Saturday, December 19, 2009
World Cup winning coach joins WPSL
One of the most recognized and respected names in the world of women's soccer will be adding their organization to the North Division of the East Conference of the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) this upcoming Summer 2007 season. Team owner and head coach Tony DiCicco will head SoccerPlus Connecticut.
DiCicco served as the head coach for the USWNT from 1994-99 and during his five-year stint, Tony compiled an impressive overall record of 103-8-8, giving him the most wins of any U.S. National Team coach. Along the way his teams completed a unique double by winning the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics and the 1999 Women's World Cup. He also led his team to five consecutive U.S. Cup titles, the 1998 Pan American Games gold medal and a third-place finish at the 1995 WWC. He was an assistant coach for the 1991 U.S. Women's National Team - which won the first WWC - and spent two years as an assistant for the U.S. Men's U-20 National Team.
California Storm
Storm owner Jerry Zanelli has run a grass-roots operation for 18 years. While he would like to see more spectators at his team's games, Zanelli doesn't mind reaching into his pocket to support what amounts to an expensive hobby for the Sacramento lobbyist.
Although the Storm ranks as one of the best women's club teams in the world, Zanelli doles out transportation money to his players and directs them to a nearby restaurant for a postgame meal just as a recreation coach might.
"I spend about $50,000 a year, but being the owner and coach helps," Zanelli says. "Whether I have a winning or losing record, I won't fire myself."
Maryland Pride announce new GM & head coach
Thunder Soccer Club is pleased to announce that the TSC Maryland Pride of the East Conference of the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) has hired a new General Manager and Head Coach for the Summer 2009 season. The new G.M. will be Tony Corbett, who has been a long time coach in the Maryland area and will continue to serve as the Director of Coaching for all of Thunder's youth teams, as he has since 2001.
As part of the re-organization, the Howard County based club has also been interviewing for a new Head Coach and after an extensive search, they are very pleased to announce the appointment of Blackpool, England native Steve Knapman. The 33-year-old former professional has been coaching and playing in the Maryland area for the past 12 years.
Valentino Rossi: I remain long in Yamaha
Tuesday, 8 July 2008The principle agreement has been found and it seems, almost 100%, Valentino Rossi will remain in Yamaha for at least for two more seasons. The announcement planned for later this month, even for some rumors already expected for next weekend at Sachsenring.
Valentino confirms that he will remain long there, with the team has created a unique feeling for him, five years work together. Why change?" he said.
If it is all coming that fast, then it will be good to Yamaha and Rossi's fans. Yamaha's bike has been very good this year. They develop a reliable and fast enough bike even still slower than the Ducatis.
Another good news is Capirex (Loris Capirossi) will race in Sachsenring. Having missed the last two races, the triple world champion has yesterday (7 july 2008) confirmed he will be fit to return to his factory GSV-R in Germany.
Where to Play Frans Steyn?
That's the big question being asked by Sports Illustrated in this month's issue.
What do you think? Flyhalf, Fullback, Centre or Wing? And is Scrumhalf too far-fetched?
I'm sorry to say that Dick Muir has turned probably SA's most promising player into a utility back. And that's where he'll be used for the Springboks, off the bench as an impact player. He won't play inside centre because of Jean de Villiers' new found form and it'll be tough for him to crack the nod at number 13 ahead of Waylon Murray, even though Muir favours the young Steyn ahead of Murray.
Fullback is totally out of the question because Conrad Jantjes is the obvious choice. I don't think Peter de Villiers will trust the young Steyn at flyhalf.
Renault Confident of Revival in Canada
Renault, Formula One's perenial optimists, are confident of scoring some points at this weekend's Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.
With six races of the season gone, Renault have only managed nine constructors points... all of which came from double world champion Fernando Alonso. His teammate, Nelson Piquet Junior has failed in all the races so far and already rumours are doing the rounds that he could be replaced if he doesn't start scoring some points.
Engineering Director at Renault, Pat Symonds, believes Piquet will start coming good quite soon, "His confidence is suffering a little bit, but we hope! to see him bounce back soon - he's definitely got the ability and we've already seen he's got the speed."
Symonds also believes the team will out-develop their rivals and have a strong second half of the season.
