Go Somalia: Olympic Games and United Kingdom

Somali Team, Olympic Games and United Kingdom

Somalia is attending Olympic games and we are sounding winners already. This is because we expect the team not to win us any medal. We are settling with the fact that we are attending Olympic game. Our presences give us, celebratory title “attended” with no satisfaction.

Attending cost money and not winning or not hoping to win will just hurt already wounded national psyche.

There is enough blame to go around.

The current Somali government not competent enough to understand the bonding and national-pride revival benefit-dividend investing in stronger Somali National team will yield. The Somali businesses community ignorant about citizenry responsibility and unmatched advertisement it will carry for them if they fund the national team. And the Somali citizen you and I or Roda and Me…. which one is correct English? Something of this significant is keeping us busy.

My intention is not to scold good intention and applausable efforts of underfunded national team and coaches’ efforts but to just remind each other that we can do better.

United Kingdom the hosting country, won only one gold medal in 1996 Olympic. But in 2008 they won 47 medals. And this year, they are expecting to double their collection of medals.

What did they do different?

First, they have privatized national team recruitment, training and funding.“publicly chartered” agency is one responsible of it now. The responsibility of this public agency is to recruit athletes and coaches. Secondly, they concentrated on places where they know they will win. In this year, U.K is expecting to doubly their winning medals.

Anything we can learn from them?

Individual talent of Somali citizens and their potential-if harnessed by visionary leader- it can lift our nation back into her feet. Here is really relevant example of Somali potential.

The national runners for both United Kingdom and Canada are Somali guys.

Today in Mogadishu or any city in Somalia one can find teenagers both boys and girls who swim seven miles every day for fun in open ocean. Somalis usually trek 15 miles on foot to get things or visit friend. What Somalis do for fun or that has become normal life route is what rest of the world convenes to compete in order to win a medal.

Last 20 years, we got better; Somali girls compete and win Ice-skating, basketball, volleyball and soccer in most advance and competitive level in their high school or colleges. Somali guys double that. Somali youth today attend prestige Universities that train first class world Olympians athletes.

Despite of this progress- we didn’t win anything. This is because, apparently, there is no shortage of talents but there is chronic abundant lack of visionary leadership.

We can bring together Somalis, heal broken and wounded nation simply taping into todays’ generation talent. Tame and harness their potential in order to inspire entire generation. Lift up entire nation. This possibly or not–the first step is coming together to appreciate and cheer on what we have.

In this Olympic game, this Olympic, we don’t want to hear a whit about incompetent government, greedy- bankrupt of citizenry responsibility-Somali business. We don’t want to hear about our society flaws or failure. Yes, I know we can do better by training more professional stronger team- not even that we should talk about it, Instead lets come together to cheer on for our two athletes.

Very simpleton of us if we don’t simply do just that; let’s come together to appreciate, thank our National coaches and cheer on for Somali team. Go Somali…
Gedoonline Editorial