England int'l and Chelsea ladies player ENIOLA ALUKO is the first Volunteer Champion for UN Women NC UK. The partnership was developed by Mediacom Sport & Entertainment (UN Women UK). ... Scottish Premiership side Celtic paid tribute to Lisbon Lion TOMMY GEMMELL, who died, aged 73, following a long illness. Former Scotland defender Gemmell scored in a 2-1 victory against Inter Milan in '67 when Celtic "became the first British club to win the European Cup." Club CEO PETER LAWWELL expressed sadness at the loss of "a true Celtic giant" (BBC, 3/2). ... Turkish club Altinordu Chair MEHMET SEYIT OZKAN said that Bercelona forward LIONEL MESSI "could not play for the club, even if he offered to do so for free." The second division side plans to "build a team solely made up of players trained at the club." Ozkan: "Even if Messi came to me and said, 'I will play a season at Altinordu for free,' I would tell him no. I believe in our philosophy and will not deviate from our goals, we will continue to train local players" (ESPN.com, 3/2). ... China’s plans to "establish the country as a force in global football have taken another bold step with the government aiming to tempt" DIEGO MARADONA to "oversee the development of clubs, coaches and players in a wide-ranging role that could broadly be described as a national football adviser." Maradona "is considering the offer" (AS, 3/1). ... BOB WILKINSON, a U.K. ice hockey exec for more than 35 years, died, aged 74. Wilkinson was appointed director of the English Ice Hockey Association in '01. He also served as chair of Ice Hockey U.K. from '05-08 (Int'l Ice Hockey Federation).
