Roia Zamani
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Roia Zamani is a
taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...
practitioner from
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
, who is perhaps best known for her bronze medal finish at the
2002 Asian Games The 2002 Asian Games ( ko, 2002년 아시아 경기대회/2002년 아시안 게임, Icheoni-nyeon Asia gyeonggi daehoe/Icheoni-nyeon Asian Geim), officially known as the XIV Asian Games ( ko, 제14회 아시아 경기대회/제14회 아시안 ...
held in
Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...
,
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
. Zamani, who wears a headscarf under her helmet, won a bronze medal in the 72 kg middleweight class of taekwondo without winning a single match. Zamani was the only medalist from Afghan side. None of the remaining athletes advanced past the qualifying stages.


Personal life

Zamani's family moved from Afghanistan to the neighboring country of
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, after the
Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
seized control in 1996. Zamani, along with her family, lived in Iran for six years as a refugee, and studied taekwondo there. In 2002, Zamani returned to her homeland and began working as an English teacher in
Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
. Like other Muslim athletes from
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
, Zamani wears a headscarf under her helmet when competing.


2002 Asian Games

Afghanistan returned to the Asian Games after the fall of the Taliban government in the midst of the ongoing war in Afghanistan. The Afghan delegation consisted of forty male and four female competitors. Three out of these four women athletes participated in
taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...
, in which total 70 female competitors from different Asian countries competed between October 10 and 13. Aged 23 at that time, Zamani competed in the 72 kg (middleweight) class. Only five athletes participated in this event, making first round a quarterfinal match. She received a bye in her first round match. In the semifinal, she withdrew in the middle of match due to severe injuries, in which she was lagging behind by nil to four points. Zamani was beaten by her
Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...
opponent, Choi Jin-Mi, who left a cut over her right eyebrow. But the semifinal appearance of Zamani guaranteed her a bronze medal, which she shared with Sally Solis of Philippines. Zamani considered her participation in the Games as a "first step" for Afghan women. None of the remaining athletes advanced past the qualifying stages, and as such did not win any medals.


See also

* Afghanistan at the 2002 Asian Games


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zamani, Roia Living people Asian Games medalists in taekwondo Afghan female taekwondo practitioners Afghan expatriates in Iran Taekwondo practitioners at the 2002 Asian Games Asian Games bronze medalists for Afghanistan Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games Sportspeople from Kabul Year of birth missing (living people)