Kei Kamara’s well-documented journey from his childhood in Sierra Leone to MLS star is truly remarkable.

The Columbus Crew SC striker survived a civil war in his home country as a child, going through unimaginable hardships before escaping to the US at a young age. He recently spoke about his journey with the BBC World Service, sharing details about the horrors of war and how soccer helped him through.

“It’s really vivid … as a kid seeing executions in front of you or seeing dead bodies every day … you know, waking up and seeing vultures eating through them. It’s never what you wished on anyone,” he said.

Soccer, of course, played an important role along the way, with the game helping Kamara -- who was recently named MLS Humanitarian of the Year for his work building a school in Sierra Leone -- adapt to life in the US and providing him with a “dream” career that saw him develop into a star in MLS and make a move to the Premier League before returning to North America to help the Crew qualify for the upcoming Eastern Conference Championship series against the New York Red Bulls.

Full interview on bbc.co.uk