Commenting on Glasgow 2014’s Number One Ranking in the YouGov Sports Index 2015 Annual Report, David Grevemberg, formerly Chief Executive of Glasgow 2014, and now Chief Executive of the Commonwealth Games Federation said:
“It’s such a fantastic thank you to everyone who put such energy and effort into the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games to know that people across the UK ranked us as their number one positive world sporting experience of 2014.
What a great way to mark exactly six months on from an Opening Ceremony which launched a festival of sport and culture which people across the Scotland, the UK, Commonwealth and beyond could feel part of.
Six months on, the athletes of the Commonwealth who competed, the thousands of volunteers and staff who delivered the Games and the people of Glasgow and Scotland who were the warmest of hosts can feel hugely proud of their achievements, the pleasure they shared and the special place they’ve won in the nation’s hearts.”
Here are the top transfer rumours, done deals and football transfer gist making the rounds as compiled by our man Paul Ayorinde.
you can follow Paul on twitter: @El_Pauleta on twitter and also follow @NewFanzone and we will follow you right back, lets keep the discussion going
Done Deal:
– Swansea have completed the signing of Kyle Naughton from Tottenham for a reportedly fee of £5 million.
– Belgian centre-back Laurent Ciman has signed a three-year deal with the Montreal Impact.
– Evian have confirmed the loan signing of Dany Nounkeu from Galatasaray until the end of the season
– Real Madrid have completed the signing of 16-year old Martin Odegaard from Norwegian club Stromsgodset.
– Bordeaux have completed the signing of Isaac Kiese Thelin from Malmo on a four year deal.
– Sampdoria have completed the signings of Andrea Coda and Luis Muriel from Udinese.
Today’s football reports and transfer rumours:
Arsenal Target Gabriel Paulista
– Lazio president Claudio Lotito has fuelled speculation that his club could sign Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli after failing to rule out a move for the Italy international.
– Inter Milan sporting director Piero Ausilio is flying to England today in an attempt to seal a deal for Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva
– Arsene Wenger has confirmed Arsenal’s interest in Villarreal defender Gabriel Paulista. “Can we find an agreement? I don’t know. We are slowly progressing and there is a chance,it is 20 million euros [being discussed], which is 15 million pounds. We are ready to pay the price we think is right for a good player. If we think it is the right price, we will pay.” Wenger said
– Real Madrid have reopened talks with Cruzeiro over the signing of Lucas Silva, according to the midfielder’s father.
– Toulouse are reportedly interested in signing Levante midfielder Pape Diop
Roberto Martinez and Samuel Etoo. photo credit Evertonfc
– Samuel Eto’o is “sat on a plane” waiting for clearance to complete his move to Sampdoria, according to the Italian club’s president Massimo Ferrero.
– Marco Verratti’s agent has insisted his client will not serve as a makeweight should Paris Saint-Germain attempt to move for Juventus’ Paul Pogba.
– Sassuolo’s sporting director Nereo Bonato insists Simone Zaza will stay with the club until June amidst links to Juventus.
– According to reports,West Bromwich Albion striker Georgios Samaras is poised to sign for Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal on a six-month loan with a view to the move becoming permanent.
– According to reports,Newcastle are ready to make a bid for highly-rated MK Dons midfielder Dele Alli
– According to reports,Chelsea will only sign Juan Cuadrado from Fiorentina by paying his £26.5million release clause.
– Real Madrid are reportedly interested in Milan’s 16-year-old prodigy Hachim Mastour.
– Manchester United are reportedly tracking Wolfsburg star Kevin de Bruyne.
– Sampdoria are reportedly interested in signing Juventus midfielder Luca Marrone.
– The agent of Atletico Madrid’s Mario Suarez says there has been no ‘concrete’ interest from Inter for his client.
– Hamburg are reportedly preparing a January swoop for Inter midfielder Zdravko Kuzmanovic.
Borussia Dortmund
– It’s reported that Borussia Dortmund have submitted a bid of €26m for Radja Nainggolan, co-owned by Roma and Cagliari.
– Manchester United have opened discussions to sign 16-year-old Paraguayan striker Sergio Diaz from Cerro Porteno.
– Swansea are looking at Blackburn striker Jordan Rhodes as a potential replacement for Ivory Coast forward Wilfried Bony.
