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

“The upcoming competition is highly important for me and I have to prove that I am eligible to join Canada’s national Judo team,” Hamza told CTVNews.ca.

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

“The 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,” Hamza said.

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

He tried to go back to Kazakhstan but couldn’t 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—along with his father, mother and siblings—came to Canada in February.

Unlike most Afghan newcomers—who choose a city to live in based on job availability—Hamza 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’t find a “good” 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.

“Although it’s very tough for me financially, I try my best to attend and achieve a gold medal, my fight is for gold because it’s the key to my future success,” added Hamza.

“In the past few months in Canada, I’ve participated in five competitions and got good results,” Hamza said.

He managed to compete in events held in Montreal, Winnipeg and Toronto—paying 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.