Sports / Off the Field |
Bolivian president says to tackle Blatter on altitude ban(Reuters)Updated: 2007-06-20 08:36 LA PAZ, June 19 - Bolivia's soccer-loving president Evo Morales said on Tuesday he planned to meet FIFA chief Sepp Blatter to challenge him over a ban on playing international matches at high altitude. Morales is leading opposition in Andean countries to a ruling by world soccer's governing body to stop games being played at stadiums that lie more than 2,500 metres above sea level on health grounds. "I can't understand how an organization like FIFA, which has more members than the United Nations, can sideline those of us who live at high altitude," Morales told a local radio station. "We've got arguments, not just medical, sporting and cultural, but also political to defend high-altitude play." He said he expected to meet Blatter at FIFA's headquarters in Zurich on June 27. Morales, who has made the altitude issue a political priority since FIFA voted for the ban last month, said the ruling amounted to discrimination against mountainous nations. FIFA's ruling mainly affects Bolivia, who play in La Paz at 3,600 metres, and Ecuador, who play at 2,800 metres in Quito. Bolivia's only viable alternative would be the lowland city of Santa Cruz while Ecuador would have to play in the tropical port of Guayaquil.
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