The ICC has confirmed that the Event Technical Committee of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 has approved Nikita Miller as a replacement player for Sunil Narine in West Indies’ squad for the tournament, which starts on 14 February.
Narine withdrew from the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 earlier this week after he felt he required more time to be able to confidently bowl for a sustained period in international cricket with his new action.
The 32-year-old Miller has represented the West Indies in 45 One-Day Internationals and has taken 40 wickets with his left-arm spin. His last ODI was against England in March 2014.
The replacement was approved as an exceptional circumstance.
The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 is Geoff Allardice (ICC General Manager – Cricket, Chairman), Campbell Jamieson (ICC General Manager – Commercial), John Harnden (Chief Executive, CWC 2015 LOC), Gavin Larsen (Cricket Operations Manager, New Zealand), Russel Arnold and Sanjay Manjrekar (independent nominees).
The West Indies in in Pool B of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 along with defending champion India, Ireland, former winner Pakistan, African rivals South Africa and Zimbabwe, and qualifier United Arab Emirates (UAE). The West Indies will play its opening match against Ireland at Saxton Oval in Nelson on 16 February.
– According to reports in Germany, Chelsea forward Andre Schurrle’s move to Wolfsburg is “imminent.”
– Chelsea are set to complete the transfer of Fiorentina’s Juan Cuadrado “within the next 48 hours,” with Mohamed Salah potentially going the other way on loan
– Swansea are closing on a move for Southampton’s Jack Cork, according to the BBC.
– According to Skysports, Stoke have given Leicester City permission to speak to Robert Huth about a possible loan move.
– Ivica Olic says he is happy to stay at Wolfsburg after the Bundesliga side blocked his return to Hamburg.
– Roberto Mancini has said he wants to sign Yaya Toure to help turn Inter Milan into a Scudetto-winning side.
– Borussia Monchengladbach are reportedly interested in signing QPR midfielder Junior Hoilett.
– Lazio are reportedly interested in signing Manchester United’s Javier Hernandez in this winter window.
– Juventus midfielder Luca Marrone is on the verge of securing a loan move to Spanish side Cordoba.
– AC Milan are reportedly close to signing Ezequiel Munoz from Palermo, with just a €500,000 difference between offer and asking price.
– According to reports in Germany, Manchester United are readying a £37.5 million bid for Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels.
– Hull City manager Steve Bruce is considering a move for Manchester United midfielder Nick Powell.
– West Ham are keen on a move for Swansea City striker Bafetimbi Gomis.
– Alan Pardew confirmed Lille’s left-back Papa Souare is travelling to London for a medical at Crystal Palace.
– Manchester United youngster Andreas Pereira’s agent has denied any contact with PSG over a possible move.
– West Ham manager Sam Allardyce says he could still sign Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher in this transfer window.
– According to reports, Roma open talks to sign CSKA Moscow striker Seydou Doumbia, with Coach Rudi Garcia apparently calling the player in person.
Football tit bits:
– England Football Association has formally nominated Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein as a candidate to stand against Sepp Blatter for the FIFA presidency.
– Diego Costa will contest his FA violent conduct charge with the full support of Chelsea.
– Guinea have reached the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals at the expense of Mali after the drawing of lots.
– Sheffield Wednesday have been taken over by a Thai consortium led by businessman Dejphon Chansiri.
– Sam Allardyce does not expect Diafra Sakho to be banned for playing for West Ham after withdrawing from Senegal’s Africa Cup of Nations squad. “I’m not worried that Sakho will face a ban whatsoever. We have stuck by every rule and regulation in the book.”
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), in partnership with UNESCO and several other international organisations, has cooperated on new Guidelines, released today, urging governments and educational planners to invest in the quantity and quality of physical education that they offer.
The action-orientated Quality Physical Education (QPE) Guidelines, which are in line with the IOC’s mission to include sport in school curricula worldwide and to promote Olympic values-based education, were presented today during a meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for Physical Education and Sport (CIGEPS) at the IOC headquarters in Lausanne.
IOC President Thomas Bach said: “Physical Education in schools is crucial if we are to get the couch potatoes off the couch. Sport has a central role to play in the education system, not just to fight against obesity and sedentary behaviour, but studies have shown time and again the positive effects physical activity has on the social and intellectual development of young people. Collaborating closely with UNESCO, we will ensure physical education is an integral part of school curricula to promote a healthy mind in a healthy body.”
