<div class="embed-block"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230228150240/63fe12a79c7e80680e0da534jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1384" height="776">Photo: ANFA</div> Although cricket is the rage right now, football is by far the most sought-after game in Nepal. However, the national team has never made it anywhere close to the World Cup. Yet, when Argentina won the tournament this winter, Nepalis celebrated as if their own team had won. English Premier League, LaLiga and Serie A all have a mass following in the country of 30 million. The latest season of Nepal’s homegrown Martyr’s Memorial (Sahid Smarak) A Division football league is just a week away but there is not much excitement, neither among players nor fans. The Covid-19 pandemic has played a part in dampening the enthusiasm but the inconsistency of the league is a bigger factor. Nepal’s professional footballers are so undermotivated to play that they are not just quitting the game, but the country as well. The league was to start on 10 January earlier this year but after a meeting with 14 competing clubs, the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) postponed it to 3 March. Football clubs complain that the ANFA is not providing preparation expenses, thus delaying the league. The annual Martyr’s Memorial ‘A’ division football league began in 1954, but since 1987, the tournament has been held only 16 times. There are many reasons: the Maoist insurgency, financial hardship, unstable governments, strikes, lack of infrastructure, the Covid-19 pandemic and the earthquake. And when the league does happen, the matches are tightly scheduled, allowing players limited time to rest and recover before the next game. The league lasts only a couple of months and players are only paid for those months. “We players have to look for local games to keep us afloat,” says Askoh Khawas, a footballer from Biratnagar who plays for Three Star Club. “This is the only thing that keeps us going physically and financially.” <div class="embed-block"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230228150240/63fe12ab9c7e80680e0da535jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"> </div> The 2023 league is returning, but some 45 players who used to play for the ‘A’ division will not because they have either quit football or Nepal. Just last month, five players from major clubs left for Australia: Tej Tamang, Dinesh Rajbanshi, Gautam Shrestha, Nitin Thapa and Ranjan Bista. Only a handful of Nepali players have got an opportunity to play football outside Nepal, the rest have migrated, possibly for good. A Nepali footballer’s lifestyle is not lavish, players do not get the opportunity to train, the games are not played all year round, and training isn’t all year round either. Players do not get offered millions of dollars and are signed into clubs which do not have money even to sustain themselves. Ironically, the Nepali players who have left have been replaced by foreign players some of whom are making good money. “Players from Nepal are going abroad and foreign players are coming to Nepal to play football, it is happening more and more and that is sad,” says national team player Bikram Lama. <div class="embed-block"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230228150240/63fe12ae9c7e80680e0da536jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1118" height="688"> </div> Until recently, players and clubs from Kathmandu Valley used to dominate even the limited number of footballing tournaments in the country because talent outside the urban centres did not have the platform or exposure. But this is now changing: most of the players are now from outside Kathmandu. “The primary reason for this shift is that youth in major cities like Kathmandu and Lalitpur now have various other sources for entertainment and do not look forward to playing outside as much,” says Megh Raj KC who coaches Nepal’s Under-20 team. “Children in cities these days also do not have open space to take up football or other team games. But that is not the case in the rest of the country.” But lack of infrastructure continues to be a problem. The passion for football has not allowed for stable income: in the past three years, Nepali footballers have had the opportunity to play for only 10 months, which means they got paid only for that time. Nepal does not lack talent but players are not given optimum opportunity. Newcomers and foreigners might take on spots left by players in domestic leagues, but that does not fill the gap in the national team. Says Megh Raj KC: “At this rate, we will continue to be a footballing country to have never made it anywhere internationally.”

