On a pristine volleyball court on the seventh floor of a massive training center in the Chinese city of Hangzhou, a team of Afghan women prepare for their first Asian Games in defiance of the Taliban government's antipathy toward women's sports.
Though separated from their families and scattered across Asia, the volleyball players have assembled at the multisport event with the support of Olympic officials and the sport's global federation.
Some fled Afghanistan when the Taliban came to power after the Tokyo Olympics in August 2021, fearing persecution from a government that has effectively banned women's sports.
With little prospect of returning home, they have rebuilt their lives in Pakistan, Iran and other countries, competing in effective exile.
Now in Hangzhou, they yearn to give hope to the hopeless — the female athletes left behind in their homeland.
"Nowadays, they are looking for hope," said Mursal Khedri, a Pakistan-based, 24-year-old member of the volleyball team.
"By seeing us here they can find hope that we (women) can also participate in sports."
The Taliban administration says it respects women's rights in line with its interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan custom and that it has declared a "general amnesty" against its former foes under the previous government.
Wearing lycra leggings and shirts with the traditional Afghanistan colors of red, black and green, the players all train in hijabs under the watch of veteran Iranian coach Nasrin Khazani.
They will play their first group match against Kazakhstan when the women's volleyball tournament starts on Saturday.
They are unlikely to get near the knockout rounds and claiming a single win would be a big achievement for a team of exiles that will be facing nations with organized programs and government funding.
Just being recognized by the Asian Games, however, is a boost for women in the country, according to Khushal Malakzai, the secretary-general of the Afghan volleyball federation.
"Actually, the important thing for us, and also the girls, is that participation in (these) kind of matches and coming here, they give them hope for the future," he said.
"And for those girls who are inside Afghanistan and outside Afghanistan, that they should understand that there are people that are still supporting them."
Malakzai, the team's organizer and fundraising champion, has been based in Melbourne, Australia, for just over a year, having first fled to Pakistan after fearing for his safety in Afghanistan.
He said he left the country on the advice of Afghanistan's volleyball federation and after receiving multiple threats from Taliban representatives by phone and in writing due to his support for women's sports.
A spokesman for the Taliban administration did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Though initially composed and enthusiastic when talking about the women's team, Malakzai burst into tears when he saw the players form a circle on the volleyball court, join hands and cry "Afghanistan!" at the end of their training session.
"I am so happy they can be here. But for the girls at home in Afghanistan, it is hopeless," he said.
For the Afghan women in Hangzhou, it is a thrill to compete at a high level but there are also nerves.
There are 17 in total, competing in volleyball, cycling and athletics.
Australia-based Kimia Yousofi will compete in the women's 100 meters and carried the Afghan flag during the Asian Games opening ceremony last Saturday with a male teammate. She declined to be interviewed.
Her Australia-based coach John Quinn said she did not want attention in case of reprisals against her connections in Afghanistan.
The Afghan women and men marched as one team at the opening ceremony, behind the traditional tricolor national flag and not the white one used by the Taliban government.
The delegation includes male athletes and officials based in Afghanistan.
They are unlikely to attend competition venues to cheer on the women's volleyball team or the other Afghan women due to the sensitivity of the situation.
Malakzai saw little prospect of things changing in the short term.
"So we hope that everything will change and the Taliban even accepts the women," he said.
"But it will take time."
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.