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Indian Chess Star Soumya Swaminathan refuses to wear Headscarf, withdraws from Iran Event

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Woman Grandmaster and former world junior girls' champion Soumya Swaminathan has refused to participate in the Asian Team Chess Championship, to be held in Hamadan, Iran, from July 26 to August 4, because of the compulsory-headscarf rule in the country which she said violated her personal rights. She took to her Facebook page to say, "I find the Iranian law of compulsory Headscarf to be in direct violation of my basic Human Rights including my right to freedom of expression, and right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. It seems that under the present circumstances, the only way for me to protect my rights is not to go to Iran." She further said that the religious dress codes should not be imposed on players.



"I understand the organisers expecting us to wear our National Team Dress or Formals or Sporting attire for our games during official championships, but surely there is no place for an enforceable religious dress code in Sports," she added.



Since the Islamic revolution of 1979, Iran has required women to wear the Islamic headscarf in public places.Women can only show their face, hands and feet in public and are supposed to wear only modest colours.

Here is what Soumya Swaminathan wrote on her Facebook page about her decision.

"I am very sorry to state that I have asked to be excused from the Indian Women's team for the forthcoming Asian Nations Cup ( Asian Team ) Chess Championship 2018, to be held at Iran from 26 July - 4 Aug 2018, as I do not wish to be forced to wear a Headscarf or Burkha. I find the Iranian law of compulsory Headscarf to be in direct violation of my basic Human Rights including my right to freedom of expression, and right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. It seems that under the present circumstances, the only way for me to protect my rights is not to go to Iran.

I am very disappointed to see that player's rights and welfare are given such less importance while allotting and/or organising official championships. I understand the organisers expecting us to wear our National Team Dress or Formals or Sporting attire for our games during official championships, but surely there is no place for an enforceable religious dress code in Sports.

It is a huge honour for me to represent India everytime I am selected in the National Team and I deeply regret that I will be unable to participate in such an important championship. While we sportspersons are willing to make several adjustments for the sake of our sport, always giving it top priority in our life, some things simply cannot be compromised."

Ranked 97 among active women players in the world and fourth in India, Swaminathan criticised chess officials for allotting events to countries without taking players' rights into account.

This is not the first time an athlete pulled out of an event over the same issue. In 2016, top Indian shooter Heena Sidhu had withdrawn from the Asian Air Gun meet in Iran citing the same reason

https://sports.ndtv.com/othersports/indian-chess-star-soumya-swaminathan-refuses-to-wear-headscarf-withdraws-from-iran-event-1866599
 
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Don't know her and prolly won't remember her but Respect for sticking by what she believes in
 
Well done Soumya.

Why are Iranians forcing their culture on others? Shocking and disgusting.

Iran should be barred from holding any women's event of any sort.
 
boomboomcheema said:
Got more fame for this step than she will for whatever she does in her whole career.
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She is a higher rated player than the best Pakistani male player, Mahmood Lodhi. So it will be better if you don't disrespect her. Being a WGM and World Junior Champion in chess is no mean feat because unlike cricket there are 190+ countries taking part. And she is a regular in Spanish and Russian circuits frequently getting scalps of higher rated male GMs, that deserves respect.
 
Swashbuckler said:
She is a higher rated player than the best Pakistani male player, Mahmood Lodhi. So it will be better if you don't disrespect her. Being a WGM and World Junior Champion in chess is no mean feat because unlike cricket there are 190+ countries taking part. And she is a regular in Spanish and Russian circuits frequently getting scalps of higher rated male GMs, that deserves respect.
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No one cares about chess players from Pakistan or India, the only reason it's been posted here is to have a forum fight over it. I read the Times from back to front this morning, wasn't even a mention of it, and certainly never heard of her or the Pakistan male player before.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
No one cares about chess players from Pakistan or India, the only reason it's been posted here is to have a forum fight over it. I read the Times from back to front this morning, wasn't even a mention of it, and certainly never heard of her or the Pakistan male player before.
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Yes no one cares about multiple world champion Vishwanathan Anand.

Its laughable to hyphenate Indian chess players with Pakistanis and saying nobody cares.
 
