Nigeria’s leading Sports betting company, Bet9ja has thrown its weight behind the 2014 edition of the Nigerian sports Awards by partnering with organizers- Unmissable Incentives Limited towards a successful hosting of the event.
According to the Chairman of Bet9ja, Mr. Kunle Soname, the sponsorship of 2014 edition of the Nigerian Sports Award is in line with the company’s belief in the vision of the award which is recognizing and rewarding excellence performance among Nigerian athletes.
“We are indeed very proud to come on board as a sponsor for the 3rd edition of the Nigerian Sports Award we hope to sustain the partnership for a long time in a manner that will be mutually beneficial to the award organisers and Bet9ja.” He said.
Soname stated that he feels honoured and elated to be one of the key personalities and dignitaries that will be presenting award to deserving sport personalities at the November 13 event billed to hold at the Muson Centre, Lagos.
In his own remarks the General Manger, Unmissable Incentive Limited, organizers of the award Mr. Kayode Idowu expresses appreciation to the company for the support which he noted will go a long way to deliver a world class event that the award is known for in the last two editions.
He promised that the organizers would do all within its power to ensure that Bet9ja enjoys maximum returns on the sponsorship through brand visibility before, during and after the event.
Idowu then used the medium to call on other brand owners and well-meaning individuals to emulate Bet9ja by supporting the Nigerian Sports Award to position it as the most prestigious sports award in Africa.
The great Dutch master, Jerich Parzival, claimed maximum points for The Netherlands’ Adelinde Cornelissen at the second leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League in Lyon, France tonight. Belying his 17 years, the big chestnut gelding who carried his rider to a double of series victories in 2011 and 2012 and who was runner-up at the opening leg of the series in Odense, Denmark two weeks ago, produced a lovely performance to post the highest score of 80.300 in the Grand Prix Freestyle. But the Dutch duo, who also claimed team and individual Freestyle bronze at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy two months ago, were closely followed by Germany’s Fabienne Lutkemeier and D’Agostino FRH in runner-up spot while another former FEI World Cup™ Dressage double-champion, Germany’s Ulla Salzgeber, slotted into third with Herzruf’s Erbe.
There were some very bright lights shining tonight, with an eye-catching performance from fourth-placed Danielle Heijkoop and Kingsley Siro for The Netherlands and a strong result for Sweden’s Patrik Kittel partnering the promising 10-year-old mare Deja who finished fifth.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the season so far, however, has been the emergence of Denmark’s Agnete Kirk Thinggaard and the 11-year-old Jojo AZ as a real force to be reckoned with. The pair, who finished fourth in the Dutch Championship earlier this year, lined up sixth in round one at Odense, and they showed that was no fluke when doing exactly the same this evening when, once again, they left some very big names in their wake.
Such is their success-rate of late, that they now share the top of the Western European Leaderboard alongside tonight’s winners with a total of 37 points to date.
Sporting ambition
The Danish rider combines her sporting ambition with a great deal of common sense, and the 31-year-old, who has only returned to competition after an eight-year absence while rearing her three young children, set tonight’s first serious target with a mark of 77.400 when last to go before the judging break.
Together, Thinggaard and Jojo AZ presented a Freestyle that was a pleasure to watch, including rock-solid piaffe, seamless transitions and tremendous symmetry with the musical score. Last time out they finished sixth behind Hans Peter Minderhoud and Glock’s Flirt. Tonight the Dutch pair had to settle for ninth place despite some very nice work from the 13-year-old mare.
And Thinggaard remained at the head of affairs until Patrik Kittel threw down a mark of 77.850 with Deja, thanks in no small measure to the Swedish rider’s proficient production of clockwork passage. With three now left to go, Germany’s Salzgeber raised the bar when posting 79.325 with Herzruf’s Erbe, the horse with which she finished third at the Reem Acra Final in Leipzig, Germany in 2011. But she was immediately demoted by Cornelissen and Parzival who bounced through their always-captivating routine and finished with their usual flourish to score 80.300.
