Jacques Rogge rejects latest scheme to allow Saudi Arabia to exclude women from sport

Dalma Malhas, an Saudi equestrian athlete
who competed 2010 Youth Olympics in a private capacity. 

Let us note that in the best of cases, Saudi Arabia would field a token woman or two, athletes who live and train outside the country (if only because women can't really practice sport within the country), and only in certain Islamist-soluble sports (such as equestrian)> Any sport where a woman athlete might expose any skin is of course out of the question. So will the IOC show some backbone and enforce its own charter? It doesn't make much of a difference, but even a modicum of balls would be nice.

From Inside the Games:

May 25 - International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge has revealed there is no chance that Saudi Arabia's female athletes will be able to compete at the Olympic Games under the IOC Flag in a declaration that ups the pressure on the country ahead of London 2012.

There have been continuous calls for them to be banned from London 2012 since the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC) refused to bow to pressure to select women athletes for their Olympic team.

It was thought there was a still chance that Saudi Arabia's top female athletes might compete at London 2012 under the IOC banner, but Rogge has completely dismissed the idea, insisting that they are still working to solve the issue.

"There is absolutely no need to consider the .ossibility of the participation of Saudi women under the IOC Flag," said the IOC President here at the Sport Accord Convention.


Keep reading HERE.

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Learn more about the history of the Islamist campaign against woman in sport:

Bn French) HERE.