| Afghanistan at the Olympics | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| IOC code | AFG |
| NOC | National Olympic Committee of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan |
| Medals Ranked 147th |
|
| Summer appearances | |
Afghanistan has competed in 16Summer Games. They have never appeared in anyWinter Games. The country made itsfirst appearance at theBerlin Games in 1936. It has sent a delegation to 14 of the 19 subsequent Summer Games since then. It is organised by theNational Olympic Committee of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The Committee is currently in exile and presided byHafizullah Wali Rahimi: theInternational Olympic Committee has not recognized theTaliban regime's Committee, headed byAhmadullah Wasiq.
The country made itsfirst appearance at theBerlin Games in 1936. Afghanistan competed at the1948 Summer Olympics inLondon, sending a total of 31 competitors, which consisted of the men'sfield hockey andfootball teams. This is the highest number of athletes that Afghanistan has ever sent to aSummer Olympic Games.
Afghanistan'sfootball tournament culminated in Afghanistan being defeated 6-0 againstLuxembourg, and they failed to qualify to the first round of the tournament. At themen's field hockey tournament won one match, drew one match and lost one match, resulting in placing third of four competing teams, with 3 points. Therefore, Afghanistan did not proceed to the semi-finals, finishing third in their respective group.
In the following1952 Games atHelsinki, Afghanistan did not participate. However,Afghanistan returned for the1956 Games atMelbourne, sending a team of 12 for themen's field hockey tournament, with six of the competitors on the team having participated previously in 1948.
Afghanistan did not send a team, sending an official to theBarcelona Games in 1992, andsent only two representatives to theAtlanta Games in 1996: light-middleweight boxer Mohammad Jawid Aman was disqualified after he arrived too late for the mandatory weigh-in and draw, which left marathon runnerAbdul Baser Wasiqi as the country's sole representative. Wasiqi pulled a hamstring before the race, but competed nonetheless, limping his way through the marathon and finishing last.[1]
TheANOC was suspended by the IOC in 1999, and Afghanistan were subsequently banned from theSydney Games in 2000 for discrimination against women under the rule of theTaliban and prohibition of sports of any kind. The country was re-instated in 2002 following the fall of the Taliban,[2] andsent five representatives to theAthens Games in 2004.
Among them were two women,Robina Muqim Yaar andFriba Razayee, the first ever women to compete for Afghanistan at the Olympics.[3]
Afghanistansent a team of four competitors,[4] including three men and one woman,Mehboba Ahdyar,[5] to the2008 Beijing Games. Ahdyar received death threats due to her intended participation in the Games.[4]
Afghanistan won their first summer Olympic medal during the 2008 Beijing Games, withRohullah Nikpai winning a bronze in men's Taekwondo 58 kg, and their second at the2012 Games with another bronze for Nikpai in themen's 68kg taekwondo event.[6]
Afghanistanreturned for a fourth consecutive games, atRio de Janeiro in 2016.Rohullah Nikpai, who had earned a medal at the two previous games in taekwando did not return. Instead, three athletes were sent, competing in two sports - Athletics and Judo. None of the athletes managed to progress and qualify further in their events. Despite finishing last in thewomen's 100 metres,Kamia Yousufi became Afghanistan's national record holder with 14.02 seconds, which was also at her Olympic debut.[7] She also ran her preliminary heat in a full-body kit andhijab.[8]
In April 2021, the ANOC announced thatFahim Anwari will become the first swimmer torepresent Afghanistan at the Olympics.[9][10][11] Afghanistan received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission to send a men's rifle shooter,Mahdi Yovari, marking the nation's Olympic debut in the sport.[12]
Afghanistan's participation status for the2024 Summer Olympics was unclear amid thepolitical turmoil and the Taliban's return to power in August 2021.[13] In June 2024, it was confirmed that Afghanistan would be participating with 3 male and 3 female athletes. However, the Taliban stated that they would not recognise the three participating females (all of whom currently live in exile), and the IOC did not admit any Taliban officials. All six athletes competed under the flag and anthem of theIslamic Republic of Afghanistan.[14]
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 Berlin | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1948 London | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1952 Helsinki | did not participate | |||||
| 1956 Melbourne | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1960 Rome | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1964 Tokyo | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1968 Mexico City | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1972 Munich | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1976 Montreal | did not participate | |||||
| 1980 Moscow | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1984 Los Angeles | Boycotted | |||||
| 1988 Seoul | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1992 Barcelona | did not participate | |||||
| 1996 Atlanta | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2000 Sydney | banned from participating | |||||
| 2004 Athens | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2008 Beijing | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 82 |
| 2012 London | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 79 |
| 2016 Rio de Janeiro | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2020 Tokyo | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2024 Paris | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2028 Los Angeles | ||||||
| 2032 Brisbane | ||||||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 148 | |
| Sport | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Taekwondo | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Totals (1 entries) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Note: Afghanistan was banned from the Olympics in 2000 for theTaliban regime's discrimination against women at the time.
| Medal | Name | Games | Sport | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bronze | Rohullah Nikpai |  2008 Beijing |  Taekwondo | Men's 58 kg |
| Bronze |  2012 London | Taekwondo | Men's 68 kg |
