Story:

In an old mining pit almost a 100 metres under ground Swedes gather for the annual Lucia celebration.

Lucia is an ancient mythical figure, a bearer of light in the dark Swedish winters.

The traditional image of Lucia and her followers is that they all have blond hair and blue eyes.

This is the county of Dalarna, often called the heart of Swedish traditions and history.

But the face of Dalarna and its main city Borlänge is changing fast.

The arrival of several thousand somali refugees has stirred up feelings within parts of the population.

Marie Edenhager is the local leader of the nationalistic party The Swedendemocrats.

She is anything but happy with the situation.

Interview Marie Edenhager, Swedendemocrats, Borlänge

There are a lot of children coming.

We see schoolclasses that suddenly has a majority of somali children.

Overnight there can be 13 new kids in the same schoolclass.

If you don't speak the language and don't have a knowledge of swedish and western values then it's of course an enormous burden and challenge.

It is not good for anyone, not good for those who are born in Sweden nor for the newly arrived. It divides people.

The Swedendemocrats is gaining support here in Borlänge as well in the rest of the country and will be a major contender in the coming general election.

Its main political goal is to reduce immigration to Sweden.

Interview Marie Edenhager, Swedishdemocrats Borlänge

We need to have a limit. We have received so many for decades. We havent been able to handle this mass-immigration, to make it work when they arrive in Sweden.

Young somalis living in Borlänge say they haven't had any problem with racism.

However they are worried that xenophobic sentiments will spur if the Swedendemocrats do well in the election.

On various internet websites supporters of the party writes strong racial remarks and urges Swedish lawmakers to expel africans and arabs from Sweden.

Interview Ahmed Hussein Abdi, student

They always say that foreigners are taking the jobs and things, they say that we have to give the jobs to the swedish people first. In a way they are right but when they say that they want to throw the foreigners out of the country that is not right. They have to understand that we want to have peace, we want to have a career and I hope they can understand that one day.

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Interview Marie Edenhager, Swedishdemocrats Borlänge

We expect and we believe that we will be the second largest party in Borlänge

and I believe we are going to do really well in the election here in Borlänge.

Some cities have seen clashes between locals and immigrants, not so in Borlänge. But it could quickly turn to the worse and to prevent such a situation there was an urgent need of better integration between swedes and immigrants

Interview Patrik Andersson, Sportjournalist/Projectleader

I think that Borlänge has a lot of struggles the next years, things that are not looking so good. I think about the big industries who are doing bad, we have a lot of foreigners, a lot of people coming from Somalia, a lot of people during a short time and that´s make a problem. I felt that the people was talking about this but they didn´t do anything.

Something had to be done says Patrik Andersson.He had an idea, a new integrationproject that quite a few people thought was, somewhat weird. He was going to teach young african men how to skate and how to play the sport Bandy.

Interview Patrik Andersson, Sportjournalist/Projectleader

I thought that bandy is the most swedish sport we have. Its very dangerous and hard game to play

Andersson contacted the somali government and got the the green light to create Somalias first ever national team in bandy with the aim to participate in the world championship.

And he engaged a world famous coach who didn't hesitate when he got the question.

Interview Per Fosshaug, coach

I feel joy, I feel happiness, I feel hope, hope for the Borlänge community and hope for all the immigrants and the refugees who are coming to Sweden to be part of the community.

The players in the new national Somali team gets ready for their first game against a local club. The atmosphere in the in the locker room is electric.

Interview Ahmed Hussein Abdi, student

I feel nervous beacause so many people are coming. It´s the first time we are going to play against a team and it feels difficult, it´s difficult.

Interview Abdehakeen Mohammed, student

I don´t actually know the other team, beacause this is my first match. It will be fun, I hope.

Interview Ahmed Hussein Abdi, student

Africa have never played ice-hockey and have never been on ice and we have difficultes to skate so it´s going to be difficult, but it´s possible to do everything, everything is possible.

As the teams get on the ice an eager audience, both swedes and somali immigrants, turn up for the game. The national anthems of both countries are sung

The first half of the game is tough for the somali youngsters.

They fail to score. None the less, Patrik Andersson is pleased

Interview Patrik Andersson, Sportjournalist/Projectleader

Now we are showing that we are serious about this and we want to show everybody that it´s not a circus, we are not doing it for fun just for a couples of months. We are doing this for the future, not only for the somali people. We are doing it for the sedidh people and the somali together so we will have a nice place to live in.

Interview Marie Ederhagen, Swedendemocrats, Borlänge

But this has nothing to do with integration or getting into swedish society.

I dont believe that you will be more integrated in the swedish society by playing bandy.

This is not a way to help integrate immigrants according to the Swedendemocrats.

The players have a different opinion.

19 year old Ahmed has been living in Borlänge for almost five years. He has made of lot of new Swedish friends through the integrationproject, friends with whom he can pratice the swedish language, something which will make it easier for him to study at a university in a couple of years.

Interview Ahmed Hussein Abdi, student

It means a lot, it means a lot beacuse it makes the population living in this city, it makes the swedish and the foreigner integrating. It´s good for the whole community.

Its time for the second half.

Interview Ahmed Hussein Abdi, student

The coach has explained how we can defend and how we can attack and I think it´s going to be better. We are not losing so many goals again.

Even though the integrationproject is only in its cradle, it has attracted attention in several countries. Patrik Andersson is confident it´s a succes story and that it will inspire other cities in Europe with similar challenges.

The young somali team performs better in the second half, but defeat is in-evitable.

They loose with zero to fifteen which is not surprising as the somalis been on ice for only couple of months.

Interview Abdehakeen Mohammed, student

It was really good, we tried our best so I´m really proud. It feels nice anyway.

Interview Ahmed Hussein Abdi, student

We saw so many swedish people who came over here today and showed that they want to support us. We feel there support and we are thankful and so glad to have them her.