Refugees in Kenya are cheering on their Olympic heroes
The Refugee Olympic Team received a roaring welcome when it formally entered the Olympic arena on Friday night.
The crowd erupted into cheers as the team preceded the hosts into Maracanã Stadium, but love for the historic 10 extends far beyond Rio.
Over in Kenya, home to the host National Olympic Committee for several of the athletes, special screenings of the ceremony and the subsequent events have been set up.
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At the Kakuma camp in the northwest of the country, dozens of young refugees crowded around on Saturday to witness the opening spectacle and cheer their team on.
Five of the athletes are from Kakuma, the IOC says, with flag bearer Rose Nathike Lokonyen having arrived there in 2002.
Until 2015, she would run through the refugee camp barefoot.
She's running the 800-meter race on Aug. 17.
The refugee team comprises athletes from Syria, South Sudan, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but represents refugees worldwide.
Topics Olympics
Tim Chester was Senior Editor, Real Time News in Los Angeles. Before that he was Deputy Editor of Mashable UK in London. Prior to joining Mashable, Tim was a Senior Web Editor at Penguin Random House, helping to relaunch the Rough Guides website and other travel brands. He was also a writer for Buzzfeed, GQ and The Sunday Times, covering everything from culture to tech and current affairs. Before that, he was Deputy Editor at NME.COM, overseeing content and development on the London-based music and entertainment site. Tim loves music and travel and has combined these two passions at festivals from Iceland to Malawi and beyond.
