Sir Viv, Curtly lobby for Antigua football

ST JOHN’S:  A group of Antiguans and several sports stars are lobbying for the country’s Under-23 team to be allowed to play in upcoming Olympic qualifying games despite a  suspension ordered by FIFA.  Antiguan football enthusiast Leonard Tomlinson announced the effort yesterday, saying he had received support from West Indian cricket greats Sir Viv Richards and Curtly Ambrose, among others. In a letter sent earlier this week, Tomlinson wrote to International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge requesting help in urging FIFA to reinstate Antigua and Barbuda’s team. The letter also was signed by Antiguan clubs, coaches, referees and legislators. Football’s governing body ordered the suspension in May amid corruption allegations, two months after the Antigua Football Association board was dissolved in a dispute over missing funds.

A committee appointed to investigate last month accused two former executives of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of Eastern Caribbean dollars (tens of thousands of US dollars). The two former administrators have denied wrongdoing. Olympic qualifying matches for the Caribbean region are due to start in various countries next month. But plans for a zone playoff against St Lucia were cancelled when the FIFA suspension  was imposed. In the drive to have the suspension lifted, Tomlinson said he also received the support of former British world boxing champion Maurice Hope, who was born in Antigua, and Cuba’s 1992  javelin gold medalist Maritza Marten Garcia, who coaches in Antigua. FIFA are sending a delegation next month to assess the situation as they consider lifting the suspension.