Olympic Games: Aussie Muslim boxer takes another swipe at France for enforcing hijab ban in Paris By Ollie Lewis

Aussie boxer Tina Rahimi (pictured) has slammed France for enforcing a controversial hijab ban at the Paris Games

• France has banned its Olympic athletes from wearing hijab
• Aussie Muslim boxer is up in arms over the decision

Australian Muslim boxer Tina Rahimi has once again torched France for its refusal to allow the nation’s athletes to wear the hijab during the Paris Olympics.

Rahimi, 28, is one of 12 Aussie fighters to qualify for Paris, with Australia sending its largest-ever boxing team to the Games.

Rahimi, from Bankstown in western Sydney, wears a full hijab during her bouts and won bronze in the featherweight division at the Commonwealth Games last year.

France announced in April that it would ban its athletes from wearing the hijab, with. French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera saying the decision was made to uphold the principle of secularism.

The host nation has come under significant criticism, both within France and from international rights groups – with Rahimi also adding her voice to the outcry in the build up to the Games.

And now, ahead of her bout on Friday, Rahimi has once again hit out at France.

‘Women have the right to choose how they want to dress,’ she posted on Instagram. ‘With or without hijab. I choose to wear the hijab as a part of my religion and I am proud to do so.

‘You shouldn’t have to choose between your beliefs/religion or your sport,’ added Rahimi. ‘This is what the French athletes are forced to do.

‘No matter how you look or dress, what your ethnicity is or what religion you follow,’ Rahimi added in her post.

‘We all come together to achieve that one dream. To compete and to win. No one should be excluded. Discrimination is not welcome in sport, specifically in the Olympics and what it stands for.’

Her post echoes previous comments she has made about the French position.

‘This has got to do with the laws in France,’ Rahimi said in an older social media post.

‘Thankfully I’m still able to participate in my hijab, which I’m so grateful for.

‘But it’s so unfortunate for the athletes in France because it has nothing to do with their performance. It should not get in the way of you being an athlete.