Afghan Refugee Girl Wins European Para Taekwondo Championship
Zakia Khudadadi, an Afghan refugee girl, won the European Para Taekwondo championship (47kg category) after defeating two Turkish and one Ukrainian athletes.
After winning the championship in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in a message, she dedicated her win to Afghan women.
Khudadadi won the first match with a decisive result of 32-2 against Busra Emire from Turkey; then she defeated Viktoriia Marchuk from Ukraine (18-9) and reached the final.
In the final, she faced Nurcihan Ekinci, another Turkish athlete. Although the match was tied 6-6; but Khudadadi won the European championship due to better performance and judges' votes.
In a message sent to Afghanistan International TV, Khudadadi said, "I shed tears throughout the distribution of medals and awards because I am a refugee and my country's flag was not present at the competition, nor was the national anthem of Afghanistan played at the competition hall.”
She was a former member of Afghanistan's national para taekwondo team and had represented her country in various national and international competitions and won several medals. On her X account, Khudadadi wrote, "I present this gold medal of the European Championship to all the brave girls and women of my country, Afghanistan."
Despite doubts about her participation in the Tokyo Paralympic games after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021, Khudadadi managed to go to France with Hossein Rasouli and carry the Afghan flag at the closing ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics.
She is the first Afghan female athlete who was able to secure the Paralympic quota.
Zakia Khudadadi, who has a disability in her left hand and still does not have a French passport, said, "I am the first disabled Afghan woman to win a gold medal in the European Championship."
