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James McIlroy and Mo Farah's Diary from Liberia

Arriving in Liberia

Mo and I to flew to Liberia via Brussels where we met Pamela Rice and Martin Barnard (from Right To Play’s office in Toronto) at the departures gate. We were introduced to two other Right To Play ambassador’s Whitney Ping (table-tennis) and Adam van Koeverden (canoeing) who would be joining us on the trip. On arrival in Liberia we were immediately faced by two familiar scenes (if you have ever seen Africa portrayed on TV, that is). First was the oven-hot blast of air as we left the plane and second was the chaotic, disorganised scene at the tiny airport. Fortunately this is where the clichés stopped.

After collecting our bags we all departed for the hotel, a hour drive away. It was dark as we arrived and the abiding memory we had of the journey was the bumpy roads which were severely potholed due to the heavy rain the country receives. There were no lights on the road side and combined with crazy driving and the BBC world service on in the background, it made for an interesting trip as we bundled along in the 4x4.

Day 1 – The Chicken Soup Community

We were joined the next day by Kai Kamara, a footballer and another one of Right To Play’s ambassadors, who had flown in from Ghana. After breakfast we departed for the Right To Play office for more formal introductions and a thorough briefing as to the aims of the programmes in Liberia and indeed our roles as Athlete Ambassadors. We went through some of the problems the Liberian Right To Play team is faced with on a daily basis including having to reach communities stuck 13 hours away and driving through 5 foot deep flooded potholes. This really did show the enormity of the task they face and we were eager to find out how they had still managed to have an impact on over 70,000 children to date.


After the country director of Liberia for Right To Play, David Sombie, introduced his team to us we set off to our first destination of the day, the 'Chicken Soup Community'. This area was simply a football field which during half the year was flooded. We were immediately struck by the fact that even though the children had so little they appeared as if they did not want for anything. All were smiling and so excited to see us. This was so touching and the initial experience bowled us over. The children’s endless enthusiasm really did infect us and Mo or I could stop smiling and laughing.

The local coaches took the time to teach us the Right To Play Red Ball Child Play (RBCP) games. They explained how each category of game; red, blue, green, black and yellow fostered different qualities such as sharing, working together, health education and leadership. In the afternoon we had great fun coaching the children in the games we had learnt (except for a few translation problems arising from the children not understanding my accent). The children picked up the games very quickly and they all managed to catch us out every time we played head, shoulders, knees and toes!


Day 2 – Westpoint Community

The next day we had an invitation to meet the minister of sport for Liberia, Mrs Etmonia Tarpeh, at the national stadium. This was of particular interest to us as it was really positive to hear how the minister plans to build and develop the infrastructure of the country. It was also fascinating to hear her positive words to the charity, welcoming us to Liberia and that her one big hope was for the children to not have their childhoods spoilt by the evils of illness, conflict and poverty.

Our visits that day hit Mo and I quite hard and it really did teach us to count our blessings. Firstly in the afternoon we went to Westpoint community where we visited a series of tiny schools. I immediately got beaten in a sack race by a 9 year old girl who seemed to be an expert and had definitely competed before.

The next school was my abiding memory of the trip. It was situated at the point where all the sewers emptied into the sea. The children in their small make-shift classrooms quite simply had nothing and I had to bite my lip as I struggled comprehend how sport, education or anything could get them out of this stricken situation. Shakespeare said in Julius Caesar that 'everyman deserves a start', it was apparent from the Westpoint community that some people’s starts are better than others! This was the poorest place I’d ever been to, but what moved us most was that they were all so happy and excited. We didn’t see one child without a smile on their face.

Once again we spent some time playing the RBCP games we had been shown the previous day. The reaction of the children was fantastic. Kai and I also got ourselves got involved in a hilarious tug of war game involving fifty children which I think finished honours even at 2-2. Westpoint on the whole had an immense sense of togetherness and a real sense of community which I would class as very 'Irish' and was lovely to witness.

Day 3 – Cola Nuts and Dancing!

The next day we had a long journey to the outskirts of Monrovia where we were greeted by a welcome dance, and given a cola nut each. (Please note, the cola nut is not like the drink, oh no) We weren’t quite sure what the nut was, only that it was a delicacy and it was the bitterest thing I’ve ever tasted. I must confess to eating only half of mine but Mo finished his off easily!

The main problem with welcome dances is that it is considered good manners to reciprocate them, so in turn we had to dance in front of the whole community, definitely not a highlight for me. After the dance routine we played the RBCP games with the children and then finished with a game of football against the children, with the whole community cheering us on.


When we arrived back we had a press conference for all the national papers and radio stations. Again we were given a lovely welcome but also set some searching questions as to our mission in Liberia and Right To Play’s role here.

Day 4 – Goodbye to Liberia

Our last day was spent training on the beach before retiring to the hotel for a debrief. David Sombie then generously thanked all the athlete ambassadors and presented us with Right To Play certificates.

Although poor, Mo and I found Liberia to also be a beautiful and welcoming country. We have so many wonderful memories of our time there and have forged friendships in a situation which was having a very positive impact on everyone involved.

To close, both Mo and I would like to extend our sincerest thanks to Martin and Pamela for all their help and support throughout the trip and to Ben Pegna, from the UK Office who helped with everything back at home. Without them it would have been a much more difficult proposition. Neither Mo or I can wait for our next trip!

James McIlroy

November 2007       

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