Working in schools is the best way to reach young people and tackle inactivity. The Guidelines are a tool to help governments reverse the decline in investment in physical education in schools, which has been happening in many countries recently. They give a framework to help policy-makers reshape physical education policy as well as providing practical advice for implementing the Guidelines.
In conjunction with the online publication of the QPE Guidelines, and recognising that physical education and sports-related programmes need to reflect local settings, a pilot phase will be launched to test and assist with the implementation of these Guidelines at the national level. The IOC will specifically provide support to five pilot countries, through their National Olympic Committees (NOCs), from March 2015 to April 2016.
The IOC has long been at the forefront of using sport as a tool for education. Through its Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP), the IOC has demonstrated that Olympic values-based education can inspire young people to adopt healthy, active lifestyles built on the values of friendship, excellence and respect. As outlined in Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC’s strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement, the IOC will continue to strengthen its partnership with UNESCO to achieve its shared vision that sport is a fundamental human right and that physical education should be available to all individuals.
Following the first three AIBA Pro Boxing Inaugural Title Events on 23 and 24 January, the next five title matches will take place on 30 and 31 January 2015 in Caserta, Novosibirsk, Sofia and Almaty, according to the match schedule below.
APB “Inaugural Title Match” Super Heavy (91+ Kg) Match (Baku)
HEAVY 91 KG – FRIDAY, 30 JANUARY (21:00 GMT+1)
Location: Catania – Venue: PalaCatania
Italian icon Clemente Russo will fight against Russia’s undefeated Aleksei Egorov for the APB Inaugural Title. Two-time AIBA World Championships gold medallist, and two-time Olympic Games silver medallist Russo has been one of the greatest fighters on the planet over the past ten years, but the number one seeded Heavyweight comes into this title match with a previous loss against the man he is facing.
After winning his opening week match by knocking out Ukraine’s Roman Golovashchenko, Russo lost his week two bout against Egorov, with two judges scoring the fight for the Russian, with the third seeing it as a draw. Russo bounced back in week three, and successfully qualified for the title match as he won a clear points victory over Anton Pinchuk, taking the undefeated record of his opponent in the process.
2013 European Champion Aleksei Egorov still maintains a 3-0 record in APB, having won his first fight against Chouaib Bouloudintas. After defeating Russo in Italy, Egorov made sure of his role in the title match when he beat Germany’s Emir Ahmatovic on points.
Match schedule:
21:00: Charles JAVONTA (USA) vs Yamil PERALTA (ARG) W.O. (Exhibition Match: Marco CALIC (CRO) vs Yamil PERALTA (ARG))
21:30: Emir AHMATOVIC (GER) vs Anton PINCHUK (KAZ)
22:00: Chouaib BOULOUDINATS (MAR) vs Roman GOLOVASHCHENKO (UKR)
22:30: Clemente RUSSO (ITA) vs Aleksey EGOROV (RUS) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
APB “Inaugural Title Match” Middle (75 Kg) Weight In (Istanbul) AIBA
FLY 52 KG – FRIDAY, 30 JANUARY (19:00 GMT+6)
Location: Novosibirsk – Venue: SKK Server
Home favourite Mikhail Aloian and Mexico’s Elias Emigdio will clash for the APB Flyweight Inaugural Title match.
Aloian was the number one seed coming into the competition, and has lived up to expectations in APB, having won all of his matches. An opening win over Vincenzo Picardi expressed his dominance, and that was followed up with victory against Aleksandar Aleksandrov in week two. In the third round Aloian won via walkover against Mohamed Flissi.
His opponent in the title match has also had injury problems in APB so far, but has managed to stay undefeated. Perhaps the best Mexican fighter in the history of the World Series of Boxing (WSB), Emigdio defeated Argentina’s Fernando Martínez in week one in a very entertaining contest.
The Mexican missed week two due to an injury, but superbly qualified for the title bout in the Matches for Champions, enjoying an amazing win in a close match against the formerly undefeated Kazakh Ilyas Suleimenov who was ranked second.
