Iraqi windsurfing athletes train hard against headwind of insufficient funding

Baghdad, 18 May (2022) - With golden sunlight gleaming off the river waves before sunset, Omar Talal was working hard to adjust the boom of his white and red sail towards the wind on the Tigris River through central Baghdad, the Iraqi capital.

"It is a nice sport and I love it," said 18-year-old Talal, a member of the Iraqi national windsurfing team whose members train on the Tigris River in the Adhamiyah neighborhood in Baghdad.

Although the windsurfing sport emerged very recently in Iraq, it has rapidly changed Iraqis' interaction with the historic Tigris River, which along with the Euphrates River, gave Iraq its historic name of the "land between the two rivers."

The sight of young windsurfers maneuvering the sails on the river has become a sight-seeing itself for the people dining at the restaurants along the riverbank in Adhamiyah.

Mohammed Salim, 40, and his wife were having a good time while enthusiastically watching the windsurfing boats on the river.

"Tigris riverbank is usually a place of fun and relaxation, and with these windsurfing boats and the beauty of their colorful sails, it has become an indispensable place for the entertainment of many families in Baghdad," Salim told Xinhua after taking pictures with his wife with those colorful sails as the background.

However, the windsurfing sport is facing a funding problem due to the lack of support from the government to the Iraqi Sailing and Water Sports Federation.

Sitting in the federation's headquarters on the riverbank in Adhamiyah, Ahmed Madhlum, the federation's chairman, told Xinhua that the lack of government support forced the federation to establish its own workshop to manufacture boats and equipment.

"The price of an imported sailing boat may reach 15,000 U.S. dollars, while our (workshop's) boat costs around 6,000 dollars," Madhlum said.

But the workshop's boats and equipment are mainly used for training athletes and local championships only, due to the lower quality compared to the international brands that use advanced technology, he complained.

Currently, there are some 80 athletes of different ages, including 16 women, many of whom are training in preparation for the upcoming tournaments, said Madhlum.

Anmar Salman, a trainer for the young athletes, said that the members of the national team train intensively every day in an attempt to match up with their rivals in other countries.

Despite the difficulties, the athletes love windsurfing and have a passion for training, said Salman.

"We have participated in Asian and Oceanian Championship in Oman, Arab Championship in Egypt, and in Asian Championship in Abu Dhabi," Salman said.

"Despite the poor conditions and lack of funding, they did well and we hope to get advanced positions in the upcoming tournaments," he added.