Olympian Sabrina returns to Austria after successfully completing Karachi to K2 mission
The four-time Olympian judoka Sabrina Filzmoser fulfilled her her dream of completing the mission to spread the message of peace and cycling from Karachi to K2 as a part of Judo for Peace expedition.
She began her journey in Karachi on May 22 just a day after arriving the City of Lights, where she also visited Jinnah's Mausoleum and the Sea View, before making her way towards Hyderababd and Sukkur while Pakistan was under an extreme heatwave.
She was very interactive on her journey that she covered on a bicycle but also stopped in every city to train with local judokas.
She documented her journey on her instagram account as well.
She was travelling on her own expense but she was supported by the Pakistan Judo Federation (PJF) when it came to logistics, security, and mingling with the local judo community.
"Sabrina returned to Karachi after completing her mission," the PJF secretary Masood Ahmed told The Express Tribune. " She returned to Austria on Friday morning after an extraordinary journey."
In June, she achieved the incredible feat of becoming the first woman in Pakistan's history to complete the journey of 2,324 km in just 10 days.
On her reaching in Skardu Sabrina reflected on her effort with joy and pride, after an arduous journey that she solely covered on her bicycle.
"It was a challenging day from Gilgit to Skardu, 14 hours on the road, rain, heat, headwind, crosswind, mudslides, rockfalls, blockages, technical issues, but it's all done and dusted. Safely in Gilgit-Baltistan," she text The Express Tribune back in June. "Now I will spend time preparing for the expedition, working on the permits, train with the Baltistan cycling club and the Judo kids.
"Then there'll be a possible one further section on MTB to Askole, probably starting in 10 days, and from there we'll the trek on the Baltoro glacier.
"K2 base camp is very remote, we need at least 1 week to reach it from Askole. Afterwards acclimatization period will start, and the actual K2-climbing is possible in a short window end of July/beginning of August."
The Austrian athlete covered 2,324 km on her bike, the total altitude she gained was 118,386 meters, and spent 111.45 hours on the road, according to the statistics shared by Ahmed at that point.
Sabrina has taken up this journey on her own resources, however, the PJF is helping with logistics wherever they can.
From May 21 from Karachi, she then went on to complete the first leg upwards from Karachi to Hyderabad and then Sukkur in sweltering temperatures of 48 to 52 degrees Celsius.
From there onwards she reached Rahim Yar Khan to Lahore and then the nation's capital in Islamabad.
Later the International Judo Federation Athletes' Commission chairperson went ahead to Gilgit-Baltistan. She briefly left to attend an important International Judo Federation meeting.
But she returned in less than a week, began preparing for her K2 expedition and spent more than a month on it, before returning to Karachi to conclude her journey.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
9 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Alcaraz to face defending champ Sinner
World number one Jannik Sinner and hot rival Carlos Alcaraz will face off in a major final for the fourth time this season after both booked straight-set wins into the title match at the ATP-WTA Cincinnati Open on Saturday. Defending champion Sinner ruthlessly subdued 136th-ranked qualifier Terence Atmane 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 while Spanish second seed Alcaraz defeated an ailing Alexander Zverev, who was suffering badly from the 32 Celsius heat and humidity, by 6-4, 6-3. Alcaraz and Sinner have played for trophies this season in Rome, Roland Garros and Wimbledon, with the Italian winning their most recent at the All England Club last month. Sinner, celebrating his 24th birthday, ended Frenchman Atmane's dream run and will now try to become the first man since Roger Federer in 2014-15 to win back-to-back titles in Cincinnati. Sinner, tuning up for the US Open in his first tournament since winning Wimbledon, hasn't dropped a set en route to the final. "It's a very, very tough challenge every time you play a new opponent," Sinner said. "In the later stages of the tournament,the pressure is on, they deserve to be there." Alcaraz will also be playing in his second Cincy final after losing to Novak Djokovic in 2023. The Spaniard increased his ATP season match win lead to 53 in a year of five titles. Alcaraz broke Zverev once in the opening set to claim it before the German, who is diabetic, began feeling poorly and took a medical timeout off court after the third game of the second set. Zverev, who has retired in only two matches since 2014, came back out to finish what was a patchy match from Alcaraz, who double-faulted for times in the second game of the second set but won the last 12 points with Zverev running on fumes. "We started well with good rallies, a good level," Alcaraz said. "All of a sudden he felt bad and I was thinking more about how he was feeling instead of playing good tennis. "It was tough and I just wish him all the best." Alcaraz said he is keen to try and take his Wimbledon revenge on Sinner in the unorthodox Monday final.
