We first started hearing about the team when we arrived, and then a photographer from the ship posted some pictures of them playing and we knew we needed to see them in action.
Their schedule has been a little less consistent because of rainy season, but this week we finally made all the connections.
First stop: pick up Osman and his uncle (serving as his care giver) at the Hope Center, and head to the practice fields.
Along the way we saw some beautiful scenery- this country is breathtaking – as well as some typical signs that I tried to capture on film.
Osman was warmly greeted by the team who had not met him before, but were happy to show off their skills and give Osman a picture of how amputation has not meant an end of the sport that is almost larger than life here.
We arrived at the same time as some of the last players (who were making better time than most of the traffic, while they made there way with two crutches and one foot along the road – who knows how many miles they had to travel on foot.
Immediately the drills began. First a sort of rhythmic march between two sets of orange cones. I’m not sure which words to use to describe a march with only one foot. It was more of click, stomp, click, stomp. The click being the crutches, then a swing of their bodies and then the single foot launching them several feet forward again. I don’t think I would have been able to keep up at their normal cadence, let alone when they did “Super training” and picked up the pace to a full on sprint. I would have ended up in a jumbled pile on the ground, but no one lost control during this part.
Next came the balance drills. One on one chicken fighting- slam dancing to see if you can knock your opponent over. Laughter rang out across the dirt field as they tried to get the best of one another.
They divided into blue versus green and the battle began. Those who were missing an arm could serve as goalies. The rest of the players were on crutches and had one
There was no gentleness about this game. It was an all-out battle for victory as they knocked each other down, sent the ball rocketing into the elephant grass (to be retrieved by the neighbor boys), and didn’t even stop play for their water breaks- squeeze a bag of water into your mouth, on your head, and keep on playing.
I wanted to soak it all in. I wanted to sit down with each player and learn their story. Their youngest player is 12, their oldest is 35. These are survivors of civil war. I would imagine most of their limbs were taken at the hands of a fellow Sierra Leonean. Maybe someone they knew. Maybe a stranger. I didn’t want to leave.
We asked if we could get a “snap” (a photo) of the team with Osman, and not only did they want to honor that, but they sang a celebration song to us and Mercy Ships.
There was no fan fare here- no street meat for sale or boiled peanut vendors – just hard work, sweat, and lives that have pushed through incredible hardship and come out victorious. The team has competed worldwide and has even won their World Cup beating Brazil. Their next trip is to Ghana. You can read more about it, and the documentary, Leone Stars, that has been made about them (and won an award at the TIFF film festival – no relations) on the film's blog: http://leonestars.blogspot.com/
ps- I don't know if you can view these photos- so please let me know if it doesn't work to use Skydrive- I know on the ship here I can't view them!
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