Victor on and off the football pitch
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Çetin Cem Yılmaz
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 30, 2009 00:00
SIVAS - Sivas, a small city in Central Anatolia, is polishing its image with the success of the local football club in this year’s Turkish Super League. Whether or not Sivasspor hoists the cup this weekend, many say Sivas can still claim victory for shedding its nationalistic reputation and giving people a reason to talk about the city other than the 1993 Madımak massacre
At the end of a long football season, Sivasspor needs a small miracle to be named the champion of the Turkish League. But in many aspects off the pitch, this central Anatolian city has already won, and won big.
Walking on the streets of Sivas is like swimming in a sea of red and white these days Ğ there is literally not a single street that has not hung a banner or a flag bearing the team colors. It’s no wonder, as Sivasspor’s success over the past four years has given locals something to cheer about during these crisis-laden times and helped the city restore its image, marred by the Madımak massacre in 1993, when 37 Alevi artists and intellectuals were killed in an arson attack on a hotel. "Sivasspor has opened the city to the rest of the country again," said Mustafa Yıldız, sports editor of the Yurt News Agency’s Sivas branch. "People were concerned about coming here because of the Madımak events, but now they see that everything is fine with the city."
However, not everyone shares Yıldız’s idea that Sivasspor’s success has erased the bad memories associated with the Madımak tragedy.
"It is a scar that is still bleeding. It is impossible to forget until we fully face our past," Mustafa Çoban, the head of the Sivas branch of the Health Care Laborers’ Syndicate, or SES. "I think people remember Madımak every time they think about Sivas; for us, we live through it every day."Çoban said he regrets that the city is not remembered for its other merits, such as being home to thermal springs or the Kangal breed of dogs, but added that promoting these pluses should not mean ignoring what happened in Madımak. "We cannot try to forget the events just because we want people to have positive feelings about Sivas," said Çoban.
Satılmış Başkavak, an official with the Labor Party of Turkey, or EMEP, is sure that nothing could be powerful enough to erase the memories of Madımak. "The league will come to an end soon and nobody will remember Sivasspor then, just as nobody talks about Kocaelispor now," he said, in reference to another underdog Anatolian team’s success in the early 1990s. "But when July 2 comes again, everybody will be talking about Madımak again."
However, even the most pessimistic admit that Sivasspor did its best to lift up the spirits of the town of 380,000 people. The team has seen the climax of its four-year stint at the top-flight level this year, leading the league for about four months before a poor performance in the late stages of the long marathon. Now with only one fixture left in the Turkcell Super League, Beşiktaş is in the driver’s seat and will not look back if it beats Denizlispor on Saturday. Sivasspor, trailing the Black Eagles by two points, will have the harder task of playing Galatasaray the same night. Even getting a famous win in Istanbul might not be enough to visibly limit the town’s excitement for the weekend. After months spent holding on to a dream of becoming the first non-Istanbul-based team in the last quarter of a century to win the Turkish title, slipping to the second spot seems disappointing.
"If it wasn’t for Sivasspor, we would never host guests on the weekends. The only ones who would come to the city were businessmen, who worked on weekdays," said Barış Bozok, the manager of the 4 Eylül Hotel. "Now we are full every other weekend."
Rising interest
Sivas has never been a hot spot for visitors and the tourism industry admits to having been under-prepared for the rising interest. 4 Eylül is one of only four high-profile hotels in the city, with a total capacity of scarcely 500 guests. This will pose a big problem if the team makes it to the Champions League, which would bring at least three teams to the city, whose squads, staffs and fans are easily expected to exceed that capacity.
The lack of accommodation opens new doors for neighboring cities; Bozok recalls advising people to make reservations in Tokat, Kayseri or Malatya on big-game dates during the football campaign, when there were no places left in Sivas.
"Sivasspor helps many businesses, from our sector to dining, to the textile [companies] that make all those flags," said Bozok. Not everyone is happy with those flags, however. Adnan Yılmaz, the head of the Sivas Halkevleri, or community centers, said he has to come up with another excuse every time people come to his kiosk and ask why he does not have a Sivasspor poster hanging up. Yılmaz is not a big fan of sports, but he said that is not the only reason he is concerned by the rise of Sivasspor. "I would like to see fans chanting about peace and fraternity instead of celebrating Sivasspor’s wins with nationalist slogans and gestures," he said. "But I am not a part of the majority."
Yılmaz’s comments are reflected by a short walk on the streets, which are predominantly owned by Sivasspor flags and posters but images of Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu come in a close second. The late leader of the Great Union Party, or BBP, who died in a helicopter crash only days before the March 29 local elections, is paid tribute with posters that read "You won’t be forgotten" on the windows of many shops and cars.
The majority of people in Sivas does not hide their political stance, which is located to the far right of the scale, as it is also that of team coach Bülent Uygun and chairman Mecnun Odyakmaz. While Odyakmaz’s familial ties with jailed mafia leader Sedat Peker are well documented, Uygun exposes his political views in more romantic ways, for example, with poems on his Web site, where he writes odes to Yazıcıoğlu and sings the praises of former Chief of Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt in lines such as "We are at your command."Despite being arrogant at times and reluctant to act like the nicest man in sports, credit must be given where it is due: Uygun is a standout coach. He boasts using a secret tactic titled cleverly "Türbülent" and says he uses computerized statistics at halftime to change the score and talks with basketball coach Aydın Örs to learn more about zone defense. Those plans all seem to have worked out well until now.
