Day: November 23, 2022

Senegal lost 2-0 to the Netherlands, Tunisia drew against Denmark, as did Morocco against Croatia. No Africa team victories yet, but fans in the United States aren’t discouraged. It’s early in World Cup play and teams still have chances to win and advance to the next phase.

It was undeniably heartbreaking for the fans of the Senegalese team to see the Lions of Teranga lose their first World Cup game against the Netherlands. But fans like Sadio Yaya Barry are keeping their hopes alive.

“I would like to congratulate the Senegalese team,” Barry, the president of the New York-based Association of Senegalese in America, told VOA. “It’s a very strong team. We know we lost the first game, but we do see a young team who are very dedicated, involved and motivated to win the game … the Senegalese played very well.”

He added that “people sometimes forget who is the Netherlands team. They are very strong in Europe.”

However, losing hurt even more when goalkeeper Edouard Mendy couldn’t stop two goals a few minutes before the end of the game.

The Senegalese suffered another loss as midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate had to leave the game after injuring a thigh muscle. This came after the team lost star player Sadio Mane before the start of the tournament, also because of injuries.

Other teams battled to draws, Tunisia against Denmark on Tuesday, and Morocco against Croatia on Wednesday.

Hassan Samrhouni, president of the Washington Moroccan-American Club, based in Washington, described the Wednesday draw as “a great start for Morocco. Remember, we are playing the runner-up team, which played the final at the last World Cup.” In 2018, Croatia played against France in the World Cup finals.

He reminded fans that “one point is a great point for us. Remember, Argentina has zero points as well as Germany has zero points.”

The first few days of the event have seen these two surprises — Saudi Arabia beating Argentina and Japan beating Germany.

Prior World Cup games have also had upsets, including in 2002, when Senegal claimed a first-round victory over then-world champion France.

Barry remembers the match and said he believes that “this time the African nations are going to make a big improvement, not only to quarterfinals but to reach the semifinals — and why not the finals?”

He added, “I believe it’s time for the African continent to get that cup and take it to Africa. It is very possible. We have the teams, we have the qualifications and requirements we need. And all those players, they are very professional.”

The next games for the African teams are scheduled Thursday, when Ghana will play against Portugal and Cameroon will play against Switzerland.

Samrhouni, who played for his country’s national soccer team, advised players that “World Cup is one time every four years and maybe one time in a player’s career” and urged them to “take advantage of it.”

Source: Voice of America

Team Seychelles for the 12th Indian Ocean Youth and Sport Commission (CJSOI) Games was given an official send-off on Tuesday at a ceremony at the International Conference Centre in the capital of Victoria.

Seychellois swimmer Khema Elizabeth and sprinter Gael Barreau were revealed as the two flag bearers for Seychelles. The two athletes received the Seychelles flag from Jean-Francois Ferrari, the Designated Minister, that they will carry during the opening and closing ceremony of the games.

“I am very proud to have been chosen, as it is not every day that you get the chance to carry your country’s flag in a major competition,” said Barreau.

A team of 200 athletes, coaches and officials will travel to Mauritius to represent Seychelles at the games that will take place December 4-11.

One of the highlights of the event was the traditional parading of the athletes dressed in the uniforms they will wear at the games.

The games will have a total of 11 sports disciplines, which are athletics, boxing, beach handball, boxing, futsal, tennis, table tennis, petanque, sailing, weightlifting, swimming and e-sports.

Addressing the delegation at the ceremony, sports minister Marie-Celine Zialor shared her pride that aside from hosts Mauritius, Seychelles boasts the largest delegation heading to the games.

“These games will allow the young athletes to test themselves against others in the region, where they will know what areas they need to improve, as the nation continues its work towards getting a first ever Olympic Games medal,” she said.

For the youth component, Seychelles will participate in musical shows, youth assemblies and two young entrepreneurs will also get the chance to showcase their businesses in Mauritius.

Zialor urged those who will be representing Seychelles on the cultural stage to learn as much as possible from the experience so that they will be able to bring new ideas back to Seychelles.

“My expectation is that this team will be able to bring back more medals than they did from the previous games and I am confident that you can do it,” added the minister.

Discipline was also a point the minister stressed, where she urged both the young athletes and the adults to show impeccable levels of discipline during the games.

The delegation, which will leave in three groups – on November 28, December 1 and December 3 – will be headed by Alain Alcindor, who said that he is confident that Seychelles will be able to perform well.

The CJSOI (Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan Indien) Games bring together athletes aged between 14-17 years of age from the Indian Ocean region, namely Seychelles, Mauritius, Reunion – a French overseas Department – Comoros, Djibouti, Mayotte and Madagascar.

It is an event geared towards competition, as well as cultural exchanges between nations.

Source: Seychelles News Agency