Gambian’s Gambian roots formed the star of Crystal House
Ihsaa Boys Soccer: Christel House Habib Bojang on playing football in Gambia
Habib Bojang moved to Indianapolis from Gambia in May. He’s now a Crystal House star forward thanks to his African roots.
- Habib Bojang transferred from Gambia to Indianapolis on May 12. He brought with him the love of football that made him a Crystal House star.
- Bojang lost his mother in 2016 and both his grandparents on the same day in 2021. The deaths gave him a reason behind his passion.
- Bojang did not have stalls, water, electricity or food at times. He was still so talented at soccer that the locals would not let him play in every game.
INDIANAPOLIS — Habib Bojang traveled with his grandmother to her farm in Sokota, Gambia, at 6 a.m. every day. They returned home by seven so Bojang could start his 30-minute walk to school.
At least that’s where Siya Manh always thought her grandson was.
Bojang wore his uniform outside the house, but secretly stuffed his soccer training clothes into his bag. 12-year-old Bojang would find a remote area in his neighborhood and change before traveling to a local soccer field for training three mornings during the school week.
“I didn’t have any other dream but football,” Bojang said. “I’ve had this my whole life.”
Bojang and his family moved from the small West African country to Indianapolis on May 12, the day before Bojang’s high school equivalency exam. Bojang, 19, had to repeat his senior year since he missed the audition. He enrolled at Christel House and made football coach Keith Stewart.
Bojang finished his only regular season at Christel with 20 goals and 12 assists, the highest goal assist percentage and most goals scored in a season in program history. He led the Eagles to their most wins in six years and a 7-6-1 record.
Bojang tallied two assists in the Eagles’ 3-0 win over Providence Cristo Rey on Monday in the first round. IHSAA Class A Boys Soccer State Competition section. Christel will play Greenwood Christian on Wednesday in the semifinals. Bojang described his success as “surprising” and said he “didn’t expect to come here and do what I’m doing.”
“I think he looks at the game of football in an intimate and personal way that a lot of high school players don’t,” Stewart said. “They go out and play soccer, and they carry on with the rest of their night. For Habib, it means a lot to him.”
What a tough Gambian upbringing shaped Bojang into a football star
Bojang’s family knew he would love football when he was born. Bojang’s hairstyle at birth is similar to the previous one Manchester City Football player Sergio Aguero. She was adopted by family and friends five times English Premier League The hero’s last name was used as Bojang’s nickname. Bojang embraced it and became a fan of Agüero and Manchester City at a young age.
Bojang started playing in local leagues as a teenager. He won awards and led teams in scoring on multiple occasions. Some leagues wouldn’t let him play games because he was too good. When he made his step onto the field, no one was safe.
“Even if you were my friend, when we were playing, I didn’t know you as a friend,” Bojang said. “When I play, I play with passion.”
Bojang walked an hour to a local beach to train after high school classes ended at 1:30 pm, he stayed until almost 7 pm Bojang had no equipment, just enthusiasm. The stones were his cones. Wood achieved the goal.
Bojang was used in Litlle. But he found fulfillment in football while lacking the basic necessities of life.
The Bojang family survived without consistent access to light, water, and food. Bojang studied 10 subjects a day in the school growing up and was assigned daily book reports, but she could not study on nights when his house had no electricity. He went to bed without eating sometimes. The Bojang community had water taps, but they were often empty. Bojang had to walk about 10 minutes to draw water that wasn’t always clean from a nearby neighborhood well.
“Being poor in The Gambia and later seeing those things that you never had before, you will never take them for granted because I know where I come from,” Bojang said. “Anything I do on the field, I’m not kidding.”
Food, water, and electricity were scarce, but they would arrive eventually. In July 2016, Bojang lost a necessity he would never return: his mother.
Amy Cham died during labor. The child also died. The maternal mortality rate in the United States was 16.7 deaths per 100,000 live births the year Sham died, according to American Labor Forum. the World Bank Group The Gambia was reported to have 493 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2016.
