Members of the delegation participate in a soccer clinic for youth with disabilities.

Age: 15
Experience: 2 years with Young Rising Stars
Position: Goalkeeper

This afternoon, we had the opportunity to teach, practice, and play soccer with young disabled kids. I really liked today. If there was a program like this in Pakistan, they would really like it. The parents there are worried that there’s no one to play with their kids. If all the Pakistanis played with them, the kids would have a lot of fun! I had a very good time and the kids were very cute, too. The kid that I worked with was focused on everyone else, so it was hard for him to focus on soccer! He was very attached to me.

Compared to all of the other soccer that I played, this was the best. Anyone can play with healthy kids, but I had so much fun playing with these kids! I really enjoyed it more.

Coach Shahid Ahmed Khan

I think this exchange was a good opportunity for the girls. They should have gotten a lot out of it. I hope they’ve learned a lot about the different systems. Obviously, the school system here is really good, the research is good, the school is good, and their methods are good. The practical things a person does stay in their minds a long time. One of the other good things is that education, sports, and other activities are all in the same place. It makes it easier for the parents.

We have a large number of disabled kids in our area and I was very happy to see what I saw today. We have decided that we are going to start something like this twice a month when we return home from the trip. It’s a sign of a strong society. The last thing that we did was the best part of the trip. It was a perfect ending to a great trip.

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Members of the Young Rising Stars Soccer team complete their tour at Voice of America.

Experience: 2 years with Young Rising Stars
Position: Left midfield
Favorite Players: David Beckham and Roberto Carlos

We started out this morning with a tour at the Voice of America. Some of my teammates were interviewed while we were there and I went on a tour of the studios with the others. It was very interesting, but I was so tired, so it was a little hard to pay attention.

After that, we went to see a movie on the ocean and sea animals at one of the museums in D.C. We watched it in an IMAX theater, which had a giant screen and the movie was in 3D. It felt like we were really there in the movie! It was pretty scary to feel like you were that close, but I loved it! My favorite part was about sharks.

Tonight, we will be going back to Robinson to watch the female soccer team that we met with on Tuesday. This is a big game for them, so we are all ready and excited to cheer for them and even brought our Robinson t-shirts! I definitely think that they will win!

Malika Noor
Age: 14
Experience: 2 years with Young Rising Stars
Favorite Player: David Beckham

This afternoon, we went into one of the museums in D.C. to see a movie on the ocean and sea animals. The movie screen was huge! The video started with jellyfish swimming and it really looked like they were right in front of me. It was fun for my friends and me to try and catch them! That was definitely my favorite part, but the whole movie was great. At the beginning, I was very sleepy from all of the activities that we have been doing this week, but the video woke me up. I loved it! On our way out, we got to go through the museum a little and saw lots of statues of animals. It was so cool to see an elephant, bugs and butterflies!

Later on, my teammates and I are going back to Robinson for the big match against their rivals. I think that there will be a lot of people cheering Robinson’s team on and it will be a great time. Plus, I think that Robinson will win, which will make the night even better!

Young Rising Stars warm up with Wakefield School's soccer team.

Age: 21
Experience: 2 years with Young Rising Stars

I’ve had a great trip so far! It’s been a lot of fun playing soccer with so many different people. I learned a lot from watching them and from playing with them. Their passing is much better than ours, and they have more stamina and strength than we do. These are skills that we are going to work on when we get home and hopefully the practice will make us a better team!

Today, we went to Wakefield School, a smaller school than we have been to before that was near the mountains. All of the students were very nice. While we were there, I went to a history class, and they asked us questions about Pakistan. I liked being able to attend an American class because it let me see what and how students my age study. The class’s questions made it even more interesting, as we were able to tell them what our lives in Pakistan are like and I think it fit in well with what they study in the class. It was a very pretty school with really nice facilities.

