Source: The Star Malaysia

DESPITE not having played as a team before, the Singapore High Commission futsal team made the most of their group matches during the Venezuelan Embassy International Futsal Tournament.

The futsal tournament was organised to commemorate Venezuela’s 202 years of independence.

Singapore High Commission team captain Daljit Singh said some of the staff members played futsal together as a leisure activity and they managed to gather enough people to form a team.

“We’re not the best team but it’s a good learning experience and we had a lot of fun. It’s good to come out in support of the Venezuelan Embassy and socialise with the other players,” said Daljit.

Venezuelan Ambassador to Malaysia Manuel Antonio Guzman Hernandez explained that the embassy maintains an ongoing effort to strengthen relations with the Malaysian people and their government in commercial, political, cultural and also sports.

“We believe this is an environment conducive to promote the friendship between Malaysia and Venezuela. We have organised such activities during previous Venezuelan Weeks in Malaysia and we decided to commemorate 202 years of our independence with a sport,” said Manuel, who is an avid football fan and plays regularly in Malaysia despite turning 59 years old this year.

Besides the Singapore team, the Kazakhstan Embassy, Uzbekistan Embassy, Indonesian Embassy, Turkish Embassy and British High Commission also have a team in the tournament.

Tournament director Hossein Akbari said that since the tournament was played throughout the month of Ramadan, all matches start after 9pm.

“The embassy teams are made up of not only employees but also local players. The Kazakhstan Embassy has fielded their students who are studying in Malaysia,” said Hossein.

Manuel said that the Venezuelan community in Malaysia is quite small, with many working in the oil industry outside of Kuala Lumpur.

“That did not stop us from fielding two teams made up of young Malaysians players and we are delighted that these athletes are willing to carry our flag on their chests as a gesture of goodwill,” said Manuel.

Venezuelan Deputy Foreign Minister for Asia, Middle East and the Oceania David Velaquez, who was on a working visit to Malaysia, paid a visit at the venue during the Venezuelan Embassy Team A’s group matches last week.

A total of 32 teams are taking part in the tournament that started on July 19. The top two teams from the eight groups went on to the knock-out stage and the final will be played tomorrow.





FP Staff --> info@futsalplanet.com