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Food vs football

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4199c7e80680e0d308bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2024" height="1349"/><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>When I was first offered the opportunity to play in a Nepali club, I had no idea where Nepal was.The deal that I was offered was lucrative. I had to play for two weeks to demonstrate my footballing skills, and if the club liked my performance, I could stay on with a work permit, and would be paid €5,000 a month.After reading up on the country online and seeing the beautiful pictures of mountains, I was convinced that it was a good offer.It was only after I arrived at Kathmandu airport in late 2015 that I realised I was duped by Nepali and African ‘managers’. There was no one to pick me up at the airport, an early indication that I would deeply regret what I had signed up for.I had to figure my way around, which was difficult especially because I did not even speak English back then. Relying on a kind taxi driver, I somehow managed to make it to a hotel.It was only on my third day here, after many follow up calls that the ‘manager' showed up in person. The first thing he asked me was to pay him €1,000 in cash. This was absurd — why was I paying money to play when they should be the ones paying me?I knew football is a lucrative business in which agents exaggerate and even lie about the attractiveness of the deals to draw young players who want to desperately make it big in football.But I would soon learn from players from other African countries I met in Nepal that it is very common to pay agents exorbitant cuts, something I was unwilling to do. I also soon learnt that no one earns €5,000 a month here, not even the best national players.Since the 2015 earthquake, there had apparently not been any league tournaments in Nepal. However, even though I refused to pay the agent, I managed to get some opportunities to play in tournaments with different teams here and there, mostly outside the capital.The pay was only about Rs10,000 a match and once people watch you score well, you get more calls to play for various teams in other tournaments. Sometimes, you can demand more pay when the managers are especially insistent.Often I have to take public buses, journeying for hours outside the capital, and am expected to play the same day. Sometimes hotels are so low grade that I am unable to get a good night’s sleep, affecting my performance on the field.In these past few years, I have gone home several times and also played or coached in clubs in various European, Asian and Gulf countries. Even though my experience in Nepal to play football has been disappointing, I have found myself returning to the country frequently.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd41e9c7e80680e0d308cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="845">I keep coming back not for what I had originally dreamed of (playing football professionally in a club) but for the love of the friends I have made here and how Nepal has become a second home.Of course, there are times when I am subject to racism when football spectators have chanted “हप्सी”, or insulted by strangers when I am just walking in the streets. But overall, the Nepali people are very welcoming because of exposure via social media or their own migration experience when they have worked closely with Africans like myself.I often get calls or social media messages from rural parts of Nepal where fans want me to come play in their areas again.My experience in the Gulf was quite different. I was paid well and also had a sense of community as many players in my club were from African countries. There are large African communities, including from my own country, so it was easy to mingle socially.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4219c7e80680e0d308djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2983" height="1056">It is very hot in the Gulf, so we only played in the evenings after 6PM, but I made close to $3,000 a month without having to spend on food and accommodation. After I cross my football playing age, I am likely to try to go to one of the Gulf countries for a longer period, which is an increasing trend among many football players.As someone who eats, breathes and sleeps football, this World Cup is of course a reminder of my own dreams, aspirations and journey as a footballer. Ever since I was a boy, I have dreamt of playing football professionally. I could not think of anything else I would rather do. My ultimate, now broken, dream was to join the Juventus Football Club.I supported Saudi Arabia strongly in the World Cup because I am a big fan of their coach Herve Renard, who is a hero to many football players from African countries. He has been an epitome of good leadership and has contributed immensely to help African football teams in the past.It was his leadership that helped countries like Zambia and Ivory Coast win the Africa Cup of Nations. For us African players who are aware of Renard’s magic, Saudi Arabia’s upset win over Argentina was not so surprising.With the Saudis out, I rooted for Morocco but they lost the chance to make history in this World Cup as the first African country to be in the finals.The author is an African football player who has lived and played off and on in Nepal, but wishes to remain anonymous.