Express Tribune
9 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Pak get 8 gold medals at Hero Taekwondo Open
Pakistan's Ameer Hamza, Muhammad Umar, Shamil Ali and Hammad Sheikh with their coach Rahman Shah at the Hero International Takewondo Open. PHOTO COURTESY: KTA Pakistan taekwondo players Syed Ameer Hamza, Muhammad Umar, Hammad Nadeem, and Shamil Ali secured four medals at the 7th International Taekwondo Cup 2025 in Nilai, Malaysia, last week. The Karachi Taekwondo Academy players raised the Pakistani flags high in the senior, junior, and cadet categories in the tournament, which featured more than 2000 athletes from 25 countries. They won two gold medals and two silver medals. Other gold medallists include Syed Hadi Jafri in 45 kg event, while Tayiba Ashraf clinched three gold medals in virtual fight, pair poomsae, and 49 kg fight, and Sumbul Fatima bagged two gold medals and a silver in different events. While talking to The Express Tribune the athletes listed their aspirations, but the most fascinating feature was, at least three of them want to pursue careers in sports but also in medical professions. Hamza took the gold medal in the 51 kg juniors event, which had players aged between 15 and 17 competing for the top prize. "I am so happy to be here, and win this title, it is the hard work and the dedication of my coach that helped me win this gold medal," he told The Express Tribune with excitement in his voice. "I had a tough event, I fought two opponents and both of them were very good. " Hamza had previously competed in Fujera Open as well, but he did not win in 2019 juniors event. "I wasn't very good at the sport then, but I know I am improving, and this result shows it," said the 15-year-old, who aims to become a doctor when he grows up. "I want to carry on with taekwondo, but I also want to study to become a doctor. I am hoping to be able to find success in both of these things." Ameer is also the son of the Karachi Taekwondo Academy owner and coach Syed Rehman Shah, who has dedicated his life to training children in the Korean martial arts. His other student, Umar, on the other hand, won the all-important final fight to clinch the senior title in 64 kg event. He competed with a Chinese athlete and he deemed the event to be challenging but rewarding, "Chinese athletes are usually very tough to beat and they have great technique. I makes the victory sweeter to know I defeated a good competitor," explained the 20-year-old D Pharmacy student. Umar has been a persevering athlete, he represented Pakistan in the Qatar Open 2023 and, have been on the quest of making the country proud on the mat. Despite a tough schedule at Hamdard University, where he is pursuing a degree, Umar makes time for the taekwondo practice and trains at least one to two hours everyday throughout the year. However, he seldom gets any support from the university administration when it comes to highlighting his achievements as national athlete. "Mostly my fellow students and teachers are aware that I represent Pakistan internationally, even the Vice Chancellor of my university knows it, but they tend to ignore this, and of course it can affect me, the lack of support feels cold and cruel at times. We are here on our own," said Umar. Similarly, Shamil, who took silver medal in the 49 kg cadet weight category, believes that his training at the Karachi Academy helped keep his passion for taekwondo grow strong and attributes the balance between studies and training time to be essential for the quality of his game. "I have been training for four years, my family is very supportive of me playing in international events,," said Shamil, who was on call with his mother before the interview. "I think the tournament was tough because there were so many well-trained athletes here. "While I was in the fight I was only thinking about what I can do to make sure that I end this with a medal. "My mind was only focused on that, so I am glad I managed a silver." He said that his ultimate goal in life is to do what he loves: compete in taekwondo events, and become a male nurse. "I want to become a nurse, my whole family is in this profession, so I also want to continue the tradition. "The goal for me is to get the degree in nursing and get black belt in taekwondo," concluded the 14-year-old. Road to Nilai was paved with challenges Karachi Taekwondo Academy owner and coach Syed Rahman Shah, who has also been a sports trainer at reputable schools including Habib Public, added that the greatest challenge is to find sponsors and support from the government when it comes to taking the athletes to international events. "The way e have come to Malaysia is nothing short of a miracle, I can say that it was only with the help of Allah, the parents chipped in, and we asked people for help, but there is no institutional help of talented athletes. "But winning these medals after going through so much only ensures that we are on the right path, and my students are proving their mettle on the international stage," said Rahman, "We need support from the Pakistan Teakwondo Federation as well, because at the end of the day every athlete wants to compete at the highest level, and to achieve that there needs to be an effective system in place that can treat our players with respect and dignity," said Rahman.
Express Tribune
12 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Passengers decry poor rail services
Pakistan Railways continues to fall woefully short of its pledges of reform and modernisation, with trains failing to run on schedule, passengers being denied facilities commensurate with the fares charged, and the maintenance of passenger coaches in a deplorable condition. The so-called air-conditioned parlour class offers little more than a token cooling system, with exorbitant fares, broken seats reminiscent of rickshaws, filthy washrooms, substandard food, and widespread overchargingall of which have laid bare the hollowness of the Railways' claims of improvement. Conditions in other classes are reported to be even worse. During The Express Tribune correspondent's journey on the 7am railcar from Rawalpindi to Lahore on August 15, a Rs2,260 ticket for the air-conditioned parlour class afforded scant comfort. The seats, instead of being cushioned with soft foam, were hard, torn, and akin to rickshaw benches. Many foldable food tables were broken, the cooling system failed to function effectively, and the maintenance of seats, flooring, and washrooms was virtually non-existent. Two passengers were billed Rs1,900 for a poor-quality breakfast which, owing to the early morning departure, travellers were compelled to purchasean opportunity vendors appeared eager to exploit. The railcar, scheduled to depart Rawalpindi at 7:03am, reached Lahore only at 12:30pm, taking five and a half hours. Within the AC parlour coach, drinking water and soft drinks were sold at double their market price. Such conditions stand in stark contrast to the much-vaunted promises of reform, modernisation, and enhanced passenger services. The return journey from Lahore to Rawalpindi, advertised as a non-stop service, proved equally disappointing. The train, scheduled to leave at 6pm, departed at 6:14pm and arrived in Rawalpindi at 11:14pm, having been halted three times to allow other trains to pass. Despite repeated assurances by successive governments of timely departures, punctual arrivals, and upgraded facilities, the situation on the ground remains unchanged. Even after high-profile events staged by the Ministry of Railways and attended by the Federal Minister for Railways, passengers continue to endure hardship. Railway regulations explicitly prioritise passenger comfort, quality of service, punctual train operations, proper coach maintenance, and safety. Yet these standards remain unachieved. When contacted, Railways Public Relations Officer Sohail Baloch confirmed that the breakfast charges and railcar fares were officially approved but offered no explanation for the poor food quality, the lack of comfortable seating, the ineffective cooling system, the appalling condition of washrooms, or the persistent delays in departures from both Rawalpindi and Lahore.
