7msports > Athletics Video > Refugee Olympians prepare to 'change lives' in Rio

Refugee Olympians prepare to 'change lives' in Rio

Friday, July 29 2016 by SNTV
  • Refugees runners from South Sudan trained in Nairobi on Monday (25th July) as they prepare to compete at the upcoming Rio Olympics under a neutral flag.

    Five refugees who fled the conflict in South Sudan are getting ready for their first Olympic Games where they will represent millions of others fleeing conflicts around the world.

    The group of five runners will join five others to compete under the Olympic flag as a single team in Rio de Janeiro - the first time a refugee team will compete at the Olympic Games.

    Many have family members who still reside in South Sudan or back in the Kakuma refugee camp.

    For some their loss of contact with their families hopes their participation in the games would help him reconnect with them and give hope to all refugees.

    "And my fellow refugees, I can tell them that being a refugee is only a status. You can change that status to be a better person in life. Most of them they lose hope in life. When you call someone a refugee, they feel ashamed. Even some of them, maybe, they don't have a chance to do everything other human beings can do, like going to a school. Most of them stay in the camps because they are losing hope in life. As ambassador for them I can tell them don't lose hope in life, you have a chance to change your life."

    The full team also includes two swimmers from Syria and two judokas from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as an Ethiopian marathon runner.

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