Eight Palestinian athletes taking part in the Paris Olympics will be symbols of “resistance,” a Palestinian minister says.
The athletes are preparing for the start of the Paris Games on July 26 in a “very dark moment in our history,” says Palestinian Authority minister of state for foreign affairs Varsen Aghabekian Shahin.
“You are not just athletes, you are also… symbols of Palestinian resistance,” Aghabekian adds.
Olympic committee head Jibril Rajoub says: “We want this participation to be a message from the Palestinians to the world that it is time for them to be free in their homeland.”
“Through this participation, we want to present the suffering of the Palestinian people and the unprecedented killing taking place in Gaza,” he adds.
Rajoub says getting athletes to Paris “is already a victory.”
The eight will compete in athletics (track and field), swimming, archery, taekwondo, judo, and boxing. One secured a place through regular qualifying and seven were given special invitations.
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From the Liveblog of
Sunday, July 14, 2024
