Syrian sensei trains Turkish athletes for gold

Ahmed Jalil al-Ali, an international karate referee and coach who took refuge in Turkey with his family due to the ongoing civil war in Syria, is now attempting to train new athletes in the country.

Having won many medals and awards around the world, including European and Balkan championships, 47-year-old al-Ali came to Şanlıurfa from Damascus three years ago after working as a national team coach and as a diplomat for many years in Syria.

As a symbol of gratitude to his host country, the Syrian asylum-seeker is now rolling up his sleeves to train in Turkey, starting with 20 lucky athletes. Al-Ali is an accomplished teacher who has had eight of his students invited to the national athletic team. He wants his sons, who are also martial arts enthusiasts, to represent Turkey in competitions.

Currently training his students at the Hamidiye Sports Facilities in Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipality, al-Ali told Anadolu Agency (AA) that he had achieved great success in the past, noting that he greatly regretted having to flee his country.

Despite his diplomatic standing, the Syrian athlete stated that he had to abandon his country because he couldn't stomach what was happening to the Syrian people.

Noting that he lives in Şanlıurfa with his family and siblings, al-Ali said: "I would like to thank Turkey for supporting us, the Syrian people and Syrian athletes. Currently there are about 3 million Syrians living in Turkey. We are now trying to bring sports back to life with Turkey's support." He said he has continued his work in Turkey because of his love for the profession, and that all four of his sons are also talented in karate.

Al-Ali thanked Turkey for protecting asylum seekers, and said they are trying to train successful athletes in Turkey, as well.

"We have not encountered any problems in Turkey. We can go everywhere and participate in competitions. I train Turkish athletes, and we practice in the sports facility," he said. He explained that they even played under the Turkish flag in the International Bosporus Karate Tournament, a very honorable experience and a source of pride for him. "I hope to raise champion karate practitioners here so that we can, to some extent, repay the contributions Turkey has made to us," al-Ali added.

Al-Ali's two sons had previously fought for the Syrian national team and also participated in different competitions on behalf of Turkey. However, they had to go and settle in Europe. "The reason they went to Europe is that they do not have passports. They could only travel within Turkey and they could not travel abroad and participate into international competitions."

Stressing that he wants his younger sons to participate in competitions on behalf of Turkey, al-Ali said: "Thankfully my children, Osama, 13, and Mutaz, 8, have won medals in every competition they have participated in here. Recently, they won bronze medals under the Turkish flag at the International Bosporus Karate Tournament held in Istanbul." Although his eldest sons are now competing for Luxembourg, al-Ali said he does not want his younger children to leave Turkey.

"They gave me a death sentence in Syria for leaving the regime. For this reason, I do not have official documents in Syria, and it is almost impossible for me to travel since I do not have a passport. That's our biggest problem," al-Ali noted, adding that he wants to become a Turkish citizen and carry out important projects in the karate federation.

Turkish Karate Federation Provincial Representative Mustafa Ak said the karate practices in Şanlıurfa are going well, but they are having some problems with the sports facilities.

Acknowledging the support that they have received from al-Ali, Ak pointed out that they want to train champions in Şanlıurfa. "We are trying to integrate our Syrian brothers and sisters in Şanlıurfa into sports. Ahmed is a world referee, as well as a karate master. He's currently working for our federation. I hope he will also have an official position," Ak said, highlighting that they could really benefit from his expertise. "We are conducting projects to assimilate our Syrian brothers and sisters into society," Ak added.

Abdulkadir Doğan, the coordinator of Hamidiye Sports Facilities, said al-Ali has been conducting projects there for a long time, and that he is very popular among the athletes.