Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/328734
ByJanieMccauley The Associated Press SAO PAULO Poor children around the globe come up with creative ways to make their own footballs, kicking rolled up tape, fishing nets or even broken off dolls' heads to play the world's most popular sport. An indestructible blue ball being distributed in needy regions holds quite a promise for such kids: It will never pop, even when kicked over shards of glass or rocks. It will never wear out, even under extreme temperatures. Lisa Tarver and husband Tim Jahnigen set out to dis- tribute their One World Fut- bols to children who have never had a decent ball, or if they did, it deflated or shredded after a few weeks of play on rough surfaces. In just four years — the cy- cle between World Cups — they have shipped more than 850,000 soccer balls. They estimate more than 30,000,000 children have played with them. Some 15,000 One World Futbols have gone to Brazil, host country of the World Cup kicking off Thursday. Jahnigen and Tarver, from the San Francisco Bay Area, sell the balls for $39.50 and donate one for every one purchased. In ad- dition, they work directly with charities and sponsors to get balls to the neediest areas. They have sent balls to children in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, to war-torn towns in Africa and to remote villages in the Brazilian rain forest. "I love it, having trav- eled to different parts of the world and seeing how inventive kids get with soc- cer balls," said Julie Foudy, a former U.S. national team midfielder and TV analyst whose own kids use the ball. "... It's not until you go abroad and you see — re- member Sissi who played for Brazil? — Sissi always tells a story how for a soccer ball when she was younger they would take a doll's head, they'd rip the doll off the doll's head and they'd wrap tape around the head and that became their ball." This ball never goes flat, inflates itself after losing air and remains playable even if punctured, thanks to closed cell foam and simi- lar material to those pop- ular rubber Crocs sandals. That means no extra equip- ment required, such as a pump or needle. The balls also can be used for other sports such as volleyball. "The ball is great. I'm for- tunate to be involved with a lot of things that I'm passion- ate about, helping in ways that go beyond the soccer field,soIenjoyit,"saidAmer- ican star Landon Donovan, the L.A. Galaxy forward. In Brazil, One World Fut- bol has partnered with sev- eral organizations to run programs during the World Cup. Tarver will be in the country for two weeks. The organization Lion- sraw will be operating out of Curitiba, bringing vol- unteers together to pro- mote change for young peo- ple and teach children and youth about health, gen- der respect and tolerance using sports and the One World Futbols. Futebol So- cial is working throughout the country to help home- less youth transform their lives through the positive influence of soccer. One World Futbol found- ing sponsor, Chevrolet, will be handing out about 5,300 balls to organizations and schools across Brazil. And there are others, like Love.Futbol, making similar distributions in communi- ties with new fields or those nearly complete at Curitiba and near Sao Paulo's Ita- querao stadium. Brazil hosts Croatia thereThursday night in the World Cup opener. "What we see is the pro- grams that are working with the most at-risk com- munities in the world, and for the first time can con- tinue their programs year- round because they don't have to stop every few weeks and wait another month or two or three months until a ball can be purchased or a ball is do- nated before they can con- tinue," Tarver said. She recently visited Haiti, where a coach named Hon- oré Ernso at the country's largest slum — Cité Soleil in the Port-au-Prince area — used to have just one ball and would be forced to stop coaching if there was a problem with it. Tarver met him at a clinic on a previous trip, then found him again in May, when she delivered more balls. WORLD CUP OneWorldFutbolgivesout indestructible soccer balls THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A school girl holds a blue One World Futbol at a school in Mawlamyine, Myanmar. By John Leicester The Associated Press SAO PAULO The biggest question for Thursday's opening match of the World Cup isn't whether host Brazil can beat Croa- tia but how the unfinished and troublesome Itaquerao stadium will hold up in its first ever encounter with a full-capacity crowd. Will everything work? More importantly, will the 61,600 spectators be safe? Not even World Cup orga- nizers can be totally sure. Because of chronic delays, worker deaths and other problems during its con- struction,thenewarenahas never been match-tested at close to full capacity. Heads of state, VIPs and other lucky ticket holders will, like it or not, become guinea pigs by making up the first crowd to com- pletely fill the stadium and put full strainonall its facil- ities,safetyplansandequip- ment, managers and staff. "If that was me who had to run that event, I'd be extremely nervous," said John Beattie, president of the European Stadium and Safety Management Asso- ciation, an industry group of sports-venue executives. Alarmingly, seemingly lax security at and around the Itaquerao allowed an Associated Press reporter to wander freely this week through unfinished and empty rooms, electrical rooms and uncompleted executive suites. Exposed wires and unfitted lights hung from ceilings. Cor- ridors and other areas smelling strongly of plas- ter, paint and glue were clogged with uninstalled furniture and fittings, piled up crates of catering equipment and construc- tion materials waiting to be carted away. Not once in more than two hours Tuesday — some 48 hours before the sta- dium fills for the opening match — did anyone ask or challenge the reporter as he explored multiple floors, in areas on all four sides of the stadium and in unfin- ished hospitality tents out- side where sponsors and organizers will host guests and clients. Only once, at the perimeter fence when entering the stadium com- plex, were the reporter's credentials and heavy bag scanned. "That's outrageous," said Lou Elliston, an inspec- tor at the Sports Grounds Safety Authority, a British government regulator of football venues in England and Wales. She oversaw the openings of the reno- vated Wembley Stadium in London and the new Emir- ates Stadium that Arsenal moved to in 2006. "It'sjustunthinkable.You could not wander around Wembley. You would just come across doors that you couldn't get through. That is a big issue." "It's a security risk, if nothing else," she added. "The stadium has got to be locked down and secure." Beattie added: "For an event of that nature you'd think it would be shut down, you know, a month ago." Corinthians, the club that will use it after the World Cup, said the venue received all the necessary permits from local author- ities for the opening game. Brazilian World Cup orga- nizers said inspections "for the safety and security li- censes have been com- pleted in line with stan- dard Brazilian procedures." WORLD CUP Biggest test for new stadium is its first match Landscape/Fence Steve's Tractor &LandscapeService •FenceBuilding•Landscaping • Trenching • Rototilling • Disking • Mowing • Ridging • Post Hole Digging • Blade Work • Sprinkler Installation • Concrete Work Cont. 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