South Sudan’s Olympic debut marks historic moment for basketball player JT Thor, and Anchorage family and friends

While Eagle River rugby player Alev Kelter and Homer cyclist Kristen Faulkner are representing Alaska on Team USA at the 2024 Olympics, they aren’t the only athletes with ties to the Last Frontier who are competing in Paris.

JT Thor — who was born in Omaha, Nebraska, to South Sudanese immigrants and grew up in Anchorage — is currently playing for a South Sudan men’s basketball team that is turning heads and making waves at the Olympics.

Thor moved to Alaska when he was 5 years old and left to finish high school out of state, and he still considers Alaska home. Now, in Paris, Thor has been able to compete in front of his family and friends, who traveled overseas to witness the historic event and offer support.

That includes childhood friends Gat Wal and Goy Tharjiath, who grew up with Thor in Anchorage.

“It’s my first time leaving the country, so it’s a great experience to do it for a moment like this,” said Wal, who is a professional athletic agent. “It’s (Thor’s) first time playing in the Olympics. Our country’s first time playing in the Olympics just makes it even better.”

South Sudan and Team USA will tip off at 11 a.m. Alaska time on Wednesday and the game will be broadcast on NBC, USA Network and available to stream on Peacock.

South Sudan didn’t gain its independence from Sudan and become recognized as its own country until 2011, making it the youngest nation in the world. This marks the first year the country has sent athletes to the Olympics, and the men’s team is making quite a strong first impression in its inaugural appearance.

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They pushed a star-studded Team USA squad chock-full of NBA stars to the brink in an exhibition game earlier this month and notched their country’s first-ever Olympic win on Sunday with a 90-79 triumph over Puerto Rico.

Watching his longtime friend represent both their home country and the state they call home in such a historic event has been “a surreal experience” for Wal.

“It means a lot because representation is always key,” he said. “The fact that kids from Alaska can see one of them at this stage and then also South Sudanese kids can see one of them at this stage, it motivates the youth and could spark the ignition for the next one.”

Tharjiath is Thor’s cousin and best friend, and is proud of what the South Sudanese athletes and especially the men’s basketball team have been able to accomplish so far.

“They’re shining a different light on the country,” he said.

Thor, who is a free agent, played professionally for the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets for the last three years. He will be taking on several of the league’s brightest stars Wednesday in their rematch with Team USA for a chance to advance to the quarterfinals.

Thor shared his excitement about likely having a matchup with Phoenix star forward Kevin Durant, since both players will be coming off the bench for their respective teams.

“They’ll pretty much be going against each other,” Tharjiath said.

Wal will be rooting against many of his favorite NBA players Wednesday when they take the court because he’ll be too busy cheering for one of his closest friends as well as their home country.

“It’s always South Sudan versus the world,” he said.

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Childhood dreams coming to fruition

Becoming a professional basketball player is something Tharjiath said Thor talked about as a kid, but the opportunity to represent an entire country didn’t dawn on either of them until South Sudan gained its independence over a decade ago.

“It wasn’t something he envisioned, but it’s pretty much serendipity,” Tharjiath said.

Wal first met Thor after moving to Alaska in 2008. He was a third grader and Thor was in kindergarten. Even from a young age, he saw the drive his friend possessed when it came to reaching his goals.

“He is one of the most determined individuals I’ve ever come across in my life,” Wal said. “He set his goal out at an early age about what he wanted to do and who he wanted to become in life and he just locked in and made it happen.”

Wal has only been in Paris for a couple of days, but Tharjiath and some of the others in Thor’s contingent of family and friends have been overseas the entire time since he arrived. His sister Nyedol Thor was present for the exciting exhibition bout with Team USA where Thor hit the shot to give South Sudan a narrow lead with 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

Thor’s family has enjoyed the chance to experience a whole new culture while visiting France.

“Everyone here speaks multiple languages and it makes you want to learn something else,” Tharjiath said. “Granted, I do speak another language but not as many such as French or Spanish. I want to learn more because I feel like I’m behind the eight ball.”

This was also Tharjiath’s first time leaving the country. He said a lot of South Sudanese people made the journey to Paris to support all the athletes from their young home country.

Some of their sightseeing adventures have included visiting the Eiffel Tower and taking a trip to London.

Tharjiath still lives in Anchorage and works for Allstate insurance. He had two weeks of leave saved up and his boss was encouraging when the topic of him taking so much time off for such a rare opportunity came up.

“He even said that this is a once- or twice-in-a-lifetime chance,” he said. “You don’t get to experience this all the time.”