Asmahan eyes future as voice for Muslim sportswomen
By NELLY ELAYOUBI, SUN MEDIA
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 Asmahan Mansour. (Sun Media) |
OTTAWA (Sun Media) - Asmahan Mansour is an ordinary kid. She enjoys
hot chocolate every morning. She watches Lizzie McGuire on TV.
She's a tomboy, a girl wedged between an older and younger brother.
She loves playing sports. In the summer when she wakes up, the
first thing she does is go outside to shoot hoops or juggle a soccer
ball.
Soccer is the passion of this happy-go-lucky girl and the past
week has seen her in the spotlight for what she loves most -- playing
the game.
REFEREE RULING
Asmahan was ejected from an indoor soccer tournament last
weekend in Quebec because she refused to remove her religious head
scarf, known as a hijab.
The referee ruled her hijab a safety concern and the issue
went all the way to the world's soccer regulator, FIFA. Officials
decided Saturday to maintain Law 4 which states players "must not use
equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself or another
player (including any kind of jewelry)."
"As parents, we do not put our children in unsafe
circumstances," said Maria Mansour, Asmahan's mom. "I would not put my
daughter in a situation where she could be in danger."
Asmahan wants the spotlight turned off .
Maria, 38, an Italian-Canadian who converted to Islam 17 years ago, was speaking on her daughter's behalf.
A week before Asmahan's ninth birthday, she approached her
parents and said she wanted to wear the hijab. Her parents explained
that it was a big decision and wanted her to be sure that it was what
she truly wanted.
"She's very mature in her thinking and knows and understands this all," Maria said.
It's about being closer to God. It's about showing humility and
Asmahan said she would never take it off, "not even for $1 million."
"It's what makes her her," Maria said.
Asmahan matches her hijab to her soccer uniform and it's either
red or white. She has yellow scarfs, pink scarfs, but mostly wears
blue, her favourite colour, to match her eyes.
To ask her to remove her hijab, Maria said, would be a violation and no different than asking a girl to take her top off.
This week has left Asmahan exhausted, but not defeated, her mother said.
She hopes to one day be a voice for Muslim women who want to
compete in sports. Until then, she'll only play soccer in places where
she knows she'll be accepted.
"She's a strong girl at 11 years old and one day wants to make a difference for other girls," Maria said.
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May Allah (S) bless this girl, and all of those who understand life's inconveniences towards His Way, and not the other way around....Ameen
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