The safe arrival of Afghanistan's Paralympic athletes sends out "a very strong message of hope", says the International Paralympic Committee. Zakia Khudadadi and Hossain Rasouli made it to Tokyo after a "major global operation" that began 12 days ago when they were told they could not travel to the Games. They spent a week in France at the National Institute of Sport Expertise and Performance, the French sports ministry's high performance training center, on their way to Japan. Khudadadi, 23, the first woman ever to represent Afghanistan at the Paralympics, will compete in the women's K44-49kg weight category, while Rasouli will line up in the heats of the men's 400m T47 athletics event.

Read Full Story


More: