Fiji FA CEO Bob Kumar with Fiji Sports Commission chairman Peter Mazey.
By FIJI FA MEDIA
The Vodafone Fiji Under-20 side has received a timely cash boost from the Fiji Government ahead of the 2014 OFC U-20 championship that starts tomorrow at the ANZ Stadium in Suva.
Fiji National Sports Commission this afternoon presented the Fiji Football Association with a cheque of $50,000 in a bid to assist the national U-20 side which is aiming to become the first Fijian side to qualify for a FIFA world event.
Peter Mazey, the executive chairman for the Fiji National Sports Commission, says the move is part of the commission’s continued support towards Fiji’s local sporting bodies.
“Today we are presenting a cheque for $50,000 to Fiji FA for the OFC U-20 Championship,” Mazey said.
“This is out of the funding which government has increased by threefold this year for hosting of international tournaments in Fiji. The OFC U-20 Championship will be a good tournament with six teams participating and it will be good for the whole economy of Fiji.”
Host Fiji, American Samoa, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu are part of the OFC U-20 Championship this year which will be held from May 23-31.
Bob Kumar, the Fiji FA chief executive officer, says the grant will go a long way to assisting the national football body achieve its objectives.
“On behalf of Fiji FA I would like to thank the Fiji Government and Fiji National Sports commission for this assistance. I can assure everyone that such a handsome grant will be put to best use for the national U-20 side which is aiming to qualify for FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand next year,” Kumar said.
Mazey says the Fiji National Sports Commission has further plans in the pipeline to assist football in the country.
“We will be working with Fiji FA a lot now. This will be most probably with development work targeted at the rural areas as well,” he said.