IOC Refugee Olympic Team athletes Muna Dahouk and Dorsa Yavarivafa proud of their efforts at Paris 2024 Olympics
IOC Refugee Olympic Team (EOR) member Muna Dahouk was happy with her performance on the judo mat at Paris 2024 despite losing her preliminary round of the women's -57kg category to Kristine Jimenez of Panama on Monday (29 July).
Dahouk, who made her Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020, lost via. ippon to the ninth seed and two-time Olympian at the Champ-de-Mars Arena.
The refugee athlete, who started judo in her home country at the age of six before fleeing to the Netherlands in 2019 because of war, was thrilled to make her second Games.
“I am so happy to be here. We are showing people what the refugees can do even if we have had hard conditions, we can fight to do the impossible,” said Dahouk who has another shot on the Olympic stage in the mixed event.
“We didn’t give up easily even if we got through circumstances beyond our control, but even these we fight, and we are showing everyone what we are.”
Next up for the EOR team was badminton player Dorsa Yavarivafa over at the La Chapelle Arena.
The Netherlands-based athlete lost her second match to Kate Foo Kune of Mauritius after admitting to being overawed by the occasion, but will use the experience to further her career.
“I was a bit nervous because the court was different, and the lighting was different. I got so stressed around that. The light, the venue was huge, and I struggled a bit,” she admitted.
Yavarivafa, who is now based in the United Kingdom after immigrating from her homeland in 2018, hopes to spend more time with some of the British players she has bonded with in Paris.
“I will go to the National training centre to hit and hit with them in the coming days [as] I also have a lot more international events coming up.”