Migrating to play football

<figure><img width="1024" height="768" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100128/63bfd3789c7e80680e0d3060jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Nick Golüke, Robert Grantner and Thomas Hitzlsperger in Kathmandu, Nepal. Photos: THOMAS HITZLSPERGER </figcaption></figure>Former German football star Thomas Hitzlsperger played in the 2006 World Cup and knows the significance of the World Cup to football players as well as the pressure they face to use the platform to speak out on social issues. Hitzlsperger recently visited Qatar and Nepal to film his documentary  Katar, warum nur? (Qatar, why?) in which he digs into why the World Cup is taking place in Qatar this year. A lot of money was spent to put Qatar in a positive light, but the deaths and abuse of workers have also tarnished its image. The documentary was aired in Germany in November and has been viewed around the world.Hitzlsperger spoke to Nepali Times this week about his film. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/qatar-refuses-payoffs-to-world-cup-stadium-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Qatar refuses payoffs to World Cup</a> <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/qatar-refuses-payoffs-to-world-cup-stadium-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">workers</a>Nepali Times: How did the documentary come about?Thomas Hitzlsperger: I wanted to show why people from countries like Nepal have to go to work in Qatar even though some of the work is quite dangerous and has even led to many deaths. The German audience did not know what it is like to be a migrant worker both in Qatar and in Nepal. There is a huge difference in standards of living. People have very little money and no jobs. But whoever we spoke to in Nepal was incredibly friendly and kind to us. It is hard to see and acknowledge the reality that there is very little future hope for many people. I met people like Saraswoti, the wife of a migrant worker who had died in Qatar, who shared her story and everything that had happened to her family. We also interviewed Mukesh Chaudhari who was a wage theft victim who had not been paid in full despite working in Qatar’s extreme heat. Many viewers from Germany offered to help, so we have arranged for them to help families like Saraswoti to receive some financial support including for the education of her two boys.  Besides migrant rights issues, we have also covered LGBT and women's rights. Due to the World Cup, the situation for some has improved, however, being LGBT is still regarded as sodomy in Qatar and could send you to jail. Women often work in private households and depend on their employers. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/human-rights-referees-blow-whistle-on-world-cup-fouls/">Rights referees blow whistle on World Cup fouls</a>, Kunda Dixit <figure><img width="2983" height="1056" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100128/63bfd37c9c7e80680e0d3061jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>The DFB (German Football Federation) has been active in human rights issues. Why is this?Indeed. In the leadup to the World Cup, the DFB spent time to learn about Qatar, about human rights issues there. It showed solidarity by wearing t-shirts that read Human Rights, and wanted to wear one-love armbands during the tournament. But FIFA said at the very last moment that it was not allowed. This became very political. Players instead covered their mouths during the game as an act of protest against being silenced. But when Germany lost the game, they got criticised for it. It is very obvious that when you lose a game, people will use that as an excuse to say they focused too much on politics and thus lost. This is what football is like. There is no simple answer on when and how to use the platform of big events to raise issues like human rights.The German football players are also donating 1 million euros to a Nepali charity over the next five years which is very positive. None of the players I know of have been to Nepal so it was important for me to see Nepal through my own eyes and better understand what it is like here.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/labour-rights-legacy-of-the-fifa-world-cup/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Labour rights legacy of the FIFA World Cup</a>, Meenakshi Ganguly and Mohna AnsariIndeed, how do you see a player balancing the pressure to perform in the field versus using the platform on human rights issues. During my time as a player, activism wasn’t as obvious and widespread as it is now. Now, players are more familiar with global issues and are being increasingly asked to take action and want to use their platform. FIFA, however, was very strict during the World Cup and did not allow the players and football associations  to raise their voices and wanted to stop players from doing anything, even to wear armbands against racism and homophobia. I see this as the core of the problem. FIFA was bent on using the World Cup for its own benefit, and pleasing the hosting nation. What happened this World Cup was far from ideal. I don’t have a solution to this problem.  But FAs need to stick together and find a solution together for future tournaments so they can put football at the centre stage, but at the same time use their voices. Lets finish this tournament and then sit down and have a conversation. The last five-six weeks have seen different organisations and people committing many mistakes. How can we play football when football should be played and also speak up on other issues to use the power of football for good causes? It must not be left to FIFA alone.But some have described the activism as Western hypocrisy, and that all governments have committed abuses in their history.Of course, they will say we should not tell them how to run their country. I understand that. I accept it. It is not an easy conversation, but the football community must not pretend that this World Cup is the best event ever and look away from the real issues. A part of the documentary was also filmed in Qatar. I got to meet an incredibly friendly Qatari lady who showed me bits of Doha. When I tried to confront her with some issues faced by migrant workers in her country, it became evident to me that there is a discrepancy in how Qataris view migrant worker issues versus how it is viewed in the western world. This confrontation can be tricky and isn't an easy matter to come to an agreement with. But there is no question that people who have worked in the Gulf have lost lives due to unbearable working conditions and this needs to stop. They have the resources and the responsibility to take better care of the migrant workers who work there. <img width="768" height="1024" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100128/63bfd3809c7e80680e0d3062jpeg.jpg" alt="">What drives you to engage in social issues outside of your passion for football?It is not always easy having a platform because I receive criticism from those who think football should not be mixed with politics. I use the platform because things are not headed in the right direction, and make sure I can make a little contribution like supporting people in Nepal. Some may not like what I do but its part of being in the public eye. Sometimes I need a thick skin. But I think its worth it and there are many people who do support good causes. It is amazing to receive emails from strangers who offer support and give money to the charity we just started.I have seen people being discriminated against. I am in a privileged position so I do want to give something back. I cannot help everybody, of course, but I try to do what I can even if it is small. Sometimes I do receive nice emails, which is enough to give me the power to continue and overcome the criticism I receive. Your impressions of Nepal?I am so happy I got to spend a few days in Nepal, which gave me a better understanding of what it is like here. I did not get to meet officials from the government, but I urge the Nepal government to invest in the education system. Only then can people really help themselves and dream of a better future. Read more: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/cup-of-the-world/">Cup of the world</a>, Nepali Times

