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A chance to play, to grow, to live
They do not have branded kits and boots to train and practice with. As their country plays host to the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet, with superstar footballers in its backyard, these children still run around in torn boots with no laces, reports Moonmoon Ghosh.
They do not have branded kits and boots to train and practice with. As their country plays host to the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet, with superstar footballers in its backyard, these children still run around in torn boots with no laces.
A spirited game of football is on at the Issac Wolfsson Stadium in Kwa-Zakhele area of Port Elizabeth, while floodlights vie for attention with the bright sunshine during daytime.
These children are part of a programme called ‘A Chance to Play’, an initiative by German car manufactuer Volkswagen and nine different NGOs in three provinces of South Africa — Eastern Cape, Gauteng (Johannesburg), and Limpopo.
The project kicked off in April 2008 and provides more than 500 coaches to train children in the region.
It also provides coaching clinics for football, rugby, cricket and netball. Regular tournaments are held for both boys and girls.
Michael, project manager at the stadium, said, “We organise training camps for the children from Monday to Thursday. Around 600 kids come here every day.
“Right now, schools in South Africa are closed for the four weeks of the World Cup and will open on July 13 (with a one-day breather after Sunday’s final). So the coaches help the kids train. Our basic aim is to keep them away from drug abuse and prostitution.”
Under the project, three soccer buses also cater for education on HIV/AIDS in an area that is one of the worst hit by the disease.
Vibrant, in the colours of the South African flag, the buses were unveiled in April 2008 and their primary objective is to link sports and health education for the benefit of disadvantaged youth.
They have trained teams on board that visit schools in rural areas and offer sporting activities, even training local coaches. This project will run until 2012.
Claudia Berker, coordinator of the ‘A Chance to Play’, said, “The support from the different stakeholders is terrific. The project will positively impact on the lives of about 12,000 children from poor backgrounds.”
Kids from various age groups jog and run around the stadium while their trainers shout instructions in their native languages.
Even the younger ones can dribble and shimmy adroitly, dink and chip the ball.
They are also learning the Diski dance — to Shakira’s Waka Waka. A project like ‘A Chance to Play’ is looking to give them a better childhood and keep them away from violence.
The Bafana Bafana and the football federations will be grateful for the prodigies that might emerge from the country’s lowest and most unexpected places.
