PARIS, 3rd May, 2024 (WAM) -- Thirty-six athletes from 11 different countries, hosted by 15 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and competing across 12 sports were named today as members of the IOC Refugee Olympic Team for Paris 2024.
The announcement was made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach, during a live-streamed ceremony from Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Appearing at the Olympic Games for the third time, the IOC Refugee Olympic Team will represent the more than 100 million displaced people around the world, according to a press release issued by the IOC.
“We welcome all of you with open arms. You are an enrichment to our Olympic Community, and to our societies. With your participation in the Olympic Games, you will demonstrate the human potential of resilience and excellence. This will send a message of hope to the more than 100 million displaced people around the world,” said IOC President Thomas Bach.
"At the same time, you will make billions of people around the world aware of the magnitude of the refugee crisis. Therefore, I encourage everyone, around the world, to join us in cheering for you – the IOC Refugee Olympic Team,” Bach said, when addressing the team members, who had joined the meeting virtually.
Chef de Mission for the Refugee Olympic Team Masomah Ali Zada, who competed for the Refugee Olympic Team at Tokyo 2020, and was present today during the ceremony, welcomed the athletes: “All of you had a dream, and today your dream to compete at the Olympic Games is closer than ever. With all the challenges that you have faced, you now have a chance to inspire a new generation, represent something bigger than yourselves and show the world what refugees are capable of.”
The vast majority of the athletes were selected from among the refugee athletes supported by the IOC through the Refugee Athletes Scholarship Programme, funded by the IOC’s Olympic Solidarity programme and managed by the Olympic Refuge Foundation.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said, “The Refugee Olympic Team should remind us of the resilience, courage and hopes of all those uprooted by war and persecution. These athletes represent what human beings can do, even in the face of extreme adversity."
“The team also reminds us that sport can be transformative for people whose lives have been disrupted in often harrowing circumstances. Transformative not just for Olympians, but for everyone. Sport can offer respite, an escape from daily worries, a sense of safety, a moment of enjoyment. It can give people the chance to heal physically and mentally, and become part of a community again.”