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Belgium's Mourad Laachraoui takes a break during his fight against Spain's Jesus Tortosa Cabrera, at the European Taekwondo Championships in Montreux, Switzerland on May 19. 2016.(Photo: Daniel Mitchell, Keystone via AP)
Mourad Laachraoui, the<span style="color: Red;">*</span>brother of one of two suicide bombers who<span style="color: Red;">*</span>attacked the Brussels airport in March,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>will represent Belgium at the Rio Olympics in the Taekwondo competition.
Laachraoui, 21, won gold<span style="color: Red;">*</span>at the European Taekwondo Championships in Montreux, Switzerland, on Friday and will compete in the under-59 kg category in Brazil. He will be on a squad of 185 Belgian athletes bound for<span style="color: Red;">*</span>the August games.
His older brother, Najim, 24, was one of two suicide bombers who blew themselves up at Brussels<span style="color: Red;">*</span>airport in the March 22<span style="color: Red;">*</span>terrorist attacks that left 32 people dead.
At<span style="color: Red;">*</span>a news conference<span style="color: Red;">*</span>after the attacks, Mourad described his brother as a "nice, intelligent boy" who<span style="color: Red;">*</span>showed no signs of being radicalized<span style="color: Red;">*</span>before fleeing to<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Syria three years ago.
Mourad said the family had not been in contact with his brother since 2013 but<span style="color: Red;">*</span>became suspicious after police came to their home to ask questions following the Paris terror attacks in November that killed 130 people.
Investigators<span style="color: Red;">*</span>have described Najim as a master bombmaker who is<span style="color: Red;">*</span>suspected of<span style="color: Red;">*</span>making explosive belts<span style="color: Red;">*</span>used in the Paris attacks.
This undated file photo released on March 21, 2016 by the Belgian federal police shows two photos of Najim Laachraoui, 25, who police said was one of two suicide bombers in a March attack at Brussels airport.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: AFP/Getty Images)
Prosecutors said Najim had been living in a district of Brussels in the days leading up to the March operation.
The family strongly condemned the attacks.
"It's crazy, really<span style="color: Red;">*</span>—<span style="color: Red;">*</span>the same parents, the same upbringing<span style="color: Red;">*</span>—<span style="color: Red;">*</span>and one turns out really well and the other really bad," Mourad's<span style="color: Red;">*</span>lawyer, Philippe Culot, said in March, Reuters<span style="color: Red;">*</span>reported.
Mourad told reporters in March that<span style="color: Red;">*</span>he wanted to "turn the page" in hopes<span style="color: Red;">*</span>that his brother's notoriety<span style="color: Red;">*</span>will not disrupt<span style="color: Red;">*</span>his athletic career, according to the<span style="color: Red;">*</span>newspaper<span style="color: Red;">*</span>La Libre,
"I'm not responsible for the actions of my brother," Mourad said, Belgian public broadcaster RTBF reported. "You don't choose your family."
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