Muslim Gymnast Farah Ann Abdul Hadi Criticised For 'Revealing' Leotard Worn

A Muslim Malaysian gymnast has been fiercely defended by her fans and supporters after she was criticised for wearing a “revealing” leotard at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games last week – where she took home two gold medals.

Farah Ann Abdul Hadi, 21, who won six medals in total, was slammed by some users on Facebook for wearing a leotard that revealed the shape of her “aurat”, which refers to genitalia and other areas of the body, such as thighs, which can be required to be covered according to Islam.

Hadi received the criticism despite the wearing the same shaped leotard as her competitors and as her female team members, which is the customary sportswear for female gymnasts.
Senior Islamic cleric Perak Mufti Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria supported critics and suggested that gymnastics is not an appropriate sport for Muslim women.
“If Muslim women want to participate in gymnastics, they have to find outfits which cover the ‘aurat’ and this, in turn, might not be suitable for the sport,” he told publication Astro Awani. He also said Muslim men playing football should have to wear shorts that cover their knees in accordance with “aurat”.
But many have jumped to Hadi’s defence, by far outnumbering her critics