Asmara Habib
Age: 16
Experience: 2 years with Young Rising Stars
Position: Right out forward

Wakefield had great facilities! The facilities were much nicer than what we’re used to, and there seemed to be more discipline. I went to an art class and saw the class painting, printing, and doing photography. I really liked watching the students and learning more about what they were doing.

The biggest difference I’ve seen between girls in America and girls in Pakistan is soccer – girls here pass better. That will definitely be something that we work on during practices back at home. We have many competitions in the coming months and I think that making better passes during games will help us succeed. Except for that, girls here are pretty much the same as girls in Pakistan!

My favorite things about my trip so far have been bowling and meeting the girls we’ve played with. All of the players that we have met have been very welcoming and friendly to us and have taught us a lot about soccer and life in America. Bowling was so much fun, too. I had a great time playing against my teammates and dancing in between our turns. I also really loved the ropes course, even though I was stuck in the middle on the zip line!

Youth soccer delegation attends a high school music class.

Age: 17
Experience: 2 years with Young Rising Stars
Position: Forward, Striker
Favorite Player: Michael Owen

American high schools are much different than what I have seen on TV! The people are all much nicer. This afternoon, we went to Robinson Secondary School, where we went on a tour and practices with their female soccer team.

When we arrived, we were greeted by members of their team, their coach, and their assistant coach. The girls were quite nice and welcoming. After talking with them at lunch, they showed us around their school. It was huge! I think that I would get lost if I went here. There were so many different kinds of classrooms in the building. There were certain rooms for each type of class, like science labs, computer labs and art and music classrooms. This was so different than my school, where we have classrooms, a couple of science labs and one computer lab with about 10 computers. Here, there were too many computers to count! I really liked how colorful the classrooms were and how many posters they had on the wall. It was interesting to learn that the students here can choose whatever they want to take. At my school, we choose whether we will study science or the arts in 9th grade and base our studies in one of those fields. We saw classes in psychology and music, which are offered to students at this school, but are not at mine. They also have sports facilities right at the school, which was really nice because our team uses the facilities at the park to practice.

After school finished, we joined the soccer team in their gymnasium for a practice. At lunch, the girls seemed like they would be very good soccer players, so I was looking forward to playing with them. We started out with warm ups and stretching, them did some drills that worked on specific skills, like passing, dribbling and directing the ball. Many of the drills were the same as the ones that we do with our team at home. The biggest difference that I noticed between are two teams was the speed of the players. They were definitely much faster. It was a lot of fun and it will be nice to see them play a game on Friday!

Faiza finishes the zip line element of a ropes course.

Age: 20
Experience: 1 year with Young Rising Stars
Favorite Player: Messi

We went to a Pakistani restaurant today for lunch, which was very enjoyable for us. It was nice to have some familiar foods. I really like cooking, so it was fun to see an authentic restaurant in Washington, D.C. We taught our program leaders about the kinds of food at the buffet, explaining to them what each dish was made of and whether it was spicy or not. While we were eating, they told us about dishes in other national cuisines that were similar to the ones from the buffet, which were also fun to hear about. It was good sharing this aspect of our cultures with each other.

After that, we went to Wal-Mart and it was great! We went there this afternoon since it was raining and had the chance to do some shopping. My teammates and I wandered all around the store, looking at all of the different things to buy. I bought lots and lots of chocolates. I love chocolate. I’m crazy about it. I bought all different kinds for my brothers, sisters and friends. I think that they will like the variety bag because they can try samples of many kinds of bars, like Snickers and Twix. I also saw some different lotions and nail polish that might be nice to try, so I got a few of those as well. There were so many things to look at; I think that I could have spent many more hours in the store! I used to think that Wal-Mart’s prices were so cheap, but now I don’t think so as much, it’s fairly normal.

Today I also got to call home and update my family on my trip. I was able to talk with my papa and mama, as well as my married sister. It was great to tell them all about the places that I have seen so far in Washington, D.C. and some of the activities that I have done with my teammates. I told them about how the program is organized, the people that I have been interacting with, and about some of the new friends that I have made. I hope to add to these stories in the next few days by meeting more soccer players, maybe even a few professional players!

