Sport and refugees weekly: 25 November 2022

Syrian refugees hold World Cup-style soccer championship (The Daily Telegraph)

The World Cup in Qatar has fascinated refugees to such an extent that Syrian refugees are organising their own championship games in Idlib, northern Syria, to encourage children to engage in sports and not allow despair to overwhelm them. Prior to the championship, the children had the opportunity to undergo training for more than 6 months, have fun and play their favourite game, football.

Crans Montana Forum: Sport Can Shape the World (International Judo Federation)

The forum provided an opportunity this year to share ideas and experiences on how sports can help build a better society. Nicolos Messneer, Judo for Peace director, said that the scope of sport’s role in helping the world goes beyond physical education and that judo activities have helped refugees around the world.

Refugee finds home-away-from-home at East Kentwood HS (WOODTV.com)

Zahir and his friends regularly played football in the streets of Afghanistan when they were young. He was forced to flee his country and enrol in a high school in Michigan, USA, when he was 17 years old. It was his love for football that made him overcome integration barriers and make new friends in a place that was new to him but has now become his home.

Netflix biodrama draws attention to real-life refugee-turned-Olympian (UN News)

UNHCR screened the Netflix film” The Swimmers'' which depicts the incredible journey of two sisters, Yusra and Sara Mardini, who fled war-torn Syria and had to swim for hours guiding the broken boat to save lives of  other migrants onboard. Yusra became a beacon of hope for millions of refugees when she participated in the Rio Olympics. 

This information has been compiled by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.