UNHCR backs refugee athletes competing at African Championships in Accra
UNHCR backs refugee athletes competing at the African Senior Athletics Championships on Thursday in Accra. Tetteh Padi, who heads the UNHCR national office in Ghana, received five members of the Athlete Refugee Team. He said, "These athletes have proven that being a refugee should not be a barrier to realizing your full potential."
The five athletes are Perina Lokure Nakang, Solomon Okeny, Abdifatah Aden Hassan, Dario Lokoro, and Kun Waar Liem. They arrived in Accra after experiencing war in South Sudan, nights in the forest, and refugee camps in Kenya. Nakang did not progress past Heat 2 of the women's 800 metres on Day Two of the championships. Hassan, a 1500 metre specialist, has been searching for his parents since fleeing Ethiopia as a child in 2009. Okeny runs the 400 and 800 metres.
Lieutenant General Jackson Tuwei, President of Athletics Kenya and Vice President of World Athletics, wants other countries that host refugees to take up the matter of supporting refugee athletes. He said, "We want to urge other countries that host the refugees in their countries to also take up in this matter, so that it can then take care of all the refugees within the continent." The Athlete Refugee Team is now a decade old.
Quick Summary
The UNHCR is supporting a team of refugee athletes competing at the African Championships in Accra. These athletes-who have overcome incredible odds-are hoping to inspire others in similar situations.
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