World Cup 2006 News
Fan of the Day: Costa Rica better off than most, despite coming last
By Andres Burgo Jun 26, 2006, 23:08 GMT
Costa Rican player Harold Wallace (R) fights for the ball with Michal Zewlakow from Poland during the group A preliminary match of 2006 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday, 20 June 2006. EPA/KAY NIETFELD
Wuerzburg, Germany - Who cares about winning the World Cup when you live in Paradise. Coming last in their Group with three defeats from three games does not matter to the Costa Ricans.
Asked what life is like in her homeland, Costa Rica fan Francisca Gutierrez says: 'It's like living in Paradise.
'We are one of the few countries in the World that has two coastlines in two oceans - the Atlantic and the Pacific, and you only have to travel 300 kilometres to get from one to the other.
'The winters are not too harsh,' she continues. 'The democracy is strong, everyone respects the constitution, you feel safe to walk the streets and we have an excellent health service. We don't even have an army.'
Little wonder then that the average life expectancy in Costa Rica is 76 for men and 81 for women, and little wonder that they have enjoyed their World Cup adventure and are not too upset that it ended so soon. 'We are worse than most,' concludes Francisca but better off than so many.'
© 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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