Amid deprivation, Gaza youth skate in search of fun

Palestinian Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, a member of Gaza Skating Team, practices his rollerblading skills in Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

GAZA (Reuters) - At a Gaza beachfront skatepark, Palestinian youngsters on skateboards and rollerblades zip around curves and jump over concrete obstacles to the delight of onlookers.

Calling themselves the "Gaza skate team", a group of about 20 youths hold weekly training sessions overseen by two coaches, who watch videos on the internet to improve their skating skills.

Skating equipment is hard to come by in Gaza, where poverty runs deep and Israel and Egypt, citing security concerns, maintain tight restrictions along the border.

FILE PHOTO: Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, practices his rollerblading skills at the seaport of Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

"We tour the markets looking for second-hand stuff. We collect it and we make it fit for play," said Mohammed al-Sawalhe, one of the coaches.

"I try to change their thinking and turn it from thinking about the blockade, borders, and death, to thinking about sport," he said about the skaters.

Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade on Gaza for security reasons after the Islamist group Hamas took control of the territory in 2007. The World Bank says the blockade reduced the territory, home to 2 million Palestinians, to a state of economic collapse.

FILE PHOTO: Members of Gaza Skating Team cast shadows as they practice their rollerblading and skating skills at the seaport of Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

(Writing by Nidal Almughrabi, Editing by William Maclean)

FILE PHOTO: Members of Gaza Skating Team practice their rollerblading and skating skills at the seaport of Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, a member of Gaza Skating Team, practices his skating skills in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, a member of Gaza Skating Team, practices his skating skills in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team plays with a boy in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, holds a skateboard as he poses for a portrait in his family house in Gaza City March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, carries his sister as he plays with her at their family house in Gaza City March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, smiles as he is touched by his mother in their house in Gaza City March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, puts on his rollerblades in his family house in Gaza City March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Skating tools used by Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, are seen inside his family house in Gaza City March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, a member of Gaza Skating Team, uses his mobile phone as he lies on a bed in his room in Gaza City March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian boys of Gaza skating Team rollerblade on a street in Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, a member of Gaza Skating Team, rollerblades on a street in Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Members of Gaza Skating Team, Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, and Mustafa Sarhan, 19, practice their rollerblading and skating skills in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Members of Gaza Skating Team, Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, and Mustafa Sarhan, 19, practice their rollerblading and skating skills in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Members of Gaza Skating Team, Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, and Mustafa Sarhan, 19, practice their rollerblading and skating skills on a street in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Members of Gaza Skating Team, Mohammad Al-Sawalhe, 23, and Mustafa Sarhan, 19, practice their rollerblading and skating skills on a street in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Palestinian Mustafa Sarhan, 19, and other members of Gaza Skating Team practice their rollerblading and skating skills in Gaza City March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Members of Gaza Skating Team are seen during the rollerblading and skating training session, at the seaport of Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Members of Gaza Skating Team practice their rollerblading and skating skills at the seaport of Gaza City March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem