Ydnekatchew Tessema
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Yidnekatchew Tessema Eshete | ||
| Date of birth | 11 September 1921 | ||
| Place of birth | Jimma, Ethiopia | ||
| Date of death | 19 August 1987 (aged 65) | ||
| Place of death | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1935–1942 | Saint-George SA | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1943–1958 | Saint-George SA | 365 | (318) |
| National team | |||
| 1947–1957 | Ethiopia | 15 | (3) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Ydnekatchew Tessema (Amharic: ይድነቃቸው ተሠማ; 11 September 1921 – 19 August 1987) was a footballer and pioneer of modern sports organizations in Ethiopia.
Yidnekatchew was born in Jimma to father Negadras Tessema Eshete and mother Mulatwa Gebreselassie. Yidnekatchew's father was serving his fifth year of exile from the country for being the Minister of Telegraph and Posts of the deposed Iyasu V of Ethiopia.
This never really affected the relationship between Yidnekatchew and Emperor Haile Selassie, the two are seen in many shots where Yidnekatchew humbly accepted another trophy from the emperor. At age four, Yidnekatchew was sent to Teferi Mekonnen School, where he would receive most of his education. At school, the young Yidnekatchew played many sports but mastered football. At age 8 he was even made captain of his school team. In his teens, he also practiced cycling, short distance running and boxing, but he always seemed destined for football, which led him to being recruited by a member of the Arada FC (now Saint-George SA).
The young Yidnekatchew took French, English and Italian classes and was fluent in all those languages besides Amharic.
He is considered as one of the country's biggest sporting heroes. He played and coached Ethiopian clubs and teams and founded the modern Ethiopian Sports office at age 22. As a player, he spent his entire career at Saint-George SA in Addis Ababa, joining the youth team in 1935 at age 14. Wearing the V across his chest he played 23 years straight with them including his youth years, a country record. Another record he holds is scoring 43 of 47 goals scored by his team in one competition season. When the Ethiopia national football team started playing international football in 1947, he was already 28 years old and the squad was vying for younger players, nevertheless he would get 15 caps to his name. His first cap was May 1, 1947 in a 5-0 victory over French Somaliland. His record for the country led him to coach the Ethiopia national football team, after his retirement as player for a glorious period, and in 1962, at age 41 when the African Cup of Nations was to be held in Ethiopia, he led them to their only championships in this respected tournament,beating Egypt 4-2 in the final. Ethiopian football was at its peak then, as Haile Selassie the emperor of Ethiopia awarded them the trophy.
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