Former judoka Friba Rezayee, Afghanistan's first woman athlete to compete at the Olympics, pleaded for governments worldwide to help the country's current woman athletes evade Taliban punishment. The 36-year-old told CNN Sport she's spoken to over 100 female Afghan athletes since the Taliban's takeover in August, and she feels they are in "extreme danger."
The athletes told Rezayee they have to change their locations every two to three weeks to avoid Taliban capture, essentially making them live in hiding.
"Afghanistan felt like it was hit by a giant meteoroid," said Rezayee, who opposed the Taliban's recent takeover. "Afghanistan is suffering greatly and this is the textbook example of a humanitarian crisis. We cannot ignore such a big disaster in the world. We need to keep Afghanistan in our heart and on our agenda."
The current athletes' plight hits close to home for Rezayee, who said Afghan fundamentalists "wanted her dead' for participating in the 2004 Olympics in Athens. After the Games, Rezayee went into hiding for months before fleeing to Pakistan and eventually Canada.
After moving to Canada as a refugee in 2011, Rezayee established "Women Leaders of Tomorrow," a non-profit organization supporting women's rights in Afghanistan. She also wrote open letters to Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser regarding the issue.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has not responded to Rezayee's letter, but Fraser told CNN Sport the country has already welcomed 6,000 Afghan refugees and approved the applications of about 12,000 more.
Rezayee isn't alone in her fight to rescue female Afghan athletes. Former Afghan women's soccer captain Khalida Popal signed Rezayee's open letters and has led evacuation efforts herself. In November, Kim Kardashian and Leeds United owner Andrea Radrizzani helped 130 Afghan women's soccer players and their families fly from Pakistan to Britain.