Gay runs fastest ever 100m
The 100 metre sprint has always intrigued me, as previously unbreakable records are inevitably bettered. Doping has obviously yielded some quick times, but the biggest variable seems to be wind. It makes sense that a strong gust from behind will improve times, the way it did for Tyson Gay at the US Track and Field Trials over the weekend.
Gay, who probably has the quickest final 50 metres in the sprint, ran the 100 metres in 9.68 seconds. That's .04 seconds faster than the world record of 9.72 held by Usain Bolt. It's also the quickest time ever recorded. It won't count as a world record though, as the wind was measured at 4.1 metres per second. Times only count if the wind speed is less than 2 metres per second.
Gay's time however is still an indication that the world's fastest men are consistent and improving and Gay himself has not ruled out a legal 9.6. Regardless, the Olympic sprint final will be a highlight at the Beijing Games with Gay, Bolt and ! Asafa Powell all able to lay claim to the title of the world's fastest man - ever.
Boks need to regroup
The Springboks have a week to regroup and find the confidence to face Australia in Durban, and coach Peter De Villiers said that the team need to become more streetwise in their approach, whilst getting back the basic hunger to win. Wallaby flanker Phil Waugh hinted yesterday that his coach Robbie Deans may deploy two 'fetchers' against the Springboks in Saturday's Tri-Nations Test , especially after seeing how effective the All Blacks had been at turning the ball over. Waugh said the Boks lost the game on Saturday as a result of not being able to protect the ball, and the All Blacks recorded 14 turnovers enroute to winning 19-0. The last time a Springbok team ended a home test with a blank scoreboard was 105 years ago.
SA Rugby Takes Stand Against Racism
The South African Rugby Union, its provinces and their sponsors will unite this weekend to make a dramatic statement against racism.
Provincial players will wear a special anti-racism message on their jerseys for this week's round of Absa Currie Cup matches – making the single biggest stand against racism ever undertaken by rugby.
The initiative has been backed by the game's sponsors – both the individual team sponsors and tournament sponsor Absa – as well as by Ziningi Shibambo, the victim of a racist attack ten days ago.
Absa and SA Rugby are funding the application of three-dimensional anti-racism slogans to the weekend's playing fields while the team sponsors have given up the prime space on the players' chests to accommodate the "No to Racism" message.
"This is a huge initiative that our provincial unions and sponsors instantly bought into," said Mr Oregan Hoskins, the president of the South African Rugby U! nion.
"We are putting the message squarely in front of our supporters and the whole rugby community so there can be no doubt about where rugby stands – we are utterly opposed to racism and will continue to campaign to get that message across."
The initiative is in response to a racist attack on Ziningi Shibambo during the Vodacom Tri-nations Test between South Africa and Australia at Coca-Cola Park on August 30.
SARU offered a R10 000 reward for information leading to the identification of the perpetrators, which has so far failed to yield a response.
"It was a hideously cowardly attack on Ms Shibambo but it has helped galvanise us on an issue that we hoped was dying its own natural death," said Mr Hoskins.
"We now have an anti-racism message on all our website pages and have added a sentence from our constitution to our letterhead which states 'the union will foster the game amongst all persons irrespective of race, co! lour, creed or gender.'
"But we wanted to go furthe! r and ma ke the most public statement we could manage and I think this initiative does precisely that."
Ms. Shibambo added: I'm glad that my experience has provoked such a visible response from rugby. We have to confront racism whenever we encounter it and this initiative sends out a very loud message
"My experience 10 days ago should serve as a timely reminder that racism can still affect us . We should also not forget that racism is still as much an issue now as it has ever been.
"I reiterate that I do not hold rugby officials, the sport of rugby itself nor the stadium responsible for what has happened to me and I believe this symbolic stand against all forms of discrimination in the game is most important. It is a concerted effort that will help combat the scourge of racism within our sporting codes.
"I have been overwhelmed by the support I have had from rugby people – I am glad I can back them in this campaign."
Happy Nts! hingila, Absa Group Executive Director said: "As a proud sponsor of SA Rugby and the Absa Currie Cup, we are firmly behind SARU's attempt to cut out any form of racism in South African rugby.
