A team of refugees will compete in the Rio Olympics later this year, according to International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach.

The IOC’s pledge to “aid potential elite athletes affected by the worldwide refugee crisis” has led to the identification of forty-three potential Olympic candidates, according to the IOC Media Release.

The International Olympic Committee has announced that a team of refugees will compete in the Rio Olympics later this year

“By welcoming the team of Refugee Olympic Athletes to the Olympic Games Rio 2016, we want to send a message of hope for all refugees in our world”, said President Thomas Bach to the IOC.

Mr Bach emphasised to the IOC that Team Refugee Olympic Athletes (ROA) will be “treated like all the other teams”.

Team ROA will consist of between five to ten athletes, chosen on criteria such as “sporting level, official refugee status verified by the United Nations, and personal situation and background”, according to the IOC.

According to Newsweek, one of the potential athletes is Yusra Mardini, a 17 year old who fled Damascus, Syrian, and now trains in Berlin. Another is Raheleh Asemani, a taekwondo fighter who fled Iran and now works as a postwoman in Belgium.

President Bach stated, according to the IOC, that the athletes have “no national team to belong to, they have no flag to march behind, no national anthem to be play”.

Team ROA will have the official representations of the Olympic flag and will march behind the Olympic Anthem during the Opening Ceremony in Brazil, according to the IOC.

Olympic Solidarity, according to IOC, will cover the travel and living expenses and will continue supporting the athletes after the conclusion of the Games, according to the IOC. An “adequate insurance policy will be contracted” for the team, according to the IOC.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will further introduce a “proper doping control process” for all candidates, according to IOC.

The IOC highlights its work with “a number of United Nations agencies to help refugees around the world”.

The IOC has created a “special fund of USD 2 million to develop relief projects through sport” in collaboration with National Olympic Committees (NOCs), according to the IOC.

In camps and settlements around the world, refugees have benefited from sports programs and equipment that has been donated by the IOC, according to the IOC.

The programs have used sport “to support healing and development among young refugees” for the last 20 years, according to the IOC.

The IOC will announce the final athletes for Team ROA in June, according to Sports Illustrated, with the Olympic Games beginning in early August.

Chloe Tucker
AMES Australia Staff Writer