-
Iranian Saeid Fazloula
has one goal firmly in focus
-
to compete in Tokyo
as a member of the Refugee Olympic team.
-
I would be very proud,
the life of a refugee isn't easy
-
a lot of people don't know that.
-
In 2015, Saeid escaped from Iran
via the Balkans fearing for his life.
-
During the
World Canoe Sprint Championships
-
he took a selfie
in front of the Milan cathedral,
-
the Iranian regime accused him
of having converted to Christianity,
-
which carries a death sentence.
-
He found a new home in Karlsruhe.
-
He's devoted the past 17 years of his life
to competitive sports,
-
after he settled in Germany
kayaking remained his top priority.
-
We have three to four
training sessions a day
-
from Monday through to Saturday,
each one is one to one and a half hours.
-
We always have
a half a day off on Wednesdays,
-
but we always have fitness training,
running, and paddle sessions.
-
Saeid Fazloula has found a friend
-
in the 1996 Olympic Kayak Champion
Detlef Hofmann,
-
he's there for Saeid
whenever he needs motivation.
-
I was depressed one and a half months ago,
-
I came to Detlef
and I said I want to quit
-
but I talked to Detlef a lot.
-
He sees me as a replacement father figure.
-
His exact words were 8th or 9th
would be great but please don't give up.
-
And I said, OK,
-
it's my one and only chance,
I'll use it to show them who I am,
-
that's all I can do.
-
That really worked out great,
-
because he went on
to win at the World Cup,
-
and he'll be hoping he'll be able
to give his all at Tokyo too.
Amplifying Voices
