Women in Afghanistan Training to Compete in Shaolin Martial Arts

Shaolin martial arts students follow their trainer, Sima Azimi, 20, in black, during a training session on a hilltop in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. Sima Azimi, 20, who is originally from Jaghuri in central Afghanistan, trains nine students in the martial arts to prepare for Olympic competitions, but also to protect themselves on the streets of Kabul, where women are routinely harassed. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

In a country where many believe women should be veiled and confined to their home, female wushu students are challenging gender roles and finding empowerment in the process, London’s Independent is reporting.

Harassment on the streets of Kabul is routine, so a little expertise in self-defense for women can have a big impact as well.

Support for women’s sports in Afghanistan has all but collapsed as the government and outside advocates, including Western non-profits, have focused their attention and resources to the nation’s ongoing conflict with the Taliban. Women like Sima Azmi, a 20-year-old training a group of nine students for the World Shaolin Championship in China, may turn that around if they keep it up. See photos of them training below.

Shaolin martial arts students practice at their club in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. When they aren’t training on the snow covered hills that surround Kabul, Azimi, teacher wearing black, trains her students in a grungy, dark club financed by a young cinema actor. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

Shaolin martial arts students practice at their club in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. When they aren’t training on the snow covered hills that surround Kabul, the students train in the grungy, dark club financed by a young cinema actor. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

A Shaolin martial arts student prepares to practice at her club in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. At first the women could not find Shaolin uniforms, but, undeterred, they designed and ordered uniforms made by a Kabul tailor. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

Shaolin martial arts trainer, Sima Azimi, 20, performs on a hilltop in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. Azimi said it was difficult to find all the tools needed to train. For instance, she had to order her Shaolin sword from Iran, where she had studied the art for three years. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

A Shaolin Wushu martial arts student practices on a hilltop in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017, preparing for the day that Afghanistan can send its women’s team to the Shaolin world championship in China.(AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

Shaolin martial arts students practice on a hilltop in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. Teacher Sima Azimi, 20, not pictured, who is originally from Jaghuri in central Afghanistan, trains nine students in the martial arts to prepare for Olympic competitions, but also to protect themselves on the streets of Kabul, where women are routinely harassed. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

Shaolin martial arts students practice on a hilltop in the snow, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. The ten ethnic Hazara women are preparing for the day that Afghanistan can send its women’s team to the Shaolin world championship in China. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

A Shaolin martial arts student practices the splits on a hilltop in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. In religiously conservative Afghanistan, girls are often discouraged from aggressive sports. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

Shaolin martial arts students and their trainer have a snowball fight after their training session in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2017. The ten ethnic Hazara women and girls practice the martial arts of Shaolin on a hilltop in the west of Kabul. They are preparing for the day that Afghanistan can send its women’s team to the Shaolin world championship in China. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

—RealClearLife