Payam Yunesipour
IranWire
As the flags of 206 nations wave proudly at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in Paris on July 26, a unique group will march under a different banner.
The Refugee Olympic Team, competing under the flag of the International Olympic Committee, marks its third appearance at the Games with a record 37 athletes.
This team's journey began in 2016 at the Rio Olympics with just 10 members.
It grew to 29 at the 2020 Tokyo Games, and now, in Paris, it has expanded further.
The team represents hope and resilience for millions of displaced people worldwide. However, its composition also highlights trends in global displacement.
Most notably, Iranian athletes form the largest contingent of this refugee team.
Of the 37 athletes representing 11 different countries of origin, 14 are from Iran.
This statistic is striking, especially considering that Iran is not currently experiencing civil war or major international conflict - factors that typically drive refugee crises.
The Iranian presence in the refugee team doesn't tell the whole story.
Several Iranian athletes are competing under different flags, like Kimia Alizadeh, who now represents Bulgaria.
Additionally, prominent Iranian chess players such as Alireza Firouzja, Borna Derakhshani, Dorsa Derakhshani, Saeedeh Bayat, Mitra Hejazipour, and Ghazal Hakimifard have also left their homeland, though they cannot participate in the Olympics due to their sport's non-Olympic status.
In what fields will the refugee athletes compete?
In March 2016, amid the global waves of asylum seekers heading to Europe and America, Thomas Bach, the head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), announced the formation of a team called the "Refugee Olympic Team."
Bach recognized that the process of seeking asylum and gaining citizenship in European and American countries is arduous.
Consequently, many athletes who become refugees are unable to compete in the Olympics because they lack official citizenship in their new countries.
Thomas Bach expressed that by creating this temporary team, he aimed to encourage global leaders to make it easier for refugees to gain citizenship in their new countries.
The world can now evaluate whether politicians have heeded Bach's call.
Have they made it easier for refugees to gain citizenship, or have they made the process more difficult for these athletes?
At the Paris Olympics, the refugee team will participate in its third Olympic experience, entering representatives in 12 sports.
They include Badminton, Boxing, Cycling, Judo, Shooting, Swimming, Taekwondo, Weightlifting, and Wrestling.
Each sport will have between one and eight refugee athletes. Iranian athletes will compete in seven of these disciplines.
Who are the Iranian athletes in the refugee team?
Dorsa Yavarifar: One of the youngest Iranian athletes in the refugee team, she was described by Reuters as a "brave girl."
She faced numerous dangers emigrating with her mother, including travelling illegally with a fake passport, being arrested and imprisoned, and emigrating again before finally reaching Britain.
She will compete in badminton, a sport in which Iran has only participated in the Olympics twice before.
Omid Ahmadissfa: An Iranian boxer who took refuge in Germany, he will compete in the 51 kg boxing category.
Amir Rezanjad and Saeed Fazl-Avali: Both refugees in Germany, and Taman Soltani, a refugee in Austria, will represent the refugee team in rowing. Saman Soltani was invited and honoured by the Austrian president at the send-off ceremony for Austrian athletes.
Mohammed Rashnunjad and Mahbobeh Barbari Zhefi: Refugees in the Netherlands and Germany, respectively, will compete in judo.
Matin Balsini: A refugee in Britain, he will compete in the 200m swimming.
Hadi Tiran: A refugee in Italy, he will compete in Taekwondo in the -58 kg category.
Kasra Mehdipour, a refugee in Germany, will compete in the +80 kg category, and Dina Pouryounes, a refugee in the Netherlands, will compete in the -49 kg category.
Iran's national taekwondo team has four representatives in the Olympics, while the refugee team includes three Iranians.
Yekta Jamali: A 19-year-old weightlifter who sought refuge in Germany, she will compete in the -81 kg weight category.
Eman Mahdavi and Jamal Valizadeh: Representing the refugee wrestling team, they will compete in freestyle wrestling in the -74 kg and 60 kg categories, respectively.
They will be the only representatives of freestyle wrestling in the IOC refugee team in Paris.
What share do other countries have in the refugee team?
While Iran has the largest share of the IOC's refugee team with 14 athletes, the factors typically causing mass emigration - such as civil war, military conflict, or a coup—are not present in Iran.
After Iran, Syria and Afghanistan each have five athletes on the refugee team, placing them in joint second place. These countries, under the regimes of the Taliban and Bashar al-Assad, have a share that is nearly one-third that of Iran.
Following them, Eritrea, Cuba, Ethiopia, Sudan, and South Sudan each have two athletes. Congo, Cameroon, and Venezuela each have one representative in the refugee team.
Among the special athletes of this tournament is Manijeh Tehseh, a 22-year-old woman from Afghanistan.
Manijeh fled to Pakistan in 2021 with her younger brother after the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan.
She eventually made her way to Spain with a humanitarian visa, where she has continued to pursue her passion for breakdancing.
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