Finally In the Pool!

Imagine my excitement when I arrived on Shorabak and saw a crowd of over 200 people surrounding the pool. Normally the spectators did not arrive until after practice started. This meant only one thing, the pool was filled to a level of water where people could actually swim in it. As I walked up the stairs leading to the pool, I saw water trickling from the pipe into the pool.

All of the athletes of the Shorabak Garrison Swim and Water Polo Team were at the pool ready to swim in the pool with about six feet of clear water in it. Getting the athletes focused in stretching and dryland exercises proved a little difficult and comedic at the same time. All of their focus was on the pool that was filling with water. It was like putting chocolate chip cookies straight out of the oven in front of my son Westy. I was the mean parent who would not let his child touch the piping hot cookies so he would not burn his hands when he touched them. I would get questions from the athletes every minute asking why (I was so mean and) I was not allowing them into the pool. They were explaining their case that the clear blue water was calling out to them. Why would I prohibit them from entering the beautiful water?

My answer was the same each time. I told them (That I was mean and) that we would keep the same schedule every practice so everyone knows what to expect at practice. Begrudgingly, the team continued with their stretching and dryland exercises while sneaking peaks at the water. After almost an hour (Of me torturing them) of dryland, which is way longer than the team normally takes, we were ready for the pool.

Once the athletes had the chance to enter the water, it actually became quite serious. The athletes became very competitive and wanted to sprint every single length of the pool. I was glad about their seriousness but knew what the end result would be for them. As the athletes started to tire from swimming lengths of the pool, some of them started complaining of ailments to include earaches, stomach aches, shoulder injuries, cramping, or leg/foot problems. Knowing that this was from the athletes being out of energy, not wanting to lose the “race” and look bad, and because I am the meanest coach in the world, I told them that practice was almost over and to continue.

Eventually realizing that not every lap is a race, the athletes started focusing on things I was telling them about stroke technique, breathing, and for some of the athletes, how not to drown and how to be safe in the water.

In the last four minutes of practice, I broke out the water polo balls and had the team pass in groups of five, just like we practiced on the ground. Despite their tiredness, the team was focused on their drill and did exceptionally well.

The spectators of the practice continuously cheered and spoke with each other during the practice. There were many who wanted to join as well. The athletes did a great job at the beginning of practice telling the spectators to not interrupt the practice. The spectators also filled up their water bottles and chai pots with the water from the pool, which is something I am still not yet used to seeing. But I have learned that this is something to expect while coaching in Afghanistan, no matter what part of the country I am in.

The only downside to the practice was that there was another ball broken by barbed wire. This was the third ball in two weeks. This is normally something that would not be too concerning, but I only have five balls left for the team. With mail taking over a month to arrive from the United States and no such thing as water polo balls in Afghanistan, I could be out of balls with nothing to replace them with. The athletes said that they would speak with Colonel Safi about removing the barbed wire and having a guard at the pool. There would be a guard positioned at the pool 24 hours a day to ensure that the pool is not used during non-practice hours. That means that the pool will stay semi clean and that nobody drowns. This would be the same setup as we had at the Pol-e-Charki pool.

Having water in the pool was quite refreshing. I cannot wait until practice tomorrow.

Marjeh and Now Zad

Major Chris Curran set me up for a trip to Marjeh and Now Zad with a group of VIPs. I was excited for this opportunity as it would be first time to see any of Helmand Province since I arrived in November and I am able to leave the daily grind at work, even though it is only for a few hours. I made sure all of my gear was set and went to the airfield at Bastion to catch my first ride in an Osprey. While waiting for the Osprey, I met Tony Perry from the Los Angeles Times. He was taking his final trip with the 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade Afghanistan before he returned to the United States. He was a very nice gentleman who took the time to write about what the Marines were accomplishing here. It was quite enjoyable hearing about his yearly trips to the war and his fondness for the Marines. Ironically, he lives in the San Diego area, heard about the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team, and actually wanted to write a story about the team. It just shows how small of a world we live in. We had to meet all of the way in Helmand Province, Afghanistan for us to share our stories when we live so close to each other in the United States.

