Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Swimmer's Daily
    • Home
    • Blog
    • Timeline
    • Tags
    • Sitemap
    • About
    • Contact
    Facebook Twitter YouTube Tumblr
    Swimmer's Daily
    Home»Organization»Refugee Olympic Team: Where are they now?
    Organization

    Refugee Olympic Team: Where are they now?

    rokurBy rokurAugust 9, 2017Updated:August 9, 2017No Comments3 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    They came, they saw, their stories inspired the world.
    Ten athletes — victims of unimaginable hardship, forced to leave their homes in South Sudan, Congo, Ethiopia and Syria — united under a single flag.
    IOC President Thomas Bach called them “a symbol of hope” in a time of crisis. The Human Rights Watch claimed their involvement had “reframed the debate.”
    A year on from Rio 2016, how have the lives of the members of the Olympic Refugee Team changed?

    …

    Yusra Mardini: Syria, Swimming

    The tale of Yusra Mardini, Syria’s teenage swimmer who won her Olympic 100m butterfly heat just a year after swimming for her life, captivated the world.

    Her house in Aleppo was bombed, the motor on the dinghy transporting her from Turkey to Greece stopped working, but she never lost hope.

    Together with her sister, Sarah, Mardini pushed the boat for three hours through the Aegan sea toward Greek shores, potentially saving the lives of the 18 other migrants on board.

    She might not have made the semifinals in Rio, but insisted “the only thing I wanted was to compete.”

    One year on: Mardini is fighting new battles, shedding light on the millions displaced around the world and reclaiming the word ‘refugee’ as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

    Named by People magazine as one of ’25 women changing the world,’ the swimmer is in the process of penning an autobiography, with the story of her life also set to be told in a film by the award-winning director Stephen Daldry.

    Mardini competed in the FINA World Aquatic Championships this July, returning to Hungary just two years after sleeping rough in a Budapest train station en route from Syria to Germany.

    She is currently living in Berlin, preparing for Tokyo 2020.

    …

    Rami Anis: Syria, Swimming

    Seven years ago, Rami Anis was swimming for Syria at the Asian Games in China.

    After his home city of Aleppo was bombed, nothing was the same again.

    His journey to safety — partly made on an inflatable dinghy — has taken him to Turkey, the Greek island of Samos and, finally, to Belgium, where he gained asylum in December 2015.

    The 26-year-old achieved a personal best time of 54.25 seconds in his 100m freestyle heat in Rio, with his coach branding his inclusion on the team a form of “justice.”

    One year on: Anis met his idol Michael Phelps — the most successful Olympian in history — at the Laureus Awards in Monaco. He hopes the war in his home country will end so he can represent Syria at Tokyo 2020.

    …

    Ibrahim Al Hussein: Syria, Swimming

    Ibrahim Al Hussein lost his lower right leg in a bombing while trying to come to the assistance of a friend in danger near his Syrian home.

    He woke twice during emergency surgery and “saw everything.” For two months, he went without painkillers or proper treatment.

    One year on: The Rio Paralympics has given the swimmer who made headlines around the world for carrying the Olympic torch in Athens cause to dream again.

    Al Hussein might not have made the final of the 100-meter freestyle, but in September he received the Whang Youn Dai Achievement Award for the athlete that “best exemplifies the spirit of the Games.”

    Ibrahim Al Hussein Rami Anis Yusra Mardini
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    rokur
    • Website

    Production engineer and certified swim coach. Full-time IT consultant, spare-time swimming aficionado. 2 sons, 2 daughters and a wife. President of the Faroe Islands Aquatics Federation. Likes to run :-)

    Related Posts

    Local Program Providing Free Swimming Lessons for Students in Title I Schools | WFLA News Channel 8

    February 8, 2023

    Hampton Aquaplex Offering Free Swim Lessons to Local Second-Graders | WAVY TV 10

    February 8, 2023

    NSRI Open Third Survival Swimming Centre | eNCA

    February 8, 2023

    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Sponsor
    Top Posts
    • Underwater Record Gets Examined On 'Outrageous Acts Of Science'
      Underwater Record Gets Examined On 'Outrageous Acts Of Science'
    • Former UK Swimmer Riley Gaines to Attend State of the Union | FOX 56 News
      Former UK Swimmer Riley Gaines to Attend State of the Union | FOX 56 News
    • History Of Swimming (Infographic)
      History Of Swimming (Infographic)
    • Paralympic Swimmer Accused of Raping Special Needs Teammate Denies All Allegations | KRDO NewsChannel 13
      Paralympic Swimmer Accused of Raping Special Needs Teammate Denies All Allegations | KRDO NewsChannel 13
    • 10 Worst Shark Attacks Ever Recorded
      10 Worst Shark Attacks Ever Recorded
    • Swimming with Nose Restrictions
      Swimming with Nose Restrictions
    • Until Fairly Recently, The YMCA Actually Required Swimmers To Be Nude
      Until Fairly Recently, The YMCA Actually Required Swimmers To Be Nude
    • Crazy dude swimming in a septic tank
      Crazy dude swimming in a septic tank
    • How to Make a Living as a Freediver
      How to Make a Living as a Freediver
    • Story Of Encounter With The Candiru "The Fish That Can Swim Up Inside The Penis"
      Story Of Encounter With The Candiru "The Fish That Can Swim Up Inside The Penis"
    Countdown to Fukuoka 2023July 14, 2023
    5 months to go.
    Categories
    Buffer Overflow
    Tweets by swimmersdaily
    • RSS - Posts
    • RSS - Comments
    Search

     Subscribe in a reader

     Subscribe to comments

    Contact Info & Hours
    Swimmer's Daily
    c/o Rókur í Jákupsstovu
    Brekkuvegur 10
    FO-650 Toftir
    Faroe Islands
    Mobile +298 219754
    [email protected]
    09:00-21:00 UTC/GMT
    Subscribe to Blog via Email

    Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join 169 other subscribers
    Meta
    • Log in
    • Entries feed
    • Comments feed
    • WordPress.org
    Facebook Twitter YouTube Tumblr
    © 2023 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.