President Christodoulides on Thursday welcomed members of the youth team of New York Pancyprian-Freedoms at the Presidential Palace.
The group consisted of 18 teenage footballers from the Cypriot diaspora in the USA, accompanied by their coaches and parents.
Welcoming the children and their chaperones, the President assured that the government would support the continuation of these visits by diaspora children to Cyprus.
He also noted his personal familial and friendly ties with individuals residing in the USA, highlighting that a significant part of his life was experienced there, as he studied there.
He added that through his interactions with the diaspora in the USA, he has grown to love Cyprus even more.
“You are doing all this solely out of your love for our country, and I hope everyone follows your example,” said the President.
On his part, the President of the New York Pancyprian-Freedom, Nikos Tziazas, after mentioning his acquaintance with President Christodoulides since 1993, praised his work.
He also mentioned the scholarship programme of the team for teenagers involved in football, providing a historical overview of the Club’s journey, while highlighting the importance for the diaspora children to visit Cyprus.
Tziazas then presented a football jersey with the number 9 to Christodoulides.
Finally, the President led the children on a tour of the Presidential Palace grounds – including his office – providing a brief historical overview of the 1974 events.
Founded in 1974 by Cypriot immigrants, New York Pancyprian-Freedoms is an amateur soccer team based in Astoria.
The team’s squad and coaching staff have been historically staffed by Cypriot, Greek and US-born players.
Some of the most famous members of the team are former Omonoia defender Evagoras Christofi, the forward Sinisa Gogic, as well as AEK Athens and Greece’s football legend Mimis Papaioannou.
One of the greatest moments in the team’s history came in 1984, when the Freedoms reached the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Champions’ Cup, beating Mexican powerhouse Puebla on penalties, and overcoming Honduran champions Vida, before they and their semi-final opponents CD Guadalajara were disqualified after failing to agree on the dates of the matches.
