Sara Khoshjamal Fekri, born on September 21, 1988, is a Taekwondo fighter and the first Iranian woman to qualify for Olympics. A physical training graduate from the University of Tehran, Sara Khoshjamal Fekri shot to fame after being shortlisted for the Beijing Olympics. Taekwondo, a Korean martial art, is a popular sport among the women of Iran with over 120,000 girls practicing it. Keeping with the traditions of her community that forbade her from training with other men, Sara Khoshjamal Fekri practices the game in her living room with her older brothers.
Sara Khoshjamal Fekri competed in the Asian Taekwondo Qualification Tournament conducted by WTF (World Taekwondo Federation) in November 2007 at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam in the Women’s 49kg category and won a bronze medal. She won a gold medal in the International Taekwondo Tournament held in South Korea in July 2008, which earned her a berth to the coveted 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Sara Khoshjamal Fekri has appeared in the ‘List of 100 must-see Olympic participants’, published by the world renowned Times magazine. Attributing her success to the support from her parents, she commented, “Being a woman never stopped me from pursuing taekwondo. My appearance in the Olympics may encourage other women in Iran and around the world to seek a greater social role”. Sara Khoshjamal Fekri hopes to be a source of inspiration to the women in Iran, who she feels have a lot to say to the world. Among the Iran’s largest contingent athletes who are participating in 2008 Olympics, Sarah Khoshjamal Fekri tops the list being the first woman athlete ever in Taekwondo from her country. Iranian taekwondo fighter, Sara Khoshjamal-Fekri came victorious in her first competition, but, lost the second on Wednesday at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
