A Panorama, Cape Town, family have criticised the rules of the 2023 Commonwealth Judo Championships after their daughter was not allowed to receive her medal on the podium because she was wearing a headscarf.
On Saturday, Naqeebah Fredericks, 16, won a bronze medal at the competition, which started on August 2 and ended on Sunday in Gqeberha.
When the Muslim family decided that she would not remove her headscarf, Naqeebah was made to accept her medal next to the podium.
No professional photographs were taken of her and she was also excluded from a team photo on the podium.
Her upset father Luqman said his daughter would wear a burqa, similar to a sports hijab, until this was no longer allowed and would remove it with her shoes before stepping onto the mat.
She was, however, previously allowed to accept her medals and have pictures taken while wearing her headscarf on the podium.
Naqeebah came second in the SA Open and third in the Judo Commonwealth Championships.
Luqman said: “There were a lot of people who empathised with us and said it’s stupid because she’s not fighting.
“The people who were handing out the flowers and the medals had headgear on and they were in the photos, so is that not a contradiction?”
According to the International Judo Federation (IJF) Sport and Organisation rules, athletes must attend the medal ceremony barefoot, without any hat, cap or any similar head covering and wearing their IJF-approved white judogi (white two-piece costume worn during judo contests).
In addition to this, “any demonstration with religious, political, personal, or commercial connotation is also prohibited”.
Her mom Rashida said: “She was not fighting, she was approaching the podium and they said take your headscarf off. Obviously, it’s a memorable occasion, they take photos and it goes onto Facebook.”
Judo South Africa representative executive member director: Marketing Theresa Mihalik said the tournament was an international tournament governed by rules of the IJF and according to its regulations, no headgear was allowed.
“There were no participants allowed on the podium for the official photos with headgear,” said Mihalik.
Simone Callander, sports director for the Commonwealth Judo Association, discussed the matter with the parents, showed them the regulations and they requested she still get her medal but will not get on the podium.