After a thrilling three weeks of end-to-end action in the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2022 in Algeria, the CAF Technical Study Group has compiled the best starting line-up of the whole tournament.

As expected, the team is predominantly comprised of Senegalese and Algerian players who inspired their teams to the final of the CHAN seventh edition as well as the debuting Malagasy players that were the talk of town.

The winning formula here is a modern day 4-3-3 setup.

GOALKEEPER: Pape Sy (Senegal)

Standing tall within the goalposts with confidence and an authoritative aura about him, Sy was exceptional for the Local Teranga Lions throughout the tournament.

The Generation Foot custodian kept five clean sheets conceding only once against Uganda in their second Group B tie before playing a crucial role in the final against hosts Algeria in a tense penalty shootout.

Sy denied the tournament’s highest goal scorer Aimen Mahious who attempted the Panenka from 12 yards to secure the CHAN title to Senegal – literally.

RIGHT BACK: Mamadou Sané (Senegal)

Sané was one of the most influential players for the Senegalese outfit in this competition. The 19-year-old Teungueth de Rufisque star provided defensive cover for the Lions of Teranga while also showcasing impressive attacking prowess up front to supply the forward line with passes especially to talisman Papa Amadou Diallo.

RIGHT CENTRAL DEFENDER: Ayoub Abdellaoui (Algeria)

Shining throughout this CHAN, the “Cobtan” (note: captain in Arabic) of the Desert Foxes was a thorn in the neck of opposing forwards. His tackles were timely, careful and he fought for every second ball. He had a superior aerial presence that was key to Algeria’s defense that saw them become the first team in the history of the tournament to keep six clean sheets.

LEFT CENTRAL DEFENDER: Chouaïb Keddad (Algeria)

Keddad rewarded Bougherra for the confidence he showed in naming him in the CHAN squad. He was dominant in duels with opposing players and was consistent throughout the whole tournament. He communicated well with Abdellaoui and this was very visible especially against Ethiopia and Niger. The 29-year-old CR Belouizdad star is the complete central defender.

LEFT BACK: Cheick Sidibé (Senegal)

In a Senegalese team where defensive rigour is a decisive aspect of Pape Thiaw's game plan, the strength of the Teungueth player was his ability to balance his defensive and attacking contributions to the team. A decisive passer against the Democratic Republic of Congo and Côte d’Ivoire, he was able to contain the attacks of his opponents very well too.

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELD: Lamine Camara (Senegal)

A new star is born! For someone who was playing in his first CHAN tournament, Camara came off as one who had been on this stage in the past. He was at the heart of the Local Teranga Lions doing everything you need in a player in this role.

He gave Thiaw’s team a soul on a journey that earned the native of Tivaouane fans in Algeria and across the world – social media platforms can attest to that. He was consistent in every game for Senegal and for his age – a 19-year-old playing like that, Camara was extraordinary. He is the ultimate revelation of this tournament.

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELD: Houssem Mrezigue (Algeria)

Some will say that Mrezigue was the revelation of the tournament, but others will say that his performances were a confirmation of what has been long known at least in the past year since his incredible performance as Algeria won the FIFA Arab Cup in December 2021 in Qatar.

The CR Belouizdad player shone in the midfield of the Desert Foxes. A great craftsman who understood the assignment. He pressed when his team did not have the ball and when he won it back, he orchestrated the team’s counterattacks.

His prowess was seen clearly in the semi-final against Niger when he walked away with the TotalEnergies Man-of-the-Match Award following Algeria’s 5-0 victory.

ATTACKING MIDFIELDER: Arohasina Andrianarimanana (Madagascar)

Dax, as he is nicknamed, excelled in keeping the ball. His deflection on the Malagasy opener against Ghana is just one example of all his fabulous tactical awareness at this tournament. He was very valuable in recovery by putting pressure on the opposing midfielders as the Mozambicans can testify in the quarter-finals. Dax distinguished himself by a sensational technical quality as well which allowed him to make all the Malagasy supporters dream and some called him the “Messi” of the Big Island.

RIGHT WINGER: Solomampionona Razafindranaivo Koloina (Madagascar)

The future of Barea upfront in attack is stunning. Playing at his first CHAN, Koloina was so good that he was signed by Algerian outfit MC Alger.

As the second highest scorer at the tournament with three goals, the Malagasy is the go-to man of his team. At 22, Koloina has everything from a great, silky touch on the ball to an unparalleled vision of the game and an ability to withstand pressure.