Only Lutkemeier and D’Agostino could spoil their party now, and the German pair very nearly succeeded when earning a mark of 80.050 for a lovely test during which the 14-year-old gelding maintained an attractive outline.
Two-time series champions, Adelinde Cornelissen and Jerich Parzival NOP, won the second leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League at Lyon, France tonight. (FEI/Pierre Costabadie)
Lutkemeier and her horse have enjoyed a great year, following team gold at the FEI European Championships in Herning, Denmark in 2013 with team gold at this summer’s Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™. And the rider, who was reserve for the London 2012 Olympic Games, particularly enjoyed her success tonight as it came just three days after her 25th birthday. “D’Agostino gave me the best birthday present!” Lutkemeier said. “He was really super. He hadn’t done a Freestyle since last May, at the German Championship, so I’m really happy with how we finished! I rode the Special all the time coming up to Caen, but I always love competing in Freestyle and I was happy with him the whole way through his test today” she added. She continued, “this is his first show indoors and he was really concentrated, really good in the flying changes and the pirouettes particularly – I’m very, very happy!”
Reflected
Cornelissen meanwhile reflected on how things turned out for her over the last few days. It wasn’t completely plain-sailing with Jerich Parzival under the Lyon lights. “I know he is very experienced and really knows his job, but he was quite spooky yesterday in the Grand Prix and not full of confidence. I think the light in the arena was a bit different or something, but he turned into his old Jerich Parzival spooky self yesterday, so today I hoped he would be better and he was – a lot better and much more confident!”
To some extent however, his renewed confidence created its own problems today. “I could ride forward a lot more, he was going so well I wanted to let him go when he was happy to do it, but as a result I got a bit ahead of my music so that wasn’t perfect” Cornelissen explained.
She talked about how she keeps this great horse in such good shape at this late stage in his career. “I try to do as much of his work outdoors as I can, on the race-track and in the woods, doing piaffe and passage, that’s how I train him now rather than in the arena, although of course sometimes you have to go in the arena, especially before a competition. He’s top fit at the moment” she pointed out.
He certainly looked in great form tonight, and well on the road to challenging for his third Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage title when the 2014/2015 Final arrives in Las Vegas, USA in six months time.
The next leg will take place at Stuttgart, Germany on Saturday 22 November.
Result:
1, Jerich Parzival (Adelinde Cornelissen) NED 80.300; 2, D’Agostino FRH (Fabienne Lutkemeier) GER 80.050; 3, Herzuf’s Erbe (Ulla Salzgeber) GER 79.325; 4, Kingsley Siro (Danielle Heijkoop) NED 78.450; 5, Deja (Patrik Kittel) SWE 77.850; 6, Jojo AZ (Agnete Kirk Thinggaard) DEN 77.400; 7, Fixdesign Eremo del Castegno (Valentina Truppa) ITA 77.375; 8, Silvano (Dorothee Schneider) GER 76.875; 9, Glock’s Flirt (Hans Peter Minderhoud) NED 75.875; 10, Painted Black (Morgan Barbancon) ESP 73.975; 11, Smeyers Molberg (Marela Krinke Susmelj) SUI 73.900; 12, Noble Dream Concept Sol (Marc Boblet) FRA 71.950; 13, Finckenstein TSF (Rikke Svane) DEN 70.900; GB Cazzago C (Melanie Hofmann) SUI 70.675; 15, After You (Ludovic Henry) FRA 68.500.
Facts and Figures:
Lyon, France presented the second leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League tonight.
The League takes place over 9 competitions, and the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Final will take place at Las Vegas, USA from 15-19 April 2015.
Tonight’s winners were The Netherlands’ Adelinde Cornelissen and Jerich Parzival.
The judges for tonight’s competition were: At E, Ghislain Fouarge NED; At H, Christof Umbach LUX; At C, Isabelle Judet FRA; At M, Stephen Clarke GBR; At B, Katrina Wuest GER.
Yesterday’s preliminary Grand Prix was also won by Cornelissen and Jerich Parzival who scored a back-to-back double of Reem Acra victories in 2011 and 2012.
Tonight’s winning horse, Jerich Parzival NOP, was the oldest in the competition at the age of 17.
