FOOTBALL (Soccer)

Summary of the event. What actually happens?

What does it feel like to participate?

It feels very good to be playing soccer. You are always running and moving around. If you are a professional at soccer you are always in good physical condition and can always be playing soccer. You need to have good teamwork to be able to pass the ball around and not be selfish if someone else has a better shot at the goal than you do.

What kind of training is involved?

In order to become an Olympic athlete in this sport you have to train really hard. They will have needed to be playing for most of there life because people that just want to play right then don’t know about the game or have the finesse to do it.

What equipment do you need?

To play soccer you need soccer boots. They can have studs or cleats on the bottom of the shoe. You also need a ball. This ball has to be round, and made of leather or other material. You also need goalie gloves and goal posts. These goals post are put together with a crossbar and are put in the middle of the field on both ends of the field. You also need your teams uniforms to match with the players on your team. Most important you need Shin Guards so people don’t hit your shins when you play.  

When and where is the event being held during the upcoming Olympics in Beijing?

The soccer games will be held from August 6-23, 2008 in five different cities. These cities are Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenyang and Qinhuangdao. The final games will be played in Beijing in three different stadiums, the National Stadium, the Workers Stadium and the Olympic Sport Center Stadium. The other stadiums outside of Beijing are Shanghai Stadium, Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium, Shenyang Olympic Sport Center Stadium, and the Qinhuangdao Olympics Sports Center Stadium.