Kids' Activities 07-1

Coloring in Tunisian Flags

	Soma Kato coloring in a Tunisian flag with a red crayon. (Nishinippon Shimbun)

In the center there is a crescent and a star. In the photo, the kids are using red crayons to color in a Tunisian flag. On the back is written "Bienvenue à Saiki" (French for "Welcome to Saiki"). The letters have also been colored in with crayons.

The city of Saiki in Oita Prefecture is the venue for the Tunisian team's pre-World Cup training camp. In an effort to raise people's interest in Tunisia, Saiki City enclosed outlines of the Tunisian flag in about 25,000 copies of the city newsletter and delivered them to every home in the city. The outlines were printed on A4 paper. Nine-year-old Soma Kato, who lives in Saiki, said: "You stick the paper to a pole to make a flag."

Tunisia arrived in Saiki on May 17 and played a practice match against Oita Trinita, currently the leading club in the J. League Second Division, on May 18. Kato is usually a Trinita fan, but before the match he said: "I'm not sure which team I'll support." About 12,000 people turned up to watch the game, many more than the stadium's capacity of 4,500, so a lot of people watched on a big screen that was set up outside. Oita Trinita won the match 2-1. (Nishinippon Shimbun)