LEFT WINGER: Papa Diallo (Senegal)

At only 19 years old, the Generation Foot player dazzled his skills at this CHAN with his acceleration. The Senegalese number 10 fascinated all with his leadership, especially his ability to lead his side’s attacking moves. Ultra-important in recovery through his pressing and counter-pressing, Diallo was also effective defensively.

FORWARD: Aimen Mahious (Algeria)

Brilliant and impressive, these two words describe Aimen Mahious very well. Top scorer in the competition with five goals, his brace against Niger will remain one of the highlights of this tournament. His missed penalty in the final against Senegal in no way belittles his achievements at the continental tournament.

cafonline

Senegal's Pape Thiaw has been named the best coach of the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) in Algeria, after guiding his country to a first triumph in the competition.

The winner was decided by members of the CAF Technical Study Group, just after Senegal edged Algeria 5-4 on penalties at the Nelson Mandela Stadium on Saturday to win the title.

The 41-year-old inherits the crown from Moroccan trainer Hussein Ammouta who won the award after CHAN 2020.

Thiaw achieved four wins in six games, recording five clean sheets enroute to clinching the trophy.

The mastermind behind Senegal’s coronation!

Pape Thiaw wins the #TotalEnergiesCHAN2022 Best Coach Award! @Fsfofficielle pic.twitter.com/Z0iJIX93PH

— MARHABA (@CAF_Online) February 5, 2023

The Teranga Lions suffered their only defeat of the tournament against Uganda at the group stage but they recovered to win the title.

His efficiency in management of his squad provided the right chemistry for the Senegalese players.

They played tactically well to become the fifth country to win the tournament and make their coach the first West African to win the CHAN best coach prize.

Thiaw was Aliou Cisse's international colleague during their playing days as footballers and the latter won the Coach of the Year award when Senegal won the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations last year in Cameroon.

The likes of Florent Ibenge, Mutumbile Santos, Hussein Ammouta, Jamal Sellami, Javier Clemente previously received the same accolade when they were in charge.

cafonline

All three former Hasaacas Ladies FC players currently plying their trades in Turkey are safe.

• Queenabel Amankwah and Regina Antwi[both at 1207 Antalya] who were part of our CAF Women's Champions League campaign in 2021.
• Gifty Assifuah, now playing for Antalya.

Source Gary Al Smith

Paris 2024's sports director Jean-Philippe Gatien is to step down from his position ©Getty Images

Sports director for the Organising Committee of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Jean-Philippe Gatien, has resigned from his position just 18 months before the Games come to the French capital.

insidethegames understands Gatien has stepped down due to "personal reasons", with executive director of sports competition and deputy sports director, Aurélie Merle, to fill the role.

Merle joined the Organising Committee in July 2018.

He is remembered as one of the key members of staff at Paris 2024, being part of the team during the bidding process as sports director since 2015.

Prior to the official bid, he was involved in preparatory workshops alongside some of his future colleagues, including Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet.

He oversaw major decisions as sports director such as moving surfing competition to Tahiti in French Polynesia, over 15,000 kilometres away from the host city Paris; as well as being part of the team to reject karate's request to stay on the Olympic programme after debuting at Tokyo 2020.

"A very emotional departure for Paris 2024 given Jean-Philippe Gatien played a key role in all of the different stages of Paris 2024," said a Paris 2024 source to insidethegames.

"Paris 2024 thanks Jean-Philippe Gatien for all his work and wishes him all the best for the future.

"Deputy director of Sports Aurélie Merle will assume his role and we wish her all of the best."

In January 2022, he announced he would be stepping down from his role as President of the Board at France's National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance after seven years at the helm to focus on his duties at Paris 2024.

He was a two-time Olympic medallist in table tennis in his playing days, as well as the men's singles world champion in 1993.

By Michael Houston 

About 500 athletes are set to participate for selection in the 2023 Regional Country race on Saturday, February 11, in Ahafo Ano South, Mankranso, in the Ashanti Region.

The annual race is opened to athletes based in the Ashanti Region and provides the platform to select a regional team to compete for honours in the National Cross- Country Race to be held on February 25, in Tamale.

At the end of the 10km race which would start from Abordease to Wiaso, 12 male and female athletes would be selected to represent the region in the National Cross-Country race.

Medals and certificates would be presented to the athletes for their input and also encourage the team.

According to Mr. Emmanuel Kojo Appiah, the Ashanti Regional Director of the National Sports Authority (NSA), the selected athletes would be accompanied by three officials to guide and train the team for the final event in a fortnight.

The Regional and National Cross-Country race is an initiative under the NSA to groom and develop talents for domestic and international competitions.

GNA

Christian Atsu has been found alive following reports that he was ‘trapped’ after an earthquake in Turkey.

