By Avikash Chand
The Vodafone Fiji football coach Christophe Gamel has officially stepped down from his position due to family commitments.
He will leave the country at the end of this month.
Fiji FA President Rajesh Patel said with a heavy heart, we are officially announcing today that our National Coach Christophe Gamel would be leaving Fiji FA.
“It is a sad day for us and football in the country as Gamel has done so much to lift the standard of football in the country.”
Patel said they had agreed to this on a mutual understanding.
“It was a tough decision for him to make but his family back in France needs him more. We respect his decision and wish him well for the future.”
“Christophe went back to France after the Pacific Games to sort out things but sadly he could not do much and has made the decision to leave. He is leaving because of his family commitments.”
“He proposed to coach the national teams on a part time basis but sadly our system and our arrangement with the Fiji Sports Commission does not have any provision for part time coaching,” said Patel
He said Gamel’s contract would officially terminated on August 30, 2019.
“Nevertheless he has agreed to assist us as a liaison officer for Fiji FA and will help us secure matches against teams in Europe and Asia in future,” said Patel.
An emotional looking Gamel said he served Fiji with the best of his abilities and would return home with some fond memories.
“I enjoyed every moment of my stay here and want to thank Fiji FA, Government of Fiji, sponsors Vodafone, the districts, players, supporters and all Fijians for all the support.”
“I have to leave as my son needs me more in France. Family is important for me at this stage of my life but I will continue to help Fiji FA in every way possible,” he said.
“Our ranking improved from 189 to 163, our boys and girls teams won bronze medals in the Pacific Games and the girls also created history by reaching the final of the Nations Cup.”
“We tried to lift the standard of the game and get the teams to play more constructive and possession based football and I am happy to see the standard go up and players lifting their game and playing with more passion and good discipline.”
“Fiji has some good potential and I will try to market some of our players to clubs in Asia and Europe and will also help Fiji FA by arranging build up games against some big countries.”
Gamel joined Fiji FA in January 2017 and signed for 18 months and his contract was extended to a further four years in July 2018.
Meanwhile goalkeeper Xavier Hanneuse will also depart with Gamel on the 30th of August.
Mr. Patel said Hanneuse who was hired on a short-term contract will find it difficult to work without Gamel as he only speaks French and communication will be a barrier.
Gamel’s position will be advertised soon and Fiji FA will also seek help from Oceania Football Confederation in seeking a new coach for the country.
In the interim, Fiji Women’s Coach Marika Rodu, Sunil Kumar and Lautoka Coach Anginesh Prasad who are all B-Licensed coaches will look after the national teams while former national and Labasa goalkeeper Shamal Kumar will train the goalkeepers.
