NAIROBI www.coorners.com , June 19 (Xinhua) -- As the world remained glued to their television screens, Surajit Bose, Indian international footballer was doing an off season camp in Nairobi under the watchful eye of celebrated coach Sammy Omollo.
This is the first time in the history of Indian football that an Indian player has done an off season camp outside the country.
"Football is my first love and passion and I always wanted to play football from my childhood. I am very fortunate that my family supported me in my desire," the Indian football sensation told Xinhua on Wednesday.
"I remember my elder brother taking me to Calcutta for matches and still today, my mother is always tensed whenever I am playing a game which is coming live on television adidas nmd shoes for sale ," he said.
Bose, who comes from a small town of Bengal called Kalyani located about 45kms from Calcutta, says it is his first time to visit Kenya and is coping well, especially with the weather.
"Kenyan football is superior to the Indian game but only in some aspects. I believe Indian footballers are ahead skill wise but as far as fitness, strength adidas nmd for sale , stamina and speed go, Kenyan players are way ahead of us."
Bose came into contact with Omollo when the Kenyan was playing for East Bengal club in Calcutta at the time he was playing under-13 football for the same club. During that period, Bose was a ball boy in all the home matches for East Bengal.
"I used to see Omollo playing and it was a treat to watch. Sammy is highly respected as a footballer in Calcutta," he told Xinhua.
"Watching him play during that time and then coming to get trained under him now in Kenya is something which is very hard for me to believe. It is something which I had never imagined."
He signed a professional contract with East Bengal in 1996 and after two seasons moved to Mohun Bagan A.C for another three seasons.
So how did India's top player end up coming to Kenya for the camp? "I had an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) surgery in 2012 after which I felt my career graph was going own," he said.
"During that time I was very fortunate when the boss of First Sports Events, Tapan Roy 2016 Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 Pirate Black Shoes Clearance , offered me a contract with their company, and knowing the company's reputation, I never thought twice."
Bose said he later on signed a three-year contract with the company and since 2013; he has been managed by the company only. He said when his manager, Kaustav Lahiri, mentioned to him that he may be going to Kenya for some off season training Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2 Core Black White Clearance , he did not think twice.
Though Bose comes from a country where cricket is the top sport, his love for football dates back to childhood when he would watch from the balcony of their house senior players engage in the game on the ground just in front of their apartment.
"That's how I fell in love with this beautiful game. Believe me or not, cricket was never so popular in our locality, hence we played only football throughout the year."
Bose says Indian football needs to change its modus operandi in order to be at par with other nations and make an impact at the global stage.
PARIS - The populist tsunami that slammed into Britain last year, before sweeping across the Atlantic to the United States, may have faded on the shores of France on Sunday.
Despite a strong performance from far-right leader Marine Le Pen in the first round of France's presidential election, the bigger news was the success of Emmanuel Macron, an independent centrist who rode to victory with a counter-intuitive campaign that embraced globalization Adidas Ultra Boost x Porshe Design Shoes All White , immigration and the European Union.
The polls suggest Macron will beat Le Pen soundly in the second round runoff on May 7. If he does, it could open the door to more ambitious reforms of the French economy and an elusive compromise with Germany on overhauling the troubled euro zone.
Just 39 years old and with only four years of political experience under his belt, Macron represents a generational change and a break from the left-right divide that has defined French politics for over half a century.
He would face formidable challenges as president. Nearly half of French voters opted for candidates on the extreme right and left of the political spectrum. These people are unlikely to embrace Macron's liberal democratic vision, leaving France a deeply divided nation.
A president Macron could also struggle to cobble together a centrist majority in parliament after legislative elections in June.
But after Brexit and the election of U.S. President Donald Trump, his first round victory -- which comes after setbacks for far-right politicians in Austria Men's Adidas Originals Tubular X Shoes Pure White Clearance , the Netherlands and Germany in recent months -- shows that the political center is holding in the heart of Europe.
"It looks as though populism is in retreat in Europe," said Iain Begg of the London School of Economics.