Mosul hosts its first all-female cycling marathon

In international news, an all-female cycling marathon took place in Mosul, Iraq for the first time. Participants and organizers are advocating for more women to ride bicycles.

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“I participated to overcome the obstacles in Mosul, the idea that girls cannot go around freely. I want to break this barrier and show that a girl can be free, that she can go and wear whatever she wants. And that when a girl rides a bicycle, no one should criticize her, by saying it is inappropriate because she is a girl. Our society is complicated, girls are not given their full freedom, everything is for the boys.”

Each participant received a training bike as a gift

The story is reminiscent of the Afghanistan women’s cycling that was covered a few years ago.