Stop Seyfu Jamaal facing persecution in Ethiopia

If you’ve ever trained on the track or turned out for the Met League, chances are you would have heard ‘Go Seyfu’ from the sidelines as you watched a well-built young man in a Heathside vest exuberantly working his way to the front of the field, running with the kind of fluid ease that is always a delight to watch.

Seyfu Jamaal has been a huge asset to London Heathside over the past four years. A quick perusal of his Power of 10 record shows 135 events (not including Met League) since the beginning of 2018 and the number that comes up most often is 1.

In 2019 he was ranked number one in the country for under-20s in both the 10,000 and the half marathon and again in 2020 in the half marathon where his PB is 66:05 so when he says his ambition is to ‘represent Team GB’ it is far from a pipedream.

In the meantime, he has represented Heathside and the county, on the road, the track and in cross country – and in everything from the half marathon to the javelin (41.86m in an event he had barely tried previously).

But if the Home Office has its way, then 21-year-old Seyfu will be deported back to war-ravaged Ethiopia because his asylum application has been rejected. It is no exaggeration to say that his physical and mental well-being are at risk if Priti Patel’s department succeeds. He is currently appealing against this decision, arguing that it is not safe for him to return.

In 2017 a traumatised Seyfu arrived in the UK after an extremely harrowing journey as a victim of human traffickers. When he finally made it here he was 17, had no family or close friends, and barely spoke English. The British Red Cross referred him to The Running Charity, which works with refugees and other young people affected by homelessness. And from their prompting he joined Heathside.

Running became Seyfu’s lifeline and as the charity put it, ‘it is no exaggeration to say his membership of the running community has become critical to his mental well-being’. Seyfu soon started helping other young refugees experiencing homeless navigate their way into support programmes. ‘Members of our community would be extremely concerned were Seyfu to be removed from his de facto family,’ they said in a statement.

The Running Charity last week launched a petition that they will put before the judge hearing his appeal. It already has more than 6,000 signatures but we need more. Please sign and share – here is the link

A few of Seyfu Jamaal’s PBs

1500m – 3:59:40

5000m – 14:59:84

10,000m – 30:50:61

5k road – 14:42

10K road – 30:14

Half marathon – 66:05

Javelin – 41.86m

Written by Gavin Evans