Asian Games an Important Part of AIA Initiative

This past December, eight AIA staff members traveled to the 15 th annual Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, a multi-national sporting event serving as a "warm-up" for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Attending the Asian Games was part of an initiative to develop 15,000 spiritually mature athletes and coaches around the world by 2008. Athletes in Action staff members will attend 16 global sporting events in two years, concluding with the Olympics.

Forty-five countries were represented at the Asian Games, all of which are located in the 10/40 window. Located next to Saudi Arabia, Qatar is a small peninsula country extending northward into the Persian Gulf, comparable to Detroit in population with 863,000 people.

AIA staff members made the trip to Qatar, where they hoped to serve as chaplains for the 10,000 competitors living in the Athletes' Village, a role they've been accustomed to playing at past global sporting events. This time, however, AIA staff members were denied official chaplaincy accreditation despite numerous attempts to get certified months before.

Unsure how God would use them and lacking authorized access to the athletes, they went anyway, praying that God would grant them favor. A few days after arriving, AIA staff members Judy Kirkpatrick and Reid Lamphere met the woman who oversaw the "Religious Center," a resource open to all faiths located in the Athletes' Village for competitors.

After introductions they learned there was no one available to staff the "Christian" worship room and soon they were given four daily passes to the Athletes' Village. That meant AIA staff members had unlimited access in the Village, giving them freedom to converse with athletes in the cafeteria, residence halls, and internet and recreation areas.

While in Qatar, Judy had numerous encouraging conversations with female competitors from many of the countries closed to Christianity.

"One evening at dinner with two archers from Bhutan," says Judy, "one of the women asked about the ring I wear on my pinkie finger with a cross on it. This gave me a wide open door to speak of my relationship with Christ and how I became a Christian."

Since the Games, Judy has kept in touch with these women, pursuing more spiritual conversations via e-mail.

AIA staff members Ben Thomas and Kevin Sides also attended the Games, representing AIA South Asia. The men and their families re-located to Bangalore, India, last October from the United States for 14 months, with the desire to establish the AIA sports ministry in that part of the world. Currently, they are implementing a nationally run sports ministry into the current Campus Crusade for Christ campus movement.

"Our goal in attending the Games," says Kevin, "was to meet members of the Indian delegation and build relationships that would further enhance and accelerate ministry here [in Bangalore]."

While in Qatar, Kevin and Ben met two Christian Indian "sportsmen" who represented Indian Beach Volleyball. (In South Asia, athletes are called sportsmen. The term "athlete" pertains only to track and field competitors in the region.) They spent time in Bible study and prayer with these two sportsmen, already regarded as potential leaders for the budding sport ministry in India.

Overall the event was a great success.

"As we start to make inroads for sport ministry in this part of the world [ South Asia ], the Asian Games provided contacts and exposure for our team that we pray God will use to reach South Asian sportsmen and coaches with the gospel," says Ben.