Exposed at the Back by Guy; Arild; Puzey Stavrum Page A

division would be too big for the club. That’s why he was also going to quit as first-team manager. Since he thought it was better for the club that we hadn’t made it, he couldn’t carry on.’
    Steinar shook his head, took a last sip of his lager and saw that Bjørnar’s glass was empty too.
    ‘Let me get you another. Same again?’
    Bjørnar nodded. Steinar went to the bar and held up two fingers,even though the place was almost empty and the barman would quite easily have heard him. Steinar paid and went back to their table.
    ‘As I mentioned before,’ said Bjørnar, ‘Jakobsen’s going to die, and I think I know what’s killing him. He put me down as his next of kin, so I’ve got more access than I would normally have. His condition made me read up on synthetic turf and its health risks. Have you heard of PAHs: Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons?’
    Steinar shook his head.
    ‘They’re carcinogenic compounds that can be found in artificial turf. In the rubber. It’s the rubber that’s most dangerous, and the indoor pitch gets extremely dry with the enclosed air and poor ventilation. This makes these substances swirl around even more, and Jakobsen’s been breathing them in for years. The indoor pitch, which he loves more than anything on earth, has slowly but surely been killing him.’
    ‘What do you mean by rubber?’
    ‘Chopped-up old car tyres.’
    ‘Huh?’
    ‘I see it’s a while since you last trained on artificial turf. So they can control how much the ball bounces and reduce the pain from falling, they use rubber granules. The cheapest way to produce these is by grinding up discarded old tyres. An average pitch will have something like 100 tonnes of granules spread across it.’
    ‘Why is it dangerous?’
    ‘Because car tyres contain more than 60 different chemical substances, a number of which are linked to cancer risks or other health problems.’
    ‘But aren’t there guidelines on how you should dispose of tyres?’
    ‘Sure, car tyres are supposed to go to approved tips. There are strict rules about it: they mustn’t be dumped in the countryside or in the sea. The upshot is that it’s a bit odd they can be used in synthetic grass pitches or as a soft surface in playgrounds or nursery schools,’ said Bjørnar.
    ‘Nursery schools too?’
    ‘This stuff’s being used all over the country. Children are playing on it, falling and bleeding on it. The youngest ones are even licking these surfaces with highly aromatic oils and PAHs leaking out of them, not to mention nonylphenol, zinc and all kinds of other crap.’
    ‘Why hasn’t the indoor pitch been closed?’
    ‘Because all the research on the health risks of artificial turf isbeing hushed up, discredited. Some researchers at the University of Connecticut demonstrated a link between synthetic turf and a risk of cancer, only to find the outcome of their research toned down to avoid panic. Someone called Dr Daum from Chicago Children’s Hospital found a link between artificial turf and MRSA. The New England Journal of Medicine has found the same too. And the thing with medicine is that when something’s been proven, then there are thousands of other dangers that we can’t prove.’
    ‘Why has this been hushed up? With so many young people playing on synthetic pitches, you’d think people would look into the health risks.’
    ‘Partly, but everyone’s so happy with synthetic turf. Politicians gain in popularity when they open a new pitch. There are positive side effects in terms of combating child obesity and idleness. Everyone likes sport, and nobody wants to admit they’ve made a mistake. Still, I’m taken aback when I see statements like the one made by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.’
    ‘What did they say?’
    ‘They said something about it not being dangerous and that people didn’t have to replace the rubber now, but they still recommended not using tyres in future. That’s like saying they haven’t got a