An Afghan taekwondo champion is entered in 2012 Olympics

My family fled Afghanistan in 1993, first moving to Russia and then settling in London over a decade ago.

As a budding journalist living here in London, I see that there is hardly a day that does not involve Afghanistan in the headlines.

But when I look at my country's representation in the media I find the stories are mainly about extremist groups, poppy fields and women's rights and all this shapes the views of Afghans to the rest of the world.

When I am confronted with the widely accepted negative view of my homeland I feel responsible to point out the positives, highlighting out that Afghanistan was not as we know it today before the war, it was progressive, open minded and developed.

Today I am proud to add Rohullah Nikpai, the Afghan Taekwondo champion’s achievements to the list to show that we are heading in the right direction.

I think it is important that positives are shown despite the negatives, I am worried that the bad will become a stable view of Afghanistan and it may become a barrier between the future generations and the countries success.

Nikpai's achievements are a ray of hope not only to put the country's name on the sports map but also to present Afghanistan in a positive light to the world.

Afghans should be able to pick up from where they left off before the war and move the country to become the centre of culture, civilization and ultimately become an inspiration to others.

Nikpai's athletic journey is also an example of fighting against all odds and achieving your dreams despite all the hardship faced.

And I know he's a great role-model to young Afghans, including my siblings and myself.

A young Afghan boxer living in London said: “It was amazing to see Nikpai’s achievements unfold. He is a great role model. I myself am currently training in boxing and hope that one day I too can represent my country within the sports competition to the world.”

“Many Afghan’s around the world feel proud of his achievements as they should”, he added.

I hope other Afghans will follow in his footsteps and move forward with their dreams, the more similar achievements are reported the easier it will become for the world to accept Afghanistan without prejudice and the easier it is going to be for the Afghans to reunite and trust one another.

It is not just a matter of sports and medals it is a starting point of a renewed society and I hope that the Afghan women do not fall behind and instead start breaking the barriers to step into the world.

That's why I'm so committed to following my dreams to be a journalist so I can make my own contribution.

But for now, like all other Afghans around the world me and my family are very proud of Nikpai’s achievements and will support him in his future, and I hope I can be part of greeting Nikpai to London when he arrives for the Olympics in 2012.