The ride on the Osprey was quite exciting as my time in Marine Corps aircraft is little compared to other Marines or my daughter Isabella (Who has more flight time in Marine Corps aircraft than I do). Other than cargo transport, I have flown in US Army Blackhawks. And since the Osprey is the future of Marine Corps aviation, it was nice to actually know what it was like. It was a great experience.

Our arrival in Marjeh was very interesting. We landed in the middle of a villager's farm and walked to the forward operating base nearby. Upon entering the base, I felt for the Marines and their living conditions. These Marines did not have heating or air conditioning; laptop computers; a laundry service; easy access to hot showers; refrigerators; or anything that would be a comfort of home. Even though our living conditions here may seem austere, it does not compare to what the Marines on the ground deal with every day. Knowing that the Marines would not have much, I picked up an any Marine/Soldier box from the post office and dropped it off with a Marine upon our arrival. Even though the Marines there were tired of visitors showing up, I think they appreciated the boxes that I and others brought.

After speaking with a few Marines, the party we came with wanted to walk into the town. As we left the base, I saw a teacher conducting classroom instruction in an outdoor setting. He had about 20 children being very attentive, even though a bunch of Marines, other military personnel, and two civilians (One of which was Tony Perry) were walking right behind their "classroom". It was nice to see that regardless of any situation, to include that just a few days before there was heavy fighting in this area to include the street we were on, that someone takes the time to hold classes.

While continuing to walk down this street, I saw many locals sitting, talking, and watching. Of interest, I saw a little boy, about the same age as my son, Westy, sitting next to a motorcycle. I do not know if at the ripe old age of 4-5 he knew how to fix a motorcycle or if he was just pretending to. Either way, I could imagine Westy doing the same exact thing if he were sitting next to a motorcycle back home.

Marjeh was quite beautiful compared to many other areas I have been in Afghanistan. It was very green and had some beautiful flowers in the fields. It also seemed like a friendly community to those who lived there and to outsiders.

As I was walking with a few of the young Marines way ahead of the group, a young girl hesitatingly came up to one of the Marines who was clearing the area. Knowing that the Marine was focused on making sure that the area was safe for the upcoming entourage, I motioned for the girl and her family to come to me. The first thing I did was say hello in Farsi. I then asked how she was and what her name was in Farsi. Before I even finished what I was saying (Regardless of the fact that I am positive my accent was horrible), I realized that I was speaking in Farsi to a native Pashto speaker. Just goes to show how not mentally there I was. But as a high quality "Staff Officer" that I am, I quickly pulled a lollipop out of my cargo pocket and handed it to her. Her look of horror that an American was speaking Farsi to a Pashto speaker quickly went away and a smile quickly emerged. As she went to grab the lollipop, I saw a very bad burn to one of her arms. I quickly asked one of the Marines what their unit's procedure was for treating local national children in this area. He responded by saying the unit corpsman could provide limited treatment there or we could send the girl to the base. The Marine quickly called for a corpsman and he arrived very promptly. After the corpsman assessed the wound, he took out a bandage and carefully wrapped her burns. With the help of a linguist, he explained to the family that they should bring her to the base the next day for more extensive treatment. As the child smiled, ate her lollipop, and had a handful of candy that she was sharing with others, the crowd of over 30 locals to include family and other villagers swarmed the corpsman to touch and thank him. It was quite an amazing site to see that they were so appreciative of what one corpsman could do. The long lasting effects that one person can have…

A short while later, we returned to the forward operating base and boarded the Osprey. This time, we were heading to Now Zad. Once we arrived in Now Zad, we visited a bazaar. The bazaar was very similar to many others I have visited in Afghanistan. However, some of the shops were closed due to a big shura (Meeting) that was being held. We then entered a local school. What was so impressive about this school, other than the amount of kids that were in the classrooms, was that there was a classroom full of girls. It looked like the girls were receiving the same curriculum as the boys, which in my mind was a great thing. From afar, I watched the teachers try to finish their classroom instruction amongst all of the visitors walking through the classrooms. I just sat and marveled at the simple school and how much these teachers were achieving. I then thought about how progressive this community is by having such a large class of girls. On our way out, I asked one of the Marines at the local unit about the girls' classroom. The Marine said that sometimes there are so many girls in that classroom that there is barely even enough room to even move around. I am glad that the families are sending all of their children to school, not just the boys.

