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Zakia Khudadadi

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Zakia Khudadadi
Personal information
Native nameذکیه خدادادی
Nationality Afghanistan
Born (1998-09-29) 29 September 1998 (age 26)
Herat Province, Afghanistan
Sport
CountryIslamic Republic of Afghanistan Afghanistan, Islamic Republic of
SportTaekwondo
Medal record
Women's para taekwondo
Representing the International Paralympic Committee Refugee Paralympic Team
Paralympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris –47 kg K44
European Para Championships
Gold medal – first place 2023 Rotterdam –47 kg K44

Zakia Khudadadi (Persian/Dari/Hazaragi ذکیه خدادادی born 29 September 1998)[1][2] is a Hazara parataekwondo practitioner. She is the first Afghan female taekwondo practitioner. She rose to prominence after winning the African International Parataekwondo Championship in 2016 at the age of 18. She represented Afghanistan at the 2020 Summer Paralympics. She was initially denied the opportunity to compete at her first Paralympics due to the Taliban takeover but was later allowed by the International Paralympic Committee to compete in the event after being safely evacuated from Afghanistan.[3][4][5] She was able to compete and became the first Afghan female Paralympic competitor to compete at the Paralympics in 17 years since Mareena Karim's participation at the 2004 Summer Paralympics.[6][7][3] She also officially became the first Afghan female sportsperson to participate in an international sporting event after the Taliban takeover and the first-ever member of the Refugee Paralympic Team to win a medal.

Biography

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Born in Herat Province, Khudadadi belongs to the Hazara ethnic group. She has only one functional arm.[8]

Her life story is featured in the France Télévisions documentary A corps perdus directed by Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai.[9]

Career

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Khudadadi was motivated to take up the sport of taekwondo since Afghanistan's only Olympic medals came in taekwondo in 2008 and 2012. She was inspired by Rohullah Nikpai, who is highly regarded as Afghanistan's first (and currently only) Olympic medalist.[10] After the downfall of the Taliban in 2001 she, like many other women in Afghanistan, was encouraged to compete in sporting events just like men did. However, she had most of her training sessions at home and in her backyard as her opportunities to represent the local clubs were hampered due to the presence of Taliban in her home province of Herat.[10]

She won the 2016 African International Parataekwondo Championship held in Egypt.[10] She received wild card entry to participate in the delayed Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics, where she was chosen as one of the two competitors from Afghanistan alongside track athlete Hossain Rasouli. Khudadadi qualified to compete in the women's K44 Under-49 kg event.[11]

She left her parents and travelled to Kabul in order to train in preparation for the Summer Paralympics. However, Afghanistan's participation in the games was imperiled following the Fall of Kabul to the Taliban. Afghan athletes were also unable to leave Kabul due to the closure of the airports.[12][13] Khudadadi went into hiding from the Taliban and publicly requested immediate help in order to safely leave Afghanistan and take part at the Tokyo Paralympics.[14][15] She was confirmed to be on the evacuation list of Spain.[16]

"As a woman in Afghanistan and as a representative of women in Afghanistan, please. I am aiming to participate in the Tokyo Paralympics. Please reach out to me and help me. I would like to ask all the organizations that protect women's rights and the governments of each country around the world. Please help us not to be deprived of our rights as a woman in Afghanistan and as a player in the Paralympics. We have been struggling hard in difficult situations. I would like to show you this result. Please help us not to waste our efforts."

—Zakia Khudadadi after the Taliban takeover

On 28 August 2021, Khudadadi, alongside her male compatriot Hossain Rasouli, arrived in Tokyo after being airlifted from Kabul to Paris by the Royal Australian Air Force as part of international evacuation efforts, ending the uncertainties which prevailed regarding Afghanistan's participation at the Tokyo Paralympics.[5][17][18] The President of the International Paralympic Committee, Andrew Parsons, announced that both of the Afghan athletes would not be available for interviews and that permission had been granted to them to skip the usual press conferences.[19]

On 2 September 2021, she competed in the round of 16 event at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and lost the round to Ziyodakhon Isakova of Uzbekistan.[1] Khudadadi subsequently qualified to the repechage round but lost to Ukraine's Viktoriia Marchuk.[20][21][22]

On August 29, 2024, Khudadadi made history at the Paris Paralympics, becoming the first-ever Refugee Paralympic Team medallist. “I went through so much to get here,” she had said about her victory. “This medal is for all the women of Afghanistan and all the refugees of the world. I hope that one day there will be peace in my country".[23]

Awards

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In December 2024, Zakia Khudadadi was included on the BBC's 100 Women list.[24]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Afghans head to Tokyo with message of hope and peace". paralympic.org. 10 August 2021.
  2. ^ "Taekwondo: KHUDADADI Zakia". Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 29 August 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Zakia Khudadadi becomes 2nd Afghan woman to compete at Paralympics after her secret evacuation". The Economic Times. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Zakia Khudadadi's hopes of becoming first Afghan female Paralympian dashed". the Guardian. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Afghanistan's Paralympians safely evacuated, says International Paralympic Committee". The Indian Express. 26 August 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Afghanistan's first female Paralympian is trapped in Kabul and cannot get to Tokyo". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  7. ^ McElwee, Molly (16 August 2021). "Afghanistan's first female Paralympian denied chance to travel to Tokyo Games". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Who is Zakia Khudadadi? Afghanistan's first female Paralympian, 23, can no longer go to Tokyo". meaww.com. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  9. ^ Malin, Isabelle (2024-08-19). "Ils vont sûrement te tuer s'ils te trouvent: une athlète qualifiée pour les Jeux paralympiques de Paris 2024 raconte sa fuite d'Afghanistan". France Télévisions (in French).
  10. ^ a b c Robinson, Andrew Beaton and Joshua (17 August 2021). "She Was Set to Make Afghan History at the Paralympics—Until the Taliban Took Over". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  11. ^ "Taekwondo player Khudadadi set to be Afghanistan's first female Paralympian". www.insidethegames.biz. 13 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  12. ^ "'Heartbreaking': Afghan Paralympic athletes to miss Tokyo 2020". Al Jazeera. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  13. ^ "Afghanistan's first female Paralympian, now hiding from the Taliban, hasn't 'lost hope'". ABC News. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  14. ^ "Afghan athlete Zakia Khudadadi makes plea for help to compete in Tokyo Paralympic Games". Sky Sports. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  15. ^ "Tokyo Paralympics: Female Afghan athlete appeals for help to get to Tokyo". Sportstar. Reuters. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  16. ^ "Afganistán: España recibe la petición de evacuación de atleta paralímpica Zakia Khodadadi". americadeportes (in Spanish). 17 August 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  17. ^ "Paralympics | Afghanistan's Zakia Khudadadi and Hossain Rasouli land in Tokyo to compete at Games". Free Press Journal. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  18. ^ "Afghan Paralympians arrive at Games after harrowing journey from Kabul to Tokyo". www.abc.net.au. 28 August 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Afghan athletes arrive in Tokyo". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  20. ^ "Judo – Competition Schedule" (PDF). Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. 31 August 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  21. ^ "Taekwondo – Women K44 -49kg – Entry List by Event" (PDF). Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. 31 August 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  22. ^ "Afghan Paralympian Zakia Khudadadi makes debut after top-secret evacuation". The Japan Times. 2 September 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  23. ^ "Zakia Khudadadi makes history as first Refugee Paralympic Team medallist". The Guardian. 29 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  24. ^ "BBC 100 Women 2024: Who is on the list this year?". BBC. 3 December 2024. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
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