Alizadeh’s bronze medal at the Rio Olympics. Do you think this can be a sign of improvement in conditions and facilities for female athletes in Iran, or is it better to consider it an exception?

In this regard, considering the activities and observations of women’s sports events up close, I do not give any special credibility to the male-dominated system ruling over Iran. I have seen up close how women have worked hard over time, demanded more facilities, and were able to negotiate agreements; they have built this house brick by brick. Of course, when I say women themselves, I do not necessarily mean gender, but I mean those who believe in equality in sports. For example, we have had male coaches who believed in women’s sports and made great efforts in this regard. Kimia’s medal is actually the fruit of a tree that has been prepared for a long time, planted and taken care of, and now this tree has sprouted and grown so big that it has reached the point of bearing fruit. Also, people’s personalities are different and play a role accordingly. Kimia’s personality is an exceptional one that has had so much perseverance and hard work. We know that being a professional

Why do men athletes in Iran still feel more comfortable speaking about their problems than women athletes? For example, a few days ago, despite all their qualifications, the women’s Malavan football team was dissolved and we saw less protest, even from the players and coaching staff, about this issue.

I see this issue in two parts. The majority of it is related to the media. Unfortunately, until before 2007 AD when we published Shirzanan, we didn’t even have one independent magazine about women’s sports. This issue itself is indicative enough. There is nothing more dangerous than the fact that the editorial board and editor-in-chief of a sports media do not believe in gender equality in sports. If this happened in men’s sports, even if the team and coaching staff remained silent, the media would pursue the issue so much that it would eventually create a wave of news. Imagine a female athlete when an issue arises for her – especially if she has no acquaintance in the media – her voice does not reach anywhere. Therefore, not seeing any protests does not necessarily mean there is no protest, and it may be because it has not been covered.

On the other hand, I also agree that there is no room for protest from men. Part of it is related to the politicization of women’s sports in Iran and the top-down approach, where even the slightest protest can result in female athletes being expelled from the team. A few years ago, a female rower had sandal marks on her feet after coming out of Lake Azadi, which is completely normal. She was warned by the authorities about wearing sandals, but her protest against this issue led to her expulsion from the team. This means that with the slightest excuse, a professional athlete who has invested a lot of time, effort, and resources is completely expelled. Unfortunately, no one considers that each of these professional athletes is part of the country’s values. This is a reflection of the top-down approach that I mentioned earlier; they say that they are doing us a favor by allowing us to play sports, and as a result, if we speak up, they will take away this

One of the problems in women’s sports is coaching. In fact, because the lifespan of women’s sports in Iran is short, sometimes female athletes are referred to as not having a good female coach who can bring about a leap in the quality of their work. Given that women usually do not have the right to have a male coach, what is your proposed solution for solving such a problem in the short term?

Unfortunately, this is not a problem that can be solved in the short term.

See, we have had male coaches in fields such as cycling, horseback riding, chess, and shooting, and this issue is directly related to the fields and the possibility of having a male coach present. However, there has always been controversy surrounding this issue. If we are to speak logically and professionally, the presence of a male coach in situations where a team is supposed to participate in international competitions should not be a problem; because in these competitions, athletes are expected to compete while wearing a hijab. But if the emphasis is on having a female coach, the cost must be taken into consideration to bring a female coach from outside the country and on the other hand, to send female coaches abroad for training. In fact, an Iranian female coach should be sent abroad to receive the necessary training and work alongside an experienced foreign female coach for a period of time, as experience is not the same as training. This long-term approach will transfer experience to young coaches so that they can become independent in the

However, there are many other Muslim countries that have male coaches. As I mentioned, this issue goes back to logic and the perspective of gender equality in sports. I really don’t know what to do if the perspective is illogical, it makes it difficult to discuss. But the solution is to talk about it. To bring it up in the media and discuss it in federations and the sports system. It is very important for needs to be expressed. It must be said that women have never asked for something and not been given it in the long run. So the need for experienced coaches to be present must be expressed. After such a request is brought up, it must be discussed and convince the authorities so that ultimately, perhaps that request can be fulfilled.

As a final question, what do you think are the solutions for the development of women’s sports in Iran, despite the numerous obstacles and challenges that have only allowed us to discuss some of them?

In my opinion, there is a platform for sports – especially for women – in Iran. Of course, women in Iran have different motivations for playing sports and many may do it simply for physical fitness, which is not a problem, and the important thing is the goal, which is “sports”. The fact that we see the use of the simplest sports equipment due to lack of facilities – especially in smaller cities – shows the existence of this platform among women. However, media, especially foreign media, should be more active in educating and motivating. It is important to have things like sports videos, music clips, and stories that are shared within the community. Unfortunately, we do not see any reflection of a female athlete anywhere. This issue is not solely the responsibility of the government, and for example, artists can also work on this issue to create motivation by reflecting such an image. In fact, we need to talk about women’s sports to keep the door open and try to make this door bigger and

Thank you for the opportunity that you have given us in the monthly magazine of “Khat-e-Solh”.