Iran’s Rekabi latest female athlete at risk in home country

By STEPHEN WADE
AP Sports Writer

MORIOKA, Japan (AP) — Add Iranian climber Elnaz Rekabi to a growing list of female athletes who have been targeted by their governments for defying authoritarian policies. Rekabi competed in a climbing event in South Korea without wearing a headscarf, mandatory for women in Iran. She returned to Iran and said it was an unintentional act. Thousands of protesters met her at the airport, many women not wearing the hijab. She’s gathered support from the tight-knit climbing community. American Brooke Raboutou said she and other climbers want to do whatever they can to support Rekabi’s “really hard battle.”