"When you keep quiet, other people will not know about your story", said Yiech Biel, the South Sudan refugee who will be competing in the 800 metre race. Ten years ago, Biel escaped his home country, South Sudan, which was ravaged with infighting over oil and cattle. In recent times, ethnic clashes are common between fringe groups rising.

On the streets, men walk around with guns. Biel ran away from his hometown of Nasir to enter Kenya. The Kakuma refugee camp, one of the biggest in the world and hosting over 185,000 people, became his new home. Most of the residents are from South Sudan.

Kakuma is plagued by problems of its own. There are rampant decease outbreaks from time to time. The only hope: relocating to the United States of America, Canada or Australia. Biel has started running competitively only a year ago. Leave alone competing in the Olympics, even leading a normal life was only a pipe dream.

The refugee team that is participating at the Olympics this year under the IOA flag is a joint effort of the International Olympic Committee and the United Nations Refugee Agency. The contestants are not there to merely for symbolism, though. There is desire and ambition, and a vision. It is a feeling that reverberates across the team. Another South Sudan native, Paulo Lokoro, who left home without even a pair of shoes and will now be part of the 1500 metre event, put it simply, "To win a medal, a gold, that is my dream".

South Sudan has the largest number of representatives in the team – five. Marathon runner Yonas Kinde is the only Ethiopian on the roster. The Democratic Republic of Congo have two, both of them judokas – Popole Misenga and Yolande Mabika. Rami Anis and the much talked about Yusra Mardini are Syrians. Both of them are swimmers, competing in the 100m butterfly and 100m freestyle, respectively.

Crowning glory

Yusra Mardini won her 100 metre butterfly heat, which was met with a huge roar from the supporters. The 18-year-old didn't make the cut for the semi-finals but won hearts, and is one of the stories of the tournament so far. From saving 20 lives while crossing the Mediterranean, it has been quite a journey for Mardini.

The road ahead

Most members of the refugee team still await their event. In the world of Olympics or sport in general, it is winners who attain immortality. But win or not, after braving some of the most trying circumstances life can throw at them, going through an Olympian's grind shouldn't faze the team members at all. This is not the last we have seen of the spirited refugees in sport.