Saudi Arabia: Kingdom’s First Female Olympic Athletes Called ‘Prostitutes’ · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

This is part of our special coverage London 2012 Olympics.
Saudi Arabia will be sending two female athletes to the 2012 London Olympics, which officially begin tomorrow (July 27). Wojdan Shaherkani (Judo) and Sarah Attar (athletics) will be the first two women to ever represent the kingdom, where conservative religious clerics forbid the participation of women in competitive sports.
On Twitter, their anticipated involvement in the games set off a flurry of reactions, including a hash tag which described them as the “Prostitutes of the Olympics.”
Saudi Arabia's earlier announcement that women would be excluded from London 2012 was faced with a call for banning the kingdom from the Olympics.
The two Saudi women taking part in the London Olympics. Photo from the official delegation page on www.london2012.com
The participation of women under the Saudi flag comes under conditions: that they would not compete in mixed games and that they would dress up conservatively, among others.
On Twitter, Saudi blogger Ahmed Al Omran shares the line up of athletes representing his country at the Olympics and quips:
@Ahmed: List of Saudi athletes who will compete in London Olympics. Interestingly, Sarah Attar appears without a headscarf http://www.london2012.com/athletes/country=saudi-arabia/index.htmx …
On his own blog, Al Omran further elaborates:
To appease the clerics, Saudi most senior sports official Prince Nawaf bin Faisal announced a set of rules for women’s participation at the Olympics. Athletes can only take part if they do so “wearing suitable clothing that complies with sharia” and “the athlete’s guardian agrees and attends with her,” he told local daily al-Jazirah. “There must also be no mixing with men during the Games,” he added.
On Twitter, a Saudi Twitter user allegedly called Sultan Al Hilali spread the hash tag #عاهرات_الاولمبياد which translates to The Prostitutes of the Olympics, reportedly in reference to the Saudi athletes taking part in the games. The hash tag got many angry responses, as well as a few in its support.
Aljohara responds:
Screenshot of the tweet which called Saudi female athletes prostitutes
Rasha Al Dowasi adds:
Many netizens also called for the prosecution of the Twitter user who came up with the hash tag. A screen shot of the tweet which calls the women taking part in the games as prostitutes is making the rounds online. The aim is to name and shame the person behind the hash tag.
Saudi blogger Eman Al Najfan shares her thoughts on Saudi women and the Olympics here and here. The two articles are also cross-posted in The Guardian.
Other countries sending female athletes to compete in the Olympics for the first time are neighbouring Qatar and Brunei.
This is part of our special coverage London 2012 Olympics.