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| Jimmy Thoronka: Home Office rejects application to stay in UK | Jimmy Thoronka: Home Office rejects application to stay in UK |
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| Sierra Leone’s top 100m sprinter fears his dreams of becoming a world-class athlete have been shattered after the Home Office denied his right to stay in the UK. | |
| Jimmy Thoronka, who absconded from the Commonwealth Games last year after Ebola devastated his family back home, and was discovered by the Guardian emaciated and homeless on the streets of London, applied to stay in the UK after being offered a sports scholarship by the University of East London. | |
| But the Home Office not only rejected his application but said his claim was “clearly unfounded”. This means he has no right to appeal until after he has returned to Sierra Leone. If he does not return home voluntarily the Home Office can arrest him any time from next Monday, detain him and forcibly remove him from the UK. The Home Office have given him until Monday to declare he will leave the country voluntarily. If he does not comply by their deadline, he could be detained and deported at any point. | |
| Despite Thoronka’s lawyers providing an expert medical report that said the sprinter was in a “chronic traumatised state” following the death of eight members of his family from Ebola, the Home Office rejected his claim on the grounds that he has no established family life here, having only been in the UK since summer 2014, and could seek counselling in Sierra Leone. | Despite Thoronka’s lawyers providing an expert medical report that said the sprinter was in a “chronic traumatised state” following the death of eight members of his family from Ebola, the Home Office rejected his claim on the grounds that he has no established family life here, having only been in the UK since summer 2014, and could seek counselling in Sierra Leone. |
| Related: The campaign to help Jimmy Thoronka shows the internet’s power for good | Richard Dent | Related: The campaign to help Jimmy Thoronka shows the internet’s power for good | Richard Dent |
| Thoronka said he was devastated by the decision. He told the Guardian: “What is going to happen to me if I am forced to return to Sierra Leone? There is no one to look after me and support me there and the training facilities are very bad. The president of the Athletics Association there said that many of the athletes are just training by themselves, on the tracks at schools which are not very good. I don’t think I will make it if I have to go back.” | Thoronka said he was devastated by the decision. He told the Guardian: “What is going to happen to me if I am forced to return to Sierra Leone? There is no one to look after me and support me there and the training facilities are very bad. The president of the Athletics Association there said that many of the athletes are just training by themselves, on the tracks at schools which are not very good. I don’t think I will make it if I have to go back.” |
| In a letter outlining their refusal of his application, the Home Office said that Thoronka had already achieved credibility as a world class sportsman before entering the UK “with whatever means were available to you in your home country”. | In a letter outlining their refusal of his application, the Home Office said that Thoronka had already achieved credibility as a world class sportsman before entering the UK “with whatever means were available to you in your home country”. |
| But Sierra Leone’s already strained training facilities have been further decimated by the Ebola crisis. President of the Sierra Leone Athletics Association, Abdul Karim Sesay, told the Guardian: “There are no good opportunities for Jimmy to train in Sierra Leone.” | |
| Mike Bense, coach at Heathside running club in north London, where Thoronka had been training while he awaited a decision from the Home Office, said: “The general public are not always aware that only a very small percentage of the population are capable of running 100 metres in less than 11 seconds. Jimmy has already achieved times of 10.5 seconds. He is potentially one of the elite. This is a very critical time in his life and he can’t afford to waste any time at this point. | |
| “This is when the foundations are laid down for a career in sprinting which has a maximum duration of five to eight years. We can’t afford to lose another season or two. There is an urgency about Jimmy continuing with his training. Jimmy has a good support network here and we are part of it.” | “This is when the foundations are laid down for a career in sprinting which has a maximum duration of five to eight years. We can’t afford to lose another season or two. There is an urgency about Jimmy continuing with his training. Jimmy has a good support network here and we are part of it.” |
| Thoronka, 20, vanished from the Commonwealth Games in August 2014 after learning that Ebola had killed several members of his adopted family. The Guardian discovered Thoronka on the streets of London months later, where he said: “I was hoping to win a medal for my country. But during the Games I got the terrible news that my uncle had died, probably from Ebola. I couldn’t stop crying. It was difficult to continue with competing but I tried to carry on.” | Thoronka, 20, vanished from the Commonwealth Games in August 2014 after learning that Ebola had killed several members of his adopted family. The Guardian discovered Thoronka on the streets of London months later, where he said: “I was hoping to win a medal for my country. But during the Games I got the terrible news that my uncle had died, probably from Ebola. I couldn’t stop crying. It was difficult to continue with competing but I tried to carry on.” |
| He was arrested shortly after the Guardian reported his plight and applied for leave to remain in the UK shortly after that. After being released in March 2015, Thoronka stayed with wellwishers in north London and continued his training in the hope he would be able to stay. | He was arrested shortly after the Guardian reported his plight and applied for leave to remain in the UK shortly after that. After being released in March 2015, Thoronka stayed with wellwishers in north London and continued his training in the hope he would be able to stay. |
