15-21 January 2018 - 16-min

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15 - 21 January, 2018
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Sports
NEW DELHI TIMES
UEFA ASSIST Program: Promoting Development of Football
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◆◆By NDT Bureau
@NewDelhiTimes
info@newdelhitimes.com
ne of the key objectives of UEFA is
to contribute to the development of
football globally. Towards the realisation
of this objective, UEFA launched a new
programme- UEFA ASSIST in November
2017, in order to increase solidarity and
enhance football development to tackle
the needs of national associations and
confederations outside Europe.
The UEFA ASSIST programme (which
has the tag line ‘Supporting your success’)
has been adopted by the UEFA Executive
Committee on the basis of Article 2 of
the UEFA Statutes which states that the
objectives of UEFA shall be to promote
football in Europe in a spirit of peace,
understanding and fair play, without any
discrimination on account of politics,
gender, religion, race or any other reason.
The main scope of UEFA ASSIST is essentially
to share knowledge and best practices to help
UEFA’s sister confederations to develop and
strengthen football within their respective
territories. UEFA ASSIST is designed
to provide practical rather than financial
assistance and to offer support through
development activities. UEFA ASSIST is
composed of four pillars, each providing
specific support to member associations and
Aussie bowlers share
wickets and success in
Ashes series
teve Smith might have got most of the
plaudits after scoring a mountain of
runs but the triumphant Australia captain
said it was his team’s outstanding quartet of
bowlers that really laid the foundations for
the 4-0 Ashes series win over England.
Each of Australia’s four frontline bowlers
took more than 20 wickets in the five-match
series with Pat Cummins leading the way
with 23 dismissals, followed by Mitchell
Starc (22), Josh Hazlewood (21) and Nathan
Lyon (21). Together they accounted for 87 of
the 90 wickets Australia took in the series,
with the other three all run outs.
“I think all the bowlers did an exceptional
job, said Smith, who was named man of the
series after scoring 687 runs at an average
of 137.40.
“Each of our bowlers have over 20 wickets
which showed that the guys have bowled
together as a group, bowled in partnerships,
bowled for one another and helped us take
the 80 wickets that we’ve needed to take
four Test matches.”
Cummins was named man of the match
in the fifth and final test, which Australia
won by an innings and 123 runs, after
taking eight wickets in the game but Smith
singled out off-spinner Lyon as one of the
key differences between the two teams over
confederations worldwide: 1) Education and
knowledge sharing to provide experience
and training for associations on and off
the pitch, as well as access to UEFA’s
educational programmes 2) Development
of youth football to allow young players to
gain the experience of regularly playing in
a competitive environment 3) Support of
infrastructure project that provide immediate
benefits to the member associations and
confederations; and 4) UEFA national
association support programmes to encourage
them to develop their own assistance
programmes with associations outside the
the whole series. “Nathan Lyon got a lot of
rewards throughout the series and bowled
exceptionally well,” said Smith, who
celebrated his first Ashes series win as the
captain.
“The way he’s bowled and the consistency
he’s had has been outstanding.
“For me, the moment that changed the whole
series was Nathan Lyon and his run out at the
Gabba, that was such a huge moment in the
series and those sorts of plays can change a
series and I think that was a series-changing
moment.”
Lyon was the world’s leading wicket taker in
2017, finishing the year with 63 dismissals.
He now has 290 career wickets but says it’s
the combined strength of Australia’s bowlers
that makes it such a strong unit.
“In my eyes, it’s the best bowling attack in
the world,” Lyon said. “As a squad, I think
we’ve got all the bases covered well and
truly.”
“Obviously the batters got the runs on the
board, but you look at this bowling squad —
to be able to go out and take all the wickets
as a bowling group and not rely on one
bowler — it’s special.”
Credit : Associated Press (AP)
European territory.
Upon the significance of the UEFA ASSIST,
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin remarks:
“UEFA aim to work as much as possible in
the development of football and I feel that
R
Federer and Bencic lead
Switzerland to Hopman
Cup title
oger Federer and Belinda Bencic won
the deciding Fast4 mixed doubles 4-3
(3), 4-2 over Germany to give Switzerland
its third Hopman Cup title.
Federer rebounded from a close first-set loss
to dominate the rest of the match in a 6-7
(4), 6-0, 6-2 win over Germany’s Alexander
Zrevev. Germany’s Angelique Kerber beat
Bencic 6-4, 6-1 to send the championship to
the mixed doubles decider. It was Kerber’s
fourth straight singles win at the Hopman
Cup this year.
Switzerland last won the Hopman Cup in
2001 when Federer teamed with Martina
Hingis.
The long drought continues for Germany,
which last won the Hopman Cup in 1995
with Boris Becker and Anke Huber. In 1993,
Steffi Graf and Michael
Stich gave Germany its
first title.
Federer, who won all four
of his singles matches this
week, said he feels strong
heading into his title
defense at the Australian
Open, which begins Jan.
15 at Melbourne Park.
“It caps off a great week
as a team, but personally
for me as a singles player,
Photo Credit : Shutterstock
it is our duty to assist other confederations
and their member associations by sharing
our experience, expertise and knowledge, so
they can reach their goals. We are looking
forward to helping them grow football
in their continents and to also participate
in the development of the game outside
Europe.” The UEFA ASSIST program aims
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to encourage UEFA Member Associations to
establish and develop their own programmes
and activities outside Europe.
The first UEFA ASSIST project was
an Under-15 development tournament,
organised in association with CONMEBOL
and the Argentinian Football Association.
All ten South American national teams and
two European sides – Croatia and the Czech
Republic – took part in the competition,
which was played in the cities of Mendoza
and San Juan in Argentina from 4 to 17
November.
In addition to playing competitive football,
participants took part in various education
workshops focusing amongst others
on social development, nutrition and
health, while dedicated seminars will be
organised for coaches, referees and football
administrators.
Over the years, UEFA has already
demonstrated its commitment to reinforcing
relationships with other confederations
by providing ad-hoc support and signing
memorandums of understanding with all
five of its sister confederations.
“Working with UEFA is fundamental from
many perspectives,” said CONMEBOL’s
director of competitions, Hugo Figueredo.
”This could be an exciting first step in terms
of future collaboration, and it has set an
example of how a tournament of this kind
can be excellently organised.”
I played great,” Federer said.
“For me it’s just important to be in a good
mindset, well prepared, and ready to go. And
I feel like I am ready.”
Credit : Associated Press (AP)
Photo Credit : AP Photo
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