Afghan athlete Mohammad Bakhtiyar Hamza is preparing himself for an important Judo competition that will be held in Montreal on May 18.

鈥淭he upcoming competition is highly important for me and I have to prove that I am eligible to join Canada鈥檚 national Judo team,鈥� Hamza told CTVNews.ca.

Hamza, who holds a black belt in Judo and was the star of Afghanistan鈥檚 national Judo team, was forced to flee the country after the Taliban returned to power in August 2021.

鈥淭he Taliban were searching for my father, calling him infidel because he had worked with the Canadian army in Afghanistan. They have the database and know who has worked with foreigners,鈥� Hamza said.

Hamza was taking some time off in Kabul after spending a year in Kazakhstan to pursue his bachelor鈥檚 degree when he saw Taliban fighters enter the city.

He tried to go back to Kazakhstan but couldn鈥檛 find a flight. Finally, after four months, he got out of Afghanistan and made it to a refugee camp in Pakistan.

After staying at the camp for about two months, he鈥攁long with his father, mother and siblings鈥攃ame to Canada in February.

Unlike most Afghan newcomers鈥攚ho choose a city to live in based on job availability鈥擧amza puts his exercise and wherever he finds a good Judo club, first.

The 20-year-old and his family were first settled in Calgary, but then moved to Toronto. Hamza says he convinced his family to move because he couldn鈥檛 find a 鈥済ood鈥� club to continue his exercises in Calgary.

He now trains at Judo Ontario, a not-for-profit amateur association, to prepare himself for the 2023 Canadian Open National Championships.

鈥淎lthough it鈥檚 very tough for me financially, I try my best to attend and achieve a gold medal, my fight is for gold because it鈥檚 the key to my future success,鈥� added Hamza.

鈥淚n the past few months in Canada, I鈥檝e participated in five competitions and got good results,鈥� Hamza said.

He managed to compete in events held in Montreal, Winnipeg and Toronto鈥攑aying out of pocket to get there.

He brought home two gold, two silver, and one bronze medal at those competitions.

 

Reporting for this story was paid for through The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project funded by Meta.