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Fabio Capello: I Didn't Make Mistakes And England Are On Track At World Cup 2010

2010-06-14T11:37:00.000-07:00

England manager Fabio Capello has insisted that there are no massive causes for concern after the Three Lions' 1-1 draw with the USA in their opening game of the World Cup on Saturday.

Defender Ledley King looks set to be ruled out for the rest of the tournament after sustaining a groin injury and being replaced by Jamie Carragher at half-time against the Americans.

And goalkeeper Rob Green blundered badly to hand the USA an equaliser, but Capello has been unequivocal in his assessment of the situation.

As far as the Italian is concerned, he made the right selection calls at the weekend and there is nothing to be overly worried about in terms of the rest of the campaign.

"I didn't make mistakes and I'm not worried for the future," he told reporters in South Africa.

"We played a good game and, for me, the most important thing is to see the spirit of the team and also the physical condition of the players.

"I was worried about the result because it is possible to lose a game like this.

"We had seven or eight chances. That is good football.

"But it is not enough just to create the chances. To win we have to score.

"Twice we were in front of the goal, once with Shaun Wright-Phillips, once with Emile (Heskey). Alone, Absolutely alone."

Capello was also taking an analytical approach when it came to how to deal with the error made by Green, a player with whom the Italian has been very happy in recent games.

"We must think about this problem psychologically," the England coach added.

"Goalkeepers make mistakes. This is part of football. You have to accept that.

"I decided on Green because he played very well in the last game against Platinum Stars and also against Mexico at Wembley, and in the second-half last night he played very well and made a really important save. But a mistake remains a mistake.

"Now I have to speak with him, then I will decide what to do."

Japan 1-0 Cameroon: Keisuke Honda Tames The Very Domitable Lions

2010-06-14T11:32:00.000-07:00

World Cup 2010 : 14 June

Japan recorded their first ever World Cup win away from home soil on Monday, picking up a 1-0 victory over Cameroon.

The first half was a miserable affair, yet it somehow produced a goal from Keisuke Honda. Stephane Mbia came closes for the Indomitable Lions in the closing stages of the match, striking a wonderful shot against the face of the Japanese bar.

In keeping with many of the matches at South Africa 2010, the start to this encounter was extremely pedestrian, with neither side making any kind of offensive headway in the early stages of the game as possession was frequently given away cheaply in front of a disappointingly empty stadium.

Genuine spells of pressure for either side were infrequent in the early stages, while ingenuity was an even scarcer commodity in the advanced areas of the field. Pierre Webo tried to bustle down the right channel for the Africans, but his cross was hacked away from the centre of the goal. For their part, the Japanese were retaining the ball better in the centre of the park, though posing no threat to Souleymanou Hamidou’s net.

Half an hour of the match passed without a solitary shot mustered by either side, with the Indomitable Lions swamped in the middle of the pitch by waves of Japan defenders, who seemed to roll effectively wherever the ball was. Blue Samurai goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima provided hope for the Africans, fumbling a couple of deep free kicks only to be bailed out by his defenders.

On 37 minutes, Eyong Enoh finally gave the crowd their first shot to cheer with a tame low drive from the edge of the penalty box trundling into the arms of Kawashima.

Within seconds, Japan managed to grab the lead. Diasuke Matsui, on his unnatural right, was given room to cut onto his favoured left foot by Benoit Assou-Ekotto. The Grenoble man’s centre was then misjudged by Stephane Mbia, whose error allowed Honda to control the ball at the far post and slam into the net from six yards.

Samuel Eto’o, placed away on the right wing, had been anonymous in the first half, but it only took him four minutes following the restart to make an impression on the second period. Dancing away from a couple of challenges, he cut the ball back from the byline, but Maxim Choupo-Moting bent his shot wide of goal.

Cameroon’s play was certainly brisker in the early stages of the second half, though they were still making little headway. Choupo-Moting cut in from the flank to shoot wide from the edge of the box, but Paul Le Guen’s side certainly didn’t look liable to level.

Yasuhito Endo rather summed up the attacking threat Japan posed in the second half when he hammered a free kick too long for his team-mates when well positioned to deliver a dangerous cross. But the tenacious and well-drilled Japanese defence was such that there rarely looked likely to be any danger of the forwards needing to score again for the Asians to take three points.

Le Guen acted by introducing Geremi and Mohammadou Idrissou, but the pattern of the game changed none.

A rare Japanese attack nearly brought with it a second goal as Makoto Hasebe prodded a meaningful shot towards the corner of Hamidou’s goal from 25 yards. The goalkeeper got down to palm the ball clear and was partially saved as Shinji Okazaki, who was closing in on the follow-up, was deemed offside.

Time was by now an extremely scarce commodity and Cameroon were thrusting forward at every opportunity. With only five minutes remaining a stunning hit from Mbia cracked the face of the crossbar as he took aim from 25 yards out. Had the Marseille man’s shot been six inches lower, it would have been a real contender for goal of the tournament, but the Indomitable Lions were left cursing their luck as Achille Emana’s deflected follow-up was deflected straight at the goalkeeper.

This late enterprise came too late to bring with it a levelling goal, leaving Cameroon to approach their next game against Denmark knowing that defeat will see them likely eliminated. Japan, meanwhile, can optimistically look forward to the Netherlands, despite showing little enterprise in their opening game.

source

How will live dealing affect online casinos?

2010-05-22T12:11:00.000-07:00

Whichever time you look at, there has always been gambling. For example, there is evidence of keno, dice and mahjong being played in Ancient China from 2,000 B.C. onward. Different forms of gaming were also a popular pastime in the other major ancient civilizations of India, Egypt, Persia, Greece and Rome. Despite attempts to ban or control gambling because of its addictive nature, it has persisted until today. Sometimes it went underground, while other governments allowed commercialisation. Throughout, gambling has been seen as a social activity. The rich would gather in each others palaces and mansions to play or attend exclusive clubs. The poor would flock to "dens of iniquity" which were often run by criminal gangs tied into the worlds of prostitution and street drugs. This history is one long transfer of wealth from one individual to another. Before regulation, it was usually the criminal gangs that became rich. After regulation, those in positions of power took their commissions while governments subsidized the taxpayers through levies and taxes. But there was one constant thread. Whether you were an aristocrat lounging in a casino in an exclusive spa town in Europe or panning for gold in the 1840's and 50's, the majority of games depended on live dealing or the supervision of the betting by an employee of the House. In the more modern clubs and casinos, the dealers and croupiers have often been beautiful women, dressed attractively. In their own right, they were part of the attraction of the "place". The men would come, leaving their wives at home, to lose their money while ogling the girls.

Then along came the internet. There is nothing wrong with the quality of the graphics, animation and soundtrack. In most cases, they represent a brave attempt to create an experience similar to a real-world casino. But players can never suspend disbelief. They continue to sit at home or nursing their laptops in a hotspot with their attention fixed on a small screen. Nothing can replace the smell, noise and crush of people in a casino. Except, as the technology has matured and bandwidth improved, online casinos have begun to introduce live dealers for a range of your favorite casino games. This has two advantages. Many people prefer to avoid the random number generators that drive the software versions of the games. RGNs are too perfect. They feel it is better to gamble where human beings shuffle the packs or spin the wheels because human beings make mistakes and are inefficient. Secondly, animations only go so far. Even though it is a small screen, a live video feed of a sexy lady dealing blackjack or running a roulette table brings in the business.

Live dealing has been increasingly common on sites serving Europe but the first online casinos in the US are now recruiting live dealers and launching their own service. You can only go so far to compete on animation and welcome bonuses. Web cameras are cheap and not much of a studio is required to create interactive play between dealer and you sitting at home. With your favorite casino games now coming to you live, the pressure will be on the majority of the other casinos to innovate ad improve the interface and user experience. As bandwidth improves, your gaming experience will improve.

Edward O. Thorp

2010-04-25T10:39:00.000-07:00

Edward Oakley Thorp is widely regarded, by professional players as well as the general public, as the Father of Card Counting. It was in his book, Beat the Dealer, first published in 1962, that he presented his Ten-Count system, the first powerful winning blackjack system ever made available to the public. All card-counting systems in use today are variations of Thorp's Ten-Count.

When Thorp's book became a best seller, the Las Vegas casinos attempted to change the standard rules of blackjack, but their customers would not accept the changes and refused to play the new version of the game. So, the Vegas casinos went back to the old rules, but switched from dealing hand-held one-deck games to four-deck shoe games, a change that the players would accept. Unfortunately for the casinos, in 1966 Thorp's revised second edition of Beat the Dealer was published. This edition presented the High-Low Count, as developed by Julian Braun, a more powerful and practical counting system for attacking these new shoe games.

In 1961, Thorp and C. Shannon jointly invented the first wearable computer, a device that successfully predicted results in roulette. Thorp has an M.A. in Physics and a Ph.D. in mathematics, and has taught mathematics at UCLA, MIT, NMSU, and U.C. Irvine, where he also taught quantitative finance. For many years Ed Thorp wrote a column for the now-defunct Gambling Times magazine. Many of these columns were collected in a book titled The Mathematics of Gambling, published in 1984 by Lyle Stuart.

Stanford Wong

2010-04-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

Stanford Wong self-published his first book, Professional Blackjack, in 1975. It was later published by the Gambler's Book Club in Las Vegas, then revised and expanded numerous times and published by Wong's own company, Pi Yee Press.

Wong is widely regarded as one of the sharpest analysts of systems and methods for beating the casinos. In Professional Blackjack, he described a never-before-revealed table-hopping style of playing shoe games, a method of play now known as wonging. Professional Blackjack had a profound impact on serious players because it provided card counters with an easy yet powerful method for attacking the abundant four-deck shoe games that had taken over Las Vegas. Many pros still think of card-counting opportunities as "pre-Wong" and "post-Wong."

In his second book, Blackjack in Asia-a book priced at $2,000 and one of the rarest gambling books sought by collectors today - Wong discusses the unique blackjack games he had discovered in Asian casinos as a professional player, along with the optimum strategies he had devised for beating them. The book also included underground advice for exchanging currencies in these countries on the black market, as well as an account of his own hassles with customs officials when he attempted to leave the Philippines with his winnings. Of all of Wong's books, this is my personal favorite, as it reveals more of his anti-establishment personality than any of his later books.

In 1980, Wong published Winning Without Counting, priced at $200, and again, on a personal note, this is my second favorite book by Wong (and another collector's item if you can find one). He not only discusses many hole card techniques that had never before been mentioned in print-s-front-loading, spooking, and warp play-but he also delved into many clearly illegal methods of getting an edge over the house, including various techniques of bet-capping, card switching, card mucking, etc. He was widely criticized by those in the casino industry for the amusing way in which he discussed and analyzed such techniques, but anyone with half a brain could see that he was merely informing players with a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor.

Wong subsequently published Tournament Blackjack (1987), Basic Blackjack (1992), Casino Tournament Strategy (1992), Blackjack Secrets (1993), and since 1979 has published various newsletters including Current Blackjack News, aimed at serious and professional players.

Mr. Stanford Wong is a life legend of blackjack and we highly recommend his website http://www.bj21.com/ to anyone seriously interested in blackjack game.

Roush satisfied with NASCAR action

2010-03-11T09:45:00.001-08:00

CHARLOTTE, N.C. —Team owner Jack Roush said Wednesday he’s satisfied with the penalty NASCAR levied against driver Carl Edwards for his intentional accident with Brad Keselowski.

Edwards was in an early accident with Keselowski in Sunday’s race at Atlanta, and later returned to the track and deliberately wrecked Keselowski. The contact sent Keselowki’s car airborne, and NASCAR parked Edwards for the remainder of the race.

On Tuesday, he was placed on probation for three races.

“We are satisfied that NASCAR fairly considered all the circumstances in its decision to discipline Carl,” said Roush.

Roush said he looked forward to a NASCAR-called meeting next weekend at Bristol between the two drivers and Keselowski car owner Roger Penske.

“It is our hope to put this behind us at that time,” said Roush, who added the incident overlooked an otherwise good day in Atlanta for the Roush Fenway Racing team.

Francesco Totti's Roma Return Suffers Another Setback - Report

2010-03-11T09:33:00.000-08:00

Francesco Totti is a long way from making his Roma return from injury as he continues to skip training with tendinitis, according to Leggo.

Nothing more than physiotherapy is the order for Totti as inflammation to his right knee continues to keep him away from the training pitch.

He is now expected to return towards the end of the month, giving him some time to prepare for the clash against Inter on March 31.

The Giallorossi's medical staff are working hard to get the ace back in action, but they are unlikely to rush his return as the risk of worsening the injury is always present.

Cristiano Ronaldo & Portugal National Team Could Grow Mustaches For World Cup - Report

2010-03-11T09:04:00.000-08:00

The Portuguese national team could earn some publicity for their off-the-field antics this summer in South Africa. As reported by Spanish sports daily Sport, Cristiano Ronaldo and the Portuguese team could grow mustaches for the World Cup.

The movement has been started by a Facebook group that has asked for the players to grow mustaches and the initiative has slowly begun to pick up steam as more than 2,000 fans have joined the cause.

During Portugal's midweek international friendly against China, one could see a number of fans in the crowd holding up a large banner in support of the group and chanting, 'We want a Seleccion with moustaches in South Africa'!

The movement is said to reference to what is stereotypically thought of as the 'traditional Portuguese man' and Sport has taken the liberty of displaying a doctored photo with some of the Portuguese players

China’s Zhou Yang wins 1,500 short track gold

2010-02-21T11:05:00.000-08:00

VANCOUVER, British Columbia —Zhou Yang of China easily won the gold medal and set an Olympic record in women’s 1,500-meter short track speedskating.

Zhou breezed to the finish line Saturday night in 2 minutes, 16.993 seconds, well ahead of Lee Eun-byul of South Korea, who earned the silver in 2:17.849. Park Seung-hi of South Korea took the bronze, finishing in 2:17.927.

American Katherine Reutter finished fourth.

Zhou’s victory was China’s second gold in women’s short track. Wang Meng won the 500, but she was disqualified in the semifinals of the 1,500.

Zhou, the 18-year-old world-record holder, put her hands together in a thank-you gesture as she crossed the finish line of the eight-woman final. She is competing in her first Olympics.

(source)

Game to pay attention to: Mavericks vs. Magic

2010-02-21T11:02:00.000-08:00

Dallas at Orlando

There are a lot of good games on tonight. Cleveland in Charlotte should be a brutal, competitive affair, Miami in Memphis should be solid, Atlanta and Phoenix will be good, as will Boston's trip to Portland.

But I'm going orthodox with the Mavericks in Orlando. It's a nationally televised contest that should allow you non League Pass'ers to keep tabs on the other 11 games, and it features two teams trying desperately to stay relevant.

The Magic's trade deadline was sometime last July, while the Mavericks were the first to strike in the rest of the NBA's trade deadline, procuring Caron Butler(notes) and Brendan Haywood(notes) for a package revolving around Josh Howard(notes) (or, as we should probably start calling him, "the NBA player that your uncle thinks every NBA player acts like").

I thought I'd have a little burnout after a week like this, but I can't wait to lose myself in tonight's lineup. You're welcome to be burned-out, however. Either way, comment away.

Dallas Mavericks: 33-21, 92.2 possessions per game (19th), 108.3 points scored per 100 possessions (12th), 106.6 points allowed per 100 possessions (16th).

Orlando Magic: 93 possessions per game (15th), 108.9 points scored per 100 possessions (tenth), 102.9 points allowed per 100 possessions (fourth).

All statistics courtesy of basketball-reference.com.

Thants for hanging around this week.

(source)

Junior Johnson not teaming with Jimmie Johnson any time soon

2010-02-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

Ah, those tired old formula questions that journalists ask drivers. "How did it feel when you almost won the race?" is one of my favorites. Seems the retired drivers are not immune from this treatment; they just get different questions. For example: "If you were building a team right now, what current driver would you choose?"

Racing legend Junior Johnson, who won fifty races as a driver and six Championships as an owner, gets this kind of thing fairly regularly. In 2008, a reporter for ESPN asked him to choose between Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, and Carl Edwards. Johnson had three championships, Carl had a great season and the cover of Men's Fitness, and Kyle had 8 Cup wins that season, and an attitude.

