Kabul, Sunday, 23 November 2025 – A wave of national pride swept through Kabul International Airport this morning as two Afghan combat sports stars returned from the 6th Islamic Solidarity Games in Riyadh with historic medals.
Kabul 24: Mohammad Yousuf Jahangir, captain of Afghanistan’s national Muay Thai team, and Mohsen Rezaei, a rising taekwondo talent, were greeted by hundreds of cheering fans, officials from the National Olympic Committee, Afghan government sports authorities, and family members.
The heroes were showered with flowers and Afghan flags before being escorted in a celebratory convoy to the NOC headquarters.
Jahangir made history by becoming the first Afghan athlete ever to win gold at the Islamic Solidarity Games. In the Muay Thai competition, he dominated opponents from Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and finally Türkiye in the final to stand atop the podium.
Rezaei delivered an equally impressive performance in taekwondo, defeating fighters from Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan to reach the final. Despite a hard-fought loss to Iran’s representative in the gold-medal match, he secured a well-earned silver medal.Mohammad Ja’far Sultani also contributed a bronze medal in wushu and is expected to return to Kabul in the coming days, according to the Olympic Committee spokesperson.
The Games, held from 4–21 November in Riyadh, featured athletes from 57 Islamic nations competing across 21 sports. Afghanistan sent a 69-member delegation across 13 disciplines and finished 26th in the overall medal table with one gold, one silver, and one bronze.
Türkiye topped the standings with 155 medals, followed by Uzbekistan (96) and Iran (81).This gold medal marks the second major international triumph for Afghanistan in less than a month, following the U-17 futsal team’s Asian championship victory that sparked nationwide celebrations.
The emotional airport welcome underscored a rare moment of unity and joy in the country, with fans chanting “Afghanistan Zindabad” and praising the athletes for bringing honor to the nation despite years of conflict and limited resources.“These medals belong to every Afghan,” Jahangir told reporters, visibly moved. “We fought not just for ourselves, but for our people.”
