Robina Muqimyar

Robina Jalali, also known as Robina Muqimyar, was born on July 3, 1986, in Kabul, Afghanistan. She became known as an Olympic athlete from Afghanistan. She competed in the 100-meter sprint at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics and many other events under the name Muqimyar.

She was one of the first two women to represent Afghanistan at the Olympic Games. She competed with judoka Friba Rezayee at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. She stood out because she ran while wearing the hijab, a traditional head covering for Muslim women.

Robina grew up in a family with nine children, seven girls and two boys. During the time when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, girls were not allowed to go to school, so she was taught at home. After 2001, she was able to go to school. She has talked about how hard life was for girls under the Taliban. Later, she even tried to become a member of Afghanistan's parliament, called the Wolesi Jirga.

2004 Olympics

Robina Muqimyar ran in the women's 100-meter sprint at the 2004 Olympics. She was 17 years old and finished seventh in her heat with a time of 14.14 seconds. The race was won by Veronica Campbell from Jamaica. She was 0.15 seconds faster than Fartun Abukar Omar from Somalia.

2008 Olympics

Robina Muqimyar was not planned to compete in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She joined Afghanistan's delegation after another runner, Mehboba Ahdyar, left to seek political asylum in Norway. Robina ran the 100 metres event at the 2008 Summer Olympics. In her first heat, she finished eighth and last with a time of 14.80 seconds and did not move on to the next round.

The Guardian praised her, calling her a true example of the Olympic spirit. They wrote, "The Olympic rings are a well-known symbol, but there are still athletes who show what the Olympics are really about. Robina, along with others like a Brazilian gymnast from the ghetto and an Ecuadorean walker, may not all win, but they all deserve respect."

Political career

Robina Muqimyar ran for a seat in Afghanistan's parliament in September 2010. She wanted to help women and young people have equal rights and bring more sports programs to schools. She did not win that election.

In 2019, she became a member of parliament. Her time in office ended when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021. After that, there has been no information about where she is.