Andean nations protest FIFA high-altitude ban

By Carlos Quiroga

LA PAZ (Reuters) - Andean countries vowed on Monday to fight a ban by FIFA on high-altitude soccer matches, with Bolivian President Evo Morales saying the measure discriminated against mountainous nations.

The move by world soccer's governing body to set a limit of 2,500 metres (8,200 feet) above sea level for international games is a blow for Bolivia, which has the advantage of playing home World Cup qualifiers at 3,600 metres in La Paz.

"We cannot allow discrimination in soccer, we cannot allow ... exclusion in the world of sport," Morales said after an emergency meeting with his cabinet and soccer chiefs in the Andean nation, which last qualified for the World Cup in 1994.

The measure, announced by FIFA President Sepp Blatter on Sunday, also drew criticism from Ecuador, Colombia and Peru.

The Andean Community of Nations (CAN), a trade bloc representing the four countries, issued a statement attacking the ban and urging national soccer federations across the region to lobby for it to be overturned.

Announcing the rule change, FIFA's Blatter said games at high altitudes were a health hazard and distorted fair competition, but critics played down the health risks and some said hot weather could be just as dangerous.

"As far as I can remember, no one's ever died during a soccer match at high altitude," Ecuador assistant manager Armando Osma said in a statement from its soccer association.

"We'll defend to the death our right to play football at altitudes above 2,500 meters, and the right to play in Quito," federation chief Luis Chiriboga told local media.