Afghan female athletes defy odds, pursue dreams at Asian Games

A total of 17 women are competing in volleyball, cycling and track and field with the goal of giving Afghan women hope for the future.

By Salaam Times and AFP

2023-10-03

Afghanistan's players line up before the volleyball preliminary match between Afghanistan and Kazakhstan begins at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, on September 30. [Philip Fong/AFP]

HANGZHOU, China -- Afghan female athletes, who fled Afghanistan because of severe restrictions on their activities and overall women's rights, are competing in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, with the hope of inspiring other Afghan women to "follow their dreams."

The women traveled to China from other countries where they sought refuge following the political changes in Afghanistan in August 2021, when women's sport was effectively banned by the current authorities.

No women were among the official delegation of about 130 competitors, coaches and supervisors who came from Afghanistan to participate in the Asian Games, held September 23–October 8.

Up against teams with organized training programs and government funding, the team of exiled women is unlikely to win many matches.

Afghanistan's Fareshta Karimi and Zahra Moradi block the ball during the volleyball preliminary match between Afghanistan and Kazakhstan at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, on September 30. [Philip Fong/AFP]

Afghanistan's Kimia Yousofi (center), Laos' Silina Pha Aphay (right) and Mongolia's Sarangua Enkhbaatar compete in the women's 100-meter heats during the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, on September 29. [William West/AFP]

But that is not the point, the athletes and coaches say.

"Actually the important thing for us and also the girls is that participation in such kind of matches and coming here, they give them hope for the future," Khushal Malakzai, the secretary general of the Afghan volleyball federation, told Reuters.

"And for those girls who are inside Afghanistan and outside Afghanistan, that they should understand that there are people that are still supporting them."

A total of 17 women are competing in volleyball, cycling and track and field under the traditional black, red and green colors of Afghanistan, according to Hafizullah Wali Rahimi, former president of Afghanistan's National Olympic Committee.

The women have been training in Iran, Italy and Australia, he said.

Rahimi now works from outside Afghanistan but is still recognized by many countries as its official representative on Olympic matters, according to the Associated Press.

"We want to be keeping the sports completely out of the politics so the athletes can freely, inside and outside their country, do their sports activity and development," he told reporters at an arrival ceremony late Thursday (September 28).

'Follow their dreams'

With the help of overseas sports bodies, more than a dozen foreign-based Afghan women are taking part, with the volleyball squad comprising the majority of them.

"I think it's a big hope for Afghan women, that they haven't given up their dreams, they have to follow their dreams," 25-year-old middle blocker Mursal Khedri told AFP after being swept 3-0 by Japan Sunday in a best-of-three match.

The 12-member Afghan squad team also faced off against Kazakhstan over the weekend, staying in good spirits despite being soundly defeated by their more seasoned opponents.

Wearing headscarves and long leggings, the players high-fived each other as they ran on to the court at the start of the match.

Spectators erupted in cheers when the Afghans belatedly scored their first point against Japan.

And even though they were swept in both matches 3-0, they had a strong sense of pride at even getting this far.

"It was so hard for Afghan women to attend this Asian Games because it's a difficult situation for us, all of the people know about the situation of Afghanistan," Khedri said.

Hong Kong also beat the Afghan women three games to zero on Monday, the last of their matches.

Despite losing all of their encounters, Khedri said it was "a good experience for our women's team."

"It was our first experience to participate in the Asian Games," she said. "I think we felt very nervous, but we tried our best."

Some of the Afghan volleyball players in Hangzhou declined to be interviewed, fearing retaliation against family members still living in Afghanistan.

After August 2021, hundreds of Afghan athletes, coaches and officials -- both men and women -- were evacuated on humanitarian visas obtained by other countries' National Olympic Committees.

Olympic officials said they would have faced significant risks had they remained in Afghanistan.

Now, women in Afghanistan face a slew of restrictions including being banned from higher education, public parks and many government jobs.

With the economy in shambles and millions of Afghans lacking access to food, shelter or health care, it is unlikely the athletes will be able to return safely to their homeland.

The presence of al-Qaeda, the local Khorasan branch of the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS-K) and other local extremist groups also poses a threat to the Afghan population.

Defying restrictions

Despite the threats and devastating restrictions on women in Afghanistan, the Afghan female athletes are determined to lead by example.

Sprinter Kimia Yousofi, who resettled in Australia last year after fleeing persecution in her homeland, said she was "here to represent Afghan girls" as she competed Friday.

"The most important thing for me is to represent our girls in Afghanistan," she said.

The 27-year-old Yousofi, who carried Afghanistan's flag at the Tokyo Olympics two years ago, competed in the first round of the women's 100-meter dash in Hangzhou.

And although she finished last in her heat, she said there was a bigger meaning at play -- "to represent Afghan girls who don't have permission for education and sports."

She urged Afghan women to "work on themselves."

"That means read books, everything they need for themselves personally."

Wearing a black headscarf and pink running shirt, Yousofi ran a time of 13.32 seconds.

That was almost two seconds behind heat winner Hajar Alkhaldi of Bahrain but just 0.03 second short of her personal best.

Yousofi said the atmosphere in the stadium was "amazing."

