Since 1848, the very first women’s rights movement, to the present day, women have been fighting for their rights. On October 16^th, 2022, Iranian sport climber Elnaz Rekabi competed in South Korea without the mandatory headscarf required of female athletes to stand up against the harsh laws against women in Iran.

Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman, was detained by Iran’s morality police over her clothing, and her death has provoked women to remove their mandatory hijabs in public. So, Rekabi decided against donning the hijab while competing on Sunday to protest the death of this young woman and support women’s rights. Supporters and Farsi-language media outside of Iran have worried about Rekabi’s safety after she chose to compete without the hijab.

“For things like this to still be happening in 2022 is ridiculous, and all over a piece of clothing,” said Michaela Braxton (10).

Elnaz Rekabi’s abrupt departure from South Korea on Tuesday prompted the BBC to voice its worry. After sending a message on Monday in which she claimed to be with Iranian officials, the 33-year-old sportswoman reportedly did not update her family on her location. Ms. Rekabi’s passport and cell phone were also reported confiscated, raising suspicion on the matter.

“I feel like in the time she was missing, they planned to do something, but thought better of it because of how big of a story these protests are becoming. If Elnaz went missing now it would be obvious as to who took her,” Jayda Donahue (10) commented.

The Iranian embassy in Seoul responded to claims that Ms. Rekabi left South Korea on Tuesday by saying she left at the same time as the other team members. Additionally, rather than a more recent image from the championships in Seoul, the embassy chose to publish one of the athlete while she was competing in Moscow and wearing a hijab, showing their disapproval of her recent performance without it.

The IFSC verified Rekabi’s presence in Tehran with her family on Wednesday. They welcomed her as she landed, and she spoke with state media upon her return.

“I came back to Iran with peace of mind although I had a lot of tension and stress,” Rekabi said. “But so far, thank god nothing has happened.”

The climbing federation said in a statement that it had phone conversations with Rekabi and meetings in Seoul with the Iranian National Olympic Committee and the International Olympic Committee over the athlete. “The IFSC received clear assurance that Ms. Rekabi will not suffer any consequences and will continue to train and compete,” the organization said on Wednesday.