Canada's national futsal coach is on a visit to the NWT, which will include a stop in Hay River.
Kyt Selaidopoulos, who is preparing the national men's team for the 2020 FIFA Futsal World Cup, is visiting Yellowknife, Ndilo and Hay River from Sept. 26 to 30.
Selaidopoulos is scheduled to attend the Hay River Regional Futsal Camp on Sept. 29 and 30.
"It's important for us to visit as many places as possible, especially in the North, to see what's going on with futsal," he said in a news release from the NWT Soccer Association. "Especially with the NWT hosting the Arctic Winter Games SA国际影视传媒� it's a plus for everybody."
Ollie Williams, president of NWT Soccer, is pleased Selaidopoulos is visiting the NWT.
"We're excited to welcome Kyt to the territory and thrilled that he is able to spend five days working with our youth, teachers, coaches, and adult players," stated Williams in a news release. "Partnering with a national team coach for the first time is part of our drive to take futsal to the next level in the NWT, provide a sport that's fun and accessible for youth territory-wide no matter where they live, and make our territorial teams as competitive as they can be."
Lyric Sandhals, the executive director of the NWT Soccer Association, said the majority of the participants in the Hay River Regional Futsal Camp will be coming from Hay River and Fort Smith.
The camp will be for males born from 2000 to 2006 and females born from 2002 to 2006.
"Kyt will be assisting Gina Michel, head coach for the 2018 AWG juvenile female team with each of the sessions," said Sandhals in response to e-mailed questions from The Hub. "He will also be there to support and act as a resource for the local organizing committee with any questions they have about hosting a futsal competition."
Futsal is an indoor variant of soccer played with a slightly smaller, less bouncy ball, and with rules designed to speed up the pace of play and place emphasis on ball control and movement. As well as being a sport in its own right, futsal helps advance the technical development of young soccer players.
Having won a gold ulu in futsal at the 2016 Arctic Winter Games, NWT Soccer is investing in growing the sport ahead of the 2018 Arctic Winter Games in the South Slave.
The regional futsal camps are taking place in Behchoko, Fort Liard, Hay River, Tulita and Inuvik from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1.
The camps are used as development for players in each of the regions and selections for the 2018 Arctic Winter Games. From the camps, players will be invited to the territorial trials Dec. 7 to 9 in Yellowknife.
Players wishing to try out for the 2018 Arctic Winter Games futsal teams must attend one of the five regional camps.
Before coming to Hay River, Selaidopoulos will conduct two identification sessions in Yellowknife for men 18 years of age and over on Sept. 25 and Sept. 28, and will be visiting schools in the capital city.