As we were waiting for our transportation back to the landing zone where the Ospreys were waiting, I noticed that there was a football (Soccer) field. It was a very simple construction. Someone cleared away all of the rocks from the dirt and erected two goals out of wood. There were a few children around and I wished that I would have been prepared with a ball. Why was I not prepared? I just did not think that I would run into a football field, with children on it, in the outskirts of Now Zad. Just to reassure everyone, if there was a pool in Now Zad, I would not have been prepared either.

I am very appreciative that Major Curran set me up on this trip and that Major Benson and Major Lesniewicz covered my work for me while I was gone. It was great to see the villages in these areas and it reminded me of why it is so important for the western world to be helping in Afghanistan. These villages are the future of Afghanistan. This is why education, dreams, hopes, and heroes are so important.

Two Athletes on the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team have Died

Over the past year, I have received phone calls, emails, or questions directly from people that heard what we are doing and ask me questions or say to me:

"Is the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team is a joke?"

"Are you serious?"

"That is too funny. "

"Is this for real?"

Two athletes on the team have died in combat operations in Afghanistan. I was told this today by Rohullah Marouf, the Swim Chair, at the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee. Abdullah Tahiri, Scott McCook, and I were on a conference call with him about the passports for the athletes today. He is trying to get more information on who specifically died.

Once Rohullah said this, and Abdullah translated, I felt like I was going to vomit. Most likely, these athletes were also on the 201st Corps Swim and Water Polo Team, who I spent many months with, training them, teaching them something new, making them smile, and taking them away from the war, even for a few minutes of their lives. These athletes could also have been in the 201st Commando Kandak (Battalion), which meant I probably worked with them every day for a year, spent time with them mentoring them their jobs, drinking tea with them, talking about sports, movies, and current affairs, and even watched soap operas in Farsi with them.

I was thinking about what a short life that these athletes, who were also soldiers in the Afghan National Army, had. I started thinking about their families. What if they were married or had children? Who is going to provide for their family now? Who is going to be the father of their children? Who is going to teach their children to do the right things in life, educate them? Who is going to stop the Taliban from educating these children, taking their families' food, and harming their families? Who is going to protect this family, or the village they live in from the Taliban?

All of these feelings, questions, and concerns, and I still do not know exactly who was killed. Once I know this information, I know I will be sick. I will be sick because I did not move fast enough. I should have:

Moved faster,

Convinced more people to get involved,

Had our elected officials in office move faster,

Somehow convinced some airline executive to provide air travel,

Been more effective in contacting a decision maker at the US Department of State that could provide guidance and support of this project.

Closed deals with affluent individuals and big corporations on donations and sponsorships...

The list is endless of things that I could done better and more of. But the fact remains that there are now two less heroes that Afghanistan could have had. Two less upstanding citizens who really could have unified their country, shown their countrymen what could be accomplished, shown the children of a very poor and war-torn country how to dream, build cultural bridges between Afghanistan and countries of the Western World, and shared their future personal, cultural, educational, and business experiences in other countries with people in their villages, provinces, and country, to make Afghanistan a better place.

I will never be able to talk with these athletes again, shake their hands, hug them, listen to them, see their excitement when they talk about the future, see them with true happiness in the pool, or watch them learn something new.

If I would have just made this project happen more quickly, these athletes would not have been killed fighting the Taliban, or even in a war zone for that matter. They would have been in the United States training as a team for water polo. They never saw a place without war, they never had an opportunity to make their country a better place, they never got to see why America and the Western World are so great, and they never became heroes for their country, a country that needs heroes so desperately.

This was not a case of could have, should have, would have.

