Coincidentally, it was a Saturday when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked the central part of Nepal on April 25 claiming thousands of lives and reducing both thatched roofed houses and concrete buildings to rubble. After a long hiatus and tremendous effort, Nepal’s 22-year-long title drought came to an end after Nepal beat India, a South Asian football powerhouse, on a Saturday on penalties in an exciting final of the first Saff U-19 Championship at the Anfa Complex in Satdobato.

 When Nepal took on Bhutan and Bangladesh in the league round of the championship, none had envisioned Nepal as a winner or champion of the first edition of Saff U-19 Championship 2015. However, the youth team converted impossibility into possibility by correcting their initial weaknesses and mistakes. The past is a guide for the present and future.

The youth team’s skipper Bimal Gharti Magar said, “All of us wanted to defeat our arch-rivals India in the finals. We played with determination and team spirit.” Likewise, another prominent figure and a hero of the day, the Nepali youth team’s coach Bal Gopal Maharjan, emotionally said, “I want to dedicate this title to the souls of those who died in the devastating April earthquake and the late acting president of Anfa Lalit Krishna Shrestha.”

Yes, the glory belonged to neither Maharjan’s nor Magar’s team, but the whole of Nepal and the Nepalis. To our dismay, only two high profile political figures, KP Sharma Oli and Purusottam Poudel, were present at the event on the final day. There were nearly 3,000 spectators to cheer and boost the morale of the Nepali players. No matter what religions they followed, what parties they supported, what castes they belonged to, what walks of life they came from or what geographical belts they were from, their uniform slogan was Nepal. I could not resist emotional tears of glory when Nepal lifted the trophy.  

If our selfish politicians are really committed to their words and if they are grateful to those martyrs who gave up their lives in different movements, they have to work in unity, mend their past errors and help their dreams to materialize. Nothing is impossible if our politicians stretch

out their arms to perfection with constant concentration, devotion and a sense of unity. Until and unless the

finishing touches are given to the constitution writing process, the departed souls of the martyrs will not rest in eternal peace.

I wonder why our politicians do not understand that the more diverse the country is, the stronger it will be. The Nepali youth team consisted of diversification, therefore, they overcame all the hurdles, challenges and difficulties. The players didn’t play for themselves or personal gain but for the country, an economically poor Himalayan country but culturally rich.