“It’s hard because I didn’t get my mother’s love in my teenage years,” Bojang said. “I can’t say, ‘That’s my mom.’ I can only look at the pictures.”
Bojang’s father, Haruna, received backlash until he married in 2018. Bojang said Gambians tend to look at adult men who are not married to children. The neighbors started asking Bojang, “Why doesn’t your father get married since your mother died?” The time Bojang taught him, “Even if you are a good person, people will talk. I learned how to let everything go and focus on his family and football.”
Bojang and his four siblings moved in with their grandparents, Manh and Solomon Cham, after their mother died and lived there until 2020.
He said Bojang contracted severe food poisoning in September 2018. At times, Bojang struggled to walk, eat and “couldn’t do anything for himself.” However, football was on Bojang’s minds. Bojang’s father ordered him not to play and told his older brother to monitor him. But football was his medicine.
“I made a plan,” Bojang said with a smile as he reflected on himself, but he committed himself at 11 while sitting in a classroom at Christel House.
Bojang threw the training equipment over his fence and into his neighbor’s backyard. Then he told his brothers that he was going to the store. When the coast was clear, he gathered his belongings and headed to the football field.
“Nothing can stop me,” Bojang said. “I just wanted to get to the next level.”
Two years later, it seemed that “Next Level” was closer. The Bojangs were about to get their American visas. Then Covid-19 hit. Bojang’s dream, like many others, has been put on pause.
In the midst of a global pandemic, death strikes the Bojang family once again. This time, twice in one day. Around 11 a.m. on July 19, 2021, Suleiman died from high blood pressure. The family buried him on the same day according to their Islamic beliefs. Around 5 p.m., at the funeral venue, Manneh got out of her seat to go to the bathroom.
Bojang’s grandmother did not return to her seat. Manah immediately fell asleep when she entered the bathroom. The sheer weight of grief, intertwined with her own high blood pressure problems, took up Sham’s life.
Bojang said: “Losing my mum in 2016 and then my grandparents on the same day in 2021 has left me heartbroken. “It’s never happened to me, so every time I play football, I give it my all. Pain motivates me and reminds me why I can’t give up, and why I need to keep pushing. I use this energy to go harder on the field and continue to get better every day.”
“My Gambian people are watching me”
Bojang’s harrowing experiences in Gambia shaped what he called “a long journey.” He hopes it will lead to playing soccer in college and eventually MLS.
Stewart believes Bojang can go pro because he can make game-changing adjustments like when he led the Eagles to a 5-3 win over Indiana Math and Science Academy with two goals and two assists in the final 24 minutes on Sept. 30.
For now, Bojang’s America tour remains in Genesis. Bojang and three of his four siblings live in Indianapolis with their father and legal mother, Jenny, who adopted the Hirana children. Bojang’s older brother, Matar, is still waiting for his visa.
Bojang tries to find a community and gets used to the washing machine after doing his laundry by hand in Gambia. When asked what his favorite American food was, his eyes lit up, and with a ray on his face, he said, “Pizza.”
People regularly invite others to their homes in Gambia. Bojang’s early experience in the United States revealed that Americans were not welcoming. However, she is more encouraging in Bojang’s eyes. He admitted that he is rarely motivated by Gambians on their football journey and was shocked when his Christel teammates celebrated him after he scored his first goal. He said he appreciated Stewart for being “happy to have me here.”
It’s a different culture to Bujang. But the adjustment shouldn’t take long. He has the same companion that he had in Gambia.
The person who was with him at birth and death. Through illness and skipping class.
Bojang has football. Or as he calls it, football.
And where there is football, there is a piece of Gambia – a piece of home.
And where there is a piece of home, there is peace of mind.
“When I touch the ball, it feels like I’m still playing for Gambia,” Bojang said. “I have seen a lot of good players better than me in Gambia who cannot achieve their dream. I want to play for Gambia internationally and be someone who inspires people not to give up. When I touch the ball, it seems like my people in Gambia are watching me, and that brings me joy.”
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