Media Release - 24th November 2006

JEREMY CROSS at the 15th ASIAN GAMES

Jeremy Cross, Jersey Tennis player and sports psychologist, is once again off on his travels – this time to Doha, Qatar , for the 2006 Asian Games.

Jeremy's record of attending multi-sports Games events is now quite considerable having competed for Jersey at six Island Games as a tennis player (the first in Isle of Wight 1993 and his final appearance in Guernsey in 2003); the 2004 Athens Olympics as a co-ordinator for the Youth Camp; the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games as Team Jersey sports psychologist and now the 15 th Asian Games, once again as a co-ordinator at their Youth Camp.

The Asian Games is a little known event in the Western World but reference to their website www.doha-2006.com shows that it is an major World Multi-Sports event involving 45 countries and 423 events and covering 39 sports some of which are almost unknown to us in Jersey e.g. Kabaddi, a team game of touch played on an indoor court, Wushu, a martial art and Sepaktakraw a ball-handling game

The Youth Camp runs alongside the Games and involves representatives from all competing countries. The programme aims to provide a unique Qatari experience in an environment that models Olympic ideals of teamwork, friendship and fairplay. It aims to leave participants with a new-found awareness of the global community, create an international circle of friends and empower them with the belief that youth can make a difference in the world. Many of the participants will have been selected to take part in the Youth Gamp as potential athletes for the main Games. They will attend the Opening Ceremony at Khalifa Stadium and have the opportunity to watch various sports and tour the Games Village . Other social events will include a desert excursion to sample Bedouin lifestyle, a cruise on a traditional dhow at sunset and a visit to the oryx farm to see Qatar 's national animal and the inspiration for Orry, the official mascot for the Games.

The Games Opening Ceremony takes place in 1 st December and the programme finishes in time for the Closing Ceremony on 15 th December. Jeremy Cross, who has a PhD in Sports Psychology and is currently employed as a consultant with Lane4, a Performance Development Consultancy ( www.lane4.co.uk ) based in Bourne End, Bucks leaves for Doha on Thursday 24 th November to help with the preparations for the arrival of the participants in the Youth Camp. If you need further information you might be able to contact him on 07775 711701