Afghan female cyclist Masooma Alizada, a former member of the Afghan national cycling team who a now living in France, has been nominated for next year’s Olympics Games, competing for the Refugee Olympic Team.

Masooma trains in a club in France and is hopeful that she will return to the country and boost cycling here in Afghanistan.

“I was selected for the Olympic games for the migrants’ team (Refugee Olympic Team) with 100 other athletes in 2019,” she said.

The head of Afghanistan’s Cycling Federation, Fazl Ahmad Fazli, said he hopes that Masooma will succeed in the Olympics in Tokyo.

“It is good news that Masooma Alizada has been selected for the games,” he said. “I believe that Masooma Alizada has the ability to perform well in the competition. It is a big achievement for Afghan female athletes.”

In France, Masooma attended a cycling competition in 2016, representing Afghanistan, and she won second place and was invited to join a cycling club afterwards.

“In the competition in 2016, my sister me and sister Zahra  Alizada got the second and third position respectively,” she said. “It is my goal to return to Afghanistan one day to work for women’s cycling.”

She has been a member of Afghanistan's national cycling team since 2017.