“It was an incredible feeling to compete here in the Olympics, and I am really happy and glad for that”, Mardini said.
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Mardini, 19 years old and now residing in Germany, took first place in a 100-meter women’s butterfly heat in Rio, keeping her dream of medaling in the Olympics alive for at least a little bit longer.
She and her sister Sarah had to leave Syria when it became extremely volatile; travelling through Lebanon and Turkey before trying to reach Greece.
Yusra Mardini, 18, is competing at her first Olympic Games, just like many of her competitors.
She was only in the water for 1:09.21 on Saturday, a time not among the 16 best, but she never had dreams of making the semis. Instead they marched into the stadium under the Olympic flag and are competing under the designation “Refugee Olympic Team”.
“When I was in the water there was fear”.
Ten athletes overall – four women and six men – are competing in Rio for the refugee team.
Mardini’s daily routine, till she arrived at the Olympic village in Rio, involved getting trained in the morning for 2-3 hours, attending school, and then getting back to the pool for more training. Williams, who at 36 is likely in her final Olympics, still has a chance at one more gold as she will team with her sister, Serena, in doubles. After a week-long trek through Macedonia, Serbia and Hungary, the sisters made it to Germany, where they now live.
Thomas Bach, International Olympic Committee president, during the opening ceremony, said, “The Refugee Athletes are sending a hope to the millions of refugees”.
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According to a report in NDTV, the refugee Olympic team, consisting of 10 athletes, are participating as Independent Olympic athletes to show solidarity with the world’s refugees. Mardini and three others jumped off the boat and swam it to the shore. “I remember that without swimming, I would not be alive”, Mardini told the Olympic site. Half are refugees from South Sudan, two fled Syria, two left the Democratic Republic of the Congo and one is originally from Ethiopia.
