Olympic Refugee Team breakdancer Manija Talash was disqualified from the first-ever breakdancing competition at the Olympics on Friday for wearing a cape that read "Free Afghan Women" in a pre-qualification competition against India's Sarjo.
Twenty-one-year-old Talash, known as "b-girl Talash", is originally from Afghanistan and represents the Olympic Refugee Team, and she lost in the prequalification competition against Sarjo and would not have been able to go further if she had not been disqualified.
Political statements and slogans are prohibited on the arenas and podiums at the Olympics.
The World Sports Federation, the body in charge of breakdancing at the Olympics, said she was disqualified for displaying a political slogan on her clothing during a pre-qualification bout.
Talash sought and received asylum in Spain after fleeing Taliban rule in her native country in 2021.
"I'm here because I want to reach my dream, not because I'm afraid," she told AP in Spain, before the Olympics.
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