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Event: Thanks to Ovalies UniLaSalle for their support of 16,666€!

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The Serge Betsen Academy would like to convey a massive thank you to Ovalies UniLaSalle and all its partners for all the support! This 50,000€ check to be shared with two other great associations, “Une ballade pour Justine et Lou” and “L’Arche à Beauvais ” will change many lives!

 

Remise du chèque des Ovalies UniLaSalle 2022 !

 

Our President Serge Betsen was delighted to participate in the Ovalies adventure this year and to represent the association on 6 and 7 May in Beauvais, these are his words:

 

“It is always a real pleasure to participate in a rugby event and watch brilliant students practicing my sport! Congratulations to all the participants of the Ovalies UniLaSalle and the PURPAN School of Engineers (VII female and XV male), LéoRugby (VII male), VetAgro Sup (Pompom) for their respective wins.

It is wonderful to see young people participating in this project which combines sport, solidarity and sharing by helping associations such as “Une ballade pour Justine et Lou”, “L’Arche à Beauvais ”, and the SBA.

A big thank you also to Dimitri Yachvili and Fanny Horta for their time and to all the curious people who came to our stand to find out more about our actions in Cameroon and Mali. It was a real pleasure for me, and Charles-Edouard whom I thank for his help, to meet you.

Many thanks too to the Ovalies team, Paul Vincant and Albane Tenneson for their warm welcome and support. Thanks to Coucou Hibou and Paul-Louis de Juglart for supporting the SBA through its collection of Olympia jerseys.

Congratulations to all for the success of this great charity tournament of students’ rugby.”

 

Translation : Katy Birgé-Wilson

Mali : A fantastic donation from the legends at Hornets Women’s Rugby

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The children of the Serge Betsen Academy in Mali received another fantastic donation thanks to our friend Dan W., this time from the legends at Hornets Women’s Rugby in the United Kingdom. There were rugby balls, divers rugby equipment, water bottles and jerseys! Regarding the rugby equipment, they will be very useful during our sessions, and the adult jerseys have been offered to our coaches.
Everything was gratefully received particularly by the girls who were inspired to receive kit from an English ladies team. Massive thank you to Lindsay Pilgrim and Rachel Allchurch for pulling it together. It will make a real difference to our girls.
It is always a great pleasure for our coaches to be helped by Dan W during the sessions. We want to thank him deeply for his presence and his help to meet the needs of the centre and his efforts to encourage donations from rugby clubs in his home country.
Thank you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Donation: The SBA Mali thanks Fairford RFC for its support

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The children and staff at the Serge Betsen Academy Mali (SBA Mali) were very pleased to receive a generous donation from Fairford RFC. The donation consisted of many matching shirts, which have helped the children look and feel like a team as well as some much needed boots and shorts. There was also a substantial amount of rugby equipment such as balls, cones and bibs which the charity has quickly put to use to enhance the training they are able to deliver to the children. A number of adult shirts have also been donated to the Bamako Hippos XV team.

Fairford RFC is a small community focused rugby club based in Gloucestershire, England who have men’s, women’s and junior sections. They discovered the SBA when one of their players who is currently working in Mali reported back on the great work that the SBA was doing for young children, particularly girls, in Bamako. The club was instantly eager to help and organised an impressive collection and within 2 weeks had a large amount of equipment on its way to Mali. Fairford RFC head coach Danny Briggs said “As soon as we heard about the SBA the whole club was keen to get involved. Rugby is a family united by our love for the game and its values. We are very happy to be able help our rugby brothers and sisters in Africa and thank the SBA for the opportunity to do so.”

The SBA thanks Fairford RFC for its generosity and support, they are a club that truly represents the community spirit and values of rugby. SBA President Serge Betsen added “Many thanks for your support to the kids in Bamako, I am very proud that the rugby family supports others in need.”

 

Bangui: A third mission carried out in the Central African Republic as part of the TRAUMA Project!

