Swimmer Samar Nassar said tears of joy filled her eyes when she was told she would carry the Palestinian flag at the opening ceremony of the Olympic games. ''I never believed I would represent my country in an international championship or go to the Olympics. The dream has become a reality,'' she told Reuters by telephone from Jordan, where she is based. The 22-year-old 100-metre breaststroke swimmer and athlete Rami Theeb are the two Palestinians representing their people at the games in Australia starting on September 15.
For Palestinians, the prestigious event is more than just a chance to win medals. It is an opportunity to score political points as they hold the colours of their black, red, white and green flag high at an international forum.
After years of peace negotiations with Israel, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat plans to declare an independent state as early as September 13 and has been trying to garner support.
In Sydney, the Palestinian flag will fly among those of 199 sovereign countries that belong to the Olympic movement. Nassar and Theeb, who is competing in the 20-km walk, will be the second Palestinian team to attend the Olympics since self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza started in 1994.
Palestinians consider their participation at the Olympics a symbol of their emerging status as a state.
Mohammad Al-Bakri, a member of the Palestinian Olympic committee in Gaza, said it was ''politically significant.”

Bureau Report