"Whilst this cowardly attack on a Springbok fan in no way represents the entire SA rugby community, we fully support this initiative. Absa is committed to a South Africa for all South Africans. We recognise the power that sport has to unite our nation and so condemn any acts of racism in rugby.
"Rugby is a game for everybody, to be enjoyed by everybody; hopefully this weekend's initiative will go a long way towards the entire country saying 'No to racism'."
The slogan will first appear on hoardings at the SAA National Club Champs in Stellenbosch on Thursday evening when the competition's semi-finals take place live on SuperSport at 4:05pm and 6:05pm.
The first players to run out wearing the slogan will be those of the Pumas and the SWD Eagles! who play in Witbank and the Vodacom Blue Bulls and Boland Cav! aliers w ho meet at Loftus Versfeld, both on Friday night.
"We'd like to thank all our team sponsors for their co-operation in this initiative," said Mr Hoskins. "They are giving up their commercial rights this week but, like us, they believe it's a small price to pay to get the message across."
ISSUED BY SA RUGBY
What Will 2009 Hold for Hamilton?
Come Melbourne 2009, Lewis Hamilton will wear the tag of reigning Formula One world champion. After a turbulent second season of F1 he realised his dream and everyone was forced to acknowledge that he thoroughly deserves it.
Hamilton was given a hero's welcome at the McLaren HQ in Surrey today on his first visit there since he won the championship in an enthralling season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix. Hamilton passed Toyota's Timo Glock with two corners to go at Interlagos to claim the fifth place he needed to win the championship. Ferrari's Felipe Massa won the race and did all he could do but it wasn't meant to be though. The Brazilian was gracious in defeat and that's a sign of a world champion which he'll no doubt become.
But what does next season hold for Hamilton and McLaren? As a team, McLaren will once again be one of the top two teams on the grid but as far as the drivers go, I think Hamilton will get some stiff competition! from teammate Heikki Kovalainen.
The young Finn very much played a backroom role at McLaren, not challenging Hamilton on the track and basically getting used to the car and the team. His maiden grand prix win earlier this year will have inspired him to do better next season and with the package McLaren have, Kovalainen will definitely be more than just a solid number two.
After the success of this year, Ferrari will seriously have to think who they'll be backing as the number one driver. Kimi Raikkonen is still a world champion so logic says they should still back him at the start of the season but Massa's achievements this year can't be overlooked. Either way, both Massa and Raikkonen will still be a threat to Hamilton as will Renault's Fernando Alonso, who's been more than impressive in the latter half of the season. Expect BMW-Sauber's Robert Kubica to be there or thereabouts. A dark horse could be Williams driver Nico Rosberg who has shown that,! with the right car, he can be a real handful.
So ! already, it looks to be a very interesting 2009 season but ultimately it'll come down to who best deals with KERS and all the other new technical requirements.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Ajax on top for Christmas
Ajax Cape Town are exactly where they want to be going into the Christmas break of the ABSA Premiership.
The Urban Warriors are top of the log, a point ahead of Supersport after a 1-0 win against Sundowns on Saturday.
Santos' also read the script and beat pre-weekend log leaders Supersport United 1-0.
Ajax are only a point ahead of United on 26 points, while Wits bounced back to third, on 23 points, thanks to a 1-0 win over Swallows.
Golden Arrows are fourth, on 22 points, after a surprise 2-1 defeat to Bay United.
The People's Team are making steady progress up the log and are currently 5th on 21 points, ahead of Pirates and Chiefs, on 20.
The Buccaneers played out a goalless draw against Amazulu and Chiefs drew 2-2 with Platinum Stars.
The league resumes on 7 January with the highly anticipated Cape Town derby between Telkom Knock Out Cup champions, Ajax and Santos at Athlone S! tadium.
Kick off is at 19h30.
Last season Santos came away with a win and draw against Ajax.
Santos Chief Operations Officer, Edries Burton, says the Cape Town derby is always special.
"League position and current form will count for nothing and the focus is on who wants it the most on the night. It is more than winning the three points; it is also about the pride of Cape Town that is at stake."
"Ajax Cape Town has done really well over the last few months and will be very tough to beat. But as we have shown in previous derbies, we have very capable players and they are intensely focused to ensure we have a good start to 2009."
