Olympic Gold Medalists Toss Volleyballs in camps

Beldangi, April 16: Three members of Japan's gold medal-winning volleyball team at the 1976 Montreal Olympics have visited a camp in eastern Nepal to share their skills and knowledge of the game with exiled Bhutanese in an initiative backed by the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR.

"It is great to see how sports can bring exiled Bhutanese and local communities together and also encourage girls to actively participate," said Kaoru Nemoto, head of the UNHCR field office in Damak.

"It feels great to be here," said Olympian Takako Takagi, who with her team-mates routed the Soviet Union's squad 3-0 to capture the gold medal in Montreal. "More than technical training, we want the refugees to have fun and learn how to work as a team."

Takagi and her two of her former team-mates, Hiromi Ikeda and Katsuko Tanaka, also donated volleyballs, special shoes and other equipment during their two-day visit to Beldangi II camp.

Many of the children and teenagers in the camp – who had previously been using cheap balls to play – could barely contain their excitement when presented with professional volleyballs, and scores participated in morning training sessions with the Olympians.

"We are happy to get the opportunity to learn and play with the Olympians," said a camp resident.

The three Japanese volleyball players recently established an aid agency called Montreal Kai to promote sport among youth.

"These kinds of recreational activities are needed in the camps to keep the youth positively engaged," said Binod Khatiwoda, who works with young people in the camp.

The visit concluded with a volleyball tournament in which teams from all seven camps.

"It's definitely not a one-shot deal and we will surely find an opportunity to come again," said Takagi, a Volleyball Hall of Fame inductee and a silver medalist at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. "I have made the girls promise that they will practice regularly, so I can check how much they have improved by the time I return."

Given the success of the inter-camp tournament in which girls and handicapped children participated, plans are underway for another large competition on the occasion of World Refugee Day on June 20. Bhutan News Service