And the winner was... drumroll please... Kyle Busch. (Insert record-scratch sound effect here.) "I like his hell-bent driving style," Johnson was quoted as saying. "He's going to do what he needs to do. You've just got to polish him a little." (A little?)

Asked a similar question just a few days ago, Junior Johnson would choose ... Tony Stewart. Not four-time champion Jimmie Johnson. "I like Tony Stewart's kind of driving; and Jimmie Johnson's a great race driver, there's no question about it, but he's got one of the greatest mechanics I've ever seen come along, and I've had some great ones," Johnson said Sunday. (I hear his crew chief's nothing to sneeze at either.) But, Johnson continued, "I just think Tony, I would take Tony over the rest of them." ALL of them? Really? Wow.

Which leaves me wondering what kind of a quandary Junior would be in if he were asked to choose between, say, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski?

(source)

Why does Apolo Anton Ohno yawn before his races?

2010-02-21T10:51:00.000-08:00

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Seconds before the biggest moment of his career, the excitement and adrenaline were finally too much for Apolo Anton Ohno. He couldn't hold it in any longer.

He yawned.

Television viewers were stunned by the American's apparently lackadaisical approach to the race, which would determine whether he would become the Winter Olympian with the most medals in U.S. history. (He did, with a bronze.)

British Open golf champion Stewart Cink even Tweeted that Ohno's action made him yawn, too, as he watched on TV.

Yet some sneaky investigation by Yahoo! Sports revealed there is madness behind Ohno's moribundity.

A friend of Ohno's – who asked not to be named because, er, "Apolo might not like it" – revealed that the yawning lets extra oxygen into his lungs in the seconds before bursting across the ice.

Or maybe he's just bored.

History-maker Messi seeks first Club World Cup

2009-12-08T08:54:00.000-08:00

ABU DHABI (AFP) - Barcelona will go into the FIFA Club World Cup as favourites to win the competition for the first time, but winger Lionel Messi says they must learn the lessons from their last involvement.

The Club World Cup is the only international honour missing from Barcelona's well-stocked trophy cabinet after their previous attempt to win it, in 2006, ended in a 1-0 defeat to Brazilian side Internacional.

"I think the most important lesson we've learned is not to be over-confident and to get to know our opponents in depth," said Messi, in an interview with the FIFA website on the eve of the December 9-19 tournament here.

"The last time we maybe thought that the other sides were a bit below us and that's something we can't afford to let happen again if we want to be champions."

Victory in the tournament would crown a remarkable year for current Spanish league leaders Barcelona, who last season won the Champions League, Spanish league and King's Cup to claim an unprecedented treble.

It has also been an unforgettable 12 months for Messi, who last week became the first Argentine player to be named European Footballer of the Year when he was awarded the prestigious Ballon d'Or by France Football magazine.

"It's one title the club has never won and it's one title that?s eluded most of the players at Barca," said Messi.

"It's also the last competition of what's been a historic 2009 and we want to end the year in style. On a personal level, I'm really looking forward to it because it will help me keep on developing."

Barcelona's strongest challenge is likely to come from Messi's homeland, with South American champions Estudiantes set to enter the competition at the semi-final stage alongside the Catalan club.

Estudiantes won the Intercontinental Cup, the precursor to the current competition, by beating Manchester United in 1968 and finished runners-up in the two years afterwards.

Their participation in Abu Dhabi marks a return to the event after a 39-year absence, but a strand of continuity running between the sides can be found in the shape of Estudiantes midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron, whose father Juan Ramon starred in the 1968 victory over United.

"It's an enriching experience for all of us, for the older players, who will be leading the way, and the younger ones, who'll be taking up the baton in the future," said Veron.

"You have to make them aware of what it means to be there, how fantastic it is. It's also important that nobody sits back and says 'I've made it now'. With a tournament like this you have to want to come back and experience it again."

The competition's other teams cannot boast players with reputations to match Messi or Veron, but all - with the exception of host club Al-Hahli - are continental champions.

South Korean side Pohang Steelers (Asia), Congolese outfit Tout Puissant Mazembe (Africa) and Mexico's Atlante (CONCACAF) will provide the biggest threat to the two heavyweights.

Auckland, who play Al-Hahli in the tournament's opening game on Wednesday, are the reigning champions from the Oceania region.

"We didn?t score a single goal in 2006 and that was a big disappointment for us," said Auckland captain Ivan Vicelich.

"We've prepared well this year though, and we're going to score a lot of goals. We've been talking about this match for weeks now and we need to go out and execute our gameplan."

The winners of the match between Al-Hahli and Auckland will join TP Mazembe, Atlante and Pohang Steelers in the quarter-finals, where a potential meeting with Pep Guardiola's Catalan conquerors Barcelona will be at stake.

Panathinaikos fires coach over after league slip

2009-12-08T08:49:00.000-08:00

ATHENS, Greece (AP)—Panathinaikos has fired Dutch coach Henk Ten Cate after the club lost its lead in Greek championship to rival Olympiakos.

In a statement Tuesday, the club named Nikos Nioplias as his replacement. Nioplias is currently the coach of Greece’s under-21 national team.

Olympiakos took the lead in the Greek title race after beating Panathinaikos 2-0 on Nov. 29. It leads the standings with 33 points from 13 games, one point ahead of Panathinaikos.

The 54-year-old Ten Cate, a former Chelsea assistant manager, took over in Athens last season but failed to break the dominance of Olympiakos which has won every league title but one since 1997.

History of Golf & Golf Equipment

2009-12-07T08:42:00.000-08:00

Golf originated during the 15th century.

Golf originated from a game played on the coast of Scotland during the 15th century. Golfers would hit a pebble instead of a ball around the sand dunes using a stick or club. After 1750, golf evolved into the sport as we recognize it today. In 1774, Edinburgh golfers wrote the first standardized rules for the game of golf.

Golf Balls
Golfers soon tired of hitting pebbles and tried other things. The earliest man-made golf balls included thin leather bags stuffed with feathers (they did not fly very far).

The gutta-percha ball was invented in 1848 by Reverend Adam Paterson. Made from the sap of the Gutta tree, this ball could be hit a maximum distance of 225 yards and was very similar to its modern counterpart.

In 1898, Coburn Haskell introduced the first one-piece rubber cored, when professionally hit these balls reached distances approaching 430 yards.

According to "The Dimpled Golf Ball" by Vincent Mallette during the early days of golf the balls were smooth. Players noticed that as balls became old and scarred, they traveled farther. After a while players would take new balls and intentionally pit them.

In 1905, golf ball manufacturer William Taylor was the first to add the dimple pattern using the Coburn Haskell ball. Golf balls had now taken on their modern form.

Golf Clubs
Golf clubs have evolved from wooden shaft clubs to today's sets of woods and irons with durability, weight distribution and graduation utility. The evolution of clubs went hand in hand with the evolution of golf balls that were able to withstand harder whacks.

Carrying & Caddies
During the 1880s, golf bags first came into use. "The beast of burden" is an old nickname for the caddie who carried golfers' equipment for them. The first powered golf car appeared around 1962 and was invented by Merlin L. Halvorson.

Golf Tees
The word "tee" as it relates to the game of golf originated as the name for the area where a golfer played. In 1889, the first documented portable golf tee was patented by Scottish golfers William Bloxsom and Arthur Douglas. This golf tee was made from rubber and had three vertical rubber prongs that held the ball in place. However, it lay on the ground and did not piece (or pegged) the ground like modern golf tees.

In 1892, a British patent was granted to Percy Ellis for his "Perfectum" tee that did piece (pegged) the ground. It was a rubber tee with a metal spike. The 1897 "Victor" tee was similar and included a cup-shaped top to better hold the golf ball. The Vicktor was patented by Scotsmen PM Matthews.

American patents for golf tees include: the first American patent issued to Scotsmen David Dalziel in 1895, the 1895 patent issued to American Prosper Senat, and the 1899 patent for an improved golf tee issued to George Grant.

In 1774, the first standardized rules of golf were written and used for the first golf championship, which was won by Doctor John Rattray on 2nd April 1744 in Edinburgh, Scotland.

1. You must tee your ball within one club's length of the hole.

2. Your tee must be on the ground.

3. You are not to change the ball which you strike off the tee.

4. You are not to remove stones, bones or any break club for the sake of playing your ball, except on the fair green, and that only within a club's length of your ball.

5. If your ball comes among water, or any watery filth, you are at liberty to take out your ball and bringing it behind the hazard and teeing it, you may play it with any club and allow your adversary a stroke for so getting out your ball.

6. If your balls be found anywhere touching one another you are to lift the first ball till you play the last.

7. At holeing you are to play your ball honestly for the hole, and not to play upon your adversary's ball, not lying in your way to the hole.

8. If you should lose your ball, by its being taken up, or any other way, you are to go back to the spot where you struck last and drop another ball and allow your adversary a stroke for the misfortune.

9. No man at holeing his ball is to be allowed to mark his way to the hold with his club or anything else.

10. If a ball be stopp'd by any person, horse or dog, or anything else, the ball so stopp'd must be played where it lyes.

11. If you draw your club in order to strike and proceed so far in the stroke as to be bringing down your club; if then your club shall break in any way, it is to be accounted a stroke.

12. He who whose ball lyes farthest from the hole is obliged to play first.

13. Neither trench, ditch or dyke made for the preservation of the links, nor the Scholar's Holes or the soldier's lines shall be accounted a hazard but the ball is to be taken out, teed and play'd with any iron club.

Woods takes golf into a year of uncertainty

2009-12-06T02:35:00.000-08:00

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP)—Practically every new twist in the shocking tale of Tiger Woods includes an aerial view of his Florida home where his troubles began, when he pulled his SUV out of the driveway and drove it into a tree.

More questions arise when one surveys the expanse of grass across the street — the practice range at Isleworth.

Perhaps the most pressing: When will Woods slip into his spikes, step out of his house and hit golf balls again?

There is no telling when the world’s No. 1 player will choose to return to the PGA Tour and the massive galleries that, most certainly, will not gaze upon him quite the way they did at his previous 253 tour events.

Woods has been out of the public eye since the car crash and subsequent allegations of extramarital affairs took Tigermania into startling new territory during Thanksgiving weekend. He went 13 years without a hint of scandal, the first $1 billion athlete with barely a blemish, guarded with the media even in good times. That’s not likely to change now.

“I am dealing with my behavior and personal failings behind closed doors with my family,” Woods said while confessing to “transgressions” on his Web site last week. “Those feelings should be shared by us alone.”

The greater mystery is his future.

“I think he’s held at a different standard than everybody else out there,” Kenny Perry said Friday at the Chevron World Challenge. “This will be interesting to see how he handles this, though. This is a totally different knock on him when he gets out there and plays next year.”

Until the crash in the wee hours of Nov. 27, anticipation about 2010 in golf was geared toward Woods’ pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’ record in the majors, especially a year with Pebble Beach (U.S. Open) and St. Andrews (British Open) in the rotation.

That has been replaced by uncertainty and uneasiness.

A sport that promoted its wholesome image as its biggest asset now has a tawdry mess on its hands because of its star player, who happens to be among the most famous athletes in the world.

“What’s interesting to me about this situation is that while its bad in the short term, for golf, on a global basis, it has moved from being a sport to having iconic, celebrity status, and a whole host of other people are now interested,” said John Rowady, president of rEvolution, a Chicago-based sports marketing and media agency.

“And it may be a sport that is not prepared for that kind of publicity.”

The timing was not the greatest. The PGA Tour is struggling to find title sponsors at four tournaments and renew deals with at least a half dozen others. It also will start negotiations on a network TV deal that ends in 2012.

“I think one of our biggest selling points for the corporate world is that we are relatively controversy-free,” Geoff Ogilvy said at the start of the year. “We don’t generally have too many golfers getting into trouble like some other athletes in other sports do. We’re pretty squeaky-clean like that. It’s been like that for a long time. It doesn’t really seem like it’s going to change.”

PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem has been silent during all this. He hasn’t made himself available for comment except for a statement in support of Woods’ family and the player’s request for privacy.

Asked if Finchem would take questions about concerns for golf’s image or whether it would affect business, spokesman Ty Votaw said the tour does not comment on “hypothetical situations, conjecture and guesswork.”

At the start of the decade, Finchem was at Pebble Beach talking about how golf was in good hands. He cited the new arrivals of Adam Scott, Charles Howell III, David Gossett, young players who represented the values inherent in golf.

No need to mention Woods.

No one ever imagined his name would be splashed across anything but the sports pages, except for being on the cover of Time magazine in 2000 during one of the greatest summers of golf.

Padraig Harrington was quick to distinguish between Woods as a player and a person.

“It’s very much a private matter there,” Harrington said. “He wasn’t … speeding or had a DUI and hurt somebody. It really is a family matter. Hopefully, that’s the worst that golf could ever do. But how it reflects on golf? I suppose things like this have happened before at times, and we move on.

“I would still say golf—I know this may be saying it from inside the sport—is constantly the No. 1 sport with the moral ethics and things like that. So I think we’re in a very strong position going forward.”

Woods’ corporate sponsors said they are standing by him. Most sports marketing consultants believe the scandal involving his personal life will have little bearing on TV ratings or contract negotiations. No one can be sure, however, just as no can predict where or when he will return to golf.

“There’s no impact on the sport itself other than the fact its best asset is a little damaged right now,” said Michael Gordon, CEO of Group Gordon Strategic Communications, a crisis PR firm in New York.

“But it starts with Tiger. He’s at the top of the pyramid,” Gordon said. “When Tiger is hurt, other assets could get hurt, too—potentially the PGA Tour, sponsors, his family. It’s a little bit of a domino affect, and he’s the first domino.”

His peers at the Chevron World Challenge—the tournament Woods hosts but did not attend—have largely been supportive without passing judgment, perhaps because they realize that Woods is their meal ticket. They are playing for $5.75 million this week, a snapshot of life on the PGA Tour made possible by Woods and his enormous appeal.

Total prize money was $65 million the year Woods turned pro in 1996. They played for $275 million this year.

Stewart Cink is among those who have jokingly suggested Woods is not human, having won 82 times around the world and 14 majors. After losing to him by a record margin at the Match Play Championship last year, Cink said, “I think maybe we ought to slice him open to see what’s inside. Maybe nuts and bolts.”

Woods twice mentioned in statements during the last week that he was, indeed, “human.” Will that make him seem more vulnerable as a player?

“I don’t think that whatever comes out of this will affect his golf because he’s a professional, and part of being a professional is to separate your personal life from what you do on the course,” Cink said. “I’ve had plenty of times when I came to the golf course in a tournament, and I was just a wreck off the course. … And you have no choice but to just leave that. It’s not always real easy, but he’ll find a way, and he’ll be fine.”

Greg Norman, who preceded Woods as golf’s biggest draw, understands scrutiny into one’s personal life, having disclosed in October that his 15-month marriage to tennis star Chris Evert was ending.

He believes golf is bigger than any one player and will be fine. And while he can empathize with Woods’ public life on display, Norman doesn’t feel sorry for him.

“Hey, he’s the No. 1 player in the world,” Norman said Saturday at the Australian Open. “Publicity is going to follow you no matter what you do, whether you win tournaments, lose tournaments and whatever happens.”

Woods has started at Torrey Pines every year since 2006 when healthy. Tournament director Tom Wilson said he recently met with PGA Tour security consultants about what needs to be done, if Woods chooses this event to mark his return.

“We might need to add a few chairs in the media center,” Wilson said.

If keeping together his family—wife Elin and two children—is a priority, Woods might wait longer.

“Is this going to make him stronger? We’ll find out,” Perry said. “Is this really going to get inside his head a little bit and really going to mess with him? I don’t know how the crowd is … going to attack him. Are they going to verbally abuse him out there? We don’t know.

“I don’t think it’s going to change our tour next year at all,” he said. “Only time will tell.”

Woods has tried to quell minor issues in the past with one sentence in a news conference or one posting on his Web site. Though three statements have been posted on his Web site since the accident, they’ve done little to answer lingering questions. As a result, media outlets have shown no signs of scaling back in their hot pursuit of information.

