The secret of the championship that the Amputee Football National Team won at the 2022 World Cup held in Istanbul, lies in working in coordination.
Muaz Ergezen, President of Turkish Physically Handicapped Sports Federation, and Osman Çakmak, Technical Director of Amputee Football National Team, were guests with the championship trophy.
Ergezen, in his statement, stated that they are honored and proud to be world champions.
Expressing that there is a great effort and experience behind the championship, Ergezen said that the success of a team that takes the field in the spirit of unity and solidarity is the subject.
Explaining that they have not spared any sacrifice for the athletes since the day they were elected, Ergezen said that the players gave the Turkish nation the reward for these sacrifices.
“Each of our branches is very valuable in itself”
Emphasizing that the Turkish Physically Disabled Sports Federation has many branches compared to many federations, Ergezen said, “Each of our branches is very valuable in itself. We manage branches that are a federation on their own. I think we work by establishing a good management. Osman Hodja very rightfully follows his demands insistently. We have been on the field since the first day because we believed. Ampute football is the flagship of this place, along with basketball.” he said.
Explaining that they will continue to work to ensure that success in amputee football continues, Ergezen said, “We have achieved the leadership, we will of course look for ways to remain a leader. We will prepare for it. We are aware of the seriousness and importance of this work. We are aware of the heavy load. There is a speech. Yes, we finished it now, a new page is opening. It is much more valuable to carry it now.” used the phrases.
“(Award regulation) We think a solution will be found”
Ergezen gave the following answer to the question about the award regulation:
“We conveyed the matter to Mehmet Muharrem Kasapoğlu, our Minister of Youth and Sports. He is very sensitive about this issue. He listened to us with his ear. We know that there will be a work on that side and a solution will be found. We have walked with the great appreciation and savings of our state elders. Our brothers do this very much. I believe they deserve it. Hopefully, we think that a solution will be found soon. In the meantime, we will reward our brothers and sisters with the help of sponsors.”
Stating that they are also grateful to Anadolu Agency, which always supports them, Ergezen said, “You have been our voice, you have been our image. We have at least expressed to people that such opportunities exist.” said.
Çakmak: “I would like to thank my president and my management”
Osman Çakmak, Technical Director of Amputee Football National Team, said that the World Cup championship is a great pride for them.
Noting that Muaz Ergezen continued to trust them after he was elected as the federation president, Çakmak continued his words as follows:
“We lost the World Cup final against Angola in 2018. There was a penalty I missed. We could predict what we would face from that day forward. Since February, we have completely determined our route. We said to our President, ‘We need to make 8 camps on the dates we have determined.’ We said. Thankfully, our president did not offend us. It is a first in history. The Amputee Football National Team went abroad to the preparation match for England. These are very fine and important details. I thank my president and my management.”
“We were winning when we played our own game”
Explaining that he gave a motivational speech with his players before the final match against Angola, Çakmak said, “I believe in you very much. You are very confident in yourself. We have no doubts. We have to play our own game.” I said. We did our analysis all day, it ended at 03.00 at night. We told our footballer brothers in the morning. When we played our own game, we were victorious. And that’s what happened.” he said.
Emphasizing that Turkey is asked about amputee football in the world, Çakmak said, “We have a very high quality league. The interest is good, but the world cup was missing in our museum. We prepared accordingly. Thank God, we were also very good in offense and defense.” made a statement.
“The wind blows hard at the summit”
Çakmak stated that it was not a coincidence for them to reach the summit and said:
“We played the final in 2018. We won the World Cup in 2022. We became European champions in 2017. You can reach the top, but the wind blows hard at the summit. There is a saying in football, ‘Yesterday is yesterday, let’s look at today’. “I trust my team. I also trust my brothers from below. The 2024 European Championship will be held in Ireland. After we bring it, the place of the 2026 World Cup will be determined later. The trophy we receive must have a brother. We need to explain that success is not a coincidence. Trophies also have an older brother. We need to have a trio.”
Pointing out that young people’s interest in amputee football has increased, Çakmak said, “We played in front of 45 thousand people in the 2017 European Championship and became the champion. After that, we can convince our brothers more. Visuals are very important. Anadolu Agency is very important to us. You are in every camp. Telling about this is an important part of the project. It has to be told. Everyone should see it.” he concluded his speech.