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Meet the Paris 2024 Refugee Paralympic Team
Eight athletes will compete as part of the largest-ever Refugee Paralympic Team at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Worldwide
Eight athletes will compete as part of the largest-ever Refugee Paralympic Team at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Eight athletes have been chosen to compete as part of the Refugee Paralympic Team at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Representing over 120 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, the Refugee Paralympic Team is based across six countries and will complete in six sports including Para athletics, Para powerlifting, Para table tennis, Para taekwondo, Para triathlon and wheelchair fencing.
Find out more about the athletes and their remarkable stories.
Born in Herat, Afghanistan, Zakia Khudadadi was forced to flee her home in 2021. She now lives in France. This is her second Paralympic Games, after she competed at Tokyo 2020. Last year, she won the 2023 European Taekwondo Championship in her weight category.
“Growing up in Afghanistan, I faced a world where disability wasn’t always understood,” she says.
Zakia had the good fortune of being introduced to sport by another person who had a disability. He coached her for ten years before she fled her country.
“[He] saw a strength in me and encouraged me to do taekwondo, where he thought I had a bright future.”
Competing in the Refugee Paralympic Team fills Zakia with immense pride. “Sport has been like a light and miracle in my life,” she says.
Zakia hopes to inspire refugees with disabilities from all over the world.
“I am representing millions of refugees who have disabilities in these Games. I want to send them a message and show them we are examples of peace, acceptance, courage, friendship, and equality,” she says.
Paris 2024 will be Ibrahim Al Hussein’s third consecutive Paralympic Games representing the Refugee Olympic Team. He is a Syrian refugee who has been living in Greece for 10 years. He lost his foot during the Syrian civil war in 2012.
This will be Ibrahim’s first time competing in the Para triathlon at a Paralympic level, after previously competing in swimming events at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
“Nothing is impossible. With persistence and perseverance, you can overcome even the most difficult hardships,” says Ibrahim.
Iranian refugee and shot-putter Salman Abbariki says competing for the Refugee Olympic Team means he can chase his dream of winning gold at the Paralympics – as well as be an inspiration to other athletes with disabilities.
“Being on the Refugee Paralympic Team means that we can continue to achieve our dreams and succeed despite having to leave our countries, even when facing the most difficult circumstances,” says Salman.
This will be Salman’s second Paralympic Games, after he competed in London 2012.
After competing for Cameroon at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Guillaume Junior Atangana will make his debut representing the Refugee Paralympic Team at the Paris Games.
Now living in England, Guillaume is a sprinter with a vision impairment. He will run in the 100m and 400m events with his running guide and fellow refugee, Donard Ndim Nyamjua.
“My biggest lesson is just to always be patient, to trust your talent, work hard, and be disciplined. Hard work always pays off,” says Guillaume.
Hadi Darvish spent two years in a refugee camp when he first arrived in Germany after fleeing his home in Iran.
When Hadi watched the London 2012 Paralympics, he found a new dream to work towards. He had trouble finding a sports club that would allow him to train. But he persisted to fulfil his Paralympic ambitions of powerlifting.
“I hope that all of us on the Refugee Paralympic Team can get a personal best. It is hard for us to compare ourselves with other athletes. Many of us come from refugee camps without sport facilities,” says Hadi.
Sayed Amir Hossein Pour’s interest in table tennis was ignited when he visited a sports centre for people with disabilities in Iran.
“I saw people there who looked like me playing table tennis. That started my dream of being a top-level athlete,” he says.
Sayed went on to win two gold medals at the Asian Youth Para Games 2021 in Bahrain. But soon after, he was forced to flee his home and seek safety in Germany.
“Perhaps it’s not easy for anyone who has never been a refugee to understand, but being forced to flee your country, being away from your family and the enormous challenges you face in a new country are some of the hardest conditions any human can experience,” he says.
Sayed will compete in his first Paralympics in Paris. He says Paralympic athletes face unique challenges.
“Athletes with disabilities face two opponents. The first is the other athlete they are taking on in competition. The second opponent is the illness or disability we live with every day.”
Hadi Hassanzada is a refugee from Afghanistan who now lives in Austria. His right hand was amputated when he was younger. Despite this, Hadi grew up loving sport.
“When I came to Austria and met my coach, I started taekwondo. It was very exciting for me to do this sport,” he says.
He says sport improves his mental and physical health.
“It strengthens the sense of responsibility in my life, and it gives me more self-confidence.”
Hadi says he wants to do his best so that he can get a podium finish in Paris, and he encourages other refugee athletes to aim high.
“[Refugees] can succeed despite all the problems they face. They can compete with other athletes and achieve their dreams.”
Amelio Castro Grueso has had to overcome many challenges in his life. When he was 20 years old, he was in a car accident that caused him to lose the use of his legs. Then, when life in his home country became dangerous, he was forced to flee to Italy.
“One day I had the great fortune to discover wheelchair fencing. From the very first day I connected with this beautiful sport, I was hooked,” says Amelio.
Amelio has now competed at national level in Italy as well as internationally in Brazil. On top of competing in his first Paralympics, Amelio is also writing a book about his experiences.
“The advice I would give to everyone is to never stop dreaming and that no matter how difficult your life or the moment you are facing, don't give up, keep fighting,” he says.
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