Iranian rock climber returns to Tehran after competing hijab-free

• Iranian organizations overseas voiced concerns about a female rock climber who did not wear a headscarf at an international competition in South Korea
• She returned to Iran.
• Sunday’s International Federation of Sport Climbing Asian Championships in Seoul included 33-year-old Elnaz Rekabi without a headscarf

Iranian organizations overseas voiced concerns about a female rock climber who did not wear a headscarf at an international competition in South Korea. She returned to Iran.

Sunday’s International Federation of Sport Climbing Asian Championships in Seoul included 33-year-old Elnaz Rekabi without a headscarf. Her headband-wearing ponytail competition videos went viral.

IRNA said Rekabi arrived in Tehran early Wednesday morning. She arrives at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport via social media videos. She also addressed media.

More videos that were shared on social media claimed to show people gathered both inside and outside of the airport, yelling “Elnaz is the hero.”

It is not apparent whether Rekabi is being held in custody or whether she will face any consequences for her actions.

Her return to Iran comes in the midst of nationwide protests in the country calling for greater freedoms for women. The protests were in response to the death of a 22-year-old woman who died in police custody after being arrested for allegedly wearing her hijab improperly. Her death prompted the protests. Her return to Iran comes at a time when the protests are taking place.

In a story posted on Rekabi’s Instagram page on Tuesday, the athlete said she was called to climb the wall “unexpectedly” which “unintentionally” created a problem with her hair covering.

“Due to bad timing and unexpectedly being called to climb the wall, I inadvertently created a problem with my head covering,” she wrote.

“Apologizing for the worries that I caused … currently, according to the pre-determined schedule I am returning to Iran with the team,” the IG story post said.

She reiterated that she had “accidentally” competed without a hijab in an interview with state media on her arrival in Tehran on Wednesday.

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“Regarding this topic, as I already explained on my social media stories – it totally happened accidentally,” Rekabi said, when asked by the interviewer about the incident.

“I was unexpectedly called upon and I attended the competition. I somehow got busy with the equipment, and it made me negligent to the hijab,” she continued.

Iran mandates women wear a hijab when officially representing the country abroad.

In an interview Tuesday, before the climber arrived back in Tehran, her brother Davoud Rekabi told state-aligned Tasmin news agency that his sister would “always play wearing the national team’s uniform.”

“My sister had a hijab but was wearing a headband and unfortunately some people [took advantage] of this issue,” he said.

“My sister is a child of Iran, and she will always play wearing the national team’s uniform. Elnaz belongs to this land, and she will always play for this country,” he continued.