 Facing the challenge of living in sport-obsessed Australia just got a little easier for Muslim women. Pic: Athar Hussain
August 20, 2008 9:18 PM
By Pauline Askin
SYDNEY - First, the burqini, now the hijood. The Australian designer of the full-length swimwear for conservative Muslim women has created special headgear for athletes seeking to win glory without compromising their faith.
Bahrain's Olympic sprinter Rogaya Al Ghasara is set to become the first athlete to compete in the "hijood", a combination of the words "hijab" or veil and "hood", on Tuesday in Beijing.
Designed by Aheda Zanetti, managing director of Australian firm Ahiida, the hijood is breathable, fits snuggly like a hood and covers the hair and neck in accordance with Islamic custom.
"I'm excited that an athlete has gone to the Olympics and
there is a possibility that she will achieve gold, with a tiny
bit of help from me," Zanetti told Reuters.
Retailing for about $65, the hijood was inspired by Zanetti's
young niece who wears the hijab and who also likes to play
netball. "As I watched her, I wanted to make Muslim
women's lives more comfortable and bring them out of the
closet," she said.
Zanetti said she first heard of runner Al Ghasara eight
years ago at the Sydney Olympic Games and met up with her in
Malaysia in 2007, when she approached her to try the hijood.
A statement from the Australian trade commission Austrade
quoted Al Ghasara as saying the hijood allows her to "combine
my need for modesty with a design made from breathable,
moisture controlled fabric that allows freedom of movement".
Zanetti's desire to make Muslim women fit in led her to
design and retail the lycra burqini, a play on the words
"burqa" and "bikini." The swimwear resembles a diving suit -
complete with long sleeves and legs - but isn't too
figure-hugging and comes with a hijab head-covering.
It was used by Muslim lifesavers on Australia's beaches
last year as part of a program aimed at defusing racial
tensions which sparked riots between ethnic Lebanese
Australians and white Australia youths at Sydney's Cronulla
beach in 2005.
Like many Muslim women who grow up in non-Muslim societies,
Zanetti, who is of Lebanese origin, faced the challenge of
designing sports attire that adhered to Islam's dress code and
was acceptable to sports-mad Australians.
"Australia is so focused on sport and it's really
compulsory for us to start learning how to swim at a young
age," she said.
"I thought, I'm not only going to provide a garment for
these girls to actually go out and participate in sport, I am
going to give them one they can be comfortable in too."
(Reuters Life!)
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