{{Short description|Guinean footballer and manager}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Ben Oumar Sy | image = | fullname = Oumar Sy | birth_date = {{Birth date|1926|1|8|df=yes}} | death_date = {{Death date and age|2001|8|25|1926|1|8|df=yes}} | birth_place = Bamako, French Sudan | height = | position = Midfielder | currentclub = | clubnumber = | years1 = 1942–1957 | clubs1 = Jeanne d'Arc | caps1 = | goals1 = | manageryears1 = 1960–1975 |managerclubs1 = Stade Malien | manageryears2 = 1962–1966 |managerclubs2 = Mali | pcupdate = 05:16, 27 March 2021 (UTC) | ntupdate = 05:16, 27 March 2021 (UTC) }} '''"Ben" Oumar Sy''' (8 January 1926{{snds}}25 August 2001) was a Malian footballer and football manager. He was the first ever manager for Stade Malien and the Mali national team.
==Career== Sy began playing football with Jeanne d'Arc in French Sudan in the 1940s, and with them won the French West African Cup twice in 1953 and 1956 before retiring shortly after. He received the nickname "Ben" in reference to the then famed Moroccan-French footballer Larbi Benbarek.
In 1960, his old club ''Jeanne d'Arc'' and ''l’Espérance de Médine'' merged creating Stade Malien, and Sy was appointed their first ever manager. In 1961, he helped Stade Malien win the first ever Malian Cup in 1961. In 1965, he took the team to the final of the first ever CAF Champions League in 1965, where they lost to Oryx Douala.
In 1962, he was also appointed the first ever manager for the Mali football team after their independence in 1960. He managed the Mali national team and Stade Malien simultaneously for 4 years. After taking the team to the 1965 All-Africa Games, in 1966 he left the team to focus on Stade Malien. He managed Stade Malien until 1975, when he retired.
Sy died on August 25, 2001, at the age 75. He was buried the next day, and on the same day Stade Malien won their 16th Malian Cup.<ref name="Bamada.net 2018">{{cite web | title=Afin que nul n'oublie : Ben Oumar Sy | website=Bamada.net | date=8 Oct 2018 | url=http://bamada.net/afin-que-nul-noublie-ben-oumar-sy | language=fr | access-date=27 Mar 2021}}</ref>
The Super Coupe National du Mali is formally named after him, as is the best sports high school in Mali ''Lycée Sportif Ben Omar Sy''.<ref name="CAFOnline.com 2013">{{cite web | title=Djoliba wins Mali Super Cup | website=CAFOnline.com | date=17 Nov 2013 | url=https://www.cafonline.com/news-center/news/djoliba-wins-mali-super-cup | access-date=27 Mar 2021}}</ref><ref name="maliweb.net 2021">{{cite web | title=Lycée Sportif Ben Oumar Sy : ATT inaugure le nouveau joyau à Kabala | website=maliweb.net | date=27 Mar 2021 | url=https://www.maliweb.net/sports/lycee-sportif-ben-oumar-sy-att-inaugure-le-nouveau-joyau-a-kabala-6037.html | language=fr | access-date=27 Mar 2021}}</ref>
==Honours== ===Player=== '''Jeanne d'Arc''' *French West African Cup: 1953, 1956
===Manager=== '''Stade Malien''' *Malian Cup: 1961, 1963, 1970, 1972 *Malian Première Division: 1969–1970
== References == {{reflist}}
{{Mali national football team managers}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diallo, Kidian}} Category:1926 births Category:2001 deaths Category:Footballers from Bamako Category:Malian men's footballers Category:Malian football managers Category:Mali national football team managers Category:Stade Malien players Category:Men's association football midfielders