Cindy Ngamba made history by becoming the first athlete from the Refugee Olympic Team to claim an Olympic medal.
Competing in the women’s boxing 75-kilogram bracket, Ngamba secured at least a bronze by winning her quarterfinal bout. Before a passionate crowd, Ngamba - originally from Cameroon - defeated French boxer Davina Michel to advance from the quarterfinals.
The 25-year-old screamed and pumped her fist when the result was announced. She advances to the semi-finals set to take place on Friday night.
Ngamba has secured at least a bronze medal. She will reach the gold medal contest if she defeats Atheyna Bylon, who ensured Panama would get its fourth-ever Olympic medal.
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“It means the world to me to be the first-ever refugee to win a medal,” Ngamba told reporters. “I want to say to all the refugees around the world... keep on working hard, keep on believing in yourself.”
During the opening ceremony, Ngamba was a flag bearer for the 37 athletes competing for the Refugee Olympic Team - an idea introduced ahead of the Rio 2016 Games. The International Olympic Committee created the team as a way for displaced athletes and migrants to participate fully in the Olympics without help from national federations.
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Aged 11, Ngamba moved to the United Kingdom and was granted refugee status in 2021 as she could have been imprisoned for being gay in her native Cameroon. She revealed boxing has been her escape, helping her to find common ground with like-minded individuals in the sport and on the Olympic roster.
“I had my family and my team by my side every day,” Ngamba said. “The refugee team welcomed me with open arms.”
Ngamba hopes to keep sending a message of hope to refugees everywhere as she looks to win gold. She added: “Hopefully in the next round, I will get the job done - not hopefully. I will get it done.”
With 100 million people around the world forcibly displaced from their homes, the Refugee Olympic Team has nearly quadrupled in size since its debut. U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi took to social media to congratulate Ngamba, writing on X: “You do us all very, very proud! And now onward to gold.”
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