Paris Olympics 2024: France bans its athletes from wearing hijab

Ahead of the Paris Olympics 2024, France has banned its athletes from wearing the hijab (or Muslim headscarf) during the Summer Games (via AA.com). The country is all set to host the mega event from July 26 to August 11.

Furthermore, the hijab ban will be imposed on para-athletes during the Paris Paralympics 2024, scheduled to start on August 28 and conclude on September 8. French Minister of Sports and Olympic and Paralympic Games, Amelie Oudea-Castera, initially banned the hijab on September 24, 2023.

Oudea-Castera later confirmed on the French political show Dimanche en Politique that no athlete from their delegation would wear a headscarf during the Paris Olympics 2024.

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Questions raised on Hijab ban ahead of the Paris Olympics 2024

The Hijab ban received widespread criticism and questions were raised on the decision. Marta Hurtado, a spokeswoman for the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, came down hard on the ban, saying it was unfair to dictate what a woman should or should not wear.

“No one should impose on a woman what she needs to wear or not wear," Marta Hurtado stated (via AA.com).

Amnesty International, along with various organizations, appealed the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to lift that ban in May this year. However, the IOC responded that it was beyond their scope as “freedom of religion is interpreted in many different ways by different states."

Later in July, Amnesty International stated in a press release that the ban violates international human rights law, while questioning the country's “discriminatory double standard.”

France's contingent is expected to have 573 athletes at the Paris Olympics 2024, with 291 male and 282 female athletes. At the Tokyo Olympics, France had fielded 393 athletes, who helped them win 33 medals, including 10 gold.

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