"Back in 2015, with his native Syria in the full throes of civil war, Maso had little choice but to leave if he wanted to pursue a career in swimming. Hailing from Aleppo, a major battleground in the war, he was going for months on end without training. "It always had to depend on how safe the situation was and what the priorities were," he said. And so, together with older brother, Mo, he took the long and arduous journey to Europe via Turkey."
"The brothers had originally intended to settle in the Netherlands with some other family members. But because they had been fingerprinted while transiting through Germany, EU rules meant their asylum applications had to be processed here. Since then, it has been a case of making up for lost time, even though the 25-year-old Maso prefers not to dwell on the past. But there is no hiding the fact that the civil war held back his budding career."
"Since then, it has been a case of making up for lost time, even though the 25-year-old Maso prefers not to dwell on the past. But there is no hiding the fact that the civil war held back his budding career. "It's never possible to replace such damage," he said. "The four years in which I was not able to train are some of the most important years in the life of a swimmer. It's where you put in the basics, the groundwork for everything that's coming in the future.""
Alaa Maso, a Syrian from Aleppo, arrived in Germany nearly ten years ago after fleeing the civil war to pursue swimming. Transiting through Germany meant EU rules required asylum processing there despite initial plans to settle in the Netherlands. Months without training in Aleppo and four formative years lost to conflict delayed his development and forced years of catch-up. Maso views home as wherever he feels accepted and now hopes to make Germany his permanent residence. He began swimming at age four, drew inspiration from Michael Phelps, and resolved to reach the Olympics despite interrupted preparation.
Read at www.dw.com
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