Football for a better world

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141156/636d03729c7e80680e0a36d4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1536"/><figcaption>Srijana Singh Thakuri in 2008 as a student in Surkhet. Photo: KOPILA VALLEY</figcaption></figure>My Dad wanted a son.I was the first daughter and after me came three younger sisters. My mother became pregnant three more times after that, all of them would have been girls.They were all terminated at illegal clinics where parents can learn the gender of their baby and opt for abortion if it is a girl. I know now that the practice is called <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19627" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">female foeticide</a> and common particularly in South Asia.My parents kept trying for a son, hoping a son would eventually come along. I was already old enough to notice the sadness and worry in my mother's eyes every time she found out that she was carrying another girl.My mother was blamed for being cursed and broken. Why was I not enough? Why were we daughters not enough?Eventually, our Dad abandoned us. One night, without a word, he disappeared, leaving us behind with a broken home, broken hearts, and a mob of debt collectors at our door at all hours of the day.My mother's health deteriorated. I hardly saw her smile. I began to work as a cook at a bus station to try and ease her pain. We sold bananas, fruits, and tried our best to get by. I promised my mother through her tears that I would be just as good as a son that she and my father so desperately wanted.I do not blame my Dad. Actually, I feel sorry for him. A <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/coping-with-the-patriarchy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">victim of patriarchy</a>, he never knew any different. Society had convinced him that girls are never worth the investment, that all they do is get married and go off to someone else's house, that families need sons to carry on the name and inherit ancestral property.But the irony is that we had no land for anyone to inherit. We had nothing. While trying for a son our family had plummeted deeper into poverty, debt, and depression.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141156/636d03759c7e80680e0a36d5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Eventually, things began to look up. I took an entrance exam for <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/starting-nepals-green-school-movement/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kopila Valley School in Surkhet</a>. The teachers came to know of my story, and by a stroke of luck I got one of the very few spots available to my age group. In the interview I explained that with a chance at education, I could help my mother care for my three little sisters, and help educated them too.I tried to channel my sadness and my anger into determination. I wanted to be the best at everything. Because of my Dad, I felt like I had something to prove. I became class captain. I joined the girl's empowerment club. I took traditional dance lessons.I wrote poetry and participated in debate competitions. I checked out books from the library. I studied late into night and completed all my assignments to catch up with my classmates. I grabbed every opportunity that came my way.One day there was an announcement that Kopila Valley School was starting the first-ever football team for girls. I showed up at that first practice on a dirt field without sneakers, sweat dripping down my forehead, ready to try something new. I had never seen a field before, watched a match, or even worn shorts.In my village every square inch of land was used to grow food, and sports were for boys on fallow terraces between growing seasons. I never knew that football was for me.I showed up every day to practice with coach Gopi. He treated me as he would boys. He yelled at me but also encouraged me. I still remember my first match and how it felt like putting on a uniform, chasing the ball down the field.Over time I started to get good at football and our team began winning matches. I scored goals and was particularly strong at defence, head balls, and corner kicks. But I also kept up with my studies, and started to get noticed as a student and an athlete.I made it into bigger teams and got recruited for tournaments. Rumours also followed. Neighbours gossiped about me, saying I came home too late or left too early. I was called selfish and that I had my head in the clouds. It got worse <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/that-time-of-the-month/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">when I got my periods</a>, people telling me where I could go and where I could not, what I could do and what I could not.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141156/636d03799c7e80680e0a36d6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2016" height="1512"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>I was going against how girls in my village were expected to behave: stay quiet, keep your head down, try not to get noticed, and when it is time, <a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/child-marriage-in-nepal-eloped-at-13-mother-by-17/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">be marriageable.</a>I shook off the criticism and kept my eyes on my dream. I continued my education and graduated top of my class. I was eligible for scholarships, and enrolled in a college in Kathmandu. I kept playing football and showing up at tournaments, training all day and night.My story is not unique. It is just what happens when girls and women are given a chance, opportunity, and investment.I just turned 20, and last week I made the final roster for Nepal's national women’s football team. I signed a contract and my name was announced in the newspapers. I am now officially a professional football player representing my country.I have never felt so proud to be a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/everyday-as-if-it-is-womens-day/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">daughter of Nepal</a> even though there were times when I did not feel like my country was proud of me.I love putting on the red national jersey and walking into the stadium. I can still feel the thrill of kicking a ball, and a goal hitting the back of the net.I love football because it makes me feel free and strong and powerful. My next big dream is for the Nepal women’s team to play in the World Cup or qualify for the Olympics.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141156/636d037d9c7e80680e0a36d7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>After many years, my Dad came back to us. I would love to say that he had a big awakening and realised his mistakes, but that was not the case. Instead, he tried again for a son, and finally my little brother was born.I love my baby brother and hope he will get to grow up watching me play, so that he will have a different vision of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/women-of-substance/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">what girls are capable of</a>.My Dad got what he always wanted and I achieved my dreams. I had called him when I made the team, and I know he was proud of me.I also realised recently that I do not have anything to prove to him anymore. My dreams are for other girls like me whose fathers only want sons. My dreams are for my sisters and my mother. But most of all, my dreams are for me.

