They
say time waits on no one, but it is time that is always
needed to give birth and sustain its development. On the
other end of the spectrum it is the evolution of time
which creates the aging process and after things mature
they become old and extinct.
Equated with the fact
that time heals all things, then, Haiti will have to go
through these processes to recover from the earthquake
of January 12, 2010. As long as the brain or mind keeps
us sane then we can believe that all things are
possible.
I remember going to
Columbus Ohio to cover the CONCACAF Gold Cup Group A
double header with Canada, Jamaica, El Salvador and
Costa Rica and after the games I felt compelled to see
Haiti and Grenada in Group B the next day in Washington.
Haiti has always been
intriguing to me and it also helps that they are always
a difficult opponent to the other Caribbean teams. The
following day Grenada came up on the short end of a 2-0
match at RFK Stadium.
Haiti was focused that
day and it showed in their warm ups. The mighty USA had
to pull out all the stops to equalize in injury time to
tie 2-2 and Haiti advanced to the quarter final round,
only to lose to Mexico, the eventual Gold Cup Champions.
Haiti accomplished this
after getting into the Gold Cup through the back door
after winning a coin toss over Trinidad and Tobago to
replace Cuba who had withdraw from the tournament. This
time things looked bleak again since very early in the
Haiti earthquake tragedy, I was informed of the
potential loss to the Haiti Football Federation who was
meeting at the same time of the quake.
But only after CONCACAF
President Jack Warner returned from Haiti, the
information was reported.
The three-story Haitian
Football Federations headquarters had collapsed, and
buried close to 30 people that afternoon to add to
Haiti’s rising death toll, which is now close to 200,000
from the quake.
As President of CONCACAF,
and to which Haiti is a member, Warner promised to get
soccer in Haiti up and running and pledged $100,000 of
his own money together with a plea to FIFA to assist
Haiti’s rebuilding process.
FIFA responded by
donating three million dollars to the Haiti relief fund
and in support of Warner’s commitment to Haiti’s
football and people.
"We shall rebuild this (FHF)
building. We must never forget what has happened here
but we will chart our future from today. "Warner said.
Meanwhile Haitian football federation president Yves
Jean Bart was one of the few people that escaped through
the rubble of the building from the effects of the
quake, and has continued to conduct the federation
business on his Blackberry handheld wireless device.
"It is the only piece of
equipment which remains from the Federation" Jean Bart
said.
With the Haiti football
operation barely functioning, Haiti has decided to
participate in the CONCACAF U-17 Women tournament. Haiti
will be opening the tournament against the defending
champion United States, and it goes without saying which
team is my sentimental favorite.
I know there was a lot
of skepticism about Haiti before the quake, but we
should be mindful that Haiti was the first Caribbean
country to gain its freedom from slavery and that must
have taken determination and togetherness.
Their practice of Voodoo
was always front and center of issues which obscured
rational thinking. But February is Black history month
and you can get informed with black people struggles and
accomplishments on the airwaves.
It still boggles the
mind watching slavery, poverty, lack of opportunities
and social deprivation. However, in spite of troubles,
Haiti is in the second biennial of the CONCACAF
Womens-17 championship.
They will be making
their first ever appearance at the youth tournament,
after once qualifying for the Women's U-19 Youth
tournament in 2002. It is my feeling that it could not
come at a better time.
"Haiti's participation
in this tournament under the most difficult
circumstances is a testament to the will and commitment
of the Haitian Football Federation, their players and
coaches and the Haitian people," Warner said.
"We applaud their
perseverance and look forward to working together to
rebuild their football program and country."
Haiti Women team is in Santo Domingo, under the care of
the Dominican Football Federation who is providing
lodging, training facilities and other assistance to
help prepare the team for next month's championship.
The CONCACAF Women’s U-17
tournament, will to be played in Costa Rica, and will
run from March 10-20. The two finalists will qualify for
the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in September along with
the host Trinidad & Tobago.
