The IOC held a virtual ceremony for the Olympic athletes during which IOC President Thomas Bach made theofficial announcement, saying, “Congratulations to all of you. I speak on behalf of the entire Olympic movement when I say that we cannot wait to meet you in person and to see you compete in Tokyo.”
“When you, the IOC Refugee Olympic Team and the athletes from the National Olympic Committees from all over the globe, finally come together in Tokyo on July 23, it will send a powerful message of solidarity, resilience, and hope to the world. You are an integral part of our Olympic community, and we welcome you with open arms,” he continued.
Tokyo Summer Olympics logo.CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty
Each member was selected from a pool of 55 people who fled their home countries and received scholarships to train for the Olympics in a new country.
Man in mask standing near Olympic rings in Tokyo.BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP via Getty
The first-ever refugee Olympic team was established in 2016 for the Rio Olympics, consisting of 10 athletes from South Sudan, Syria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ethiopia who competed in swimming, track and field, and judo.
Among this year’s selected group is Kimia Alizadeh, who became the first Iranian woman to win an Olympic medal when she took home bronze in taekwondo in 2016. According to theAssociated Press, she left Iran after accusing Iranian officials of sexism and criticizing the mandatory hijab requirement. She is now living in Germany. Every member of the Tokyo Refugee Olympic Team is listedhere.
To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, visitTeamUSA.org. Watch the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics this summer on NBC.
source: people.com
