(Indian Express, by Namit Kumar) 2022 was a year of many firsts for Tina Rahimi. She became the first female Muslim boxer to represent Australia at a multi-sport event when she participated in the Commonwealth Games. It was also the first time a boxer was wearing a hijab at the CWG.
Rahimi won the bronze medal in the 57kg category in Birmingham and instantly left a trailblazing path for young Muslim women across the world. Since then, a flurry of questions have come her way regarding her religious choices, and she says that made her a bit more conscious than usual.
“I do get asked about the hijab a lot. I don’t mind when it comes from a place of curiosity. I understand I don’t look like a regular boxer,” Rahimi told The Indian Express. “But some doubts do tend to creep in that people might judge me just on how I look. They might not like me because of how I dress. Sometimes, I’m afraid some judges might not like me because of how I look, and decisions might not go my way because of that.”
Despite the doubts, Rahimi does believe that there has never been any reason for her to think that anyone treated her differently due to her wearing a hijab. The Sydney-based boxer grew up in an Iranian family, and her father was a wrestler in Australia. Pursuing sports, then, was always encouraged at home, but few would have guessed she would take up boxing.
Rahimi was a make-up artist before picking up boxing recreationally in 2017, and it went from being a hobby to a passion the following year, when she had her first amateur fight. She qualified for last year’s World Championship, and later rose to fame in Australia with her CWG medal.
Expectations and self-doubts
She says self-belief never came naturally to her, so rather than the pushback from the outside world, it was harder dealing with her own self-doubts. “I had a lot more nerves when I was just starting out, lots of different kinds of thoughts coming into my head about how people perceive me. The bigger struggle was getting out of my comfort zone when I was boxing in the hijab,” she said.
Rahimi considers herself lucky that she is supported back home, but admits that dealing with the scrutiny and being in the public eye has not been easy. “There was never any negative reaction when I started. But I do feel that there are more eyes on me. Positively or negatively. I do feel it when I lose; that those who are supporting my decision want so badly for me to do well, and I’m letting them down a little.”
The scrutiny may have intensified, but so has the sense of pride. Rahimi hopes that when young Muslim women see her fighting, they would feel that they too can do whatever it takes to follow their dreams in the hijab.
“I’m proud of representing my country and community. That people watch me fight and can see that I’m a Muslim woman, that I can do what I love and continue to dress the way I want, for my religion,” she said.
At the 2023 Women’s World Championships in Delhi, Rahimi was knocked out of the tournament by home favourite Manisha Moun on Saturday. The bigger fight – to change the public perception of Muslim and hijab-wearing women – continues.
Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/sport-others/world-boxing-championship-hijab-wearing-tina-rahimi-an-inspiration-for-muslim-women-worldwide-8508475/