Refugee girl and her dream of attending the 2016 Olympics

A year after drifting for her life at sea in Greece, Yusra Mardini is now on the list of athletes who could compete at the upcoming Olympics as a refugee.

The 18-year-old girl is one of 43 athletes from many different countries being considered by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for eligibility to go to Rio, Brazil in August this year.

Yusra was once one of the most promising swimmers in Syria. However, the war robbed her of her beautiful days in her hometown of Damascus. About half a year ago, she and her sister Sarah made a life-threatening and dangerous journey: across the Aegean Sea to Europe.

“Our house was destroyed. We have nothing left,” Yusra Mardini told the AP news agency.

Yusra (in white) and her sister Sarah at a swimming center in Germany. Photo:Facebook.

Yusra's family had to move several times to escape the fighting. However, they realized that the tragedy in their homeland would not end soon. The war was getting more and more fierce in Damascus and they decided to leave to find a way to survive.

In early August 2015, the Mardini sisters joined the flood of Syrian refugees seeking to reach Europe. They traveled through Lebanon and then Türkiye, paying smugglers to take them to Greece.

* See more photos of refugee girl Yusra Mardini

The first time, they were spotted by the Turkish coast guard and turned back. However, at dusk, 20 people boarded a small inflatable boat and decided to make the dangerous journey across the Aegean Sea.

Half an hour later, the small boat began to sink because it was carrying too many people, three of whom could not swim. Everyone threw their luggage into the sea, but it was not enough. Finally, Yusra, Sarah and another swimmer jumped into the sea.

Beautiful girl Yusra Mardini once had to drift at sea for many hours to save her life. Photo: Reuters.

“It was terrible. We thought, what a shame if we couldn’t help our fellow passengers, because some of them couldn’t swim. Of course, I hated the ocean after that. It was a really difficult experience,” said Yusra Mardini.

After three and a half hours at sea, clinging to the side of the dinghy, Yusra, Sarah and the others finally reached Lesbos, a Greek island. They continued walking for a week through Macedonia, Serbia and Hungary, hiding from police in cornfields to reach Hungary.“A lot of people were arrested,” Yusra shared.

Strangers gave them clothes, but others robbed them. They were caught at the border and lost a lot of money on tickets when the authorities refused to let the refugee train pass.However, they never lost their spirit. The police asked them why they were still laughing when they were arrested.

“We replied that we almost died at sea, so why should we be afraid of you?”, Yusra explained.

The Mardini sisters eventually made their way to Austria and then to Germany. Shortly afterwards, an Egyptian translator in the group took them to the Wasserfreunde Spandau 04 swimming center, where they met coach Sven Spannekrebs.

Yusra Mardini during a training session in Berlin, Germany. Photo: IOC.

Spannekrebs is surprised by Yusra Mardini's ability. He believes the 18-year-old girl is good enough to make it to the Refugee Team at the Olympics.

“She has progressed very well over the past five months. Better than I expected. We are on the right track and waiting for new results,” Spannekrebs said.

Initially, they were aiming for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo but Spannekrebs said with Yusra's progress, things could move faster.“A lot of athletes look up to her. She's very focused,” Spannekrebs said.

Every day, Yusra Mardini goes to school and then to swimming, then to school and then to swimming. She is determined to take chances, especially after what she has been through.

“It was hard to leave my hometown. Not just me, but many of my compatriots, thousands of them. That made me feel a little less lonely. We can still support each other,” Yusra said.“I want the refugees to be proud of me. I want to encourage them. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s a good opportunity and I think I’ll try my best.”

Yusra Mardini hopes to qualify for the 200m freestyle at the Olympics. She is excited at the prospect of meeting her former Syrian swimming teammates and friends.

“We talked about it. It was like, ‘Hey, we’ll meet again.’ All the athletes wanted to go to the Olympics. It didn’t matter whether it was under the Syrian flag or the Olympics. I just thought I would become a real athlete,” Yusra said.

According to VNE