Last year Saudi Arabia successfully hosted the speed chess world championship and female players were exempt from wearing abaya, in fact not even hijab. They were asked to wear formal suits and players from all countries participated. Even UAE and Qatar host annual events with no dress code. In Iran the situation is difficult for chess players because hijab is compulsory. Also the players can't interact with male coaches in the playing arena in between rounds, most (if not all) of the top female players have male coaches so it becomes doubly difficult for them. Last world championship was in Iran and you had pull outs from players from many countries like USA, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, India etc, even an Iranian player Dorsa Derakhshani pulled out and changed her federation. The regulations are very strict, one Swedish player's hijab fell off while she was playing and the organizer came and yelled at her in front of everyone, leaving her in tears. This is simply unacceptable because chess demands high concentration powers and can't be played with so much mental tension. Many more will pull out of this event just like in every single chess tournament organized in Iran.

Soumya is a terrific player and a liberated woman. Don't brandish her as an Islamophobe or mock her just because she refuses to be bullied.I have followed her rise as a player right from when she was a young girl. She has played in UAE, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, Qatar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Oman, Turkey...all just in the last 3-4 years. Problem isn't with her or Islamic countries, it is with the arrogant Iranian Chess Federation and corrupt FIDE. Why can't they follow Saudi Arabia's example and exempt players from compulsory hijab in the playing arena. You can enforce it once the players leave the hall or when they are visiting the city, getting to the airport etc. Also male-female barriers is plain stupid when it is a norm in women's chess.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
No one cares about chess players from Pakistan or India, the only reason it's been posted here is to have a forum fight over it. I read the Times from back to front this morning, wasn't even a mention of it, and certainly never heard of her or the Pakistan male player before.
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Viswanathan Anand is more well known than most subcontinental cricketers at the global level, he even received the Order of Russia from Putin a few years back and is known in most households in ex Soviet countries and Eastern Europe. His matches in Europe/Russia/North America attract significant viewership and is one of the most famous Indians out there. As a Brit Pakistani you should know about Mir Sultan Khan because he too is quite well known, read up about him if you have time because his story is inspiring and will make you proud to know that you share the same roots as him. Chess unlike cricket has a global following and bar Commonwealth countries and overseas desi diaspora cricketers have no standing in front of chess masters. I will wager that in Brazil or Russia or Hungary you will be hard pressed to find a single local who would even have heard of Afridi/Akram/Inzamam but there will be people who know about the existence of Mir Sultan Khan.
 
Swashbuckler said:
Viswanathan Anand is more well known than most subcontinental cricketers at the global level, he even received the Order of Russia from Putin a few years back and is known in most households in ex Soviet countries and Eastern Europe. His matches in Europe/Russia/North America attract significant viewership and is one of the most famous Indians out there. As a Brit Pakistani you should know about Mir Sultan Khan because he too is quite well known, read up about him if you have time because his story is inspiring and will make you proud to know that you share the same roots as him. Chess unlike cricket has a global following and bar Commonwealth countries and overseas desi diaspora cricketers have no standing in front of chess masters. I will wager that in Brazil or Russia or Hungary you will be hard pressed to find a single local who would even have heard of Afridi/Akram/Inzamam but there will be people who know about the existence of Mir Sultan Khan.
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Nope, never heard of him.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
No one cares about chess players from Pakistan or India, the only reason it's been posted here is to have a forum fight over it. I read the Times from back to front this morning, wasn't even a mention of it, and certainly never heard of her or the Pakistan male player before.
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People in India do care about their chess stars. Vishwanathan Anand is a celebrity here.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
Fair enough, in Britain chess is a very low key pass time, not much coverage is given to it so very few people know the champions.
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It goes back to the cold war era when India Soviet relations used to be strong.
Russians historically has been great chess players and India being a close ally and having a chess culture (used to be favorite pastime of nobles back in the day) led to growth of sorta rivalry between the two countries.
 
TM Riddle said:
It goes back to the cold war era when India Soviet relations used to be strong.
Russians historically has been great chess players and India being a close ally and having a chess culture (used to be favorite pastime of nobles back in the day) led to growth of sorta rivalry between the two countries.
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That is not correct. Indian chess has grown only after Anand (late 80s). It is true that Anand learnt chess for a couple of years in Soviet Cultural Centre Chennai but Russians per se did not help to spread the game here. In fact Anand was largely self taught and learnt more in his stay in Philippines which experienced a chess boom because of the Korchnoi-Karpov title match in Baguio (1978). Chess was a pass time in India even before Anand but we never attained excellence in this game, till the late 80s we were a minnow team even in Asia level. In fact most of the university level players and women masters in Europe/Russia were stronger than our men players that time. What Anand has done is extraordinary, he was India's 1st GM yet managed to be world champion. It is like the 1st test cricketer from Nepal getting 12000+ test runs against the big boys and being top scorer in multiple world cups. Even Fischer (the only American WC) was raised in an environment of high quality chess with some of the best chess teachers, in fact USA had a great legacy in chess in the late 19th century and 20th century producing heavyweights like Morphy, Reshevsky ,Rueben Fine, Marshall, etc. In fact USA was the only chess power capable of standing up to Soviet Union winning multiple Olympiad golds. Similarly Noway had a a strong chess culture with many established GMs when Carlsen started his journey. Germany and Cuba too had very strong chess cultures when world champs emerged from there.

