With assistance from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Olympic Refuge Foundation (ORF) formed the Refugee Olympic Team (ROT) to provide athletes who have been forcibly displaced with an opportunity to compete on the world’s greatest sporting platform. The squad competed in its first Olympic Games in Rio in 2016.
In Paris, with 37 athletes competing in 12 different sports, the ROT became the largest refugee team since the IOC established the first team. The chef de mission of the Refugee Olympic Team, Masomah Ali Zada, says she is “proud” to carry out her job of representing “all those who have been forced to flee their country”. The 28-year-old Afghan, who rode for the Olympic team for the Refugees at the Tokyo 2020 Games, transitioned smoothly into a managerial position and will serve as “the spokesperson for the 120 million displaced people worldwide.”
The Boxer who Almost Deported from the UK
Boxer Cindy Ngamba won bronze in the women’s 75 kg category, she made history as the first member of the ROT to take to the podium.
In addition, the 25-year-old was also the first ever refugee athlete to qualify for the Olympic boxing tournament. Ngamba joined the refugee team after being denied to compete for Great Britain, where she permanently lives. She moved there from Cameroon at the age of 11 and discovered boxing as a teenager at a gym in northern England.
“The sport helped me in lots of ways,” Ngamba told RFI in July. “It gave me the power to express myself and be proud of myself.”
But her status remained uncertain as long as she didn’t have a long-term visa or UK nationality. Five years ago, she was even detained, and threatened with deportation, but she was ultimately granted refugee status.
Notable Performances, and Heartbreaking Stories
Dominic Lokinyomo Lobalu finished fourth in the men’s 5 000-meter final in athletics and was just a fraction of seconds away from a medal. Perina Lokure Nakang and Jamal Abdelmaji set personal records in their respective races earlier in the Games—the women’s 800m and the men’s 10 000 m.
A former Iranian refugee, Kimia Alizadeh – a member of the Refugee Olympic Team in Tokyo who now competes for Bulgaria – claimed the country’s first-ever medal in taekwondo, winning bronze in the women’s 57 kg category. Hadi Tiranvalipour and Dina Pouryounes Langeroudi, two of Alizadeh’s countrymen, participated in taekwondo as well but were eliminated early. Both were dedicated athletes who were raking up medals and sports accolades before circumstances forced them to flee Iran, and they represented the refugee team in Paris.
Langeroudi fled Iran in 2015 and eventually settled in The Netherlands. That year, she won her first international medal at the Polish Open while still living in an asylum center. Langeroudi’s Olympic debut was in Tokyo 2020 when she fought in the -49kg division.
Sports had always been a part of Tiranvalipour’s life. He had been competing for eight years as a member of the Iranian national team. In 2022, Tiranvalipour lost his job after taking a stand on women’s rights. He fled to Turkey and then to Italy where reportedly lived in a forest for ten days. After training alone in a park, Tiranvalipour reportedly approached the Italian Federation, which helped him to apply for asylum and settle in the country.
Meanwhile, South Sudan’s men’s basketball team – made up of former refugees – represented the African continent in Paris, beating Puerto Rico before losing out to Serbia and the United States in a tough group.
But no matter where they finished in competition, every member of the refugee team displayed tremendous determination and courage across their 12 different sports at Paris 2024, flying the flag for the 120 million forcibly displaced people worldwide.
