Teams from the Elf Football Tournament paid visits today

The ELF Cup is a new annual football tournament taking place in North Cyprus at the end of November 2006. This eight-team event will involve predominantly non-FIFA registered teams who currently lack opportunities to play competitive international football.

National football teams from 7 foreign countries who are taking part in the ELF Football Tournament organized by the Cyprus Turkish Football Federation today paid visits to President Mehmet Ali Talat, the Speaker of the Parliament Fatma Ekenoglu and Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer.

Members of the national football teams together with the Head of the Cyprus Turkish Football Federation Niyazi Okutan paid their first visit to Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer.

Speaking during the visit, the Head of the Cyprus Turkish Football Federation Niyazi Okutan said the tournament was given the name: “Equality, Freedom and Friendship” as the Turkish Cypriot people has always been in support of peace and friendship.

Mr Okutan explained that the tournament which started last Sunday will come to an end tomorrow.

Welcoming the delegation, Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer said that friendship and peace was the basis of sports, adding that the ELF Tournament was organized with the aim of promoting these values.

He said that the Tournament gave the message to the world that restrictions cannot be and should not be imposed in the field of sports for political purposes.

Members of the group later visited President Mehmet Ali Talat who welcomed them by saying that their participation in the tournament gave strength to the Turkish Cypriot people who have been trying to get rid of an international isolation.

The President pointed out that the restrictions imposed on the Turkish Cypriot people in the field of sports are completely inhumane.

Noting that these kinds of restrictions will be removed under new conditions to be created with the realization of the reunification of the island, he reminded that the Turkish Cypriot people had given their approval to the reunification of Cyprus during the 2004 referenda.

The President also added that the ELF Tournament gave an opportunity to the Turkish Cypriot people to make its voice to be heard by the world.

The group later visited the Speaker of the Republic’s Assembly Fatma Ekenoglu who thanked members of the national football teams for the courage their countries showed by taking part in the tournament.

She also expressed the Turkish Cypriot People’s readiness to improve bilateral relations further with these countries in all fields.

Mrs Ekenoglu explained the visiting group that the Turkish Cypriot people is being barred from taking part in all kinds of sporting events with its neighbors.

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