Anand is the only exception in this because he was already India's best player by the age of 12 and when he was 14-15 there was no Indian who could even qualify as his sparring partner, that is how weak we were. That was the era of Soviet domination (Karpov and Kasparov were the strongest players) and Anand's triumph in Reggio Emilia (1991) ahead of 9 other top players (all were Soviets and the field included the big 2: Kasparov, Karpov) made the world take notice because that was the strongest tournament in chess history till then. 20 year's after Fischer's exit their empire was facing the greatest threat. During the period of peak Soviet/Russian chess domination only 2 outsiders stood out, Fischer and Anand. What Anand did after that is well known, 1st non Soviet WC after the American and repeated it 4 more times. He democratized chess and after him players from other countries got the confidence to take on the Russians/ex Soviet folk and other Eastern Europeans. Computers also played a big part in spreading the game because prior to that the Russian machinery kept all the theory/development/knowledge within its borders, in that sense computers did the balancing act. Now Anand is close to 50 and greatly weakened although he can still show glimpses of brilliance every now and then. We may produce many elite players but may not get another WC in our lifetimes, it's too tough. We aren't rivals of Russia because they have greater depth, Kramnik is equal to Anand but the Russian depth is very impressive, their 20th ranked player will be a 5th ranked player in India, gap further widens as you go down the ranking table. No team can match the Russians even today in terms of number of quality players. Chess is however a rare game where we are better than the Chinese, in spite of a lot of state funding in PRC we have produced more master level players because of the Anand effect. To conclude I will just say that if we have some status in chess today it is only because of one man, I won't be exaggerating when I say that without him we would be equal in chess status to Pakistan or Sri Lanka today.
 
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boomboomcheema said:
How famous are they compared to Cricketers in their own countries? Will they get mobbed by the crowd if they walked on the streets?
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He is the proud owner of Rajiv Gandhi Khelratna award, the highest sporting award in India. Every Tom dick and Harry in India knows him.
 
kaayal said:
He is the proud owner of Rajiv Gandhi Khelratna award, the highest sporting award in India. Every Tom dick and Harry in India knows him.
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In fact Anand was the first to get that award way back in 1991. Also the first from the field of sports to get Padma Vibhushan. The remaining two from sports category to get it are Sachin Tendulkar and Sir Edmund Hillary. Of course Sachin later went on to get Bharat Ratna after his retirement.
 
On topic: full power to her. Iran should not host these events if they have such a strict dress code.
 
Lol, this activity called Chess isn't even considered a Sport in the UK.
 
Swashbuckler said:
In fact Anand was the first to get that award way back in 1991. Also the first from the field of sports to get Padma Vibhushan. The remaining two from sports category to get it are Sachin Tendulkar and Sir Edmund Hillary. Of course Sachin later went on to get Bharat Ratna after his retirement.
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True. He is India's pride and forever will be. People have huge respect for him especially in South India.
 
Rafa said:
Lol, this activity called Chess isn't even considered a Sport in the UK.
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Darts and snooker aren't sports either, but they are hugely popular in the UK, so everyone knows the major players. It's perfectly reasonable that chess players might be big celebrities in India. Regardless, we can respect Soumiya's wish not to participate on her objection to wearing Iranian clothing instead of western clothing, that is her choice. Iranians should not be so restrictive on what people wear, otherwise the world will start to compare them with France.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
Darts and snooker aren't sports either, but they are hugely popular in the UK, so everyone knows the major players. It's perfectly reasonable that chess players might be big celebrities in India. Regardless, we can respect Soumiya's wish not to participate on her objection to wearing Iranian clothing instead of western clothing, that is her choice. Iranians should not be so restrictive on what people wear, otherwise the world will start to compare them with France.
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It's actually a big sport in India and Russia, Ukraine... Basically in former soviet States.
 
Good on her... Iran should take a leap of faith and enter the 21st century.
 
cricketjoshila said:
Yes no one cares about multiple world champion Vishwanathan Anand.