– PSV captain Georginio Wijnaldum has admitted to being approached by PSG last summer, but says that he thought he would develop his game in the best possible way by staying in Holland.
– St Etienne’s 16 year old sensation Rayan Souici looks set to reject interest from Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City and remain at Les Verts for the foreseeable future.
– The agent of Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea has suggested that the Real Madrid target may not remain at Old Trafford for the entirety of his contract, remarking that “things change every five minutes”
– Tottenham have emerged as favourites to sign Yevhen Konoplyanka after Roma ended their interest in the Dnipro winger.
– According to reports, Barcelona defender Martin Montoya is closing in on a move to Marseille.
Football tit bits:
– Gabonese media have accused the team of being “paralysed by fear” after the Panthers suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat by Congo.
– Equatorial Guinean fans and police engaged in running battles outside the stadium in Bata after supporters were denied entry to the match against Burkina Faso.
– DELOITTE MONEY LEAGUE -10 RICHEST TEAMS (2013-14);
1. Real Madrid, £459.5 million
2. Manchester United, £433.2 million
3. Bayern Munich, £407.7 million
4. Barcelona, £405.2 million
5. Paris Saint-Germain, £396.5 million
6. Manchester City, £346.5 million
7. Chelsea, £324.4 million
8. Arsenal, £300.5 million
9. Liverpool, £255.8 million
10. Juventus, £233.6 million
– Brendan Rodgers insists Liverpool will be capable of a Premier League title challenge next season. “This season was always going to be difficult for us. We weren’t going to challenge for the league this year. That was the reality. Next season we will be able to challenge for the league again.” Rodgers said
– Bafana Bafana striker Thuso Phala says they are prepared to fight to the end to get out of the deep hole they find themselves in. “We all come from teams who have lost games before; we have all been in a hole before. We came together as players and spoke about it. We keep motivating ourselves because we know we are a good team and we will come back strongly in the remaining two games. Senegal has big boys who play overseas and they play good football. They beat Ghana which shows they are no pushovers. We knew coming to this tournament that all our first three games are going to be difficult. So against Senegal we must just go there and take our chances and win that game.” Phala said
Russian riders dominate in Central Europe while Canada’s Pavicic heads North American League and Australia’s Ryan leads Pacific series, by Louise Parkes
Russian riders were absolutely dominant when taking the top three, as well as five of the top six placings in the FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Central European League which drew to a close at Kaposvar, Hungary last October. Elena Sidneva pipped last year’s winner Tatiana Dorofeeva for the title, while Inessa Merkulova clinched third place for the second year in a row. Only Estonia’s Dina Ellermann managed to prevent a complete Russian whitewash of the top six when slotting into fourth ahead of Marina Aframeeva and Vera Khalikova in fifth and sixth spots.
Sidneva sealed the series victory when finishing fourth at the final leg, and finished a full five points ahead of runner-up Dorofeeva.
The 10-leg North American League meanwhile will reach its halfway stage this week in Wellington, Florida with Canada’s Karen Pavicic out in front, while Australia’s Heath Ryan leads the Pacific series with just one last event to run.
Central Europe
Competition in the Central European series was strong, and 50-year-old Sidneva made a good start when finishing fourth at the opening leg at Lipica, Slovenia last May. Her score of 73.425 with Romeo Star left her close behind third-placed Uwe Schanz and Di Sandro whose German counterparts, brother and sister Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and Benjamin Werndl, filled the top two places. Jessica went on to make another big impression in the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League with her horse, Unee BB, in more recent months and the rider, who recently turned 29, is currently lying 10th in the world rankings list.
Austrian-based Sidneva did not line out at the second leg staged in Nizhnly Novgorod where Russian riders proved unbeatable on their home turf, with Inessa Merkulova and Mister X pipping Marina Aframeeva and Vosk while last season’s Central European champion, Dorofeeva, slotted into third with Kartsevo Upperville ahead of Vera Khalikova (Ucordo) in fourth. The first visitor to get into the Freestyle line-up here was Bulgaria’s Katsiaryna Varchenia who posted 67.025 with Daily Double for fifth place.
