Before taking part in a round table on “Mediterranean sports meetings”, a delegation from Algeria visited the sports facilities of the city of Fos this afternoon with a view to preparing for the next 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Parsemain completely seduced visitors.
“We have things in common, the Mediterranean, the same sardines, the same olive oil,… so it can only work!” smiles Nasser Guedioura president of ASAFE, the Association of Algerian Sportsmen of France and Europe. “Fos is a city that I am discovering, there are a lot of sports. I was impressed by the basketball hall, the organization and the state of mind. We are preparing for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. I am here to bridge the gap between the two shores and form a partnership. It will give us the possibility of having agreements to use the sports facilities here in Fos”.
Like Nasser Guedioura, the entire Algerian Olympic delegation was seduced by the sports infrastructure of the city of Fos, labeled Terre de Jeux 2024. The football stadium, the rugby field, the multipurpose hall and the Halle des sports Parsemain where badminton and basketball are trained, they visited everything and were won over by what they discovered and by their discussions with the leaders of these 4 major sports clubs*.
“Feeling of friendship, fraternity, welcome and hospitality”
“I am very happy to have visited these infrastructures. I am pleasantly surprised by their quality. I think that Fos can become an attractive pole”, says Moncef Zemmouchi, president of the Algerian Badminton Federation and adviser to the president of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (representing 54 countries). I am sure that close cooperation can take place between ANOCA and Fos! Our African athletes will be able to improve here and for Fos it will be a source of pride and an honor to be able to contribute to the future exploits of African athletes”.
The Algerian Olympic delegation therefore fell in love with Fos. “Sincerely from the first second I was received, I felt like I had been part of this city for years, recognizes Moncef Zemmouchi. This is very positive for us! I will transmit this feeling of friendship, fraternity, welcome and hospitality. I’m sure that’s the basis of everything. It can only encourage and open doors to long-term collaboration.”
Watch the video interviews with Moncef Zemmouchi, president of the Algerian Badminton Federation and adviser to the president of ANOCA, and Nasser Guedioura, president of ASAFE, the Association of Algerian Sportsmen of France and Europe (images and interviews JM Darras).
This evening the Algerian Olympic delegation will participate in round tables in Fos on the theme “Mediterranean meetings of sport” in the presence of international experts, the PACA Olympic committee, local elected officials and high-level athletes such as the Christo brothers and Toma Junior Popov (Badminton Club de Fos), Muriel Hurtis the former world champion in athletics or even Moussa Niang former world champion in Chinese boxing and former participant in Koh Lanta.
Tomorrow the Algerian delegation will go this time to Miramas to discover the Stadium, also labeled as a preparation center for the 2024 Games.
* Badminton Club de Fos, Fos Provence Basket, Etoile Sportive Fosséenne and Rugby Club Ouest Provence
