With the highly anticipated 2024 Olympics in Paris, France finally set to kick off with tonight’s opening ceremony, we’ll be taking time over the next 16 days to recognize world-class refugee and immigrant athletes who are competing or have competed for the U.S. National Team. But today, we’ll focus on a lesser-known entry that certainly deserves its flowers just the same, the IOC Refugee Team.
Launched in 2016 and officially announced by International Olympic Committee President, Thomas Bach, the IOC Refugee Team represents the over 130 million people forcibly displaced worldwide. According to the official Olympics webpage, the squad’s entry into the historic competition recognizes team member’s resilience and excellence. The team also sends a strong message of hope and inclusion while demonstrating that refugees enrich the international community. The team debuted in the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, before returning for the 2020 games in Tokyo, Japan.
Now entering its third competition, the IOC Refugee Olympic Team comprises 36 athletes competing in 12 sports, hosted by 15 national Olympic committees. Most team members are supported via the Refugee Athlete Scholarship Program through the non-governmental Olympic Refugee Foundation (ORF), founded by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to support and develop displaced youth through sports. The IOC selected a team of eligible athletes recognized as elite competitors in their respective sports and refugees in their home countries.
Since its creation in 2017, the Olympic Refugee Foundation’s robust work has provided some 400,000 young athletes with safe access to sports. It has also trained over 1,600 coaches, and its programs have supported young athletes across five continents.
experience as a water treatment specialist in the U.S. Army to open water treatment facilities in Kenya.
Read more about the other refugee and immigrant Olympians we have featured in honor of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France:
Abdi Abdirahman, Track and Field