Its laughable to hyphenate Indian chess players with Pakistanis and saying nobody cares.
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I've never heard of this guy, nobidy knows about him in America. Is he some computer programmer?
 
Rafa said:
Lol, this activity called Chess isn't even considered a Sport in the UK.
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It is in other countries. Kasparov and Karpov shared most of the 'Best Soviet Athletes' awards in the 80s. Unless you have never played the game at a serious level you have no idea about the toll it takes on your mind and body. Also the most ego crushing sport in the world when you are on the losing side because the idea is to impose your will on others and no one likes that feeling.
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
Darts and snooker aren't sports either, but they are hugely popular in the UK, so everyone knows the major players. It's perfectly reasonable that chess players might be big celebrities in India. Regardless, we can respect Soumiya's wish not to participate on her objection to wearing Iranian clothing instead of western clothing, that is her choice. Iranians should not be so restrictive on what people wear, otherwise the world will start to compare them with France.
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Iran can force their people to wear what they want but in a global sporting event they shouldn't enforce it on participants from other countries. As I said in an earlier post Saudi Arabia hosted a world speed chess championship last year and they didn't enforce any strict clothing rules inside the playing arena, all top women players participated wearing formal suits and enjoyed the Saudi hospitality on offer. The event was a success and we got to see the best in action. Of course outside the playing hall they were requested to respect local customs and all obliged without a whiff of protest. The major culprit here is the Iranian Chess Federation which isn't even respected by the Iranian players, many of them are switching their federations to USA, Spain, Netherlands etc.

What I find absurd is that in these sort of situations always the women are targeted. If tomorrow Scotland organizes a chess event and forces the men to wear the Scottish Kilt, won't they protest in a similar fashion?
 
Cpt. Rishwat said:
No one cares about chess players from Pakistan or India, the only reason it's been posted here is to have a forum fight over it. I read the Times from back to front this morning, wasn't even a mention of it, and certainly never heard of her or the Pakistan male player before.
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I've never heard of this lady either. Vishwanathan Anand yes but not her and it makes sense since she is like ranked 97 or something...
 
Snak3eye5 said:
I've never heard of this lady either. Vishwanathan Anand yes but not her and it makes sense since she is like ranked 97 or something...
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You are right common public won't know her. Only those who follow chess know lower rated players, I have seen her giving simuls and lectures in Chennai. Even though she is ranked low you can't believe the playing strength of these players, they'll swat us commoners like we are nothing. Pakistan's greatest player post Independence is Mahmood Lodhi, 15 times national champion and she is currently rated higher than his peak rating. She would whip the national (male) champions of most countries for fun.
 
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Is this Iran implementing Muslim law or should this be taken as a misrepresentation of the same?
 
So when Denmark put a ban on Niqaab and Burqa it was fair decision because people said their country and their rules and if you dont follow the rules then better go back to some Muslim country.

Iran is following the same, but Iran is villain here :)))
 
On topic, well done to Iran. If some one has an issue with Iran's rules then don't go there. Simple is that.

And respect to that Lady as well, hats off.
 
Hermoine Green said:
So when Denmark put a ban on Niqaab and Burqa it was fair decision because people said their country and their rules and if you dont follow the rules then better go back to some Muslim country.

Iran is following the same, but Iran is villain here :)))
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That's pretty much the point. She didn't like the country's rules, so she opted to lose out by not going there. She didn't demand that they change the rules to accommodate her :)
 
Hermoine Green said:
So when Denmark put a ban on Niqaab and Burqa it was fair decision because people said their country and their rules and if you dont follow the rules then better go back to some Muslim country.

Iran is following the same, but Iran is villain here :)))
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No you are confusing things here. Iran can do whatever they want in their country with their people/tourists but we are talking about the players here who are coming from other countries. The players can be asked to wear hijab when they are in their hotels or going shopping or visiting tourist places on the rest days. But it is gross violation to ask them to wear hijab in the playing hall.

Many Muslim countries host these tournaments but they never bully the players like Iran is doing over here. In their cases there is a rule inside the playing arena and one outside. As per ACP (Association of Chess Professionals) survey most of the players are not ok with compulsory hijab in tournaments though not everyone can boycott it because this is what they have worked towards their whole lives. Tomorrow if Denmark imposes compulsory bikini during international sports matches there you can be rest assured many will boycott it because everyone wants to have a free mind without stress/pressure while representing their country in sports.
 
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Hermoine Green said:
So when Denmark put a ban on Niqaab and Burqa it was fair decision because people said their country and their rules and if you dont follow the rules then better go back to some Muslim country.

Iran is following the same, but Iran is villain here :)))
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Did she ask Iran to change its rules?No.

She just opted out.

Thats what civilised people do.
 
We have the Chess Olympiad in Batumi (Georgia) in October and Soumya isn't part of the Grand Prix circuit because she isn't rated high enough. Right now Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavali, Eesha Karavade and Tania Sachdev are ranked above her while Vijaylakshmi and Padmini Rout are within touching distance. Goal for Soumya will be to be the 5th ranked player by September so that she at least makes it as reserve player. Now she won't make top 4 surely before the cut off date for team selection but 6 and 7 are within striking distance, only 9 points separates these 3 players.

There is a real chance that this brave decision by her may cost her a spot in the team. Indian women will even in worst case scenario finish in top 10 and are big contenders for a medal. This is also the Olympiad where the legendary Humpy will make her comeback after a long hiatus, so pretty big for Indian women's chess. She has really taken a brave possibly career altering decision here, who knows next Olympiad younger players like Rout, Vaishali , Akanksha may scoot past her and end her run with Team India. I certainly wouldn't have risked it all if I were in her place, there are easy points to be made against the comparatively weaker Asian players.
 
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She is getting flak from certain corners but have to admit it requires real guts to take tough decisions which have a bearing on one's professional life. Let us admit it, very few of us will ever take a stance on issues if it is going to cost us a chance to represent our country in the global stage.
 
Pakistanian said:
I've never heard of this guy, nobidy knows about him in America. Is he some computer programmer?
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Actually not true , many white folks who follow the game(which are huge among nerds, geeks) actually know Vishwanathan but not Sachin or other cricketers.
I can just speak about ones I spoke to in Chicago who actually follow the game.

So avoid blanket statements, and even GO players many know here ,esp after Deep Mind.
 
Pakistanis putting down chess/badminton is very similar to many Indians putting down squash makes sense as it conveys the bias.

Surely these games have their followers, no sport would be like Soccer or Tennis which world follows.
 
There is no controversy here. All perspectives are reasonable except some trolls here:
- Whos she? Whos Anand?
- Whats this stupid game?
- publicity stunt
etc.
 
JaDed said:
Pakistanis putting down chess/badminton is very similar to many Indians putting down squash makes sense as it conveys the bias.

Surely these games have their followers, no sport would be like Soccer or Tennis which world follows.
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I used to play Chess. Its an interesting game but you need to play with someone who on the same level as you otherwise it's a waste of time. It isnt a sport though.

On topic, if the lady feels is against her human rights its her choice but seems a radical choice which means she can't take the prize home now.
 
Played a lot of chess as a kid/teenager, really helps with improving critical thinking, memory etc but to be a Grand Master is something which is very difficult. It's mental athleticism. have to take it up while very young after that it's very difficult.
 
KingKhanWC said:
I used to play Chess. Its an interesting game but you need to play with someone who on the same level as you otherwise it's a waste of time. It isnt a sport though.

On topic, if the lady feels is against her human rights its her choice but seems a radical choice which means she can't take the prize home now.
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True in my state in India there used to regular tournaments, kids very young are put into training and they start competing for ranks so easy to find competition and it's nice to play but very boring to watch, a lot of my friends discuss moves of top players matches which personally bores me a lot.
 
Publicity stunt by a nobody who plays a game no one cares about.

There. Summed up the thread for y'all.
 
I used to play chess, now I don't

Got in into cricket and things unbeknown.

This post will remain! regardless of fame!

Now you'll see how useless is this Chess game.
 
Swashbuckler said:
She is getting flak from certain corners but have to admit it requires real guts to take tough decisions which have a bearing on one's professional life. Let us admit it, very few of us will ever take a stance on issues if it is going to cost us a chance to represent our country in the global stage.
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The worldwide exposure was probably worth more to her to be honest. She's not ranked that highly it seems, so this way she gets noticed rather than just quietly going home after being beaten by someone better.
 
Braveheart said:
Sorry, never heard of him.
As a Matter of interest, Is there a Chess version of the IPL in India?
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There is a Maharashtra Chess League where many top Indian players participate. Aamir Khan and Anand are the brand ambassadors.
 
A very weak Indian team participated but won this particular event. China and Iran took the other 2 places in the podium. Soumya's absence wasn't felt :),

asia.jpg
 
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