Fears Grow Over Competing Ban For French Muslim Weightlifter As Headscarf Law Progresses

On the outskirts of Paris, 44-year-old French Muslim weightlifter Sylvie Eberena concentrates hard and pushes 80 kilos of bar and weights clean over her veiled head.

The single mother made her four children proud when she became the French national champion in her amateur category last year, after discovering the sport aged 40.

But now the Muslim convert fears she will no longer be able to compete as the French government is pushing for a new law to ban the headscarf in domestic sports competitions.

'It feels like they're trying to limit our freedoms each time a little more,' said Eberena, a passionate athlete who trains five days a week.

'It's frustrating because all we want is to do sport.'