Janeth Jepkosgei leads Refugee Team to fifth successful World Athletics Championship
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Reading Time: 2min | Wed. 24.09.25. | 10:34
The team made its first competitive appearance as part of the Refugee Olympic Team at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero, a debut that became a source of inspiration for tens of millions of displaced persons from around the world and whose stories resonated with millions more
A six-strong Athlete Refugee Team (ART) competed at the World Athletics Championships, concluding the team's fifth straight appearance at the global event, where they represented a community of more than 120 million displaced persons from around the world.
Omar Hassan and Emmanuel Ntagunga kicked things off for the ART in the men’s marathon on Monday, 15 September.
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Running in brutally hot and humid conditions, Ntagunga finished 39th in 2:19:11 and Hassan 41st in 2:19:47. Hassan finished 40th at the World Championships two years ago while Ntagunga represented ART for the first time.
Hassan, who fled his native Ethiopia and is now based in Denmark, has a 2:12:29 career best set in 2022. Ntagunga, a native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has a 2:17:48 personal best set this year in Copenhagen. He is based in Norway.
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Perina Lokure Nakang and Musa Suliman, both 2024 Olympians as part of the IOC’s Olympic Refugee Team, competed in the 800m in Tokyo.
South Sudan native Suliman, based in Switzerland, was the youngest member of the team at 21. He clocked a 1:48.28 season's best in Tuesday's, 16 September opening round heats, just 0.22 shy of his personal best set in Paris last year.
Nakang, a native of South Sudan, clocked 2:10.13 in her heat on Thursday, 18 September, a season's best.
Farida Abaroge, a 2024 Olympian in the 1500m, competed here in the 5000m, clocking 16:27.35 in her heat on Thursday,18 September, after recent struggles with injury. Like Hassan, Abaroge is a native of Ethiopia and is currently based in France.
Jamal Eisa Mohammed concluded the ART’s action on the track in the opening round of the men’s 5000m on Friday, 19 September, clocking 13:58.90. Mohammed, who made his first ART appearance at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships, improved his personal best in the event to 13:21.39 in June.
The team wrapped up their duties on Saturday, 20 September, with a visit to the ASICS House, the team sponsor, where they toured the Japanese Olympic Museum, participated in a match, a team ceremony tutorial, and attended a safeguarding workshop with World Athletics Senior Counsel Katherine Pitre.
The team was led, this year, by head coach Janeth Jepkosgei, the 2007 world 800m champion, and ART manager Ralph Mouchbahani.
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