A boxer originally from Cameroon has made history by becoming the first member of the Olympic Refugee Team to win a medal.
25-year-old Cindy Ngamba took home the Olympic bronze medal in the women’s 75-kilogram boxing event, giving the team its first-ever medal since its creation ahead of the Rio 2016 Games.
Ngamba defeated French boxer Davina Michel in the quarter-finals to get to this point. Though she lost her semi-final bout against Panema’s Atheyna Bylon, who was ranked seventh coming into the tournament, there is no bronze-medal bout in boxing, meaning both semi-final losers are awarded a bronze medal.
“It means the world to me to be the first-ever refugee to win a medal,” Ngamba said after her quarter-final victory. “I want to say to all the refugees around the world… keep on working hard, keep on believing in yourself.”
Boxe 🥊 : la réfugié Camerounaise Cindy Ngamba ne sera pas de la finale d’or. Atheyna Bylon 🇵🇦 remporte par décision partagée.#jeuxolympiques #RCSports #Paris2024 #boxe pic.twitter.com/HJEeeDPyHk
— Radio-Canada Sports (@RC_Sports) August 8, 2024
Ngamba moved to the United Kingdom from Cameroon when she was just 10 years old and came out as gay when she was 18. With homosexuality being illegal in her home country, she is unable to return and was granted refugee status in 2021.
Ngamba also hasn’t been granted UK citizenship, which has prevented her from competing under the Great Britain Olympic team. Because of this, she decided to compete for the Refugee Olympic Team and became a pillar of the 37-athlete squad, even acting as its flag-bearer at the Opening Ceremony.
Despite not competing under the Union Jack flag, Ngamba still had plenty of support from Bolton, the English town outside of Manchester where she resides and trains. A video posted to social media showed a viewing party happening in Bolton cheering on Ngamba in the semi-final.
She might have missed out on a silver or gold but just look at the support in Bolton tonight for Cindy Ngamba. Outstanding & wonderful to see pic.twitter.com/CTWdDmGNoL
— Richard Askam (@richaskam) August 8, 2024
It was a thrilling ride for Ngamba at these Olympics. She defeated third-seed Tammara Thibeault of Canada in her first bout and then took care of the sixth-seed Michel in the quarter-final to secure at least a bronze medal.
The bout against Thibeault was especially tense, but the two shared a heartwarming moment after their fight, with the Canadian congratulating Ngamba.
Heartwarming magic moment of respect ❤️
Canada’s Tammara Thibeault was defeated in her first fight by Refugee Olympic Team flag-bearer Cindy Ngamba and the sportsmanship after the match was truly inspiring 👏#RealMagic presented by @cocacola_ca #ad pic.twitter.com/CrwQURGHFq
— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) July 31, 2024
The Olympic Refugee Team was conceived before the Rio 2016 Games to raise awareness of the plight of refugees worldwide. The inaugural team saw just 10 athletes compete in Rio, but its membership has steadily increased, with 29 athletes competing at Tokyo 2020 and 37 athletes in Paris this year.