Meet the girl who dreams of being the first Olympic swimmer in Gaza

A 13-year-old Gaza girl who survived three wars is an unlikely candidate for an Olympic swimming champion. Until four years ago, Fatima Abu Shedeg was not only unable to swim, but had never been in a pool.

Yet, despite the challenges she faced, she spends her days dreaming of starting the Tokyo 2020 Games as the first Olympic swimmer in Gaza.

In 2014, Fatima lost her father in the last war with Israel, which raged for 51 days and killed more than 2,200 Palestinians and 73 Israelis. She saw her uncle's legs being carried away by the same aerial shot that killed her father and destroyed most of their home in Beit Lahia, north of Gaza.

Like many children in the tiny enclave, she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Then Amjed Tantesh, 42, a swimming coach and Olympic hopeful, encouraged her to learn to swim to channel her depression and anger.

"A week after my father's death, Amjed called my mother and offered me, as well as my brother, swimming lessons.My father was killed by bursts of 39 shells as a result of an air strike that ricocheted on the wall and hit his heart.The same aerial attack blew up my uncle's leg.We were all down screaming, " she said sitting by a small pool filled with green and troubled water in Gaza.

"It is extremely important for me to fulfill my dream, that of my family, my coach, to be the first swimmer of Gaza to participate in the Olympics, "she added.

Four years later, the fitness and football fanatic spends his free time training in dirty and sometimes improvised swimming pools. Gaza is in the eleventh year of an Israeli blockade, which means that Fatima can not even afford proper swimming equipment. She is allowed to swim in a pair of mismatched pajamas. If she qualifies it would be her first trip out of Gaza, which is only 25 miles long.

She said that swimming had helped her cope with the trauma of the war and had made her stronger.

"I do not want to be afraid anymore, I want to be strong, I was even scared of the pool, the water, and now I am not, I'm determined to work on myself. to succeed, "she said.

In June, Save the Children reported that 95 per cent of children in Gaza suffered from depression, which is a profound psychological distress. constant threat of conflict, fear of bombs and constant insecurity caused by unstable political situation had created a psychological crisis in the country.

Many fear that Gaza is on the brink of a new war with Israel as tensions reach their boiling point.

On Friday, the Israeli army said one of its soldiers had been killed by Palestinian gunmen near the border, the first Israeli military death near Gaza since the 2014 war. The army unleashed a series of air strikes that hit more than 60 military targets in the enclave, one of the most intense violence days in four years.

At the end of the day, the Gaza Ministry of Health said that at least four Palestinians had been killed. As fires raged across the Strip, a brittle truce negotiated by Egypt was imposed. On Saturday, the United Nations called on both parties to "come back" on the eve of a "devastating conflict."

At the heart of the latest wave of hostilities are 16 weeks of Palestinian protests near border gates. the Israeli army met with force. More than 140 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli gunfire since March 30, when Gazans began walking over the barriers demanding the right to return to the ancestral lands that were imposed on them during the 1948 war that surrounded the creation of Israel.

Some of the protesters began throwing kites and balloons tied with explosives on Israel, causing more than 750 forest fires and burning 2600 hectares of land.

Palestinians argue that the protests are peaceful and that Israel is firing on them with real ammunition. Israel says their soldiers have been attacked and that forest fires are endangering Israeli citizens.

Earlier this week saw the most intense firefight between Gaza and Israel since the 2014 conflict. Egypt reportedly intervened to stop the war

In the middle of the year. escalating conflict, children, like Fatima, have suffered the most.

million. Tantesh said that there were few resources or opportunities for young people to deal with trauma, although swimming had proven to be a cheap alternative.

He launched his swimming initiative in 1999 and said he taught more than 5,400 children to swim.

Because he had initially lacked access to swimming pools, Tantesh built a makeshift pool using concrete blocks from bombed out buildings to cordon off a portion of the beach north of Gaza the day after. the war of 2014. the water is less polluted.

In 2015 alone, he taught 465 children, most of them receiving free swimming lessons.

"All are affected by the war, they lost a father, a mother, a parent or a house was destroyed," he said The Independent

"But our new ambition is to prepare some of these children to qualify for the Olympics.Fatima is by far our best chance, she has developed the fastest and we hope that she will represent Gaza in Tokyo 2020. I have never seen so much determination and perseverance, "he added.

The Palestinian territories have been participating in the Olympic Games since 1996, represented by the International Olympic Committee as they are not officially recognized as a country.

Since then, more than 20 athletes have taken part in athletics, judo and swimming. With the exception of a young judoka from Jerusalem who qualified for the London Games in 2012, they all competed on a wild card system

The Palestinian Olympic Committee selects its teams of Gaza, the West Bank and Palestinian communities around the world. Fatima will face fierce competition while it will be content with limited resources.

Gaza lacks an Olympic sized pool and the few pools that it struggles to stay open despite chronic energy shortages. It is also increasingly dangerous to swim in the sea.

The Gaza Environment Authority said last year that nearly two-thirds of its 25-mile coastline was seriously polluted.

Wastewater treatment plants can not operate because of shortages of electricity. The United Nations said more than 100 million liters of sewage are pumped daily into the sea off Gaza.

With dirty beaches and not enough electricity to keep the pools clean, trying to form a swimming team is almost impossible. the Olympic Committee in Gaza.

Munther Masalmeh, the secretary general of the committee, said it would be a "big hit" for a Gaza swimmer to reach the Olympics in a destroyed office and in front of a battery-powered fan. There is not a single pool in Gaza that meets international standards. With our infrastructure problems, it is even more difficult. It would be a major achievement to have a swimmer here because of the lack of resources, "he told The Independent

The Israeli blockade also restricts access to sports facilities. Masalmeh said even iron goals were banned because Israelis feared they could be used to make weapons.

"Sports equipment remains stuck in ports for a year and does not reach athletes, and Israelis have in the past banned players from leaving Gaza to participate in international tournaments," he said. he adds.

Nevertheless, Fatima hopes one day to get permission to leave Gaza and take her place at the Games. "I want to fulfill my dream of being chosen for the Olympics, so I can travel and compete in the 100m race," she said, putting on her swimming pajamas.

"I do not just want to participate, I want to get first place, so those who chose me are proud."