Former judoka Salima Souakri pays visit to Mohamed Maouche

BY: Hana Saada

ALGIERS-  The former Secretary of State to the Minister of Youth and Sports, in charge of elite sport, Salima Souakri paid a visit to Mohamed Maouche (87), member of the glorious FLN team and president of the FLN team foundation, who had a bad fall, Thursday evening, during the ceremony organized at the Ministry of Mujahideen on the occasion of the celebration of the 65th anniversary of the creation of the glorious FLN team (April 13, 1958).

The slip on the ground caused a fracture in his leg and necessitated his transfer to the hospital.

The former Algerian judoka Salima Souakri published, on her Facebook account, pictures of her visit, while wishing the former coach of the national team ‘1981-1982’ and current member of the federal office, Mohamed Maouche, a speedy recovery.

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The eldest of the trio still alive of members of the glorious FLN team had participated, on Thursday afternoon, in the laying of a wreath at the level of the stele erected at the Grande-Poste to the glory of the footballers who left their respective clubs in France (April 13, 1958) to give birth to the glorious FLN team.

Noting that Mohamed Maouche, Rachid Mekhloufi and Dahmane Defnoun are the last survivors of the glorious FLN team.

For her part, Salima Souakri is not unknown to the judo family. Having participated in the Olympic Games four times and having won the prestigious Paris Tournament and ten African Champion titles, Salima Souakri was also the first woman from Algeria and the Arab community to take part in the Olympic tournament.

Since her retirement from the tatami, she has remained active in the sport, social assistance and media sectors. Salima was the first Algerian woman nominated as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and is a prominent member of the Gender Equity Commission of the International Judo Federation. In 2020, she received the ‘Women and Sport Award 2020 for Africa,’ awarded by the International Olympic Committee.