RedWine
08-07-2007, 07:09 AM
McHENRY, Md. — Ping-pong diplomacy in 1971 helped open the door for improved relations between the United States and China. Thirty-six years later, coaches Katayoon Ashraf and Chris Wiegand are hoping kayaking can do the same for America's relations with the Muslim world.
Ashraf, a pioneering female kayaker in Iran, had dreams of training several young women paddlers for possible entry in the Beijing Games, which begin nearly one year from now.
She approached Wiegand, a former top American competitor who has coached national champions, about bringing the girls to the USA to learn paddling techniques in roiling and churning "whitewater" conditions.
"Chris started helping me through e-mail," the energetic Ashraf says. "I wanted to bring him to Iran, but when that proved to be impossible, we were able to bring three athletes here."
The teen trio — Shadi Kalantar, 15; Kimiya Vaezi, 16; and Roxanna Razeghean, 15 — flew from Tehran to Denver in late June and immediately began their initiation into the high-speed frenzy of piloting their fiberglass boats around huge rocks and through hanging slalom gates while being blasted by torrents of foaming water.
The girls were experienced flat-water paddlers, but that was little preparation for what they would encounter in Colorado and later in the rivers of North Carolina.
Razeghean, who is Ashraf's daughter, was especially frightened at the beginning, screaming as she and her kayak were tossed about in the current.
But by the time they arrived for the last week of training in western Maryland, she was ready to take on the man-made maelstrom at the new Adventure Sports Center International (ASCI) paddling course.
"It was a miracle," says Ashraf, who also translates for the Farsi-speaking girls. "Now she can surf the current with confidence."
http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2007/08/05/kayakx.jpg
Teens won't quit
The girls were confident enough to compete in the USA Canoe/Kayak National Championships on Saturday at the ASCI facility high atop the Wisp ski resort.
Despite a large crowd and dozens of photographers and video crews, the Iranian girls showed that although they may not have been as experienced as their fellow competitors, they were just as tough.
"The game plan was to miss a few of the more difficult gates," Wiegand says, "but their competitive spirit took over and they tried everything."
With their determined game faces and white-green-and-red Iranian Junior Kayaking Team helmets, the girls won over the crowd. When they missed slalom gates, they paddled back and fought the hard currents until they made a successful pass as the spectators roared their approval.
The Iranian girls finished at the bottom of the standings but stood proud at the shoreline knowing they had met a challenge after only six weeks of serious whitewater training.
They face more rigorous practice in the next few months as they prepare for a series of competitions, including a venue test event near Beijing, that could lead to a spot in the 2008 Summer Games.
The odds are in their favor: Paddling is not a popular sport for women in Asia and the Middle East. But the world federation that governs the sport is under pressure from the International Olympic Committee to improve on its 20% female participation level.
For Ashraf, the bigger goal is at the heart of the Olympic movement: global understanding.
"We have made so many friends here," she says with her large brown eyes glistening. "Before we came, people told us to be careful because it would be dangerous for Iranians in America. It has been the opposite. People have been so warm to us."
She has spent some time explaining her country to geographically challenged Americans, many of whom have expressed surprise when they learn there are many mountains and rivers in Iran.
"They think it is a big desert," she says with a laugh.
For the girls, shopping in America has been a highlight.
"We have been able to buy lightweight clothing for paddling," says Kalantar. "The gear we brought was heavy (neoprene) and only in black."
Wiegand says the clothing allows them to meet their religious requirements that they cover their head, arms and legs in public, "but now they can do it with some real girly shades of pink."
Language of sport
Wiegand and Ashraf recently received a funding commitment to expand female kayak training into other Muslim nations.
"There were plenty of doubters and naysayers when we started this program," Wiegand says. "But they were able to learn quickly. When one girl would master a skill, the others would soon follow, leapfrogging through the skills."
When she returns to Tehran, Ashraf will give a report on her trip to Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"We have learned from this experience that people are the same all over the world," Ashraf says. "We have witnessed kindness everywhere.
"Sport can help humanity. It is a language that is common for all people, a language to connect humanity."