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All good things come in threes! It was on July 24, and not a day later, that the coaches of the Serge Betsen Academy (SBA) Cameroon had the pleasure of heading for Bangui in the Central African Republic as part of the TRAUMA Project. This project, whose funding organisation is the Crisis and Support Centre of the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, is led by the Francophone Institute for Justice and Democracy – Institut Louis Joinet (IFJD) and implemented and carried out by the Serge Betsen Academy in partnership with the Central African Rugby Federation. Idriss Tcheumkeu Ketcha was, on this occasion, accompanied by Loïc Zeutsop Kenfack, another experienced coach from the association. Always driven by the initial objectives of the TRAUMA Project, namely the reconciliation of the Central African people through the values ​​conveyed by rugby, our coaches had the following objectives during this third mission in Bangui:

  • Continue to verify the achievements of local coaches since the 2nd mission while continuing their training on ever more technical subjects.
  • Organise a week of inter-establishment matches in order to test the feasibility of the major final tournament scheduled for November 2022 in the Barthélemy Boganda sports complex, which can accommodate 20,000 people.

Idriss Tcheumkeu Ketcha, head of the technical committee and Loïc Zeutsop Kenfack, head of the refereeing committee wanted to benefit from more time on site to better prepare coaches and players. So they stayed there for a month. The sequence of inter-establishment matches took place after the departure of the coaches of SBA Cameroon. This requirement which characterises the coaches of the Serge Betsen Academy coupled with the formidable work of the Francophone Institute for Justice and Democracy – Institut Louis Joinet (IFJD) which is the project leader and our partner, the Central African Rugby Federation have allowed the children to participate in these very successful matches. Indeed, the eleven primary, secondary and higher education establishments involved were able to take part in these matches, which all took place in a warm atmosphere. In addition to the quality of the game and the investment of all, this week allowed the implementation of the values ​​of rugby. No incident and no conflict were to be deplored. There were smiles galore, even for the losers who will be able to take their revenge on the pitch in November!

 

Photos © IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet

After an intense month of tuition, organisation and rugby training, the coaches of the Serge Betsen Academy returned to Cameroon at the end of August with the feeling of accomplishment to enjoy some well-deserved rest.

Thank you to the Francophone Institute for Justice and Democracy – Institut Louis Joinet (IFJD) for the trust placed in our association within the framework of this Project.

 

 

 

Article écrit par Nathan Barbier

Translation: Katy Birgé-Wilson

Mali: SBA Mali organised a rugby event with other rugby clubs from Bamako!

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Early February, the Serge Betsen Academy Mali (SBA Mali) organised and hosted a rugby event for the great pleasure of our children!

Around 160 children from the Bamako schools together with young people from surrounding clubs came to play, including USFAS, EDO, HIPPOS and of course SBA Mali. The U8, U10, U12 and U14 categories were represented. Mandjou, Kady, Tidjane and Sory, the coaches of SBA Mali provided the coaching.

The younger children met with lots of others and played many games related to rugby. As for the 35 older players, they participated in a XV’s rugby match.

Personalities from the world of rugby made the trip there and took the time to visit the centre: Mr Ali Y. Diarra, former technical director of the Malian Rugby Federation, who is now based in France as well as the new president of the Malian Federation of rugby, Me Yéhiya Touré.

It was a great rugby day and the SBA defended itself well against the other teams. The girls did especially well! At the end of the day, all the children got together to enjoy a good snack and they even danced a few steps to celebrate this time spent together.

 

Translation : Katy Birgé-Wilson

 

 

 

Bangui: A great second mission to the Central African Republic!

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Having barely returned to Cameroon, Idriss Tcheumkeu Ketcha left on June 1 for his second mission to the Central African Republic as part of the TRAUMA Project. This project, funded by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs’ Crisis and Support Centre is carried out by the Institut Francophone pour la Justice et la Démocratie – Institut Louis Joinet (IFJD) (Francophone Institute for Justice and Democracy – Louis Joinet Institute) and implemented by the Serge Betsen Academy in partnership with Ovale Citoyen and the Central African Rugby Federation. The main objective of the second mission was to assess the progress and achievements one month after the first mission.

