This year's Olympics is notable for many things. The Brazilian vibe had not failed to hide the dire conditions in which the Olympics is being carried out. The political and economic chaos in Brazil had steeped into the planning and organization of the Olympics, in addition to the Zika virus had undoubtedly created what is a pall on the Olympics.
Perhaps one of the most interesting feature of this year's Olympics is the Olympics team composed of refugees.
The IOC identified 43 potential candidates for inclusion in the team with the final selection to take into account sporting ability, personal circumstances, and United Nations-verified refugee status. In order to pay for athlete training, a fund of US$2 million was created by the IOC. National Olympic Committees (NOCs) were then asked to identify any displaced athletes in their countries who might be able to reach Olympic standard.
Yusra Mardini, James Chiengjiek, Yiech Biel, Paulo Lokoro, Yonas Kinde, Popole Misenga, Rami Anis, Rose Lokonyen, Anjelina Lohalith and Yolande Mabika were chosen as the ten member team of refugees.
This is the first time refugees have had an Olympic team. Arguably, it’s the first time they’ve needed one. The team of refugees carried the Olympic rings as their standard, highlighting the various ways in which one can become a refugee.
The 10-member team, composed of refugees from five nations is an inspiring symbol, lending a voice to the millions displaced and victimized by the various conflicts across the globe.
Take swimmer Yusra Mardini. A survivor of the Syrian Civil War, Mardini and her family had escaped the war, crossed the Mediterranean with a horde of other refugees. Or the story of Mabika, a South Sudanese refugee who said that sport helped to endure hard times.
Heart warming stories aside, the team of refugees brings a serious issue to light. There should not be a team to refugees in the first place.
By 2015, a record 65.3 million people had been forced from their homes. Nearly 20 million out of that live as refugees and asylum seekers. The number of refugees had increased over the years due to the Syrian Civil War.
Even though the team is a stark reminder that the world and international bodies had failed to adequately address the refugee crisis and the crises that prompted it, there is a quiet dignity to the team and what they represent. The fact that the team is pushing ahead, training and competing in the Olympics in spite of every surmountable challenge against them, shows resilience.
However, that is not an excuse for the globe to become complacent in the issues faced on a daily basis. In spite of the many conferences, funds and pledges made in favor of the refugees and the nations affected by the crisis, most nations had failed to move beyond the pledge.
The nations that had allowed refugees to move in, have been bogged down by political debates over refugee status, culture clashes, integration and the threat of terrorism, among other conflicts. Out of the frying pan into the fire is a more apt term to give to the status of refugees.
“I want everyone to think refugees are normal people who had their homelands and lost them not because they wanted to run away and be refugees, but because they have dreams in their lives and they had to go,” Mardini said at a press conference announcing her place on the team.
Perhaps this is what the world needs to understand about the issue of refugees. In one simple, albeit grand, gesture, the Olympics had done what years of negotiations had failed to achieve; attach a very real, a very human face to a crisis that millions live through each day.
