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TORSBY, Sweden (AP) — David Beckham and former England coach Roy Hodgson were among the soccer dignitaries who attended the funeral of Sven-Goran Eriksson on Friday in the Swedish manager’s small hometown of Torsby.

Eriksson’s wooden coffin was covered in white flowers and surrounded by six tall candles and other floral wreaths as the ceremony began inside the 600-seat Fryksande church.

“It is a day of grief but also a day of thankfulness,” the priest, Ingela Älvskog, told those in attendance.

Beckham, who arrived by private jet on Thursday, greeted Eriksson’s 95-year-old father Sven and other family members with hugs inside the church before the funeral started.

Eriksson became England’s first foreign-born coach when he led the national team from 2001-06, and made Beckham his captain.

Eriksson, who also won trophies at club level in Italy, Portugal and Sweden, died on Aug. 26 at the age of 76, eight months after he revealed he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had at most one year to live.

Some 200 seats in the neo-Gothic church from 1898 were reserved for his family, friends and players from his career in the football world, according to his agent. The remaining seats were open for the public, according to Eriksson’s wish, with a big screen set up outside the church where hundreds more gathered to watch the ceremony. The funeral was also broadcast live on some Swedish media websites.

The wooden coffin was wheeled in by pallbearers at the church Friday morning as fog wrapped Torsby — a town of about 4,000 people located about 310 kilometers (193 miles) west of Stockholm. Next to the casket was a photo of Eriksson on a small table. The floral wreaths included ones sent by FIFA and Lazio, the Italian team that Eriksson led to the Serie A title in 2000.

The ceremony began with somber piano and organ music, but later took on a more upbeat note with Swedish singer Charlotta Birgersson performing Elton John’s song “Candle In The Wind” and then “My Way” in a duet with Johan Birgersson, who later intoned the popular Italian song “Volare” after the family had gathered around the casket to lay flowers.

Beckham also visited Eriksson in Sweden in June to say goodbye. Others attending the funeral included the Swedish coach’s longtime partner Nancy Dell’Olio. Eriksson’s agent had said that guests from England, Italy and Spain were expected.

After the funeral, the casket was carried out of the church by eight men to the hearse. The guests then walked in a procession accompanying the coffin to a nearby museum where speeches and eulogies to the coach fondly known as “Svennis” were planned on an outdoor stage. A brass band played during the procession through Torsby, including the tune “You never walk alone” from the musical “Carousel” which has become the anthem of Liverpool, the club Eriksson supported since childhood.

The local soccer club Torsby IF, where Eriksson started his career in the 1960s, wrote on its webpage that “you also showed your greatness by always being yourself, the caring Svennis who talked to everyone and took the time, for big and small, asking how things were and how the football was going. We will miss you.”

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AP soccer:

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps aren’t taking anything for granted as they prepare for their next matchup.

Sure, the ‘Caps (12-8-6) come in undefeated in their last three games across all competitions (2-0-1). And yes, on Saturday they’ll host the San Jose Earthquakes (5-20-2), a team that lingers at the bottom of the Major League Soccer standings.

Vancouver knows, though, that heading in with an air of overconfidence could spell disaster.

“We’ve got to treat it like any other game,” said Whitecaps captain Ryan Gauld. “They’re at the bottom, but they’ve still got a lot of good players that can hurt us if we’re not at our best.”

San Jose heads into the matchup with everything to play for — a loss would officially eliminate the club from playoff contention.

The Earthquakes also performed well in the Leagues Cup last month, then burst out of the break with a 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake, who sit third in the Western Conference, noted ‘Caps head coach Vanni Sartini.

“If you look at the standings, someone can say that (Saturday) is an easy game. But it’s not an easy game,” he said. “We need to play a very good game.”

Vancouver is coming off a 0-0 draw against Dallas FC last week. While the team didn’t collect all three points, the Whitecaps played well, said midfielder Alessandro Schopf.

“The only thing I think we need to change is scoring goals. That’s the only point we only didn’t do well in the last game,” he said. “The rest of it was very good, I think.

“Of course, now San Jose is not going to be easy. Everyone thinks it’s going to be 3-0, 4-0. But it’s not going to be like this. Every game in the MLS is a tough game, it’s a close game. And hopefully we do a good job as we did the last game and score on our chances. Then we will win the game.”

After missing more than half a dozen players last week, several regulars are expected to return to Vancouver’s lineup.

Six players are back in the city after spending time with their national teams, including Canadian defender Sam Adekugbe and midfielder Ali Ahmed. Gauld is also back after playing for Scotland, while striker Fafa Picault (Haiti), and midfielders Andres Cubas (Paraguay) and Pedro Vite (Ecuador) have also returned.

The team’s latest addition could also play a bigger role come Saturday.

Midfielder Stuart Armstrong saw six minutes of action against Dallas and has been training with his new teammates all week.

The 32-year-old Scotsman is still working his way to full fitness, but has already impressed Sartini with his demeanour on the field.

“The calm, how he’s collected on the ball under pressure — he can make the right decision and make the right pass,” the coach said. “So that’s the first thing that you really appreciate seeing him working.”

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES (5-20-2) at VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (12-8-6)

Saturday, B.C. Place

INS AND OUTS: Vancouver will miss the services of American striker Brian White, who is in concussion protocol. The club has also listed Cubas (shoulder) and backup goalkeeper Joe Benedik (lower back) as questionable for Saturday’s game. San Jose defender Carlos Gruezo won’t be available as he serves a suspension.

HISTORY BOOKS: Saturday’s matchup could be a tiebreaker in MLS matchups between the two clubs, which each go in with an 11-11-12 all-time record. The ‘Caps won the last battle, blanking the Earthquakes 2-0 in California on March 9.

KEEP IT CLEAN: The Whitecaps have blanked their opponent in three straight games across all competitions and are riding a 303-minute shutout streak heading into Saturday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.

Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.

She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.

Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.

“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.

It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.

Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.

Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.

Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.

“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.

He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.

Kenya’s high rates of violence against women have prompted marches by ordinary citizens in towns and cities this year.

Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.

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