The youngest horse was the 10-year-old Swedish-bred mare, Deja, ridden by Sweden’s Patrik Kittel into fifth place.
Third-placed Ulla Salzgeber is a two-time FEI World Cup™ Dressage champion. Partnering the great Rusty, she came out on top at Aarhus in Denmark in 2001 and at ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands in 2002.
Quotes:
Adelinde Cornelissen NED, talking about her plans for Jerich Parzival: “my next plan is to do Stockholm at the end of November and then give him a bit of a break in December and January – to break the winter season in two – and see how he is then”.
Fabienne Lutkemeier GER: “It was a great pleasure to be part of the (world championship winning) team in Caen, and it has been a wonderful 12 months for me, Aachen was great this summer too. My next target in the Reem Acra leg in Stuttgart in three weeks’ time”.
Standings after Round 2 of Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League at Lyon, FRA:
1. Adelinde Cornelissen NED – 37
1. Agnete Kirk Thinggaard DEN – 37
3. Valentina Truppa ITA – 30
4. Inna Logutenkova UKR – 29
5. Ulla Salzgeber GER – 28
6. Fabienne Lutkemeier GER – 24
7. Marcela Krinke Susmelj SUI – 23
7. Morgan Barbancon Mestre ESP – 23
9. Malin Hamilton SWE – 22
10. Edward Gal NED – 20
10. Hans Peter Minderhoud NED – 20
10. Jessica von Bredow-Werndl GER – 20
– Jurgen Klopp has warned Bayern Munich that their recent attacks on Borussia Dortmund will come back to haunt them. “I believe life is fair and if you misbehave while you are successful, you will get it back one day,when both teams are at the top, it can also be fun to react to those things, but currently that’s just not part of it.” He said
– According to reports in Germany, Schalke have opened contract talks with Netherlands striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar with the 31-year-old’s current deal over at the end of the
2014-15 season.
– Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola believes Borussia Dortmund remain a strong side despite their poor start to the Bundesliga season. “We are expecting strong opponents who can
deliver fast counter-attacks,we will try and play like we did during this season so far. But it’s a special game, and we recently lost 3-0 against BVB [in April]. Our style will be important. We must play well — otherwise we will lose.”
And he went on to praise BVB as “an outstanding team,” adding: “That’s the reason why always have difficulties against them. We need to win tomorrow to maintain our lead. It’s still October, and BVB are still our competitor. But, of course, there are also Gladbach, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim.” He said
– Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has accused Borussia Dortmund of double standards over their furious reaction to his comments on Marco Reus’ contractual situation.
“How is the situation different to his move to Dortmund?Thanks to the buy-out clause, BVB managed to prise Marco away from Monchengladbach.” He said
Bundesliga MatchWeek 10 fixtures;
Hamburger SV V Bayer Leverkusen
Hannover 96 V Eintracht Frankfurt
Mainz 05 V Werder Bremen
VfB Stuttgart V Wolfsburg
Bayern Munich V Borussia Dortmund
B.Monchengladbach V Hoffenheim
FC Cologne V Freiburg
Paderborn V Hertha Berlin
News from France;
– Eric Cantona has hailed Marcelo Bielsa as a football maverick, comparing the Marseille boss to Jose Mourinho. “I don’t support Marseille much, but I like Bielsa,I think he’s got
charisma, he’s a character. He has personality, he knows football. He’s a kind of Mourinho. I love all those guys. I like that they call into question journalists’ opinions. Something always happens at their press conferences, and it doesn’t stop them
winning.” He said
– According to L’Equipe, Marseille striker André-Pierre Gignac threw a punch at Ivorian international Brice Dja Djédjé at a training session on Thursday. They were separated by their teammates, the two men then talked it out in a more peaceful manner.
– Lille’s manager Rene Girard has received a four game touchline ban after being sent off against Lyon for protesting Lacazette’s opening goal in
the match. Girard already had a 1 match suspended ban from a match against Monaco in August, so a further three has now been added, but he will be able to be in the dugout for this
weekend’s game against St-Etienne.
