TAFTIAN Hassan

General
RENEWED MOTIVATION
He has said that the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has given him a new outlook on sport. "It made us realise we are all united, we are all one. I asked myself, 'What are you doing for this unity?' And I decided to start running for everyone who is making an effort. From then on every race, every hundredth of a second, every step that I ran, it was not just me running, it was us running together. We live to be together. The pandemic at least had this positive effect on me that it made me realise that we should be more united. If there is one thing I am good at, it's running. So I run with all my might for all the people who have run, but have fallen short, who have not been appreciated, who have fallen along the way, who have not crossed the finish line. I cross that line for them." (TEDx Talks YouTube channel, 04 Nov 2021)

RACING IN BORROWED SHOES
He realised he did not have his running spikes as he was getting ready to warm up at the 2021 International Athletic Imam Reza Cup in Mashhad, Islamic Republic of Iran. He managed to borrow some shoes from another athlete and went on to finish second in the 100m. "We found out that the shoes had fallen out of the X-ray machine at the entrance of the stadium, and I was told they had already been collected by someone else. I was completely confused and had to borrow shoes from an 800m runner, which were too big for me. I wanted to be a champion in Mashhad so I would have run barefoot if necessary, but I had a lot of stress before the race. As sprinters, 100% of our work depends on our shoes, and the large size of these shoes caused me to lose my balance both at the start and at the finish line. Maybe if it was anyone else in my place he could not run in these circumstances, but I managed to record a good time and finish second." (varzesh3, 11 Apr 2021)

TIME ABROAD
In 2017 he spent three months training with French coach Guy Ontanon. In February 2018 he began working with Ontanon at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance [INSEP] in Paris, France. "I prefer to train in Iran but there are difficulties in terms of facilities. Being away from my family is annoying but I am forced to leave Iran. I want to continue working with coach Ontanon because I have had good results with him and he is a high-level coach. These results are not the limit of my achievements, and I can definitely be more successful with him." (tehrantimes, 06 Apr 2021, 14 Jan 2020; mehrnews, 25 Aug 2019; en, 05 Feb 2018; mashreghnews.ir, 23 Sep 2017)

He became the first competitor from the Islamic Republic of Iran to win gold in the 100m at the Asian championships by claiming victory at the 2017 edition of the tournament in Bhubaneswar, India. (SportsDeskOnline, 03 Jul 2020; merdeka, 20 May 2018; financialtribune, 05 Feb 2018)