Iraq sailing team training for London Games

All members of the national team are training together in the capital city of Baghdad, with less than a month to go for qualifying round in South Korea.Hamza Hussein, team member, won a bronze medal during the last Asian Games held in Guangzhou, 2010. He is now already 36 years old and it might be his last chance to compete among the Olympic elites.Im training for the London Olympic qualifying round to be held in South Korea. If I could make it, I would be able to take part in the London Olympics. It would be much better if we can win a medal, said Hamza.The public (Iraqis) have been so supportive, and also following us, so winning a medal will definitely be for them, he added.However, there is no lake or reservoir designed for their training. They have to train on a two-kilometers stretch of waters in the local Tigris River. With high waves and heavy sand coupled with strong winds, trainees have found hard to stay on track and record the time.Before the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, there were only three or four members in the team. But now, the team has a dozen members with new equipment and training area provided by the countrys sports federation.Its our dream that used to take part in the Olympics. It is also the same for all team members, the coaches and the federation. We will overcome all difficulties to qualify for the London Olympics, said Karem, head coach.