In 2000 Nadia Nadim was one of the 3,525 Afghan refugees who sought asylum in Denmark. Today she speaks nine languages, is a medical doctor and is considered the most influential and greatest Afghan female footballer of all time.
Nadia Nadim plays for Racing Louisville FC in Kentucky. Courtesy Nadia Nadim
"Nadia Nadim was raised in Afghanistan until her father, an Afghan National Army general, was executed by the Taliban in 2000. Months later, when she was 11 years old, her family escaped the country in the middle of the night.
"They were smuggled out of Afghanistan in the back of a truck on a route that took them to Pakistan, where they spent two months before flying to Italy.
"From there, they were put in a van and 'somehow ended up in a refugee camp in Denmark,' Nadim, 34, said in a recent interview.
"During her nine months in the refugee camp, Nadim watched behind a fence as a group of Danish girls played soccer.
“'This is the first time I discovered football,”'she said. 'It was love at first sight.'” - Matt Marshall and Carlin McCarthy
Article: Afghan Refugee Soccer Star Nadia Nadim Achieves Ultimate Goal: A Medical Degree
Wikipedia Post: Nadia Nadim
Thanks to my friend Cheri Lovre for the sharing this amazing person with me.