Most mornings after praying, 25-year-old Sanah joins several women from her neighborhood in the Afghan capital, Kabul, for a walk along the main road before it fills with traffic, never jogging or getting too near to the many Taliban checkpoints.
They exercise secretively, and not for competition, but for a modicum of health and peace of mind in a country where the Taliban government have stopped women from playing sports.
“We cannot go near the Taliban checkpoint because they say: ‘Why are you outside the house so early? Where are you going? Why do you need to exercise, you don’t have to, so don’t’,” said Sanah, whose name has been changed — along with all the women interviewed — for fear of reprisal.
Photo: AFP
The Taliban authorities have implemented an austere interpretation of Islamic law, with women bearing the brunt of restrictions that the UN has labeled “gender apartheid.”
In November 2022, the Afghan Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice announced that women were barred from parks and gyms on the grounds they were not adhering to a dress code that orders them to cover up.
Gyms had previously offered time slots for women, and while some informal women-only fitness clubs still exist, they are rare and low-profile.
Sanah and one of her companions, Latifah, who is middle-aged, used to walk in the large, tree-lined parks in the city.
The last time Latifah went to the park near her house, not long after they were permanently closed to women, she said she was forcibly removed, crying as she recalled the incident.
“The doctor told me to exercise more because I have high cholesterol and fatty liver, but the Taliban don’t let us exercise or go to the gym or walk [freely] outside,” she said.
Sanah yearns to become a yoga teacher and guides the group through some gentle aerobic exercises and meditation after their walk.
Pressing her thumb and forefinger together on her knees in the yellow dawn light, away from prying eyes on a protected balcony, Sanah says softly, “Take a deep breath.”
Forced out of their gym, Rayan and a few fellow women boxers instead visit a friend’s home and use what little equipment they have to practice in a society that was already hostile to women in sport, but has now turned draconian.
“We train less, but we never stopped,” said the 19-year-old Rayan, watching a video on her cellphone in which her fists fly in jabs and hooks — a bittersweet reminder of the avid boxer she once was.
Pulling her headscarf off in a private garden in the Kabul heat, fellow former competitive boxer Bahar said the situation had left her and other Afghan women stressed, exhausted and low.
“But when we box, it pushes all that away for a moment. Even if we only train for a few minutes it makes a big difference,” the 20-year-old said, the henna from her recent wedding still staining her hands.
Her husband does not know she still boxes. Many women athletes fled Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover.
Some still compete on the international stage, including at the recent Paris Olympics, but they come from outside the country and under the flag of the ousted Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
The Taliban authorities are not officially recognized by any state.
“In Afghanistan, girls’ sports have been stopped. When girls’ sport isn’t practiced, how can they join the national team?” said Atal Mashwani, spokesman for the Afghan General Directorate of Physical Education and Sport.
Banafsha, a black belt in the Chinese martial art of wushu, voiced the mixed feelings echoed by others about Afghan women’s Olympic participation.
The Afghan team in Paris had three men and three women, while Afghan women also competed in the Refugee Team.
“It made me happy that women haven’t surrendered yet, they are committed to their goals,” she said. “But I was also sad. Why can’t they go to the Olympics from within their own country?”
The former national competitor burned her uniform when the Taliban took power. These days she can barely leave the house and struggles to motivate herself to practice, feeling “hopeless and heartbroken.”
Hasina Hussain Zada, who works for Free to Run, an organization focused on women’s empowerment through sport, said that while there is a range of online exercise videos and classes, they cannot replace in-person training, being in a team or exercising outdoors.
“We tell our participants to think about it as if it were COVID time,” said the 28-year-old, who fled to Canada after the Taliban takeover.
She has worked since 2018 with the nonprofit, which is still supporting women in Afghanistan in indoor exercise — albeit “cautiously and secretly.”
“You don’t need to think about the Taliban, the rules ... just think about it as if it were COVID time when everyone was doing their exercises at home,” she said. “We’re trying to change their mindsets; we’re trying to give them hope.”
Carlos Alcaraz on Monday powered into the French Open second round with a resounding win to start his title defense, while world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and three-time defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek also progressed at Roland Garros. Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz struck 31 winners in a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri and is to face Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan in round two. Alcaraz is now on an eight-match winning streak at the French Open and also took Olympic silver at Roland Garros last year, losing the final to Novak Djokovic. “The first round is never
FRUSTRATION: Alcaraz made several unforced errors over four sets against Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, who had never made it past the third round in a major competition Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz reached the fourth round of the French Open after laboring past Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the Friday night session. The second-seeded Spaniard had never before played Dzumhur, a 33-year-old Bosnian who had never been past the third round at any major tournament. “I suffered quite a lot today,” Alcaraz said. “The first two sets was under control, then he started to play more deeply and more aggressively. It was really difficult for me.” Dzumhur hurt his left knee in a fall in the second round, and had treatment on Friday on his right leg during the
SSC Napoli coach Antonio Conte has dragged the team back from disaster and restored them to the top of Italian Serie A, but his future at the Scudetto winners is in doubt even after a triumphant season. The fiery 55-year-old has exceeded preseason expectations and bolstered his reputation as a serial winner by guiding Napoli to their fourth Scudetto, and second in three seasons. However, he might well be on his way in the summer after just one season at the helm as his charged relationship with Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has simmered throughout the campaign. Conte has said
The horn sounded on Wednesday night to signal a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final, as the Florida Panthers celebrated merely by hopping over the boards and several heading over to congratulate goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. It was a subdued celebration seemingly more befitting a regular-season win for the reigning Cup champs. “I remember a few years ago, it felt like such an accomplishment from where we were at one point,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said, adding: “It’s all business and we’ve got a bigger goal in mind.” The Panthers closed out the Carolina Hurricanes in five games, with a 5-3 victory in
RSS