-The cooperation started in 2007 when Million Wolde (winner in the Sidney 2000 Olympics) visited our local run. We then visited Addis Abeba in 2008, and established a project in cooperation with a local secondary school. At our run this year, we organized a special distance for children called “Minimila”, and sold t-shirts autographed by Million Wolde and Hailegebreselassie. In addition, pupils at the school had a project where they had one day off, and spent this working for friends and family. The money they collected, together with the income from the t-shirts enabled us to hand over 246200 Birr to Haile Gebreselassie in Addis Abeba in November, says Harald Nygård, technical manager of Knarvikmila.
A group of five including two pupils from Knarvik Ungdomsskule spent four days in Addis Abeba, and visited the Ethiopia Birhan Reproductive Health and Anti-Aids Association 210 km outside Addis Abeba. They run a centre for children orphaned or with parents that are severely ill from HIV/AIDS. The financial support from Norway is directed at improving the sanitation at the Centre.
-The pupils at the school had has become very much interested in Ethiopia. They have been given an assignment, to prepare a presentation on Ethiopia to be given the last day before the Christmas Holiday starts in mid December. 27 pupils were interested to go to Ethiopia for the hand-over of the contributions raised. We decided who could go through a draw, there were only two who could be part of the group, and twenty-five students were left disappointed when they were told that their names had not been picked, says Nygård.
In Addis, the group got to meet Haile Gebreselassie, and took part in the Great Ethiopian Run, where one of the members (a runner of Ethiopian origin) clocked in with the time 36 minutes.
They got many impressions from their Ethiopia-visit:
-Sports and athletics give an immense pride to the Ethiopian people. Ethiopians are friendly and very accommodative. We were so impressed with how the Great Run is organized, and how the participants contribute to help their own people. Meeting with Haile Gebreselassie was a wonderful experience; he is such a nice and down-to earth guy who impressed all of us so much. Our dream is to have a visit from him at Knarvikmila, but it is not likely to happen the next couple of years as he is so busy. We will continue our cooperation with the Great Ethiopian Run. Next year, the theme for Knarvikmila will be how people can use sports to get out of poverty, something Ethiopian Athletes have experienced, Harald Nyghård concludes.