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January 22, 2010
With Roger Federer on a School Visit in Ethiopia
By Daniel Huber, Credit Suisse eMagazine
On February 12, 2010 Roger Federer traveled to Kore Roba, a small village to the north of Addis Ababa, where his foundation has supported a school project for the last two years. The following report shows how the world’s number one tennis player was received in the village and how he measured up against the school's best runners in a 1000 m race.
The first surprise for Roger Federer awaited him the moment he stepped out of the airport building in Addis Ababa: torrents of rain. Every February, Ethiopia experiences what the locals call “the little rains,” a period of very frequent – though not continual – rainfall. Accordingly, Roger Federer and his escorts make a dash from the airport building to the parking area, where he is greeted by an all-too-familiar scene: a gaggle of screaming teenage girls. These female fans are part of an American tour group that landed just before the tennis star.
He gives them a brief wave. In German and English, he then greets some new faces – these are his companions for the one-day excursion north of the capital to Kore Roba, where his foundation has supported a school project the last two years. “Roger, please to meet you,” he says, reverting to the Anglo-Saxon tradition of using just his first name as he shakes hands in a carefree manner. Of course, as one of the most famous sportsmen on the planet, he hardly need bother with the first name. But these relaxed and informal niceties further enhance the positive mood in the excursion party right from the start.
Through the Big City Chaos of Addis Ababa
Two minibuses are ready and waiting to negotiate the big city chaos of Addis Ababa. The bumpy streets are lined by numerous makeshift market stalls under corrugated iron roofs, as well as other street hawkers, while the few brickwork buildings are for the most part in a very decrepit state. There are remarkably few beggars. As a Reuters correspondent explains, almost all the beggars had been carted out of the capital so not to leave a bad impression for last week’s summit of African leaders. A couple of teenagers nonetheless make their way along the columns of vehicles, begging at the windows. Suddenly one of them becomes very animated and shouts loudly to his friends: “Roger Federer, Roger Federer!” It seems that even the poorest members of Ethiopian society occasionally see tennis on TV.
Tennis Star Moved to Tears
Another half an hour or so and the two minibuses have left the last huts of the seven-million strong capital behind them. The route now leads across hilly uplands of the Sululta region. This was where the distance-running legend Haile Gebrselassie grew up, nowadays referred to reverently as Neftenga (“Boss”) in these parts. “For some reason I expected Ethiopia to be much drier and more barren, and not so green,” says Federer. “The landscape up here is truly stunning.” An hour’s drive or so later, the group leaves the car – the final muddy and rutted stretch to the school can only be negotiated on foot or in an off-road vehicle. Federer leads the way together with Hailu Benti and an interpreter. Hailu is head of the regionally established aid organization EFDA, which has been running two education projects in Ethiopia on behalf of the Roger Federer Foundation since 2007. After a quarter of an hour’s walk the group reaches the school, which consists of three walled buildings and two corrugated iron sanitary huts. At the entrance, Federer is greeted by some 200 singing children. Visibly moved, he introduces himself to the school principal and the teachers. “Just the singing of these children alone moved me to tears,” he recounts later, “but when I found out later what they were singing I was touched all the more.” Father Roger, welcome here, good to see you,....
Taking Two Points from Roger
By now the visiting group has assembled in the schoolyard and is surrounded by a throng of children. Federer himself is right in the middle, shaking hands with a shy girl in a white Sunday dress here, exchanging a few words with a teacher there, and listening as Hailu reports on the latest developments. The school is situated right at the edge of a village community that comprises an array of huts laid out in a random manner. The three school buildings house several classrooms, a library, a school office, and a teachers’ common room. On an adjacent large field, schoolchildren run around and play volleyball amid grazing goats. In one of the buildings Federer is challenged to a table tennis match by 17-year-old Jirata. The tennis ace reveals only the occasional weakness in his repertoire before finally winning comfortably. Jirata nonetheless beams with pride. Who else in this country can claim to have taken two points off the world's number one tennis player?
