Former NBA player Bol helping Sudanese

ROCHESTER, N.Y., Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Former NBA player Manute Bol says despite his serious physical ailments he is heading back to his native Sudan to help the poor.

The Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle reported Wednesday the 7-foot-7 Bol, who was in a wheelchair because of arthritis, spoke of his intention to travel to Sudan next Monday to assist the struggling African nation through the non-profit Sudan Sunrise program's education and reconciliation efforts.

Bol, 47, who retired from the world of basketball in 1995 and was seriously injured in a 2004 taxi cab accident, spoke in Monroe County Tuesday about how many children in Sudan are forced to walk miles to reach a teacher and write in the dirt since they have no schools.

"They have no shoes," Bol said. "When they go back (home), they might not have food. That's why I help."

Bol's Monroe County appearances were sponsored by the University of Rochester.

The Democrat and Chronicle said while a 2005 peace agreement helped end a 20-year civil war in Sudan, the African country is facing new crises in the form of poverty and famine.