Human rights groups have called on the International Olympic Committee to help overturn a ban on French athletes wearing headscarves, arguing that the prohibition had left many Muslim athletes being “invisibilised, excluded and humiliated”.

The call, outlined in a letter published by organisations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, comes less than two months before the Olympics and Paralympics are set to begin in Paris.

The issue of athletes and headscarves at the Olympics, however, has long rumbled in the background in the lead-up to the Games. Last September, France’s minister for sport highlighted the government’s commitment to secularism to explain that athletes representing France would be barred from displaying religious symbols, including headscarves, during sporting events.

The UN criticised the ban, saying that women should not be forced to abide by dress codes, while the IOC was swift to say that France’s restrictions would not apply to athletes from other countries.