Palestinian para cyclists make history in Belgium amid genocide
Maxine Betteridge-Moes in London
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Two Palestinian amputee athletes made history last weekend by earning a first-ever top 20 finish in the Para-Cycling World Cup in Belgium. Alaa al-Dali and Mohamed Asfour were evacuated from Gaza last year amid Israel’s genocidal onslaught, and have now qualified for the upcoming World Championships in August.
Al-Dali became the first Palestinian to rank top 20 in his road race on 4 May, building upon his historic debut last year when he was the first person to represent Palestine at the World Championships.
‘Participating in this competition and representing Palestine is a great honour in my life. After years of training in Gaza and dreaming of moments like this, being able to compete and meet international athletes means so much to me,’ said Asfour.
The pair was representing their paracycling team, the Gaza Sunbirds, which al-Dali co-founded in 2020 with 19 other athletes in Gaza who had sustained life-altering injuries from Israeli attacks. Since October 2023, the team have pivoted to a full blown aid operation with the help of international donations.
The spirit of internationalism was felt across the competition in Belgium, with Palestinian riders connecting with other riders from Peru, South Korea and Saudi Arabia through jersey swaps and solidarity events.
But while the riders enjoyed a moment of celebration for their historic qualification, the situation back home in Gaza is beyond dire. ‘Our people in Gaza are experiencing famine, killing and genocide and the situation is very bad,’ said al-Dali.
According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, nearly 290,000 children in Gaza are ‘on the brink of death’ due to severe malnutrition and more than two months of total Israeli blockade. Just last week, humanitarian aid ship The Conscience was subject to drone strikes whilst in international waters off Malta, halting its mission to deliver supplies to Gaza. The Israeli foreign ministry has not yet responded to allegations that they were responsible for the attacks.
Team members of the Gaza Sunbirds that remain on the ground in Gaza are still delivering aid as best they can. Since October 2023 they have delivered a total of $450,000 worth of aid using international donations.
‘Our teammates are still trying to help and are continuing to deliver aid to our people experiencing intense famine,’ said al-Dali. ‘This is something that athletes around the world must know to help us stop this destruction of Gaza, and the whole world must raise its voice, including the sports world, until the attacks against us stop.’
With their sights firmly set on the Los Angeles 2028 Paralympics, Alaa and Mohamed will race at the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships from 28-31 August in Ronse, Belgium.
📰 Read more about how Alaa al-Dali co-founded the Gaza Sunbirds after he was shot in the leg by an Israeli sniper in 2019
🍲 Attend the Gaza Sunbirds’ Supper Club fundraiser on 27 May in London
🚴 Follow AthletesforPalestine, a community created by the Gaza Sunbirds to unite the world through sport for a free Palestine
🍉 Understand the context of the crisis in Gaza by revisiting our July/August 2023 issue, Palestine: From Occupation to Uprising
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