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DC Stoddard Soccer Club and Young Rising Stars players have fun after a scrimmage.

Age: 22
Experience: 1 year with Young Rising Stars
Position: Assistant Coach, Center Strike
Favorite Player: Ronaldinho

I celebrated my birthday today in the United States with my teammates. We had so much fun! I was very happy to spend today with my friends from Pakistan and new American friends. I will never forget this birthday.

This afternoon, we participated in a practice with the DC Stoddard Soccer Club. The girls that attended the Washington Freedom clinic and game with us on Saturday belong to this club and invited us to meet the rest of their team today. It was good to see them again! We practiced a bit and then scrimmaged with teams that were a mix of their players and our team. We very much enjoyed the opportunity to play with the people here. As well as our experiences with other soccer teams, we learned a lot from the time spent together. The skills that we learned are similar to those that our coaches teach us, but we also had the chance to see the techniques that the players use here. This was very interesting and different for us. I enjoyed meeting new friends and, of course, hope to keep in touch with them after I get home.

After we finished the scrimmage, we went to a restaurant called Dave and Busters, which also had a section full of games. My teammates and I were a little tired and cold after playing this afternoon, but regained our energy after a milkshake (our favorite food here in the U.S.!). We had some really nice American food for dinner and dessert. I was surprised by a group of waiters that gave me ice cream with a candle on top! Everyone in the restaurant sang “Happy Birthday” to me and it was great. My teammates and coaches also gave me a card that everyone had signed, which was very special to me. My teammates and I are very good friends. We are like sisters, and my coaches are like my family members too. When we finished dinner, we went into the game room and played on the machines. There were so many to choose from! My favorites were the car racing games and the photo booth. I even got my picture sketched in one of the photo booths. It looks just like me! It was a great night and I wish to thank everyone for my wonderful 22nd birthday.

Young Rising Stars players practice ball handling skills.

Age: 15
Experience: 2 years, scored the first ever goal for Young Rising Stars and the National Championship winning penalty kick
Position: Wing or Left Strike
Favorite Player: Cristiano Ronaldo

Today, we had a unique opportunity to attend the first ever home match of the Washington Freedom, the new DC Women’s Professional Soccer team!

As we drove into the soccer complex this afternoon, I was amazed at how many fields there were! I have never seen a complex as big as this before. I saw many levels of soccer being played as we drove through. After we took a tour of the facilities, we got ready for a clinic and were surprised when the Freedom’s Assistant Coach and one of the Freedom’s players came out to lead the drills! We practiced a lot of ball handling skills, and learned new footwork that will help us move the ball around defenders during our games. One of the drills taught us how to step around the ball and trick our opponent, while we switched the direction of the ball. I can’t wait to use that in one of our matches. I think it will be really cool! My team and I had done some of the drills before, but we saw how important they can be and will make sure to do them more at our practices back home. By the end of the afternoon, we were all tired from the drills and running during the scrimmage and a bit cold from the winds that came after this morning’s rain. I couldn’t wait to rest for a bit!

After our clinic, we headed over to the Freedom’s stadium to watch their game. It was so much fun! At the entrance, we were handed plastic tubes, to cheer with. I didn’t know what they were, but I was told that they are called Thundersticks and you blow air into them, then bang them together to make noise. We had a great time with them! After the players were introduced, the announcer asked the crowd to welcome Pakistan’s Young Rising Stars Soccer team, I couldn’t believe it! I was really excited and happy when everyone cheered for us! I think that will be one of my favorite memories. The game was great, my teammates and I cheered the whole time and joined in Freedom’s chants. My favorite player for the Freedom was #17, Lisa De Vanna. Both teams played well, which made the game exciting, and it ended in a 1-1 tie. After the game, the players came to the railing by our seats and we got many players’ autographs!