The multiple world-record-breaking British partnership of Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro claimed the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014 title at Lyon, France last April. The 2014/2015 Western European League qualifying season begins this weekend at Odense in Denmark. (FEI/Dirk Caremans)
Secured her grip
When Sidneva returned to action in the third leg at Brno in the Czech Republic however she firmly secured her grip on the leaderboard with a big win ahead of Italy’s Leonardo Tiozzo. Sidneva produced the only score over 70 per cent when posting 75.100, while runner-up Tiozzo, who just over a year ago took up the ride on the FEI World Cup™ Dressage veteran gelding, Randon, which was formerly competed by Poland’s Michal Rapcewicz, earned a mark of 69.900. Estonia’s Dina Ellerman was back in the ribbons when third here on a score of 69.600 with Landy S Akvarel.
Sidneva did not attend the next three legs, at Moscow where home starters again stole the show as Regina Isachkina (Diaz) pipped Dorofeeva (Kartsevo Upperville), at Czosnow in Poland where Ukraine’s Inna Logutenkova (Don Gregorious) pinned Poland’s Anna Lukasik (Stella Pack Ganda) into second place and at Tailinn, Estonia where Merkulova produced her second win of the season. Merkulova’s big-moving Trekehner, Mister X, posted 76.875 to pin Logutenkova’s Don Gregorious into runner-up spot here, and the result left Merkulova just three points behind league leader Dorofeeva with just one last leg remaining.
But the leading pair didn’t feature at the final round in Kaposvar, so the 13 valuable points collected by Sidneva for her fourth-place finish were enough to clinch the Central European series title by a five-point margin.
North America
Canadian riders have enjoyed tremendous success over the first five rounds of the 10-leg North American League which is currently headed by Karen Pavicic from Surrey, British Columbia. Partnering Don Daiquiri, the 13-year-old Oldenburg gelding with which she competed at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy, France, the 43-year-old rider heads America’s Catherine Haddad Staller and Mane Stream Hotmail by a narrow margin at the halfway stage of the series, while Pavicic’s fellow-countrywoman, Jacqueline Brooks from Cedar Valley, Ontario currently lies third.
The League began at Palgrave, Ontario last June where it was an all-Canadian affair at the top of the scoreboard as Diane Creech (Devon L) pipped Belinda Trussell (Anton) for pole position while Megan Lane (Caravella) slotted into third ahead of Brooks and her 2012 Olympic mount, D Niro.
The next two legs were staged at Saugerties, New York in August and September, with Toronto-born Ashley Holzer coming out on top at the first event with her stallion, Dressed in Black, before Brooks posted a win at the following fixture with D Niro.
Holzer then brought out the lovely mare Tiva Nana to top the line-up at Devon in Pennsylvania, USA in September with a big score of 76.125 while her Canadian colleague Pavicic pulled in second with Don Daiquiri on 73.575 ahead of Haddad Staller and Mane Stream Hotmail in third on 73.100.
And at the first of the two legs to be staged in Wellington, Florida this month, it was Denmark’s Lars Petersen who stole the limelight with a lovely performance from the evergreen 17-year-old mare, Mariette. A great score of 78.325 gave this sparkling pair more than four percentage points of an advantage over their Danish counterparts, Mikala Munter Gundersson and My Lady who earned a mark of 74.075 for second place. Both riders are eligible for points in the North American series, but those collected by Sweden’s Caroline Darcourt for third with Paridon Magic are accounted for in the Western European League.
Catherine Haddad Staller finished fourth with Mane Stream Hotmail, and although Pavicic and Don Daiquiri had to settle for fifth this time out they find themselves edging the American partnership by just 0.035 points at the top of the leaderboard going into the sixth leg of the series at the same venue this weekend.
The best two qualifying scores for each horse-and-rider combination are taken into account to decide the final North American League placings, so there is still some way to go in this series which will draw to a close at San Juan Capistrano, California in March.
Ingrid Klimke (GER) and Horseware Hale Bob, joint leaders with William Fox-Pitt (GBR) and Parklane Hawk after today’s Dressage phase, are ready to take on tomorrow’s Cross Country at Les Etoiles de Pau, the opening leg of the FEI Classics™ 2014/2015. (Trevor Holt/FEI)
Pacific
Meanwhile the Pacific League draws to a close this coming weekend when the last event in the four-leg series takes place at Boneo in Australia.
It all began in Brisbane last July with a win for Chantal Wigan and Ferero ahead of Katharine Farrell and Luxor in second and Sue Hearn with Remmington in third.
