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Summary
Afghanistan's Skateistan club, the first co- educational skate park in the capital Kabul, marked International Go Skateboarding Day on Monday with a friendly competition amongst young skaters.Go Skateboarding Day (GSD) is an international holiday to celebrate the joys of skateboarding amongst young people worldwide. Afghanistan, one of the world's poorest and most conservative countries, might seem like a strange place to set up a skate park. Skateistan opened in Kabul in December 2009 and looks like any other skate park with wooden ramps and jumps, and banners of the skate brands who have sponsored the park. Skateistan provides the young skaters, whose economic backgrounds vary, not just with a place to skate, but also an alternative to living on the streets. Many of the children usually spend their time begging on the streets of Kabul or washing cars. Skateistan offers free educational classes, like English lessons, and computer classes, to anyone who is interested.
