During Ramadan, Muslims observe a strict fast: it is categorically forbidden to eat food, including various sports nutrition, during daylight hours. Naturally, an athlete adhering to Islamic norms is unable to participate in any competitions during this month: it is impossible to set records on an empty stomach. And in many Muslim countries, sports life practically comes to a standstill during Ramadan: championships and tournaments take a forced pause.
Interestingly, the scandal was initiated not by Muslim powers but by British followers of Islam. Among those supporting the idea of moving the games are the London-based Islamic Human Rights Commission and the Muslim Council of Britain. The commission's chairman, Massoud Shadjareh, told the Daily Mail: 'They wouldn't organize this at Christmas. It is equally foolish to organize the games during Ramadan... This puts athletes at a disadvantage.' The faithful Britons were joined by the head of the Turkish National Olympic Committee, Togay Bayatli, who believes that participation in the games during Ramadan will be difficult for Muslim athletes.
However, the International Olympic Committee requires the games to be scheduled within the 'window' from July 15 to August 31, making a clash between the Olympics and Ramadan inevitable. IOC spokesperson Giselle Davies stated: 'The Games bring together representatives of all faiths and beliefs. How to deal with religious prohibitions is up to the athletes.' Nevertheless, the organizing committee of the London Games, according to its representative Joanna Manning-Cooper, will hold consultations with the Muslim Council of Britain regarding the settlement of Ramadan issues. According to her, these dates are the most convenient: during this period, traffic jams in London are the least. Moreover, it is easiest to find 70,000 volunteers for the Games at the end of July and beginning of August.
The emerging problem once again showed that in the Western world, where modern sport actually originated, sports calendar makers are not accustomed to taking into account religious holidays. Be it because the heyday of big sport coincided with the era of secularization of society, or because Europe and America have learned to combine secular entertainment with Christian norms. Of course, theoretically one can imagine, say, some Orthodox football player or hockey player upset that championships do not take a break during Lent or the Nativity Fast... But nothing of the sort happens for some reason.
On the other hand, it is possible that Muslims are simply following the example of their distant relatives: Israeli sports federations have long and successfully twisted the arms of European sports associations and leagues, demanding attention to the norms of their religion and other regional peculiarities. First and foremost, it concerns the observance of the Sabbath: a believing Jew cannot work on this day. International matches of Israeli teams have long been scheduled away from the time of the sacred idleness for Jews. And recently, the story of Israeli footballer Dudu Aouate, goalkeeper of the Spanish club Deportivo, drew significant media attention. This faithful Jew stated that he was ready to violate religious norms and play in a national championship match, despite the game falling on the Day of Atonement. In Israel, this caused outrage and the player was subjected to obstruction, but later, fortunately, it turned out that the game had ended before the Jewish holiday began.
Modern sport is not only born of Western civilization but also adapts to its norms in every way. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to combine championships, Olympics, and even amateur competitions with the fundamentally different formalities of Islam. For example, modern sportswear, at times resembling bikinis for women, is overly revealing for Muslim women (since even a swimsuit cut according to Mohammedan norms resembles a shapeless pajama to a European). As a result, the few Islamic sportswomen who try to dress without violating the rules of hijab look extremely strange at international competitions. And in running events of track and field, for instance, those Muslim women who are more concerned with the decency of their attire rather than its aerodynamics are doomed to lose.
However, if the organizers of the London Olympics do not bend under pressure from the Islamic lobby, world sport will hardly lose much. Firstly, most likely realizing that the blackmail failed, British Muslims will grit their teeth and stop their protests. And secondly, even if a number of athletes or national Olympic committees of Islamic countries refuse to participate in the Olympics, it will not significantly affect the distribution of prize places. Despite the fact that about a quarter of the Games' participants will represent Muslim states, most of these athletes will be extras. For example, at the last Summer Olympics in Athens, the best result in the Muslim world was shown by Turkey – three golds, three silvers, four bronzes. Iran had six medals, Uzbekistan had five – a country that is Muslim but demonstratively secular (the authorities in Tashkent carefully extinguish any outbursts of religious radicalism). So Muslim athletes, unfortunately, are not a significant enough force in sport, and attempts to make the Olympic movement dependent on religious rules can be safely ignored.