This was a case of could not have and should not have had this opportunity in a million years. And then, they died. Before they would partake in the impossible feat of having a national water polo team in Afghanistan that would be following the pathway to the Olympic Dream.

This is for real. This is so real, and I failed to save two lives. My record now for losing people involved in water polo in Afghanistan is three. How many national team athletes has your country's national team lost today, this week, this month, this year, or this decade?

Meeting Olympians from the United States

This weekend was very exciting as I had the honor of meeting two Olympians, see again one of the best coaches in the history of swimming, and meet some other high performance athletes as well.

Brian Goodell called me two weeks ago after he read the Orange County Register article about the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team. He wanted to find out more information about our project and to see how he could help.

Brian is working on a project with a company called the Pacific Institute to help athletes and people in general visualize success. He was hosting a PX2 clinic in Mission Viejo, California and invited me to attend. This would be a great opportunity for me and the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team. Brian is one of the best distance swimmers in history. He has help many world records, won two gold medals in the Olympic Games, and is one of my favorite swimmers. When he called me on the phone, I tried not to sound too excited to hear from him.

When I arrived, there were a number of athletes there and Coach Bill Rose, from Mission Viejo Nadadores Swimming. I remember Coach Rose from my swim days when he had athletes swimming like James Davidson, Philippe Demers, and David Schmidt, just to name a few that I remember. It was nice to see that he was doing quite well. Some of his athletes were there as well, to include an Olympian and other high performance swimmers. It was great to meet these inspirational athletes and hear their stories.

The course that Brian taught was outstanding. It took a lot of the bits and pieces of useful information that I learned along my athletic and coaching careers about visualization and fit them together nicely. Brian then gave me the other 80% of the information I was missing and I finally understood the big picture. I walked away from this class feeling knowledgeable and I also felt good knowing that in my past coaching positions, I used similar techniques on athletes and teams and that other coaches believe and teach these types of programs.

Thankful

I just spent a wonderful day with my family for Easter. You may ask, what was so wonderful about it? It was spending time with the family.

Even though Easter is not Thanksgiving, I have a lot to be thankful for these days. To start, would be my wonderful wife, Leilani, and our wonderful children Isabella and Westy. They have been so supportive during this project of trying to get the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team to the United States to train. We would not be where we are with this project without them. Other family members have pitched in as well. All have pitched in emotionally to support us and some have used sweat equity to help and some have even donated. There are many ups and downs during this great opportunity to create heroes for Afghanistan and my family has been supportive every step of the way.

The athletes are patiently and anxiously waiting in Afghanistan. I pray every day that the team will all make it the United States safely and that nothing horrible will happen to them prior to making this trip. These athletes showed me how to shove adversity back and create something positive in such a difficult environment. They also showed me what things are truly important in life. They are the reason that this whole dream started. I am so thankful for these honorable men.

Our volunteers have stepped up to the plate and have brought us to where we need to be. Whether it was people who volunteered to be on the board of our nonprofit organization, people who have put us in contact with potential donors, people who are helping spread the word and help create awareness, those who want to provide lodging, meals, pool time, or hand out towels to the team after practice, I am just thankful for the extraordinary volunteers that are ensuring the development of this team to promote peace through sport.

Our donors and sponsors have been phenomenal and I will always thank them. Some of our sponsors even go back as far as before there was even a national team. All of our donors and sponsors help us get closer to bringing the team here. Whether it was a small, anonymous donation, to donations of equipment, pool time, and the like, it takes the team towards the pathway of the Olympic dream.

The general public has been remarkable. From teary-eyed calls of support to referrals to people who may be able to assist our program. Sometimes people accidently run into our website or they read or watch something from the news, just the calls or emails are always very encouraging. Our supporters from the public have been outstanding and I couldn’t ask for more. Thank you.

I had a quarterly newsletter prepared to send out but felt that this letter was more appropriate. If you have not already picked up what I am trying to point out in this letter, I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am so blessed and thankful of your support of our program.