Then, pointing to her wet, tired and happy charges standing proudly with their paddles held aloft, she said, "Look at these girls and you will see what I want to say. It doesn't matter that we have different politics, different beliefs. Through sport, we can make everything pure."
Ashraf, a pioneering female kayaker in Iran, had dreams of training several young women paddlers for possible entry in the Beijing Games, which begin nearly one year from now.
She approached Wiegand, a former top American competitor who has coached national champions, about bringing the girls to the USA to learn paddling techniques in roiling and churning "whitewater" conditions.
"Chris started helping me through e-mail," the energetic Ashraf says. "I wanted to bring him to Iran, but when that proved to be impossible, we were able to bring three athletes here."
The teen trio — Shadi Kalantar, 15; Kimiya Vaezi, 16; and Roxanna Razeghean, 15 — flew from Tehran to Denver in late June and immediately began their initiation into the high-speed frenzy of piloting their fiberglass boats around huge rocks and through hanging slalom gates while being blasted by torrents of foaming water.
The girls were experienced flat-water paddlers, but that was little preparation for what they would encounter in Colorado and later in the rivers of North Carolina.
Razeghean, who is Ashraf's daughter, was especially frightened at the beginning, screaming as she and her kayak were tossed about in the current.
But by the time they arrived for the last week of training in western Maryland, she was ready to take on the man-made maelstrom at the new Adventure Sports Center International (ASCI) paddling course.
"It was a miracle," says Ashraf, who also translates for the Farsi-speaking girls. "Now she can surf the current with confidence."
http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2007/08/05/kayakx.jpg
Teens won't quit
The girls were confident enough to compete in the USA Canoe/Kayak National Championships on Saturday at the ASCI facility high atop the Wisp ski resort.
Despite a large crowd and dozens of photographers and video crews, the Iranian girls showed that although they may not have been as experienced as their fellow competitors, they were just as tough.
"The game plan was to miss a few of the more difficult gates," Wiegand says, "but their competitive spirit took over and they tried everything."
With their determined game faces and white-green-and-red Iranian Junior Kayaking Team helmets, the girls won over the crowd. When they missed slalom gates, they paddled back and fought the hard currents until they made a successful pass as the spectators roared their approval.
The Iranian girls finished at the bottom of the standings but stood proud at the shoreline knowing they had met a challenge after only six weeks of serious whitewater training.
They face more rigorous practice in the next few months as they prepare for a series of competitions, including a venue test event near Beijing, that could lead to a spot in the 2008 Summer Games.
The odds are in their favor: Paddling is not a popular sport for women in Asia and the Middle East. But the world federation that governs the sport is under pressure from the International Olympic Committee to improve on its 20% female participation level.
For Ashraf, the bigger goal is at the heart of the Olympic movement: global understanding.
"We have made so many friends here," she says with her large brown eyes glistening. "Before we came, people told us to be careful because it would be dangerous for Iranians in America. It has been the opposite. People have been so warm to us."
She has spent some time explaining her country to geographically challenged Americans, many of whom have expressed surprise when they learn there are many mountains and rivers in Iran.
"They think it is a big desert," she says with a laugh.
For the girls, shopping in America has been a highlight.
"We have been able to buy lightweight clothing for paddling," says Kalantar. "The gear we brought was heavy (neoprene) and only in black."
Wiegand says the clothing allows them to meet their religious requirements that they cover their head, arms and legs in public, "but now they can do it with some real girly shades of pink."
Language of sport
Wiegand and Ashraf recently received a funding commitment to expand female kayak training into other Muslim nations.
"There were plenty of doubters and naysayers when we started this program," Wiegand says. "But they were able to learn quickly. When one girl would master a skill, the others would soon follow, leapfrogging through the skills."
When she returns to Tehran, Ashraf will give a report on her trip to Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"We have learned from this experience that people are the same all over the world," Ashraf says. "We have witnessed kindness everywhere.
"Sport can help humanity. It is a language that is common for all people, a language to connect humanity."
Then, pointing to her wet, tired and happy charges standing proudly with their paddles held aloft, she said, "Look at these girls and you will see what I want to say. It doesn't matter that we have different politics, different beliefs. Through sport, we can make everything pure."