Female foeticide to football

<figure><img width="4696" height="3233" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111012110/636cda2a9c7e80680e092ee2jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Nepal's football team celebrating a goal against Bangladesh on Monday. Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>On Monday, Nepal clinched the Three Nations Cup by defeating Bangladesh with a score of 2-1, much to the delight of thousands of football enthusiasts, ending the national team’ goalless streak in international matches.Nepal was held in goalless draws against Kyrgyzstan and Bangladesh in the earlier rounds of the Three Nations Cup played amidst deteriorating air quality due to forest fires.Nepal’s ‘Goal Machine’ <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/women-of-substance/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sabitra Bhandari ‘Samba’</a> admits that male football gets more media coverage and sponsorship than women players internationally. But she says in Nepal the discrepancy is jarring because Nepal’s female footballers have consistently out-performed their male colleagues.Bhandari herself  has scored a phenomenal 38 international goals, the highest in South Asia. She says men’s football gets more financial support in Nepal despite her team’s performance in matches abroad.Fans and even ANFA (All Nepal Football Association) officials were nervous about Nepal's performance in Monday’s final, given the team's apparent inability to score goals in international matches, as the dismal record of the last eight major games showed.Indeed, the Nepal team only made it to the final because Bangladesh defeated Kyrgyzstan in its first match. Sanjog Rai and Bishal Rai sealed the victory in the final game after their first-half goals. Mahburur Rahman’s header goal in the late second half was insufficient for Bangladesh to defeat the home team.Monday’s win was Nepal’s first major one after it defeated Bhutan in the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/south-asian-games-recap-10-december/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">finals of the 2019 South Asian Games</a> with the same scoreline. It is also the team’s fifth international victory, the last one being the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/01/23/football-heroes-return-home/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AFC Solidarity Cup in Malaysia</a> where it beat Macau to lift the title in 2016. <figure><img width="1050" height="693" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111012110/636cda2e9c7e80680e092ee3jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>'Goal Machine' Sabitra Bhandari 'Samba'</figcaption></figure>“Men’s football may be technically more demanding and the game physically more draining for the men, but Nepal should have scored 3 or 4 goals against Kyrgyzstan and at least 2 or 3 against Bangladesh,” says Bhandari about the previous matches in the three Nations Cup that she watched. Home crowd support adds to the confidence of athletes but on the flip side, there is also a huge pressure to win, particularly during international matches. “Fans viewing the game can’t imagine the kind of pressure we go through trying to score a goal. But it is not all up to us, the ability of the opposing team also makes a huge difference,” she adds. A team’s <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/nepali-mens-and-womens-football-hasnt-kicked-off,1812" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">performance during international tournaments</a> is also determined by the exposure they have received and the games they had the chance to play previously. The Covid-19 pandemic meant that much of the past year, the footballers had little to no practice or support. Team effort and positive outlook become even more crucial under such circumstances, adds Bhandari who scored 31 goals in India's professional league and 41 goals in the recently concluded Women's National League. “Every goal requires teamwork, positive thinking and an appetite for a win, Nepal did perform well in the end,” Bhandari adds.

Female footballer’s take on Nepal’s win

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65bb9c7e80680e059943jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1720" height="1146"/><figcaption>Nepali swimmer Gaurika Singh with her family after winning a historic four gold medal at the Games on Monday night. Photo: BIKRAM RAI</figcaption></figure>The second last day of the 13th South Asian Games saw history book rewritten with brilliant performances from Nepali athletes.Gaurika Singh has become among the most decorated sportsperson in the history of Nepal with four individual gold medals at the single edition of South Asian Games. Her latest win came in the women's 100 metres freestyle event.Earlier she clinched gold medals in women's 400 metres freestyle, 200 metres backstroke and 200 metres freestyle events. With the wins Singh has become the face of Nepali swimming and Nepal's Golden Girl.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65be9c7e80680e059944jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65c29c7e80680e059945jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65c59c7e80680e059946jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65c99c7e80680e059947jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427">The other significant wins came from boxing when two Nepali players battled out their components to clinch a gold each in men's and women's categories.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65cc9c7e80680e059948jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3510" height="2340"><figcaption>Nepali Boxers Bupendra Thapa and Minu Gurung.Photos: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65d09c7e80680e059949jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65d39c7e80680e05994ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65d69c7e80680e05994bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="426"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65d99c7e80680e05994cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427">Bhupendra Thapa emerged victorious in men's 64k weight category and Minu Gurung in women's 54kg weight category.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65de9c7e80680e05994djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1800" height="1200"><figcaption>Punam Shrestha wins gold in judo. Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Earlier in the day, Nepal won another gold medal in judo when Punam Shrestha defeated her opponent in the women's 78kg category.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65e19c7e80680e05994ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1800" height="1005">In another big match of the day, India defeated Nepal to win gold medal in women's football tournament held in Pokhara. Nepal's men's football team will taken on Sri Lanka on Tuesday at Dasrath Stadium in the much anticipated match. Nepal is the defending champion.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a65e49c7e80680e05994fjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1800" height="1100"><figcaption>Bangladeshi archers has won 10 gold medals. Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Bangladesh proved to be master archers in this edition of South Asian Games winning 10 gold medals. In shooting, India proved to be a heavyweight with 18 golds out of 20 in the discipline.

