Laura Bashraheel Saudi GazetteJEDDAH — Saudi Arabia's status on allowing women athletes to compete in the Olympics for the first time is still not clear. With London 2012 just a month away, the decision is not yet confirmed by the Olympics Committee here. According to a June 24 BBC report, officials said Saudi Arabia's Olympics Committee would oversee participation of women athletes who can qualify. The report also said that the statement came from the Saudi Embassy in London. In April, Prince Nawaf Bin Faisal, head of the Saudi Olympics Committee and President of the General Presidency of Youth Welfare, said at a press conference that Saudi Arabia will not officially send women athletes to the London Olympics this summer. He, however, said that Saudi women taking part on their own are free to do so and the Kingdom's Olympics authority would “only help in ensuring that their participation does not violate Shariah law." Despite the embassy's alleged statement, the Saudi Olympics Committee and the General Presidency of Youth Welfare have not officially announced anything yet. The International Olympics Committee said Monday that talks with the Saudi side were ongoing and that they are working to ensure the participation of Saudi women at the London Games. The head of the Kingdom's Olympics mission, Khalid Al-Dakheel, told Reuters on Sunday evening he was unaware of any developments in the ongoing issue.
