The Olympic Campaign Changing The Perception of Refugee Athletes

The number of displaced people around the world currently stands at over 120 million globally - a figure that in less than eight years has almost doubled. Among those displaced are many athletes that are in hope still competing in their sport.

That issue led to the introduction of the Refugee Olympics Team (ROT) in 2016, established by the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in response to the growing global refugee crisis. It started with 10 athletes, now it features 37 who are set to compete in Paris from the end of July.

Without a home country to represent them, the team gives each member a chance to compete and shines a spotlight on refugee resilience while highlighting global displacement issues.

Yusra Mardini, a swimmer from Syria and a member of the team in Rio, described being a member of the first Olympic Refugee Team as "a big experience" and admits that she wasn't excited by the prospect initially.

"I really struggled with being called a refugee," she reveals. "I didn't want people to think that because of my journey, I'm going to the Olympics.".

But meeting with her fellow teammates and hearing their stories changed her mind.

"I found instant joy. The athletes from Kenya, in particular, radiated infectious joy and excitement. Walking into the opening ceremony, I felt immense respect for our team. It dawned on me that this was more than just my dream—it was a message of hope. We were showing the world that tough journeys don't define us; we have the power to create opportunities," explains Mardini.

Following their inaugural outing in Rio, the IOC wanted to take it up a notch for Paris 2024.

Makara Fitzgerald, digital experience manager at the IOC says that the constant negativity around refugees being fed into the world needed to be addressed.

"It's exhausting and hard to process all that heavy news," she continues. "That's why the Refugee Team and this campaign are so incredible—they give us a chance to talk about refugees in a positive light. They let us see just how strong these people are and highlight why they truly deserve our attention."

With the support of Gravity Road, the IOC wanted to find a way to shine a light on the extraordinary achievements of the athletes who have overcome significant hardships to compete at the highest level.

Pitching a Dream

Almost 18 months ago Gravity Road pitched its idea of what would become '1 in 100 Million' to the IOC.

Mark Eaves, founder of Gravity Road explained that with the growing number of refugees, the ORT lacked a strong identity, instead being perceived merely as a charitable initiative.

"These athletes are exceptional and deserve a proper sense of team spirit and identity, celebrating them as extraordinary individuals rather than subjects of pity," Eaves states. "Becoming an Olympian is challenging enough with the support of Team GB or Team USA, but achieving this without such infrastructure is truly exceptional."

In addition to highlighting the growing refugee crisis and the increasing number of displaced people, Gravity Road aims to celebrate these people as athletes first and foremost, rather than the other way around. Eaves reveals that the initial pitch went deeper and broader than initially planned as it was apparent that they needed to establish a strong identity for the team.

One missing aspect was that the team lacked an emblem, so the agency incorporated way markers and arrows into the design to reflect each of their unique journeys.

The official emblem combines a heart and wayfinding arrow icon with the 'Refugee Olympic Team' name and the Olympic rings. It also includes all five Olympic colours, showing the team's ties to the IOC. The heart connects them to the Olympic Refuge Foundation, while the arrow symbolises unity among athletes from different places while the Olympic rings represent how the Games embrace people from all backgrounds, including refugees.

Eaves adds: "Unlike traditional teams, this team isn't united by geography, as its members come from different places and don't live in the same country. The journey, both metaphorically and physically, including travel, destination, and a sense of origin and direction, was essential.

"Despite facing outrageous odds, these athletes have succeeded in reaching the starting line, representing one of over 100 million refugees worldwide."

The agency began by creating an identity for the team, followed by a campaign to showcase the team's achievements.

Achieving Authenticity

To raise awareness of the team, it was important to all parties that the promotional film felt as authentic as possible. To achieve that. the campaign introduces the team and the athletes, highlighting them as a unified group. Due to travel restrictions the team couldn't gather for the final shot of the film. Instead, each athlete sent a photo of themselves, although six were filmed in person.

