The Swimmers

 is a biographical drama movie about the miraculous journey made by swimming sisters Yusra Mardini and Sarah Mardini who fled as refugees from war-torn Syria all the way to the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Summary
"From war-torn Syria to the 2016 Rio Olympics, two young sisters embark on a risky voyage, putting their hearts and their swimming skills to heroic use."

- Official Netflix synopsis

Plot
Teenage sisters Sara and Yusra Mardini are competitive swimmers in Syria who dream of competing at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. They are trained by their father, Ezzat, who was also a competitive swimmer. In 2011, conflict breaks out and continues for several years. As the people around them are killed in bombings, Sara and Yusra decide to leave Syria and seek asylum in Hamburg, Germany, where they have friends. Their father is initially against the idea of going, but is on board after their cousin, Nizar, agrees to accompany them. To get to Germany, they must cross through several other countries undocumented. Unwilling to risk the dangerous journey, their parents and younger sister remain, hoping they’ll be reunited after Yusra and Sara arrive in Germany. As Yusra is under 18, she is eligible to apply for reunification once they are in Germany.

Yusra, Sara and Nizar first travel to Turkey, where they cross the sea to Greece in a dangerously small boat with other refugees. Partway through the journey, the motor stops working. Nizar calls the coast guard looking for help, but they are ignored. All the people onboard throw their unnecessary belongings overboard, but the boat continues to sink. Yusra and Sara jump into the water and push the boat to shore. They eventually land on a Greek island, making their way to the European mainland and across several more borders before catching a bus to Berlin, where they find temporary housing at a local refugee camp.

Yusra convinces a local swim coach, Sven, to train her and Sara. Meanwhile, Yusra and Sara are informed that they will not be able to apply for asylum for the rest of their family. Yusra remains determined to focus on her training. Sven even offers them housing near the pool after seeing the conditions of the refugee camp. Sara becomes more interested in her new social life and later decides to volunteer at the border to help refugees coming into Europe. Over time, Nizar feels as if there is nothing for him in Germany and begins to regret going there.

Sven approaches Yusra with an opportunity to join an Olympic team for refugees. Yusra, hoping to represent Syria, is hesitant at first but eventually agrees with encouragement from Sara, who tells Yusra that representing Syria was simply their father's dream, and that he had to give up his swimming career for mandatory military service. Yusra qualifies for the team and makes it to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. While she faces stigma for being a refugee, she ultimately proves her merit as an athlete.

At the end, it's revealed that Yusra competed in the refugee team at the 2020 Olympics as well, and that Sara had been arrested for helping refugees.

Cast and Characters

 * Manal Issa as Sara Mardini
 * Nathalie Issa as Yusra Mardini
 * Matthias Schweighöfer as Sven
 * Ahmed Malek as Nizar
 * Ali Suliman as Ezzat Mardini
 * Kinda Alloush as Mervat Mardini
 * James Krishna Floyd as Emad
 * Nahel Tzegai as Shada
 * Akuc Bol