Sara Khadem was pictured without the head covering - which is mandatory under Iran’s strict dress code - when she competed at last week’s FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in Almaty in Kazakhstan.

It has since been claimed by a source close to Khadem that the 25-year-old has received multiple calls from people in Iran warning her against returning home while others have told her to come back and "solve her problem".

The source also said that Khadem’s family had received threats from Iranian authorities.

Following the phone calls, tournament organisers in Almaty are reported to have provided Khadem with security.

It is reported that four security guards were stationed outside Khadem’s hotel room.

According to reports in Spain, Khadem has arrived in the country but it is unclear whether her family is planning to seek asylum.

There has been a wave of serious anti-Government protests across Iran after the death of Masha Amini in September.

Amini was arrested for not wearing a hijab - which was made compulsory in public after the 1979 Islamic revolution - and died in custody after falling into a coma, with police accused of brutally beating her, leading to cerebral haemorrhage and stroke.

The authorities claimed that she had a heart attack.

Concerns were raised over the safety of sport climber Elnaz Rekabi after she competed without a hijab at the Asian Championships in South Korean capital Seoul last November.

However, the National Olympic Committee of the Islamic Republic of Iran stressed its support for Rekabi.

At last month’s FIFA World Cup, Iran's national team chose not to sing the country's national anthem as a protest during the group stage matches.

The anthem was also booed by Iranian fans in the stands.

Iran's players did sing the anthem before matches versus Wales and the US, but the boos remained.