By Al Monitor – Members of the Lebanese delegation to the 2016 Olympic Games refused
to travel on the same bus as their Israeli counterparts in Rio on
Friday, according to a report from Israel , with some attempting to
block athletes from entering the vehicle, according to a report by an
Israeli trainer who claimed to have witnessed the scene.

“I kept on insisting that we board the bus and said that if the
Lebanese did not want to board as well they are welcome to leave,” Udi
Gal, the Israeli sailing team trainer, wrote in a Facebook post Friday.

“The bus driver opened the door, but this time the head of the
Lebanese delegation blocked the aisle and entrance. The organizers
wanted to avoid an international and physical incident and sent us away
to a different bus.” So far, no official response
on behalf of the delegations was given regarding the incident. The
Olympic organizing committee has not yet offered any statement about the
incident either, the report added.

The connections between Brazil and Lebanon go deep despite geographic
distance. And when the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil kick off Aug. 5, a
Lebanon-born and Brazil-raised athlete, the judo practitioner Nacif
Elias, he was Lebanon’s flag bearer at the opening ceremony.

“I wish to get the historical medal for Lebanon. I am ready for that,” Elias told Al-Monitor.

And with a string of victories leading up to the games, all eyes will be on the star Lebanese judoka.

Elias was part of a wave of Lebanese immigrants that began coming to
Brazil in the late 19th century and continued into modern times. Some
7-10 million Brazilians are of full or partial Lebanese ancestry, according to Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while the entire Lebanese population is just over 4 million.
Perhaps it’s fitting that a member of the Lebanese diaspora will be the
Middle Eastern nation’s flag bearer at the games, as it’s believed this
group is larger than the population of Lebanon itself. No matter how far
they stray from their country, Lebanon’s motto of “all of us, for the
homeland!” rings true for many Lebanese abroad.

The 27-year-old Elias moved to Vitória, Espírito Santo, a small
island just off Brazil’s southeastern coast, with his family when he was
a child. Elias played for his adopted country until 2013, when he
switched to Lebanon.

It’s common for Olympic athletes to switch countries in search
of greater chances to qualify for international tournaments. But for
Elias, the decision was personal and somewhat different in that he had
been eligible for dual nationality since long before his judo career
began.

“I switched because I love Lebanon and Lebanon is my country of origin.
And the Lebanese Judo Federation, especially Francois Saade, support me
so much,” Elias said.