VICTORIA, Seychelles — Russian Ambassador to Seychelles Artem Kozhin paid a courtesy call on the Speaker of the National Assembly, Roger Mancienne, on Tuesday, in a meeting that centred on the country’s preparations to host the 2025 Fédération internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Beach Soccer World Cup. Heading the Russian delegation alongside the ambassador was the head of department of the Russian Ministry of Sports, Ivan Kostiuhin, accompanied by the head of the All-Russian Association of Beach Sports, Ilya Volodarskiy, Deputy Ambassador Alexander Odoevsky, and investors Oleg Borunov and Valentin Lavrenyuk. The breadth of the Russian delegation is being read as a sign of the high diplomatic importance that Russia is placing on the tournament, given its significant investment in beach sports globally.
Speaker Mancienne was accompanied by the Deputy Speaker Gervais Henrie, clerk of the National Assembly Tania Isaac, and deputy clerk Alexandria Faure. One of the purposes of the visit was to discuss Seychelles’ hosting of the 2025 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, the first ever FIFA Beach Soccer tournament to be held in Africa, and one which follows a strict set of regulations prescribed by FIFA. Ambassador Kozhin said the Russian embassy was glad to be providing support and expertise to Seychelles in the preparation and creation of a firm roadmap to ensure the success and realisation of the tournament in full compliance of the rules.
Alongside meetings with various related ministries and partners, the ambassador emphasised that maintaining parliamentary links through a national event such as this is vital. An honourable mention was also made to the participation of a Seychelles delegation of the National Assembly in the Russian Parliamentary Games in 2024, for which an invite was then extended for this year’s competition. The ambassador commented that this level of continued cooperation, especially with the National Assembly, provided a sense of stability and support in the friendly bilateral relations between Russia and Seychelles.
Speaker Mancienne thanked Ambassador Kozhin and the delegation for their presence once again, noting that this forthcoming tournament was a much-awaited occasion with a great impact on the country, both culturally and in terms of economic prospects. He concurred that this provided an opportunity for further engagement between the two parliaments and enhanced the friendship between Russia and Seychelles. The speaker relayed his thanks for being included in such discussions and conveyed his best wishes in the intensive planning processes. The Russian delegation then presented Speaker Mancienne with a few tokens of appreciation and cultural significance before the meeting came to a close.
The 2025 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup is expected to bring significant international attention to Seychelles, given that it will be the first time the tournament is held on the African continent. Preparations are already underway across government, with parliamentary support being sought to ensure that the legislative framework for the event is in place well in advance of the opening match. The framing of the tournament as a landmark event for both Seychelles and for African sport is being read as a sign of the high expectations that the government is placing on the occasion, and of the careful diplomatic groundwork that is being laid in the months ahead.
