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BERLIN -- Almost a year into his new life in Germany, Syrian refugee Ammar Sahar is well on his way to realizing his dream of becoming a Bundesliga referee.Sahar, who already referees matches in the Berlin league in the sixth tier of German soccer, has his hopes pinned on officiating at the highest level.I have a good chance, the 27-year-old told The Associated Press.Sahar has been refereeing since he was 17 years old, when he took charge of an under-14s league game in his home city of Hama, Syrias fourth largest after Damascus, Aleppo and Homs.After two years I went to the second and third divisions in Syria. From 2008 to 2010 I was in the first division in Syria, said Sahar, who also officiated youth games in neighboring Lebanon.Syrias devastating civil war forced him to flee with his wife Loubana via Lebanon in October 2015. Sahar had a brother living in Germany so it was the logical choice. The couple had to get there first, however, undertaking the perilous journey from Turkey and across the Aegean Sea toward Greece, the first frontier for most migrants seeking to reach the EU.Loubana was seven months pregnant at the time. But they paid smugglers a premium so that they could travel on a safer boat. Sahar believes there were around 30 fellow passengers when normally some 45 are crammed on board for a cheaper price. There was still drama on the crossing, however.We were halfway when the motor gave up, Sahar said. But other people on the boat helped me to get it going again.Like many other refugees, they made their way by bus to Macedonia and then Serbia, before continuing by train through Croatia, Slovenia and Austria, from where a bus took them to Passau on the German border, then another to Munich.In Munich the police gave us tickets for a (refugee) center but I said, `No, no, were not going to Munich, were going to Berlin! Sahar said.He thought the German football federations headquarters must be in Berlin, the capital.But its in Frankfurt. I thought at the time it was in Berlin so I said, `We go to Berlin, we want to go to Berlin. And the police were so nice they gave me two tickets to go to Berlin.Before that, a visa stamp on Sahars passport from Oman had raised a few eyebrows among German police before he explained he had travelled to the Arabian sultanate to referee an under-14 tournament.I showed them a photo. `Im a referee, he said.Soccer is the national sport in Germany so that may have eased his entry into the country.The Sahars were just one couple among 890,000 migrants to arrive in the country last year. The latest government figures suggest some 213,000 applied for asylum in the first nine months of this year.Sahar got in touch with the Berlin football federation and was given three games to referee as a test in the Landesliga Berlin, a level below the Berlin-Liga.After this match in the Landesliga, the Berliner Fussball Verband (Berlin football federation) called me to go to a referee camp. They told me, `Now you are a referee in the Berlin-Liga. I was very happy, Sahar said.Matches are shared between three officials, each doing two games as an assistant before one as a referee.Sahar refereed his fifth Berlin-Liga match on Sunday, a 5-0 victory for BFC Preussen at DJK SW Neukoelln. He had a busy game, handing out five yellow cards and one red that led to a penalty.He had a great game. He did a super job, said Neukoelln player Marco Fink, who acknowledged the red card had been justified.Local league photographer Christoph Lehner had seen Sahar in action several times before and said his biggest challenge was communicating with the players.Of course the language plays a huge role in communication, Lehner said.Sahar, who speaks basic English and German, admits that communication is an issue but says its getting easier all the time.Sometimes I have a problem understanding what a player is saying to me, but anything I dont understand, I save in my mind, he said. The assistants also help me a lot.Learning German is key as Sahar aims to integrate as quickly as possible in order to reach his goal.I must work very hard to be a good referee in Germany, he said. Now I work step-by-step to arrive in the Bundesliga.Sahar works as a swimming instructor in a local school in Berlin, while juggling German language lessons, referee training and parental duties with Loubana for their son Nidal, born in Berlin not long after the couples arrival in the German capital on Dec. 3, 2015.They recently moved to an eastern district of Berlin. The change just adds to the daily challenges. Besides training, parenting, working and learning German -- they still have to get a new