Haiti was struck by a devastating earthquake just five years ago and has been rebuilding communities ever since. While getting the basic infrastructure of the country up and running again has been the main priority, the health and welfare of its population is also an important aspect that both the government and Aid agencies are concerned about.
Providing sporting and cultural activities are just two of the ways that this rebuilding process employs to teach young people how to live a healthy and productive life. In recent months, hockey has been playing its part in this development.
In September, a hockey tournament organised by the Haiti Hockey Association featuring four teams from across the nation took place, as part of a programme to bring sporting opportunities to more children in the Caribbean country.
Boney Georges is the Programme Planning Officer at the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Sport for Hope Centre in Croix des Bouquets, Port-au-Prince.
He explained that physical education does not appear on the curriculum of most schools in Haiti. It is only the largest schools that have any sporting facilities and equipment to cater for physical education lessons.
The hockey competition is part of a programme of activities for the children who live in the local community. A further group of children also joined the competition who were attending the Sporting Summer Camp.
This is a programme that enables children to experience cultural and sporting activities that are not provided through the formal school curriculum. Georges also added that it is a great way to socialise, build relationships with a variety of people and foster new friendships.
A total of 36 children took part in the tournament, with a coach for each team and an umpire overseeing proceedings.
The four teams were: Royal Fourgy, a team from the Fourgy community, a rural settlement some way from the urban centre; Freedom of Merger, a team from an urban community; Wings of Canaan, children from Canaan and Bon Repos, a community that was at the very centre of the 2010 earthquakes; and Unity of Delmas, the children who were on the Sporting Summer Camp.
It was Unity of Delmas who emerged as victors - they beat the Royal Fourgy team 6-4 in an exciting encounter that saw a lot of goal-mouth action.
Media from across the Caribbean came to the event to see how sport has developed in the area that had been so devastated by disaster.
There was universal praise for the IOC's Sport for Hope Centre and its efforts to help the communities regain some control over their lives as well as showing them how to live a healthy lifestyle through sport.
Several of the children's parents also attended the tournament and for many, this was their first taste of hockey. The competition didn’t disappoint as it served up a fast-paced and action-packed hockey festival, that was competitive and fun.
Barbara Schweizer, Head of the Management Centre in Haiti and IOC representative, was on hand to give medals to the participating teams and a trophy to the winners.
The is the latest activity to take place in Haiti, who only joined the International Hockey Federation (FIH) as a National Association back in 2014.
In January this year, for the first time, an Olympic Solidarity funded FIH and Pan American Hockey Federation (PAHF) Coaching Course was organised in cooperation with the Haitian Hockey Federation.
Led by FIH Coach Shiv Jagday, the course was held over four days and welcomed 42 Haitian coaches to the IOC's Sport for Hope Centre.
For more information on that project, click here.
Further information about the IOC's Sport for Hope Centre and other projects, visit the IOC's Development Through Sport news pages by clicking here.
More news, activities and information about the Pan American Hockey Federation can be found here.
