abraham wen competes in the 1500 meters. >> not yet all thahat great because, yeah -- >> south sudan gained its independence in 2011, after more than half a century of fighting. because the situation there is still unstable, the athletes came to japan early, so they could train in peace. gen is the oldesest of eight siblings. he has been thehe breadwinner f his family. when he was picked for his country's olympic team, his mother encouraged him to go, even though it meant she would have to support the family herself. but gen was not just competing for the sake of his family. since four years ago, sports tournaments in south sudan have brought together young people from different ethnic groups, helping to ease tensions in the country. >> not just to go and run, but to compete and get some good results in the running so that everybody can be happy in the country. and that would be the opportunity i will get to send my messages of peace to the country. >> gen had his heart set on competing in the tokyo games. then came terrible news. postponement. >> this is the year like we have been p