IOC Approves Creation of Refugee Olympic Team to Take Part in Tokyo 2020

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday approved the creation of the Refugee Team, which will take part in the 2020 Tokyo Games, the IOC press service said.

"The IOC Session has once again endorsed this initiative. In an ideal world, we would not need to have a Refugee Team at the Olympic Games. But, unfortunately, the reasons why we first created a Refugee Olympic Team before the 2016 Rio Olympics continue to persist. We will do our utmost to welcome refugee athletes and give them a home and a flag in the Olympic Village in Tokyo with all the other athletes from 206 National Olympic Committee," IOC President Thomas Bach said after the IOC session in the Argentina capital.

The committee has mandated its commission of Olympic Solidarity to establish the conditions for participation, identification and selection of the Refugee Team in cooperation with the National Olympic Committees and the UN Refugee Agency, among others.

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics are slated to take place from July 24 to August 9 and August 25 to September 6, respectively.