– Marseille central midfielder Benoit Cheyrou has confirmed the termination of his contract with the club. “My contract with Olympique de Marseille has been terminated, I am free from all engagement, I am no longer under contract with Marseille from today onwards. That is why I wanted to communicate my situation today, I couldn’t do it while the procedure was ongoing and incomplete.” He said
– OFFICIAL: Adrien Rabiot signs new five year contract with Paris Saint-Germain.
French Ligue 1 Matchweek 12 fixtures;
Lorient V Paris Saint Germain
Guingamp V Bastia
Lille V Saint Etienne
Metz V Caen
Montpellier V Evian Thonon Gaillard
Nice V Lyon
Nantes V Rennes
Bordeaux V Toulouse
Marseille V Lens
News from Italy;
– Fernando Torres says he left Chelsea for AC Milan in the summer because he did not feel important at Stamford Bridge. “Mourinho has always been good to me. The decision to leave was a personal one because I needed more, I needed to feel important. Mourinho and I have a good relationship and still today we continue to talk to each other.” He said
– Rafael Benitez says that the game against Rudi Garcia’s Roma can set Napoli’s season back on track. “Yes tomorrow’s game is an opportunity to show our ambitions once again. We have seen that every team can drop points so we are aware that if we win we can close the gap.
Tactically, Roma are fast on the counter, they are aggressive in defence and when they have to win the ball back. They pass the ball well so it will also be down to our attitude, because if we can keep the ball, they will try to break on the counter, otherwise it will be the other way round.”He said
– Jeremy Menez says that Milan have the right squad to finish third in Serie A. “It would be a shame not to qualify for the Champions League, given the squad we’ve got,i don’t know whether we can challenge to win the League, but this League has been strange so far – Juventus and Roma are the strongest, but there’s no truth in football so we’ll fight until the end and then we’ll see.” He said
– Roberto Donadoni has brushed off speculation regarding his future at Parma and allayed fears about off-field issues affecting the squad.
“I just think about what I do and give my best. I leave the rest to those who feel the need to think about [my future],with the President I talk two or three times a week and nothing has changed.” He said
-Adriano Galliani reveals Silvio Berlusconi’s marks for Milan and Pippo Inzaghi. “At this moment it is seven to the players and eight to the Coach. His main advice is scoring goals and he told the players something he also told Mario Balotelli about winning and scoring goals. He is really able to convey positivity.” He said
Italian Serie A Matchweek 10 fixtures;
Napoli V Roma
Empoli V Juventus
Parma V Inter
ChievoVerona V Sassuolo
Sampdoria V Fiorentina
Torino V Atalanta
Udinese V Genoa
AC Milan V Palermo
Cesena V Hellas Verona
Lazio V Cagliari
News from Spain;
– Carlo Ancelotti has insisted Gareth Bale remains one of Real Madrid’s most important players. “Nobody should get angry because Bale deserves to play. He is one of the best
players in the world, and one of the most important players in this squad. What has changed [is not Bale’s absence] but the attitude of the team without the ball. Now it is easier to
attack.” He said
– Barcelona centre-back Marc Bartra says he is surprised that Luis Suarez is not on the Ballon d’Or shortlist. “I’m surprised,it’s true. I think he had a spectacular year. He’s a great player, he is one of the best strikers in the world and I think he deserves to be there on the shortlist.” Bartra said
– Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone backed forward Antoine Griezmann to start delivering. “I speak with [Griezmann] a lot,he is very young, and is adapting to a different system. He is a winger, and we think he can be a more complete player. He has agreed to commit himself to this. We are trying to take advantage of his qualities: diagonal runs, turns, pace. It will take time, but we need the youngster to begin to be a man and be an important player.” He said
– Barcelona coach Luis Enrique says he hopes last week’s painful clasico defeat is just a minor setback on the road to success this season. “It has not been hard for me to lift the team’s spirits,these types of defeats hurt, but we all know that during the season we will pass through moments like this. There are always good moments and bad moments.