We are now so close to bringing this team to the United States in August. Let’s all come together, push through, and ensure this happens.

Afghanistan National Water Polo Becomes Official

Since the Afghanistan National Water Polo Team tryouts have ended, I have only heard from Rohullah, the Swim Chair at the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee once. This was at the national swim competition a few days ago. Reshad and I were trying to get a hold of him but he was not answering his phone or email. Reshad finally got a hold of him last night and when he came to work today, he told me, in front of the S-1 Officer, that we would be meeting with Rohullah.

Since I knew that the S-1 Officer would insist on the armed escort, I thought that we could kill two birds with one stone. The S-1 Officer and I were talking about taking a trip to Darul Aman to recruit graduating soldiers, from the Afghan National Army boot camp, to fill some shortfalls in the 201st Commando Kandak. It was a perfect opportunity to go to Darul Aman today.

Abdul Kholic, the S-1 Officer, agreed that today would be a great day to go as the Commando Kandak was already paid and all of the pay reports, that show that every Commando was paid, were already submitted. This saved me from having to sneak out without an armed escort and leaving Abdul Kholic feeling like I did not want to listen to a very respected man, full of wisdom, about how a "well known and important American" needs to remain protected and safe.

Abdul Kholic quickly coordinated a three vehicle convoy, two pickup trucks with mounted weapons and a 7-ton truck to carry all of the soldiers we were planning on bringing back, and about ten Commandos as drivers and to man the crew served weapons and protect the convoy.

Knowing how the Commandos drive, how much traffic there is, and that most of the people on the road are first time drivers, I opted to ride with Abdul Kholic. I have been a passenger in his vehicle on many trips before and he is a very defensive and proactive driver. I think that he would do quite well driving in California, the Republic of Korea, or other places around the world that have unpredictable drivers.

The drive to Rohullah's office was quick and uneventful as there was not a lot of traffic. We arrived early at Rohullah's office, but he was not there yet. His assistant said that he was meeting with the President of the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee about some swim matters. His assistant quickly ushered Abdul Kholic, Reshad, and I into Rohullah's office and had tea and some pastries made for us. He also had someone bring tea and pastries out for all of the Commandos who were waiting by the vehicles. Hospitality is so wonderful in Afghanistan!

When Rohullah arrived, he quickly came into the office and was very excited to meet with us. After the introduction of Abdul Kholic and Rohullah and listening to the two of them speak for a while, we all started speaking about current events, the upcoming presidential election in the United States, the weather, and the success of the national swim competition. Rohullah was very optimistic about the results of the swim competition, which was the first ever swim meet in Afghanistan, especially when "the expert", believe me, I am no expert, agreed that it was a well run competition with great results. I think my encouragement about how well the swim meet went made his day.

Rohullah quickly cut to the chase and said that he appreciated my help with teaching aquatics sports to the people of his country and for helping him strengthen aquatics in Afghanistan. He reviewed the strategic plan of a proposed national program over the past week and read the list of athletes that were recommended for the national team. He was even approving of my recommendations for coaches for the national team. He profusely thanked me for my hard work and dedication and hoped that this would be the beginnings of something great for Afghanistan.

Rohullah started telling me that hopefully they will be able to continue the program in the future because things are very tough as he receives no money from the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee for the national swim program. He said "God willing" they will be able to do something in the future with the team. This was a little disappointing as it seemed that Rohullah was not focused on taking on this program. Seeing my disappointment, Reshad and Abdul Kholic started telling him how great a national water polo program, with Afghans from Afghanistan, would be for the country. That Afghanistan needed this.

After about ten minutes of me not being able to get a word in edgewise because of the heated discussion between Rohullah, Reshad, and Abdul Kholic, about the future of the potential Afghanistan National Water Polo Team, Rohullah stopped the discussion and asked Reshad a question for me. The question was simple, "What were my thoughts?" My response was simple, to tell the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee to create a national water polo program, based off of the plan we worked so hard to make. Upon hearing my response, he asked Reshad "Will I help them?" I answered "I wanted to continue to support them in the development of a national water polo program."

