Last week, we shared insights on the creation of the collaborative, community-based Sport Together Fund delivered by Beyond Sport as well as thoughts from our Fund’s Expert Advisory Group (EAG) on the refugee experience. Today, EAG member, Lam Joar, shares on how his own experiences as a refugee and athleted inspire his advocacy work and the benefits of of the Fund.

Matthew Lam Joar fled a war-torn South Sudan at the age of 15 and became a refugee in Kenya. While there, he tried out for a project led by the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation and UNCHR, the United Nations Refugee Agency which mentored and trained talented refugee athletes. This led Lam to be among the first group from which the first Refugee Olympic Team was selected in 2016 and later attend the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as a Team Assistant. Lam moved to the UK to pursue his master’s at the University of Oxford, studying refugees and forced migration – a subject that has defined the latter part of his life. He is currently working to extend his research into a PhD.

"'Refugee' is a restrictive status; it is hard to make it out of the camps without external support or a network of good people who see potential in you. It could've been difficult for me to be where I am today without the help and guidance of a good network. Many young refugees want to follow in my footsteps, which puts me in a position to help and be a role model. I am inspired to inspire and help others." Read More