Yellow force lifts footballers to defeat Kuwait
Thailand's athletes at the Asian Games in Doha sported yellow uniforms in their chase for medals on His Majesty the King's birthday.
Television coverage in Thailand showed the men's football team turned out in yellow strip. The players knelt on the pitch and paid their respects to the crowd, winning the hearts of stadium fans and people around the world watching their match against Kuwait.They swapped their trademark blue or red for yellow after a request from national team manager Tawatchai Sajjakul was accepted by the Asian Football Confederation. The rules were bent to allow the squad to pay tribute to His Majesty the King on his 79th Birthday. "We wore the yellow not only to mark the special occasion but to boost our confidence. We all have this psychological belief that the yellow shirts will bring some mysterious power,'' said coach Chanwit Pholchivin in an emotional interview. The shirts are now regarded as lucky charms and they were certainly a positive force for the players, who beat Kuwait in a surprising 1-0 victory. The win avenged a 1998 loss and saw Thailand advance to the quarterfinals. Strange but true - the team has never lost a game on His Majesty's birthday. Team captain Datsakorn Thonglao said: "I will never give this shirt to anyone. This will become an historic shirt for us." The yellow phenomenon spread to the Al-Gharrafa Football Stadium stands, where national fans also came wearing yellow and sang the Royal anthem at half time. At the Aspire Hall, national badminton players Salakjit Ponsana, Sudket Prapakamol and Phattapol Ngensrisuk also turned out in yellow. Better still, they are all safely through to their next rounds. In the pool, though, Thailand's swimmers were unable to find yellow swimsuits so had to opt for yellow caps. Sport Reporters The Nation DOHA
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