The 31-year-old, who played for both Chelsea and Newcastle during his time in the Premier League, was caught up in the 7.7 magnitude earthquake which occurred on Monday.

Portuguese outlet A Bola have reported that Atsu has now been rescued from the rubble and has been transported to hospital after suffering injuries to his right foot and breathing difficulties.

Journalist Saddick Adams claimed he had been in contact with Atsu’s management team and confirmed the winger was safe. Adams had earlier tweeted that Atsu “was on the 9th floor of the collapsed building with 9 other players and 2 officials. 3 players and one official have been rescued. Officials of the club are at the site as search continues.”

Hatayspor, Atsu’s current club, is located in the Turkish city of the Hatay, which is believed to be one of the areas worst affected by the incident. As well as Atsu, it has been reported that the club’s sporting director Taner Savut and an interpreter were also trapped following the earthquake.

Other footballers, including Onur Ergun and Burak Oksuz, were rescued following the incident. Two other team-mates of Atsu, Ruben Ribeiro and Ze Luis, are also safe, while Kerim Alici managed to free himself from the rubble.

Atsu, who joined Chelsea as a youngster back in 2013 after leaving Porto, also had spells with a number of other top-flight clubs including Everton and Bournemouth before moving to St James’ Park.

He joined Hatayspor in the summer and scored his first goal for the club on Sunday night – just hours before the disaster which has devastated Turkey.

It has been reported that at least 2,800 people have lost their lives following the incident with over 12,000 more believed to be injured across Turkey and Syria. A massive aftershock with a magnitude of 7.5 hit the south of Turkey just hours after the original quake. Reports say it was felt once again in Syria and also Iraqi Kurdistan.

Other sports stars have also been affected by the earthquake, with Olympic champion wrestler Taha Akgul issuing a desperate plea for “urgent help” on his social media account.

Akgul, who won gold in the 2016 Olympics and a Bronze medal four years later, said on his Instagram story, Akgul wrote: “The building where 30-40 of our wrestlers stay in the wrestling club in Kahramanmaraş has also been demolished… Our athletes are under the rubble. We are waiting for urgent help. Help me, my God!”

Speaking at a press conference, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the earthquake was the country’s “largest disaster” since another major earthquake back in 1939.

“Everyone is putting their heart and soul into efforts, although the winter season, cold weather and the earthquake happening during the night make things more difficult,” Erdogan told reporters on Monday.

“We do not know how high the casualty numbers will go as efforts to lift the debris continue in several buildings in the earthquake zone. Today is a day for 85 million to be together as one heart.”

By Techgh24

(Photo by Florentin Haunold, Roast Media)

INNSBRUCK-STUBAI/LAUSANNE, January 23, 2023 – Applications are open for the Young Reporters Programme to be held during the second edition of the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (WMTRC) in Innsbruck-Stubai from June 6 to 10.

AIPS, together with the local Organizing Committee of the WMTRC, is looking for journalists aged 18 to 28 for this major mountain and trail running event, ideally with a keen interest in gaining valuable insights, both theoretically and practically, in their chosen line of work.

We are looking for motivated students of journalism and/or young reporters who:

You should be between 18 and 28 years of age.

You should be fluent in English.

In case you are already working, you should be a member of the Sports Press Association of your respective country.

In case you are already working, please send us some of your most recent work samples.

During their stay in Innsbruck-Stubai, the selected candidates will be accompanied by an AIPS mentor and trained in fundamental questions as well as those specific to sports journalism. In addition, they will have full access to the competition venues and the Main Press Centre and will be reporting from the WC races, gaining valuable insights into the increasingly growing athletic running scene.

During the programme, training will be offered in print, photo and social media reporting of live events. The Young Reporters will be required to participate in all training sessions. Photographers will be required to produce written content, just as print media journalists will be required to delve in photography or produce audio-visual stories, in order to develop their all-round journalistic skills.

The programme will be conducted in English. Also, the multi-media news and feature stories to be produced by the Young Reporters will be published on AIPS and WMTRC's official platforms and channels. Those already working are also expected to send reports to their local media.

APPLICATIONS AND SELECTION PROCESS

March 31, 2023 is the deadline for applications to the 2023 AIPS Young Reporters Programme. Applicants are to apply through the AIPS-affiliated National Sport Journalists Associations with the following documents provided in English (or translated to English if original documents are not in English):

CV listing applicant’s previous experience and education

Motivation letter (one page)

Links to previous published work, experience, and portfolio, if available

All candidates must provide a copy of their passport with a validity of at least six (6) months after the end of the competition (i.e., valid until at least December 2023)

Candidates for the YRP should be available for the duration of the programme, which includes the entire schedule of the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (WMTRC).

