Saudi Arabia Women Are Changing the Game
Women in Saudi Arabia have made some progress in participating in sports for health, competition, and professional opportunities but serious barriers remain. According to Human Rights Watch, the Saudi government, including the new women's section of the Saudi sports authority, should remove the remaining barriers to sports in schools, businesses, federations, and team sports.
Four women will represent the country in Rio, a slight improvement from the two who competed in the 2012 London Summer Olympics. But inside Saudi Arabia, widespread discrimination still hampers access to sports for Saudi women and girls, including in public education. This exists against a backdrop of pervasive discrimination that constrains women’s day-to-day lives in Saudi Arabia. Women are not allowed to travel abroad, marry, or be released from prison without a male guardian’s permission, and may be required to provide guardian consent to work or get health care. They are not allowed to drive.
“Saudi women are making tremendous strides in the world of sports – climbing the tallest mountains and swimming the lengths of rivers,” said Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch . “They are showing their determination, talent, effort, and heart despite daunting legal, cultural, and religious hurdles. As the Rio Olympics open, Saudi Arabia needs to change the game by addressing the profound discrimination that holds back women’s and girls’ participation in sport in the kingdom.”
Saudi Arabia discriminates against women and girls by denying them the same opportunities to exercise and play sports as men and boys. As of July 2016, women were not allowed to attend or participate in national tournaments or state-organized sports leagues. But, in a positive move, on August 1, the General Authority for Sports, which functions like a sports ministry, announced a new female department and appointed Princess Reema Bint Bandar Al Saud as its head.
The Human Rights Watch 2012 report, Steps of the Devil, examined in depth what was then the country’s effective ban on participation by Saudi women and girls in sports and physical education and its negative effects, including on health.
Read more about Saudi women and how they are pushing the boundaries in sport here.