Then Heath Ryan won the next two legs at Sydney and Melbourne with the Oldenberg, Regardez Moi. London 2012 Olympic competitor, Mary Hanna, was runner-up in Sydney with Umbro ahead of Brett Parbery (DP Weltmeiser) in third, Caroline Wagner (Tango V) in fourth and Sue Hearn (Remmington) in fifth while Heath Ryan also steered Utopian Cardinal into sixth place for good measure.
Hearn and Remmington then rocketed back up to second place at Melbourne ahead of Katharine Farrell (Luxor) and Parbery (DP Weltmeiser). Hearn’s mark of 70.725 left her just over a single mark behind Ryan and well within the qualification criteria for the regional Final.
In order to be eligible for selection for the Pacific League Final, combinations must have competed at a CDI-W or CDI3* qualifying event on at least one occasion in the preceding 12 months, and must have gained a minimum of at least 64 percent in the Grand Prix Freestyle.
The winner of the Grand Prix Freestyle at next weekend’s Final in Boneo, Victoria will qualify for the much-anticipated Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Final in Las Vegas, USA in April, so it’s still all to play for over the coming days.
Germany’s Kristina Sprehe and Desperados FRH finished at the top of the leaderboard after Day 1 of the Dressage Team Championship at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 at Stade D’Ornano in Caen, France. (Dirk Caremans/FEI)
FEI World Cup ™ Dressage Central European League 2014/2015 – Final result :
1. Elena Sidneva RUS – 48
2. Tatiana Dorofeeva RUS – 43
3. Inessa Merkulova RUS – 40
4. Dina Ellerman EST – 35
5. Marina Aframeeva RUS – 28
6. Vera Khalikova RUS – 26
7. Anna Lukasik POL – 24
8. Aleksandra Szulc POL – 22
The world’s best AIBA Pro Boxers are set to do battle to be the first Champions of the AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) competition running from 23 January to 19 February for each of the 10 weight categories.
Launched in October 2014, APB is a ground breaking new Pro Boxing competition based on individual rankings that offers elite boxers an unprecedented new career opportunity as well as a new route to qualify for the Olympics, with a total of 20 quota places on offer to APB boxers.
APB is the first and only individual competition in the history of boxing that allows Pro Boxers to compete whilst retaining their Olympic eligibility, with Rio 2016 set to be the first Olympic Games in history with Pro Boxers competing.
The matches of the initial pre-ranking and ranking phases of the competition took place in Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, China, France, Italy, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkey – and provided many epic bouts, as well as often producing surprising results.
The APB Inaugural Champion contenders, per weight, are as follows:
LIGHT FLY 49kg (Foshan, China – 05/02): Zhonglin WU (China) vs Bin LYU (China)
FLY 52kg (Novosibirsk, Russia – 30/01): Misha ALOIAN (Russia) vs Elias EMIGDIO (Mexico)
BANTAM 56kg (Paris, France – 19/02): Khedafi Djelkhir (FRA) vs Alberto MELIAN (ARG)
In view of the sub Zonal Beach-Volley competition to be held as from 30th January 2015 in Seychelles, Mauritius has already chosen their teams after a competition held on the 18th January 2015 at Flic en Flac.
12 pairs were engaged on the men side as 8 pairs competed in the ladies category.
After an epic journey, favourite pair Gilbert Alfred/Eric Louise finished first, beating in final Olivier Alfred/Stephane Mooneesamy 2-0 (21-11, 21-14).
These two pairs will be representing Mauritius on the man side and will be accompanied by Nathalie Letendrie/Rachel Christine and Stephanie Louise/Christelle Parsooramen. The latter lost in final by 0-2 (13-21, 17-21).
The competition was under the supervision of Kaysee Teeroovengadum, President of Zone 7 as Reza Itoola acted as Director of the competition.
The Nigeria Rugby Football Federation has set all machinery in motion to consolidate the tremendous achievements recorded in 2014.
With the issue of funding being the primary challenge facing most federations in Nigeria, President of the federation, Sir Edward Pam Fom is hopeful that they can hit the ground running in 2015 with the exploration of new terrains through sponsorship from corporate sponsors which will reduce their over-dependence on the National Sports Commission.