View from the Pitlane with Brian Sims
So after months of anticipation, we now know what the new Formula 1 regulations are all about. I found the Australian Grand Prix to be a mixture of a Boy's Own story, superb qualifying scenarios and a lot of excellent racing which was rather spoilt for me by some rather amateurish and contrived drama.
First there was the Ross Brawn fairy tale. If ever there was an example of Bernie Ecclestone writing the perfect script this was it. There wasn't a dry eye in the place! For years, if you ! wanted to win a Grand Prix, other than by default, you had to be in a silver or a red car. Suddenly we had the sight of not one, but two strange looking white and fluorescent yellow vehicles showing everyone else in the race just what it was all about. Incredible stuff! It reminded me of James Hunt's first ever Grand Prix victory in the 1970's in a team that had been set up almost for fun by the eccentric Lord Hesketh. Now we hear that F1's leading designer has quit Ferrari to team up again with Ross Brawn. The Brawn and Byrne Show It's all too much! Next thing we know Formula 1 will be run every evening as a TV sit-com! Fortunately it touned out to be an April fool hoax! I spoke to Rory personally to check this out, so you Ferrari fans can relax.It had to be the most unpredictable qualifying session for years. One minute we had Webber in top spot, then seconds later he was down in 12th place, then it was Massa, only to find himself on the edge of the non-qualif! ication cliff seconds later. Stunning! It's what's been missin! g for ye ars.
The cars look a bit of a handful, except for the Brawn (a team name surely designed with newspaper headline writers in mind), but despite all the doom and gloom merchants predicting how ugly they would look, I thought they looked the part. Amazing the difference big fat slicks make.
There were two areas that somewhat spoiled the show for me. One was the incredibly tedious maneuvering that went on behind the pace car. It seemed to go on and on, but more importantly what I couldn't handle was the fiasco over the performance of the softer compound tyres, I always thought F1 was about hard racing, with some pit stop strategies thrown in for good measure. To watch drivers battling to stay within two to three seconds a lap of rivals, who they could normally outdrive every day of the week, lacked all credibility. This was Mickey Mouse stuff and not what F1 should be about. Apart from the potential safety risk of a driver over-driving to remain competitive! , it created a farcical situation and it should be stopped without further ado.
Having said all that, I still think that Australia was a breath of fresh air for Formula 1. Will I still think that when the Court hearings start on the 14th April in Paris over the diffusers. I don't know. Quite frankly, who really cares except a bunch of anoraks who find that sort of stuff turns them on. The fact of the matter is that a few designers did a better job than the rest. It's up to the others to catch up.
F1 has made a rod for its own back. It's shown us how entertaining it can be. Now it has to deliver again in Malaysia. So what might we expect to see this weekend? How about Force India on pole, Barichello docked points for having too wide a smile and Raikkonen taking over the TV commentary…………..You never know in F1!!!
Singapore hit by storm, more rain expected
Last night, Singapore was hit with a heavy tropical storm as heavy rain lashed the city state for more than six hours. Further downpours are expected thoughtout the remainder of the weekend which could make life for the drivers more difficult during the first ever night race in the history of Formula One.
Source: F1 Technical
Rafa Ready To Dent Blues
Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez knows that Sunday's crucial meeting with Chelsea can contribute towards the outcome of the Premier League title race.
The Reds travel to London to take on their fierce rivals in determined mood as they aim to respond to critics who have already questioned their 2009/10 credentials.
Defeats to Tottenham and Aston Villa have already rocked Benitez's plans and allowed the doom-mongers to congregate around Anfield before August had come to an end.
But Liverpool have since stabilised in the league and their boss is adamant that there will still be plenty of ! twists in the battle for silverware as he aims to add pressure on Chelsea, who lost at Wigan last weekend.
Benitez told Sky Sports News: "It is always important when you play against the top sides because it can make a big difference.
"But you never know. It is important to do the right things and if you can win it is fantastic. If not, you have to keep going. It is an important game for both teams."
He added: "If we can win, it will be two defeats in a row for them. But my idea is always the same, it is a long race and there is still much to play."