Defeats are always painful, but you cannot always live on a rollercoaster. There is no sense
in thinking you must speed up because you have lost. The champion knows how to come through moments of difficulty, so we try and keep everything in perspective.” Enrique said
– Zinedine Zidane will continue as Coach of Real Madrid Castilla for now after an injunction against his three-month ban was obtained.
Spanish BBVALiga Matchweek 10 fixtures;
Granada V Real Madrid
Atletico Madrid V Cordoba
Barcelona V Celta Vigo
Real Sociedad V Malaga
Athletic Bilbao V Sevilla
Villarreal V Valencia
Levante V Almeria
Elche V Espanyol
Rayo Vallecano V Eibar
Barclays Premier League
News from England;
– Jose Mourinho has confirmed that Diego Costa is available for Chelsea’s home match against QPR on Saturday after three weeks out, but stressed that the striker needs “special care”.
“The only thing I can say is what everybody knows which is the time he was having problems in Chelsea and the way we managed to keep him playing,but after the national team we lost him for four matches. Crystal Palace, Maribor, Shrewsbury and Man United four matches in three different competitions. Now he’s again available, but he needs obviously to be again under special care. We are going to do that. It’s the only thing we can do nothing else. He’s available. That’s good for us. It’s difficult with only one striker available. When you have two, obviously the situation improves. We don’t have [John Obi] Mikel it’s not good for us. He’s always an option. But the fact we have recovered Ramires is a compensation for that loss. So the situation is a bit better.” He said
– Manchester United striker Radamel Falcao has been ruled out of Sunday’s derby against Manchester City through injury, but Louis van Gaal has confirmed Wayne Rooney is fit and will
start. “Rooney was not injured, the media was writing that,he was never injured. Maybe his shoes were too tight, that is possible, but he was never injured. He shall play, he is my captain. That is all I can say to you because he is my captain and he shall play. Falcao is still injured.” van Gaal said
– Manchester City midfielder David Silva will miss Sunday’s derby against Manchester United and faces up to four weeks out with a knee injury, manager Manuel Pellegrini has confirmed.
– Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere will miss Saturday’s Premier League game against Burnley at the Emirates Stadium, but manager Arsene Wenger has stressed that his latest injury setback is not serious.
“It is a very, very short-term problem. He got a kick on his knee. I don’t know if Tuesday will be too early for him or not. At the moment he doesn’t practice, but certainly Swansea [next weekend] yes.” He said
– Manchester United are in talks with AC Milan regarding the possibility of a mid-season friendly match. Milan director Umberto Gandini said: “This is something we have been talking about for a few weeks and we
have a committed interest to do something together. It’s just a question to find the right date and
then to find the right place.”
– Arsene Wenger believes it is too early to say whether Chelsea can match the
Arsenal Invincibles side of the 2003-04 season.
– Uefa has imposed partial stadium closures and fines on Romania and Hungary after their ill-tempered Euro 2016 qualifier. UEFA announced on Friday that its Control, Ethics
and Disciplinary body has decided that both countries should play their next home matches in partially closed grounds, while also fining the Romanian Football Federation €32,000 and its Hungarian counterpart €30,000.
– A suspect has appeared in court in South Africa over the killing of national football captain Senzo Meyiwa. The man, named as Zanokuhle Mbatha,faces charges of murder and armed robbery and will appear again on 11 November. Police had offered a reward for information on the attack.
After an exciting day one at the ongoing independence Rugby Sevens Tournamment, eight teams qualify for the cup quarterfinals scheduled to hold tomorrow 1st November 2014 at the Onikan Stadium Lagos.
The Cup quarter final fixture is as follows;
1. Plateau Tigers RFC vs South-South RFC
2. Barewa RFC vs Zaria RFC
3. Cowrie RFC vs Royal Stallions RFC
4. Police Machine will take on Racing RFC.
The bottom teams in each groups are Abia Buffalos RFC, Abuja RFC and Gosah RFC. They will battle for the Bowl silverware tomorrow.
Abuja RFC
Tournament Manager, Fasimoye Olatunji praised the teams for a good showing today. “The grand finale tomorrow will go down to the wire. we implore all rugby fans to come all out tomorrow Saturday to watch some fantastic 7s rugby.
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