| Related: Jimmy Thoronka: concerns raised over Sierra Leone athlete's welfare after arrest | Related: Jimmy Thoronka: concerns raised over Sierra Leone athlete's welfare after arrest |
| Dusty Amroliwala, UEL’s deputy vice-chancellor and chief operating officer, said: “We are all obviously very disappointed that the opportunity for Jimmy to study in the UK and to continue to develop as a world-class athlete has, for now, been lost. At UEL, we set considerable store on the ability for people, of whatever background, to be granted the opportunity to achieve their full potential and to grasp the opportunity to succeed in their life ambitions through studying in higher education. | Dusty Amroliwala, UEL’s deputy vice-chancellor and chief operating officer, said: “We are all obviously very disappointed that the opportunity for Jimmy to study in the UK and to continue to develop as a world-class athlete has, for now, been lost. At UEL, we set considerable store on the ability for people, of whatever background, to be granted the opportunity to achieve their full potential and to grasp the opportunity to succeed in their life ambitions through studying in higher education. |
| “Jimmy’s story - his struggle against huge adversity, his determination to succeed, his fortitude, all in the face of losing his family for a tragic second time in his young life – these things all marked him out as being a very special young man. He was exactly the kind of individual to whom UEL would wish to extend the hand of support and we are deeply saddened that we are no longer allowed to do so.” | “Jimmy’s story - his struggle against huge adversity, his determination to succeed, his fortitude, all in the face of losing his family for a tragic second time in his young life – these things all marked him out as being a very special young man. He was exactly the kind of individual to whom UEL would wish to extend the hand of support and we are deeply saddened that we are no longer allowed to do so.” |
| Van Skoric, who set up a change.org petition for Jimmy which attracted more than 70,000 signatures, said he was shocked by the Home Office’s decision. | Van Skoric, who set up a change.org petition for Jimmy which attracted more than 70,000 signatures, said he was shocked by the Home Office’s decision. |
| “This is just one guy and if the Home Office lets him stay he won’t even cost the taxpayer anything as he has been offered a sports scholarship. I have no words about this decision. It seems that in this society showing humanity is a sign of weakness.” | “This is just one guy and if the Home Office lets him stay he won’t even cost the taxpayer anything as he has been offered a sports scholarship. I have no words about this decision. It seems that in this society showing humanity is a sign of weakness.” |
| Emma Sinclair, an entrepreneur who has supported Thoronka since his plight was made public in March urged people to tweet the home secretary about the case. | |
| She said: “On a personal level, I am devastated Jimmy’s application has been declined. He is financially independent as a fund has been set up, has a full scholarship to university and has the potential to make Great Britain proud given his natural sprinting abilities. | |
| “I cannot bear the thought of having to take him to the airport and send him back to a country where he no longer has his family unit and where his training cannot be supported. Some of us in London have gladly become Jimmy’s new adopted family and I would be devastated if he had to be uprooted again and I had to say goodbye to him – all the while knowing he is no burden on the state and indeed has the capacity to make the whole country proud. Jamaica and the US welcome African asylum seekers who are world-class athletes and we are keen to give him away.” | “I cannot bear the thought of having to take him to the airport and send him back to a country where he no longer has his family unit and where his training cannot be supported. Some of us in London have gladly become Jimmy’s new adopted family and I would be devastated if he had to be uprooted again and I had to say goodbye to him – all the while knowing he is no burden on the state and indeed has the capacity to make the whole country proud. Jamaica and the US welcome African asylum seekers who are world-class athletes and we are keen to give him away.” |
| Thoronka has spent the last six months training hard, studying in the local library for what he hoped would be preparation for his degree, and doing some voluntary work at the spinning centre Boom Cycle in Holborn. | Thoronka has spent the last six months training hard, studying in the local library for what he hoped would be preparation for his degree, and doing some voluntary work at the spinning centre Boom Cycle in Holborn. |
| He said: “So many people in the UK have helped me: a landlord called the Collective gave me free accommodation in north London, Pure Gym gave me free membership, the solicitors Mishcon de Reya gave me some free help. Many people here are very kind.”The Home Office has given him five days to make a decision about returning voluntarily to Sierra Leone. If he refuses to do so he can be arrested as of next Monday, placed in an immigration removal centre and forcibly returned to Sierra Leone. He is discussing his options with his solicitor, Oliver Oldman at Bindmans, and is expected to make a final decision by Friday. | |
| Thoronka said: “The president of the Athletics Association in Sierra Leone said the facilities back home will be very bad for me. He said the best thing would be for America or Jamaica to offer me a place in a training camp there – they have great facilities for sprinters there. I hope that that can happen.” | |
| A fund has been set up to support Thoronka, whether he remains in the UK or is forced to return to Sierra Leone, at gofundme.com/helpjimmyt. |