A sports official has been dismissed following a photo of an unveiled athlete

The president of the Iranian Federation of Sports for the Deaf has been dismissed and replaced after a photo of a female athlete participating unveiled in a competition was circulated, local media reported on Tuesday.

Minister of Sports Kioumars Hashemi appointed a new president of the federation in the early hours of Tuesday, replacing Mehran Tishehgaran, due to "events that occurred during the Asian Athletics Championships for the Deaf" held on Sunday and Monday in Tehran, according to the Isna agency. This replacement came after the publication on social media of a photo of an athlete not wearing a headscarf.

Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, wearing a headscarf is mandatory in Iran for all women, including foreigners, who must cover their hair in public places.

Asked by the Fars agency, Mr. Tishehgaran explained that "only women were present in the stadium during the women's competition," "without any men in the area." Athletes could therefore participate "wearing their sports attire." The official believed that the photo had been posted on social media by "a malicious person" who had access to a video of the unveiled athlete filmed by the delegation from her country, Kazakhstan. For him, this image was posted by "enemies" of Iran.

In May, the president of the Iranian Athletics Federation resigned due to the participation of unveiled women in a competition.

In recent months, more and more women have appeared without a headscarf in public places, especially after the wave of protests triggered by the death in detention in September 2022 of Mahsa Amini, arrested for violating the strict dress code.