But, as of now, the Refugee Olympic Team are not able to officially use the flag or the anthem.
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But we knew that would compensate by enthusiasm, by commitment, and by the strong message that they would bring to the Olympic Games.
“If we succeed, we succeed for all of them”.
However, before “Team Refugees” even set foot into the stadium in Rio this August, they must be regarded as distinguished winners. Medals, prize money, fame, and their future careers hang in the balance. He has a marathon time of two hours 17 minutes and would qualify for the Olympic team if he had his citizenship.
All left their countries of origin, the Congo, South Sudan and Syria, respectively, to escape the horrific social, economic and political conditions that have torn their homelands apart and led to the killings and exodus of hundreds of thousands of people, many of them young children and babies.
“As the world cheers on Team Refugees in the Olympic Games, we are pleased to commemorate the spirit, strength and resilience of refugees in Nepal”, said UNHCR Representative Kevin J. Allen.
While the stories of people like Yusra Mardini are incredible, they haven’t translated into widespread concern for all refugees. “It’s very good news for refugee athletes that Olympic Solidarity have given us this chance to participate here”. “These are extraordinary people – not just athletes, but people”. They must not go by unrepresented or unheard of in this year’s games.
Few expect records or medals from the refugee squad. “The flag is a statement”, she says. Nevertheless, no team has been so universally popular at these Olympics.
“I want to show the best possible image of refugees or Syrian people, or anyone who has suffered injustice in the world, and tell them to not lose hope”, 25-year-old swimmer Rani Anis said to the BBC.
Yusra Mardini, a Syrian refugee now living in Germany, won the 100-meter butterfly heat on 8 August.
What has she said?
She managed to win the 100m butterfly, however, finished with a time of 1:09:29 which was too slow to qualify her for the semi-finals.
“Everything was incredible”, she told reporters after the swim. “The only thing I ever wanted was to compete in the Olympics”.
Several of her teammates, meanwhile, completed their own events to equally dramatic encouragement. “My people will see me on the television, on Facebook”. Though he lost to world champion, Gwak Dong-han of South Korea in Round 16, his performance acted as a symbol of hope for fellow refugees around the world.
At that moment during the opening ceremony these Refugees were honored and celebrated. “But this is one instance in which there’s not just talk, but action”.
But for the competitors themselves, this isn’t just about symbolism. And we had to wait for the whole ceremony, because they were the last but one team to enter before the hosts, Brazil. And I hope that the personal histories of these 10 athletes will illustrate this important characteristic of refugees that is too often forgotten, because too often we concentrate on big numbers, on the consequences of flows of millions of people and the impact that they have. Omar and many others like her have been denied fantastic careers and the chance to contribute to the life of the global community.
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That is a responsibility shared by all the athletes, but as a woman she has felt it especially acutely. Collectively, the members are a living, breathing and competitive symbol here of the estimated 65 million people worldwide who have been driven away from the place they call home – and the more than 21 million who have been designated refugees, according to the United Nations’ refugee agency. “A woman can do what a man can do twice”. He clocked 54.25 seconds to finish 56th out of 59 in the heats.
