They participated in the competition as members of the Refugee Olympic Team, which consisted of 29 elite athletes, each of whom fled the suffering and violence of 11 countries.

Under a new plan, 29-year-old Amotun Lokoro and two others were welcomed in Ontario after the Olympics. The plan allows refugees to obtain permanent resident status based on athletic ability—and possibly Canadian citizenship one day. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Canada is the first country to adopt such a program.

“We are sending a message of hope to all displaced people around the world,” track and field athlete Rose Nathike Lokonyen told CBC News in an interview outside the Tokyo Olympic Stadium.

“This will help other refugees.”

The three athletes will study at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario, as part of a partnership between UNHCR and World University Services Canada (WUSC). According to it, the non-profit organization assists more than 130 refugee students to study in Canada each year. website.

However, this is the first time that its Student Refugee Program has added a “path of movement” cohort.

Now, “We have a responsibility to ensure that we do our best and give back to society,” said 29-year-old James Nyang Chiengjiek, who is participating in the men’s 800m race.

Nathike Lokonyen ran the women’s 800 meters in Tokyo on Friday, while Amotun Lokoro competed in the men’s 1,500 meters.

The long road to Canada

The three refugees overcome obstacles that most Olympians will never encounter. After escaping South Sudan as a young man, everyone lived in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya.

Nathike Lokonyen left South Sudan in 2002 at the age of eight. Although she said she hardly remembered the violence she witnessed, she recalled a rival tribe burning down houses and killing neighbors in her community.

“At least, for us, we managed to escape,” she said.

One day a few years later, while attending high school in a refugee camp, a teacher suggested that Nike Lokonyen take part in the 10-kilometer race. She won the second place.

In 2015, she ran barefoot in a qualifying match, giving her the opportunity to hone her skills at a refugee training center near Nairobi. In 2016, she participated in the first refugee Olympic team of the Rio Olympics and served as the standard bearer at the opening ceremony.

After the pandemic interrupted the training of all three athletes, Amotun Lokoro said good news from Canada.

He recalled a series of meetings and phone calls with immigration and other officials. In the end, “They said,’You can go to Canada, and good luck!'” All three are expected to travel to Ontario in August.

Canada also has other links with the refugee team, including the Iranian birth Hamoon Derafshipour, A karate athlete training in Kitchener, Ontario.

Canada encourages more

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Philippe Grandi praised the country for opening its doors to refugees through movement.

Grandi said in an interview: “This shows how creative Canada and the Canadian people are in bringing refugees to Canada in an important way.” He said that he hopes Canada, the United States and other institutions abroad can Follow Sheridan’s approach.

Grandi said that only 3% of refugees in the world have access to a university education.

He said he hopes Canada will resettle more refugees in this way.

“How much? As much as possible,” Grandi said.

Since the first Rio Olympic Games, the Refugee Olympic Team has grown considerably, with 10 members at that time. The six athletes who participated in the Olympics five years ago returned to Tokyo, but other than that, they were all new Olympians.

Amotun Lokoro said that he hopes that the popularity of the Refugee Olympic Team in Tokyo and their opportunity to study in Canada will send a message about people being forced to leave their home country.

“People in this world now… they think refugees are not humans. They say ‘[Refugees] Can’t do anything. ‘”

Instead, he said that refugees around the world will see “you can do anything like everyone else.”