18 years old Syrian refugee who crossed the Mediterranean sea after their boat engine failed won swimming heat at Rio 2016

A Syrian refugee who crossed the Mediterranean in a leaky dinghy has won her swimming heat at the Olympic Games.

Yusra Mardini, 18, fled her war-torn country last year and found herself swimming for her life in the Aegean Sea after the boat's engine failed and it began to sink.

Mardini and her sister heroically pushed the dinghy to safety then - and she has the hero again today as she won her her 100m butterfly heat in Rio de Janeiro.

She finished in a time of 1:09:29 - enough to win her race but not enough to qualify for the semi finals.

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