South Asian Games Recap 9 December

<figure><img width="4096" height="2730" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151116/636a654b9c7e80680e05991fjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Nepali cyclists at the individual road race. Photo: Bikram Rai</figcaption></figure>The highlights of today's South Asian Games include Nepal's big win against Maldives in men's football and India leading the total medal tallies with more than 200 medals.In the women's 100m backstroke, India's Manna Rajiv Patel won the gold medal and Nepal's Gaurika Singh claimed silver. Singh has already won 2 gold medals in this year's SAG for swimming. <figure><img width="3600" height="2400" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151116/636a654f9c7e80680e059920jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Sangita Dhami of Nepal won gold in the 55kg women's wrestling event in Janakpur.  <figure><img width="680" height="382" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151116/636a65529c7e80680e059921jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>India's Kabaddi team. Photo: Kabaddi Adda</figcaption></figure>The Indian team secured a spot in the men's Kabaddi finals after beating Bangladesh 44-19 today. The final match will take place on Monday. <img width="383" height="447" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151116/636a65549c7e80680e059922jpeg.jpg" alt="">Bangladesh's Fatema Muzib won gold in the women's singles fencing sabre category, Ziarul Islam and Mabia Akhter claimed gold in the men's 96kg weightlifting category and the women's 76kg weightlifting category, respectively. <figure><img width="3000" height="2000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151116/636a65569c7e80680e059923jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Kiran Singh Bogati from Nepal won the gold in the men's 42.2 km marathon after finishing in 2 hours 21 minutes and 17 seconds. <figure><img width="1800" height="1057" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151116/636a65599c7e80680e059924jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Nepal beat Maldives 2-1 in the men's football match. Nepal will go against Bangladesh tomorrow.

South Asian Games Recap 7 December

<figure><img width="1400" height="1129" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110811110/636a29249c7e80680e0458acjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Diwakar Chettri</figcaption></figure>While a debate about equal citizenship rights for women raged in Parliament this week, single women who survived the earthquake are quietly and bravely struggling against deep-rooted patriarchy to rebuild homes and carrying on with their lives.On International Women’s Day, this illustration by Diwakar Chhetri shows where Nepali women are today: their responsibilities have increased and so have their capacities and achievements. But they continue to face impediments from all sides, most glaringly from the state.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/staying-alive/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Staying alive</a>, Sewa Bhattarai<a style="background-color: #ffffff; outline: 0px; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepals-better-halves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal's better halves</a>, Anil ChitrakarSince the mid-1990s female literacy in Nepal has doubled, and this has brought far-reaching changes that have ultimately empowered women. Employment and property ownership rates, and maternal and neonatal health have dramatically improved – all because women were more aware about health and rights.There has also been progress in politics, the economy, and sports. Not so long ago, the Chief Justice, Speaker of the Parliament and President of Nepal were all women and at the same time. We have also had one of the most inclusive parliaments in history in terms of gender. Most municipalities in Nepal have proactive female deputy mayors.Read also: <a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/a-house-for-the-nepali-family/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The house for the Nepali family</a>, Sewa Bhattarai<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/making-gods-for-a-living/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Making gods for a living</a>, Sonia Awale<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/surviving-the-aftermath/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Surviving the aftermath</a>, Sonam Choeyki Lama<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/staying-positive/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Staying positive</a>, Sewa Bhattarai Nepal’s National Women Cricket team returned home this week after clinching second position in the World Cup Asia Region Qualifier in Thailand. Not long ago, our women’s blind cricket team won the First International Women’s Blind Cricket Series in Pakistan. Nepal’s women football team was second runner-up at the Gold Cup in India last month.The outflow of men for overseas work has had many consequences, and the most notable is the feminisation of rural Nepal. With the men away, women have taken charge both in their homes and communities. They have decision making power in the management of schools and health posts, in community forestry and irrigation. It won’t be too far-fetched to say that much of the credit for ground-level development, despite the absence of local government for 20 years, goes to women. And now that we have local governments it is women who are standing up to corrupt male counterparts in some municipalities.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-kathmandus-past-for-the-future/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Saving Kathmandu's past for future</a>, Sonia AwaleTo be sure, not everything is rosy. Juggling their dual roles of breadwinner and primary care givers in homes and raising children has increased their burden. This inequitable distribution of work is more prominent in urban areas where women have both careers and homes to make. Men and society in general have been slow to accept these changes, and see the economic benefits of shared responsibility at home and office.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/learning-about-teaching/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Learning about teaching</a>, Prakriti KandelAmong survivors of the 2015 earthquake, women were more affected. There are an estimated 2,000 earthquake widows and 50,000 single women whose houses collapsed in the disaster. In lack of reliable support, reconstruction and survival has been more difficult for them as reported in this issue. But despite these shortcomings, women are going boldly forth where men have gone before in rebuilding lives and homes.We have produced some of the finest females doctors, pilots, engineers, artists, teachers and historians in the past few decades. But despite the fact that for the first time FNCCI is headed by a woman, and 80% of Nepal’s labour force is female (one of the highest proportions in the world) women continue to be restricted to ‘informal sectors’. Though there are higher numbers of women in politics today than ever before, there are still very few in leadership positions. Despite women heading all three organs of the government, the legislative, judiciary and executive at one point, there are still too few actual decision-makers to exert enough influence. This has led to situations like the current citizenship debate, where a male MP this week said providing citizenship to the children of rape victims will encourage rape.Clearly, higher literacy has not led to behaviour change among males in our conservative culture that sees women as an inferior gender. Given opportunity, women have proved themselves time and again and prevailed despite roadblocks and limitations. All they need now is a little help from institutions like the state and family to remove the obstacles that impede progress.

