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Fifa president Sapp
Blatter presented the Fifa Order of Merit to Prime Minister Thaksin
Shinawatra during a visit to Government House.
 Thaksin
is only the fourth person to receive the award, which is given to those
who make a contribution to football development. Former US secretary of
state Henry Kissinger, former South African president Nelson Mandela and
the late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia were also presented with the award.
After pinning the Order of Merit on Thaksin’s jacket, Blatter expressed
his gratitude to the Thai prime minister for his support for the
development of soccer in Thailand and Asia.
“As Fifa is commemorating its 100th Anniversary this year, we would like
to celebrate this auspicious occasion and at the same time honour those
persons who give their full support to developing the sport,” Blatter
said.
“Thaksin plays a key role in promoting soccer in all its aspects in the
region apart from allocating a large sum of money to promote youth and
junior soccer competitions. He has shown continued determination to help
upgrade Thai soccer by supporting a project to get Thailand to the World
Cup.
“In addition, he has set aside money to renovate stadiums in Bangkok,
Chiang Mai and Phuket which met international standards for the Fifa Under-19
Women’s World Championship. Seeing his devotion to soccer development,
I, on behalf of Fifa, the world’s governing body for soccer, am honoured
to present the Fifa Order of Merit to Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra,”
Blatter said.
He also expressed satisfaction over Thailand’s hosting of the Under-19
world meet, saying it had been a memorable success.
“With Thailand’s capability shown in hosting the tournament, I’m
convinced that it is on the
right track if it wants to be a candidate for the World Cup. In my opinion,
Thailand stands a better chance of hosting the World Cup than the Olympic
Games,” Blatter said.
Thaksin said he was honoured to receive such a prestigious award. He
promised local fans that Thai soccer would progress in the not-too-distant
future.
“It is a great honour to get this award. On behalf of the Thai people, I
would like to thank Fifa. In the next four years, Thailand will become a
soccer powerhouse in Asia. We have already drawn up a development plan and
the government is ready to support it,” Thaksin said.
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