BADAWI Fares

General
REPRESENTING PALESTINE
Born in the Syrian Arab Republic, he fled the nation in 2015 to escape the civil war and moved to Germany. He competed as an International Judo Federation athlete at the world championships in 2019, 2021, and 2022. In 2023 he began representing Palestine. "I was representing the refugee team until I got the call. I am Palestinian, born in Syria, so this is my first time to fight for Palestine, I am really proud to have this opportunity, because it is another feeling to be able to fight for your home country." (eju, 11 Jun 2023)

MOVE TO GERMANY
In 2015 he left the Syrian Arab Republic and moved to Germany. "Moving to Germany was my father's idea. I was afraid that I would be drafted into the army. There were kidnappings, we all lost relatives and nobody felt safe anymore. Three days after arriving in Gottingen [in Germany], I googled a judo club and found one. Then I started judo again straight away. The fact that I lived with a German family was ideal for learning the language. I attended language courses and also learned a lot of German in judo. My coach talked to me a lot, taught me a lot and was very patient. After about two months I was able to take part in a regional tournament and won first place there." (bild, 26 Aug 2019; magazin, 16 Aug 2019)

EDUCATION
He studied civil engineering for two semesters at the University of Damascus in Syria before moving to Germany in 2015. He has also studied for a master's degree in Germany. "I had already studied civil engineering for two semesters at the University of Damascus in Syria. I really liked the content of the course and that's why I wanted to continue studying in Germany." (eju, 11 Jun 2023; bild, 26 Aug 2019; magazin, 16 Aug 2019)