Saudi Women in the London Summer Olympics?

Hitch wrote:

Dear Allicat

Agreed , but u only see the box from out side .

Now this is Sexist too
Sorry I could not resist pointing it out.

Habibi, I am freakin' LIVING in the box!!! Blah!

oh common,  you making me feel like you are married to some Saudi guy , Which apparently not !!?

  who make your eyes pump out ! from doing this and that , and being sexist races everything to you ! LOL

Oh and btw, you'd better not hit me with the hammer again.

i guess you are right , to me you are like the translators to these guys . Sorry Allie feels like my words is not Suitable to this website .

Remember, *I* am the only one who can understand you so you don't want to harm me, do you?

no i would , u are too cute to be harmed

Hitch wrote:

oh common,  you making me feel like you are married to some Saudi guy , Which apparently not !!?

u are too cute to be harmed

Hitch wrote:

no i would , u are too cute to be harmed

We know who the cute one is

saimans wrote:

Hitch wrote:

oh common,  you making me feel like you are married to some Saudi guy , Which apparently not !!?

u are too cute to be harmed

We know who the cute one is

Who ?

Alliecat wrote:

Hitch wrote:

no i would , u are too cute to be harmed

We know who the cute one is

Definitely not you

saimans wrote:

Alliecat wrote:

Hitch wrote:

no i would , u are too cute to be harmed

We know who the cute one is

Definitely not you

saimans, surely you dont think it's you??

Actually, it IS hitch !!!!

Alliecat wrote:

saimans wrote:

Alliecat wrote:

We know who the cute one is

Definitely not you

saimans, surely you dont think it's you?? http://l.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/emoticons7/24.gif

Actually, it IS hitch !!!!

No I knew that It cannot be Me !!

Actually, it IS hitch !!!!

That's so nice of you Allie .

saimans, surely you dont think it's you?? http://l.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/emoticons7/24.gif

awww he can be the cute one next time

Hitch wrote:

saimans, surely you dont think it's you?? http://l.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/emoticons7/24.gif

awww he can be the cute one next time

Hitch wrote:

oh common,  you making me feel like you are married to some Saudi guy , Which apparently not !!?

No but FYI, I know a couple Saudi guys I'd consider marrying

Alliecat wrote:

Hitch wrote:

oh common,  you making me feel like you are married to some Saudi guy , Which apparently not !!?

No but FYI, I know a couple Saudi guys I'd consider marrying

i know thats why i have PM u .

im happy that you see the bright side of our culture . and i like

your way of making things positive no matter what miss Allie .

And then they lived happily forever

ghanshyampdave wrote:

And then they lived happily forever

If there were more Americans on this forum, somebody would have said "Get a room!" by now

Alliecat wrote:

ghanshyampdave wrote:

And then they lived happily forever

If there were more Americans on this forum, somebody would have said "Get a room!" by now

Ha ha, yes.
Actually, that's what I meant but in a nicer way

Din't want the people coming to this thread to read about Saudi women to see that and go bonkers!

@Dave yeah, I knew that's what you meant--hence my comment!

All this should really be on the digressions thread.

Ohhh

Allie habibi , you know what i have in my mine so i dont need to excuse my self .

Ha ha, yes.
Actually, that's what I meant but in a nicer way wink

Din't want the people coming to this thread to read about Saudi women to see that and go bonkers! roll

how much does a room cost per night please ?


no need to have a drink now its Ramdan LOL

you guys wont have a clean heart i swear i was puting good words thats all .

Alliecat wrote:

ghanshyampdave wrote:

And then they lived happily forever

If there were more Americans on this forum, somebody would have said "Get a room!" by now

Hitch wrote:

how much does a room cost per night please ?

Let me be the first to say that this is seriously

1maxboss wrote:

Let me be the first to say that this is seriously

True but it's  my thread

sorry but I saw my chance and plus I have never had the opportunity to use it before

1maxboss wrote:

sorry but I saw my chance and plus I have never had the opportunity to use it before

Okay, I can appreciate that

its okay bro , i think it was a joke and went bad , but you safes the Day , thanks bro

Thanks Alliecat- I wouldnt want to get on the wrong side of you, especially on your own thread

1maxboss wrote:

Thanks Alliecat- I wouldnt want to get on the wrong side of you, especially on your own thread

That too before you reach here

Yes Dave cats have sharp claws and teeth

1maxboss wrote:

Yes Dave cats have sharp claws and teeth

Oh yeah, back in my apartment in India there are lots of cats in our building. We even named a few of them.

By the way, for more off-topic discussions you can visit us at The Digression Thread. Owner of this thread is the same cat with sharp claws and teeth

You can multiply your suitcases there

Thanks Dave - the cat has already invited me to view the digression thread.

For fear of being I will talk about the Olympics although not the Saudi women.

Yes the brits got a couple of Gold Medals- about time!!

1maxboss wrote:

Thanks Dave - the cat has already invited me to view the digression thread.

For fear of being I will talk about the Olympics although not the Saudi women.

Yes the brits got a couple of Gold Medals- about time!!

okay boss

Back to the topic!!

Saudi judo fighter prepares for battle

LONDON (AP) — A teenage Saudi judo fighter is preparing for the battle of her life — and not only on the mat.

Wojdan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani will take on Puerto Rico's Melissa Mojica in a preliminary match early Friday that is likely to be over in record time.

The real drama will be after that, in reaction to what she'll be wearing in front of male spectators.

