INTERVIEW: Former athlete Roman Abasy fled the Taliban - now he brings sports to refugees, migrants in Sydney
![Roman Abasy (centre, back row) is pictured holding a football with participants of the sports program that he co-ordinates for non-profit Reclink Australia._supplied.png](https://images.sbs.com.au/dims4/default/e0e4802/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1800x1013+0+0/resize/1280x720!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsbs-au-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fe6%2Fc6%2F133e00fe4981a88ff3979255ad82%2Froman-abasy-centre-back-row-is-pictured-holding-a-football-with-participants-of-the-sports-program-that-he-co-ordinates-for-non-profit-reclink-australia-supplied.png&imwidth=1280)
Roman Abasy (centre, back row) is pictured holding a football with participants of the sports program that he co-ordinates for non-profit Reclink Australia Source: Supplied
A connection to Taekwondo, allowed Roman Abasy to achieve his dream of representing Afghanistan on the world stage, winning a bronze medal at the 2014 Asian Games. But the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021, would take his life in a different direction. His post-athlete work involved dedicating himself to human rights advocacy, founding a charity to help promote access to sports, particularly for young women. That work made him a target of the Taliban - and with the help of the Australian Olympic Committee, he resettled in Australia as a refugee. Three years on, he has returned to helping improve access to sports at the grassroots level for refugees and migrants. He spoke with Biwa Kwan about his journey - and the power of sport to help refugees succeed.
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