In the FIFA Futsal World Cup 2021, Iran is not only being talked about in terms of wonderful goals, being the only Asian team amongst the best 8 in the world, wonder goals by Asghar Hassanzadeh and Mahdi Javid, there is also a lady presence that has enhanced the name of Iran amongst the global audience.

Gelareh Nazemi, the Iranian FIFA futsal referee has been short-listed for the ne3xt round of the competition until the final match. 15 referees are in the list while the rest have to say farewell to Lithuania and depart to their homeland.

In an exclusive interview with Tehran Times, the Iranian official talked about the experience of officiating in the men’s competitions:

“It’s a great feeling to be the representative of Iranian futsal – and football– in the World Cup. It was the target that I set for myself after whistling the final match of the 2018 Youth Olympics Women’s Futsal Tournament in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Now I am grateful that I’ve been able to make my dreams come true.

“I have officiated in the men’s futsal competitions in the past. It is more difficult than whistling in women’s matches. In terms of physical contact and the game’s speed, you will face more challenges in male competitions.

“Also, as a referee who has worked both in football and futsal, I can say that refereeing in futsal is much more difficult than in football because it’s full of clashes and you have to decide in a fraction of a second!” she said.

Nazemi has also officiated in the AFC Women’s Futsal Championship and the UEFA Women’s Futsal Euro 2019 semi-final contest between Spain and Russia in Portugal.

She explained the difficulty that she has faced on the way to glory: “It is a path that I started 20 years ago. During all these years, I tried with perseverance and motivation to fight all the problems in my path because I believed in my goal. People have often said that women aren’t good referees. I used it as a motivating tool. I’m sure that it will not take 20 years for those who have followed this path after me, and they will reach their goal much sooner. It is because that some of the problems that I faced in my career have been solved over the years. However, the situation is still difficult for the Iranian female referees,” Nazemi concluded.

Practicing sport with the whole cover Islamic outfit is not to the taste of everyone in Iran. In some sports, they really look quite ridiculous and handicapped thus depriving them of their true potentials. Despite the claims of the regime’s propaganda that Islamic outfit is no hindrance to practicing sports, the reality and physics say otherwise . Gelareh Nazemi, however, is the odd one out. In spite of her Hijab and refusing to shake hands with men, a tradition in a sport that has been practiced for centuries, she does look the role and hardly out of place with her uniform

Nazemi is a confident referee who was not intimidated by the occasion and the atmosphere around her In the FIFA Futsal World Cup 2021. Selection for the final rounds of the tournament is a sign of approval by world Futsal Governing body FIFA for the quality of her work. Nazemi has done her country proud.