By Geoffrey Latayan
A refugee team competing in the Olympic Games wouldn’t be possible if not for the late Pope Francis, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said.
In a statement, the most powerful person in sport said that Francis was an advocate for the inclusion of refugees in the prestigious quadrennial sports competition.
“His powerful voice in support of refugees is a shining example of his commitment, and it inspired me to create the first-ever refugee Olympic team for the Olympic Games Rio 2016,” Bach said in a statement.
“He has graciously followed and supported this initiative throughout three Olympic Games editions, encouraging its growth and impact. This ongoing encouragement also led to the creation of the Olympic Refuge Foundation in 2017,” said the German foil fencer who won a gold medal in the team foil event of the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, Canada.
The refugee teams in action
The first-ever refugee Olympic team made its grand walk in the opening ceremonies of the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. It was composed of 10 athletes from South Sudan, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Syria.
They didn’t win a medal but it inspired a generation of refugee athletes to showcase their abilities in sports.
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Five years later, 29 athletes who originated from Syria, Congo, South Sudan, Sudan, Venezuela, Iran, Afghanistan, DR Congo, Eritrea, Cameroon and Iraq competed in Tokyo. Just like the original refugee team, they didn’t win a medal but this would inspire the next iteration of the refugee team to strive for the best and go for the medal.
Thirty-seven refugee athletes saw action in the 2024 Paris Olympics and they’re from Congo, Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, Syria, Ethiopia, Iran, Cuba, Afghanistan, Venezuela and Yemen.
And for the first time ever, Cameroonian refugee boxer Cindy Ngamba captured the bronze medal for the refugee team in the women’s middleweight category.
Ngamba defeated opponents from Thailand and France to secure an assured bronze medal. She competed in the semifinal but lost to Atheyna Bylon of Panama, 4-1.
Bach: Pope Francis as an ‘unwavering supporter’ of the Olympic movement
The 71-year-old Bach thanked Pope Francis for his support for sports during his 12-year leadership in the Vatican.
“His support for the peace and solidarity mission of the Olympic Games and the refugee initiatives of the IOC has been unwavering,” said Bach.
“I got to know His Holiness as a very pensive intellectual who was humble and had a very good sense of humor. His deep passion for sport and the Olympic values was always obvious,” he added.
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