Two people who organized a marathon in Iran, in which several athletes competed without veils, were arrested, the judiciary of the Islamic republic reported on Saturday. While women in Iran are required by law to cover their hair in public, enforcement of this law has become more sporadic since mass protests in 2022.
First modification: 06/12/2025 - 20:00
Iran's judiciary said Saturday that two organizers of a marathon on the island of Kish were arrested for allowing unveiled women to compete in the race.
"Two of the main organizers of the competition were arrested on warrants," the judicial website Mizan Online reported on Saturday, a day after the marathon took place.
"One of those arrested is an official from the Kish free zone, and the other works for the private company that organized the race," he added.
More than 5,000 people took part in Friday's race, according to local media, with images online showing several runners not following the Islamic republic's strict dress code for women, enshrined in law in the early 1980s.
"Despite prior warnings about the need to comply with the country's existing laws and regulations, as well as religious, customary and professional principles... the event was carried out in a manner that violated public decency," the local prosecutor said, according to the judiciary's official media outlet, Mizan Online.
Considering the violations committed and based on current legislation, a criminal action has been filed against the officials and agents organizing this event.
Conservative media outlets such as Tasnim and Fars had previously condemned the marathon as indecent and disrespectful of Islamic laws imposed after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which overthrew the US-backed shah.
In Iran, women must cover their hair and wear loose, modest clothing in public.
However, adherence to hijab rules has become more sporadic since the 2022 protests, which followed the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman arrested for an alleged dress code violation.
Earlier this week, a majority of lawmakers accused the judiciary of failing to respect the hijab law. Later, Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei called for stricter enforcement.
Iran's government under President Masoud Pezeshkian has refused to ratify a bill passed by parliament that would have imposed harsh penalties on women who violate the dress code.
In May 2023, the head of Iran's athletics federation resigned after women without headscarves participated in a sporting event in the southern city of Shiraz.
Article adapted from its original in English
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