Iran Press/ Iran News: Talking about her feelings as a successful Iranian woman, she said: "I must say that it took me about twenty years to reach my goal and stay where I am now. I think that anyone who has experienced the greatest event of reaching their goals, the feelings and mood cannot be described in words, I personally did not expect to be chosen as the fourth official in the Final Mach of 2021 FIFA Futsal World Cup, it is unbelievable to me."
Gelareh Nazemi also told how long has she been judging as a referee, the courses she passed, and those who have encouraged her highlighting: "I started judging when I was 17, and have been active in this profession for twenty years; my main motivators are my brother and family."Compared to the past, the situation is now very different and much better, so my family had the most important and greatest impact on my success so that I could continue judging and be able to achieve the greatest goal and event in my life and to be chosen as a referee for world cup matches," she added.
Regarding whether judging as a referee in her career or personal interest and the effects of it in her life, Gelareh Nezami emphasized: "Judging as a referee is not considered a job, especially for women, but kind of love and passion. In addition, beside to refereeing, they must have a job to have an income; yes, I have a job and I am responsible for women's football matches. Regarding the effects of sports or refereeing, I must say that it makes women stronger and more successful because they work harder despite all the lack of facilities and get stronger in life than men."
Mentioning whether men's or women's matches are more challenging, Nazemi noted: "As a referee, I think that judging men's matches can be more difficult because of their high speed, so the decision has to be made quickly."
Sharing her hardships, she has burdened to reach her goal, and the factors have led her to success, Iranian referee underlined: "Not only for me but also for other women, the lack of equality in distributing facilities between men and women makes the success more difficult for women; inequalities such as not providing a suitable place for training athletes or referees, for example. So, they have to pay these costs in person. The lack of sponsors as well is another point. I was often told to stop judging as a referee, because it would have got me nowhere, even if as I was on the brink of success. The conditions must be improved for the women referees. The reason for my success was perseverance."
She also eagerly advised women of the world, especially the Iranian women, not to give up, adding: "No matter how difficult the path is, we must strive for our goal and make nonstop efforts for our goal, because nothing is impossible. Of course, the situation is completely different now than it was 20 years ago, because now the motivation is high. There are women referees in various sports and they have performed well worldwide, and this strengthens the motivation. The facilities and conditions are much better now and it is easier to achieve success, we just should not give up to any difficulties."
In the wrap up she said: "In the path we the women are walking on, in my opinion, we may seem delicate, and to some, we may look weak, but women achieve any goal that they have determined, through effort and perseverance. The presence of female referees in sports sections should be continuous and we should see more of their presence in football and futsal arenas."
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