Flat Bread and Laughter
The group then moves on to a temporarily erected tent in which a traditional Injera meal is laid out. Here, the sourdough Injera flat bread serves as both implement and meal at the same time. The idea is to tear off small strips of the Injera, use these to scoop up the other dishes, and then pop the parcel into the mouth. Roger is inundated with questions from the children. For his part, he is equally happy to regale the audience with details of his own twin daughters, Myla and Charlene. One girl is eager to know how old he is. “Take a guess,” responds the 28-year-old Federer, earning the timid reply: “I’m not so good at judging white people – 45?” The mood in the tent reaches a new high.
Your Excellency....
And so, on to the official part of the visit. Hailu gives a prepared speech in one of the classrooms, with blue-painted walls and fresh grass strewn on the drying mud floor in honor of the venerable guest. On a number of occasions Hailu addresses his guest as “Your Excellency Roger Federer,” which the king of tennis acknowledges with a smile. Hailu illustrates the progress that has been made in the school of Kore Roba thanks to the Foundation’s support. This includes a rise in the number of pupils from 250 to 410 and the proportion of girls from 38 to 48 percent. Work on a new, four-classroom building has been completed, and better training has been provided for all the teachers. Of great significance for the village as a whole was the additional installation of a new drinking water hand pump at the edge of the school area, which is now officially inaugurated by Federer himself. In keeping with the national tradition, fresh coffee is first roasted and then brewed by a teacher in a lavish ceremony during the speech. This also involves repeatedly adding incense to the small smoky fire lit for this purpose. The Ethiopian province of Kaffa is generally regarded as the birthplace of coffee. As the guest of honor, Federer happily fulfills his obligations, cutting the giant sweet-tasting bread and handing around cups of the aromatic coffee.
1000-Meter Race at 2500 Meters
But the real high point of the visit is yet to come, and for this the visitors go back outside: Roger Federer is to test his fitness against the school’s best runners over a distance of one kilometer. The route is marked by flags and ropes laid out in a makeshift way on the more agriculturally suited field situated beside the school. After sizing up his fellow runners as they practice – teenagers who look somewhat older than most of their fellow pupils – Federer says modestly: “They look like good runners. I don’t think I stand much of a chance.” White T-shirts are handed out to the competitors, and when all have been donned the race gets off to a rather chaotic start. In particular, a grazing goat that happens to decide to wander across the runners’ track is the source of much general merriment. Federer’s fears of being outclassed prove well founded, but he courageously sees out the three laps. At the finish he is suffering visibly: “The attitude almost 2500 meters was always a concern, and I never train over distances, mainly just interval sprints.” But something else impresses him most of all: “The track was littered with holes, stones, thorns, and heaven knows what else, and many of these children were running barefoot – unbelievable!” Luckily, all limbs emerge from the contest intact.
Balls Exchanged for a Knitted Cap
After the prize ceremony, the obligatory gifts are now exchanged with the guest. To the school's staff, Roger hands over a travel bag full of balls, T-shirts and caps with the name of his foundation. For their part, the children present him with a hand-knitted cap and scarf in the Ethiopian national colors, which he promptly puts on. But that’s not all: Hand-woven fabrics, scarves, a basket and many more items are handed over for the Federer family. By now, an increasing number of threatening black storm clouds are gathering over the hills. The drivers are pushing for an imminent departure. Visibly content, Roger climbs into an off-road vehicle that has arrived on the scene to take him back to the bus. He waves to the beaming young faces that line the route for a final time. He is in no doubt: “I found this visit really worthwhile. I have been handsomely rewarded – above all, with lasting impressions.”
Ethiopia in Figures
Size: 1 127 127 km2 (more than three times the size of Germany)
Population: 76 Mio
Average life expectancy: 47,6 years
School enrollment rate: Primary school 46%, secondary school 25%
Illiteracy rate: 58,5%
Nutrition: 47% of children under five are malnourished
Access to drinking water: 22% of the population (urban 90%, rural 20%)
Source: UNDP 2006
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