Why action is needed now to get Seychelles on the starting blocks for sporting glory

Empty seats: Will poor facilities put spectators off sporting events?

By Seychelles Life Correspondent

With the 2023 Indian Ocean Islands Games only six months away, there is growing concern that sports in Seychelles is in such a sorry state that the country could already be facing failure.

For years it was accepted that sports was in a mess, but there was hope things could improve with the new government of 2020.

Yet little seems to have changed.

Observers note that most of those who had been in command for many years are still in the same seats they have occupied for decades – and looking on without taking any concrete action to stop the deterioration and decay. 

Apart from the Minister and Principal Secretary for Sports, Ralph Jean-Louis, who was appointed in 2021, most of the old guard remain in key positions. They include Antonio Gopal, the 76-year-old President of the Seychelles Olympics and Commonwealth Games Association (Socga). He has held the post for over 30 years, and could not have failed to see the continuous decline of sports, both in terms of performance and infrastructure.

Key player: Antonio Gopal, president of Seychelles Olympics and Commonwealth Games Association

Jean Larue, CEO of the National Sports Council (NSC) since 2018, and George Bibi, CEO of the Seychelles Football Federation (SFF) for the last six years, have only recently left their influential roles after years of poor performances and poor results on the regional stage. 

Eyebrows have been raised regarding their replacements, with former headteacher Marc Arrisol succeeding Larue as new CEO of NSC and ex-sprinter and former Principal Secretary for Sports, Denis Rose, replacing Bibi at the helm of the country's most popular sport. 

Both are seen as unconvincing replacements at a time when Seychellois sports is in urgent need of a major overhaul. To many, it looks more like, “out of the frying pan into the fire”, especially with the next IOIG in Madagascar taking place from August 23 to September 3. 

Almost two years of inactivity, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has not helped to improve the situation, with most of the sport infrastructures left to fall into ruin, including the country's only international standard football field at Stade L'Unité, and the Palais des Sports, the only venue eligible to host international basketball and volleyball games. 

Renovation work has only recently started on these two venues, including the synthetic athletics tracks at Stade L'Unité, which have been in a sorry state, just like the tennis courts at the Roche Caiman sports complex.

Criticised: The athletic tracks at Stade L'Unité were said to be in a ‘sorry state’

The inner islands of Praslin and La Digue too are in urgent need of some modern sport infrastructures, to bring them up to standard. 

Clearly, without good facilities, it is more difficult to improve performances and get better results. 

Seychelles used to be a substantial force in sport disciplines such as boxing, basketball, volleyball and athletics in the Indian Ocean, but it is difficult seeing it finishing on the podium again at the IOIG.

The nation’s hopes will once again rest on the shoulders of the swimmers, who returned home with seven gold medals from the last Games in Mauritius.

Also, the non-assignment of the annual Best Sportsmen/women awards for the third consecutive year has brought much disappointment among athletes, especially those who feel they have performed well enough to deserve a chance of winning. 

This decision has been discouraging to many and even led some sports people to consider quitting, as it was an opportunity for them to win cash prizes at a time when sponsors are more difficult to find and finance has become a problem.

Yet, the President of the Republic and the Sports Minister, are heard saying that Seychelles athletes should aim for a first-ever historic Olympic medal, which today seems a tall order. 

Before aiming that high, commentators say that Seychelles should first put its  house in order and clear the mess that the country’s sports is in. 

They urge quick and concrete action, because they say talk will achieve little.

Will there be enough time to prepare for 2025 when Seychelles will host both the 13th edition of the Indian Ocean Youth and Sport Commission (CJSOI) Games and the 2025 Beach Soccer World Cup?

Only the sports chiefs can say. 

But there is one thing for sure: The race is on.