IWF Refugee Team is ready to shine in 2026!
The IWF is pleased to announce its 2026 Refugee Team, composed by three lifters: Ramiro Mora, Clementine Noumbissi, and Fatemah Keshavarz. All of them based in Great Britain and integrating the IOC Refugee Scholarship programme, they will be invited to participate in the IWF World Championships, taking place in Ningbo (CHN) from October 27-November 8.
Ramiro Mora – Photo credit: Giorgio Scala/Deepbluemedia
Mora, originally from Cuba, is the most experienced member of the IWF Refugee Team, after being part of the Olympic Refugee Team at the Paris 2024 Games, finishing seventh in the men’s 102kg. His result of 166-210-376 largely improved the performance he had done some months earlier at the IWF World Cup in Phuket (THA), where he achieved 162-197-359. In December 2024, at the IWF World Championships in Manama (BRN), he competed in the 96kg, concluding in the 10th position (166-203-369). Finally, at the 2025 IWF showcase in Forde (NOR), he was ninth in the 94kg. Mora was born in September 1997.
Clémentine Noumbissi – Photo credit: Giorgio Scala/Deepbluemedia
Clémentine Noumbissi, born in October 1990, represented her country (Cameroon) until 2022, getting significant results on a continental level – she was gold medallist in the 2021 African Championships, but also at the 2019 All-African Games. She was third at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and took part in the Tokyo 2020ne Games, finishing 11th in the women’s 87kg category. Also member of the 2025 IWF Refugee Team, she competed at the IWF World Championships in Norway, placing 20th in the 86kg category.
Fatemah Keshavarz – Photo credit: White Lights Media
Fatemah Keshavarz, born in October 2004, is the newcomer in the group. She represented Iran until 2024, having achieved notable results. She was Asian junior champion in 2023, silver medallist at the Asian Championships in the same year, and eighth at the 2024 IWF World Junior Championships (in the 71kg category).
The Team Manager of the 2026 IWF Refugee Team is Damjan Canzek, while the physiotherapist is Hussein Elsettawi.
The first IWF Refugee Team was launched in 2023, and Aline de Souza became, at the 2023 IWF World Championships in Riyadh (KSA), officially the first IWF Refugee Athlete in action, in the women’s 55kg category. In terms of performances, Yekta Jamali was the first IWF refugee lifter to get a medal, earning bronze at the 2024 IWF World Junior Championships, in the women’s 81kg.
IWF Communications