“When you get nonsporting media spending money on stories, whether they’re true or false, it’s just fanning the flames,” Rowady said.

Either way, he said the next few months will go a long way, starting with Woods returning to golf. He said Woods will need to raise his game not only on the course, but for the tour and its sponsors, his own sponsors and TV partners.

“If it’s true that golf is a gentleman’s game, it benefits by the way he finishes this process,” Rowady said. “How he comes out and eventually speaks and plays could be an asset, and then it heightens the awareness. What’s surprising to me is how quickly people are willing to tear him down. I don’t know that anyone benefits by making Tiger Woods into a villain.”

(source)

Given save can transform City fortunes - Hughes

2009-12-06T02:31:00.000-08:00

MANCHESTER, England (AFP) - Mark Hughes says Shay Given's penalty save that secured Manchester City an unlikely 2-1 victory over Chelsea here on Saturday could be the turning point in the club's entire season.

The Republic of Ireland international kept out Frank Lampard's late effort to ensure goals from Emmanuel Adebayor and Carlos Tevez cancelled out a Chelsea opener, courtesy of an Adebayor own goal, and ended City's run of seven consecutive Premier League draws.

This win at a rain-sodden Eastlands also cut Chelsea's lead at the top of the table to two points over champions Manchester United and opened up the possibility, however distant, of City competing for the title in the second half of the campaign.

At the end of a week in which Hughes also led his team to the League Cup semi-finals with victory over Arsenal, the manager agreed the penalty save could have huge long-term significance.

"Quite possibly," said Hughes when asked if it could be a turning point.

"It was a fantastic save. There are a lot of things you don't expect to happen and you don't expect Frank Lampard to miss a penalty."

Former Manchester United, Chelsea and Wales striker Hughes added: "We made a real effort this week to work exceptionally hard because, as I keep saying, you can't take short cuts, you can't not put the work and effort in or you get beaten by the top teams in the Premier League.

"We now know what it takes to win against the bigger teams. Once we get the knowledge of how to beat the lesser sides, we will be okay."

Victory left big-spenders City sixth in the table, 11 points adrift of Chelsea, and Hughes said: "Arsenal and Chelsea are there to be beaten, they are the challenge for us.

"We want to supersede them at some stage and at the moment we are just challenging, trying to make it difficult for them."

Hughes, however, refused to include City in the title race just yet, saying: "We're not talking in terms of winning titles. We are trying to progress.

"We are talking about a team that 12 months ago was looking at relegation. We spent money, yes, and that will always be quoted when Manchester City are mentioned but we are just trying to be better than we were."

Hughes also praised match-winner Tevez, himself an ex-Manchester United forward, who has put in some strong recent performances after overcoming early-season fitness and injury problems.

"He has been fantastic," said Hughes after seeing Tevez beat Petr Cech with a 56th-minute free-kick awarded for a foul by Ricardo Carvalho.

"And he is now getting back to the levels of fitness he needs to have."

Carlo Ancelotti laid the blame for Chelsea's defeat firmly at the door of referee Howard Webb, who he accused of making mistakes in the build-up to both of City's goals, although he stressed the loss was no cause for concern.

"We're disappointed," said Ancelotti. "The referee made two important mistakes. I think Micah Richards did handle the ball and the second situation, I think Carvalho kicked the ball clear, it was a clear situation.

"I'm surprised. I consider Webb a fantastic referee with experience yet he made those two mistakes, but I don't want to speak about this. It happened and we move forward."

He added: "We don't need a reaction. We are top of the league by two points, we don't have reason to be worried."

2010 World Cup Exclusive: North Korea's An Yong Hak - We Will Fight For Second Place In Group Of Death

2009-12-06T02:28:00.000-08:00

North Korea

Midfielder An Yong Hak is looking forward to facing Portugal, Brazil and the Ivory Coast at the 2010 World Cup and has targeted second place.

Group G was immediately named The Group of Death on Friday after the draw in Cape Town and few are giving North Korea, playing in only their second World Cup and their first since 1966, a chance.

An, who was an ever-present in the team’s qualification campaign, knows that it will be tough but is excited about the challenge.

“When I saw Group G, I smiled a bitter smile,” An told Goal.com.

“As I said before, I want to play against the big teams because there are no weak teams in the World Cup. But I'm excited that we will play against Brazil, Portugal and Ivory Coast. If we don’t play these teams at the World Cup, when can we?”

The 31 year-old agrees that Brazil should top the group but is ready to fight to make it to the second round.

“I think, even Brazil will not have an easy time but they will finish first. Then North Korea will compete with Portugal and Cote d'Ivoire for second place in the group, hopefully.”

“There are so many star players so I can't say just one. Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Robinho, Deco and the Toure brothers.

"I know that playing against such players is not easy task but I will never give up and I will do my best to keep the ball off them.

(source)

Virgin to take Manor name

2009-12-01T06:52:00.000-08:00

"FIA entry list shows Manor GP rebranded as Virgin Racing"

The Manor GP team are to be rebranded Virgin Racing ahead of their Formula One debut next season.

The effective confirmation, which has long been an open secret in F1 circles, came on Monday as the FIA announced its entry list for the 2010 World Championship.

An announcement from the team will come on Tuesday when team boss John Booth and Virgin supremo Sir Richard Branson officially reveal their plans.

The FIA's entry list reveals the names of 12 teams, with the name Virgin Racing amongst the newcomers, joining Lotus F1 Racing, Campos Meta 1 and US F1 Team.

The 13th entry remains unresolved, although Sauber are widely expected to be granted a place on the grid following a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Monaco on December 11.

Last week, Peter Sauber regained control of the team he founded, four years after selling out to BMW.

The German manufacturer, which announced its withdrawal from the sport in July, reached a deal with Sauber having pulled out of an earlier agreement with Qadbak Investments.

However, the deal will only go through if Sauber is awarded the 13th and last place.

"I am very relieved about that development," said the 66-year-old Swiss. "It would have been a crying shame had one of the best Formula One factories closed down.

"Regarding the slot on the grid, I am very confident we will be given a final confirmation very shortly."

If they are granted the place, Sauber will rejoin at the expense of Toyota, which in turn announced the withdrawal of its team at the end of last season.

Complicated

The situation is complicated by the fact that Toyota withdrew despite having earlier signed up to the sport's latest Concorde Agreement, which in effect committed it to F1 until 2012.

There remains speculation of a potential takeover, yet it is unclear whether a buyer would automatically be granted an entry on the basis of Toyota's prior commitment.

The Formula One Commission are due to discuss the matter in Monaco on Wednesday.

An FIA statement said: "Toyota Motorsport GmbH remains formally bound by the Concorde Agreement to put forward a team for participation, though it has indicated that it will not be in a position to do so.

"An announcement will be made regarding this entry in due course."

(source)

Messi wins Ballon d'Or

2009-12-01T06:33:00.000-08:00

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi has been named the European Footballer of the Year.

The Argentinean won the Ballon d'Or by a record margin from last year's winner Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Argentinian won an unprecedented treble last season as the Catalan side won the Champions League, the Liga title and the Copa del Rey.

Messi was the top scorer in last year's Champions League with nine goals, including a goal in the 2-0 final defeat of Manchester United in Rome.

Messi, who tallied 473 of a possible 480 points, largely dominated the voting and won with a record-margin of 240 points. Real Madrid winger Ronaldo had 233 and Xavi had 170.

"Honestly, I knew that I was among the favourites because Barcelona had a fruitful year in 2009," he told France Football magazine.

"But I didn't expect to win with such a margin. The Golden Ball is very important to me.

"All the players who won it were great players, and some great players never won it."

Barca teammates were also recognised with midfielder Xavi taking third place with 170 points while Iniesta was fourth on 149.

In fifth place was Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o, who left Barca to join Inter. He was Barca's other scorer in the 2-0 final win over United.

Votes cast

1. Lionel Messi (Argentina, Barcelona) : 473 points

2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal, Manchester United then Real Madrid) : 233 pts

3. Xavi (Spain, Barcelona) : 170 pts

4. Andres Iniesta (Espagnol, Barcelona): 149 pts

5. Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon, Barcelona then Inter): 75 pts

6. Kaka (Brazil, Milan then Real Madrid): 58 pts

7. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden, Inter then Barcelona): 50 pts

8. Wayne Rooney (England, Manchester United): 35 pts

9. Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast, Chelsea): 33 pts

10. Steven Gerrard (England, Liverpool): 32 pts

11. Fernando Torres (Spain, Liverpool): 22 pts

12. Cesc Fabregas (Spain, Arsenal): 13 pts

13. Edin Dzeko (Bosnia, Wolfsburg): 12 pts

14. Ryan Giggs (Wales, Manchester United): 11 pts

15. Thierry Henry (France, Barcelona): 9 pts

16. Luis Fabiano (Brazil, Sevilla), Nemanja Vidic (Serbia, Manchester United), Iker Casillas (Spain, Real Madrid): 8 pts

19. Diego Forlan (Uruguay, Atletico Madrid): 7 pts

20. Yoann Gourcuff (France, Bordeaux): 6 pts

21. Andrei Arshavin (Russia, Arsenal), Julio Cesar (Brazil, Inter), Frank Lampard (England, Chelsea): 5 pts

24. Maicon (Brazil, Inter Milan): 4 pts

25. Diego (Brazil, Werder Bremen then Juventus): 3 pts

26. David Villa (Spain, Valence), John Terry (England, Chelsea): 2 pts

28. Franck Ribery (France, Bayern Munich), Yaya Toure (Ivory Coast, Barcelona): 1 pt

30. Karim Benzema (France, Lyon then Real Madrid): 0 pt

Previous winners:

1956 - Stanley Matthews, Blackpool

1957 - Alfredo Di Stefano, Real Madrid

1958 - Raymond Kopa, Real Madrid

1959 - Alfredo Di Stefano, Real Madrid

1960 - Luis Suarez, Barcelona

1961 - Omar Sivori, Juventus

1962 - Josef Masopust, Dukla Prague

1963 - Lev Yashin, Dynamo Moscow

1964 - Denis Law, Manchester United

1965 - Eusebio, Benfica

1966 - Bobby Charlton, Manchester United

1967 - Florian Albert, Ferencvaros

1968 - George Best, Manchester United

1969 - Gianni Rivera, Milan

1970 - Gerd Mueller, Bayern Munich

1971 - Johan Cruyff, Ajax

1972 - Franz Beckenbauer, Bayern Munich

1973 - Johan Cruyff, Barcelona

1974 - Johan Cruyff, Barcelona

1975 - Oleg Blokhin, Dynamo Kyiv

1976 - Franz Beckenbauer, Bayern Munich

1977 - Allan Simonsen, Borussia Moenchengladbach

1978 - Kevin Keegan, Hamburg

1979 - Kevin Keegan, Hamburg

1980 - Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Bayern Munich

1981 - Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Bayern Munich

1982 - Paolo Rossi, Juventus

1983 - Michel Platini, Juventus

1984 - Michel Platini, Juventus

1985 - Michel Platini, Juventus

1986 - Igor Belanov, Dynamo Kyiv

1987 - Ruud Gullit, Milan

1988 - Marco Van Basten, Milan

1989 - Marco Van Basten, Milan

1990 - Lothar Matthaeus, Inter

1991 - Jean-Pierre Papin, Marseille

1992 - Marco Van Basten, Milan

1993 - Roberto Baggio, Juventus

1994 - Hristo Stoitchkov, Barcelona

1995 - George Weah, Milan

1996 - Matthias Sammer, Borussia Dortmund

1997 - Ronaldo, Inter

1998 - Zinedine Zidane, Juventus

1999 - Rivaldo, Barcelona

2000 - Luis Figo, Real Madrid

2001 - Michael Owen, Liverpool

2002 - Ronaldo, Real Madrid

2003 - Pavel Nedved, Juventus

2004 - Andriy Shevchenko, Milan

2005 - Ronaldinho, Barcelona

2006 - Fabio Cannavaro, Real Madrid

2007 - Kaka, Milan

2008 - Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United

2009 - Lionel Messi, Barcelona

Police chief: Woods' wife helped after accident

2009-11-28T11:22:00.000-08:00

Tiger Woods was injured early Friday when he lost control of his SUV outside his Florida mansion, and a local police chief said Woods' wife used a golf club to smash out the back window to help get him out.

The world's No. 1 golfer was treated and released from a hospital in good condition, his spokesman said. The Florida Highway Patrol said Woods' vehicle hit a fire hydrant and a tree in his neighbor's yard after he pulled out of his driveway at 2:25 a.m.

Windermere police chief Daniel Saylor told The Associated Press that officers found the 33-year-old PGA star lying in the street with his wife, Elin, hovering over him.

"She was frantic, upset," Saylor said in a briefing Friday night. "It was her husband laying on the ground."

She told officers she was in the house when she heard the accident and "came out and broke the back window with a golf club," he said, adding that the front-door windows were not broken and that "the door was probably locked."

"She supposedly got him out and laid him on the ground," he said. "He was in and out of consciousness when my guys got there."

Saylor said Woods had lacerations to his upper and lower lips, and blood in his mouth; officers treated Woods for about 10 minutes until an ambulance arrived. Woods was conscious enough to speak, he said.

"He was mumbling, but didn't say anything coherent," Saylor said.

The Florida Highway Patrol said alcohol was not involved, although the accident remains under investigation and charges could be filed.

Woods was alone in his 2009 Cadillac when he pulled out of his driveway from his mansion at Isleworth, a gated waterfront community just outside Orlando, the patrol said.

Woods' injuries were described as serious in the patrol's report, though his spokesman, Glenn Greenspan, issued a statement that Woods was treated and released.

Left unanswered was where Woods was going at that hour. Greenspan and agent Mark Steinberg said there would be no comment beyond the short statement of the accident posted on Woods' Web site.

Asked at an evening news conference if the couple could have been arguing, Saylor said he had no knowledge of that. The couple, married five years, have two children.

The accident came two days after the National Enquirer published a story alleging that Woods had been seeing a New York night club hostess, and that they recently were together in Melbourne, where Woods competed in the Australian Masters.

The woman, Rachel Uchitel, denied having an affair with Woods when contacted by the AP.

"I resent my reputation is getting completely blasted in the media," she said during a telephone interview late Friday. "Everyone is assuming I came out and said this. This is not a story I have anything to do with."

Uchitel said she was in Melbourne two weeks ago with clients and never saw Woods the entire time she was there.

A representative of the National Enquirer declined comment.

Patrol spokeswoman Sgt. Kim Montes said the accident was being investigated as a "traffic crash."

"We don't believe it is a domestic issue," she said.

Woods, coming off a two-week trip to China and Australia earlier this month, is host of the Chevron World Challenge in Thousand Oaks, Calif., which starts Thursday. He is scheduled to have his press conference Tuesday afternoon at Sherwood Country Club. Steinberg said he did not know if Woods planned to play next week.

The Florida Highway Patrol said tapes of the 911 call won't be released until they can be reviewed, probably Monday at the earliest.

The accident report was not released until nearly 12 hours after Woods was injured. Montes said the accident did not meet the criteria of a serious crash, and the FHP only put out a press release because of inquiries from local media.

Montes said the patrol reports injuries as serious if they require more than minor medical attention. Air bags in the SUV did not deploy.

Two troopers tried to talk to Woods on Friday evening, but his wife said he was sleeping and they agreed to come back Saturday, Montes said.

She said charges could be filed if there was a clear traffic violation, although troopers still do not know what caused Woods' SUV to hit the hydrant and the tree.

Damage to the front of Woods' SUV was described as "medium" by Saylor.

"Not real extensive, but not real light," he said.

Woods rarely faces such private scrutiny, even as perhaps the most famous active athlete in the world.

He usually makes news only because of what he can do with a golf club. Few other athletes have managed to keep their private lives so guarded, or have a circle of friends so airtight when it comes to life off the course.

His wife was awarded a $183,250 settlement and an apology from an Irish magazine that published a fake nude photo of her, and Woods received a $1.6 million settlement in a lawsuit against the builder of his yacht — named Privacy — for using his name and photos of the boat as promotional material.

