Iranian President Ahmadinejad Gives Soccer Tips to National Team

Following are excerpts from a meeting between Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and the national Iranian soccer team, which aired on Channel 3, Iranian TV, on June 7, 2006.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: As can be seen, whenever our youth enter a certain field, if they are united and have faith and determination, they are successful. One of these is the nuclear field.

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Mr. Dadkan, how wide is the goal? 7.25 meters?

Dadkan: 7.22 meters.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: 7.22 meters. What is the ball's diameter, Mr. Enayati?

Soccer player: Ask the coach.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: What is the ball's diameter? No way can it be 40 cm. It looks like I will have to meet with you every week.

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It weighs 453 grams, which is equal to one pound, but its diameter does not exceed 25 cm.

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Believe me, you can score from even 40 meters away. Kick the ball to the corner of the goal, and the goalkeeper will never know where it came from.

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The fastest you can run is ten meters per second. Right? This is how fast sprinters run. Let's assume 10 or 11 meters...

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But if you "shoot" the ball, it can reach 30 meters per second. Let the ball do the running instead of you. Make your opponents run.

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A group of Germans contacted our embassy, and said they wanted Iranian flags in order to cheer the Iranian team. This is very significant and meaningful. This happens very rarely, because their own team is competing, and they usually prefer to watch their own team.