Cyrille Tchatchet II will represent the Olympic Refugee Team at the Tokyo Olympics Games as the only UK-based athlete; the weightlifter is also now a mental health nurse and wants his appearance at the Olympic Games to "send out a message of hope and solidarity for the refugees"
Saturday 24 July 2021 14:19, UK
Cyrille Tchatchet II wants his participation in the Tokyo Olympics to give hope to refugees and displaced communities across the world.
The weightlifter is the only UK-based athlete representing the Olympic Refugee team at the Games, and his appearance in Tokyo is against all odds after living homeless as a teenager on the streets of Brighton
"I'm from Cameroon, born in [the capital of] Yaounde," the 25-year-old tells Sky Sports News.
"I came to the UK in 2014 to take part in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Due to some complications I had back in Cameroon, I didn't return. Since then I've been living here in the UK."
He finished fifth representing Cameroon in the 85kg event but said competing against a backdrop of uncertainty in his homeland meant he was unable to revel in the full Commonwealth Games experience.
"It was very tense," he adds.
"I don't really feel like I enjoyed it as much as I was supposed to. I was thinking about other things, so spent most of my time in the village."
Things were about to take a turn for the worse, and before long, Tchatchet II was sleeping rough in the English seaside town of Brighton.
Warning - some readers may find some quotes in the following section upsetting
"After my competition, the day after, I just packed my bags and left the village," he says.
"I didn't know where I was going so I just kept walking, not knowing where I was going. I ended up sleeping rough in Glasgow that night. And then I went to London and went to Brighton where I was homeless for a while.
"It was difficult, it was very difficult. I felt like nobody - suddenly you find yourself sleeping outside a few days after competing at the Commonwealth Games. I felt abandoned and really sad.
"It was a long journey in Brighton, I think I was there for about two months. It was very difficult, not having the weather [I was accustomed to in Cameroon]. It was quite cold, having to sleep out at night with no food [was tough]. It was a very difficult experience."
It left him on the brink, but Tchatchet II was handed a reprieve.
"I was alone, I didn't make any friends. You do meet some other people who are poor and homeless and sleeping on the streets, but you're not friends," he says.
"I was suicidal when I was in Brighton. It came to the point where I just wanted to end it all. I woke up one day and I just walked to the cliff and I just thought maybe I could jump and end it all. But I saw a sign for Samaritans and I called them and the guy kinda had me on the phone for a while.
"Then all I remember was two police cars coming up behind me and they took me to the station. And from there I spoke to a solicitor, and the solicitor advised me to seek asylum. It took about a year-and-a-half before I was eventually granted refugee status, so I was eventually granted aslyum in February 2016."
Tchatchet II has stuck true to his sporting values. He hopes succeeding on the global weightlifting stage can provide optimism and encourage others to take up the sport, and he also dreams of representing Team GB in the future.
"It's going to be an honour to compete for the Olympic Refugee weightlifting team. It sends out a message of hope and solidarity for the refugees," he adds.
"It [also] gives people like myself the privilege of competing at the highest level, the chance to compete and showcase our sporting ability. I am applying for citizenship maybe next year and hopefully, I will start competing for Great Britain.
"Doing weightlifting, it's more than a sport. In weightlifting, you meet people and it becomes a social thing. It's quite an addictive sport - since I started when I was 10 I haven't been able to stop, even when I was injured.
"It's fun, it's easy to measure your progress and achievements. Every day you go to the gym, you learn something, be it technique, be it a two kgs improvement. There's always room for improvement and improving your mental state and sense of achieving."
It was Tchatchet II's personal experience of the link being physical and mental wellbeing stimulated his desire to pursue a Mental Health Nursing degree at Middlesex University.
"I'm a mental health nurse and I work in a community mental health team," he proudly says. "I'm blessed to have got into the profession.
"I have been enjoying it since I started, looking at the physical health of patients with severe mental health illness, which was an aspect of their help that was neglected. I am enjoying it because I am making an impact."
If you are affected by issues related to mental wellbeing or want to talk, please contact the Samaritans on the free helpline 116 123, or visit the website