Woods is approaching $100 million in career earnings on the PGA Tour, and Forbes magazine reported that combined with endorsements, appearance fees and golf course design, he has become the first athlete to top $1 billion.

Woods' $2.4 million home is part of an exclusive subdivision near Orlando, a community set on an Arnold Palmer-designed golf course and a chain of small lakes. The neighborhood, which is fortified with high brick walls and has its own security force, is home to CEOs and other sports stars such as the NBA's Shaquille O'Neal.

Woods has won 82 times around the world and 14 majors, becoming the first player of black heritage to win a major at the 1997 Masters when he was 21. He attended the Stanford-Cal football game last Saturday, where he tossed the coin at the start of the game and was inducted into Stanford's sports Hall of Fame at halftime.

He won six times this year after missing eight months recovering from reconstructive surgery on his left knee. Even though he failed to win a major, Woods said he considered this a successful year because he did not know how his knee would respond.

(source)

Touched by NC girl's death, Shaq pays for funeral

2009-11-28T11:15:00.000-08:00

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Basketball star Shaquille O'Neal paid for the funeral of a 5-year-old North Carolina girl after being moved by national news coverage of the case of Shaniya Davis, who police say was kidnapped and killed.

The Cleveland Cavaliers player was touched by the stories he saw and got in touch with the family to see what he could do to help, a spokeswoman for O'Neal said Thursday.

More than 2,000 people attended the girl's funeral Sunday. Her body was found Nov. 16 beside a rural road.

Her mother, Antionette Davis, who had reported the child missing six days earlier, is charged with human trafficking and child abuse involving prostitution. Mario McNeill is charged with murder, rape and kidnapping in the case.

"I was sitting at home watching it on the news and the story brought a tear to my eye," O'Neal told The Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper.

Corey Breece, of Rogers and Breece Funeral Home, which handled the service, declined to tell the Fayetteville Observer newspaper how much it cost but added that a child's funeral "averages around $4,500."

A man who answered the phone at the funeral home Thursday told the AP that only the owner could comment and that he was away.

Shaniya Davis' father, Bradley Lockhart, and his family had set up a trust fund in memory of Shaniya to help raise money to pay for the funeral. Lockhart was not available to talk Thursday, said a man who answered the phone at his home.

O'Neal is recovering from a shoulder injury that has sidelined him for six straight games since getting hurt Nov. 12 against Miami.

The History of Softball

2009-10-25T11:29:00.000-07:00

Softball originated in Chicago on Thanksgiving Day, 1887. A group of about twenty young men had gathered in the gymnasium of the Farragut Boat Club in order to hear the outcome of the Harvard-Yale football game. After Yale's victory was announced and bets were paid off, a man picked up a stray boxing glove and threw it at someone, who hit it with a pole. George Hancock, usually considered the inventor of softball, shouted, "Let's play ball!" He tied the boxing glove so that it resembled a ball, chalked out a diamond on the floor (smaller dimensions than those of a baseball field in order to fit the gym) and broke off a broom handle to serve as a bat. What proceeded was an odd, smaller version of baseball. That game is now, 111 years later, known as the first softball game. Softball may have seen its death on the day of its birth if Hancock had not been so fascinated by it. In one week, he created an oversized ball and an undersized rubber-tipped bat and went back to the gym to paint permanent white foul lines on the floor. After he wrote new rules and named the sport indoor baseball, a more organized, yet still new, game was played. Its popularity was immediate.

Hancock's original game of indoor baseball quickly caught on in popularity, becoming international with the formation of a league in Toronto. That year, 1897, was also the premiere publication of the Indoor Baseball Guide. This was the first nationally distributed publication on the new game and it lasted a decade. In the spring of 1888, Hancock's game moved outdoors. It was played on a small diamond and called indoor-outdoor. Due to the sport's mass appeal, Hancock published his first set of indoor-outdoor rules in 1889.

While Chicago was definitely softball's birthplace, the game saw some modification in Minneapolis. The year was 1895 when Lewis Rober, Sr., (a fire department officer) needed an activity to keep his men occupied and in shape during their free time. He created his game to fit the confines of a vacant lot next to the firehouse and the result was instantly appealing. Surprisingly, Rober was probably not familiar with Hancock's version of the sport because it was still concentrated in Chicago at that time. The following year, 1896, Rober was moved to a new unit with a new team to manage. In honor of this group's name, the Kittens, the game was termed Kitten League Ball in 1900. The name was later shortened to kitten ball.

In order to reach the Olympics, the women's sport of softball obviously had to grow greatly from its beginnings. The first women's softball team was formed in 1895 at Chicago's West Division High School. They did not obtain a coach for competitive play until 1899 and it was difficult to create interest among fans. However, only five years later, more attention was given to the women's game. The Spalding Indoor Baseball Guide 1904 issue fueled this attention by devoting a large section of the guide to the game of women's softball.

The Chicago National Tournament in 1933 also advanced the sport. At this competition, the male and female champions were honored equally. The International Softball World Championships in 1965 developed women's softball by making it an international game, a step towards the Pan-American Games and the Olympics. Eleven years later, women softball players were given the closest equivalent to Major League Baseball with the 1976 formation of the International Women's Professional Softball League. Player contracts ranged from $1,000 to $3,000 per year, but the leage disbanded in 1980 because of financial ruin. Vicki Schneider, a St. Louis Softball Hall of Famer and former professional player, recalls this league as being the high point of her career (Schneider).

The popularity of women's fastpitch softball has grown steadily since the professional league's end in 1980. In fact, once again, there is another professional fastpitch league. The Amateur Softball Association reports that it "annually registers over 260,000 teams combining to form a membership of more than 4.5 million" (About the ASA). These numbers do not all apply to fastpitch, yet it is consistently growing along with slowpitch. Vicki Schneider has seen a major growth in popularity and intensity for the sport since she has been involved. She says it is also very obvious that girls are consistently getting more involved and more competitive at an earlier age. Increased media coverage and the Olympics have greatly contributed to this development (Schneider). There is obviously some special appeal of fastpitch softball that has allowed it to steadily grow in popularity through the years. Through the technology of the internet, those who are currently involved in the sport were asked for their personal opinions on the mass appeal of women's fastpitch softball.

First of all, why are these millions of people involved in softball, not baseball? Is it just a substitute for baseball or is there a difference? John Kralik replies, "...[Baseball] can't adapt to the age groups without corrupting the game. Softball can and does" (Kralik). Megan Flaherty, 18, says that unlike baseball, softball is "not all about raw strength. You must think about what to do and when to do it. Out-of-the-park homeruns won't occur too often so you have to rely on other methods of getting around the bases quickly" (Flaherty). Londa Kauffman feels that softball is much faster and more exciting than baseball (Kauffman). More specifically, Dave Davis, an ASA umpire, says, "I grew up loving baseball in an era before sports became a big business. Labor strife and big egos have gone a long way to taint my view of the Major Leagues. I have found that sports are played more intensely on the amateur level. I also believe that in most cases, the fastpitch softball games are more exciting to watch than baseball. The rules are similar, to be sure, but the smaller dimensions seem to add to the action" (Davis).

Once a person chooses to become involved in fastpitch softball, the sport must have some priority to him or her. Does fastpitch play an important role in a person's life? Dot Richardson put aside her medical career in order to fulfill her Olympic dream. Therefore, softball must be a high priority to her. Robin Scott obviously agrees with Richardson, to a more extreme degree. She says, "NOTHING comes before softball. I don't care what it is. My first priority is softball, then everything else comes next" (Scott). Dave Davis, 35, has the same attitude. On his first anniversary, his wife insisted that he miss a softball game in order to take her out to dinner. Looking back, he replies, "Some nerve!" (Davis).

Others put softball high on their list of priorities, but it is not first. Many players agree that school must come before their sport. Skelly Skadsen, 17, feels that "school will take you somewhere in life and softball is good for memories" (Skadsen). Kelly Dwyer, a former Division I player, always put family and school before softball because "as much as [she] loved it, [she] knew that after college there wasn't a pro league" (Dwyer). Vicki Scheider, now the owner of The Batting Cage in Valley Park, Missouri, puts God and family at the top of her priority list and they have been in that position all of her life, no matter what she achieved in fastpitch softball (Schneider).

Why is softball so often a top priority? What aspect of softball makes it so appealing? Everyone who plays, coaches, umpires, or watches women's fastpitch softball has something in common. They all like and enjoy the game. However why do they, similar to generations before them, enjoy fastpitch softball?

Erin Anderson, a fourteen-year-old player in Tennessee, says, "The girls are great... I've met so many people and had such a good time these past couple of years. You can really find some good friends... Road trips, hotels, playing all kinds of different teams are all a part of why I love this game" (Anderson). Kelly Stellfox loves "the friendships you make [in fastpitch]" (Stellfox) and another player, 16, says that there is a "sorority among her teammates" (Anonymous). Katherine Hyrcyna supports this personal aspect, pointing out that there are no superstars in fastpitch. She says, "Softball is all about trust and family. [For example,] the shortstop made a great diving catch, but the first baseman caught her throw, or the pitcher threw a no-hitter, but [the right fielder] caught that line drive and saved the no-hitter" (Hyrcyna).

Many others enjoy the physical activity that surrounds fastpitch. Michelle Eastman, 16, loves "... the rush of winning, sliding, making a diving catch, hitting an awesome triple... [and] the pure adrenaline that comes with playing hard and succeeding" (Eastman). A player in Dallas, Texas, loves "... that action of fielding a ball and throwing it... diving for balls and making the catch... running bases, leading off, stealing, and sliding... the competition... the athleticism... the fast-paced nature of the game... the team work... [and] how everything comes together and fits together like puzzle pieces, everyone doing their job" (Anonymous). Laurel Munski, from New York, is fascinated with the "unknown" aspect of fastpitch. She states, "You can't really predict what the batter might do when up at the plate; you can only react. The same is true when you [are batting]. You don't know what the pitcher is going to pitch to you; you can only react to where it is and decide [whether or not] to swing" (Munski). Similarly, Cyrena Gawuga plays because she "[likes] the challenge" (Gawuga). Others, like Vicki Schneider, enjoy the fact that softball is a team sport, but a player can set individual goals for herself (Schneider).

Coaches also have important points of view on why they are involved in women's fastpitch softball. Bob Prastine remarks, "When you see in [your players'] eyes that something you have been trying to get them to understand for weeks finally clicks and they use and understand that knowledge in a real game situation, well, it makes all your effort worthwhile" (Prastine). Lynn Ditlow, from Pennsylvania, says of coaching, "If I can coach others with good skills, theory, and mechanic, help them develop their knowledge and skills, and have fun with this sport, then I've been able to contribute to another's success." She adds, "My reward is knowing [that] I've helped [players] to reach their goals" (Ditlow). Bill Lammel supports this viewpoint. "I love and care for all the girls that play for me and want them to excel. Softball is a good way to teach them values, self-esteem, and how to work together for a common goal. [These are] skills that they can use throughout their lives" (Lammel), he says. Paul O'Brien in Maryland enjoys coaching young women because they "are much more appreciative of a coach's work than boys and there are less superstar/know-it-all attitudes" (O'Brien).

From an umpire's point of view, Rich Rosa, 44, believes that he has "the best seat in the house" (Rosa). Another ASA umpire, Dave Davis, says that his job is rewarding: "Knowing that I'm giving something back to the game from which I have received so many great memories is great." He also adds, "I want people to be happy to see that it's me working their game. I pride myself in my preparation and my main goal is to become the most consistent official that I can" (Davis).

Sharon Whaley, the mother of a college softball player, also has a special feeling about the sport. "I love seeing my daughter excel at something she loves so much... It's really hard to explain the feeling you get as a parent when your child is so happy with her accomplishments" (Whaley). Whaley is not the only one with unexplainable feelings concerning softball, feelings well described by Kelly Dwyer. She says that softball's appeal is "... just a feeling you get when you play, just an overall feeling of elation and joy when you are playing. It's kind of like asking someone why they love their boyfriend. It's hard to name one thing; it's just that you feel comfortable and happy when you are with them. [It is the] same thing with softball" (Dwyer). Dot Richardson agrees. When she plays there is a "passion from within" that is impossible to explain. It is that passion that makes her love the game, not the championships, gold medals, endorsements, autographs, or other publicity (Richardson).

This unexplainable love and passion for softball has allowed the sport to grow, develop, and maintain universal appeal throughout time. For the past 111 years, softball, "a game for everyone," has united people with a mysterious feeling. George Hancock had this feeling in 1887 and Dot Richardson, along with millions of others, has it today. The feelings that surround softball and its players are timeless.

Swimming History

2009-10-24T01:20:00.000-07:00

The English are considered the first modern society to develop swimming as a sport. By 1837 swimming competitions were being held in London's six artificial pools, these competitions were organized by the National Swimming Society in England. As the sport grew in popularity many more swimming pools were built, and when a new governing body, the Amateur Swimming Association of Great Britain, was organized in 1880, it numbered more than 300 member clubs.

In 1896, swimming became an Olympic sport for men with the 100 meters and 1500 meters freestyle competitions held in open water. Soon after, as swimming gained popularity, more freestyle events were included, followed by the backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke, and lastly, the individual medley.

For a variety of reasons, women were excluded from swimming in the first several Olympic Games. In 1896 and again in 1906, women could not participate because the developer of the modern games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, held firmly to the assumption, common in the Victorian era, that women were too frail to engage in competitive sports. It was only at the 1912 Games when women's swimming made its debut at the prompting of the group that later became known as the International Olympic Committee.

The first modern Olympic Games had only four swimming events, three of them freestyle. The second Olympics in Paris in 1900 included three unusual swimming events. One used an obstacle course; another was a test of underwater swimming endurance; the third was a 4,000-metre event, the longest competitive swimming event ever. None of the three was ever used in the Olympics again.

From this humble beginning with four swimming events, the Olympics have now developed to 32 swimming races, 16 for men and 16 for women. The Special Olympics includes competitive swimming for people with disabilities and has 22 events for men and 22 for women.

History of chess

2009-10-22T11:18:00.000-07:00

Chess is more than a game of skill-it is a medieval history lesson in miniature.

Have you ever played chess? Did you know that chess is the oldest skill game in the world? But chess is more than just a game of skill. It can tell you much about the way people lived in medieval times. If you look at the way a chess board is set up, then study the pieces and how they are used, you will realize that chess is a history of medieval times in miniature. The six different chess pieces on the board represent a cross section of medieval life with its many ceremonies, grandeur, and wars.

Chess was played many centuries ago in China, India, and Persia. No one really knows for sure in which country it originated. Then, in the eighth century, armies of Arabs known as Moors invaded Persia. The Moors learned chess from the Persians. When the Moors later invaded Spain, the soldiers brought the game of chess with them. Soon the Spanish were playing chess, too. From Spain, chess quickly spread throughout all of Europe.

Europeans gave chess pieces the names we know today; they probably had trouble pronouncing and spelling the Persian names, so they modernized them to reflect the way they lived. Today, the names certainly aren’t modern but a thousand years ago they represented the very way in which both ordinary people and persons of rank lived their lives.

The pawns on the chess board represent serfs, or laborers. There are more of them than any other piece on the board, and often they are sacrificed to save the more valuable pieces. In medieval times, serfs were considered no more than property of landowners, or chattel. Life was brutally hard for serfs during this era of history. They worked hard and died young. They were often left unprotected while wars raged around them. They could be traded, used as a diversion, or even sacrificed to allow the landowners to escape harm.

The castle piece on a chess board is the home, or the refuge, just as it was a home in medieval times. In chess, each side has two castles, or rooks, as they are sometimes called.

The knight on a chess board represents the professional soldier of medieval times whose job it was to protect persons of rank, and there are two of them per each side in a game of chess. Knights in a game of chess are more important than pawns, but less important than bishops, kings, or queens. Their purpose in the game of chess is to protect the more important pieces, and they can be sacrificed to save those pieces just as pawns can.

There is a bishop in the game of chess, who represents the church. The church was a rich and mighty force in medieval times, and religion played a large part in every person’s life. It is no wonder that a figure that represented the concept of religion found its way into the game. A bishop was the name for a priest in the Catholic church who had risen through the ranks to a more powerful position. In the game of chess, there are two bishops for each side.

