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Bobby Charlton visits Cambodia on land mine mission |
England soccer great Bobby Charlton arrived in Cambodia on Tuesday
as part of a mission to raise awareness for the impoverished
Southeast Asian nation's continuing land mine problem.
"We are going to try to teach young people how to recognize the
dangerous mines that are still around," said Charlton, who is in
Cambodia as a supporter of charity Spirit of Soccer, which helps
children in land mine affected areas of the world through the
development of soccer.
An estimated 4-6 million mines and other pieces of unexploded
ordinance remain buried in Cambodia after more than three decades
of armed conflict.
Charlton will to tour land mine areas in Battambang province, about
250 kilometers (155 miles) northwest of the capital Phnom Penh,
said Khek Ravy, vice president of Football Federation of Cambodia.
Spirit of Soccer operates one of its two soccer coaching projects
in Cambodia, the other is in Bosnia.
On Thursday, Charlton — who joined Manchester United when he
was 17 — will meet with young Cambodian soccer players to
discuss some techniques with them.
Charlton, 70, is one of soccer's best known identities. He was a
member of England's 1966 World Cup winning team, the same year he
was named European Footballer of the Year.
The Manchester United director said Cambodia should promote its
soccer to as high a level as many of its regional neighbors.
"It's about time," he said. "Everyone's waiting for Cambodia.
Vietnam, China, everywhere else is very happy playing football."
World governing body FIFA ranks Cambodia's national team at 169
out of 208.
Charlton visited Spirit of Soccer's Bosnian program in 2005.
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