From The Toledo Blade:
Ohio High School Athletic Association officials said Thursday they were right to disqualify a cross country runner from a race because she wore a hijab, but the organization is considering changes to its rules to prevent the issue from happening again.
Per OHSAA’s current rules, cross country runners are barred from wearing most head coverings, like hats and caps, unless they have a signed and approved exception waiver granting them special permission for religious restrictions or otherwise. At last weekend’s Division 1 Northwest District cross country meet in Findlay, Noor Abukaram, a 16-year-old member of Sylvania Northview’s team, didn’t have that waiver.
She was disqualified, meaning her fastest 5K time of the season —22 minutes, 22 seconds — won’t be counted.
“Cross country runners may participate in competitions with religious headwear, provided the runner has obtained a waiver from the OHSAA and submitted to the head official before the race, since it is a change to the OHSAA uniform regulations. The official was simply enforcing this rule since a waiver had not been submitted,” OHSAA Director of Communications Tim Stried said in an emailed statement.
Sylvania Northview Cross Country runner Noor Abukaram was allegedly disqualified because of her hijab from a district cross country meet in Findlay, Ohio, after completing the race and without prior communication of any potential violation.
Miss. Abukaram has since submitted a waiver to wear her hijab in future competitions, including a regional competition happening this weekend, and it “was approved immediately,” Mr. Stried said. He stressed the association’s efforts to continue educating coaches on all sport rules and” to emphasize consistent enforcement” of all their rules, though he said the association may be looking to remove the religious waiver requirement altogether.
“The OHSAA is also already looking at this specific uniform regulation to potentially modify it in the future, so that religious headwear does not require a waiver,” Mr. Stried said.
Miss Abukaram said her school, coach and teammates were nothing but supportive following her disqualification, but she expressed frustration that the meet was the first time she’d encountered problems with wearing her hijab.
“I’ve been a student-athlete for as long as I can remember and wearing hijabs since 2016 ... which is why I was so appalled when there was an issue,” Miss Abukaram said. “It’s never happened to me before, and I certainly didn’t expect it to happen to me at cross country.”
Her disqualification first drew widespread attention on Wednesday because of a Facebook post by Zobaida S. Falah, a local activist and cousin of the student-athlete.
According to the post, race officials that day checked runners to make sure their attire followed OHSAA rules. They asked one young woman to change her shorts, which she did. But no one ever said anything to Miss Abukaram, who learned of her disqualification only after she crossed the finish line.
Northview Athletic Director Chris Irwin on Wednesday afternoon confirmed that Miss Abukaram was disqualified from the race. Miss Abukaram is a student at the Bounty Collegium, which has an athletics affiliation with Sylvania Schools sports.
Mr. Irwin said the girls’ varsity cross country coach, Jerry Flowers, was informed about the apparel violation. He respected Miss Abukaram’s religious beliefs, and knew she would not remove the hijab. He said he wanted to give her the opportunity to participate, even if it wouldn’t count.
Miss Abukaram’s mother, Yolanda Melendez, previously told The Blade that she and her husband have contacted an Islamic civil rights attorney and will send OHSAA a letter after this weekend’s race about the disqualification and ask for a rule clarification.
“We ultimately want a dialogue,” she said, “to speak out not just on Noor’s behalf, but on future athletes.”
https://www.toledoblade.com/sports/high ... 0191024126
OHSAA Considering Rule Change After Runner Disqualified For Wearing Hijab
OHSAA Considering Rule Change After Runner Disqualified For Wearing Hijab
Gut feelings are your guardian angels
Re: OHSAA Considering Rule Change After Runner Disqualified For Wearing Hijab
She is getting to run at regionals.
I have a girl that is Seventh Day Adventist and she couldn’t participate from dusk Friday through Sunday. She is a sophomore with zero running experience and in her 3rd meet ever she ran a 20:50 in 85 degree temps. Zero doubt she would’ve been in the high 19’s and competing at state. But it was all good and a great experience for her, her family and our team.
I have a girl that is Seventh Day Adventist and she couldn’t participate from dusk Friday through Sunday. She is a sophomore with zero running experience and in her 3rd meet ever she ran a 20:50 in 85 degree temps. Zero doubt she would’ve been in the high 19’s and competing at state. But it was all good and a great experience for her, her family and our team.