Kitchener family says their 10-year-old needs life-saving drug that cost $600,000
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
While Canada may be diving into the deep end against No. 2 Belgium on Wednesday at the World Cup, the team belief appears strong on the eve of its plunge.
"We don't hope no more, we believe," veteran midfielder Jonathan Osorio told reporters after training Sunday. 'And we're very confident in ourselves."
"We want to show that we are a football nation, that we can compete with the best in the world," he added. "We want to surprise people because I think people still see us as underdogs and things like this, and Canada and the World Cup, they should just be happy to be here. But that's not our mentality. We're here to compete -- to compete at a high level.
"We believe within our group. With the quality that we have and our brotherhood we can go as far as we want to go."
Midfielder Samuel Piette says Canada is relishing the challenge that awaits
"I think in qualifying we played in a way where we were fearless and we want to do that on the biggest stage," said the CF Montreal stalwart. "We don't want to back down. We want to be on the front foot and go toe to toe with Belgium.
"We just don't want to sit back and enjoy the moment. and take one game at a time and say after 'Oh yeah it was a great experience, it was good to be there' and then we'll be back in four years."'
Only Cameroon (at No. 43), Ecuador (No. 44), Qatar (No. 50), Saudi Arabia (No. 51) and Ghana (No. 61) are ranked lower than No. 41 Canada in the 32-team World Cup field.
But the Canadians are riding a wave after a glittering qualification campaign contested during the pandemic. John Herdman's men finished first in the CONCACAF final round robin, above Mexico and the U.S., with an 8-2-4 record in making the tournament for the first time since Canada's World Cup debut in 1986.
More recently, the Canadians were buoyed by a 2-1 win over No. 24 Japan in a final tournament tune-up.
But the World Cup remains essentially uncharted territory. Canada has yet to score a goal or win on the sport's biggest stage.
Belgium, which finished third four years ago in Russia, is making its 14th trip to the World Cup and will hit the 50-game plateau at the tournament in its second match in Qatar. The Red Devils have 20 wins at 68 goals at the soccer showcase.
Forward Jonathan David, a man of few words, isn't buying the numbers
"On any given day, any team can beat anyone," he said. "If it falls on the right day, of course we can win."
Piette said the Canadians have set goals on this World Cup journey.
"We know it's been a long time coming and we know we have that chance to be first in some stuff like be the first Canadian team to score, to win a game, to get a clean sheet, advance to the next stage," he said. "But you don't realize all the noise that's back home and around the team while you're in it. The only thing you're concentrating on is the preparation on that first game and what you need to do to get those firsts.
"I think people are realizing slowly but surely that we're at the World Cup. But for us it's a football game and a football game we want to win ... Yes, it's a big task. We already know that, but we'll be prepared for that. It's part of our DNA, our identity, being on the front foot and not being scared of anyone. We showed that against the U.S., against Mexico, against the Japanese and why not do that against Belgium."
After training in the morning Saturday, the Canadians switched to an evening session Sunday with the temperature a more benign 24 degrees C complete with a cooling breeze.
Wednesday's game against Belgium at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium is a 10 p.m. local time start.
The Canadians practised as Ecuador beat Qatar 2-0 in the tournament opener Sunday at Al Bayt Stadium, some 30 km northeast of Canada's training facility. It marked the first time the World Cup host has lost the opening game.
While the musical soundtrack to Saturday's warmup for Canada's training featured Jamaican dancehall, Sunday's playlist had a more African feel with songs from Nigeria's Victony, Soundz and Joeboy, Ghana's Smallgod and Camidoh, and Nigerian-born London-based Kid AlpHa.
Prior to the Canadians taking the field, Herdman and his staff entertained themselves by kicking a ball around. And one tiny part of the desert got a shower thanks to a potent pitch sprinkler system that caught several nearby photographers by surprise. .
Herdman used to run a Brazilian soccer school in his early 20s in England so knows a few things. Perhaps with their tongue slightly in cheek, the Canadian women used to call him the Black Flash in his days in charge of that team, a reference both to his track suit and his ball work.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for a specific chocolate brand sold in Ontario and Quebec.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Health Minister Mark Holland says while he is 'deeply appreciative' of the work doctors in Canada do, the federal government has no plans to scrap the proposed capital gains tax changes outlined in the latest budget, despite opposition from the Canadian Medical Association.
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Quebec will invest $603 million over five years to counter the decline of French in the province, French Language Minister Jean-Francois Roberge announced Sunday.
A senior Qatari official has urged Israel and Hamas to show "more commitment and more seriousness" in ceasefire negotiations in interviews with Israeli media, as pressure builds to reach a deal that would free some Israeli hostages and bring a ceasefire in the nearly seven-month-long war in Gaza.
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Students protesting the Israel-Hamas war woke up in tents at college campuses across the United States Sunday morning planning more protests demanding that schools cut financial ties to Israel and divest from companies accused of enabling the conflict.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”