The queen is the only piece on the board during a chess game that represents a woman, and she is the most powerful piece of the game. In the game of chess, there is only one queen for each side. Many people do not realize that queens in medieval times often held a powerful, yet precarious, position. The king was often guided by her advice, and in many cases the queen played games of intrigue at court. But kings could set wives aside or even imprison them in nunneries with the approval of the church (and without the queen’s approval), and many women schemed merely to hold her place at court. The machinations of queens working either for or against their kings are well noted in history throughout medieval times, and often she held more power than the king did.

The king is the tallest piece on the board, and is as well defended on the chessboard as in medieval life. In medieval times, the surrender of the king would mean the loss of the kingdom to invading armies and that could mean change for the worse. It was to everyone’s advantage, from the lowest serf to the highest-ranking official, to keep the king safe from harm. The king is the most important, but not the most powerful piece in chess. If you do not protect your king, you lose the game.

The next time you set up your chessboard and get ready to play a friendly game or two, think of chess as a history lesson. The pieces on the board represent a way of life that is no more, and the real life dramas that occurred in medieval times are now only a game.

History of NASCAR

2009-10-20T09:27:00.000-07:00

The starting point.

At the end of the World War II, the request for new cars in the USA made a considerable jump with the return of the soldiers. The industry which had produced weaponry for 5 years applied at once their designs to the new cars. The result was the arrival on the market of fast, powerful and robust cars which were enjoyed by the young people of the time. Those started to organize more or less legal races, and soon trends started to form.

The American West was impassioned for the "sports" cars, the Midwest for those with uncovered wheels, whereas South-east chose the stock cars. A lot of these were modified to carry out the illegal alcohol traffic and used in the "races".

This passion for auto racing did not escape the promoters who quickly made an "official" sport out of it, creating many organizations, each with their own rules. Some of them were the NCSCC (National Championship Stock Car Circuit), NSCRA (National Stock Car Racing Association), etc....

Unfortunately, this prevented auto racing from reaching the national level. Moreover, no guarantee of payment was offered to the pilots: if there was money remaining in the pot after the race, so much better, if not...

The birth.

On December 14, 1947, Bill France, who was himself part of the NSCRA, decided to meet with thirty five of the leaders of all associations in place to draw the lines of what was going to become the American national automobile sport.

It took four days for the group to staighten all the rules, to choose the name of NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) and the Association was finally officially created on February 21, 1948.

The first races.

They were run the same year with modified pre-war cars, which later became the "modified" series. The championship comprised 52 races, and the first winner was Red Byron, who pocketed $1250.

As soon as 1949, Bill France put his very first idea into practice: a "strictly stock" series - no modification accepted. This brought a controversy which one can describe as historical at the end of the first race at Charlotte. Glenn Dunnaway won the race with his 1947 Ford, but was declared illegal because of a modification of the rear springs (Dunnaway used his car to carry moonshine). Jim Roper pocketed the $5000 with his Mercury 1949.

The championship of only eight races, was once again won by Red Byron.

Soccer: Intercontinental (Toyota) Cup

2009-10-19T13:20:00.000-07:00

The Intercontinental Cup was first offered in 1960 for competition between the winners of the European Champions League and the Copa Libertadores.

The competition followed a best-of-three format from 1960 through 1968 and switched to a two-game, total-goals in 1969.

Toyota began sponsoring the cup in 1980. From that year through 2004, it was a one-game championship, played annually in Tokyo.

In 2005, the Intercontinental Cup was merged with the FIFA Club World Championship to become the FIFA Club World Cup.

Batistuta

2009-10-09T12:29:00.000-07:00

PROFILE

Date Of Birth: February, 1 , 1969.
Place: Avellaneda, Sta Fé - Argentine
Height: 185 cm
Weight: 73 Kg
Zodiac: Aquarius
Nickname: Batigol, Bati, Gabi
Marital Status: married 10 years with Irina has 3 children: Thiago, Lucas and Joachin
Team: ASRoma - Italy
Official Website: www.batistuta.com

PERSONAL'S DROPS

Movie: 'As Good As It Gets' with Jack Nicholson
TV program: he likes to watch CNN news
Singer: Phil Collins and Bruce Springsteen
Soocer Idol: Mario Kempes (ex Argentine player)
Hobby: he loves films, to hunt and to fish with friends on vacations
Favorite Dish: barbecue

BATIGOL...

* was an above weight child, and that was the reason why he was called by the nickname "Fatty"
* Is the first-born and only man of his parents
* knew his wife when he was 15
* likes to drink mate ( argentinean tea very hot without sugar)
* grew up on a farm in a very small town and in his childhood when he finished eating a can of sardines, he immediately can would become it a toy car.
* doesn't like to be treated as a different person. In his conception, he is an equal person to the all others, who makes everything as all others. To be besieged by the press leaves him tottaly irritated ."Some day I want to be anonymous" he says.
* likes to eat italian pasta
* loves play Formula 1 racing games
* likes to use the computer, besides hunting and fishing. But he tries to use it few times in the week, 4 not to damage his eyes
* also play tennis, but always with someone that he can beats. Bati likes also go to the movies.
* arrived to have plans of forming in lawyer or doctor. Happily soccer prevailed.
* had fame of being the " Don Juan " of the area
* wants a little girl. He even has her name, Selene, which means moon in Greek.
* is a good dancer and likes to singer. He knows all of Phil Collins and Sting's music and he loves to sing Jose Luis Perales songs
* mets Bruce Springsteen when went to his concert in New York.
* is a very good tennis player - people say. But he doesn't take it seriously,because he just enjoy the sport for leisure, not in a competitive way.
* hates to watch soccer on TV, specially the UEFA Champions League matches, because he would like to be in field, running and fighting, and not seated in the sofa. This annoys him so much, that he turn off the TV

Mike Tyson

2009-10-09T12:22:00.000-07:00

"Iron" MIKE TYSON

FAST FACTS

* Born June 30, 1966
* Born in Brooklyn, New York USA
* Height: 5' 11 1/2"
* Reach: 78"

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

* Pro Debut March 6, 1985 at age 18
* 54 Professional Fights
* Former Undisputed Heavyweight Champion
* World Boxing Council (WBC) No. 8 Contender
* World Boxing Association (WBA) No. 10 Contender

AMATEUR BACKGROUND

* Tyson compiled an impressive 24-3 amateur record.
* Two controversial losses to Henry Tillman spoiled Tyson's chance to represent the United States at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Tillman went on to win the gold medal in the heavyweight division.

STYLE

* At his best, superbly confident, quick-fisted, ferocious puncher with unbelievable power in both hands

STRENGTHS

* Punching power
* Excellent head movement
* Fast hands
* Crowd-pleasing style
* Intimidation
* Conditioning

MIKE TYSON
PROFILE AND BIO

Mike Tyson has experienced more in his 36 years than most people experience in a lifetime.

At an early age, Bobby Stewart, a local social worker and boxing fan, discovered Tyson's raw boxing ability. Stewart's guidance paved a direct path to the late, beloved trainer of champions, Constantine "Cus" D'Amato. Bringing Tyson to the Catskill Mountains in New York, D'Amato nurtured Tyson in and out of the ring. Eventually, D'Amato became Tyson's legal guardian and inspirational leader. During the early stages of Tyson's amateur and pro career, D'Amato was the driving force, teaching the young Tyson all the nuances about the sport which he loved and to which he devoted his life.

In March 1985, he made his pro debut with a first-round knockout over Hector Mercedes. From that point on, Tyson's goal was to capture the heavyweight championship. Finishing his first year with a record of 15-0, all by knockout, Tyson's place at the top seemed closer with each victory.

Less than two years later, and, after racking up 27 consecutive wins, Tyson signed to fight Trevor Berbick for the World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight title. In November 1986, after less than six minutes in the ring, Tyson, at age 20, cemented his place in history as the youngest man ever crowned heavyweight champion. Not content with stopping at one title, Tyson's mission was to unify the heavyweight division and provide the world with its first undisputed heavyweight champion since Muhammad Ali a decade before.

Tyson accomplished the second leg of his mission in March 1987, with a 12-round decision over James "Bonecrusher" Smith to add the World Boxing Association (WBA) belt to his growing collection. Finally, less than five months later, his dream was complete.

In August 1987, Tyson became the undisputed world heavyweight champion by outpointing Tony Tucker to add the International Boxing Federation (IBF) belt to his resume.

During the six successful defenses of his unified heavyweight titles, Tyson defeated everyone in his path, including former champion Larry Holmes and then-undefeated former champion Michael Spinks. For his 91-second destruction of Spinks, Tyson earned more than $20 million, which, at the time, was the largest sum ever paid to an athlete.

Tyson went on to post wins over mandatory challenger Frank Bruno, followed by a 93-second rout of Carl "The Truth" Williams. During this time, Tyson became one of the most recognizable athletes in the world and the most dominant figure in boxing. A pro for five years, Tyson entered 1990 with a 37-0 record and 33 knockouts.

His first fight of the new decade was in Tokyo, Japan, in February 1990, against James "Buster" Douglas, a 42-1 underdog. On this night, the undefeated champion learned that not even the greatest of champions manage to go through their entire careers without suffering a setback. Tyson lost his first professional fight in what many consider to be the biggest upset in sports history.

Tyson rebounded from the devastating setback with two opening-round knockouts to close out 1990. Tillman, Tyson's amateur nemesis, was one victim, while Alex Stewart became Tyson's 35th career knockout.

Attempting to regain his titles, Tyson's initial 1991 fight came against the hard-hitting Canadian, Donovan "Razor" Ruddock. Many believed Tyson should not have fought the dangerous challenger, but the former undisputed heavyweight champion was never one to back down. In March 1991, Tyson and Ruddock finally squared off after a prior bout between them was cancelled. Tyson won the first five rounds, and scored knockdowns in the second and third. Displaying great determination, Ruddock stunned Tyson in the sixth round. When the seventh-round bell sounded, Tyson mounted a punishing attack and rattled Ruddock by landing four consecutive power shots. With his back to Ruddock, referee Richard Steele stepped in and stopped the contest with 38 seconds left in the round.

Three months after their first meeting, Tyson and Ruddock squared off in a rematch in June 1991. Ending speculation over what would have happened had their first fight not been stopped, Tyson knocked Ruddock to the canvas twice and broke his jaw en route to a unanimous 12-round decision.

Following four consecutive wins after the stunning loss to Douglas, Tyson was back in position to challenge for the title. After talks heated up with then-champion Evander Holyfield, "Iron Mike" signed to fight the "Real Deal" on Nov. 8, 1991, in Las Vegas. Shortly before the fight was to take place, however, Tyson had to pull out with a rib injury.

Tyson's long-awaited comeback after more than a four-year absence, finally took place in August 1995. Tyson had been inactive for more than four years - three of those years were spent never touching a glove, hitting a bag or even entering a ring. Showing no ill effects from his layoff, it took Tyson only seven seconds to send his opponent, Peter McNeeley, to the canvas. The contest ended less than one minute later when McNeeley's manager halted the mismatch.

Only 10 weeks after his first fight in four years, Tyson signed to fight undefeated Buster Mathis, Jr. in November 1995, but four days prior to the fight, Tyson had to withdraw because of a broken right thumb sustained while training. The fight was rescheduled for December 1995. As usual, Tyson came out swinging at his opponent early. At 2:32 of the third round, the outcome was sealed when consecutive right hands sent Mathis to the canvas. The knockout was Tyson's 37th, and first since March 1991.

Three months later in March 1996, Tyson received his first shot at a world title since losing his belts to Douglas in 1990. Before a sold-out crowd of 15,222 at the MGM Grand Garden, Tyson regained the WBC belt from Frank Bruno. Displaying the old form that made him the youngest man ever to capture the heavyweight championship of the world, Tyson utilized uppercuts, jabs and hooks in combination with his speed and power to dispose of Bruno just 50 seconds into the third round.

In an effort to once again unify the titles, Tyson challenged WBA Champion Bruce Seldon in September 1996, at the MGM Grand. Tyson wasted little time in capturing the WBA crown by knocking Seldon out 1:49 into the opening round. As a result of a court order involving WBC No. 1 contender Lennox Lewis, Tyson was forced to relinquish his WBC belt in September 1996.

In November 1996, Tyson met Evander Holyfield at the MGM Grand in the main event of a fight card billed "Finally." The title referred to the fact that the showdown came five years and one day after it originally was scheduled. Many observers felt this would be Tyson's first test since his 1995 comeback. However, in the end, Holyfield lived up to his "Warrior" moniker. A huge underdog going in, Holyfield proved that he was up to the task. Avoiding Tyson's bombs early and doing a great job of counter-punching, Holyfield had done what no one thought possible and got into the middle rounds. The fight marked the first time Tyson had gone more than three rounds since 1991. In one of the most exciting fights of the decade, Tyson's winning streak was halted as Holyfield did the unthinkable by scoring an 11th-round knockout. Tyson had suffered the second loss of his career.

In the most anticipated rematch in boxing history, Holyfield and Tyson met once again in June, 1997. After fighting Holyfield gallantly for two rounds, Tyson committed two flagrant fouls that forced referee Mills Lane to disqualify him. Tyson's Nevada license also was suspended. Following two hearings to determine his fate, Tyson was awarded his boxing license in a 4-1 vote by the Nevada State Athletic Commission in October 1998.

In January 1999, Tyson returned to the ring against the much-larger Francois Botha. Following a slow start during the initial four rounds, Tyson went on the attack in round five and unleashed a right hand that sent his opponent to the canvas for good.

Tyson's scheduled 10-round fight with former world champion Orlin Norris October 1999 ended in a no contest after the first round. After Tyson hit Norris following the bell had sounded and sent him to the canvas, referee Richard Steele ruled the punch to be accidental. Norris injured his right knee upon landing and could not continue.

His highly anticipated European debut in January 2000 was a smashing success as he scored a second-round technical knockout over British champion Julius Francis. He floored Francis five times. The former undisputed champion knocked Francis down twice in the first round and three times in the second before referee Roy Francis halted matters at 1:03 of the second. He connected with a hook to drop Francis within one minute of the opening bell. A left hand sent Francis to the canvas again late in the first. Pressing the advantage in the second, he floored Francis for a third time after trapping him along the ropes. Moments later, an uppercut dropped Francis for a fourth time. A right uppercut produced the fifth knockdown and ended the bout.

In his second consecutive European appearance in June 2000, He made short work of Lou Savarese by flooring the former United States Boxing Association (USBA) heavyweight champion just eight seconds into the fight. He dropped Savarese with a crushing left hook to the head early in the first round and continued the onslaught with a barrage of unanswered punches before referee stopped the bout just 0:38 into the contest.

His return to the United States was an impressive one. In October 2000, he took on Andrew Golota. He displayed impressive head and side-to-side movement, ducked punches and pressed forward in an aggressive, yet controlled manner. He cut Golota over the left eye and floored him with a smashing overhand right late in the first round. He was deprived of the opportunity for a decisive knockout when Golota, citing injuries, quit and refused to come out for the third round.

Next he took on Brian Nielsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, in October 2001, weighingin at a career-high 239 pounds following an extensive training regimen to add weight. Dominant from the start, he began his assault by pounding the larger Nielsen to the body with combinations in the first round. A three-punch combination sent Nielsen to the canvas for only the second time in his career at the close of round three. He continued to pour on the firepower through rounds four, five and six. A bloodied and bruised Nielsen could not answer the bell for the seventh.

He made his first start in eight months, and just his second in 20 months in June 2002, in Memphis, and was stopped by WBC/WBA heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis by an overhand right hand in the eighth. The fight was boxing's most lucrative ever.

More than eight months later, he returned to Memphis to face Clifford Etienne in February 2003. He floored "The Black Rhino" with a devastating right hand 49 seconds into round one. Etienne hit the canvas hard and was counted out bythe referee.

He returned to the ring, for the first time in seventeen months in July 2004 against Danny Williams. In the Tyson style of old, he stormed out in the first round, winging thunderous left hooks and right hands, but Williams held on and finished the round. In the 2nd and 3rd rounds, Williams continued to take Mike's shots and fired back with his own lefts and right hands. After being penalized two points in the third round (for hitting on the break and a low blow), a Williams right hand finally deposited Tyson on the canvas in the fourth, and the referee stopped the bout at 2:51.

