Lausanne [Switzerland], May 2 : International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach on Thursday announced that 36 athletes will form the IOC Refugee Olympic Team Paris 2024, representing the world's displaced population of over 100 million people at this summer's Olympic Games Paris 2024.
The 36 athletes hail from 11 different countries of origin and are currently hosted by 15 different National Olympic Committees and form their largest team.
The Refugee team was introduced at Rio Olympics 2016 and this will mark their third appearance in the Summer Games.
In the upcoming Paris Olympics which will begin on July 26, they will compete in 12 different sports: aquatics (swimming), athletics, badminton, boxing, breaking, canoe (slalom and sprint), cycling (road), judo, shooting, taekwondo, weightlifting, and wrestling (freestyle and Greco-Roman).
During a ceremony at Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Thursday, Bach said as quoted from Olympics.com, "We welcome all of you with open arms. You are an enrichment to our Olympic Community and our societies."
"With your participation in the Olympic Games, you will demonstrate the human potential of resilience and excellence. This will send a message of hope to the more than 100 million displaced people around the world," Bach added.
The IOC Refugee Olympic Team is competing at the Olympic Games for the third time, after previous appearances at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. This year, its chef-de-mission will be Masomah Ali Zada, who competed as a member of the IOC Refugee Olympic Team Tokyo 2020.
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