Emmanuel Kiruhura Ntagunga
When World Athletics athlete refugee team (ART) member Emmanuel Kiruhura Ntagunga found a new home in Norway, one of the first major adjustments he and his family faced was to the weather.
The move, which was facilitated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), took place in December last year when temperatures in Norway were -7C – quite the contrast from the warm climes of Kenya, where Ntagunga had been living as a refugee for the previous nine years.
It was also the first time that they saw and touched snow, and, despite the cold, the children enjoyed playing with it.
Ntagunga and his family left Kenya just before Christmas, meaning his year ended on a high; just two months prior, the 29-year-old had been selected to compete at the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Riga, but 10 days before the competition he was informed that he was not able to travel because he was a refugee, so he missed out on competing at the global event.
Together with the Norwegian Athletics Federation and the Norwegian Olympic Committee, World Athletics was able to find Ntangunga a local athletics club, coach and the medical support necessary. He is now registered at Sandnes Idrettslag in Sandnes, the home club of Olympic 1500m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen.
Emmanuel Kiruhura Ntagunga at his new athletics club
Since then, Ntagunga has made new friends with whom he often meets up over the weekend to train with or go for a run. He and his wife are learning Norwegian, while his older children are enrolled in their new school. He feels accepted in his new community and, thanks to his friendly new neighbours, is enjoying Norwegian hospitality.
It’s a clear example of sport being used as a factor of integration and giving someone a sense of belonging; of being ‘somebody’ and not just a mere number.
Ntagunga’s journey exemplifies the determination of many refugee athletes in similar positions, in following their passion for sport, despite the high challenges they face, forcibly displaced from their homes. It also shows the potential the of UNHCR and IOC collaborating with international federations such as World Athletics to support refugee athletes.
When the ART was created in 2016, one of the objectives was to give refugee athletes access to athletics. Since then, it has become increasingly clear that sport has contributed to the mental wellbeing of countless refugee athletes, especially those who have experienced trauma.
Ntagunga was born in South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo where he developed running talent while herding cows and chasing calves. When war broke out in 2013, he fled in search of safety to Uganda where, for a year, he worked for a car wash and restaurant. Still struggling, he fled to Kenya and ended up in Nairobi where he worked as a barber and sold telephone covers and chargers.
It was during this period that he met Kenyan runners and developed a routine of his own, comprising some exercises in the morning, then going about his working day, followed by an easy run in the evening. “I felt freedom finding what I loved,” he says.
A short while later, he participated in road races and athletics competitions which boosted his morale. One day, he found himself competing in the same race as refugee athletes from Tegla Loroupe’s Training Camp based in Ngong, and he finished third behind two Kenyan athletes. The performance opened a door, and after UNHCR verification about his refugee status, Ntagunga joined Loroupe’s camp and later became a recipient of the IOC Athlete Refugee Scholarship.
Emmanuel Kiruhura Ntagunga
In 2023 the group moved to the Complete Sports Training Centre, Kaptagat, Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. Ntagunga adjusted well and it provided ideal conditions that allowed him to concentrate on the sport. He remained there until his resettlement to Norway.
“Emmanuel is dedicated, positive and one that wants to integrate,” says his coach, Eric Toogood, who adds that working with Ntagunga is easy and their priority now is to find some good races. “I enjoy helping potential athletes that come from difficult backgrounds and have talent. It is unfortunate that usually when you hear of refugees, it is about problems, rarely positive stories.”
“This sport is so good that it will change the life of my whole family; this has been the key to a new life,” says Ntagunga. “This is an opportunity to use so that tomorrow is better.
“I would like to thank the UNHCR, IOC, World Athletics, the Norwegian Athletics Federation, my club, and all those that have supported me and my family. You are like parents to us, have given us advice and supported us. I am well prepared, and it is now our time to show the world what refugees can achieve given the opportunity.”
Alice Annibali for World Athletics