Refugee swimmer Ramis Anis pins selfie hopes on Michael Phelps in Rio

Michael Phelps once refused to have a selfie with Olympic refugee swimmer Ramis Anis leaving the Syrian "devastated", Anis' coach said on Saturday

Rio de Janeiro: Michael Phelps once refused to have a selfie with Olympic refugee swimmer Ramis Anis leaving the Syrian "devastated", Anis' coach said on Saturday.

Michael Phelps

Anis hopes to finally get a picture with his American hero in Rio when they could even be in the same event.

"Rami really, really, really wants to meet Phelps," the Syrian's coach, former Olympic swimmer Carine Verbauwen said.

"He's tried already. For Syria, he'd been an international swimmer since he was 14 and competed at two world championships."

Anis competed at the 2009 and 2011 world championships for Syria. He will be a member of the Olympic Refugee team in Rio. "At one, he asked Phelps if he could have a selfie with him and Phelps said no. He was devastated," said Verbauwen.

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