Making a splash at the games this year is a team with multiple nationalities rolled into one for hope. Greece, Syria, Kenya, Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, and many more are names of countries we've all heard a great deal about not just in the past decade, but ever more so recently. Statistics from the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) report that 65.3 million people have been forcibly displaced worldwide and that there are currently 21.3 million refugees in the world today. If that doesn't speak volumes, maybe the fact that the Olympics made history this year by having the first ever Refugee Olympic Team (ROT) at this years summer games will. Now to be honest, I haven't been paying as much attention to the games as I usually do, only recently just having got back from being abroad for three weeks, so when I began hearing all of the hype during the open ceremony Friday night about team ROT, I was slightly confused and decided to do some reading up. I cannot describe the chills that engulfed me when reading articles, watching YouTube videos and interviews about the teams individuals.

There are 10 athletes on the ROT team; five from South Sudan, two from Syria, two from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and one from Ethiopia. The athletes will compete in their respected events ranging from swimming to running to judoka. What really resonated with me were the words of Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee: "These refugees have no home, no team, no flag, no national anthem...The Olympic anthem will be played in their honor, and the Olympic flag will lead the them into the Olympic Stadium."

That's when it really hit me; most of these athletes have family members that died during the war, which is common in any country, but to have to relocate to a completely different country (or continent!) just to escape war, and the fear of being taken from your family and forced to fight against your will with brutal forces is something that we don't have to experience in the United States. Right now it's safe to say the U.S. is a mess, dealing with the ramifications that this years presidential election is already causing, but let's not forget the freedom we have.

Back in mid June the refugee crisis was so intense that it tore apart the EU, partly being the cause of the UK leaving due to the overwhelming amount of migrants seeking asylum. European countries are legally obligated to help refugees who make it to their countries, a sacred legacy starting with World War II. New Statesman, a British publication reports that 1.25 million people applied for asylum in the 28 EU member states in 2015, more than double of that from the year before.

Most of the ROT athletes probably won't get to experience the joy of having their family members at the games with them; cheering them on from the stands proudly. But last night as the team walked out and received a standing ovation from the spectators of the opening ceremony, they proved that you can have citizens from all around the world as family cheering you on, and who are proud of your accomplishments. Not only will their country of origin be cheering for them, but their current country of residence will be, too. This team will act as a beacon of hope for not only for the refugee crisis, but also for other refugees. They are roving that you don't need to compete for your home country to have a shot at the games.

"This is a great opportunity," Rami Anis, ROT swimmer from Syria, but currently in Belgium, stated while being interviewed with the team. "Every athlete's dream is to compete in the games. Since we were children we've dreamt of taking part in the Olympics. Each one of us dreamt we could compete under our national flag, but unfortunately wars have prevented us from doing that. We're very proud to be a part of the refugee team, we'll represent refugees all around the world. My heart and soul will be with Syria."

Even though I'll be cheering for the United States to bring home as many golds as they can this summer, I'll be cheering just as hard, and maybe even harder, for the Refugee Olympic Team.