The
second annual Souss Girls’ Soccer Camp was held June 22-28 in Taroudant,
Morocco. AMJAD, a Moroccan women’s
professional soccer team partnered with Peace Corps Volunteer, Tatiana Cary, as
well as the local commune and various community associations to once again
bring this amazing girls soccer camp to the southern region of Morocco. Tatiana who entered Peace Corps with a strong
soccer background and passion for the sport had hopes of finding a way to
incorporate girls’ soccer into her service. After hearing about last year’s Souss Girls’ Soccer Camp in Temsia she
asked Kirsten Zeiter and John DeBellis to introduce her to the AMJAD soccer
team. AMJAD’s enthusiasm after last year’s camp in Temsia was a driving force
to recreate this project on their home turf in Taroudant. Tatiana began to meet
with the AMJAD team in early January of 2014 to start brainstorming what this
second camp would look like. A timeline
was created over weekly meetings, where Tatiana really encouraged the AMJAD
women to take ownership and help create the vision of what they wanted the camp
to be.
The
camp was designed to encourage girls’ interest in sports and community
engagement by fostering a safe and organized girls only camp where they could
play soccer. Goals for the camp included
improved soccer skills, self-confidence, healthy nutrition practices, exercise
habits and lifestyle choices. The
professional female athletes hoped to model and teach the connection between
healthy life choices and pursuing sports goals, while demonstrating a
commitment to adopting an overall healthy lifestyle.
For
many of the young girls, this camp was the first opportunity of its kind. This year’s camp in Taroudant hosted close to
45 girls from the Souss-Massa region which included: Taroudant, Ouled Teima, Gififat, Ouled Dahou,
Sbt Igerdane, Talouine and Akka. A
vision for the camp was to have many different towns represented as a way for
girls interested in sports and soccer to find camaraderie in playing with girls
from other towns. Although these
communities vary in size and resources, they all share an absence of
opportunities for girls to engage in education and development activities. This camp has become a means for boosting
girls development and empowerment through soccer.
The
week was filled with all sorts of soccer related activity including morning
soccer practice where the girls were divided into teams blending regions and
ages. These morning sessions included
stretches, warm-ups, drills and scrimmages. The afternoon sessions included health workshops, one focusing on
nutrition and how to be a healthy athlete and the second on first aid, the
Heimlich maneuver and CPR. The girls
also received three soccer workshops focusing on technical skills, rules,
regulations, AMJAD and playing techniques. The evening activities were led by a local group of counselors that did
games, a small talent show, singing, dancing and on one night they led a tour
of Taroudant. Thanks to the timing of
the camp the girls were also able to watch the United States versus Germany
World Cup Game one afternoon at a local cafe. Another unexpected event that coincided with a scheduled beach trip was
the region wide Souss Championship Game. On Tuesday, June 24, the camp ventured to Taghazout to enjoy a morning
at the beach complete with singing, drumming, swimming and beach soccer. The girls then enjoyed a picnic lunch in an
Agadir garden and then it was on to Ait Melloul for AMJAD’s championship game. The counselors and Peace Corps volunteers
helped the girls to make signs and lead them in cheers throughout the
game. It was an incredible opportunity
for the girls attending the camp to see their counselors, the professional
women’s team, play to a victory of 3-1 over their opponent. Afterwards the AMJAD players and campers
alike enjoyed photos with the trophy and celebrated their victory. The week rounded out with a tournament among
the girls’ teams and a very nice certificate ceremony where all who contributed
to the camp were recognized.
According
to Tatiana, giving AMJAD the resources to be the agents of community
development was the key to the success of this camp. Each of the AMJAD counselors played a unique
role in the camp, carrying their own set of responsibilities that helped
contribute to the larger whole. AMJAD
was solely responsible for finding all of the community partners and
associations that greatly contributed to the camp including the soccer stadium,
the boarding school, the cultural center, counselors, logistical support,
animators, and more. The involvement of various community partners and
associations provided a way for the community to be invested in and part of the
camp, a truly incredible outpouring of Moroccan volunteers. Running a second Souss Girls’ Soccer Camp in
a new location has helped to prove that this model works and can be successful
in different locations. The publicity
that this camp has generated across the region has sparked the interest of
other towns to host in the years to come, which will hopefully help this camp
to become more easily replicable across Morocco.
Having
girls play soccer challenges gender stereotypes the world over but especially
here in Morocco where women’s sports are still lacking development and support.
Whereas any PCV could teach soccer skills this camp allowed young Moroccan
girls to see their older Moroccan peers as leaders, professionals and
successful soccer players. A PCV who
participated at the camp noted how special it was for these young girls to
watch the professional women play as well as interact with them. While watching
the AMJAD professional championship game she was flooded with memories from her
own experience growing up playing soccer in the states and the influence that
the U.S. women’s national team had on her as a youth. She hoped that the girls’ experience at camp
would have that kind of positive impact on them and their future
development. Providing this type of
opportunity for the campers to see the women’s professional team not only play,
but be recognized and respected for their hard work and achievements during the
championship match was an unexpected highlight of the camp. This type of role
modeling for the younger girls by the AMJAD players is something that this camp
hopes to continue to foster through future camps. AMJAD hopes to continue hosting and
participating in future girls’ soccer camps not only in the Souss region but
throughout Morocco.