3/4th OF THE SKY

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121144/6368f01f9c7e80680e0359bajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="480"/><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121144/6368f0229c7e80680e0359bbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="360">TEAM OF WORKERS: Padam (standing, second player from right) in the documentary The Workers Cup, and Nepalis working on facilities for the 2022 championships in Qatar avidly watch a World Cup game being played in Russia last week.In a world where populist anti-immigrant narratives dominate, the diverse composition of football teams in the World Cup in Russia did not go unnoticed. Players of foreign origin including former refugees and children or grandchildren of immigrants, especially in the winning French team, stole the show.In Doha, Nepali workers busy building the infrastructure for the next World Cup found escape from their hard work watching the games in the evenings. The next championship in the winter of 2022 presents opportunities and challenges for Qatar, which is still in the throes of a Saudi-Emirates blockade, as well as for Nepal which is a major supplier of workers to the country.Qatar is expected to further ramp up hiring as it races to complete all its eight stadiums and other facilities. This is going to translate into jobs for hundreds of thousands of workers. On the other hand, given the nature of work, it raises questions about migrant rights: a topic the Qataris are sensitive about.After media highlighted human rights abuse including migrant deaths in FIFA construction sites, there have been reforms. Implementation remains murky, but they include minimum wage guarantees, lax exit visa requirements, allowing workers to keep their passports, and timely payment of wages through bank accounts under the Wage Protection System.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121144/6368f0259c7e80680e0359bcjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="948">The International Labour Organisation (ILO) recently opened an office in Doha and there is talk of Qatar setting up one stop centres in several migrant-sending countries including Nepal, rightly recognising that many problems faced by migrants start at home. Under this scheme, recruitment procedures like medical check-up, biometric fingerprinting, and contract signing will be completed prior to departure."There have been improvements: stricter audits and random checks by welfare officers at workplaces are ongoing with consequences for non-compliance of labour standards," admits one Nepali worker in Doha.Others, however, are less optimistic. A Nepali social worker who helps distressed and stranded Nepalis, says: “Monitoring and implementation is focused on employers working at high profile worksites, particularly the stadiums, but not in others. These are reforms made without workers in mind."A football tournament for migrants, captured in a well-made documentary <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5teswV_7S8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Worker's Cup</a>, has been critised as a publicity stunt to appease outsiders. "It is not about the worker. It was never about the worker," one migrant labourer says in the documentary.However, the international spotlight surrounding the 2022 World Cup presents opportunities for worker welfare to get global attention so they can be redressed. There is precedent. Reports of child labour in Sialkot of Pakistan, the supplier of balls used in the World Cup, spurred big brands like Adidas and Nike as well as FIFA to take action resulting in the elimination of the practice.There has been similar reform after media publicity about worker mistreatment in the coffee, chocolate, garments, and handheld gadgets industries. This is not easily extended to the construction industry because Nike, Apple, Starbucks, H&amp;M have become household names, in ways that firms like AlJaber and Tekfen which hire migrant workers for construction work are not.With all eyes on Qatar, however, there is scope for migrant issues to be highlighted through non-conventional partnerships with players like the Centre for Sport and Human Rights that focus on labour rights in the sports industry. Because migration is receiving global attention, a strategic campaign that appeals to the spirit of the game these construction projects are tied to would also be useful.The Global Compact on Migration this month got countries to agree to cooperate on migration governance. It remains to be seen how these non-binding agreements impact on the day-to-day lives of migrants. The real challenge is in implementation, and how well the World Cup is used as a global platform for worker welfare.None of the issues of poor working and living conditions, high recruitment costs, and unexplained deaths of workers, are new. What is new in Qatar is their association with a mega-sporting event like the World Cup, and the power of sports diplomacy to give it wider relevance and potential for longer-term reform.Says Padam, one of the Nepali players depicted in The Worker's Cup: "We were players from Ghana, India, Nepal, Kenya while our coach was from Egypt. Most of us spoke broken English, in so many different accents it was hard to understand each other, yet we had a strong team-spirit, we bonded very well.”He adds that Nepalis have a very good reputation in Qatar’s construction sector where high-risk jobs on high scaffoldings needs deft and courage. He expects the demand for Nepalis will grow in the coming years.Padam, who also played at the Khalifa International Stadium with other migrant workers, hopes to visit Qatar in 2022 like many other Nepalis. And it won’t just be for the love of the game.

