Some are claiming the move violates the Olympic charter.
The ruling means several French athletes are unable to compete at the Paris Games in a move which seems to stand in contrast to the Olympic Charter, which states that “every individual must have access to the practice of sport, without discrimination of any kind in respect of internationally recognised human rights within the remit of the Olympic Movement”.
The IOC has an explanation:
In a statement sent to TIME, the IOC said that while its own rules mean that women are free to observe the hijab, athletes competing for French national teams are considered to be civil servants who must act in accordance with national contexts. “This means that they must respect the principles of secularism (laïcité) and neutrality, which, according to French law, means prohibition from wearing outwardly religious symbols, including the hijab, veil and headscarf when they are acting in their official capacity and on official occasions as members of the French national team,” the statement said. Athletes—including from France—are permitted to wear hijabs in athletes' villages.