On our way back to the hotel, we tried Thai food for the first time. It was exciting to try a different cuisine! There were some ingredients that I hadn’t heard of before, like basil, but in the end I enjoyed what I ordered.

Age: 19
Experience: Captain of the team, 8 years
Position: Defense
Favorite Player: Michael Ballack

My team and I had a lot of new experiences in the past day!
 
Yesterday, we went to George Mason University, where we learned about nutrition, injury prevention and Title IX. Our professors for the day, Jatin and Candice related the information to our sport and specific needs, so we can use these concepts when we return home. As we were talking about Title IX, I found out that the law applies to all facilities and activities that receive public funding, not just sports. This was something that I had been wondering for a while. I thought that it was interesting that because women cannot play American football on many levels, the number of sports for women has increased so that the number of participants meets the Title IX requirements. We also heard about Billie Jean King and her match against Bobby Riggs, and how that helped to reduce discrimination against women in sports. After that, we heard about how to prevent sports injuries, which is very important to us. At home, we are taught to massage and apply heat to an injury, but we learned to do just the opposite and ice the injury to make it heal quicker. This helped us to know what to do immediately after someone is hurt, which will be good during games in the future. Finally, we met with the university’s women’s soccer team. The girls were very friendly and talented. Many of them had been playing since they were 5, about 6 years before we were introduced to sport, and their experience showed when we scrimmaged against them. We all learned so much and had a lot fun, I think I could have spent several days on the campus!

Sports Visitors from Pakistan  playing Futsal

After leaving George Mason University, we went to a local high school and attended a Futsal clinic. We learned about how this sport differs from soccer, its history, and the rules. Coach Mike and a few of his players demonstrated how to play and then helped us to get started. Even though we were tired at the beginning, we were so excited by the end of the drills. We returned to the high school this morning to continue our practice. Today we were able to play games, since we learned the basics yesterday. We scrimmaged against some of the members of Coach Mike’s teams, most were girls our age, but others were younger than us and there were a few older boys, as well. It was so much fun! Coach Mike thought that we could be very good futsal players with a bit more training.

While we were at futsal, I talked with several of the American players and was interviewed by a reporter. I found that they had some misconceptions about my country, but after talking with them we both had a better understanding of each other. I was happy that I could teach them a bit more about Pakistan, as we continue to learn about the United States.

Age: 16
Position: Right Midfielder
Experience: Has played for 2 years
Team: Young Rising Stars Female Football Club
Favorite Players: Ronaldinho and Messi

We arrived in the United States two days ago and so far, I love being here. The people have welcomed us very warmly. I am a bit tired from the long flight and changing time zones, but am excited to start the activities!

Pakistani Sports Visitors practice with youth from a D.C. area soccer team.

Yesterday, we went to Positive Coaching Alliance, an organization that teaches athletes that sports are more than just winning or losing, that they can help you learn life lessons. Filipe and Rob were our coaches for the day, I liked them a lot because they were helpful and made our practice interesting. We went to a practice with American kids who were between 5 and 12 years old that are on Spring Break from their schools. I mostly played with the younger kids, they were so much fun! My favorite activity was a drill that combines soccer and tennis. You played soccer on a tennis court and could only hit the ball two times before passing it to another teammate. It was fun, but very challenging. I also liked that we warmed up for the practice by dribbling the ball. Usually our team jogs to warm up, but it was cool to try something different.

This morning, we went to George Mason University in Virginia. It was nice to see what towns outside of Washington, D.C. look like during our ride. We met with players on the university’s female soccer team, who were very friendly and welcoming. During our time at George Mason, two professors, Jatin and Candice taught us about nutrition, fitness and injury prevention. We were able to ask the professors all of our questions and learn about what we can specifically do to maintain and improve our health. It was so interesting! After the classes, we went to the cafeteria and the food was great. I loved the macaroni and cheese!