Reportage – 2003

France denies visa to Tibetan football team

DHARAMSHALA, India, 14 Aug 2003 (AFP)

France has denied visas to the Tibetan national football team, which is entirely made up of Tibetans living in exile in India and Nepal, a radio report said Thursday.

Radio Voice of Tibet, based in the northern Indian town of Dharamsala, quoted the team's manager, Kalsang Dhondup, as saying that the French embassy in New Delhi rejected visas to the players on Wednesday.

"The reason for French embassy's refusal is that many Tibetans have illegally migrated to France. The decision to reject the visas has come directly from Paris," Kalsang said.

The rejection of the visa application will mean that the Tibetans will have to cancel a match with a club in France and another in Switzerland, according to the radio report.

The 22-member team was selected by an experienced football coach from the state-run Sports Authority of India in the northern Indian town of Dehradun in June this year.

They are currently being trained in New Delhi at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

"The French and the Swiss matches are now cancelled but we may still play in Denmark," Kalsang told the radio.

The team had played their first-ever international match in Italy in 1999.