Waterford native and local soccer player Regix Madika came to Ireland from the Democratic Republic Of the Congo in 2008.

Regix arrived in Ireland with his father and sister by way of Libya and London, taking two years to get to our shores.

His father was forced to flee his home country in 2006 amid political turmoil that placed his family in danger owing to his work for the then government.

Regix has made Waterford his home, becoming part of the community through playing soccer. He has lined out for Tramore, Villa, Waterford FC and Cobh in his almost 16 years in Ireland.

While he has spent nearly two decades here, Regix is not guaranteed of his place in the county, albeit his attempts to gain citizenship are nearing an end.

As part of WLR's Diversity in Sport series, Regix sat down with Nigel Kelly to talk about his life and how he found a home through sport.