Match schedule:
19:00: Redouane ASLOUM (FRA) W.O. vs Vincezo PICARDI (ITA)
19:30: Mohammed FLISSI (ALG) vs Ilyas SULEIMENOV (KAZ)
20:00: Fernando MARTÍNEZ (ARG) vs Jabursek LATIPOV (UZB)
20:30: Misha ALOIAN (RUS) vs Elias EMIGDIO (MEX) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
Aiba, APB “Inaugural Title Match” Middle (75 Kg) Weight In (Istanbul)
LIGHT 60 KG – FRIDAY, 30 JANUARY (19:30 GMT+6)
Location: Almaty – Venue: Daulet Sports Complex
Two undefeated Lightweights (60 kg) compete in the AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) Inaugural Title Match, home favourite, and number one seed Berik Abdrakhmanov against Uzbekistan’s Hurshid Tojibaev.
The 3-0 Abdrakhmanov won his opening APB contest when he defeated Ireland’s David Oliver Joyce in a very close fight, and followed that up by taking the undefeated record of Charly Suarez in week two. In the Matches for Champions series he won a tight match over Robson Conceicao.
Tojibaev began his APB career with a comfortable win against Russia’s Dmitry Polyanskiy, and in week two he lost the first two rounds on all the scorecards against Brazil’s Robson Conceição, but his experience in the longer rounds saw him turn the fight around and defeat the AIBA World Championships silver medalist by split decision and maintain his undefeated record. He then went 3-0 in the Matches for Champions with a close victory against Charly Suarez.
Match schedule:
19:30: Artur BRIL (GER) vs Domenico VALENTINO (ITA)
20:00: Robson CONCEICAO (BRA) vs Charly SUAREZ (PHI)
20:30: David JOYCE (IRL) vs Dmitry POLYANSKIY (RUS)
21:00: Berik ABDRAKHMANOV vs Hurshid TOJIBAEV (UZB) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
APB “Inaugural Title Match” Welter (69 kg) Weight In (Baku)
LIGHT HEAVY 81 KG – FRIDAY, 30 JANUARY (20:00 GMT+2)
Location: Sofia – Venue: Universiada Hall
Sofia hosts the APB Inaugural Title Match between 2-1 London 2012 Olympian Ehsan Rouzbahani against number one seed and Commonwealth Games silver medalist Kennedy St Pierre.
Iran’s Rouzbahani defeated Uzbekistan’s Oybek Mamazulunov in a very exciting match during the first week of APB action, but lost his second contest against Russia’s Nikita Ivanov. With everything on the line in the Matches for Champions series, Rouzbahani produced perhaps the best win of his career as he defeated French undefeated professional boxer Mathieu Bauderlique, and claimed his place in the title match.
St Pierre was upset by Germany’s Serge Michel in the first week of action, and was then defeated in week two by Mathieu Bauderlique to leave his qualification chances slim. However, the Mauritian displayed the mark of a potential champion in week three, as he sensationally knocked out the previously undefeated Russian Russia’s Nikita Ivanov in the fifth round of their bout.
Match schedule:
20:00: Oybek MAMAZULUNOV (UZB) vs Serge MICHEL (GER)
20:30: Mathieu BAUDERLIQUE (FRA) vs Nikita IVANOV (RUS)
21:00: Spas GENOV (BUL) vs Joseph WARD (IRL)
21:30: Ehsan ROUZBAHANI (IRI) vs Kennedy St PIERRE (MRI) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
AIBA APB “Inaugural Title Match” Middle (75 Kg) Weight In (Istanbul)
LIGHT WELTER 64 KG – SATURDAY, 31 JANUARY (17:00 GMT+6)
Location: Novosibirsk – Venue: SKK Server
Home favourite and 2013 European Champion Artem Zakaryan faces the rising German star Artem Harutyunyan for the second time in APB.
Zakaryan destroyed Ukraine’s Vyacheslav Kyslytsyn in week one, with the result of 60-54 on two scorecards, while the English judge had it 60-53 for the ruthless Russian. He made it 2-0 in week two when he defeated Artem Harutyunyan, again dropping zero rounds en route to a crushing victory. In week three, Zakaryan won by walkover against Juan Pablo Romero, which established his place in the title match.
