Afghan cyclist Fariba Hashimi wins Asian Games silver after fleeing Taliban
The 23-year-old disguised herself as a man to train in Afghanistan before escaping to Italy.
What to know
- Fariba Hashimi, 23, won silver in the women's road race at the 2026 Asian Games near Nagoya, finishing behind China's Guo Li.
- Hashimi disguised herself as a man while training as a teenager in Afghanistan to avoid Taliban persecution and was attacked with stones for pursuing cycling.
- She fled Afghanistan after the Taliban returned to power in 2021 and now lives in Italy, where she trains with support from Italian former world champion Alessandra Cappellotto.
- Hashimi said the medal demonstrates resilience from Afghan women and expressed hope it will inspire future generations to pursue their dreams despite Taliban restrictions on women's freedoms.
“I'm here without a mechanic, without any preparation. We brought one guy with us from the national federation, and he just drove the car. We were fixing the bike ourselves. I was the mechanic for myself. I was washing the bike myself. Thank you to the Japanese team. They were really, really nice to me, fixed my bike.”
Fariba Hashimi, Afghan cyclist, Asian Games silver medalist · Guardian Sport ↗
Fariba Hashimi Afghan cyclistYulduz Hashimi Professional cyclist, Fariba's sisterGuo Li Chinese cyclistAlessandra Cappellotto Italian former world champion cyclist
How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts
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Hashimi reflects on disguising herself as man and escaping Taliban persecution
Hashimi described being attacked with stones and training disguised as a man as a teenager alongside her sister Yulduz, and emphasized the importance of the medal for Afghan women and future generations.
“This silver medal can show a lot of resilience from Afghan women, and I'm really happy. I'm not alone, I know that behind me millions of women, from many countries, have the same dream and they are standing with me.”
— Fariba Hashimi -
first by The Times of India, 1d ago · also Yahoo Sports, Al Jazeera, BBC Sport, BBC, The Guardian, Guardian Sport +11
13 more headlines
- Afghan cyclist who escaped Taliban wins Asian Games medal Yahoo Sports · 1d ago
- Afghan cyclist who escaped Taliban wins Asian Games silver medal Al Jazeera · 1d ago
- Cyclist who dressed as man to avoid Taliban wins silver medal Yahoo Sports · 1d ago
- Afghan cyclist who disguised herself as a man to evade Taliban wins Asian Games silver The Guardian · 1d ago
- Afghan cyclist Fariba Hashimi who disguised herself as man wins Asian Games silver The Economic Times · 1d ago
- Disguised as Man to Train, Afghan Cyclist Fariba Hashimi Claims Asian Games Silver Medal RTV News · 1d ago
- Cyclist Fariba Hashimi dressed as a man to train in Afghanistan. Wins silver at Asian Games ThePrint · 1d ago
- Afghanistan cyclist who disguised herself as a man to escape Taliban wins Asian Games silver | Hindustan Times Hindustan Times · 1d ago
- Afghan cyclist who dressed as a man to avoid Taliban wins silver medal at Asian Games The National UAE · 1d ago
- Afghan female cyclist wins silver at Asian Games after disguising herself as a man to train Orlando Sentinel · 10h ago
- Fariba Hashimi: Afghanistan cyclist who dressed as man to avoid Taliban wins Asian Games silver medal Mastodon · 9h ago
- Who is Fariba Hashimi? Meet the Afghan cyclist who trained disguised as a man and won Asian Games silver The Times of India · 8h ago
- She trained disguised as a man, fled the Taliban and won Asian Games silver Times of India · 8h ago
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For Fariba Hashimi winning a silver medal in the women's cycling road race at the Asian Games was easy. The nearly impossible part for the female cyclist from Afghanistan was training in her country. To do that, she dressed as a man in a place where women have few rights.
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Hashimi wins silver in women's road race at Asian Games
Fariba Hashimi, based in Italy, finished second in the women's road race near Nagoya in Japan, calling the triumph 'something special.'
“I can't explain my feelings now… I was born inside a country where the women who dream are getting attacked, and I'm really happy that I have fought against that.”
— Fariba Hashimi -
first by Bangkok Post, 2d ago · also Yahoo Sports
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background
Hashimi and sister compete at Paris Olympics — Fariba and Yulduz Hashimi competed at the Paris Olympics two years before the 2026 Asian Games.
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background
Taliban returns to power in Afghanistan — The Taliban authorities returned to power and imposed rules limiting women's access to education, public life, and sport.