Swimming hats that have been exclusively designed to accommodate afro-style hair have reportedly been barred from the upcoming Tokyo Olympics as well as all international sports competitions.
According to local media outlets, one of the world’s most famous swimming cap designing companies explained how it had been shown the red signal for creating more headgear that entailed the concept of inclusive swimwear.
Therefore, that means the company was denied all forms of certification regarding the use of its products at the upcoming Olympics and other major swimming competitions too.
The company which goes by the name of SOUL CAP was originally founded in the year 2017 by two friends named Toks Ahmed and Michael Chapman. The duo thought of the innovative concept after they began their own swimming lessons while meeting a female who had Afro-styled hair. She shared her complaints and struggles regarding the size of her ordinary swimming cap and how it just failed to fully incorporate her hair.
Ever since then, the brand turned into a global sensation while forming a strong partnership with the world’s first Black woman swimming champion of Great Britain, Alice Darling.
Now, however, things appear to be taking a gloomy turn as SOUL CAP was recently barred from all major swimming competitions including the upcoming Olympic games of Tokyo as FINA, which is the Federation for all global competitions in the world of water sports denied its entry to take part.
On the other hand, the Olympics and other leading sports competitions have allowed swimming caps that pertain to a particular style and design, coming with a range of specifications.
Their justification for the act revolved around how ‘elite athletes’ or those competing at major international events never went about using ‘afro hair’ caps in the past.
But the news has since then sparked widespread outrage and fury as many slammed the committee’s decision as racist with a complete failure of acknowledging the extreme diversity that comes alongside competitive swimmers.