(Newswire.net — August 13, 2016) — Hundreds of refugees from war-torn Syria drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea. Yusra Mardini, now 18 years-old, remembers the horror she went through.
Mardini’s home was destroyed during the conflict in 2012, however, together with her father and sister, they decided to leave Syria in 2015. The route was well known, reaching Greece by boat, then travel through Europe to Germany as the final destination.
Near Greece, their boat engine broke, but not Mardini’s spirit. She jumped into the cold water and started pulling the boat. She is a swimmer, and there was her family in the boat. Her sister, along with few others jumped to help her. After almost four hours of swimming they reached the shore of Lesvos in Greece, saving everyone on the boat.
Today, 18 months later, she is in Rio de Janeiro, swimming proudly for the refugee team, the first in the history of the Olympic Games.
She managed to win the 100m butterfly, however, finished with a time of 1:09:29 which was too slow to qualify her for the semi-finals. For 18-year-old Mardini and anyone who meets her, it is equal to winning the gold medal.
“Everything was amazing. The only thing I ever wanted was to compete in the Olympics,” Mardini told a news crew from Serbia who met her at the Aquatic Center. She remembers passing through Serbia on her way to Germany.
“You gave me water and food, I gave you my heart,” Mardini said. As they reached Serbia, all the refugees were greeted with food, shelter and medical care, but the final destination was wealthy Germany.
“For me, the chaos in Syria started in 2012 after my home was destroyed in the Daraa massacre. Over 100 civilians died. Some of my friends, also swimmers were killed. In 2015, my sister and I found the strength to leave Syria with our father. We took an airplane from Damask to Beirut, then to Turkey. In the town of Izmir, we boarded a small boat across the Mediterranean Sea.”
On route for the Greek island Lesvos, the boat experienced engine failure and start drifting off, being carried by the sea current. “Then something happened for which the whole world now sees me as a hero,” she said. “My sister and I along with a friend of ours jumped in the water and started pushing the boat. There were approximately 20 people on board. I remember thinking will I die as a swimmer in the water?”
Asked if she will return one day to Syria, Mardini said it would be her life’s mission to help her people. She is in contact with her friends in Syria. Right now, she is excited to meet Michael Phelps, she told the Serbian reporters.