Yahya Al Ghotany (; born 2004) is a Syrian taekwondo practitioner. A refugee in Jordan, he was selected to compete at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 2024), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la XXXIIIe Olympiade, links=no) and also known as Paris 2024, is an upcoming international multi-sport event that is s ...

and was named the flag bearer for the

Refugee Olympic Team The Refugee Olympic Team is a group made up of independent Olympic participants who are refugees. In March 2016, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach announced the creation of the Refugee Olympic Athletes Team, as a s ...

Biography

Al Ghotany was born in Syria as the first of seven children. The Syrian civil war started when he was age seven, and his family fled the country for the Azraq refugee camp in Jordan. In 2016, at age 12, he learned of taekwondo "by chance": a friend informed him of courses taught nearby by the Taekwondo Humanitarian Foundation (THF), at the Azraq Academy. His coach recalled "When Yahya started taekwondo in 2016, he was a young boy, 12 years old. He came to me and said, 'I want taekwondo'". According to '' The Korea Times'', "It didn't take long before Al Ghotany showed a natural ability for the sport and began aspiring for the highest levels as an athlete." Within five years, he reached a rank of

black belt Black Belt may refer to: Martial arts * Black belt (martial arts), an indication of attainment of expertise in martial arts * ''Black Belt'' (magazine), a magazine covering martial arts news, technique, and notable individuals Places * Black B ...

second-

dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa **Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoir ...

, which usually requires seven years of training. With the help of World Taekwondo (WT), he started participating in international tournaments. In 2023, he participated at the World Taekwondo Championships in the 63 kg category. At the Hope and Dreams Sports Festival, organized by the THF and WT in 2024, Al Ghotany qualified for the

as a member of the

(ROT), to compete in the 68 kg category. In preparation for the Olympics, Al Ghotany trained with the Jordanian national taekwondo team under coach Faris Al Assaf, who helped

Ahmad Abughaush Ahmad Abughaush (Arabic: أحمد أبو غوش; born 1 February 1996) is a Jordanian taekwondo athlete. He won the gold medal in the 68 kg category at the 2016 Olympics. This was Jordan's first Olympic medal in any sport, excluding a bronze in ...

win Jordan's first Olympic medal in 2016 with a gold in taekwondo. He was later selected the co-flag bearer for the ROT at the opening Olympic ceremony alongside boxer

Cindy Ngamba Cindy Winner Djankeu Ngamba (born 7 September 1998) is a Cameroonian boxer who competed for the EOC Refugee Team at the 2023 European Games. She is the first-ever medalist for the Refugee Olympic Team at the Olympics, having won bronze in wom ...

; at age 19, he became one of the youngest Olympic flag bearers in history.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghotany, Yahya 2004 births Living people Syrian martial artists Refugees of the Syrian civil war Refugee Olympic Team at the 2024 Summer Olympics