Wilda talks about normalising wearing a hijab on the court in this exclusive interview with FIVB.com
Indonesian volleyball superstar Wilda Siti Nurfadilah recently led her club Bandung BJB Tandamata to yet another Proliga title. In an exclusive interview with FIVB.com, Wilda talks about normalising wearing a hijab on the court, the support of fans, and balancing her professional volleyball career, university education and flourishing fashion business.
Wilda started playing volleyball at the age of nine after her parents introduced her to the sport. She represented Indonesia for the first time in 2010, at just 15 years old, and has since cemented herself as one of Indonesia’s volleyball stars and a leader both on and off the court.
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She joined Bandung BJB Tandamata in 2016 and made headlines in 2017 at the Southeast Asian Games as she was among the first female volleyball athletes to wear a hijab while competing, one year after Egypt’s Doaa Elghobashy wore a hijab on the sand at the Olympic Games Rio 2016 following progressive uniform rule changes by the FIVB in 2012.
“It wasn’t always easy wearing a hijab on the volleyball court. I experienced some negative responses at the start, but I was determined to wear one because this is an important part of my identity and what I feel most comfortable playing volleyball in. People are so used to it now that I don’t really experience any hate, only love from our incredible fans!”
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Wilda’s success on the court proved that wearing her hijab had no bearing on her incredible sporting performance. In fact, through her fashion brand called fadhillahhijab, Wilda has created a line of high-performance hijabs specifically designed for sport.
“There were not many stores that sold hijabs for sport. So I decided to design and make my own brand of hijabs for this purpose, and it turned out that many people liked them and wanted to buy them.”
Wilda’s club Bandung BJB Tandamata successfully defended their title during this year’s Indonesian Women’s Proliga
A trailblazer for women’s volleyball, Wilda opened the door for players in Indonesia and around the world to express themselves on the court. This diversity and inclusion was on full display during the most recent Indonesian Women’s Proliga finals in Yogyakarta.
While playing…
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