|
|
Tuesday, September 19
North-south agreement could pave way
Reuters
SYDNEY, Australia -- A FIFA official said Monday
some 2002 World Cup soccer matches could be staged in North
Korea after the two Koreas agreed to march under the same flag
at the Olympic Games.
"What happened last week was a very significant
development," Michel Zen-Ruffinen, general secretary of
soccer's world governing body, told a news conference ahead of
the Olympic soccer tournament starting on Wednesday.
Although FIFA has already published a schedule for the 2002
finals which will be jointly staged by South Korea and Japan,
Zen-Ruffinen said it was not too late to include North Korea.
"Of course there is a lot of work still to be done before
such a decision could ever be taken. But following the recent
summit between the two Korean presidents and the very
optimistic development here last week between the IOC and the
two countries, there is still a possibility that a match or
even two could be staged in North Korea.
"Any match would be transferred from a venue in South Korea
rather than from Japan, of course. The issue is open," he
added.
Zen-Ruffinen said that FIFA were delighted with the
arrangements made by the Sydney Olympic Organizing Committee
(SOCOG) before the start of the two football competitions here,
the 32-match men's tournament and the 16-game women's one.
"We are especially pleased that unlike in Atlanta four
years ago where no soccer was actually played in the Olympic
host city, a number of matches will be staged in Sydney,
including the men's final at the Olympic Stadium itself."
Soccer's place in future Olympic Games seems assured but
will be discussed at the end of the year by FIFA's strategic
studies committee to see if any further changes need to be made
to the rules governing the soccer competitions at the Games.
"There are a number of issues to be resolved," he said,
"including the actual participation of a number of
confederations, and the number of over-age players or whether
it should even become a competition for younger players.
"However, FIFA has a superb relationship with the IOC and I
am sure that that relationship will continue in the future."
He said the problem of players pulling out of the Olympics
should not be an issue by the time of the 2004 Athens Games.
"There were particular problems here because the Games are
being staged in September right at the start of the European
club season. But in 2004 the Games will be held in August,
which should eliminate that problem and as well, by then the
co-ordinated international calendar should be in place and it
will be much easier for every player selected to take part."
He said FIFA had not considered taking any action against
any players such as Nwankwo Kanu of Nigeria for pulling out of
the Games as long as the correct procedures for their
withdrawal had been met.
"In his case there was an agreement between his club
Arsenal and his Nigerian association so the matter is closed,"
he said.
|  | |
|
