On Friday 18th April, a group of 40 marzigs and supporters departed from London to take part in the 5th Inter-community European Games which were to be held in Geneva. This tournament takes place every two years and is organised by the Union Arménienne de Suisse (U.A.S.).
The teams representing Homenetmen London were the Men's and Ladies Basketball teams and the Men's Football team. Other countries attended with teams for ping-pong and volleyball as well - Homenetmen Italia and Masis Aarau.
Upon arrival, coaches took the marzigs and supporters from the airport to the Ramada Hotel where rooms were allocated. Taline Dadourian and Andre Dadayan were responsible for the London group and Shakeh Mejloumian was our First-Aider.
The game draws were made on the evening of our arrival and free time on the first night was a great opportunity for people to see the sights of Geneva.
After sight-seeing and eating out, the London teams met up at 10pm to discuss tactics and the games which were to take place the following day. Team captains distributed kits to the players as nerves kicked in because they did not know what to expect from their opponents. Players were anxious to get an early night's rest once the fixtures were posted.
On Saturday 19th, coaches were ready at 8am to take the teams to the sports stadium, the "Centre Sportif Du Bout-Du-Monde", which was a short distance away. In total, there were 350 people at the tournament from all corners of Europe.
The Men's basketball team from London was the first to play a match. The Ladies basketball and the Men's football matches followed shortly after. Shakeh Mejloumian refereed the Women's 2nd Basketball match but showed no bias towards her supported team. The results of the matches which took place on Day 1 are listed below:
| MEN'S BASKETBALL | LADIES BASKETBALL | MEN'S FOOTBALL |
| Homenetmen London Vs Z.A.D. Germany |
Homenetmen London Vs U.S.A. Nice |
Homenetmen London Vs Z.A.D. Germany |
| 30-47 | 32-6 | 1-4 |
| Homenetmen London Vs U.A.S. Geneva |
Homenetmen London Vs U.A.S. Geneva |
Homenetmen London Vs AC Achtamar Koln |
| 39-50 | 51-14 | 0-1 |
| Homenetmen London Vs Homenetmen Paris |
Homenetmen London Vs Amsterdam |
|
| 49-65 | 3-1 | |
After the games had finished on day 1, a dinner & disco was held at the hotel for all the European Armenians. The Ramada DJ played Armenian and English music. Everyone enjoyed themselves and the music was to everybody's taste. The marzigs retired around 1am to be rested and ready for the final matches the next day. It had been a long day for them.
On Sunday 20th the final games and deciders for the trophies took place. Once again, coaches took the teams to the stadium at 8am. The Men's football team did not have any more matches to play, however they joined the group to support their fellow teams. The Men's basketball team played 1 game and was due to play another but the opponents forfeited and so the match was won by default. The Ladies basketball team played a further 2 games on day 2. The results are listed below:
| MEN'S BASKETBALL | LADIES BASKETBALL |
| Homenetmen London Vs U.A.S. Geneva |
Homenetmen London Vs U.A.S. Geneva |
| 54-49 | 59-21 |
| Homenetmen London Vs Z.A.D 2 |
Homenetmen London Vs U.S.A. Nice |
| London win by default | 45-14 |
In the Finals, Homenetmen London won first place in the Ladies basketball (well done girls), Germany won first place in Men's basketball beating Homenetmen Paris by only a few points and Belgium's 2nd team won first place in Men's football.
The London Ladies basketball team were ecstatic with their excellent scores, beating both teams they played, twice, and winning the 1st place trophy in the closing ceremony.
A "Fair-play" trophy was also awarded to Homenetmen London at the closing ceremony! This was because of the discipline shown and full support given to the marzigs by their fellow Homenetmen players and supporters at all times.
Written by supporters: Nairi Barseghian and Annie Banian