The final image was then meticulously crafted by combining these individual photos through post-production. The entire team will meet in person for the first time on July 15, just before the Olympics.

To get to know them as individuals, the aim is to help the audience form an emotional connection with the team. That's why the film incorporates live action and illustrated segments.

The Gravity Road team aimed to forge those connections by presenting refugees as individuals, and sought to depict their experiences with a fresh and creative perspective, introducing a graphic novel style to engage viewers and prevent any risk of desensitisation towards their stories

While navigating sensitive areas, they faced the practical challenge of creating a campaign with athletes scattered across the globe. This was overcome by leveraging Generative AI in the production process to allow that graphic novel style to be applied to the real life footage which united the team and integrated diverse content into a cohesive campaign.

The athletes were filmed on a green screen so that they would be transformed into graphic novel characters, using Gen AI, who burst out of that world at the end. This method not only added visual interest but also framed the athletes as heroic figures striving to achieve greatness.

"The graphic novel style isn't just a shortcut to that effect; it has a rich heritage in depicting real-world stories," adds Eaves. "Works like Maus and Persepolis tell powerful personal narratives through this medium. Joe Sacco's graphic novels have covered serious topics like Sarajevo. By using this style, we draw on a tradition of using graphic novels to tell serious, journalistic stories, not just superhero tales. This reframing helps highlight the extraordinary journeys of these athletes in a compelling and engaging way."

The scenes depicting refugee experiences use original footage from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Although this footage was a graphic novel treatment, it was still authentic news footage. Illustrations were led by Engy Jarrouj, a Syrian refugee and, at the time of its reveal, a diversity and inclusion specialist at the production company Framestore. It was crucial that this project felt genuine and representative of real lived experiences, rather than being shaped by those without a true connection to the content.

Widespread Support

Despite not having the expansive budgets typical of global sports brands, the campaign aims to make a commensurate global impact. Media coverage has been extensive, drawing immense interest in the athletes' compelling stories and their aspirations.

Through a brand partnership, they have become Nike athletes, while broadcasters Discovery and Eurosport are supporting the campaign by providing dedicated coverage of the team during the Games.

Eaves said: "Seeing many partners come on board has been amazing. As a charity, enthusiasm and support are crucial. Framestore, our production partner, has been exceptional, contributing far beyond what the limited budget could afford. Social platforms also played a vital role, offering inventory and support on World Refugee Day. TikTok made our film the top view in three countries, and Snapchat created lenses to drive support."

The accompanying music is also unexpectedly well-served. While some campaigns typically rely on library tracks or collaborate with lesser-known artists, this time, several artists eagerly sought to be part of the project. Producer Manon Dave and UK rapper Che Lingo, affiliated with Idris Elba's label, were chosen. They crafted a track specifically for the content and film, which garnered considerable attention. This track has also been featured as the music for the Snapchat lens and will soon be released on various other platforms.

The lyrics and music draw their inspiration from the narrative and the athletes, highlighting their empowerment and the journey from their challenges and struggles to the present day.

The initiative draws people in by fostering a collaborative structure rather than using a top-down approach. This method has already generated significant interest through engaging social content and compelling storytelling.

Since the campaign's launch, the demand for athlete interviews has surged generating substantial coverage from BBC Global News, Sky News, and CNN. The shift in narrative—from statistics to personal stories—has resonated widely, sparking genuine curiosity about these individuals both as athletes and as people.

Requests for interviews became so numerous that they had to be limited to prevent disruptions to the athletes' training schedules. The biggest push will come over the final few weeks before the Games begin with interviews from participating musicians and athletes, while further awareness will be built through celebrity support.

Eaves concludes, "With this support, we've overcome many challenges. While we don't have global sports brand budgets, we aim to deliver a global sports brand impact. Now, the goal is to maintain momentum leading to Paris. We want as many people as possible to know these athletes and support them on social media when they step out at the opening ceremony.

"They should be everybody's second team and some people's first team. Why would you not support this team and want to see them succeed?"