RABAT: Under the scorching summer sun in Rabat, coach Ichtar Zahraoui bellows directions to “The Pirates,” young Moroccan men and women learning to play American football together on the gridiron.
Focused and sweaty, 30 players gather every Sunday to practice the sport, an unusual scene in a country obsessed with soccer, the variety of football far more commonly played across the globe.
“It’s not easy to make young Moroccans love American football,” 39-year-old Zahraoui says.
“It’s an aggressive sport that requires a lot of energy, work and equipment,” says Zahraoui, who founded “The Pirates” men’s and women’s teams in 2017.
Lacking numbers and resources, they have to train together on the same modest plot of land in the heart of Rabat’s Old Town — and if that’s not available, the beach.
At practice the “Pirates Boys” and “Pirates Girls” zigzag between cones and plow into tackling dummies, training pads and sometimes each other.
Without hesitation, the players — mostly students aged under 30, recruited by word of mouth — form mixed teams and alternate between offense and defense.
“We’re trying to make the sport known and to explain to people that football isn’t rugby,” Zahraoui says.
The breathless self-taught coach has dreams of setting up the kingdom’s “first real American football team.”
To do so, she needs the support of an “American coach and a large NFL club,” she says, referring to the National Football League in the United States with which she has had “interesting contacts.”
American football made its debut in Morocco in 2012 with the creation of amateur teams in cities like Casablanca, Rabat and Tangiers. Two years later, the men’s national team won an inaugural African championship.
In 2015, Morocco’s first women’s football team — the “Black Mambas” — was formed in Rabat.
The sight of women playing the rough sport in the conservative Muslim society has sparked interest from Moroccan media and across social networks.
But Zahraoui says she has not once encountered a “problem of a sexist nature” since launching the project.
Female Moroccan athletes are nothing new, she says — they “have distinguished themselves in sports since the 1980s.”
“What we need are teams, a federation, coaches, referees, trainers and a championship,” she insists.
For now, the Pirates prefer to play flag football, a watered-down, low-contact version of the sport that requires little equipment.
The lighter touch has helped draw in participants from other sports such as basketball and judo who otherwise may not have joined.
“I came to watch a friend train, but the coach convinced me to come and try,” says Ghita Ouassil.
The chance encounter last year has turned the 21-year-old English literature student into a football regular.
“Before I was shy, but this sport helps develop your personality and self-control and to be less tense.”
In Morocco, American football isn’t a men-only affair
In Morocco, American football isn’t a men-only affair
- Focused and sweaty, 30 players gather every Sunday to practice the sport
- An unusual scene in a country obsessed with soccer, the variety of football far more commonly played across the globe
Home hero Piastri edges Antonelli in second Australian GP practice
- McLaren’s Oscar Piastri powered to the fastest time ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli in second practice for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Friday
MELBOURNE: McLaren’s Oscar Piastri powered to the fastest time ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli in second practice for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Friday as drivers grappled with sweeping new engine changes.
The Australian sent 125,000 fans at his home track into a frenzy by blasting round Albert Park in one minute 19.729secs, 0.214 clear of Antonelli.
Antonelli’s teammate, pre-season favorite George Russell, came third, a fraction clear of Ferrari’s seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.
“A lot of learnings but overall a reasonably good day,” said Piastri, who won seven times last year but could only finish the championship in third.
“FP2 ran smoothly and we were able to find a bit more consistency and the car behaved more as we expected, which was good.”
After a dismal debut season with Ferrari last year, an upbeat Hamilton was encouraged by what had been achieved so far by the Scuderia.
“It was challenging at times on track, but we maximized our laps and executed to the best of our ability, getting some good information,” he said.
“Lots of work to do but I’m looking forward to getting back in the car tomorrow.”
Charles Leclerc, in the other Ferrari, was fifth with four-time world champion Max Verstappen sixth after spending half the session in the garage having stalled his Red Bull.
McLaren world champion Lando Norris clawed his way to seventh, more than one second off the pace, after managing only seven laps in first practice due to gearbox issues.
“We’ve got some good bits of data to go over from the second half of FP2 and there’s plenty we can learn from what our competitors have been doing,” said Norris, while admitting to “a tricky first day.”
Racing Bulls’ impressive rookie Arvid Lindblad banked an eye-opening eighth, a place ahead of Isack Hadjar — the man he replaced and who is now Verstappen’s teammate.
F1 begins new era
It was the first proper test of far-reaching new engine and chassis rules with the hybrid power units now 50 percent traditional combustion and 50 percent electric.
With a finite amount of energy available, drivers had to carefully manage their batteries on each lap, working out when to deploy while building it up back through braking.
The challenge of Albert Park is its long sweeping straights, which deplete batteries, and relatively few twisty turns to brake and charge it up again.
There have also been changes to the aerodynamics of the cars, which are lighter and smaller.
On a perfect Melbourne afternoon, Nico Hulkenberg led them out, but it was Hamilton who set the opening time.
Verstappen had an inauspicious start, stalling in the pit lane, while Russell clipped Lindblad on his way out and needed a new nose.
Verstappen’s car was wheeled back into the garage, apparently stuck in gear, where he stayed for almost half an hour.
The drivers started on a mix of medium and hard tires and Russell soon upstaged Hamilton as they jockeyed for places.
At the halfway mark it was Italy’s Antonelli, Russell, Hamilton and Piastri.
Russell locked up and hit the gravel at Turn 3 as he pushed hard, as did Hamilton, but they both kept enough momentum to get back on track.
Piastri blasted to the top of the timesheets on soft tires with 25 minutes left as Verstappen began climbing the leaderboard.
But the Dutchman was trying too hard and careered into the gravel at Turn 10 with debris flying off his car, ending his day early.
Fernando Alonso clocked 18 laps and Lance Stroll 13 as the troubled Aston Martins battle extreme vibration caused by the new Honda power unit.
Newcomers Cadillac — the 11th team on the grid — also struggled with Valtteri Bottas 19th and Sergio Perez last.
In first practice, Leclerc outpaced Hamilton with Verstappen and Hadjar third and fourth.
