Win book about Gibril Sankoh

This book tells the impressive story of Gibril Sankoh from Sierra Leone. Gibril grows up in the capital Freetown and has a fairly carefree childhood.

The story

Although Sierra Leone is one of the poorest countries in the world, he has food every day, a place to sleep every night and he tackles every day to pursue his greatest passion. Play football. The country is football crazy and it is often played in the streets of Freetown. From an early age, Gibril has participated in street tournaments where neighborhoods regularly challenge each other. They often play for money and sometimes a football match ends in a fight. It is survival and there are strict laws on the streets.

Gibril has talent, something that quickly becomes apparent. Under the nickname Barrel, he quickly became a well-known figure on the streets of Freetown. Football saves him. He stays away from the nearby ghetto where the criminal trail always lurks. He sees friends with less football talent and few prospects disappearing in droves, but Gibril is holding his own. In fact, if he is selected for the under-17 national team as a 15-year-old, the world is open to him. Barrel is considered one of Sierra Leone’s greatest talents.

A civil war

But then a terrible and ruthless civil war reaches Freetown. When the rebels are finally driven out, Gibril is still not safe. This is because he coincidentally has the same surname as the rebel leader, Foday Sankoh. One day, Gibril is smuggled to the port of Freetown by his feared father and put on a cargo ship. Suddenly his life is turned upside down, he is separated from his mother and everything he loves. In the hold of a large container ship, Gibril Sankoh sails into an uncertain future.

A few weeks later, with little clothes on his body, scanty food and no belongings, he steps onto the quay of the port of a wintry Rotterdam. Gibril is released and then wanders the city streets for hours. The illegal Gibril Sankoh brought only one thing to the Netherlands. His football talent.