LIFTING THE VEIL
Faranak Partoazar, the first female MTB racer to emerge from secretive Iran, reveals her podium dreams and the struggles she’s faced to get this far
Faranak Partoazar, the first female mountain bike racer to emerge from secretive Iran, reveals her podium dreams and the struggles she’s faced to get this far
Intrigued, impressed and a little bemused – that was my reaction when I first met Faranak Partoazar. From what we see in the media, the idea of women racing bikes in the Islamic Republic of Iran seems absurd. Yet, here was a multiple-time national cross-country champion with hopes of competing internationally. This confident rider was a far cry from the stereotypical image of veiled and oppressed Muslim womanhood. Six years on, she’s raced a handful of World Cups and has her sights set on competing at the 2024 Olympics. I caught up with her to get the full lowdown.
Persian (culture) gulf
“There are some very religious cities, and some of the authorities have tried to ban women from cycling, often saying they aren’t wearing enough, whatever that means,” Faranak tells me. “It depends on the local culture of people in certain areas.” Luckily for her, she lives in the historical, literary city of Shiraz, which is a cosmopolitan place, including in its attitude towards women – although they are still expected to wear the hijab in public, including when riding and racing.
“Mountain biking is getting more and more popular,” she explains. “It’s growing everywhere and becoming more acceptable – more so in bigger cities like Tehran and Shiraz, which aren’t as religious as some.” While the Islamic authorities may not be a barrier to women taking up mountain biking, in this area of Iran at least, many riders have had to quit the sport in recent years, because the country’s severe economic decline has made it a superexpensive activity. Such a high-tech sport does seem somewhat at odds with the popular image of Iran – a land of veils, secret bunkers and camel trains. But if you seek out YouTube videos from the country, you’ll see a whole different side to things, which the mainstream media seems reluctant to show.
The real Iran
“Sometimes foreigners think Iran is a really closed and restricted country,” says Faranak, emphasising that it’s not, or at least only in certain pockets. “People know it’s really big, but they think it’s all desert, like Saudi Arabia. That’s completely wrong – the country is so varied, we have every extreme of nature and scenery here.”
Even so, women riding and racing mountain bikes is still a fairly new phenomenon, and when Faranak started out, even her own family had concerns for her safety when riding alone. Her dogged determination to follow her dreams, along with the success and exposure she’s achieved through her results on the international circuit, has gone a long way towards shifting attitudes towards women and cycling within Iran. “Even if some people don’t want me to ride and try to ignore it, my success is bringing changes in acceptance and awareness,” she says.
Despite this, there are still many cultural hurdles to bunnyhop along the way. “Normally, in cycling and many other sports, even if the women are covered in the hijab, the men can still not go to watch the events or support female friends,” Faranak explains. Thankfully, the turning of a blind eye often prevails over loosely-etched and dated rule books. “In some cities they do still say men aren’t allowed, but nobody bothers because most of the team staff are male, so they find ways around it.”
Leading the way
Faranak is slowly but surely taming those cultural rock gardens, and in doing so, is a highly-active figurehead and inspiration for other Iranian women and girls, who’d maybe never even