Nike Reframes the Narrative Around Refugee Athletes with Powerful Film

‘Watch Where We’re Going’ reframes the narrative around refugee athletes, celebrating their resilience, hard work, and athleticism as they show up ready to take on the best in the world.

Partnering with Nike, the official kit supplier for the IOC Refugee Olympic Team, W+K Amsterdam created a global campaign to introduce these athletes to the world stage. The campaign confronts the unfair truth that refugee athletes are often defined by their past, shifting the focus to a hopeful future looking narrative focusing on their sporting ability.

Rooted in a human experience felt and known to many, the campaign reclaims the loaded question, “Where are you really from?”—a question that can harm and undermine. Instead, Nike answered it by spotlighting the athletes’ unrelenting drive. They may come from different places, but they all share the same tenacity that sets Olympians apart.

The anthem film features four IOC Refugee Olympic Team members—boxer Cindy Ngamba, judoka Mohammad Rashnonezhad, cyclist Eyeru Gebru, and 800m runner Perina Lokure Nakang. It highlights their resilience and athleticism, proving this team is defined not by where they’re from, but where they’re going.