Singaporean former ref Ganesan now a fitness instructor at World Cup
Ex-ref M. Ganesan now a Fifa fitness instructor for match officials at the World Cup
Behind the scenes at the World Cup in Russia, a Singaporean is playing his part in ensuring the success of football's quadrennial showpiece.
Former referee M. Ganesan, who is now a Fifa fitness instructor, is in Moscow looking after the match officials' physical and mental well-being through specially tailored training programmes.
It has been the 54-year-old's lifelong dream to be at the World Cup.
Ganesan hung up his whistle in 2008, but his passion for officiating opened new doors for him as a Fifa fitness instructor.
A decade later, his impressive performances at major tournaments, including the 2015 and 2017 Fifa Under-20 World Cups, earned him a call up, making him the only Fifa fitness instructor from Asia at this year's World Cup.
Ganesan told The New Paper in a phone interview: "It was my dream 20 to 30 years ago and now I'm here, and I want to do the best to make not only Singapore, but also the whole of Asia proud.
"Though I play a role behind the scenes, it is an important role and that fulfils me."
No two days of training are the same.
Each night, his team of six- all hailing from different regions - will plan training sessions for the next day, depending on the referees' needs.
On the importance of fitness, Ganesan said: "Referees have to be close to play and, if they are mentally and physically fit, they can get into good positions to see the fouls clearly.
"If you're gasping for breath when a vital incident happens, you can't think and make the correct call."
Aside from fitness, he also helps to ensure that referees' nutrition is well taken care of throughout the tournament.
This includes regularly inspecting the hotel menu and conducting weekly weighing sessions for the referees.
To cope with the physical demands of his job and set an example for his charges, Ganesan trains daily, alternating between 8km runs and interval training.
He also watches his diet carefully, preferring boiled to fried food and avoiding coloured drinks in general.
Singapore's national football team have never qualified for the World Cup, but its referees have been doing the Republic proud.
In 1974, George Suppiah became the first Singaporean to referee a World Cup fixture.
From the 2002 to 2010 editions, K. Visvanathan, Shamsul Maidin and Jeffrey Goh have also officiated at the tournament.
Ganesan is confident that this record will continue, singling out local referee Taqi Aljaafari for a shot at Qatar 2022.
He said: "I'm very optimistic about Qatar, optimistic that we might even be able to send a trio.
"It's a long way from now, but we have a pool of technical instructors with vast knowledge and we just need to groom referees like Taqi up to the challenge."
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