The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Thursday, May 2, unveiled its largest refugee Olympic team that will compete at the Paris Games 2024. The team will include 36 athletes from 11 countries. (More Sports News)
The contingent consists players from Syria, Sudan, Iran and Afghanistan and will compete across 12 sports at the Paris event. This is the third occasion that a team has been formed for the Summer event.
“With your participation in the Olympic Games, you will demonstrate the human potential of resilience and excellence,” IOC President Thomas Bach said during the team’s announcement.
“This will send a message of hope to the more than 100 million displaced people around the world.”
Moreover, the team will also carry its own emblem. Their emblem has a heart surrounded by way marker arrows and uses the same colours as the Olympic flag.
“Having our own emblem creates a sense of belonging and empowers us to also stand for the population of more than 100 million people who share this same experience,” said Team Captain Masomah Ali Zada, who was also competed at the 2020 Games in Tokyo.
The announcement of the Paris Olympics 2024 refugee team comes on the back of Anjelina Nadai Lohalith's suspension for testing positive for a banned substance. Anjelina is a refugee athlete who ran 1500m at the 2016 and 2021 Olympics, respectively.
