IV 026 | Farid Noori

INNERVOICE with Travis McKenzie

Farid Noori's story is incredible. At 2 years old the Taliban came to his idyllic village in mountainous Afghanistan. His family was forced to escape to Pakistan to flee the war raging in his homeland.

He describes the darkness that still exists after decades of conflict. He also describes a motivated and engaged youth who are proud of their country and have a desire to do better.

Truth be told, my background and experiences growing up in Australia and living for the last decade in North America are far removed from what Farid describes. That is what is so amazing about this conversation, for me it was a chance to walk a mile in the shoes of someone whose upbringing was completely different from mine, yet we find common ground. Firstly as humans and secondly through a mutual love for sport and in particular endurance sports.

His family and society had a vision for his life. When given the opportunity to travel to the US on a 'golden ticket' visa, the expectation would be that he would return to Afghanistan to lead the country by working in government or the UN to help solve the generational issues facing his compatriots.

He shares with you and I - memories that have altered the course of his life and his immediate future. Including, of course, his first interactions with sport and, especially mountain biking. He was first introduced to the sport of Enduro racing in New Mexico and his addiction and fascination for cycling grew from there. He now sees it as his moral obligation to become Afghanistan’s first Olympic Cyclist.

This is a truly fascinating conversation that I’m privileged to bring to you. I felt like I could talk with Farid forever and this conversation really stuck with me.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Love, Trav

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Follow Farid on instagram - @farid_noori

Check out MTB Afghanistan

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