Despite his displeasure in the low budget used in executing their programs last year, he hailed the National Sport Commission for their unflinching support in 2014 during preparations of the Black Stallions for international competitions held in Botswana and Zimbabwe. “The Federal Government on their part have tried, I appreciate the efforts of the Director General of the National Sports Commission Honorable Gbenga Elegbeleye, for approving training facilities and putting things in place for the Black Stallions, We had two international outings last year and they were both sponsored by CMB Building Maintenance & Investment Company Limited but the funds used for preparing the 15s and 7s National Teams for these tournaments is yet to be released by NSC.” Fom Pam said.
Speaking further, Fom Pam hinted that the federations have concluded all arrangements to consolidate its different sevens tournaments in 2015 one of which is the independence sevens which was held at the Onikan Stadium last year and was sponsored by CMB Building.
Tunji Fasimoye – VP NRFF,
“We want to maximize our seven series in Nigeria, embark on periodic high performance training which will start in February, we want to do our utmost best to get the best quality out of the players we have onboard.”
Corroborating the President’s declaration, Vice President/Technical Director of the federation, Olatunji Fasimoye revealed that concrete plans are in top gear for a formidable Black Stallions 15s and 7s teams in a bid to give the National team an identity which intending corporate sponsors can easily identify with.
He said the National Teams will no longer be an all-comers affair based on the reports submitted by the Technical committee of the NRFF, which was extensively deliberated upon at the last Annual General Meeting held in Lagos in December 2014.
Black Stallions 7s at the CAR 7s 2014 held in Zimbabwe
“We don’t want to attend international engagement with different squads. We are going to focus on a mix of the home and foreign players, we will keep a pool of around sixty players who will periodically practice together and the national team will be selected from this pool.
Nzube Anaezemba says he expects that this year’s Glo Premier League Super-4 Tournament will be a much more enjoyable tournament for him compared to last season’s experience. The midfielder recounts how he spent last season’s tourney without even making a substitute appearance in all the matches Enyimba played enroute winning the tournament.
Nzube in a chat with http://www.npfl.ng said, “Last year was a very painful experience for me. It was my first experience in the Glo League Super-4 but I did not start or play for one minute. I was eager to play but I was not named, so I watched from the bench. It will be better not to travel than to sit on the bench and nobody is considering you. Last year’s Super-4 was for me a time to watch from the bench and perhaps study the tournament.
Enyimba’s Starting 11
“The same thing also happened in the Champions League games Enyimba played before being knocked out. I wanted to play but I was not selected. It was not the right start to the season but I am a player that loves to take my chances. So when the new coach came, he showed faith in me and gave me the chance to play and I showed him what I can do. So for this Super-4, my expectation is that I will play”, the diminutive midfielder disclosed to http://www.npfl.ng.
Enyimba’s preseason preparations have been far from ideal with the team just able to start training earlier this week. The 22 year old acknowledges that it might impact on their performance at the tournament but insists that the team will give their best as always.
“We have not prepared well because we resumed late. Our preparation has not been very good at all but we will try our best. The Chairman said we are not going there to win the cup but to regain our fitness and prepare for the Champions League. But for me, I want to go there and win. This is why I am personally taking the Super-4 seriously because i want to get fit and ready for the Champions League which I have never played in before”. Nzube pointed out.
Despite Enyimba’s heroics last season which saw them beat Dolphins in the Federations Cup finals and finish runners up in the League, they have not been able to repeat their phenomenal run in the CAF Champions League that saw them win it back to back 11 years ago. Nzube however says mentally they are battle ready and the new signings look very good and will help the cause.
“We did well last season but last season has come and gone. We want to keep that momentum and to keep fighting. We are competing on three fronts so we will fight and fight on all three fronts especially in the champions league. This is my first champions league and it means so much to me.
“The club has also signed some players and the players that were signed are very good from what we have seen in training. I think they will help us win trophies and achieve our targets for the season”.
Enyimba kick off their Super-4 campaign against the Flying Eagles in the second match of the ten-day tourn
Astana Arlans Kazakhstan Seek Win Number Two Away To Rafako Hussars Poland
After their opening win in Season V of the World Series of Boxing (WSB), Astana Arlans Kazakhstan travel to Lubin, as they face Rafako Hussars Poland who are looking for their first WSB victory following a loss away in Puerto Rico.
On Friday 23rd January, 20:30 (GMT +1) fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand at AIBABoxingTV.com.
