State-sponsored news outlets report that following the volleyball World League, during which security agents continuously prevented women from attending the 12,000 seat Azadi Stadium, this time the Iran Volleyball Federation has provided commitments to the World Federation to not ban women from attending the games. However, security agents continued to prevent women from even entering the area where the world volleyball tournament was held, all under the pretext of their makeup. These repressive measures took place in a tourist and recreational island of Kish.
Now, once again the issue of women attending sports stadiums is topping the news.
When the World League games were held in the 12,000 seat stadium, the Volleyball Federation had coordinated with security agents to allow a number of female employees and even female reporters into the stadium, in order to say there is no problem in women attending the stadium! Whereas only a few hundred meters from the stadium women were seen looking in vein. The Iran Volleyball Federation’s response to the World Federation was that men had purchased all the tickets in advance and entered the stadium before women!
The truth is the women waiting behind the metal bars all had game tickets in their hands and the World Federation had realized this very well.
Eyewitnesses say this time around security agents prevented women from entering the site where the games were being held. These games are held in the coasts of Kish Island with 56 teams taking part from 2 countries across the globe. “There was an agent standing Outside of the stadium saying you are not allowed inside,” a woman said.