Nike has created an athletic product specifically for Muslim women.
The company revealed that the โNike Pro Hijab,โ a performance head cover, will hit stores early next year.
The pull-on product is made with soft, lightweight and stretchy polyester that is both breathable and opaque. It will come in dark neutral colors and have two sizes, XS/S and M/L, in order to account for a range of face sizes and shapes.
Nike said that Emirati figure skater Zahra Lari is already wearing their design. Lari competes on the ice wearing a hijab.
โI was thrilled and a bit emotional to see Nike prototyping a Hijab,โ Lari said in a statement to CNN Money. โIโve tried so many different hijabs for performance, and ... so few of them actually work for me.โ
Lari isnโt alone in her enthusiasm. Other Muslim female athletes expressed their excitement for the Nike Pro Hijab on Twitter.
Activewear options for Muslim women who wish to cover their hair in an unobtrusive and comfortable way are still hard to come by, as evidenced by a 2016 Kickstarter, or prohibited from competition, as this teenage boxer experienced firsthand last November.
It was just last year during the Rio Olympics when fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad became the first U.S. athlete to compete in a hijab. Nikeโs product could increase the profile of activewear options for female athletes of all faiths.
The announcement of Nikeโs athletic hijab has come just days after the company released a plus-size clothing line for women.
CORRECTION: This article previously implied that Nike is the only company making a line of athletic headwear; a number of smaller companies have been in this space.