The night begins at Flyweight (52 kg) and features Hamza Touba who featured for Team Germany last season now representing Poland against Olzhas Sattibayev who is one of the toughest members of the Astana Arlans squad.
Lightweight (60 kg) Polish fighter Dawid Michelus won the bronze medal at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games and he fights former Kazakhstan National Champion Zakir Safiullin.
An intriguing clash at Welterweight (69 kg) follows between Northern Ireland’s 2014 Commonwealth Games bronze medalist Steven Donnelly who is competing for Poland this season, against Madiyar Ashkeyev, who achieved the performance of his life in September’s “Clash of Champions” as he beats Roniel Iglesias Sotolongo via split decision.
Week 2 Rafako Hussars Poland vs Astana Arlans Kazakhstan
The penultimate fight is at Light heavyweight (81 kg) with Poland’s WSB veteran Mateusz Jerzy Tryc facing Croatia’s Hrvoje Sep who has amassed over 20 fights in this competition, including many wins for his Franchise Astana Arlans Kazakhstan.
Another Croatian representing Kazakhstan competes in the main event, as Filip Hrgovic who was ranked in the top three Super heavyweights (91+ kg) last season takes on Poland’s Pawel Wierzbicki who is a former AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships medalist.
Russian Boxing Team Make Their Season V Debut Against China Dragons
WEEK 1 Match Ukraine Otamans vs Mexico Guerreros
Following the postponement of their week one World Series of Boxing (WSB) match, Russian Boxing Team make their first appearance of Season V against China Dragons, who narrowly lost 3-2 to British Lionhearts in London, England last week.
This time the Dragons are at home with the Mangrovetree Convention Center the venue in Sanya, and On Friday 23rd January, 19:30 (GMT +8) fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand at AIBABoxingTV.com.
The first fight of the night is at Flyweight (52 kg) and features the speedy Hu Jianguan against Russia’s Vyacheslav Tashkarakov who competed well in WSB last season.
Lightweight (60 kg) Chinese sensation Wang Lei reached the latter stages of many international tournaments during 2014, and he opens his account in this competition against Russia’s Adlan Abdurashidov who was the top Lightweight seed in Season II of WSB.
A former WSB competitor, Liu Wei returns at Welterweight (69 kg) for China Dragons against Radzhab Butaev who claimed an impressive win last season against Denys Berinchyk.
China’s Aolin Zhang is ranked in the top 15 of the AIBA Light Heavyweight rankings, and he will hope to impress in the same weight class in WSB when he squares off against Russia’s former national junior boxing Champion Vladimir Shishkin.
In the main event of the evening, the Super Heavyweights (91+ kg) are in action, with the powerful Wang Zhibao competing against Russia’s Gasan Gimbatov who is looking to fulfill his undoubted potential this season.
Ukraine Otamans And British Lionhearts Bid To Remain Undefeated In Kiev
Ukraine Otamans vs British Lionhearts
Group A in Season V of the World Series of Boxing (WSB) is packed full of world class Franchises, and both Ukraine Otamans plus their week two opponents British Lionhearts won their opening contests.
On Friday 23rd January, 21:30 (GMT +2) fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand at AIBABoxingTV.com.
Ukraine return to the Acco International Exhibition Center, Kiev, which was the scene of their first round 4-1 win over Mexico Guerreros, while British Lionhearts travel away for the first time in WSB this season, after their 3-2 win over China Dragons.
The first match of the evening is at Flyweight (52 kg) between Azat Usenaliev of Ukraine Otamans, and two-time AIBA World Championships medalist Andrew Selby of Wales who is representing the Lionhearts this season.
Usenaliev had an impressive victory over Bakhtovar Nazirov in the quarter-final stages of WSB last season, while Selby has competed for Italia Thunder and British Lionhearts in the competition, and is undefeated in his WSB career so far.
World Series Of Boxing, WSB
The Lightweights (60 kg) are in action next, with Oleg Prudkyi who impressed in his WSB Season IV outings facing Joseph Cordina, who won the bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Welterweight (69 kg) Bogdan Shelestyuk of Ukraine has won many medals across his boxing career, and his week two opponent is England’s Haizel Ekow Tabiri-Essuman who has a very entertaining style in the ring, and always comes to win.
