Hangzhou, China, September 30, 2023: The Olympic Council of Asia’s Youth Reporter Project embarked on a special mission on Saturday evening – to cheer on the Afghanistan women’s volleyball team!
The Afghan National Olympic Committee announced recently that they would be entering a women’s team for the first time in the Asian Games – in volleyball. The “Flying Angels” formed the bulk of the 17-strong women’s squad, along with female athletes in cycling and athletics.
Saturday night was showtime for the Afghan women’s volleyball team, and a big and enthusiastic crowd gathered at the Hangzhou Normal University Gymnasium to cheer them on in their Pool D opener against Kazakhstan.
Although the match lasted only 43 minutes and Kazakhstan’s infinitely taller, faster, more experienced and dynamic team triumphed 25-4, 25-5, 25-3, there was only one winner on the night – the brave and inspiring Afghanistan team.
Based in Tehran, Iran, the team trained for around 45 days before coming to China, and this was never going to be enough against some of the strongest teams in Asia, if not the world. Japan is also in Afghanistan's Pool D.
But they are here, and they are flying the flag not only for Afghanistan but for women around the world as their homeland is currently out of bounds for female athletes under Taliban rule.
After the match, and with the assistance of Afghanistan NOC officials, the OCA’s three young reporters present on the night were taken down through the stands to the locker room.
Outside, they were able to chat in English with Roghayeh Mohammadi – one of the team’s best players but who, sadly, has been ruled out of the Asian Games after injuring her right knee in training on Friday. After undergoing an MRI at the hospital and being told to rest for three weeks, the 21-year-old player watched her friends play on the court from her wheelchair in the stands – devastated she could not be part of the team after making this long journey.
The three young reporters – Dana from Palestine, Shaikhah from Kuwait and Umed from Tajikistan – were then allowed to enter the locker room, where the players were sitting around a big table and discussing the match with their coaches and officials. The motivational talks were much appreciated by the players, who had become firm favourites of the 5,000 Chinese supporters in the stadium.
The story of the Afghanistan women’s volleyball team at the 19th Asian Games is heartwarming and inspiring, one of courage and defiance – and proves that there is much more to sport than just the result.
