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Great Britain and Liberia Confirm World Cup Play
Team Great Britain and Team Liberia have informed 2009 Amputee Soccer World Cup Organizers of their intent to participate in this year's championship tournament.
The addition of these two teams brings the number of nations participating to nine. They are:
Russia to Host Annual Commonwealth Cup
Prior to World Cup Play
Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan are scheduled to play in this year's Commonwealth Cup tournament to be held in the Russian City of Nizhniy Novgorod.
Described as a "small, but very serious tournament" this year's Commonwealth will be held between 10 and 15 August.
It's being considered not only a key easterner tournament, but also an important training and 'warm-up" tournament for teams planning to vie for the Amputee Soccer World Cup in Brazil this September.
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Amputee Football Mourns the Loss of Rev. Robert Mawlue Karloh
Rev. Robert Mawlue Karloh, President of the Amputee Football Federation of Africa, has passed away.
Rev. Karloh was a tireless supporter of amputee football throughout western Africa and saw the sport as both a vehicle for giving new meaning and status to the lives of the region's disabled, and also as a force of reconciliation to heal the wounds of civil warfare and tribal conflict.
Football for reconciliation
Karloh became involved in the African amputee football movement through his work as deputy director of disarmament after Liberia's lengthy civil war.
For him the success and popularity of the players is not only a form of social work but also a feature in national reconstruction.
"The amputee status is a stigma," he said. "There is a tendency for people to reject these men who fought the war that tore the country apart.
"Now everybody comes along to see them play football and cheer for them. It sends a message: 'I have forgiven you.' It's a form of healing.
"For example," he added with a smile, "we have people who fought against each other now playing on the same side."
It was through Rev. Karloh's work that the first All Africa Amputee Soccer Tournament in 2007. That tournament launched a new world-wide awareness of amputee football and its players.
 Letters of Condolence to Rev. Karloh's Family and Colleagues
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