Sport
Afghan wheelchair basketball star debuts in Spain after fleeing Kabul
The captain of the Afghan women’s wheelchair basketball team made her debut for her new Spanish side on Saturday to cheers and applause just over a month after fleeing Kabul.
Nilofar Bayat, 28, and her husband Ramesh Naik Zai, 27, were offered the chance to play for Bidaideak Bilbao BSR, a wheelchair basketball team in the northern city of Bilbao.
They arrived in Madrid from Kabul on August 20 on a flight with 100 other refugees thanks to efforts by the Spanish government and the Spanish Basketball Federation.
It was the first time Bayat had played on a mixed team. On Saturday, she was the only woman playing for Bidaideak Bilbao BSR in the side’s friendly match against Fundacion Vital Zuzenak.
Bayat rolled onto the court to a standing ovation from the crowd. Afterwards, she and her husband were presented with flowers.
“It’s very nice, I can’t hold my tears, they are very kind,” she said after finishing the game.