Football training starts again

Football training commenced again for the Riverkids children at beginning of February after a 2 month break. This program has been running for the last year and is sponsored by Happy Football Cambodia Australia (HFCA). The program is attended by over 35 children from Riverkids. In total over 50 children train every Saturday at a football field in Phnom Penh with the balance made up from 2 other NGO’S Happy School and The Centre for Happiness Children. HFCA pays for the transport and the equipment for the kids.

Already in the short time that it has been in existence significant improvements can be seen in the children. Each has a new sense of purpose and exudes self confidence. It gives them something extra to do outside of their studies. The children really enjoy learning new skills and making new friends. The players because of the training are far healthier and fitter than they were before. The impact for the children as well as being seen physically can also be seen in their attitudes .All now seen to be genuinely happy and each looks forward to training every week. Football gives the children somewhere to “let off steam”. For these boys it is important to have something to focus on outside of school. Without this some of the kids would be tempted to sniff glue or gamble like some of their friends do.

Some of the children have become so good that they were selected to represent Cambodia at the Homeless World Cup that was held in Australia in December 2008. 2 children from Riverkids and 3 from the Centre for Happiness Children traveled with the team and participated in the month long competition. The media took great interest in this story with articles published in both English and Khmer in the national newspapers before and after the tournament. Unfortunately the team did not get out of their group but the children thoroughly enjoyed the experience and brought back some fond memories.
Since the World Cup 3 players have been invited by the Cambodian National team to train with them. It is a huge honor for anyone to represent their country and Riverkids is very proud of these individuals. All 3 players are 17 years of age and attend training at the National Stadium every week. Riverkids allowed the boys to borrow bicycles for traveling to attend training at the National Stadium. The Foundation is extremely happy with the success of the program to date and hopes it will continue for years to come.