Afghan Woman Athlete Scorned by Countrymen
A lot of athletes representing their countries for the Olympic games encounter plenty of obstacles yes, but also get the support of their fellow countrymen. That is the usual case but for Afghan sprinter Mehboba Andyar, the case is the exact opposite.
Andyar had been regularly receiving death threats, midnight phone calls, harassment from the police and neighbors and the ridicule of her neighbors. The reason? She is Afghanistan's sole female athlete.
In a conservative Muslim society wherein women are heavily oppressed, a very few performing roles outside their own homes, it is not unlikely to think that many Afghan men strongly believe that females should not compete in sports. Andyar had received so many phone calls from people who tell her she has no right being an athlete. She is often harassed by strange men hanging outside her house. Her windows have taken the beating of several stones, while threatening letters keep arriving in her mail. Her neighbors also scream abusive words and even threatened to beat her up if she continues her “Olympic” farce. It was enough to break any person down, and even Andyar admits that if it weren't for her parent's desire to see her in Beijing, she would've caved in.
Andyar knew that being a woman athlete in Afghanistan requires plenty of strength and will, especially with the detrimental abuse that fellow countrymen are shoving at her. She also realizes that she has little chance of winning, due to not having her the formal training and facilities her competitors would undoubtedly have. Still Andyar, pushes through, saying that it is enough for her to represent her country in the games.
On the other hand, Andyar has some male supporters, particularly the young and educated. Those who believe in her believe that the change in Afghanistan should also reflect its women. Many sports people also support her, but unfortunately, they make up a minority. Everyone else hates her.
Andyar had developed an interest in running during the fundamentalist Taliban government in 1998, where she jogged around her family's enclosed yard in Kabul, avoiding the patrol's of Taliban's religious police. Her family went to Pakistan afterwards, where she went running at a park in Islamabad, due to lack of funds for the athletic club. Currently, she trains on a cracked concrete track in the national Taliban stadium, which used to hold public execution.
However, with a slight turn of luck, Andyar will finally receive her training, along with Massoud Azizi, the other member of Afghanistan's Olympic Squad. The Afghan and International Olympic Committee plans to send them both to Malaysia to train in proper facilities, along with provide them with a coach.
