This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

(SOUND)

Some young Cambodians are learning a new sport -- skateboarding. The country's first skateboard park is located on the grounds of a local charity group at the edge of Phnom Penh, the capital.

Fifteen-year-old Chea Sophanit has been skating for about six months. "When I see the different styles from skateboarding, especially from the best skaters, I just want to be like them," he says.

A group is using the sport of skateboarding to help at-risk children in Cambodia

Sports like Khmer boxing and soccer are wildly popular in Cambodia. But Chea says skating has already become his favorite sport.

The skaters are learning tricks like launching off a jump or half-pipe and flying through the air on their narrow wooden boards.

A nongovernmental organization called Skateistan Cambodia organizes weekly programs at the park. Skateistan started its work in Afghanistan. Rory Burke works with the group which expanded to Cambodia last year.

RORY BURKE: "Yeah, it's definitely not a typical Cambodian pastime. And I think the idea of 'why skateboarding' is that it's not been done before here. We want to use skateboarding as something saying, 'Hey this is new, this is something different.' And that kind of itself becomes a little bit of hook. People see it and they think and they say, ‘Whoa, what is that?' and they want to get involved."

Skateistan partners with local groups that work with young people. The park is on the grounds of the group known as PSE, where children attend school and learn a trade. There are almost one hundred twenty participants. Many come from troubled lives.

Sean Burke says for some, skateboarding is a chance just to be a kid for a couple of hours a week. He says he hopes the program will help them build life skills through sport.

Seventeen-year-old Sang Rotha is a student at PSE. "Sometimes I don't do well on topics like math," he says. "I feel bad when I find it hard to keep up with my lessons. So that's why I skateboard, to improve my bad feelings."

He says he began skateboarding more than a year ago. Before he started training, it seemed very easy. But it was very difficult to learn tricks, and he got hurt a lot from falling off.

Rory Burke says learning to deal with the difficulties is part of the lesson for these young skateboarders.

RORY BURKE: "You know, it's pretty daunting to get on a skateboard for the first time. And then when they drop in for the first time and ride some of the ramps, it's pretty scary. It kind of teaches them, 'Hey, you're going to fall down a bunch, but you've got to get back up.'"

Skateistan Cambodia plans to open the country's first public skate park later this year in Phnom Penh.

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

这里是美国之音慢速英语教育报道。

Some young Cambodians are learning a new sport -- skateboarding. The country's first skateboard park is located on the grounds of a local charity group at the edge of Phnom Penh, the capital.

一些柬埔寨年轻人正在学习一项新运动--滑板。该国首个滑板公园坐落在首都金边边缘一家本地慈善组织的场地上。

Fifteen-year-old Chea Sophanit has been skating for about six months. "When I see the different styles from skateboarding, especially from the best skaters, I just want to be like them," he says.

15岁的Chea Sophanit玩滑板已经六个月了。他说，“当我从滑板，特别是从顶尖滑板选手看到这种不同的风格时，我只想和他们一样。”

Sports like Khmer boxing and soccer are wildly popular in Cambodia. But Chea says skating has already become his favorite sport.

高棉拳击和足球等运动在柬埔寨广受欢迎。但Chea表示，滑板已经成为他最爱的运动。

The skaters are learning tricks like launching off a jump or half-pipe and flying through the air on their narrow wooden boards.

滑板选手正在学习从障碍物或半管滑道起跳，然后通过滑板在空中飞行的技巧。

A nongovernmental organization called Skateistan Cambodia organizes weekly programs at the park. Skateistan started its work in Afghanistan. Rory Burke works with the group which expanded to Cambodia last year.

一家名为柬埔寨Skateistan的非政府组织在这个滑板公园举办每周一次的节目。Skateistan创办于阿富汗。罗里·伯克(Rory Burke)就职于这家去年扩大到柬埔寨的组织。

RORY BURKE: "Yeah, it's definitely not a typical Cambodian pastime. And I think the idea of 'why skateboarding' is that it's not been done before here. We want to use skateboarding as something saying, 'Hey this is new, this is something different.' And that kind of itself becomes a little bit of hook. People see it and they think and they say, ‘Whoa, what is that?' and they want to get involved."

伯克：“是的，它绝对不是一种典型的柬埔寨运动项目。我认为以前这里没有滑板的想法。我们希望用滑板来传达，'这是新的，不同的东西。'而滑板本身有点引人上钩。人们看到它就会想说，‘哇，那是什么?’然后他们就想要参与进来。”

Skateistan partners with local groups that work with young people. The park is on the grounds of the group known as PSE, where children attend school and learn a trade. There are almost one hundred twenty participants. Many come from troubled lives.

Skateistan和致力于年轻人的本地团体合作。这家滑板公园位于一家名为PSE的组织的场地上，孩子们在PSE组织上学并学一门手艺。这里有近120名参与者，多数来自困难家庭。

Sean Burke says for some, skateboarding is a chance just to be a kid for a couple of hours a week. He says he hopes the program will help them build life skills through sport.

伯克表示，对一些人来说，滑板是每周几个小时只做个孩子的机会。他希望这个项目能够通过运动帮助他们培养生活技能。

Seventeen-year-old Sang Rotha is a student at PSE. "Sometimes I don't do well on topics like math," he says. "I feel bad when I find it hard to keep up with my lessons. So that's why I skateboard, to improve my bad feelings."

17岁的Sang Rotha是PSE组织的一名学生。他说，“有时候我做不好数学等题目，当我发现我跟不上课程时我感觉很不好。所以这是我为什么玩滑板的原因，为了改善我的坏情绪。”

He says he began skateboarding more than a year ago. Before he started training, it seemed very easy. But it was very difficult to learn tricks, and he got hurt a lot from falling off.

他说自己一年多前开始玩滑板。在他开始训练前，滑板看上去很容易。但学习技巧非常困难，他因为摔落受伤好几次。

Rory Burke says learning to deal with the difficulties is part of the lesson for these young skateboarders.

伯克表示，学会处理困难是这些年轻滑板选手的课程之一。

RORY BURKE: "You know, it's pretty daunting to get on a skateboard for the first time. And then when they drop in for the first time and ride some of the ramps, it's pretty scary. It kind of teaches them, 'Hey, you're going to fall down a bunch, but you've got to get back up.'"

伯克：“你知道，首次站上滑板是相当艰巨的。当他们首次遇到坡道，这是相当可怕的。这相当于教育他们，‘嘿，你会摔下来很多次，但你一定要站起来。’”

Skateistan Cambodia plans to open the country's first public skate park later this year in Phnom Penh.

柬埔寨Skateistan计划今年晚些时候在金边开设该国首家公共滑板公园。