From Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya to the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, younger refugee athletes are turning sporting desires into actuality, with a father-son judo journey and a six-member Refugee Olympic Team showcasing their expertise, resilience and hope for a brand new era.
By sportswriters Hu Jiali, Gao Jianfei and Hong Zehua
DAKAR, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) — When 15-year-old Arno Botay Yafunga stepped onto the judo mat on the Dakar Youth Olympic Games, his father, Arnold Yafunga, additionally his coach, was watching proudly from the sidelines.
“I feel great joy and happiness in my heart because it’s not easy to come here and do what he did,” the daddy mentioned. “The Olympic Games are big, and this is the first time in Africa. To see him compete here is a great joy for me and a dream come true.”
From Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya to the Olympic stage, the daddy and son have made the journey collectively.
In Dakar, Arno grew to become the primary athlete from the Refugee Olympic Team to compete at a Youth Olympic Games. He went on to succeed in the bronze medal match within the males’s under-55kg occasion, ending fifth.
“These Games have opened up a big dream for me, and I want to compete at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles,” he mentioned. “Dakar has opened the door for me to pursue that dream.”
Although Arno narrowly missed out on a medal, the journey was already a outstanding one for the daddy and son.
“My father, as my coach, knows my strengths and weaknesses better than other coaches,” Arno mentioned. “Wherever I go, he motivates me and is always by my side. He is my role model.”
Arnold was a black belt judoka who as soon as dreamed of competing on the Olympic Games. In 2017, the household fled battle in jap Democratic Republic of the Congo and sought refuge in Kenya, the place they frolicked in Kakuma earlier than later settling in Nairobi. Although Arnold had to surrender his Olympic ambitions to help his household, his ardour for judo by no means light.
Arno and his brother usually watched their father practice and steadily got interested within the sport. Arnold later returned to judo and have become his son’s coach.
“I like judo because of my father and how seriously he takes training. I wanted him to take me with him and train me to be more confident on the tatami and in life,” Arno mentioned.
Like Arno, 16-year-old Clement Niyomuhoza, captain of the Refugee Olympic Team, hopes the competitors will assist extra folks acknowledge the skills of refugee athletes.
Niyomuhoza started coaching in athletics in 2024. After collaborating in choice trials in Kakuma and later in Eldoret, Kenya, he did not qualify on his first try. He continued coaching, nonetheless, and ultimately secured a spot on the staff. His teammates later selected him as captain.
“As a refugee, some people think we have no talent and cannot do anything in sports. But for me, this competition means a lot because we want to show our talent. We want to show that, as refugees, when you have talent, you can do something,” he mentioned.
As captain, Niyomuhoza additionally hopes his expertise will encourage extra kids residing in refugee camps to participate in sport.
“My message to them is that they can do anything. They should join the sport they like — athletics, taekwondo, judo, or boxing. Whatever sport they like, they can make it,” he mentioned.
In 2016, the International Olympic Committee established the primary Refugee Olympic Team for the Rio Olympic Games. South Sudan’s Yiech Pur Biel was amongst its members.
Ten years later, he has returned to the Olympic stage in a unique position, as Chef de Mission of the Refugee Olympic Team at Dakar 2026, accompanying six younger athletes on their journey.
“It has now been 10 years since we competed as a Refugee Olympic Team. Today, we are here in Dakar for the first Youth Olympic Games on African soil, and for the first Refugee Olympic Team to compete at the Youth Olympic Games,” he instructed Xinhua.
The six-member staff includes three ladies and three boys, all primarily based in Africa. They are competing in athletics, judo and taekwondo.
For Pur Biel, the staff’s participation is about greater than sport. It can also be a possibility to make the experiences of displaced folks extra seen.
“This is a representation of millions of refugees. As we speak now, there are 117 million displaced people globally,” he mentioned. “This is a representation of those displaced children who are being forced to leave their own countries.”
The determine refers to folks forcibly displaced worldwide, reasonably than refugees alone. UNHCR estimates that greater than 117 million folks have been forcibly displaced globally in 2026, with kids accounting for roughly 39 p.c of the overall.
“As Chef de Mission, my role is to mentor them and continue to tell the world that, despite being a refugee, you can do something,” Pur Biel mentioned. “Through sport, it gives us hope and also gives us a chance to practice our talent, be part of global sporting activities and become ambassadors.”
“You know the similarities of coming from war-torn countries, facing frustration and living through a traumatic life. And now you can find yourself in sport, where you can find safety,” he mentioned.
The Refugee Olympic Teams have competed on the final three Olympic Games in Rio, Tokyo and Paris. At Paris 2024, boxer Cindy Ngamba received her first-ever Olympic medal, a bronze.
“In 2016, we showcased our talent and brought hope to millions. In 2021, we also competed and reached some finals. In 2024, we won our first medal,” she mentioned. “We never know; we may win a medal here or reach a final.”
Pur Biel mentioned dozens of athletes had acquired help from the Olympic Refugee Foundation. He added that the help would proceed past Dakar, serving to refugee athletes put together for the Los Angeles 2028 and Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games.
He additionally hopes the younger athletes will encourage others in refugee communities to take up sport and training.
“I want to encourage them to work hard, take opportunities and take education seriously, because education and talent work together,” he mentioned.
A decade later, a youthful era of refugee athletes has made its debut on the Youth Olympic Games on African soil.
Their outcomes might not but have introduced them onto the rostrum. But this time, they don’t seem to be merely the themes of different folks’s tales. Through their performances and their experiences, they’re telling their very own.