Families at risk, camps disrupted: How war-torn Iran wins Kabaddi silver at Asian Games

For Iran’s women’s kabaddi team, preparation for the Asian Games was never just about training for a medal.

In six months, the team changed camp three times, trained at around 10 different bases and lost nearly two months of preparation as the war disrupted life in Iran. Players were also trying to focus on the biggest tournament of their careers while worrying about whether their families were safe at home.

And somehow they still made it to the finals of the Asian Games.

Iran pushed India all the way before eventually losing 37-34 on Saturday and taking home the silver medal. For coach Ghulam Raza Mazandrani, the circumstances behind this medal were particularly significant.

“It’s not easy. You prepare everything together, this side is at war, your family is in danger and you should focus on the game,” Mazandrani said after the final. Iran and India shake hands after a thrilling kabaddi final at the Asian Games. (PTI Photo)

HOW DID THE WAR DISRUPT IRAN’S PREPARATION?

Mazandrani had just six months to build a largely young Iranian side. But the team’s preparation was repeatedly thrown off course as the conflict disrupted different parts of the country.

“We had about 10 camps in six months,” he said.

The team had to move three times because of the situation. After facing problems in southern and central Iran, the unit eventually moved its camp to the north, where conditions were more manageable. Even then, finding suitable courts and training facilities remained a problem.

“I only had six months of time and in the meantime the war in Iran happened and after two months everything was over,” Mazandrani said. “So we had very little and little time.

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The pressure was not limited to the training ground. The players were in daily contact with their families, checking their safety while trying to think about kabaddi.

“All the players call their family every day and talk to each other and ask if they are safe or not,” Mazandrani said.

HOW DID IRAN KEEP THEIR PLAYERS BALANCED?

The team also hired a psychologist who helped the players cope with the pressure.

“We had a psychologist and she helped us very well and kept them in the right frame of mind because of the war,” he said.

For a team whose average age was under 22, this support was especially important. Mazandrani said some of his best raiders were only 19 or 20 years old, leaving them to deal with circumstances far beyond the confines of the sporting environment.

“You have too many experiences and you can understand it, fine … but these young people can’t understand it. Mostly, the pressure is on them,” he said.

The disruption also deprived Iran of something every developing team needs: matches. Courtesy: AP

Mazandrani said the sanctions have made it difficult for teams to be invited to Iran or travel abroad for international friendlies. Attempts to arrange matches against teams such as Chinese Taipei, India and Japan have come to naught.

“If you call Chinese Taipei, they don’t come, you can’t go. If you call India, they don’t come, you can’t go. If you call Japan, they don’t come, you can’t go,” he said.

“So a team without a friendly match.

For Mazandrani, the lack of exposure was a major drawback. He said that Iranian players can participate in only two or three competitions a year, which is much less than their Indian counterparts.

“International players can only learn in competition, not in practice, not in the hall. Only in competition can they learn and improve and we need more competition,” he said.

IRAN WON SILVER AT ASIAN GAMES

In the end, Iran fell three points short of gold, but their progress to the final offered a glimpse of what the young side could achieve despite the break in preparation.

Mazandrani felt that the gap between the two teams was not necessarily huge in terms of ability, but India’s greater exposure to competitive kabaddi gave the hosts an advantage.

“My feeling, there is not much difference between India and Iran. Our team also played well but it has a big chance because you have too many competitions in India,” he said.

Mazandrani believes this experience will help the young Iranian team in the coming years. Almost the entire team is under 24, except for two players in their 30s.

“After four years, they will be better than this because their experience is coming, their body should be stronger and their mind should be a bit broader as well,” he said.

Even after the final, however, uncertainty remained. The players did not know if they would be able to fly directly back to Iran.

“We are here but we don’t know whether we can take a direct flight to Iran or not,” Mazandrani said.

They arrived at the Asian Games after preparations interrupted by the war, moved camps three times, trained at around 10 bases, lost two months and had a hard time finding international opponents.

They left Nagoya with a silver medal from the Asian Games.

– The end