Shahrkhani, one of the first two women ever to compete at the games for the conservative Gulf kingdom, will fight in a modified hijab under a deal worked out between Olympic officials, the international judo federation, and Saudi authorities.

While the 18-year-old has many supporters in the region, the compromise has not been nearly enough to satisfy hard-liners who say she is dishonoring herself and her family by competing in front of men — and in form fitting clothes. Several have told her not to jeopardize her place in the afterlife for a fleeting bit of fame on earth. Others have warned that she and her family could face ostracism when she goes home.

"She will definitely face difficulties (back home)," Hashem Abdo Hashem, editor-in-chief of Saudi's Arabic daily newspaper Okaz, told The Associated Press. "The society here will look at her negatively."

A more immediate worry for Shahrkhani comes in the form of Mojica, a powerful 187-pounder (85-kilos) who is the 24th ranked judo fighter in the world and is skilled at groundwork and aggressive grappling.

Like every other athlete in the competition, Mojica holds a black belt and has honed her skills by training with men, while Shahrkhani is a virtual novice, a blue belt who has only been at the sport for two years. After blue comes brown, and then there are ten degrees of black.

That would make the fight between Mojica and Shahrkhani the approximate equivalent of the New York Yankees playing a strong high school team.

Except that judo is a lot more dangerous than baseball — a contact sport in which the aim is to throw your opponent to the ground, pin them down or force them to submit to a chokehold or armlock. Already in this Olympic competition, a Hungarian bronze medalist has been strangled into unconsciousness and a Korean medalist from Beijing snapped a ligament and ruptured some muscles during a preliminary fight — which he won.

Some have warned that Shahrkhani is at risk of being seriously injured. In any case, her Olympic experience is likely to be over in a flash — which is when her larger struggle will begin.

Saudi women face widespread restrictions in nearly all aspects of public and private life, particularly under guardianship laws that require them to have a male relative's permission before they can travel abroad, work, marry, get divorced or even be treated at some hospitals. It is also the only country in the world that forbids women — both Saudi and foreign — from driving. Some women who have challenged the driving ban have even been detained.

Recently, King Abdullah has pushed for some limited reforms in the face of opposition from the country's ultraconservative clerics. Women have been promised the ability to run and vote in municipal elections in 2015, and a new university near Jiddah allows men and women to study together in contrast to the strict general separation of the sexes across the kingdom.

The decision to allow Shahrkhani and another U.S.-based Saudi woman to compete in the games is an extension of those reforms.

The match will not be aired on state-run Saudi TV stations on Friday, though a number of Gulf-based satellite channels will carry it. The timing of the fight could also conflict with traditional Friday prayers, impacting the number of men who will tune in.

But Saudi women who favor reform say they will not miss Shahkhrani's shining moment.

"I am proud of her because she is confronting an entire system and society," said Aziza al-Yousif, a computer science lecturer at King Saud University. "She wants to play judo. Who decides who can judge her and what is in line with Islamic law or not? Let God judge her. We are humans. It's not our place to judge one another."

Unfortunately she lost

Wojdan Shahrkhani became the first Saudi Arabian woman to compete at the Olympic Games when she took part in the +78kg judo competition in London.
The 16-year-old had been in the spotlight before her event began as judo officials said she could not wear a headscarf for safety reasons.
As a compromise, Shahrkhani wore a tight-fitting black cap for her bout with Puerto Rican Melissa Mojica.
Shahrkhani's Olympics were short-lived as she was defeated inside 90 seconds.
The contest appeared to be an overwhelming experiencing for the Mecca-born teenager.
Despite only being qualified as a blue belt in judo, she wore the higher black belt to compete.
The two women engaged in a slow-moving fight, a tentative Shahrkhani on the defensive and seeming cautious about attempting to throw Mojica.
The bout ended when the Puerto Rican grabbed Shahrkhani with a secure grip on her collar and flipped her into a match-ending ippon.
Mojica said afterwards that everyone had a right to their own religion and should be given an opportunity in judo.
Shahrkani is one of two Saudi Arabian females competing at London 2012. The other is American-born 800m runner Sarah Attar.
Shahrkhani did not qualify for her Olympic spot but was invited by the International Olympic Committee to compete as the organisation wanted to bring Saudi women to the Olympics for the first time.

Source: BBC Sport Olympics

It was a no-brainer that she was going to lose:

Like every other athlete in the competition, Mojica holds a black belt and has honed her skills by training with men, while Shahrkhani is a virtual novice, a blue belt who has only been at the sport for two years. After blue comes brown, and then there are ten degrees of black.

That would make the fight between Mojica and Shahrkhani the approximate equivalent of the New York Yankees playing a strong high school team.

But you know what?  That's not what matters.  BRAVO for her, a brave girl whom every Saudi (and every woman regardless of nationality) should be proud of

Couldn't agree more-  I hope the Saudi media will be positive and recognise her part in the 2012 Olympics.

1maxboss wrote:

Couldn't agree more-  I hope the Saudi media will be positive and recognise her part in the 2012 Olympics.

Hello !
Regarding the much earlier pic posted by Dave of a hijab-clad athlete : she isn't from saudi arabia ....she's Woroud Sawalha from the Gaza Strip in Palestine. The pic was from a pre-qualifier race.

Her competing @ the olympic2012 was an event in itself (together with a Palestinian swimmer) as it was Palestine's  first time competing under their flag.