 

  
Photos © IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet 2022

 

The coaches visited as many schools as possible to assess the impact of the sessions on the rugby and social development of the young people. Indeed, the latter took advantage of the presence of international coaches to work and deepen essential notions to become great rugby players or coaches: kicking: very tactical aspect in high-level rugby, scrums: true test of strength characteristic of rugby and its collective values ​​and the rucks: essential phase of the games to ensure the continuity of the game.Idriss and the whole team were able to assess the national coaches by attending the training sessions managed by them in the different schools of Bangui:

  • Fatima School, 3 sessions
  • Boganda High School, 1 session
  • Caron high school, 3 sessions
  • School for the deaf and dumb, 2 sessions
  • Boy Rabe 2 school, 1 session
  • The Bimbo school, 1 session.

At the end of this trip, Idriss noticed a real improvement in the coaches and also how much they had gained in confidence since his last mission. According to him: they do a very good job! However, the coaches can still improve on certain areas, such as their ability to “adapt well to sessions according to the circumstances, the category, the expectation, the objectives and the purpose of their initiations”, hence the interest of this accompaniment.

This second mission was also an opportunity to talk about the famous Bangui inter-school final tournament that all the children are looking forward to.

Thank you to the IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet for this collaboration and long live rugby in Bangui.

 

 

Article written in French by Nathan Barbier

Translation: Birgé-Wilson

Cameroon: A visit that our children will never forget, that of Serge Betsen!

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The children of the Serge Betsen Academy were overjoyed to welcome Serge Betsen and Sylvie Ledard, our Project Manager, to Cameroon in June 2022. Serge and Sylvie stayed on site for about ten days in order to go round the various centres, spending time with the children and the volunteers, distributing numerous donations, discussing in depth with the managers about the current projects and going to meet our partners to thank them and also to make new contacts. A moving reunion and beautiful moments shared!

 

Visit of the centre of Bafia

Christophe, our volunteer, was also on the trip to take pictures and lend a hand, together with Romain Magellan, a former rugby player with an incomparable sense of humour, who assisted the coaches on the playing ground and entertained our children during various rugby training. We thank them both from the bottom of our hearts!
A few days after his return, Serge wrote: “A stay at and with the Serge Betsen Academy is always unforgettable! Thank you to all the children of SBA Cameroon for your warm welcome, to the volunteers of the many sites for your dedication, to the firms that welcomed us, to the donors and partners for following us.” Many projects were worked on during Serge’s stay; you can visit our social networks to follow in detail the progress of: the “SBA Pads project” (production and distribution of washable sanitary towels), the “Victor” bags which will be distributed before the start of the school year, the “Rugby4Kids” project, the SBA Coop, the implementation of intensive computer courses, etc.

Rugby session at the Eau Claire centre

All the children of SBA Cameroon and the coaches on site would like to thank Romain Magellan, Sylvie Ledard, Christophe and Serge Betsen for the extraordinary moments spent together in recent weeks. The equipment provided by our donors is very valuable to us to continue our activities: computers, rugby equipment, sportswear, toys, etc. Many thanks to our donors and partners for their generosity, as well as to the people that we were able to meet, such as Eric Niat, the mayor of Bangangté.

Eric Niat, Mayor of Bangangté and Serge Betsen wearing a T-Shirt of the Serge Betsen X IZBAC collection, in front of the City Hall

Some of the children met “Tonton Serge” for the very first time and will be marked for life by this long-awaited encounter. As for Sylvie, it was with great emotion that she met the children and the volunteers with whom she has spent long periods of time on the phone since taking up her post as Project Manager in February 2022.

 

What happiness in this month of June at the SBA!

Translation: Katy Birgé-Wilson

Bangui: Signing of the agreement between the Francophone Institute for Justice and Democracy – Institut Louis Joinet and the Serge Betsen Academy

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It was an honour for our President Serge Betsen to be greeted by Laurence Fischer, Ambassador for Sport at the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEFA) on Friday 20 May 2022 to sign the agreement between the “Institut Francophone pour la Justice et la Démocratie (IFJD) – Institut Louis Joinet” and the Serge Betsen Academy (SBA).

