Breakdancer who fled Taliban disqualified over ‘free Aghan women’ message

A breakdancer who fled the Taliban has been disqualified from the Olympics for revealing a message reading ‘Free Afghan Women’ during her performance at La Concorde on Friday.

The World DanceSport Federation said 21-year-old B-girl Talash was thrown out for “displaying a political slogan on her attire”, which is strictly banned under International Olympic Committee (IOC) rules.

Talash, who was representing the Refugee Team, ripped off her jacket to display the slogan on a bib in the course of losing a pre-qualifier battle to B-girl India from the Netherlands.

“I wanted to show people what is possible,” Talash said in a brief mixed zone comment afterwards. She refused an invitation to directly address her message.

Talash was the only female member of a breakdancing club in Kabul, and often received death threats. When the Taliban took over the country in 2021, she fled to Pakistan with her 12-year-old brother, and was ultimately granted asylum in Spain.

Rule 50 of the Olympic charter explicitly bans the display of “any political messaging, including signs or armbands”, and states that any infringement will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.