"The people are amazing and they give us very high energy," said Yousofi, who also competed in the 200-meter heats on Sunday. She came in 7th place with a time of 27.53 seconds.

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8 Comment

| 2023-12-09

Imprisoning, torturing, violence, sexual abuse of protesting women in the prisons, arresting, torturing, target killing of former soldiers and taking revenge and detaining their family members, mysterious, targeted and serial killings of Hazaras and other people in Afghanistan are in complete contradiction with the instructions of Islam, and it is against international human rights laws and principles. Continuation of these autocratic and monopolistic policies of the Taliban regime today has put Afghanistan in international isolation and its people have faced a severe economic and humanitarian crisis. In the past two years, at the same time as the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized the human rights violations by the Taliban and asked this group to change its approach to human rights. Arbitrary arrest of female activists, arrest and torture of former government employees, and restrictions on the performance of religious rituals are among the most important violations of human rights committed by the Taliban in the past two years in Afghanistan.

| 2023-10-14

Exercise is not limited to women and not only to men, but every human being should exercise. Those people who do not exercise only eat the food of living people but are considered dead. By exercising, the blood reaches all parts of the human body quickly. This means that the blood easily supplies the necessary materials to all aspects of the human body. Similarly, those who exercise never suffer from the problem of blood fats. Their blood is clean and completely free of fat. It protects humans from deep depression and other various diseases because the body's defense system is strong due to exercise. In today's young generation, it is considered a great misfortune not to exercise. One of the biggest misfortunes of not exercising in the young generation can be the world's digitization. If we think, most of the time of our young generation is spent using mobile phones and computers, which can have dangerous consequences. You see how much obesity has increased in the world. How many people worldwide suffer from various diseases every year due to obesity? This is the obesity that, in the end, a person becomes a burden on the shoulders of another, and a living person loses himself. It is required to devote at least one hour to exercise in twenty-four hours. Muscles become more assertive with exercise. And finally, we can say that exercise is what makes a person social and that a person is a great social animal. Let's adapt ourselves to the community, find a place in the community,

| 2023-10-09

The field of sports is very difficult for Afghan girls because the Islamic Emirate has closed the doors of education for girls, so they do not allow sports even throughout their lives. Sadly, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Pakistan, Iraq, and similar Islamic countries have women's sports teams, and we do not have them. It is a pity! But there is no need to complain because a complaint is made to the person who listens to his voice! I call these women heroes, who still participate in several competitions and fly their tricolor flag.

| 2023-10-08

Such games are encouraging for Afghan women. Winning or losing is not important in this game. It is important that an Afghan girl goes to the sports field on behalf of Afghanistan and our national tricolor flag is raised by a girl, and the whole world understands that Afghan girls can still walk in the ranks of the world and other athletes hope and try. . Sincerely, Lima

| 2023-11-23

In fact, Afghan women have kept their country's name honorable in any kind of difficult situations. The tricolor flag, which is the national value and national identity of our country, has been preserved. This is the sport that has kept us alive.

| 2023-10-04

The win or loss by Afghan women in this game is not important, but the important thing is that the name of Afghan women is mentioned in the sports' fields, and the tricolor national flag is raised on these fields. The game of these athletes gives hope to other Afghan women that there is still life and that efforts are needed. These Afghan sports heroes will show the world that without a country and without a coach, they can still walk in the ranks of the world, but the difference is that they will be behind them and that's it!

| 2023-10-04

Afghans are now trapped in a cage from which no way exists. Players, from the evil and corrupt officials of the former government to the Taliban, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, and even America, are involved in this series. During the 20 years, the international community gave enough time to the Afghan republican system and authorities to show their capabilities. In this series, people from different countries cut their bread in half and sent half of it to Afghans. In other words, they sent their tax money to Afghanistan. Still, the officials of the republic system, from the minister to the manager, instead of working for the country's development, took the same money and put it in their pockets. Atta Muhammad Noor, the warlord of Balkh who called himself emperor of Balkh, took a stand against the government rudely and challenged the central government. Fazal Hadi Muslimyar, Zahir Qadir in the east, Abdul Raziq in Kandahar, Fahim and his family in Kabul, Qanooni and his family, Abdullah and his family, Sayyaf and his family, Mohaqeq and Khalili and their families... made anti-government strongholds. And they continued their work until the government collapsed. The Taliban also attacked the poor people of Afghanistan with the help of Pakistani intelligence until they overthrew the governing system. Pakistan played a double game and hypocrisy. On the one hand, she took billions of dollars from the international community, especially America. On the other hand, she supported the Taliban

| 2023-10-04

It is precisely true that Afghan sportswomen are facing problems. They cannot return to their country. If they return, they will live in despair like millions of girls and continue their lives with tears in their eyes. It is true that "Afghan female athletes are trying to fulfill their hopes in the Asian Games despite the difficulties." Before this, female and male Afghan athletes brought glory to their homeland. The national flag of Afghanistan has flown around the world. The national anthem, which no one in Afghanistan can hear aloud, has been sung by these athletes in the world's biggest arenas and has given joy to the people. Thanks to all the sportsmen and women of Afghanistan who bring happiness to the Afghan people and keep the name of Afghanistan alive. Otherwise, Afghanistan would have disappeared from the eyes and minds of other nations.