From the edge of the slopes in Bamyan province, rivals cheer as they take turns racing down the mountainside, banding together to keep skiing alive in Afghanistan.
While the country is home to spectacular mountain ranges, including the majestic Hindu Kush, ski culture is not widespread, and equipment is expensive and scarce.
But that hasn't stopped the ski collective, which is keen to continue developing the sport in Afghanistan, despite losing sponsors and prominent skiers who left the country after the Taliban took over in 2021.
“Ski racing has lost a bit of its color” in Afghanistan since Taliban authorities returned to power, said Esmatullah Haidari, a 23-year-old captain of a local ski team.
But, he added, “there are still avid skiers who don't want skiing to decline.”
Shah Agha Rezaee, a trainer and longtime skier, said fans of the sport had “revived the spirit” of skiing.
“That's our motivation, our interest, our love, so we should strive for it,” said Rezaee, who dreams of seeing the Afghan ski team qualify for the Olympics. .
There are now teams in at least six states and several hundred members, some of whom took to the slopes of Bamiyan in early March for the federation's first official race of the season.
Long lines of competitors wearing motley winter gear and neon pinnies carried skis and marched down Bamiyan's liftless slopes.
A few men gathered to watch, and as the adult and child racers crossed the finish line, they received enthusiastic applause.
The federation says that although they used to make up the majority of skiers in Bamyan, women have stopped participating since Taliban authorities effectively banned women from participating in all sports.
“We feel their absence,” Haidari said. “Everyone should be free and should be able to study and ski. It doesn't matter if you're a girl or a boy,” he added.
“We miss our sisters so much.”
~ “Never let skiing die” ~
There are no similar restrictions for foreign women, and tourists continue to hit the slopes with Afghans, including at events organized by the charity-backed Bamyan Alpine Ski Club.
One such event was the well-attended Afghan Peaks Ski Race, which again this year was sponsored by a local television station.
Tourists from adventure travel company Untamed Borders brought about 130 kilograms (285 pounds) of equipment to the country for donation.
Many skiers survive on donated equipment and handmade wooden skis.
“The budget for this sport is very limited,” said Mohammad Daud Kargar, president of the Afghanistan Ski Federation.
“Some organizations have helped us in the past, but for the past three years we have not received any support.”
Nasratullah Nasrat, who said she learned to ski from YouTube videos, said she would like to go skiing in Afghanistan one day, but expressed concern about the “very limited resources” available to skiers.
A 20-year-old man from Wardak province cited the late arrival of snow this year due to the drought, saying, “Unfortunately, the government hasn't paid much attention and the slopes haven't been maintained. The amount of snowfall has also decreased recently,” he told AFP. Country.
Haidari echoed the challenge, but said that two Afghan skiers expected to compete in the Olympics, Sajjad Hussaini and Saeed Alisha, left the country after the U.S.-backed government collapsed in 2021.・I am determined to take over the baton from Farhan.
“Even if we don't have the resources, we will make wooden skis and we will not let skiing die in Afghanistan, especially in Bamyan,” he said.
ah/sw/ecl/ah
