Ole Ole Ole.. Dear Moroccan runners we support you

They covered themselves with red flags and balloons, they painted their faces with green-colored stars, they stood at the entrance of the central park in 63rd street west chanting louder than any New York City Marathon crowd “Ooooole ole ole ole”.

As a loyal fan to the sport called soccer in US, I couldn’t resist following them, wondering what 24 football fans are doing in the Big Apple’s running competition?

My first impression was right. As I got closer to the group, I noticed that most of its young members were wearing red jerseys of the National Moroccan soccer team and Wydad Casablanca, one of the North African country's most famous soccer clubs.

Two young guys raised a white six feet-wide sign reading “Go Moroccan runners, all Moroccans in USA are behind you”.

“One year ago, none of this group members knew each other, supporting our runners in the central park last year was our first gathering”, said Otman Tahiri, a business graduate student at City University.

According to Tahiri, about 4 Moroccan students decided to bring their compatriots to the big apple in the central park to support the Moroccan runners in New York City’s 2009 marathon.

“The official aim of the gathering was supporting the runners but actually it was a good chance for socializing”, he added.

Few of the 10 girls in the group were checking their cell phones to find out the marathon’s final results before one of them said with a disappointed voice “Goumri finished in the fourth place”.

Abderrahim Goumri is one of three Moroccan runners who finished Sunday’s marathon in the top 15 list.

The rest of the group didn’t look so disappointed when they knew that Ethiopian runner Gebre Gebrmariam won the marathon, Tahiri smiled while admitting the Kenyan and Ethiopian dominance over long distant races because “even if the Moroccans didn’t win medals at least the group had fun”.

“After last year’s gathering we started a Facebook group and we are planning to establish an association once most of the group members finish their university studies” said Mohamed Tabrani, a member of the group who works as an officer in Queens College study abroad department.

The Facebook group named “Moroccans in New York” started last year with fewer than 30 members. Now it has more than 369 members.

Members usually meet once every 2 months in the central park to celebrate special occasions like the Islamic feasts or to share a meal.