Gaza athlete dodges bullets in race to Beijing

By Nidal al-Mughrabi

BEIT HANOUN, Gaza Strip (Reuters) - Air raids and rocket fire disrupt his training, his running shoes are cheap and scruffy and even getting Israeli permission to leave the Gaza Strip was a struggle.

But armed with "faith and self-confidence," Palestinian athlete Nader al-Masri is determined to make Gaza proud at the Beijing Olympics in August.

"I want to raise a Palestinian flag and to win some pride for my town and for my country," said Masri, one of a four-member Palestinian team who hope to compete in China and the only representative from the impoverished Gaza Strip.

Every day Masri, a 28-year-old father of three from Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip, jogs past bombed-out buildings and houses riddled with bullet holes, and alongside fields regularly pounded by Israeli missiles aimed at militants.

Children shout "Run, Nader run" and adults wave to him as he trudges along his training route.

"Rockets and raids affect my training," Masri told Reuters, wearing blue running shorts and a matching T-shirt. "I cannot train at home -- I am a long-distance runner."

Masri is planning to run in the 5,000 meters. His personal best time is 14 minutes 25 seconds, almost two minutes slower than Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele's world record of 12:37.35, but Masri believes he can improve by 40 seconds.

The Palestinians took part in the Olympics for the first time at the 1996 Games in Atlanta. They also sent a team to Sydney in 2000 and Athens in 2004.