NAIL-BITING FINISH IN DIGICEL ACADEMY 3-ON-3 TOURNAMENT

Friday 15^th November 2013 – Bridgetown, Barbados

Haitian players celebrate after winning the 3-on-3 tournament

Haiti’s best footballers emerge victorious in a 3-on-3 tournament
 
 The players participating in this year’s Digicel Academy competed against each other in a 3 on 3 tournament which saw the players from Haiti emerging the winners over Barbados after a nail-biting final match which ended in a penalty shoot-out.

The final match between Haiti and Barbados ended in a nil-all draw and so the winner was decided by a penalty shoot-out which saw the Haitian boys walking away victorious. There was still a spirit of camaraderie as the players embraced and congratulated each other on a game well-played.

Yesterday’s tournament was a warm-up for the main Round-Robin tournament which sees the players being split up into three teams; Team Lampard, Team Hazard and Team Oscar as well as the Barbados National U-17 team. The teams were names after Chelsea first team players, Belgian national and midfielder, Eden Hazard, English national and central midfielder, Frank Lampard and Brazilian national and winger, Oscar dos Santos Emboaba Júnior. The top two teams from this knockout tournament will play in the finals on Saturday for the prize of best team of the Academy.

The players representing Haiti at the Academy are: 14 year-old Ortegat Vileus, 15 year-olds, Kenley Dede and Dérissé Wilson and 14 year-old, Denso Ulysse. One of the boys, 15 year-old Dérissé Wilson, described how he felt about winning the tournament, he said; “I am really happy that we won. All three of us stayed focused so that we would be the winning team and take the trophy back to Haiti. I am very proud that we are taking it home.”

A Player from Panama congratulates one of the players from the winning Haitian team

The Digicel Kick Start Clinics programme is a once in a lifetime opportunity for the thousands of aspiring young footballers. These players are not only taught skills and technical ability but also an ethos of professionalism and a good attitude – critical attributes of successful people in all walks of life. Now in their sixth year, the Clinics saw thousands of aspiring young footballers from across 11 countries in the Caribbean and Central America try out for their chance to travel to the Digicel Academy.

During the Clinics, the best players from each country trained under the coaches in the hope of being one of the top four chosen by them to go to the Digicel Academy in Barbados to represent their country.

During the week-long Digicel Academy, the top 39 boys from across the region get the chance of a lifetime to receive intensive training under coaches from Barclays Premier League side, Chelsea Football Club.

Players enjoying the 3-on-3 final celebrations

For more information please visit www.digicelfootball.com

ABOUT DIGICEL GROUP

Digicel Group Limited is a leading global communications provider with operations in 31 markets in the Caribbean, Central America and Asia Pacific. After 12 years of operation, total investment to date stands at over US$4.5 billion worldwide. The company is renowned for delivering best value, best service and best network.

Digicel runs a host of community-based initiatives across its markets and has set up Digicel Foundations in Jamaica, Haiti, Papua New Guinea and Trinidad and Tobago which focus on educational, cultural and social development programmes.

Digicel is the lead sponsor of Caribbean, Central American and Pacific sports teams and individuals including the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt and Special Olympics teams throughout these regions. Digicel also sponsors the West Indies cricket team. 

Digicel is incorporated in Bermuda and its markets comprise: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Curacao, Dominica, El Salvador, Fiji, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Nauru, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos and Vanuatu. Digicel also has coverage in St. Martin and St. Barts in the Caribbean.

Visit www.digicelgroup.com for more information.