We are looking forward to receiving your application, comprising a motivational letter and a CV.

Application deadline: March 31, 2023.

We will be in touch no later than April 10 to let you know whether you have been selected or not.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The object of the email should read: “AIPS Young Reporters Programme + your name”

AIPS

Ace footballer Emmanuel Awuley Quaye, popularly known as ‘Foyoo’ was one of the winners at the 47^th Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG) Awards held at the Accra International Conference Center.

Also called Awuley Quaye Senior, he was a former international Ghanaian football player, who captained the Ghana national team, the Black Stars that won the 1978 African Cup of Nations hosted in Accra and Kumasi.

He is the father of Abdullah Quaye who played for the Qatar national team and Lawrence Quaye aka Junior.

Awuley played club football as a defender for Accra Great Olympics F.C.

Speaking to Yours Truly at the 47^th SWAG Awards, he said a country that does not honour its heros is not worth dying for, and wish to thank Kwabena Yeboah and the members of the SWAG for remembering and rewarding him.

According to Awuley Quaye, he feels sad most of the time, but consoled himself in producing children who are very disciplined and became professional footballers.

“During our playing days, only a few were lucky like Polo, Adolf, Quarshie, Kumi, Alhassan  and Razak were able to travel to Cote d’Voire, Gabon or UAE, but most of us loved Ghana, and we sacrificed a lot, but what we were promised after winning the African Cup for the third time and for keeps was not fulfilled” he expressed.

The top defender who now limps said it is very sad to sacrifice and not recognized.

He hailed SWAG, and urged them to reward other stars who have done well for the nation.

On the 47^th Awards, 88 years old veteran champion goalkeeper Alhaji Edward Nii Dodoo - Ankrah was also honoured. He was also a member of the Black Stars and competed in the football tournament at the 1963 African Cup of Nations and 1964 Summer Olympics.

By Sammy Heywood Okine

Aduana FC will host Kumasi Asante Kotoko in the R16 of 2022/23 MTN FACup.

The draw which was held today, Tuesday February 7^th at the Ghana Football Association saw some interesting pairing.

In the Northern Sector, King Faisal will face Steadfast FC, Nsoatreman will meet Debibi Utd, while Aduana FC take on Asante Kotoko. Rejuvenated Real Tamale United will play FC Samartex.

For the Southern Sector draw, Dreams FC will line up against Liberty Professionals, Legon Cities face Volta Rangers, while Cape Coast Dwarfs play Kotoku Royals. Heart of Lions will host Skyy FC at Kpando.

Executive Committee of the GFA member, Nana Sarfo Oduro told the media, clubs who have qualified will be paid in advance to enable them travel to honour their games.

He noted that the matches will be played on Friday 24 to Sunday 26 February.

He urged football fans to be at the centers to cheer the players.

The FA Cup is sponsored by MTN Ghana.

By Sammy Heywood Okine

Mr. Emmanuel Olla Williams, CEO of One-On-One Foundation on Monday led a delegation to present a citation to the Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Hon. Mrs. Cecelia Abena Dapaah at her office.

He said the schools sanitation inspection tour is in its 9th season and they are trying to improve the program to involve more schools and make it attractive for the students.

He expressed that the infusion of sports events like aerobics and other competitions has caught the attention of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG) who rewarded them at the 47th Awards Gala at the Accra International Conference Center.

He informed the Minister of the recognition of the Tug of War Association which he is the President and promised to support the war against Galamsey and other vices against the environment.

The Minister who was very excited with the achievements of One-On-One Foundation assured them of every support to educate people and promote sanity and healthy living among students especially.

She expressed that Sanitation has been added to the school curriculum and it is very important.

"Ghanaians need to change their attitude towards sanitation in a positive way and it is ideal to teach children healthy lifestyle at a tender age so that they grow with it. We should not destroy water, we are the voices of the creation of nature " she said

She commended the government for efforts being made to put a stop to illegal mining, referred to as Galamsey and appealed to all Ghanaians to help stop the manace which has affected water bodies.

She noted that government has been spending more money to have clean water for the people.

"We are partners in the quest to be in a healthy nation, and as government alone cannot do everything, we empower and encourage the private sector to support "she added.

Present at the presentation were some top officers of the Ministry including Chief Director, Noah Tumfo and PRO Ms. Gifty Aboagye Mensah.

The One On One Foundation delegation included Mr. Solomon Macauley, Mr. Charles Oteng Acquah, Ms. Sarah Awini, Mr. Samuel Patterson and Yours Truly.

By Sammy Heywood Okine