Upasana Khadka

The workers' football

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107111152/6368e3ff9c7e80680e0333b3jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1123" height="699"/>The whole world, including Nepal, is now <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-in-the-grip-of-world-cup-fever/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in the grips of the World Cup football</a> tournament in Russia. The host country is expected to generate about $30 billion in revenue from the month-long jamboree.Neither Nepal, or any South Asian country, is participating in the games. Yet we have gone crazy about it, cheering for our favourite teams – in Nepal it tends to be Argentina or Brazil.But can we at least learn from the game we love to watch and talk about so much? Some of the discussions are quite esoteric. Such as, when Sweden plays Denmark, the first three letters of each team combined becomes Sweden and the remaining letters make up Denmark?Betting on the games has become quite a trend, even if it is a great way to lose money. Some love to bet and make or lose money. A taxi driver quoted some of the amounts at stake, and it was huge. Restaurants and bars have been cashing in on the games by selling drinks and snacks, and there are attractive discounts if you are able to predict the outcome of each game.For others, the game offers a lot more. Let us take the word competition, for example, and understand what it really means. There are 22 players on the field. There are rules of the game, and the outcome of the game does not depend on the size of the country, its army, GDP or population.The only thing that matters is how well the 11 play and how much time, energy, practice and research of the opposite team they have done. The captains lead, the coaches strategise, and then the whole world watches. Is it not amazing, therefore, that Croatia can defeat Argentine 3-0? In previous tournaments Serbia defeated the USA, and Iceland defeated England.Football has regulators. The referee, the assistants and the nearly 35 cameras help ensure fairness. The fans can be, and are, biased. There is time added at the end of each half to make up for time lost or wasted by players.Let us transpose this rules-based state of play to Nepal, and the businesses and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Elected-contractors,4182" target="_blank" rel="noopener">contractors</a> working here. If players and teams feel there is a foul the referee did not see, they have the option of watching the video replay. Using this technology, a penalty can be awarded.The much talked about game between Croatia and Argentina provided insight into how we need to manage change. As the saying goes: ‘When the hammer is the only tool you have, every problem begins to look like a nail.’ In the game, it looked like Messi was the only tool they had. But a toolbox consists of a set of implements, not just a hammer.Secondly, there is a realisation when the goals begin to mount that the ‘goal‘ is not going to change. The rules of the game are not going to change, the field size, the time allocated, and the referee, are all going to remain the same. The 35 cameras are also going to ensure that foul play is unlikely. What needs to change is the way the game is played.Einstein famously said ‘Insanity is repeating the same process hoping for a different result.’ Is Nepal learning from Argentina, then? Can we rely only on a ‘Messi’ to get us where we need to be? Can we continue to play the same game? Do we need to develop new tools? Is it time to change the way we play?What <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/business-of-entrepreneurship-in-nepal,3362" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepali entrepreneurs</a> need is a level playing field where they can compete. They want a regulator who ensures fairness. Whenever there is room for discretionary powers to be misused, they want to see a technological intervention. They also want fans and the glare of the camera when they succeed.It is also worth mentioning that players need to have a strong track record and their profiles are updated so commentators have easy access to their information. In winning teams, the players are there on the basis of merit. They are not there based on what their surname is, what part of the country they come from, or who they know in the political arena.Anil Chitrakar is President of Siddharthinc.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-in-the-grip-of-world-cup-fever/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal in the grip of World Cup fever</a>, Monika Deupala

football