kitchen installed -- Sahar keeps looking on the bright side.German is hard, but its a nice language, he said.That positive outlook is fueling his push for promotion to referee at the top level.I hope to go to Bundesliga 1 and 2 in the future. I work every day to get to the next level, to get to the Bundesliga. The Bundesliga is one of the best leagues in the world, Sahar said.And it doesnt need to end there for the ambitious match official whose favorite referee is Howard Webb of England.In the next five or six years, maybe Ill have a German I.D. and I could be an international referee from Germany, maybe. This is my dream, he said. Adidas Flyers Jerseys . Only three players drafted by NHL clubs were included on the Czech selection camp roster on Wednesday. Those players were Dallas Stars 2012 first-rounder Radek Faksa, Winnipeg Jets 2013 fourth-rounder Jan Kostalek and Phoenix Coyotes 2012 seventh-rounder Marek Langhamer. Wholesale Flyers Jerseys .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. http://www.cheapflyersjerseyschina.com/bobby-clarke-jersey/ . The recently retired Stern was elected Friday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined with the class of 2014 on Aug. Mark Howe Jersey . Zvonareva, who won the tournament in 2009 and 10, couldnt handle her opponents big groundstrokes in only her third event back after 17 months out with a shoulder injury. Zvonareva made her comeback in January in Shenzhen and played in the Australian Open but lost her first matches at both tournaments. Cheap Flyers Jerseys . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. The 1.83-meter (6-foot) Leapai defeated the previously unbeaten Denis Boytsov in November to become the WBOs mandatory challenger. MONTREAL -- Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin put his offseason focus on leadership and character. After a historically embarrassing loss on Friday night, hell get a chance to see what his team is made of when it hosts the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night at the Bell Centre.The Canadiens were manhandled 10-0 by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday, matching a franchise record for goals against in a shutout loss. The team looked even flatter than they did in a winning cause against Vancouver on Wednesday, when goaltender Carey Price bailed them out.Price will return to the net Saturday, as Montreal (9-1-1) looks to get back on track.No ones losing confidence, no ones losing faith in this locker room; we fully believe in each other, said winger Brendan Gallagher, who called the loss embarrassing. Its just one of those things -- learning from last years lessons. Were going to learn from it.Adversity has the opportunity to either crumble you or make you stronger, he added. Were going to see how we come out but I believe in everyone in this locker room.The Canadiens had been as stingy as they come in their first 10 games, allowing just 13 goals in that stretch. After Fridays result, the teams goals-against average went from 1.30 up to 2.09. The penalty killing unit, which had allowed just four goals on 40 opportunities, went from 90 percent to 82.2 percent after giving four goals on five Columbus power plays.Aside from the already-planned goaltending change, there could be more coming for Montreal. Left winger Daniel Carr and defenseman Joel Hanley were called up from the AHLs St. Johns Ice Caps earlier in the week.The Fllyers (6-5-1), in town for the second time in just under two weeks, bring a three-game winning streak into Saturdays tilt.dddddddddddd Theyve been the comeback kids in their last two outings, rallying from third period deficits for the win in a back-to-back set against the Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders on Wednesday and Thursday.The last time these two met on Oct. 24, the Canadiens power play was the difference as Gallagher connected for the game-winning goal. Steve Mason was the starter in that game, but lately Flyers coach Dave Hakstol has leaned on Michal Neuvirth. Neuvirth has gotten the nod in three straight, including the back-to-back earlier this week.Its based on performance, Hakstol told the Philadelphia Inquirer.Former Canadien Dale Weise missed the first meeting while serving a suspension and his presence in the line-up for this one has yet to be determined. Weise, who signed a four-year, $9.4 million deal as a free agent last summer, has just one goal in eight games and was a healthy scratch against the Islanders.He can play better, general manager Ron Hextall told the Inquirer, while also acknowledging that the 28-year-old was likely experiencing a break-in period with the club.After losieys[/url] ' ' '