Ji-Sung Park

2009-10-09T12:16:00.000-07:00

Profile

Name: Ji-Sung Park
Born: Seoul, Korea, republic of
Nationality: Korea, republic of
Position: Midfielder
DOB: 25/0/2000
Current Club: Manchester United

Ji-Sung Park, joined PSV Eindhoven in 2002, after impressing Guus Hiddink with his phenomenal freekicks.

Park started out in Japanese outfit, Kyoto Purple Saga, straight from high school.

After joining PSV Eindhoven after three seasons of professional football in Japan, Park started two games and substituted in three before getting an injury.

He remained with PSV, coming in second in 2003-04 in the Dutch League title. In 2004-05 season, he helped PSV reach the semi-finals of the Champions League, only to be eliminated by a last gasping goal by AC Milan. That same season, they won the Eredivisie and the Amstel Cup.

His success with PSV brought in a considerable interest from Manchester United and he would be their second buy of the transfer season, after purchasing Dutch goalkeeper, Edwin van der Sar.

Career History:
2005: Manchester United £4-5m
2002: PSV Eindhoven
2000: Kyoto Purple Sanga

Michael Jordan

2009-10-08T12:02:00.000-07:00

Full Name: Michael Jeffrey Jordan
Born: February 17, 1963 in Brooklyn, New York
High-School: Emsley A. Laney, NC
College: University of North Carolina
Drafted: 3rd. overall, 1984 NBA Draft by the Bulls
Teams: Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards
Years NBA: 15
Position: Shooting Guard
Jersey Numbers: 23 and 45
Height: 6' 6" (1.98 m)
Weight: 216 lb (98 kg)
Nickname: "Air Jordan", "His Airness", "MJ"
All-Star: 14 times
NBA Titles: 6 - All with the Chicago Bulls:
1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93
1995-96, 1996-97, 1997-98

Biography

Michael Jordan was the dominant basketball player in the world during the 1990s. He won the NBA's Most Valuable Player award five times, and six times led the Chicago Bulls to the league championship. Jordan led the Bulls to his first three championships came in 1991, 1992 and 1993 with superb shooting and playmaking and a competitive killer instinct. In October of 1993 he stunned his fans by retiring from basketball and beginning a professional baseball career, saying that playing baseball had been an early dream of his. He played the 1994 baseball season for the minor league Birmingham Barons. In March of 1995 he ended his baseball career and returned to the Bulls. With Jordan, the Bulls won three more championships in 1996, 1997 and 1998. He retired from basketball in 1999. In the year 2000 he became a part owner and executive for the NBA's Washington Wizards. In 2001 Jordan began considering another comeback as an NBA player, and that fall, at age 38, he returned once again to play for the Wizards. He played for two more full seasons, retiring again in April of 2003. Jordan was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

Extra credit: Jordan wore uniform number 23... His endorsement deal with Nike led to the creation of Air Jordans, the popular athletic shoe... Jordan married the former Juanita Vanoy in 1989. They had three children: Jeffrey (born 1988), Marcus (b. 1990), and Jasmine (b. 1992). Juanita filed for divorce in 2002; she and Jordan reconciled later that year, but then split again and were divorced in 2007. Jordan paid a reported $168 million to Juanita in the settlement... Jordan starred with Bugs Bunny in the 1996 feature film Space Jam.

Jordan appears with King Edward VIII in our loop on Famous Quitters.

Other NBA stars include Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Bill Bradley and Dr. J.

Alessandro Del Piero

2009-10-07T11:04:00.000-07:00

Name: Alessandro Del Piero
Born: Conegliano, Italy
Nationality: Italy
Position: Attacking Midfielder/Forward Left
Date of Birth: 9/11/1974
Current Club: Juventus

Del Piero was signed by Juventus having initially been turned down by Milan. In his first full start for Juventus he scored a hat-trick against Parma. The following season he established himself in the first team in attack alongside Gianluca Vialli and Fabrizio Ravanelli in Juventus' Championship winning side.

So impressive was his performances Juventus sold fan favourite Roberto Baggio to Milan, Juve had found his successor.

Del Piero played a bit part in Juventus' European Cup final triumph and gave mixed performances as Juventus made and lost two successive finals. The European Cup final aside Del Piero was outstanding in the 1997-1998 season. He formed a devastating partnership alongside Filippo Inzaghi and scored a career best 21 goals. Any doubts as to how important Del Piero was to Juventus (many claimed Zidane was their key player) were answered the following season. Del Piero missed five months with a knee injury, Juve sunk without trace from first place to sixth.

The Euro 2000 final will haunt Del Piero for the rest of his life. With Italy leading France 1-0 Del Piero missed two guilt edge chances to make the game safe. France equalised deep into injury time before Trezeguet, who would ironically had already agreed to join Juventus that summer, scored the winner.

Despite continued domestic success Del Piero was disappointing for Italy in their ill fated and somewhat embarrassing 2002 World Cup campaign and also gave another insipid performance as Juve suffered the ignominy of losing a third successive European Cup final.

A tremendously gifted player renowned for scoring spectacular goals and his dead ball delivery.

Honours

1995
Italian Cup (Coppa Italia)
Serie A Title
Italian Supercup

1996
UEFA Champions League
Intercontinental Cup
European Supercup
U-21 European Footballer of the Year

1997
Serie A Title
Italian Supercup
Intercontinental Cup MVP
UCL Top Scorer

1998
Serie A Title
UCL Top Scorer

2002
Serie A Title
Italian Supercup

2003
Serie A Title
Italian Supercup

2005
Serie A

David Beckham

2009-10-06T10:53:00.001-07:00

Name: David Robert Joseph Beckham
AKA: Becks
DOB: May 2, 1975 in Leytonstone, London, England
Profession: Midfielder, Real Madrid & England
Height: 5’11”

Weight: 160 lbs
Wife: Victoria (née Adams), AKA Posh Spice
Children: Brooklyn (b. March 4, 1998), Romeo (b. September 1, 2002), Cruz (b. February 20, 2005)

David Beckham is arguably the most famous athlete in the world. As a midfielder for England and club teams Manchester United and Real Madrid, Beckham has scored goals that defy physics and humiliate goalies. Although his athletic skills put him in an elite class of the world’s best soccer players, it’s his personal life that has sent his celebrity status into the stratosphere. The generous act of saving a Spice Girl from a downward spiral into anonymity through marriage has launched Brand Beckham, an entity over which advertisers and tabloids drool. Check out his career stats here. Want to see him in action? Find out when and where here.

David Beckham Complete Biography

David Beckham signed for Manchester United as a fourteen year-old in 1989. He had to wait four years until he made his professional first team debut for the club in 1992. It took some time for the young midfielder to make an impact, and it wasn’t until 1993 that Becks became a first team regular at Old Trafford having made his debut the year previously as a substitute against Brighton in the League Cup.

A short loan spell followed to nearby neighbours Preston North End, but Becks was soon back and ready for the big time at Old Trafford.

The 1995 season was significant for Manchester United as it was the year that the famous ‘Fergie’s fledglings’ emerged from the 1992 FA Youth Cup winning team. Sir Alex Fergusson turned to the Old Trafford youth team to replace his ageing team, rather than the transfer market. Established United star names such as Paul Ince and Andre Kanchelskis were replaced with the unknown names of Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt, the Neville brothers and David Beckham.

BBC TV football pundit Alan Hansen famously told the nation: ‘You don’t win anything with kids.’ 1996 was a remarkable season for United as Becks helped his team to the double of the Premiership and the FA Cup. The young Beckham took the corner in the Cup Final that led to Eric Cantona scoring a famous winning goal against North West rivals Liverpool.

A spectacular goal from behind the halfway line in a Premiership match against Wimbledon made Beckham a household name. It was a sporting feat that even the great Pele never managed to achieve during his illustrious playing career. The goal became a much played highlight of the season and helped Beckham to be voted as the PFA Young Player of the Year in 1996.

Becks helped United to a back to back Premiership title the following season and was now firmly in the radar of the then England manager Glen Hoddle.

Beckham soon became a regular in the England midfield, making his debut for his country in September 1996 during a World Cup qualifier against Moldova. He was tipped to be a big name in the 1998 World Cup, although at first, manager Glen Hoddle didn’t pick the player in the first two games, stating that ‘his mind wasn’t focussed.’

The tournament turned out to be a disaster for Beckham after he was sent off during a crucial England knock out game against the old enemy of Argentina. Having been fouled himself, Beckham had a moment of petulance as he kicked out from the ground at Argentina’s Diego Simeone and was shown a red card.

Back home and Beckham became a tabloid hate figure. He was ridiculed as the scapegoat for England’s elimination from France ’98 and public opinion became ferocious towards the young star. Effigies of the England midfielder were even burnt outside pubs.

Beckham responded in the perfect manner by having his best domestic season during the ’98 – ’99 season. He played a major role in helping Manchester United win the treble of the Premiership, the FA Cup and the Champions League. This remarkable season led to Beckham becoming the runner up in the European Player of the Year award.

In the summer Beckham took time out to marry his pop star girlfriend, Victoria Adams (AKA Posh Spice.) The event was the showbiz wedding of the year with OK magazine securing the exclusive photographic rights for the wedding.

Beckham became the England captain in 2000 following the resignation of Kevin Keegan as the national team coach. Caretaker manager Peter Taylor promoted Beckham to the role, and the full time replacement Sven Goran-Eriksson kept the midfielder as his leader on the pitch. The move surprised many at the time as Beckham had a reputation for not being a great communicator. He took to the role superbly though and his since been a great ambassador for his country, helping England to qualify for the 2002 World Cup, playing his most influential game in a crucial qualifying match against Greece at Old Trafford.

A metatarsal injury ahead of the 2002 World Cup was an irritant for Beckham, but he bounced back to score the winning penalty against old rivals Argentina in the group stages. But the England captain’s dream of lifting the World Cup was put to an end when England were beaten by Brazil in the quarter-finals.

Back on the domestic front and further Premiership titles followed in 2000 and 2001, but all was not well with Beckham at Old Trafford. His star status, coupled with his celebrity lifestyle with his pop star wife was not well received by Fergusson. ‘No player is bigger than United,’ but Beckham was coming close to eclipsing his team.

The relationship between manager and player reached a dead end in 2003 with the United boss reportedly kicking a football boot in the face of his midfield star. Beckham was not shy in being photographed by the press, documenting the facial injury. It was therefore no surprise that Beckham signed in the summer of 2003 for the Spanish giants Real Madrid. His last act at Old Trafford was to secure another Premiership title at Old Trafford and shortly before his move to Madrid, Beckham was awarded an OBE for his services to football.

With his famous No 7 shirt already taken by Raul Gonzalez at the club, Beckham became the new No 23 in Madrid. This was the number of the NBA star and hero of Beckham, Michael Jordan. The passionate Spanish fans warmed to Beckham straight away and he was given a hero’s welcome upon his arrival in Madrid. Although Beckham has performed solidly in La Liga, his team have failed to regain the momentum on the domestic front from their great rivals Barcelona.

Beckham hit the headlines for a series of domestic problems in 2004 with newspaper reports claiming an extra-marital affair with Rebecca Loos, a former personal assistant. But the Beckham family showed a united front with the three Beckham sons – Brooklyn. Romeo and Cruz – all appearing in public for the first time with their famous parents.

Euro 2004 was a disappointment for the England captain. He had a penalty saved in the 2-1 defeat by France, and missed another spot kick as the tournament hosts Portugal knocked out England during a penalty shoot out.

Further prestigious off the field activities followed in 2005 as Beckham became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in January, and then was used heavily as one of the key promotional figures in helping London secure the 2012 Olympics.

Beckham started the 2006 World Cup campaign in a disastrous style as he was the first England captain to be sent off for England. His 50th cap as England captain came against Argentina. Despite a few scares, England still topped their qualifying group and Beckham prepared to captain his country possibly for the last time at a major international tournament in Germany 2006....

Paolo Maldini

2009-10-06T10:38:00.000-07:00

Name: Paolo Maldini
Date of Birth: 26-6-68
Place of Birth : Milan
Height: 1.87 m.
Weight : 85kg
Position : Defender/Leftback
Number : 3
Zodiac: Cancer
Marital Status : Married with 2 children
Club : Ac Milan
Official site : www.maldini.com
Previous club : None [never moved from milan]

Club debut : January 20, 1985 versus Udinese (drew 1-1)

International debut : March 31, 1988 versus Yugoslavia (drew 1-1).

Caps [Italy] : 126

Personal Information

Actor : Bruce Wills
Actress : Jodie Foster
Movie : "Silence of the Lambs"
Singer : Eros Ramazzotti and Will Smith
Soccer Idol : Roberto Bettega
Car : OPEL
Vacation Spot : New York
Sports Besides Soccer: Tennis

Honours

4 Italian Champion, 1988, 1992, 1993, 1994
3 Uefa Cup, 1989, 1990, 1994.
3 UEFA Supercup, 1989, 1990, 1995.
2 World Club Cup: 1989, 1990.
World Soccer's World Player of the Year: 1994.
World Cup [2nd place and 3rd place]
European Cup [2nd place]

Description

Strictly chronologically speaking Paolo Maldini is in every respect the worthy follower of Franco Baresi: he has ever since played in A.C. Milan, just like his captain, both players are natural talents and endowed with excellent technical and physical qualities, both are defenders, share the same victories and both were even launched into the first division, though at different times, by the same trainer: Nils Liedholm. Maldini is the true prototype of Art's Son, being his father Cesare the trainer of the Italian National Team and very successful A.C. Milan captain in the sixties as well. The debut of "Junior", this is how he is called at Milanello sports centre, dates back to 1995, when, as he was only 16 years old, he was sent onto the field by Liedholm in Udine and, since then, he became an indispensable element of the red-and-black line-up. A left side defender, as well as a strong and skilful central defender, Paolo granted new dimension to his role thanks to his great ability to freely move and play all over the field: impassable bulwark as a defender, Maldini is extremely effective also as a forward and inexorable as he sneaks on the left side. Thanks to his purest class, Maldini soon debuts also in the National Team. Hardly 19 years old and he is called onto the field for his first match: 31th March 1988, Yugoslavia - Italy 1-1. As a player of the National Team, he ranks among the first in Italy '90 and ranks second at USA '94. Maldini, now the captain of the National Team, with his 81 caps ranks third in the special list of the best National Team players.

Anna Kournikova

2009-09-21T14:46:00.000-07:00

Anna Kournikova Biography

Name : Anna Kournikova
Date of Birth : June 7, 1981
Place of Birth : Moscow, Russia
Sign : Sun in Gemini, Moon in Leo
Height : 5' 8''
Weight : 123 lbs.
Lives : Miami, Florida, USA
Profession : Tennis Player
Father : Sergei Kournikov
Mother : Alla Kournikov
Coach : Pavel Slozil
Fan Mail : Anna Kournikova
c/o Bollettieri Tennis
Academy 5500 34th St.
West Bradenton, FL 34210 USA
Real Name : Anya Kournikova

Anna Kournikova Trivia

# Is the only child to her parents.

# Ex-tennis player.

# Named one of "People" magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People of 1998.

# Graduated from a Russian high school in 1997, and has attended Russian University of Physical Culture since 1997.

# Dated Pavel Bure and childhood sweetheart Sergei Fedorov at the same time. Fedorov told The Hockey News that he and Kournikova had secretly married in July 2001, but were divorced shortly thereafter; Kournikova has never confirmed this.

# 2002: Appears in the new Enrique Iglesias video "Escape".

# Her fastest serve was clocked at 111.2 mph during the Paris Indoors of 1998.

# May 2002: has been voted "the sexiest woman in the world" in the magazine "FHM" (Australian version).

# Has never won a major tennis tournament, as of January 2004.

# It is announced that Kournikova was voted the Sexiest Woman in the World in FHM's 100 Sexiest Girls poll for 2002, American edition. [May 2002]

# Knocked out of Wimbledon in the first round. [June 2002]

# Ranked 299th in the world (as of October 2003).

# Has a tattoo of a sun design on her lower back, which made its "debut" at the 2003 Australian Open. Oddly, she denied having it, telling reporters that it was actually a heat patch to treat back pain.