During Rohullah's recent meeting with the President of the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee, Rohullah was discussing the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee's thought process on their budgeting or lack thereof and the lack of support to the national swim program. The president, not wanting to be questioned about his direction, started asking Rohullah about the progression of water polo. By the end of their meeting, Rohullah did not get any swim questions answered but came back with the approval to officially start a national water polo program. Rohullah knowing this, did not share his excitement about this when we first started talking today, but it still made me happy.

Rohullah also wanted to know if I would lead the program. I was touched by the notion that he would think of me that way. I told him that I would help them in developing the program and that I did not have the background to lead a national program. I explained that I was just a high school varsity water polo coach, a club swim coach, and previously ran some club water polo teams that were successful. I would help them find some quality coaches and help them in the development from the plan we created. I was also concerned about my availability between my job and how much longer I would actually be in Afghanistan. I did not want to commit to something that I could not follow through on. I did not want to be like the "old story" that I was just another westerner or American who promised something and did not follow through. I did not have any of the skills needed to start, develop, and fundraise for a national sports program and its national team, other than interest and my recent focus of starting the team at Pol-e-Charki and organizing the national team tryouts. I told him that I would speak with Leilani and we would pray and discuss about it. I would give him an answer in a few days.

Since we had to get to Darul Aman, we had to finish our meeting. Rohullah was hoping for us to stay longer and for an answer, but I told him it will come soon.

Our trip to Darul Aman was very interesting. Between us almost getting in 50 accidents and Abdul Kholic's sole focus on why I would not coach the team, it was a pretty stressful ride. It was amazing to see how a big 7-ton truck can maneuver through traffic. We survived the ride there but Abdul Kholic was not done asking why I was not willing to help. I tried ten different ways to explain it to him that I did not say no, I just needed to think about it, discuss it with Leilani, and look at the feasibility of it. Could this be something that could really be put together? If I were to take this program on, the team could not train two-three months out of the year. We would have to get them out of Afghanistan and into a first world country to train the team. I tried explaining this Abdul Kholic, through Reshad, that there was a lot to think about. Abdul Kholic was still not happy and felt that I did not care about Afghanistan.

Towards the entrance of the base at Darul Aman, there was a palace from a former king of Afghanistan. Even though it was almost completely destroyed, you could see the beauty and could imagine how it once looked. I tried asking Abdul Kholic about it, but he was frustrated with me. Reshad tried giving me a little history about the palace.

The graduation ceremony at Darul Aman was very quaint. It was on a dirt track, the graduating platoons did a pass in review, there were two band members who were just learning how to play their instruments, and it took seven minutes. Other than Reshad, the Commandos, and I, there were no other spectators. It was very different from a boot camp graduation ceremony in the United States, where the bleachers would be full of families and friends, a big military band participating, a pass in review where everyone is in step, a honor guard, a long speech from the commander and maybe a guest speaker, all of which could take between thirty minutes and an hour.

After the ceremony, Abdul Kholic went to the drill instructors and told them which soldiers he wanted. During the ceremony, he watched at how the soldiers marched and stood in formation. He also looked at how healthy and strong they looked. The drill instructors called the soldiers out of formation after Abdul Kholic would point them out. The soldiers then went to get their bags and jumped on the truck. It was a very quick process and the soldiers were not told where they were going or anything. It was an interesting evolution to watch and I wondered how the Afghan National Army would account for these individuals or what would happen when these soldiers did not show up at their new commands. I guess we will see how this works.

Even though Abdul Kholic was satisfied that we accomplished a big mission that he and I have been working for a long time, he was still mad at me and did not say much on the way back to Pol-e-Charki. We were still defying death and accidents by the miracle of us fitting in spaces half the size of the vehicles. With no regard for the newly recruited soldiers who were stuffed in the back of the 7-ton truck like sardines, they somehow made it back to Pol-e-Charki with no incident too.

The rest of the day was very quiet. Not much was said in the office. Hopefully, I will be able to talk about this with Leilani soon.