New Delhi: Afghan cyclist Fariba Hashimi, who once disguised herself as a man to train in Afghanistan, won a silver medal at the Asian Games.
Twenty-three-year-old Hashimi became Afghanistan’s first female medalist at the Asian Games since 2002. She won the medal in the women’s road race near Nagoya in Japan Tuesday.
“I came to the Asian Games dreaming about standing on the podium and representing my country. I can’t explain my feelings now,” Hashimi said from the podium.
The cyclist hails from the Faryab province in northern Afghanistan. She fled her country in 2021 after the Taliban captured Kabul, and settled in Italy.
Under the Taliban 2.0 regime, several rules limit women’s access to education and public life, including sports.
“This silver medal can show a lot of resilience from Afghan women. I’m not alone. I know that behind me are millions of women, from many countries, who have the same dream. They are standing with me,” she said.
Hashimi described her medal as something special.
“I was born inside a country where the women who dream are getting attacked, and I’m really happy that I have fought against that,” she said, adding that she hopes the next generation will come here and represent their country without any fear.
‘Never want to give up’
Hashimi took inspiration from her sister, Yulduz, also a cyclist at the age of 15. She added that she dressed as a man to go to training, wearing two or three masks so people would not recognise or attack her. She competed in the Paris Olympics 2024 with her sister.
She recalled that sometimes, a big stone would be thrown at her head.
“People were throwing bottles at me. They were trying to make us go home by being aggressive and attacking us,” she said.
Hashimi now lives in Italy and has trained under Italian former world champion Alessandra Cappellotto.
“I never want to give up, and hopefully we can see [what can happen] again in Los Angeles,” she said.
(Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)