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Refugees at the olympics

Symbols of hope: Refugees at the Olympics

18 July 2016

 

When the competitors of the 2016 Rio Olympics complete their opening ceremony laps of the Maracanã stadium, they will be joined by a small group walking without a national flag – refugee athletes set to make history on the global sporting stage

 

This story is published in the Geographical Magazine for August.

Below is an extract telling the story of one of these competitors. To read more about her and the other refugees go to the Geographical Magazine website: here

 

Their stories are inspiring:

Olympic swimmer, Yusra Mardini, says  “In the water there is no difference if you are a refugee, a Syrian, or a German,” Just one year ago she was fleeing for her life, risking the dangerous journey across the Aegean Sea to escape the escalating violence back in her native Syria.

Halfway between the Turkish coast and their destination of Lesbos, Greece, the engine of the flimsy boat she was packed onto with 20 otherSyrian swimmer Yusra Mardini training in Spandau, Berlin.  (Image: Alexander Hassenstein/IOC) people suddenly spluttered and died. ‘There were people who didn’t know how to swim,’ recalls Mardini. With the boat completely stranded, and few other options available, she and her sister slid into the water and managed to push it the rest of the way to the island. ‘It would have been shameful if the people on our boat had drowned,’ she continues. ‘I wasn’t going to sit there and complain that I would drown.’

Mardini’s training schedule had faced unimaginable obstacles even before then.           

‘Sometimes we couldn’t train because of the war,’ she reveals. ‘Or sometimes you had training, but there was a bomb in the swimming pool.’

Today, safe from her war-torn home and living in Germany, Mardini is joining nine other displaced athletes in what is being described as one of the most remarkable teams ever to compete in Olympic history.  (Read more … )

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Including You
(August 2016)

Recently Added Resources

New Funding Opportunity - The Common Good Fund - Application Deadline 27 Feb. 2017 see more here

Organisers' Evaluation form for 2016 events Download from here

Wordsearches for Including You events - download them from here

Press release template for 'Including You' events download here 

Quotations about  building an inclusive peaceful society - Download from here a 5 page booklet as a word.doc or pdf 

Pledges to build an inclusive society - find them here

"Who is a Migrant?" - anactivity/game to get people talking to each other at your events. Download the instructions here 

School Assemblies from Christian Aid- link to and download a PowerPoint and notes 

Looking for a speaker for your event? Download here a list (pdf) from the Discussion page (posted 12 Sept 2016)

Faith resources relating to "Including You".Download pdf here  links to materials offered by OWW's partners and supporters: worship, discussion, films ...plus Prayers for OWW(updated 7 Sept '16)

Presentation "A OWW approach to Migration" Download this PDF version of a 12 slides (15 -20 minutes) powerpoint

Need funding for your event? Apply to Big Lottery Celebrate Fund! NOW or you'll be too late for OWW more here and other suggestions

Poster/ flyer design kit - download from here

2016 Leaflets "Including You" download PDF versions here

Introductory PowerPoint about organising local inclusive OWW events - updated for 2016.  Down load ppt here

Migrant crisis or poverty crisis? - A briefing paper from Global Justice NOW Download as a PDF here

2016 - "Including You" - Booklet of ideas, links and resources for interpreting the theme. Dowload a PDF here (updated July 2016)

Learning resource/activity for young people about peace - from Fly Kites not Drones;   suitable for activites in or out of school. find links here: schools ; activities (added Nov. 2015 but still relevant for this years events)

Organisers' Evaluation Form for event organisers to completand send to OWW - down load the word.doc from here

Event participants feedback form  (for organisers to collect feedback from participants at OWW events)   (word.doc)