European Junior Championships silver medallist Oleksandr Khyzhniak is one of the youngest members of Ukraine Otamans, but the Light heavyweight (81 kg) will be full of confidence against Scotland’s Aston Brown who previously competed in Season III of WSB.
The last fight of the night is at Super heavyweight (91+ kg) between Ukraine’s Viktor Vykhryst who has many seasons of WSB experience and England’s Joseph Joyce, who won the bronze in his class at the 2013 European Amateur Boxing Championships, competed at the 2013 AIBA World Boxing Championships and won the gold medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) is pleased to announce that it has signed a Partnership Agreement with the global energy company Gazprom EP International B.V.
In a five year deal, Gazprom becomes an ISAF Official Partner with worldwide exclusivity in the energy sector.
Gazprom is a long term supporter of sailing, sponsoring the Gazprom Swan 60 class, supporting youth projects in Russia, and this development with ISAF represents a new chapter for Gazprom’s support of sailing.
ISAF WORLD SAILING
“This is a very important partnership for ISAF, it will give us the opportunity to do something great for our sport,” commented ISAF President Carlo Croce.
“With the help of Gazprom International we are aiming to reach new heights with sailing, helping young people engage with the sport through to the ISAF Sailing World Cup. Developing emerging sailing nations and getting new people into our sport is very important to both organizations and we now have a great opportunity to change the future.”
Gazprom International’s Managing Director Valery Gulev underlined that Russia sees a noticeable growth of interest in sailing. “We hope this agreement will allow athletes to better fulfil their potential on a competitive international level”, commented Valery Gulev.
The ceremony of signing the partnership agreement took place at the ISAF headquarters in Southampton, Great Britain.
2015 Boys’ U19 African Nations Championship- Day 1
Defending champions Egypt cruised past their North African Neighbours Algeria 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-18) in the 2015 Boys’ U19 African Nations Championship opening match in Kelibia, Tunisia on Wednesday.
The defending champions overwhelmed the match throughout the three sets and didn’t allow the Algerian team to come back at any time. Egypt became 1-0, while Algeria dropped to 0-1.
The competition day 2 will see hosts Tunisia competing Algeria on Thursday, while Friday will be a rest day.
The competition features 3 teams competing for the gold medal of the competition as Egypt and Algeria will be joined by hosts Tunisia.
Lausanne, 22 Jan 2015 – AIBA Pro Boxing has announced that the APB Inaugural Title Events of the first three weight categories will take place on 23 and 24 January 2015 in Baku, Azerbaijan, and Istanbul, Turkey, according to the match schedule below.
SUPER HEAVY 91+ KG – FRIDAY, 23 JANUARY (19:30 GMT+4)
Location: Baku – Venue: Sarhadchi Complex
The two undefeated APB Super Heavyweights (91+ kg), Mohammed Arjaoui (MAR) and Erik Pfeifer (GER) will clash in Baku with the objective of winning the APB Inaugural Title Belt.
Pfeifer is a two-time AIBA World Championship bronze medalist, and started his APB career off with a dominant victory over Egypt’s Ahmed Samir. He followed that up in week two with a close points win over France’s Tony Yoka, and the German secured his part in the Inaugural Title Match during the Matches for Champions series, when he stopped Romanian Mihai Nistor in round three of the contest.
Mohammed Arjaoui also boasts an unblemished 3-0 APB record, and he began with a close victory over Ukrainian Sergiy Verveyko in week one. One win turned into two as he won on points against Mihai Nistor, and the Olympian made sure of his place in the title picture during week three as he defeated Tony Yoka on points.
APB “Inaugural Title Match” Middle (75 Kg) Weight In (Istanbul)
Match schedule:
19:30: Ahmed SAMIR (EGY) W.O. vs Sergiy VERVEYKO (UKR) (Exhibition Match)
20:00: Tony YOKA (FRA) vs Mihai NISTOR (ROM)
20:30: Magomedrasul MEDZHIDOV (AZE) vs Magomed OMAROV (RUS)
21:00: Mohammed ARJAOUI (MAR) vs Erik PFEIFER (GER) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
MIDDLE 75 KG – FRIDAY, 23 JANUARY (21:00 GMT+2)
Location: Istanbul – Venue: Caferaga Spor Salonu
Local hero Adem Kilicci (TUR) will fight to offer his fans the APB Inaugural Title Belt this Friday. Kilicci has been one of the most impressive APB boxers so far in the competition. With an unblemished 3-0 record, he fought against Kenya’s Nickson Abaka, Hosam Abdin (EGY) and also Artem Chebotarev (RUS) his opponent for the Title.