# Sold her Miami Beach condo at Portofino Tower to Sergei Fedorov for $1.63 million (December 2003).

# In February 2001, the Anna Kournikova Virus was released. Within a few hours of its distribution anti-virus vendors received thousands of reports. However, investigators were only able to list 55 incidents of infection, causing just $166,827 worth of damage. On 27 September 2001, a Dutch court gave the virus's author, Jan De Wit, the choice of 150 hours community service or 75 days in jail.

# Her favorite food is Sushi.

# Voted as #9 on the Top 100 Sexiest Women 2004 in FHM [DK].

# Her best ranking in tennis was number 8 in the world (2000).

# Career best Grand Slam tournament singles results: Australian Open quarterfinals in 2001, French Open 4th round in 1998 and 1999, Wimbledon semifinals in 1997, U.S. Open 4th round in 1996 and 1998.

# Named #29 on the Maxim magazine Hot 100 of 2005 list.

# Ranked as #62 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005" special supplement. (2005)

# Measurements at 2004: 32B - 24 - 34.

Anna Kournikova Detailed Biography

Russian-born Anna Kournikova left Moscow at the age of 9 to come to Nick Bollettieri's Tennis Academy in Florida, USA - the same academywhich has also produced Monica Seles and Andre Agassi.She was the world's topped-ranked junior at the end of 1995, shortlyafter Martina Hingis joined the professional ranks. Kournikova herselfturned professional in 1996, and competed in her first grand slam at theUS Open that year. She performed exceptionally well, defeating seededplayers before finally falling to eventual champion Steffi Graf in the4th round.

In 1997, she affirmed her position amongst the world's top players,highlighted by a semi-final appearance at her first Wimbledon as aprofessional. In 1998 she further surged up the rankings, with the highlightbeing an appearance in the final of the prestigious Lipton Championships,defeating four top 10 players consecutively along the way. Soon after, shescored her first victory over world number 1 Hingis, and just prior toWimbledon she broke into the world Top 10 for the first time in her career.A thumb injury before Wimbledon (suffered in a match where she defeatedGraf) ruled her out of tournaments for the next few months, and she hassince had a tough time regaining her momentum. 1999 began with acontroversial Australian Open, her play marred by poor form with her service.However, she did manage to make the 4th round in singles (her best result)as well as winning the doubles championships with Hingis as her partner.

Anna says her game wasn't modelled after any one player, although listsGraf and Seles as players she has learnt from, watching television. Nowat 18 years of age, she is developing her power game and exhibitingsome fearful groundstrokes coupled with superb court mentality.Anna is indeed superstar material, with glamourous looks (she says ifnot for tennis, her passion would be acting) and an aggressive all-courtgame to match. In fact, she has had an agent since the age of 10.She is currently on the verge of the world Top 10, and others forseeher and Hingis (along with the Williams sisters) battling it out for worldnumber 1 in the not-too-distant future. Regardless, Anna Kournikovawill play a great role in the future of women's tennis.

Tiger Woods

2009-09-21T14:41:00.000-07:00

Tiger Woods Biography

Name : Tiger Woods
Birth Date : Dec 30, 1975
Birth Place : Cypress, California
Height : 6' 2
Weight : 180 lbs.
Full name : Eldrick 'Tiger' Woods
Profession : Professional Golfer
Best Known As : Dominating pro golfer and Nike celebrity
Wife : Elin Nordegren, aformer Swedish nanny

Tiger Woods Trivia

* Woods collected his first strokeplay title of a difficult year when he stormed to an 8-shot victory at the Dunlop Phoenix tournament. His triumph signalled a welcome return to form, after his 5 years reign as world no. 1 was ended by Fiji's Vijai Singh.

Tiger Woods Detailed Biography

Record breaking pro golfer Eldrick 'Tiger' Woods was born on the 30th of December, 1975, the only child to parents Earl, retired lieutenant, and Kultida, of Thai descent. Earl Woods gave his son Eldrick the nickname 'Tiger', after a soldier and friend of his father who was also nicknamed Tiger in his days as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. Tiger grew up in Cypress, California, where his future passion and talent was foreshadowed while he was only a baby. Tiger would watch his father hit golf balls and would mimic his father's swing while still in his crib. Even before becoming a graduate from Western High School in Anaheim, California, Tiger was appearing on television and winning golf tournaments. At the mere age of 2, Tiger played with comedian and golfer Bob Hope on a national televisor, the Mike Douglas Show. He was featured in Golf Digest at age 5, after having already succeeded in shooting 48 for nine holes while the same children his age were still playing with building blocks.

A six-time winner at the Optimist International Junior Tournament, Tiger won at the ages of 8 and 9, and consecutively from ages 12 to 15. While a student at Stanford University, Tiger won 10 collegiate events and held the NCAA title. Before his years at Stanford, Tiger had already played in a professional tournament when he was 16 years old, the Nissan Los Angeles Open in 1992. One year later, he participated in three PGA Tour events and in 1994, Tiger placed 34th in the 1994 Johnnie Walker Asian Classic in Thailand and appeared in three more PGA Tours that same year. After having won the 1994 Western Amateur and representing the United States in the 1994 World Amateur Team Championships in France and the 1995 Walker Cup Match in Wales, Tiger was ready for his first major championships in 1995 -- the Masters and The British Open. Tiger couldn't play in the US Open that year because he injured his wrist.

Even as an amateur in 1995 and 1996, Tiger was making and breaking records and it was for this reason (among many others) that he was named Sports Illustrated's 1996 Sportsman of the Year. In 1997, Tiger won the first Mercedes Championships of the season, the Masters and four PGA events. Tiger became the leading money winner, winning $2,440,831. Among the records Tiger has broken are:

* In 1997, the youngest ever No.1 golfer at age 21, 24 weeks.
* In 1999 alone, Tiger won 81.7 percent more than the runner up during the PGA Tour.
* In 1999, he had as many as 8 victories in one year.
* In 1999, he achieved the highest point average (20.61) in the history of the World Ranking.
* In 1999, earned a record setting 750 points.
* In 1999, achieved the lowest ever adjusted scoring average of 68.43 strokes.

Michael Schumacher

2009-05-20T15:44:00.000-07:00

Born: 3rd January 1969 in Hürth-Hermühlheim/Germany

Nationality: German

Residence: Vufflens/Switzerland

Married to Corinna (32)

Children: Daughter Gina-Maria (4), Son Mick (2)

Brother: Ralf (24), Grand Prix Driver for Williams BMW

Four Dogs: West Highland White Terrier: Jenny, Half-Breed: Floh from Interlagos/Brazil, two Belgian Shepherd Dogs

Educated profession: Car Mechanic

Manager: Wilhelm F. Weber (D)

Teams: Jordan (1991), Benetton (1991-1995), Ferrari (since 1996)

Pre-Grand Prix Career: Karts, Formula König, German Formula 3 for WTS (Champion 1990), Group C Sports Car Racing for Sauber Mercedes

First Grand Prix: Belgium 1992 in Spa with a 7up Jordan Ford, qualified 7th but retired in lap one (clutch)

First Worldchampionship Points: Italy 1991 with 5th place in his second Grand Prix

First Grand Prix Win: Belgium 1992 in Spa with a Camel Benetton Ford

---------------------------------------

Michael Schumacher was born on 3 January 1969 in western Germany (in Hurth, near Cologne). As early as four years of age he was notching up his first circuits at the go-kart track nearby where his parents. In the go-kart he was runner-up in the Junior World Championships at the age of sixteen, and two years later he became the European Champion - and go-kart racing remains his great passion to this day. After fifteen years of go-kart racing he switched to racing cars and came out in front in numerous German championships. In 1990, Schumacher became the Mercedes-Benz team driver in the Sports Car World Championship and the German Formula 3 Champion.

In 1991, at the Belgian Grand Prix, Schumacher made his debut as a replacement driver for the Formula 1 Jordan team. By the following year he had already won his first Grand Prix, at Belgium's Spa-Francorchamps, in a Benetton-Ford. After placing third in the World Championship of 1992 and fourth of 1993, he landed the World Title in 1994 and dedicated it to Ayrton Senna - "the man who deserved to get it". In 1995, Schumacher defended his World Championship title in a Benetton-Renault. With a record nine wins out of seventeen Grand Prix races, this was a triumphant season for the German driver.

After four and a half years with Benetton, Schumacher signed a contract with Ferrari, with the objective of bringing the World Championship once again back to Maranello. Under his influence, the Italian team restructured itself. The key positions were occupied by new expert personnel. In 1997 and 1998, he narrowly missed out on the World Title - in each case, in the final race of the season. As early as 1998, he renewed his contract with Ferrari until the year 2002.

The 1999 season was an emotional roller-coaster ride for Schumacher. At Silverstone he suffered the first serious accident of his career. After sustaining a double fracture of the right leg the German driver was forced to withdraw from the Championship for six Grand Prix races. Then in Malaysia he celebrated a glorious come-back and by the end of the season had exerted an appreciable influence on the destiny of the Constructors' World Championship.

In the year 2000 Schumacher done what he promised he would do and brought the driver's title home to Ferrari for the first time in 21 years. Nine race wins in a season dominated by the brilliance of Schumacher was more than enough to secure his 3rd world title. Michael finished the season with 108 points and was the clear winner.

As defending champion in the 2001 season Michael Schumacher simply ran away with the world title his fourth in total and second for Ferrari. Once again Michael won nine races along with eleven pole positions. On his way to a massive winning margin the German re-wrote a number of records along the way, including the highest number of Grand Prix wins, highest number of points scored and the highest number of fastest laps. Schumacher renewed his Ferrari contract until 2004 and looks set to continue winning races and titles for the Maranello team for some time yet.

2002 would see Schumacher further cement his name into the history of the sport. His third successive drivers world championship with Ferrari and his fifth in total was won with commanding performances. Schumacher took 7 pole positions and 11 wins as he cruised to the title, which was won earlier than ever before. Schumacher took the record books apart in a season that saw him finish every race of the season with a lowest position of third! Nothing could stand in the way of his title and he afforded himself the luxury of helping team mate Rubens Barrichello to at least 2 wins.

Schumacher would go on to claim his 6th world title in 2003 but it was not as easy as he had it in 2002. McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya in the Williams took the challenge to Michael and it was a challenge he enjoyed. The new points scoring system had taken the title battle down to the wire in Japan and with perhaps his worst race of the season Schumacher scored 1 point to take the title. Schumacher had once again a great season of reliability and never once retired from a race due to car problems, but other problems including puncture's, pit stop fires and a river in Brazil did cause him some challenging moments, but he emerged victorious once again.

2004 was yet another championship winning year for Schumacher as well as Ferrari as they simply dominated the season from start to finish, mirroring the domination shown back in 2002. Schumacher was never really threatened as he claimed his 7th world title, only team mate Barrichello kept him honest and a slight challenge from the BAR team and Jenson Button, but Schumacher cruised it.

The 2005 season would not be so great for Schumacher, a raft of changes enforced by the FIA ensured the Ferrari teams advantage was nullified, tyre changes at pitstops were outlawed taking away one of Schumacher's best ability's to pump in race winning laps in and around the pitstops. As it was Ferrari suffered with tyre problems for the whole season as Bridgestone found it tough to come to terms with making a race distance tyre. This handed the advantage to the Michelin shod Renault team and Fernando Alonso became the youngest ever world champion. Schumacher's only win came at the highly controversial USGP when only the Bridgestone teams entered the race. The only other real bright spot for Schumacher was a great drive to 2nd place at Imola.

In 2006 Michael Schumacher would say farewell to Formula One as he brought an end to his illustrious career, sadly he was unable to go out with a 8th title but he went out on a high as he took the title battle with Alonso to the last race of the season. Many questioned if he could go on for a few more years but at 37 Michael declared his batteries empty despite putting in some stunning drives throughout the season. He plans to take a well earned rest and have some quality time with his family before deciding what direction his new life without F1 will take.

Career Stats

World Championships : 7
Grand Prix Starts : 248
Wins : 91
Pole Positions : 68
Fastest Laps : 76
Podium Finishes : 154
Career Points : 1,369

Schumacher's Records

* Most world titles: 7
* Most consecutive titles: 5 (2000-2004)
* Most wins: 91
* Most wins in a single season: 13 (2004)
* Most consecutive wins in single season: 7 (2004)
* Most wins at the same race: 8 (French GP)
* Most wins with one team: 72
* Most wins from pole: 40
* Most pole positions: 68
* Most front-row starts: 115
* Most podium finishes: 154
* Most second place finishes: 43
* Most points scored: 1,369
* Most points finishes: 190
* Most points in a single season: 148
* Most fastest laps: 76
* Most fastest laps in a season: 10
* Most races led: 141
* Most laps led: 5,108
* Most consecutive podiums: 19 (USA 2001-Japan 2002)
* Most consecutive points finishes: 24
* Most consecutive seasons with a win: 15
* Most ‘clean sweeps’ (pole, win, fastest lap): 22
* Largest points gap between champion and runner-up: 67
* Earliest title winner: 2002 (in July, with 6 races remaining)
* Longest spell with one team: 11 seasons
* Only driver to have finished every race on the podium: 2002

Valentino Rossi

2009-05-18T05:53:00.000-07:00

Valentino Rossi profile

Valentino Rossi
nationality · Italian
born · 16 February 1979
grand prix début · 1996

“The Doctor” is easily the most successful Grand Prix rider in the post-Mick Doohan era, with titles in each of the four classes he has taken on, moving all the way up in the space of just seven years, and then staying on top. At the time of writing, he has 79 race victories to his name. The son of former 250cc GP winner Graziano, Valentino Rossi is a charismatic and popular figure who has raised the profile of motorbike racing in recent seasons, not least by switching from dominant Honda to under-achieving Yamaha and taking the title first time out. In the manner of such as John Surtees, he reportedly has ambitions to move into four-wheeled competition - having test driven an F1 Ferrari - and who is to say that he won’t succeed there, too

1985
First go-kart

1989
Kart racing début

1990
Regional Kart Champion, with nine wins

1991
5th in Italian Junior Kart championship; made bike racing début on Minimotos

1992
Italian Minibike Endurance Champion

1993
12th in Italian 125cc Sport Production championship, with Cagiva

1994
Italian 125cc Sport Production Champion, with Cagiva

1995
Italian 125cc Champion; 3rd in European 125cc championship; 11th in Spanish Open 125cc championship - all with Aprilia

1996 Scuderia AGV, number 46 Aprilia
In his first Grand Prix season, aged seventeen, Valentino was ninth overall in the 125cc series, with 111 points and seven top six finishes. His first visit to the podium came in round ten, with third in Austria, and he won the race at Brno next time out
Also 10th in the European 125cc championship, with Aprilia

1997 Nastro Azzurro Aprilia, number 46 Aprilia
Rossi’s second year on 125s was dominant, with eleven wins from fifteen races. He also scored a second, a third and a sixth, to complete a 321-point record for the category, and his first World Championship title

1998 Nastro Azzurro Aprilia, number 46 Aprilia
The 1998 season was Rossi’s ‘learning’ year in the 250cc series, and he finished second as early as rounds three, four and five. His first win came at Assen in round seven, and four more at the end of the year took him to second overall, on 201 points, between rivals Loris Capirossi and Tetsuya Harada

1999 Aprilia Grand Prix Racing, number 46 Aprilia
As in the 125s, Valentino’s second 250 season saw him setting the pace, and his nine race wins meant he duly wrapped up a second GP championship. He was on the podium in twelve of sixteen races, and scored 309 points in total

2000 Nastro Azzurro Honda, number 46 Honda
For 2000, Rossi moved onto a works-supported 500cc Honda, engineered by the highly successful Jerry Burgess. Once again it was a learning process, but he was already finishing third in rounds four (where he qualified second), five and seven. A late season run, including wins in Britain and Brazil, saw him emerge as the nearest challenger to champion elect Kenny Roberts. A final tally of 209 points placed him second behind the American Suzuki rider
Also qualified sixth for the Suzuka 8 Hours, with Colin Edwards

2001 Nastro Azzurro Honda, number 46 Honda
By his second year, Valentino was ready to take the 500 title. Despite a strong challenge from compatriots Max Biaggi and Loris Capirossi, he racked up four pole positions and had thirteen podiums, including eleven wins. In the end he was over 100 points clear - 325 to Biaggi’s 219 - and went down in history as the last man to win a 500cc-only World Championship
Also won the Suzuka 8 Hours, with Colin Edwards and Manabu Kamada, and set fastest lap

2002 Repsol Honda Team, number 46 Honda
For 2002, Rossi and Burgess were brought into the full factory Honda team, which had produced the RC211V bike for the new 990cc four-stroke GP1 regulations. Despite four-stoke opposition from Max Biaggi, Tohru Ukawa and others, Valentino was once again the top rider. Pole positions at seven venues were converted into another eleven victories, including a run of seven straight that was only ended by a tyre failure. This time 355 points was 140 clear of his nearest rival!

