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VICE News

Cables from Kabul

Mainstream sports aren't that popular in Afghanistan. You'd be more likely to find Afghans glued to their TV sets, watching a game of Buzkashi (dead goat polo) than supporting the national soccer team. But there is one popular, mainstream sport: boxing.

Mainstream sports aren’t that popular in Afghanistan. You’d be more likely to find Afghans glued to their TV sets, watching a game of Buzkashi (dead goat polo) than supporting the national soccer team. But there is one popular, mainstream sport: boxing.

We meet up with Hamid Rahimi, an Afghan-born WBA title belt holder, and talk about his upcoming appearance in the fight for peace. Hamid predicts that Afghanistan will do well in boxing at the next Olympics, so we head down to a local boxing gym to meet the trainer and watch his trainees beat the living shit out of each other.