Benitez heavily criticised his players in midweek following a comprehensive defeat at Fiorentina in the UEFA Champions League and he is expecting a reaction on Sunday.
But the former Valencia chief is also wary that Chelsea, who were unbeaten before their setback at Wigan, are looking to rediscover top gear.
He said: "Both teams will be desperate to win so we will! hopefully see a good game. You always have to go with the ide! a that y ou can win."
Benitez is set to renew rivalries with Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti on Sunday after twice crossing swords with the ex-AC Milan manager in UEFA Champions League finals.
Liverpool memorably got the better of Milan in 2005 in arguably the best European Cup final in history, however, Ancelotti's side gained revenge in 2007.
Benitez is therefore expecting another intriguing encounter with the Italian, saying: "It will be interesting because he is a great manager.
"We have played in the finals and, OK, it will be good to see him and hopefully we will see him again in another final.
"He knows how to manage a top side. He has experience at AC Milan where he did really well and here he is now doing a very good job with good players."
But Benitez - who has been critical in the past of the tactics from the Blues under former bosses Jose Mourinho, Avram Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari - does not think Ancelotti! has had a radical impact.
When asked if he had noticed any difference in Chelsea's approach this season, he said: "Not too much. He has changed the shape of the team a bit, but the style of football is similar."
The Reds travel to London to take on their fierce rivals in determined mood as they aim to respond to critics who have already questioned their 2009/10 credentials.
Defeats to Tottenham and Aston Villa have already rocked Benitez's plans and allowed the doom-mongers to congregate around Anfield before August had come to an end.
But Liverpool have since stabilised in the league and their boss is adamant that there will still be plenty of ! twists in the battle for silverware as he aims to add pressure on Chelsea, who lost at Wigan last weekend.
Benitez told Sky Sports News: "It is always important when you play against the top sides because it can make a big difference.
"But you never know. It is important to do the right things and if you can win it is fantastic. If not, you have to keep going. It is an important game for both teams."
He added: "If we can win, it will be two defeats in a row for them. But my idea is always the same, it is a long race and there is still much to play."
Benitez heavily criticised his players in midweek following a comprehensive defeat at Fiorentina in the UEFA Champions League and he is expecting a reaction on Sunday.
But the former Valencia chief is also wary that Chelsea, who were unbeaten before their setback at Wigan, are looking to rediscover top gear.
He said: "Both teams will be desperate to win so we will! hopefully see a good game. You always have to go with the ide! a that y ou can win."
Benitez is set to renew rivalries with Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti on Sunday after twice crossing swords with the ex-AC Milan manager in UEFA Champions League finals.
Liverpool memorably got the better of Milan in 2005 in arguably the best European Cup final in history, however, Ancelotti's side gained revenge in 2007.
Benitez is therefore expecting another intriguing encounter with the Italian, saying: "It will be interesting because he is a great manager.
"We have played in the finals and, OK, it will be good to see him and hopefully we will see him again in another final.
"He knows how to manage a top side. He has experience at AC Milan where he did really well and here he is now doing a very good job with good players."
But Benitez - who has been critical in the past of the tactics from the Blues under former bosses Jose Mourinho, Avram Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari - does not think Ancelotti! has had a radical impact.
When asked if he had noticed any difference in Chelsea's approach this season, he said: "Not too much. He has changed the shape of the team a bit, but the style of football is similar."
I Will Only Play For Spain If I Am 100 Per Cent - Fernando Torres
Fernando Torres has insisted that he will only play in Spain's final World Cup qualifier against Bosnia if he is 100 per cent fit and poured scorn on reports of a rift between Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez and the national team.
"I still have some discomfort and it will not be decided until Wednesday if I will play... Only if I'm OK I'll play," he told AS.
"The final decision depends on the coach. Along with the doctors, physios and myself, we decide what is best. Spain is qualified and this is not a time to take risks."
The striker pointed out that the absences of the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Carles Puyol and Xavi were in the best interests of the pla! yers, but he and Andres Iniesta had a chance to feature in the game and as a result stayed with the squad.
Daniel Guiza, Carlos Marchena and Xavi are all out through injury while Puyol is serving a suspension. Fabregas has been allowed to leave the squad for personal reasons.