 

At the SBA, we are proud to participate in the “TRAUMA Project” funded by the “Centre de crise et de soutien du ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires étrangères français” and therefore enable young people who have experienced conflicts in their lives to be introduced to touch-rugby in the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2022. It is a pleasure to collaborate with the IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet, Ovale Citoyen and the Central African Rugby Federation.

 

Photo ©IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet 2022

 

Here is a presentation of the TRAUMA Project by the IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet:

“The main objective is to understand and take into account, among children and teenagers, post-conflict trauma in the Central African Republic. In CAR, the notions of “trauma” and “resilience” are frequently used, while the need for clinical psychologists is frequently highlighted. Considering that the young people are the future of the Central African Republic, particular attention must be paid to children and teenagers who grow up, from an early age, in a violent and conflictual atmosphere. This is why the Trauma project is dedicated to them!

  • Understand and assess

Understand the specificities of the traumas generated by the crises in the Central African Republic and assess their impact on children and teenagers.

  • Promote appropriate care

Contribute to ensuring that professionals from the mechanisms of the penal chain on the one hand and of non-judicial mechanisms of Transitional Justice on the other hand support children and teenagers by limiting the risks of re-traumatisation.

  • Improve resilience

Contribute to children and teenagers reclaiming a framework and a living-together.”

As part of the TRAUMA Project, three undertakings around the practice of touch-rugby are planned for 2022. The Serge Betsen Academy will supervise 10 groups of 20 children, i.e. 200 children in three different levels groups: 6-8 years old, 9-11 years old and 12-14 years old. Ovale Citoyen will supervise 15 groups of 20 teenagers, i.e. 300 teenagers, also in three groups. 500 children and teenagers will thus benefit from the rugby activity.

To learn more about the TRAUMA project, please read this brochure.

A huge thank you to the IFJD – Institut Louis Joinet for the trust you place in us in carrying out this mission.

 

Translation : Katy Birgé-Wilson

Event: The Ovalies UniLaSalle 2022 are supporting us!

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We are very happy to have been chosen as one of the beneficiaries of the Ovalies UniLaSalle 2022 with the charities, Une ballade pour Justine et Lou and L’Arche à Beauvais.
We can’t wait to attend this event on 6 and 7 May in Beauvais! It is the biggest uni rugby tournament with a charitable touch and we fell very grateful to be part of it!
Serge Betsen will be present at the tournament.

Thank you to the Ovalies UniLaSalle team and to their partners for their support.

 

 

Ovalies UniLaSalle

Event: “Serge Betsen Academy inter-centre rugby tournament – Societe Generale Cameroun”, third edition.

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We are delighted to announce that the third edition of the “Tournoi de rugby inter-centres Serge Betsen academy Société Générale Cameroun” (Serge Betsen Academy – Societe Generale Cameroon inter-centre rugby tournament) will take place on Saturday 30 October in Bangangté, Cameroon.

Due to the pandemic, this tournament initially planned for 2020 had to be postponed, thus leaving more time for the Etoudi, Zoétélé and Bangangté teams to get game-ready. The shield, which has been held by Etoudi since 2018, will be put back into play, and the teams just can’t wait!

This year, we are honoured to have Société Générale Cameroun by our side as the Title Sponsor of the Tournament. We would like to warmly thank them for their generous support.

Three companies and one association have also agreed to sponsor us for this tournament which is very close to the heart of our young rugby players: : Groupe SABC whom we thank for their drinks during the Tournament, Cameroon Motors Industries (CAMI), AXA Cameroun whom we thank for the food during the Tournament and Recycling Rugby, the French operation which recycles rugby balls into bags, purses…  It is a pleasure to see the enthusiasm of companies, established for many years on the red soil, for rugby and our actions in favour of underprivileged children.

A big thank you to our five Sponsors for their support without which this edition could not have been organised.

We therefore give you an appointment on Saturday 30 October to support our rugby players at the Lycée Classique of Bangangté stadium or online, on our social networks!

 

Translation: Katy Birge-Wilson