Artem Chebotarev opened his account with a disqualification win against Ecuador’s Marlo Delgado, and then lost in week two against Kilicci. The Russian earned his ticket for the final by defeating Dmytro Mitrofanov in the Matches for Champions in a close match.
Match schedule:
21:00: Marlo DELGADO (ECU) vs Nickson ABAKA (KEN)
21:30: Hosam ABDIN (EGY) vs Dmytro MYTROFANOV (UKR)
22:00: Michel TAVARES (FRA) vs Bogdan JURATONI (ROM)
22:30: Adem KILICCI (TUR) vs Artem CHEBOTAREV (RUS) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
APB “Inaugural Title Match” Middle (75 Kg) Weight In (Istanbul)
WELTER 69 KG – SATURDAY, 24 JANUARY (19:30 GMT+4)
Location: Baku – Venue: Sarhadchi Complex
The APB Welter Inaugural Title Match will see the battle between Onur Sipal (TUR) and Rayton Okwiri (KEN).
2008 Beijing Olympian Onur Sipal is one of Turkey’s most promising boxing talents, and the 25-year-old has won all three of his APB matches so far against Eimantas Stanionis (LTU), Okwiri and Denys Lazarev (UKR).
In the first week of the competition, the Kenyan Rayton Okwiri shocked the world by knocking out one of the favourites for Welterweight glory, Austria’s Marcos Nader in round two of their fight. After his loss to Sipal in November, Kenya’s superstar rebounded magnificently to quality for the title bout when he won five of the six rounds against Russia’s Olympic bronze medalist Andrey Zamkovoy in December.
Match schedule:
19:30: Gyula KATE (HUN) vs Marcos NADER (AUT)
20:00: Denys LAZAREV (UKR) vs Andrei ZAMKOVOY (RUS)
20:30: Eimantas STANIONIS (LTU) vs Tamerlan ABDULLAYEV (AZE)
21:00: Onur SIPAL (TUR) vs Rayton OKWIRI (KEN) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
Top seed Novak Djokovic just needed 90mins to beat Russian Andrey Kuznestov 6-0,6-1,6-4. The on form serb notched his 27th Australian Open win from his last 28 matches.
Defending champion and 4th seed Stanislas Wawrinka defeated Romanian Marius Copil 7-6(7-4),7-6(7-4),6-3 and will now face Jarkko Neiminen who defeated German Matthais Bachinger in three sets.
Kei Nishikori(5) had a much more difficult opponent in the second round in person of Ivan Dodig but the Japanese outclassed the Croatian 4-6,7-5,6-2,7-6(7-0).
Spaniards David Ferrer and Feliciano Lopez are also through to the third round after beating Sergiy Stakhovsky and Adrian Mannarino respectively.
Other third round qualifiers include Jerzy Janowicz,John Isner and Gilles Muller.
To the ladies, Victoria Azarenka bid for her third U.S Open title continues as she defeated 8th seed Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets 6-4,6-2. This win is Azarenka’s first top 10 win in more than a year.
Serena williams as usual,defeated Russian Vera Zvonareva 7-5,6-0 while her sister Venus also won her game defeating fellow American Lauren Davis 6-3,6-2 in the process. Venus will now play Italian Carmilia Giorgi in the third round
Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova was comfortable as she cruised to a 6-2,6-4 win over a German Mona Barthel. Kvitova will now set up a third round meeting with American Madison Keys.
Agnieszka Radwanska,Dominika Cibulkova,and Swiss Timea Bacsinszky also made it through to the third round whilst the latter is reaching a Grand slam third round for the second time in her career.
TENNIS TITBITS
* Rafael Nadal doctor has said he hopes the Spaniard will be able to play his third round game against Dudi Sela in the Australian Open tomorrow.
* World No. 184 Violetta Degtiareva who was dubbed the next Anna Kourinkova has died at the age of 23 due to heart failure.
* Andy Murray has questioned the double standards of the in the media about Rafael Nadal on court fitness problems at the Australian Open.
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