Paulo Amotun Lokoro tops second Olympic Games with a season best performance at Tokyo 2020
The refugee athlete from South Sudan showed significant progress in his running after he improved his 1,500m time from Rio 2016 by more than 12 seconds.
Athletics
IOC Refugee Olympic Team member and Paulo Amotun Lokoro is now a two-time Olympian.
The South Sudan born athlete, who competed for the first ever Refugee Team back in Rio 2016, added another Olympic appearance to his name after he competed in the third 1500m heat at Tokyo 2020.
The hot and humid conditions of the Olympic Stadium proved to be no bother for Lokoro, who ran the distance in 3:51.78, which is a season best performance for the refugee athlete.
The 29-year-old can be additionally proud of the time as it marks a considerable improvement on his previous run at Rio; the South Sudanese runner clocked 4:03.96 under the lights in Brazil.
Despite his great efforts, Lokoro - whose preparation for Tokyo was far from ideal due to the impact of COVID-19 restrictions - failed to advance to the next round, after finishing 13th out of 15 runners starting in his heat.
Escaping conflict for freedom
When war worsened in South Sudan Lokoro had no other option but to flee.
In 2006, the cattle farmer made the life-altering decision to leave his native land and rejoin his mother at the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya.
It was there that Lokoro discovered his talent for running and was soon invited to join the Tegla Loroupe Foundation in 2015.
The runner thrived at the training camp based in Ngong, just outside of Nairobi, and found himself being called upon to represent refugees alongside nine other athletes at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Lokoro made selection once again for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics; a considerable achievement given the impact COVID-19 restrictions had on his training. The pandemic forced the Foundation to close and the refugee athletes to return to Kakuma while the waiting for things to improve.
For Lokoro running is everything; when he moves he feels at peace and ready to do whatever he sets his mind to. Speaking to Olympics.com he shared:
“You see normally with athletics you have to feel free.To feel free it means that you have to have peace in your mind; no disturbance."
"And also, it needs heart. When you have that heart, that you love people, you can achieve something.”