Lebanese sport paralysed by war

BEYROUTH, Aug 10 (Reuters) Joggers have left the famous Beirut corniche road and the national training pool is impressive and inviting but empty of swimmers.

Under constant attack from the Israeli army, the Lebanon capital is paralysed and the whole sport in the country is a victim of the war that has been raging for the last month.

The soccer team have been forced to withdraw from their Asia Cup qualifier against Bahrain in Manama on Aug 16 because of a lack of players.

''The tragic circumstances in our country makes it impossible for us to play this game,'' Lebanon FA general secretary Rahif Almeh told Reuters.

SOCCER-TIME ENOUGH FOR SOUTH AFRICA, ARCHITECT SAYS Moving at 0101 Lebanon is not a safe place any more, even for the country's top athletes.

Many players of the national squad have been unreachable, some of them have left their home, others are missing.

Traffic from the Beiruth airport is frozen, preventing the athletes to leave the country.

A whole people will, however, try to follow the basketball team, who have made it out of the country and will take part in this month's world championships in Japan.

''Everything is frozen as we had a busy schedule this summer,'' Soheil Khoury, the Lebanese Olympic Committee president, told Reuters.

''The whole season is lost,'' added Walid Younes, the volleyball federation president.

A beach volley tournament in Beirut planned for Aug. 8 has been cancelled.

FIRST BOMBINGS ''We had been working on this tournament for the past four months,'' said Younes.

The volleyball national team had signed a Tunisian coach in order to prepare for the Asian Games in Doha but the first bombings prompted the newly appointed coach to flee.

During the first war in Lebanon, all sports competitions had been cancelled from 1975 to 1992.

Clubs and fields are deserted and the athletes have quit their training programs.

In the southern villages of Lebanon, sports facilities have been destroyed though Tyr, Saida and Beirut have been spared so far.

''Only the national handabll federation's headquarters have been destroyed,'' said Khoury.

If they want to prepare for the Asian Games that will take place in Doha in December, the athletes will have to find a way to go abroad to train.

''We are working on this very hard with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Our athletes will be flown to Arab countries, Europe or Asia,'' said Khoury.

Last Sunday, three members of the athletics team have flown to Singapore.

In 2009, Lebanon will host the French-speaking countries Games.

However, the task will be daunting as parts of the country have been destroyed by the bombings.

REUTERS RS0832