Saudi Arabia Caves to International Pressure, Will Send Two Women Athletes to Olympics

On Monday, it looked like there wouldn’t be any Saudi women headed to the London Olympics.

But maybe their government was just fucking with us (delayed gratification: it works!), because the IOC announced today that Saudi Arabia will actually send judo athlete Wodjan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani and 800-meter runner Sarah Attar to compete in the Games.

“This is very positive news and we will be delighted to welcome these two athletes in London in a few weeks time,” IOC President Jacques Rogge said in a statement. “The IOC has been striving to ensure a greater gender balance at the Olympic Games, and today’s news can be seen as an encouraging evolution.”

Saudi Arabia received intense international pressure to send women athletes to the Olympics, but it wasn’t the only country debating the issue — Qatar and Brunei are also including women on their teams in an unprecedented move. This means that every single country will be represented by female athletes for the first time ever. History in the making!