Back in The Ring

Al-Fekaiki says he also met with two representatives from Bechtel, the U.S. construction giant working in Iraq, at a January conference in Amman, Jordan. "We got no active response," he says. "A company like Bechtel is funded by U.S. taxpayers to do a job in Iraq. I don't think it sees its existence in Iraq as long term." Francis Canavan, a Bechtel spokesman in Baghdad, says the employees at the conference do not recall talking to al-Fekaiki. He points out that Bechtel, which won $2.9 billion in reconstruction contracts from the U.S. government, has set aside $25,000 to match, "dollar for dollar," employee contributions for Iraqi school supplies. "To suggest that any decision [on an N.O.C.I. request] reflects our commitment to Iraq is simply unfair," says Canavan.

Although N.O.C.I. officials are quick to express their disappointment at the low level of corporate interest, they acknowledge that given the daily shootings and car bombings, such investment carries great risks and for some companies little reward. "We're trying to sell Nike rights that have no value," says N.O.C.I. adviser Mark Clark. "Let's be realistic — these [companies] have to run a business." So for now donations (54,000 soccer balls from the U.S. State Department) and a sort of international buddy system (Ali is sparring in the U.S.; the weight lifters have trained in Romania) are picking up the slack. With Najah Ali now fearing a hard-charging coach named Termite rather than a psychopath named Uday, come August, sports may bring long-awaited glory to Iraq. And what company wouldn't want a place on the medal stand?