On July 24, South Sudan's Olympic team left South Sudan for Rio de Janeiro to participate in the Olympic Games with support from JICA.
South Sudan participated in the Olympics this year for the first time in its history with Mr. Santino Kenyi Warnyang Kenyi (men's 1500 meter), Ms. Margret Rumat Rumat Hassan (women's 200 meter) and Mr. Guor Marial (men’s marathon) as their Olympians.
"I am happy and excited to participate in the Olympics for the first time. I hope to raise the flag of South Sudan high in Rio. Through the Olympics, I want the youth to embrace peace and unity," said Mr. Kenyi at the news conference held at the airport before his departure.
For Mr. Kenyi and Ms. Hassan, the road to Rio did not come easy. Because of the prolonged conflict, the Government of South Sudan has been facing financial challenges, so there were limited opportunities to receive professional training and to participate in international competitions. Given the situation, JICA decided to provide financial support for the athletes to participate in the Olympic Games.
On July 8, a day after the two Olympians were announced, heavy shooting erupted in the capital city of Juba. Four days of fighting resulted in the deaths of many people and left many citizens displaced within and outside the country.
Even though the crisis happened less than one month before the Olympics, South Sudan did not give up on sending their delegation to Rio de Janeiro. Officials from the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports have long said that by participating in the Olympics, they want the world to know there is a country called South Sudan. They also want the Olympics to be an opportunity to give hope to the youth and to promote peace and unity in the country.
Dr. Nadia Arop Dudi, the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, who sent off the athletes at the airport, expressed her appreciation for JICA's contribution.
"Sports can build peace and unity amongst the people of South Sudan, and the Ministry will continue to promote sports," she said. She added that South Sudan will participate in 2020 Tokyo Olympics and send a larger number of players to win medals.
Mitsuaki Furukawa, the Chief Representative of the JICA South Sudan Office, who had evacuated to Japan because of the recent crisis, sent a message to the departing athletes and the people of South Sudan: “I hope that this participation in the Rio Olympics will bring the nation together. I request everyone to be strong and overcome the challenges and this crisis.”
On August 3, marathon runner Mr. Guor Marial arrived in Rio de Janeiro. Mr. Marial had fled South Sudan for Egypt during the civil war before independence and now lives in the United States.
For Mr. Marial, Rio de Janeiro was his second Olympic Games. At the time of the 2012 London Olympics, South Sudan was not yet a member of the International Olympic Committee, and therefore could not participate in the Olympics. Although Mr. Marial was offered the opportunity to run for Sudan, he turned down the offer because many South Sudanese people, including members of his own family, had been killed in the civil war within Sudan. He instead participated as an Independent Olympic Athlete. In Rio de Janeiro, he finally participated in the Olympics as a representative of South Sudan.
After years of conflict, South Sudan became independent from Sudan in 2011. JICA has been providing assistance to South Sudan since 2005, before its independence, in the sectors of infrastructure, agriculture and water supply, among others. Together with the government of South Sudan, JICA is also promoting peace and unity through sports. As part of its assistance through sports, JICA supported South Sudan’s first national sports event since its independence, held in January 2016.
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