Shilan Mustafa, Kurdish lady holds Olympic Torch to Paris  

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Olympics will open on July 24th 2024 in Paris, Shilan Shamal Mustafa is in the group of torch-holders today July 22nd, representing the city she lives in which locates in the south of Paris. She accepted a request from the council, to be in the group who would hold the torch from Athens to Paris.

 Shilan, a 33-year-old, was born in Diyala- Iraq, she is the only daughter in her family among three brothers, because of her dad’s profession as a dentist, her family moved often within the Iraqi provinces, until they settled in Libya. After a while they managed to move to France in 2005. Shilan was then fourteen years old.

She was very fond of studying, learning languages and working, so she studied Industrial Design Engineering that she was very passionate for it. In addition to that she was capable of chasing up her dream of choosing the sports, just as Shilan expressed “French schools gave me the opportunity to learn different sports such as rugby, climbing, running, netball, and table tennis, but I was more keen to Taekwondo, so I decided to enter that world.  

It is understood that Shilan created a first private sport club in her town, to train youngsters, and becoming the only migrant-head of the club cooperating with a French coach. The numbers of members reached more than forty young players, whom Shilan trains on daily basis to get them prepared for the championships.

Her continuous work was recognized by the council, and as a part of the gratitude for her achievements with children in their town, Shilan received a request from the municipality Fleurie, to get her chosen as a female athlete to represent her area by carrying the Olympic torch “They asked me do I agreed to this nomination, I was very happy to do so” Shilan stated.

She highlighted being a migrant, was able to have a role to make things happen in a foreign country, and she received the support and attention for. As a result, the focus would be on migrants who deserve opportunities and support to offer the best they have.

The Olympic Torch Relying Campaign had contacted Shilan, to obtain her consent for the participation, after confirming, they sent her a link to get registered, and asked her to send them her story. Her response was as following:

"I am a girl who did exercises as a child in Iraq. I came to France, being busy with learning the language, studying and seeking a job. My life was confined between my room in my home and my live related matters. I looked for what I would find myself in and make me feel valued in the society. I learned Taekwondo and found my inner strength in it. I live in this small town where most boys and girls need to learn how to defend themselves. I started forming an association to train them. It is a small start, but I feel that will lead to big goals."

After a short while, a response came along that she was waiting for, the response was enclosed with the outfit dress-code and an Id with her name on: “Come to the designated location at 9 a.m. on July 22nd. You will be carrying the Olympic torch and jogging.”

“These words were enough to make me the happiest” Shilan underscored.