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January 23, 2010

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New football leader is picked as 2 are sacked

A NEW leader was appointed to the China's Football Association yesterday to keep it functioning, as two top officials were sacked amid police allegations of match-fixing.

Wei Di, former director of the Water Sports Administrative Center, will formally take over the scandal-ridden association next week.

The former head of the football association, Nan Yong, and his deputy, Yang Yimin, were fired yesterday, after being summoned by police in the spreading investigation.

Cui Dalin, vice minister of China's General Administration of Sport, announced the decisions yesterday. He said gambling and match-fixing had tainted the image of sports, thrown the business of football into jeopardy and demoralized the fans.

According to the new boss, all working arrangements in the football association will continue, including China's national team taking part in the East Asian Cup on January 25.

Wei has previously been in charge of Chinese boxing and weightlifting. He and Nan were both candidates for the head of the football association in 2009. He didn't get the job because of lack of experience in soccer.

Yet he was considered a "man of integrity" in the general administration, an unnamed official said.

The news Website, sina.com.cn, said that the association, mired in the huge police investigation into corruption, needs Wei as an ideal leader.

The new man will have little time to get familiar with football. China's Super League starts its season in March and policies concerning players transferring between football clubs are yet to be determined, professional-football newspaper Goal China reported yesterday.

Wei said he was confident of settling the problems.

The Ministry of Public Security confirmed on Thursday that Nan and Yang were being questioned as part of a crackdown to stamp out corruption.

Zhang Jianqiang, the official in charge of Chinese women's football and referee arrangements, was also taken by police for investigation.

The three are so far the biggest fish netted in the massive hunt. They are now confined in a hotel room in Liaoning Province and not allowed to meet reporters, Titan Sports quoted an insider as saying.




 

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