Afghan female athletes defy odds, pursue dreams at Asian Games

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.

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.