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sports Diamars 19 OctOber 2021

FIFA, Qatar team up with WHO for World Cup health promotion

(AP) — FIFA and Qatari er November temperatures, more collaboratively as we languages and platforms that
organizers of next year’s the coronavirus pandemic Qatar was a “top 10 volun- seek to tell the WHO nar- are accessible to all.”
World Cup teamed up is moving into a third year tary donor” last year, WHO rative to global audiences in
with the World Health and closer to key tournament regional director Ahmed Al-
Organization on Monday preparations. Mandhari said.
to use soccer’s marquee
event for promoting pub- “The tournament is likely Tedros described Qatari sup-
lic health. to be the first global mass port as “critical to our work”
gathering of this scale since and noted two flights it re-
The move follows years of the spread of the pandemic,” cently provided to take medi-
scrutiny on Qatar and criti- Hassan al-Thawadi, the head cal supplies to Afghanistan.
cism of conditions for hun- of the Qatari World Cup or-
dreds of thousands of mi- ganizing committee, said at FIFA made a $10 million do-
grant workers needed for WHO headquarters. nation to WHO last year, and
massive projects tied to the FIFA president Gianni Infan-
tournament. No details were given Mon- tino said in a video message
day of practical planning to Monday the state of Qatar
“Events like the World Cup protect the World Cup from was committed to “the safest
and the Olympic Games COVID-19, and no ques- World Cup ever.”
are perfect partners for pro- tions were taken at the launch
moting health and solidar- broadcast from Geneva. The “Healthy 2022 World
ity,” WHO director general Cup” aims to create a legacy
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreye- Vaccine mandates for visit- for future major sporting
sus said. ing fans to enter stadiums events, including the 2026
was the official Qatari policy tournament to be hosted by
When FIFA picked Qatar in four months ago. Officials the United States, Canada
2010 to host the World Cup, have since moved to a more and Mexico.
the expected health risk was flexible approach, which is
exposing 32 teams of players, expected to be tested one The launch included sign-
thousands of workers and year ahead of the World Cup ing Ivory Coast great Didier
hundreds of thousands of when Qatar hosts the 16-na- Drogba as a WHO goodwill
fans to 40-plus Celsius (100- tion Arab Cup on Nov. 30. ambassador to promote a
plus Fahrenheit) heat in June healthier lifestyle.
and July. WHO officials on Monday
praised Qatar and FIFA for “May we unite to be better
Though that issue was solved their financial and practical prepared,” Drogba said, “and
by moving the games to cool- contributions. respond to future pandemics

NBA hires Danielle Scott, league’s 6th female full-time ref

(AP) - Danielle Scott decided and, like Scott, they also worked
to join the family business. WNBA games this season.
She’s taken it to a new level.
“It’s continuing our thought of
Scott, the daughter of college bas- ‘What do good officials look like?’”
ketball officials, was promoted said Monty McCutchen, the
Monday to the full-time NBA NBA’s senior vice president and
staff referee roster. She becomes head of referee development and
the sixth woman on the current training. “They look like anyone
staff, joining Lauren Holtkamp- you see on the street. They look
Sterling, Ashley Moyer-Gleich, like men, they look like women,
Simone Jelks, Natalie Sago and they look like people from differ-
Jenna Schroeder. ent cultures. There’s both diver-
sity and inclusion in our hires.”
That’s the most the NBA has ever
had on staff at one time, and Scott And Scott, who is Black, has al-
said she hopes the notion of fe- ready seen the impact she can have.
male referees in the league no lon-
ger seems unusual. She was working a G League game
in California when a man ap-
“I think that they’ve accepted us at proached her at halftime and asked
this point,” Scott said. “So, I think her to take a postgame photo with
if we’re not there, we’re very, very his three daughters. The young
close to being there.” Black girls were overjoyed when
she obliged.
Scott spent four seasons working
in the G League before her pro- “Representation matters,” Scott
motion; the two other full-time said. “I took the picture with them
hires announced Monday, John and they just were asking me all
Conley and Brandon Schwab, also these questions, so it was really re-
are moving up from the G League. warding. Sometimes with the job,
They all worked between 20 and the stress, the day to day, you don’t
26 games as non-staff referees last realize the impact that you have.
season. And just that moment, it was re-
ally awesome for me and it made
Conley was in the G League for me realize, ‘Wow, people are look-
seven seasons, Schwab for five ing at me.’”