------Program code: DO-080820-02032 (what's this?)
Source: CCTV.com
08-20-2008 08:38
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Beneath the snow-capped peaks of Pamir in southern Xinjiang, lies a village called Eksak. It’s a remote and isolated village where an unlikely legend has been passed down. In 1885, the villagers made their first football using sheepskin and cotton, and ever since, Eksak has been known as the footballing village.
When Eksak awakes amid the morning mist, the new day begins. 85-year-old Muhemmet Zunun is the head of a family of footballers. His family can make up two teams. In Eksak, it’s not only the young people who play football, but the elderly, too. They can often be seen playing a match in the fields. To find out about Eksak’s footballing history, the best person to ask, is Muhemmet Zunun.
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Yusupjan is Muhemmet Zunun’s grandson. He is studying football at Urumqi Sports University, and today he has returned home. He is the first college student from the village to study football. Because of this, he is Zunun’s favourite grandson.
As he always does when he returns home, Yusupjan has bought presents for his grandfather, brothers and sisters. All of them prefer gifts that are associated with football.
Yusupjan’s arrival never fails to rekindle the old man’s love of football.
The first time a football was ever made in Eksak was in 1885. It was made of sheepskin. It soon became the custom, after the alfalfa was harvested, for all the villagers to assemble in the fields for a football match. Before long, Eksak was known across China's western region as the footballing village.
In 1927, the football fever in Eksak came to the notice of the Swedish and British consulates in Kashgar. Kashgar had been a famous city on the Silk Road since ancient times. The city of Artux, to which Eksak belonged, was only a few dozen kilometers from Kashgar. The British Consulate sent a letter to Eksak, challenging the villagers to a friendly game. In response, the villagers organized Eksak’s first farmers’ football team. Riding on horses and donkeys, they set out for the match.
To the delight of all of Kashgar, Eksak beat the British team by a score of 2-nil. Since then, the names of the team members have been etched in the memory of every Eksak native. Pictures of the team are still exhibited at Eksak Elementary School. The victory is one reason why football is the pride of Eksak village. Their example has inspired generations of Eksak’s villagers. In the China Jianlibao A-Group Football Tournament for Elementary Schools, Eksak Elementary School took the runner’s-up place.
Eksak Elementary School was founded in 1885, by Ba Wudong and Yushan. Today, the school is known as a cradle of modern education in Xinjiang. Muhemmet Zunun once attended the school, and his grandsons are currently studying there. Most of the teachers are ethnic Uygurs, and the school’s curriculum is bilingual.
Zunun has more than 30 grandchildren. He himself isn’t sure of the exact figure. 15 of his grandchildren are playing for various football teams in the county. To help in their training, Zunun has painted a goal on the wall of his house, so that the children can practice shooting. The old man’s dearest wish is that one of his grandchildren will become a member of the national team.
The city of Artux was once the capital of Shule, one of the 36 kingdoms of Western China at the time of the Han dynasty. Two thousand years have passed, and the place still retains its ancient serenity.
