How old were you when you first started wheelchair racing?

I was in the first grade of the Primary School. The school held a running race and I wanted to be part of it but our teacher was against it. She told me I couldn’t run. But I was cleverer than her; when the competition began I stand out of the track, next to the others on the line and I raced. But I lost control of my wheelchair and fell. Because of me the competition was canceled and every one got angry with me. It was a start. From then on every time we had a race I was there, racing them by my wheelchair. Little by little I got better.

When was the first time you could participate in a wheelchair racing? Were you at school?

No. My school period was during the wartime and we moved to Tehran. After the war when we got back to our small town there were many problems that I couldn’t do any official race. I practiced on my own and I had the time. When I entered the University people started saying disability is not deprivation and an independent life for disabled people and many other slogans. But the main reason behind this shift in everyone’s attitude was disabled veterans after the war. So Khozestan Province the government built a sport center that had a section for handicaps.

When you say disability is not deprivation, it seems you don’t believe in it, do you?

If I didn’t believe in it I would not go to University, I would not race, or have fought with my family. I call them slogan because nothing has changed in reality, for others these are empty words.

You are the winner of provincial medals, how did you feel when you won the medal fro the first time?

I was 18 then. I won a bronze medal. I was very happy, somehow I knew from the beginning of the competition that I will win. I wanted to win and become part of a Women’s National Paralympic team. This is my only wish now.

You are from a very small town in south of Iran, where people has kept their traditional beliefs, so you still think you can go to Paralympics?

I agree. Although their views have changed slightly, tradition still rules. But I have proved that nothing is impossible.

Do you have enough facilities and equipments in a small town in prvince?

Do you think there are enough of those in Tehran that you ask about provinces? We have zero facility and no help. Sport authorities are in winter sleep; they don’t notice us at all, as if we do not exist. Except when it is near election time or the national disabled day, then they remember that we do exist. We don’t have the means for many Paralympic sports. Only Chess and Track & field are inexpensive enough, so we can participate on those. It is journalists fault too. It is your fault too; there is no journalist who covers disabled women’s sports. I believe women’s journals should work on this area.

But in the recent years many from the disability federation have said that they pay attention to disabled women’s sports?

Perhaps, but I don’t see it. As a disabled women athlete, and as someone who has tried very hard I say that we don’t have the basic facilities and we need the authorities help and support.

Did you have a better condition before the merge of the two organizations?

No we had problems then and I should say nothing has changed.

But Khosravi-Vafa, the head of Disability Federation declares that everything was better before the merge and there where more budget for disabled women athletes?

Look; what the authorities say is not important. The important thing is that our situation has not changed at all.