Tokyo Olympics: Refugee team holds final preps in Qatar

A team of 29 refugees have started their training at Aspire Dome in Doha, Qatar ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games.

Athletes from 11 countries such as Syria, South Sudan, DR Congo, Afghanistan, Iran, Eritria, Cameroon, Sudan, Congo, Venezuela and Iraq will compete in 12 sports at Tokyo Olympics including swimming, boxing, cycling, judo, karate, shooting, weightlifting, wrestling, taekwondo and badminton.

Rose Nathike Likonyen, a 28 year old refugee from South Sudan who lives in Kenya said that their participation in Tokyo 2020 Olympics will send " a message of hope to all the refugees around the world".

Alaa Maso a 21-year-old Syrian refugee who lives in Germany said that his message is to inspire other refugees who start losing their faith in themselves.

Qatar and Rwanda will host pre-Games vaccination hubs for all athletes that have yet to receive their Covid-19 vaccines.

The Tokyo 2020 will be held between the 23rd of July and the 8th of August.

Created in 2015, the Refugee Olympic Team competed for the first time at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games with 10 athletes from 4 countries. They included two swimmers, one Judoka, two long-distance runners and five middle-distance runners.

The athletes will act as a symbol of hope for refugees worldwide and bring global attention to the magnitude of the refugee crisis.