Brasa’s appointment approved

NEW DELHI: The Union Sports Ministry has approved the appointment of Jose Brasa as the chief coach of the Indian hockey team till the 2010 Asian Games.

“Brasa has accepted all the terms and conditions laid before him. He will reach here late on Sunday night and sign the contract with the Sports Authority of India on Monday or Tuesday. After that he will leave for the Asia Cup in Malaysia,” a senior Union Sports Ministry official said here on Friday.

Sources informed that the Ministry became wiser after the unpleasant episode relating to Australian great Ric Charlesworth’s appointment as the Technical Advisor and wanted to complete the formalities before allowing Brasa to join duty.

“Charlesworth had started working on a visitor visa and had signed the contract later. That created a problem while clearing his dues. So, this time we told Brasa to join the team after signing the contract,” the official said. It is learnt that Brasa had asked for a hefty salary of €90,000 per annum and a hike of €10,000 every year.

After negotiations the International Hockey Federation (FIH) master coach agreed for a salary of €84,000 per annum. His contract is extendable.

Along with him, Brasa will bring a physical trainer — David Perez — for an annual salary of €60,000. His other support staff will be from India.

The Spaniard, who had coached the Spanish women’s team to gold medal in the 1992 Olympics, will quarterly review the performance of all the Indian players. Besides, he will train four home coaches. — Sports Reporter

Courtesy: The Hindu