Considering how his boys beat the odds to continue their title bid this far in the season Ğ and breath life into the city Ğ one cannot help but agree Uygun when he says: "We will see who will win the league, but we are the champions already."
Walking on the streets of Sivas is like swimming in a sea of red and white these days Ğ there is literally not a single street that has not hung a banner or a flag bearing the team colors. It’s no wonder, as Sivasspor’s success over the past four years has given locals something to cheer about during these crisis-laden times and helped the city restore its image, marred by the Madımak massacre in 1993, when 37 Alevi artists and intellectuals were killed in an arson attack on a hotel. "Sivasspor has opened the city to the rest of the country again," said Mustafa Yıldız, sports editor of the Yurt News Agency’s Sivas branch. "People were concerned about coming here because of the Madımak events, but now they see that everything is fine with the city."
However, not everyone shares Yıldız’s idea that Sivasspor’s success has erased the bad memories associated with the Madımak tragedy.
"It is a scar that is still bleeding. It is impossible to forget until we fully face our past," Mustafa Çoban, the head of the Sivas branch of the Health Care Laborers’ Syndicate, or SES. "I think people remember Madımak every time they think about Sivas; for us, we live through it every day."Çoban said he regrets that the city is not remembered for its other merits, such as being home to thermal springs or the Kangal breed of dogs, but added that promoting these pluses should not mean ignoring what happened in Madımak. "We cannot try to forget the events just because we want people to have positive feelings about Sivas," said Çoban.
Satılmış Başkavak, an official with the Labor Party of Turkey, or EMEP, is sure that nothing could be powerful enough to erase the memories of Madımak. "The league will come to an end soon and nobody will remember Sivasspor then, just as nobody talks about Kocaelispor now," he said, in reference to another underdog Anatolian team’s success in the early 1990s. "But when July 2 comes again, everybody will be talking about Madımak again."
However, even the most pessimistic admit that Sivasspor did its best to lift up the spirits of the town of 380,000 people. The team has seen the climax of its four-year stint at the top-flight level this year, leading the league for about four months before a poor performance in the late stages of the long marathon. Now with only one fixture left in the Turkcell Super League, Beşiktaş is in the driver’s seat and will not look back if it beats Denizlispor on Saturday. Sivasspor, trailing the Black Eagles by two points, will have the harder task of playing Galatasaray the same night. Even getting a famous win in Istanbul might not be enough to visibly limit the town’s excitement for the weekend. After months spent holding on to a dream of becoming the first non-Istanbul-based team in the last quarter of a century to win the Turkish title, slipping to the second spot seems disappointing.
"If it wasn’t for Sivasspor, we would never host guests on the weekends. The only ones who would come to the city were businessmen, who worked on weekdays," said Barış Bozok, the manager of the 4 Eylül Hotel. "Now we are full every other weekend."
Rising interest
Sivas has never been a hot spot for visitors and the tourism industry admits to having been under-prepared for the rising interest. 4 Eylül is one of only four high-profile hotels in the city, with a total capacity of scarcely 500 guests. This will pose a big problem if the team makes it to the Champions League, which would bring at least three teams to the city, whose squads, staffs and fans are easily expected to exceed that capacity.
The lack of accommodation opens new doors for neighboring cities; Bozok recalls advising people to make reservations in Tokat, Kayseri or Malatya on big-game dates during the football campaign, when there were no places left in Sivas.
"Sivasspor helps many businesses, from our sector to dining, to the textile [companies] that make all those flags," said Bozok. Not everyone is happy with those flags, however. Adnan Yılmaz, the head of the Sivas Halkevleri, or community centers, said he has to come up with another excuse every time people come to his kiosk and ask why he does not have a Sivasspor poster hanging up. Yılmaz is not a big fan of sports, but he said that is not the only reason he is concerned by the rise of Sivasspor. "I would like to see fans chanting about peace and fraternity instead of celebrating Sivasspor’s wins with nationalist slogans and gestures," he said. "But I am not a part of the majority."
Yılmaz’s comments are reflected by a short walk on the streets, which are predominantly owned by Sivasspor flags and posters but images of Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu come in a close second. The late leader of the Great Union Party, or BBP, who died in a helicopter crash only days before the March 29 local elections, is paid tribute with posters that read "You won’t be forgotten" on the windows of many shops and cars.
The majority of people in Sivas does not hide their political stance, which is located to the far right of the scale, as it is also that of team coach Bülent Uygun and chairman Mecnun Odyakmaz. While Odyakmaz’s familial ties with jailed mafia leader Sedat Peker are well documented, Uygun exposes his political views in more romantic ways, for example, with poems on his Web site, where he writes odes to Yazıcıoğlu and sings the praises of former Chief of Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt in lines such as "We are at your command."Despite being arrogant at times and reluctant to act like the nicest man in sports, credit must be given where it is due: Uygun is a standout coach. He boasts using a secret tactic titled cleverly "Türbülent" and says he uses computerized statistics at halftime to change the score and talks with basketball coach Aydın Örs to learn more about zone defense. Those plans all seem to have worked out well until now.
Considering how his boys beat the odds to continue their title bid this far in the season Ğ and breath life into the city Ğ one cannot help but agree Uygun when he says: "We will see who will win the league, but we are the champions already."