2003 Repsol Honda, number 46 Honda
As ever, Rossi was the man to beat in Grands Prix, finishing first, second or third in each of the sixteen races during the year, and wrapping up another title. Although Sete Gibernau stayed in touch for some time, Valentino had plenty of experience in making the decisive break, and is still regarded as the talent by which the rest are jugded

2004 Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha, number 46 Yamaha
For 2004, Rossi’s challenge was to take Yamaha back to the top, and that is what he did, despite Honda’s apparent performance advantage. A winner first time out, he was first home nine times in total, with five pole positions, and was always in the top four bar two non-finishes.

2005 Yamaha Gauloises Team, number 46 Yamaha
Starting as the favourite for 2005, success for the fourth time means that Valentino remains the only man to take a 990cc MotoGP class title. The Yamaha M1 was improved, but not superior to the rest and, with a lack of consistency from his Honda rivals, Rossi returned to dominant form. To complete the journey, his performances in torrential rain also proved unbeatable.

Formula One History

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The modern era of Formula One Grand Prix racing began in 1950, but the roots of F1 are far earlier, tracing to the pioneering road races in France in the 1890s, through the Edwardian years, the bleak twenties, the German domination of the 1930s and the early post-war years of Italian supremacy.

At the birth of racing, cars were upright and heavy, roads were tarred sand or wood, reliability was problematic, drivers were accompanied by mechanics, and races — usually on public roads from town to town — were impossibly long by modern standards. Regarded as the first motor race proper was a 1,200 km road race from Paris to Bordeaux and back in 1895, won by Émile Levassor with his Panhard et Levassor in 48 hours. One of the most successful drivers of the early years was Fernand Charron, who won the Paris-Bordeaux race in 1899, also in a Panhard, at the blazing average speed of 29.9 mph.

The first race using the appellation "Grand Prix" was 1901's French Grand Prix at Le Mans, won by Ferencz Szisz with a Renault, who covered the 700 miles at 63.0 mph. In 1908 the Targa Florio in Sicily saw the appearance of "pits," shallow emplacements dug by the side of the track where mechanics could labor with the detachable rims on early GP car tires — themselves a major technical improvement over the earlier technique of permanently attached wheels and spokes. But even so, racing cars of the early years were too heavy and fast for their tires; Christian Lauteschalnger's winning Mercedes shredded 10 tires in the 1908 French Grand Prix at Dieppe!

In 1914, the massive 4 1/2 litre Mercedes of Daimler-Benz dominated the French Grand Prix at Lyons — 20 laps of a 23.3 mile circuit — taking the first three places and introducing control of drivers by signal from the pits. During World War I, racing was halted in Europe, and many drivers participated in the U.S. Indianapolis 500. Enzo Ferrari — who's real fame was to follow as a team manager and manufacturer with Scuderia Ferrari, formed in 1929 to race Alfa Roméo P2s —- finished second in the 1920 Voiturette race at Le Mans, the first international road race in France in six years.

By tradition the Italian racing driver in action is an excitable character given to shouting, gesticulating, waving his fists, baring his teeth and in general giving way to his emotions. Tazio Nuvolari filled this role splendidly.
The Farmer's Son - Cyril Posthumus

The first (and, until Dan Gurney's Eagle-Weslake at Spa-Francorchamps in 1967, the only) Grand Prix victory by an American-built car was by Jimmy Murphy in the 1921 French Grand Prix at Le Mans, driving a Duesnberg. Among the best of the 1920s manufacturers were Bugatti, whose straight-eight Type 35Bs won the French and Spanish GPs in 1929 and the Monaco, French and Belgian GPs in 1930, and Fiat, which introduced the supercharger for the first time in 1923.

The Great Depression of the early 1930s led to a lack of money and interest in Grand Prix racing, but saw the emergence of the legendary Tazio Nuvolari, whose wins in the Alfa Romeo P3 "Monza" in the Mille Miglia, at Monaco and the Italian GP at Monza were stunning. His victory in the 1933 Monaco GP was the first in which staring grid positions were determined by qualifying times. But in 1934, the balance of power in racing would begin to shift from Italy to Germany, with the emergence of factory teams from Auto Union (now Audi) and Mercedes-Benz, behind massive financial support from the Third Reich government on orders from Adolph Hitler.

These powerful and beautiful German machines introduced aerodynamics into Grand Prix car design and ran on exotic, secret fuel brews. Driving the sleek, silver 3-litre V12 Auto Union in his trademark canary yellow jersey, Nuvolari achieved new greatness with these incredibly well-engineered automobiles — but nothing to top his 1935 German GP victory at the Nürburgring, where he defeated nine modern German cars in a four-year old Alfa Roméo.

History of Polo (Short)

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Polo is thought to have originated in China and Persia around 2,000 years ago. The name of the game may well come from the word “pholo” meaning 'ball' or 'ballgame' in the Balti language of Tibet.

The first recorded game took place in 600BC between the Turkomans and Persians (the Turkomans won). In the fourth century AD, King Sapoor II of Persia learned to play, aged seven. In the 16th century, a polo ground (300 yards long and with goalposts eight yards apart) was built at Ispahan, then the capital, by Shah Abbas the Great.

The Moguls were largely responsible for taking the game from Persia to the east and, by the 16th century, the Emperor Babur had established it in India. (It had already long been played in China and Japan, but had died out by the time the West came in contact with those countries). In the 1850s, British tea planters discovered the game in Manipur (Munipoor) on the Burmese border with India. They founded the world’s first polo club at Silchar, west of Manipur. Other clubs followed and today the oldest in the world is the Calcutta Club which founded in 1862.

Malta followed in 1868 because soldiers and naval officers stopped off there on their way home from India. In 1869, Edward “Chicken” Hartopp, of the 10th Hussars, read an account of the game in The Field magazine while stationed at Aldershot and, with fellow officers, organised the first game. Then known as “hockey on horseback,” it was played on a hastily-rolled Hounslow Heath where a shortlist of about 10 rules was also hastily assembled.

But, it was John Watson (1856-1908), of the 13th Hussars, who formulated the first real rules of the game in India in the 1870s. He later formed the celebrated Freebooters team who won the first Westchester Cup match in 1886. He was a key player at the All Ireland Polo Club which was founded in 1872 by Horace Rochfort of Clogrenane, County Carlow.

The first polo club in England was Monmouthshire, founded in 1872 by Captain Francis “Tip” Herbert (1845- 1922), of the 7th Lancers, at his brother's estate at Clytha Park, near Abergavenny. Others, including Hurlingham, followed quickly.

Handicaps were introduced by the USA in 1888 and by England and India in 1910.

The first official match in Argentina took place on 3rd September 1875. The game had been taken there by English and Irish engineers and ranchers.

In 1876, Lt Col Thomas St.Quintin, of the 10th Hussars, introduced the game to Australia. He is credited with being the Father of Australian Polo. Two of his brothers stayed on there as ranchers and helped the game to develop. In the same year, polo was introduced to the USA by James Gordon Bennett Junior who had seen the game at Hurlingham during a visit to England.

Today, more than 77 countries play polo. It was an Olympic sport from 1900 to 1939 and has now been recognised again by the International Olympic Committee.

The 5 Most Important Events in the History of Basketball

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1) The first basketball game is played
Date: December 21, 1891

The story behind the event: The YMCA in Springfield, Massachusetts had a class of 20 year olds that was becoming unruly during the winter when they couldn't go outside to play baseball or run track. The head of physical education at the YMCA, Dr. Luther Gulick, dared his employee, Dr. James Naismith, to invent a game for the students to play indoors. After procrastinating for most of the two weeks he was given, James Naismith invented a game with 13 rules, hung two peach baskets to an overhanging track (which just happened to be at exactly 10 feet) and the rest is the history of basketball. By the way, the game was immediately loved by his students - Dr. Naismith later said he could barely get his pupils to leave the gym when their hour had ended!

2) Basketball is first played at the Olympics
Date: August 1936
Place: Berlin, Germany

The story behind the event: You can't underestimate the importance and impact of basketball becoming an official Olympic sport, when 22 nations entered basketball teams in the XI Olympiad. In fact, the event was so important that Dr. James Naismith, then 74 years old, travelled across the Atlantic to attend. The USA beat Canada 19-8 for the gold medal, and the game was played outdoors on a tennis court, in the rain! The game's high scorer was Joe Fortenbury, with 7! By the way, women's basketball was added to the Olympics in 1976.

3) The formation of the NBA
Date: August 3, 1949
Place: New York City, NY

The story behind the event: The National Basketball League (NBL) formed in 1937, and the Basketball Association of America (BAA) formed in 1946. But the two officially combined on August 3, 1949 to form the NBA, the most important and largest group in the history of basketball. By the way, the only two teams from the initial league that have remained in the same city and under the same name are the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks.

4) The first collegiate game in women's basketball history

Date: April 4, 1896

Place: San Francisco's Page Street Armory

The story behind the event: In the most important event in womens basketball history, Stanford and Cal met in a game that did not at all resemble the fast paced and physical game the UConn and Tennessee women play today. Rules were adjusted to make sure the ladies stayed ladylike, as players were designated to one of three areas, and were not allowed to leave their area. Just trying to steal the ball from another player was against the rules! By the way, Stanford won a high scoring affair, 2-1.

5) A basketball game is broadcast for the first time

Date: February 28, 1940

Place: Madison Square Garden

The story behind the event: Fordham University played the University of Pittsburgh in the first game of a double header as Pitt won 50-37. W2XBS showed the game in New York City. Today, basketball on TV has become so popular that there's an entire network devoted to it, NBATV. By the way, only one camera was used in the first televised game in the history of basketball.

History of Basketball

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Dr. James Naismith, Inventor of Basketball

KU Basketball Program Founder

Dr. James Naismith is known world-wide as the inventor of basketball. He was born in 1861 in Ramsay township, near Almonte, Ontario, Canada. The concept of basketball was born from Naismith's school days in the area where he played a simple child's game known as duck-on-a-rock outside his one-room schoolhouse. The game involved attempting to knock a "duck" off the top of a large rock by tossing another rock at it. Naismith went on to attend McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

After serving as McGill's Athletic Director, James Naismith moved on to the YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA in 1891, where the sport of basketball was born. In Springfield, Naismith was faced with the problem of finding a sport that was suitable for play inside during the Massachusetts winter for the students at the School for Christian Workers. Naismith wanted to create a game of skill for the students instead of one that relied solely on strength. He needed a game that could be played indoors in a relatively small space. The first game was played with a soccer ball and two peach baskets used as goals.

James Naismith devised a set of thirteen rules of basketball:

1. The ball may be thrown in any direction with one or both hands.
2. The ball may be batted in any direction with one or both hands, but never with the fist.
3. A player cannot run with the ball. The player must throw it from the spot on which he catches it, allowance to be made for a man running at good speed.

4. The ball must be held in or between the hands. The arms or body must not be used for holding it.
5. No shouldering, holding, pushing, striking or tripping in any way of an opponent. The first infringement of this rule by any person shall count as a foul; the second shall disqualify him until the next goal is made or, if there was evident intent to injure the person, for the whole of the game. No substitution shall be allowed.
6. A foul is striking at the ball with the fist, violations of Rules 3 and 4 and such as described in Rule 5.

7. If either side make three consecutive fouls it shall count as a goal for the opponents (consecutive means without the opponents in the meantime making a foul).
8. Goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from the ground into the basket and stays there, providing those defending the goal do not touch or disturb the goal. If the ball rests on the edge and the opponents move the basket, it shall count as a goal.

9. When the ball goes out of bounds, it shall be thrown into the field and played by the first person touching it. In case of dispute the umpire shall throw it straight into the field. The thrower-in is allowed five seconds. If he holds it longer, it shall go to the opponent. If any side persists in delaying the game, the umpire shall call a foul on them.
10. The umpire shall be judge of the men and shall note the fouls and notify the referee when three consecutive fouls have been made. He shall have the power to disqualify men according to Rule 5.
11. The referee shall be the judge of the ball and decide when it is in play in bounds, to which side it belongs, and shall keep the time. He shall decide when a goal has been made and keep account of the goals with any other duties that are usually performed by a referee.
12. The time shall be two 15-minute halves with five minutes' rest between.
13. The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winners.

In addition to the creation of the basketball, James Naismith graduated as a medical doctor, primarily interested in sports physiology and what we would today call sports science and as Presbyterian minister, with a keen interest in philosophy and clean living. Naismith watched his sport, basketball, introduced in many nations by the YMCA movement as early as 1893. Basketball was introduced at the Berlin Olympics in 1936. Today basketball has grown to become one of the world's most popular sports.

Soccer History

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Early kicking games

All throughout history, many ball games have emerged as well as perished independently to one another, often leaving us with nothing but speculations. Considering that many of these games were impulsive and had few or no regulations, it is likely that they also were quite violent. The roughness of these early games surely must have demanded involvement of the legs, for kicking.We have to emphasize the difference between such scuffles and today's skillful game.

Even although modern football evolved from rugby, a major distinction stands between the two - the feet are not only used for kicking but also for controlling and moving the ball (dribbling). Using body parts other than the feet, like the head or chest, is another factor suggesting the development advanced technical skills.While most ancient ball games had no proven relation to rugby or simply diminished ignominiously long ago, they certainly must have produced skillful players or artisans, much like the superstars of today. Therefore, we must acknowledge these as predecessors of the world's most popular sport.

Far East: Tsu Chu and Kemari

Mediterranean: Episkyros and Harpastum

America: Pok-A-Tok, Pasuckuakohowog and Asqaqtuk

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages Europe were the stage for violent town games known universally as Mob Football. It is very surprising to notice the progress of ball games in this historical period and consider their violent upturn. In contrast to the ball games of Ancient times, authorities often prohibited and opposed their practice.

Italy: Calcio

Britain: Mob Football

The techniques of soccer have been around for centuries. In 2002, Japan hosted
the World Cup for the very first time. Few were aware that the locals have been
playing a juggling game called Kemari for the past 2300 years.

Association Football

During the second part of the 19th century in England, rugby as well as most sports experienced a massive surge in popularity. This was mostly an effect of the Industrial Revolution, which drew people in cities and factories, depriving them from the typical outdoor activities of rural life. Recreation became common and people turned to sport on Sundays, in addition to their religious activities. British traders, sailors and workers spread sport and football all over the globe through their web of colonies

Association Football Milestones Early Days of FIFA (1904-1938)

Modern Era

Soccer, as we know it today, was molded during the 1960s. Increased media coverage and TV broadcasts made the game far more popular than it ever was. Commercial air flight replaced traveling by ship, which made it more efficient to conduct international matches.

Hooliganism in European Football

Hooligans and Ultras

Greatest Soccer Derbies and Rivalries

History of Soccer Gaming

Jules Rimet (left) was president of the French football
federation and FIFA at the time of the first World Cup. The original World Cup
trophy was named in his honor. The trophy itself had a rocky history: During
World War II, Ottorino Barassi, an official of the Italian football association,
hid it in a shoe-box under his bed. Later, it was stolen during a public
exhibition just before the 1966 World Cup Final, then recovered and stolen
again, seventeen years later in Brazil. It hasn't been found seen since and many
speculate that it may have been melted.

http://expertfootball.com/history/soccer.php