The Taekwondo academy in Jordanian refugee camp that produced an Olympian

Al Ghotany is one of 37 remarkable athletes competing in Paris under the IOC flag and representing 120 million people who have been forcibly displaced worldwide. At the opening ceremony, the 21-year-old was a flagbearer for the IOC Refugee Olympic Team alongside boxer Cindy Ngamba, who in a historic fight on Sunday secured the team's first-ever medal.

Al Ghotany's family moved to Jordan when he was a young teenager and it was through sport that he made one of his closest friends there, Ali Al Sikmany.

"I met Yahya in 2015, and he was the first person I got to know in the camp and my very first friend there," he says.

Arriving in a refugee camp is a daunting experience. Teenagers like Al Ghotany and Al Sikmany had to leave their homes and friends behind, unsure if they would ever see them again. Sport can help young refugees meet new friends and find a safe and supportive environment to help them overcome the challenges related to displacement.

"Yahya and I played various sports together, participated in the school football league. Once, we even participated in a Roman wrestling match!" Al Sikmany fondly recalls.

Al Ghotany's mother, Tirfah Ahmad Ali Alsharea, remembers when he first showed an interest in the sport. "He used to go watch other kids practice taekwondo, then he decided to sign up and wanted to become a taekwondo athlete."