Olympic Refugee Team member Alaa Maso is already looking beyond his time in Paris. This week the 24 year-old will line up for a second Olympic Games, against the best swimmers in the world, on the biggest stage possible, but more than a gold medal or a finals berth, Maso is striving for something we all take for granted - to finally be able to see his mother again.

It has been just under a decade since Maso last saw his mother. Having fled the war-torn Syrian city of Aleppo in 2015, Maso and his brother made a dangerous trek through southern Europe as teenagers to finally seek asylum in Germany. At this stage of Maso’s life, picking up the swimming skills his father taught him was far from a priority. Rather his days consisted of trying to survive in a foreign country, with no language skills, and still as a child away from loving parents.

However once you speak to Maso, you understand that resilience is something this two-time Olympian has in spades. As is his ability to reflect, learn, and discuss his life journey, with a maturity that befits very few people in their twenties.

“I don’t really believe in homeland,” explains Maso.

“For me, the place where I feel at home is the place I am going to call home. Leaving Syria at a very young age, only seeing the dark side of Syria – the war starting when I was 11 – was something I didn’t like to keep on thinking about and taking with me.”

While Maso’s story is remarkable, he is quick to assert that his story is the story of tens of millions of other refugees – most less fortunate than himself.

“A couple of years ago there were 65 million people displaced around the world; today we have already crossed 100 million," says Maso.

"That is also the name of our new campaign for the refugee team – ‘One in 100 million’. That is showing what the idea of the team is, giving hope for displaced people and everybody who is forced to leave their country and their homeland for many reasons. There is no bigger obstacle than leaving your family behind and starting over in a different country with a different culture.

While most swimmers competing in Paris have eagerly been counting down the days until competition gets underway at Paris La Defense Arena, Maso has been counting down on a different timeline. After eight years living as a refugee in Germany, in the coming months, Maso will finally be able to apply for German citizenship.

“After the Olympic Games, I am able to get my German passport and citizenship,” says Maso.

“Now I have spent eight years in Germany I am able to apply for it. I hope it won’t take a lot of time. Being given German citizenship is something to be proud of because you know you’ve done almost the impossible.” 

And for Maso, citizenship means finally being able to travel freely, and an opportunity to visit his mother for the first time in almost a decade.

“I hope I will get to visit my mum in Turkiye,” says Maso.

“My mum was the one who was always with me on the pool deck when I was very young. She drove me to the morning training and to competitions in other cities. She was my hero when I was a child - and now I am hers.”