Syrian refugee who swam for her life will compete at the Olympics
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Two Syrian swimmers will represent the world’s refugees at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
If all the world’s refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) inside war zones, and those threatened by climate-related famine, were one country, it would be the 11th largest nation in the world with a population of 125 million people.
This year, for the first time, this ‘nation’ will be represented at the Olympic Games, competing under the Olympic flag.
Ten athletes have been selected for the team, the UN High Commission for Refugees announced today. They include two Syrian swimmers.
Yusra Mardini, 18, will compete in the 200-metre freestyle. Her swimming skills saved her life and the lives of 20 others she travelled with by boat to Greece.
Fleeing Turkey for Greece, their boat began to take on water. Desperate to not join the thousands who have perished under the waves, Mardini and her sister Sarah jumped into the water and swam, pushing the boat to Greece.
“There were people who didn’t know how to swim,” she explained. “It would have been shameful if the people on our boat had drowned. I wasn’t going to sit there and complain that I would drown.”
She made her way to Berlin, Germany.
Wanting to be an inspiration to other refugees, Mardini is likely to inspire many others as well. “I want to represent all the refugees because I want to show everyone that, after the pain, after the storm, comes calm days. I want to inspire them to do something good in their lives.”
Rami Anis, 25, will compete in the 100-metre butterfly. “Swimming is my life,” he said. “The swimming pool is my home.”
Anis began swimming competitively when he was 14, at home in Aleppo.
His family sent him to Istanbul, away from the daily bombardments on the city. In Istanbul, he continued to train but, as a refugee, was unable to swim in competitions.
Seeking safety and opportunity, Anis took a rubber dinghy to Greece and eventually made it to Belgium.
Mardini and Anis will be joined on the Refugee Olympic Athletes team by Yolande Mabika and Popole Misenga, both from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, competing in judo; and Paulo Amotun Lokoro, Yiech Pur Biel, Rose Nathike, Angelina Nadai Lohalith, and James Nyang Chiengjiek from South Sudan, and Yonas Kinde from Ethiopia, all competing in athletics.
If all the world’s refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) inside war zones, and those threatened by climate-related famine, were one country, it would be the 11th largest nation in the world with a population of 125 million people.
This year, for the first time, this ‘nation’ will be represented at the Olympic Games, competing under the Olympic flag.
Ten athletes have been selected for the team, the UN High Commission for Refugees announced today. They include two Syrian swimmers.
Yusra Mardini, 18, will compete in the 200-metre freestyle. Her swimming skills saved her life and the lives of 20 others she travelled with by boat to Greece.
Fleeing Turkey for Greece, their boat began to take on water. Desperate to not join the thousands who have perished under the waves, Mardini and her sister Sarah jumped into the water and swam, pushing the boat to Greece.
“There were people who didn’t know how to swim,” she explained. “It would have been shameful if the people on our boat had drowned. I wasn’t going to sit there and complain that I would drown.”
She made her way to Berlin, Germany.
Wanting to be an inspiration to other refugees, Mardini is likely to inspire many others as well. “I want to represent all the refugees because I want to show everyone that, after the pain, after the storm, comes calm days. I want to inspire them to do something good in their lives.”
Rami Anis, 25, will compete in the 100-metre butterfly. “Swimming is my life,” he said. “The swimming pool is my home.”
Anis began swimming competitively when he was 14, at home in Aleppo.
His family sent him to Istanbul, away from the daily bombardments on the city. In Istanbul, he continued to train but, as a refugee, was unable to swim in competitions.
Seeking safety and opportunity, Anis took a rubber dinghy to Greece and eventually made it to Belgium.
Mardini and Anis will be joined on the Refugee Olympic Athletes team by Yolande Mabika and Popole Misenga, both from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, competing in judo; and Paulo Amotun Lokoro, Yiech Pur Biel, Rose Nathike, Angelina Nadai Lohalith, and James Nyang Chiengjiek from South Sudan, and Yonas Kinde from Ethiopia, all competing in athletics.