"Xavi, [Carles] Puyol and Cesc have left because that was better for them. The coach decides. Andres and I are here because we have options to play."
"Rafa [Benitez] has been interested in my state, of course, because we have had a difficult month but he never pushed for me to leave."
"He spoke with doctors and they are in contact. I hope I am with amongst friends here. If I play, fine, if not, I have been very well cared for, working for Wednesday or for the weekend with my team [Liverpool]."
"I still have some discomfort and it will not be decided until Wednesday if I will play... Only if I'm OK I'll play," he told AS.
"The final decision depends on the coach. Along with the doctors, physios and myself, we decide what is best. Spain is qualified and this is not a time to take risks."
The striker pointed out that the absences of the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Carles Puyol and Xavi were in the best interests of the pla! yers, but he and Andres Iniesta had a chance to feature in the game and as a result stayed with the squad.
Daniel Guiza, Carlos Marchena and Xavi are all out through injury while Puyol is serving a suspension. Fabregas has been allowed to leave the squad for personal reasons.
"Xavi, [Carles] Puyol and Cesc have left because that was better for them. The coach decides. Andres and I are here because we have options to play."
"Rafa [Benitez] has been interested in my state, of course, because we have had a difficult month but he never pushed for me to leave."
"He spoke with doctors and they are in contact. I hope I am with amongst friends here. If I play, fine, if not, I have been very well cared for, working for Wednesday or for the weekend with my team [Liverpool]."
Liverpool Insiders Fear Fernando Torres May Quit Anfield
Liverpool fear another season of failure could spark Fernando Torres' departure from Anfield.
Nobody doubts the brilliant Spaniard's commitment to the Anfield cause. But since arriving from Atletico Madrid in a £20 million move 28 months ago even Torres' goal-scoring brilliance has not inspired the Reds to lift a trophy.
There is mounting concern that another barren campaign will prompt the striker's advisers to start pressing for a move to a more successful club.
That woul! d be a body-blow to the Anfield cause. A club insider said: "Fernando is a great lad and a fantastic player. We don't worry about his attitude but the issue will be if rival clubs start making it clear to his advisers that he can win more by joining them.
"He's hungry for success. We don't want to lose him."
Torres has scored 46 goals in 64 games for Liverpool. He is idolised by Liverpool fans and acknowledged as one of the world's finest strikers.
He also signed a new contract at Liverpool in August that ties him to the Anfield cause until 2013. But any hint that he is unfulfilled by life at Liverpool would be seized on by major rivals.
So far in his career the only club honour he's won is the Spanish Second Division title in 2002.
Nobody doubts the brilliant Spaniard's commitment to the Anfield cause. But since arriving from Atletico Madrid in a £20 million move 28 months ago even Torres' goal-scoring brilliance has not inspired the Reds to lift a trophy.
There is mounting concern that another barren campaign will prompt the striker's advisers to start pressing for a move to a more successful club.
That woul! d be a body-blow to the Anfield cause. A club insider said: "Fernando is a great lad and a fantastic player. We don't worry about his attitude but the issue will be if rival clubs start making it clear to his advisers that he can win more by joining them.
"He's hungry for success. We don't want to lose him."
Torres has scored 46 goals in 64 games for Liverpool. He is idolised by Liverpool fans and acknowledged as one of the world's finest strikers.
He also signed a new contract at Liverpool in August that ties him to the Anfield cause until 2013. But any hint that he is unfulfilled by life at Liverpool would be seized on by major rivals.
So far in his career the only club honour he's won is the Spanish Second Division title in 2002.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Show scored a success
From the Toronto Motorcycle Show
TORONTO, ON -- The Toronto Motorcycle Show is only three years old and is already considered a world class event. In December, it attracted almost 35,000 motorcycle enthusiasts to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre from all over Ontario.
"Our exhibit space was sold out with a waiting list more than a month before show time. The Toronto Motorcycle Show is firmly established as Toronto's premiere industry event," said Sherri Verdec, show manager of the Toronto Motorcycle Show.
There were more than 125 exhibitors on the almost 200,000 square foot exhibit floor.
The 2005 edition of the Toronto Motorcycle Show returns to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre from Friday, Dec. 2 to Sunday, Dec. 4.
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