Paris 2024 Olympics judo: Refugee judoka Adnan Khankan making plans for LA28 after defeat in Games debut
Refugee judoka Adnan Khankan stepped off the tatami at the Champ-de-Mars Arena in Paris 2024 a changed man. He finally realised a life-long dream - to make it to the Olympic Games.
Don't think for a second he will stop there. Khankan lost his opening under-100-kilogramme bout on Thursday (1 August), but revealed before these Games that he had bigger fish to fry at LA 2028.
“Depending on my result, I would like to train a little harder until LA 2028 and continue to train hard, take part again and get better results,” Khankan told Olympics.com before the Games.
Khankan had a mountain to climb in his opening bout against Switzerland’s Daniel Eich, a pedigreed judoka ranking 14th in the world and finished ninth at the World Championships earlier this year.
The Swiss judoka was in fighting form scoring two waza-aris within the first minute of the contest to bring Khankan’s debut to an early end.
Speaking to Olympics.com before Paris 2024, Khankan said just walking out onto the tatami at the Games was a victory.
“Every athlete who does competitive sport wants to take part in the Games one day, [and] I just want to enjoy it,” Khankan told Olympics.com.
“I want to enjoy every second of it because after my situation, my journey, everything I have suffered in my life… I am a winner right now.”
Defeat would not extinguish Khankan’s ambitions as he already has his sights set on LA 2028 and the broader goal of helping remove the stigma around being a refugee.
“I would like to - in Germany or Europe in general - change the refugee stereotype,” he said.
“Through sport and judo, I want to help people who have problems here, for example, someone like me or others who are on the street or seeking asylum.
“There is always a way to help.”