Afghanistan's Rohullah Nikpai won his country's first Olympic medal with a bronze after beating flyweight world champion Juan Antonio Ramos of Spain in the men's 58-kg taekwondo on August 20.

"After more than 30 years of war in Afghanistan, I think this medal is a very great message for peace and the future of Afghanistan," said the 21-year-old.

The bronze came after tough competition against world champion Juan Antonio Ramos of Spain and ended a half-century medal drought for the country since it joined the Olympic family in 1936. It missed the Sydney Games as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned Afghanistan from the Olympic Games in 1999 for the ruling of its Taliban regime.

Afghanistan's best Olympic result was Mohammed Ebrahimi's fifth place in wrestling at the Tokyo Games in 1964.

Nikpai, bronze medallist of this year's Asian Championships, seized the chance of revenge, after losing to Guillermo Perez of Mexico, who later claimed the title in the men's 58kg category, and made all-out efforts to fight for the medal.

The Afghan launched aggressive attacks to Ramos in the history-making match, taking a two-point lead in the first round. It was evened when the Spaniard scored one point in round 2 and another point at the beginning of round 3.

He continued his offensive attacks, forcing the pre-game favorite to fall down at least twice, and managed to get two more points, while the opponent received a reduction penalty before the match ended. He won the match 4-1.

Nikpai, one of the four athletes of the delegation of Afghanistan, drew almost the same attention as the gold medallist did at the press conference.

He said he has practiced Taekwondo for 11 years, following his brother.

Compared with his two compatriots, 100-meter sprinters, who have never trained on a proper running track on home soil, Nikpai is luckier.

"My training situation is like my country's situation. It's good for me, not bad," he said.

He has a coach from South Korea and the team also has a training camp in South Korea.

His teammate Nesar Ahmad Behave, 23, a world silver medallist, will compete in the men's 68kg category on Thursday, seeking another medal for the country.

He will get a bonus of $50,000 offered by a mobile phone company.

"I'm not sure how to deal with it," he noted.

However, he is certain that he will continue the training for the next Olympic Games.

"I'll strive to achieve a better result in my next Olympic Games," he said.

Profile of Rohullah Nikpai

Date of Birth: Jun. 15, 1987

Height(cm/ft in): 183cm / 6'0"

Weight(kg/lbs): 58 kg / 128 lbs

Sport: Taekwondo

Event: Men -- 58kg

(Compiled from Xinhua News Agency August 20, 2008 and BOCOG)