As the 2024 Olympics games in Paris, France, continue, we’re spotlighting world-class immigrant and refugee athletes who are competing or have competed. Today, we’ll spotlight Muna Dahouk, a judoka (a practitioner of judo) representing the IOC Refugee Team this summer.
Born August 27, 1995, in Damascus, Syria, a young Muna Dahouk (pictured above in white) began practicing judo at the age of six. She and her sister were trained under the expertise of their father. As a young adult, she graduated from a Syrian commercial and banking institute.
In 2011, when Dahouk was 16 years old, civil war broke out across Syria. The war brought on tumultuous times for millions of displaced Syrians, creating a major refugee crisis. The devastating conflict halted all expressions of freedom in the country, including sports such as judo, while putting Dahouk’s career on indefinite pause. In 2015, her 14-year-old brother fled Syria, arriving in the Netherlands alone. Although their father passed away before he was able to attain safety, her mother was later able to join her brother in 2016, before Muna successfully reunited with her family in the Dutch city of Den Bosch in 2019.
By the time she and her family settled in the Netherlands, eight long years after the war broke out, judo was no longer atop the future Olympian’s priorities as she had hardly trained in nearly a decade. She initially compared her new challenges of reengaging in the sport to starting from scratch. Despite her initial lack of practice and confidence, Muna continued to work towards her dreams of returning to the mat. Her refocused commitment paid dividends. She was recruited to be part of the 2020 IOC Olympic Refugee Team, where she competed in both the Mixed Team and Women’s 63 kg events.
During these 2024 Summer Games, Muna and her teammates now aim for more than medals. As team members and ambassadors, they look to provide hope to all refugees, regardless of nationality, and to show what can be accomplished when one channels hope, determination, and dreams despite their life circumstances.
Read more about the other refugee and immigrant Olympians we have featured: