A00308 - Bronze Goddesses, A Golden Grill, and A New Day for Saudi Women
One of the faces of the 2024 United States Olympic Track and Field team belongs to Anna Hall
Her two main competitors are Katarina Johnson-Thompson of Great Britain
and the two-time Olympic Heptathlon Gold Medalist, Nafissatou Thiam, of Belgium
Remarkably, all three of these women are tall. Hall is 5'11", Johnson-Thompson is 6'0", and the great Thiam, is 6'2".
All three are also products of bi-racial backgrounds. Quite a coincidence ... or is it?
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There have been some amazing races in this Olympics but the most amazing for me was the Men's 400 Meter race. In that race, Quincy Hall came from far back on the home stretch with one of the most amazing closing finishes that I have ever seen. He seemed almost possessed on that home stretch run. But it worked and when he smiled after crossing the line it seemed on prophetic that he smiled with gold teeth
Quincy Hall teeth, explained: Why USA sprinter wears gold grill while competing in Olympics (msn.com)
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And then there was the sight of a woman from Indonesia competing in the Speed Wall Climbing event. Competing for a bronze medal, what was fascinating for me was that she wore a hijab and before beginning her competition would appear to have a meditative prayer. In a country where wearing a hijab is frowned upon in scholastic settings, it was an interesting image. She did not win the bronze medal but, in many ways, her simply being there in this particular sport was a victory in and of itself.
But to top it all off, in the sport of taekwondo, a woman from Iran (Nematzadeh Mobina) and a woman from Saudi Arabia (Abutalib Dunya Ali) competed for the bronze medal. Both dressed in hijabs underneath their helmets, the Iranian defeated the Saudi woman to win the bronze medal. But the fact that the Saudi woman was even in the event is a great day for Muslim women. Reflecting the changes within Saudi Arabia brought about by Mohammed bin Salman
who has begun to transform Saudi society in ways that separate it from its 200-year Wahhabi domination.
As evidenced by these Olympics, it does appear that it is a new day for Saudi women.
Peace,
Everett "Skip" Jenkins
Fairfield, California
August 8, 2024
P.S. I just watched another Bronze Goddess, one who mesmerized me at the Eugene Olympic trials, win the 400 meter hurdles in a new world record time of 50.37. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is simply amazing!
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