Artem Harutyunyan claimed a bronze medal at the 2013 European Championships, and the German opened his APB account with a win over Olympic bronze medalist Boris Georgiev. His week two match was the resounding defeat to Zakaryan, but he rallied well in the Matches for Champions series when he beat Abdelkader Chadi on points.
Zakaryan has yet to drop a round in APB, and having already beaten Harutyunyan, he will be the overwhelming favourite, but on his day the German can beat anyone, and their title match will be full of intrigue regardless of past results.
Match schedule:
17:00: Boris GEROGIEV (BUL) vs Vyacheslav KYSLYTSYN (UKR)
17:30: Juan Pablo ROMERO (MEX)vs Abdelkader CHADI (ALG)
18:00: Evaldas PETRAUSKAS (LTU) vs Carlos AQUINO (ARG)
18:30: Armen ZAKARYAN (RUS) vs Artem HARUTYUNYAN (GER) (APB Inaugural Title Match)
The Local Organising Committee (LOC) website for the IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015 (15-19 July) is now open: http://cali2015.co/en/
The website (in both English and Spanish) will be enhanced and expanded continually in the coming months as the championships draw nearer.
The IAAF World Youth Championships is one of the leading events in the IAAF’s global competition programme, providing a platform for the world’s leading athletes under the age of 18 to excel.
Cali is Colombia’s second biggest city and widely considered to be the country’s sporting centre, having hosted a number of top sporting events and world championships in the past, notably the 1971 Pan American Games.
It will be the first time that there has been a South American host for the IAAF World Youth Championships, which were inaugurated in 1999.
The IAAF website also has a dedicated section covering the IAAF World Youth Championships.
The Atlas Lions Meet The Lionhearts In A Potential Classic In Casablanca
After defeats in their opening two World Series of Boxing (WSB) matches, Morocco Atlas Lions will be hoping to move up the Group A table when they host British Lionhearts.
The Lionhearts won their first WSB match against China Dragons, but lost against Ukraine Otamans in week two, and are looking to resume their winning ways away in Africa.
A marvelous venue hosts the action, and the watching fans at the Hyatt Regency, Casablanca will enjoy five fights of terrific action.
On Friday 30th January, fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 22:00 GMT at AIBABoxingTV.com.
The Light flyweights (49 kg) are in action first, where Moroccan National Champion Zouhair El Bekkali seeks his first WSB win of the season after losing his opening contest against Joahnys Oscar Argilagos Perez.
His opponent, the Commonwealth Games bronze medalist Ashley Williams also lost his first match against China’s He Junjun, although the Welsh star improved as the fight progressed.
Lionhearts Bantamweight (56 kg) Qais Ashfaq is 1-0 after beating Diao Jianhao in week one, and he looks to maintain his undefeated record against 0-1 Mohamed VI Trophy winner Mohamed Hamout.
Morocco’s Hamza El Barbari lost his week one match against Cuba’s dominant Yasniel Toledo, and will hope to improve on his recent form in his Light welterweight (64 kg) clash with England’s Sam Maxwell who dominated Sairike Tuoliaowutayi in London.
AIBA World Championships bronze medalist Middleweight (75 kg) Anthony Fowler won his opening contest against Zhou Di, but suffered a severe cut in the process.
Just over two weeks from that fight, will the injury be healed enough for him to beat exciting Moroccan Said Harnouf.
In the last fight of the evening, Lithuanian Heavyweight (91 kg) Vitalijus Subacius represents the Atlas Lions, and the former AIBA World Championships quarter-finalist faces Romania’s British Lionhearts fighter Ionut-Mirel Jitaru, who lost his opening WSB match against Josip Bepo Filipi.
WEEK 1 Match Ukraine Otamans vs Mexico Guerreros
Can China Dragons pick up their first win of the season against Ukraine Otamans?
Week three of the World Series of Boxing (WSB) includes an intriguing Group A clash with China Dragons hosting Ukraine Otamans.
The returning Chinese Franchise have yet to win a match in the competition this season, while Ukraine are full of confidence having won their first two matches.
Therefore, the five bouts at the Mangrovetree Convention Center, Sanya will have huge importance for both teams, and on Friday 30th January, fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 19:30 (GMT +8) at AIBABoxingTV.com.
Chinese Light flyweight (49 kg) LI Jiahao makes his first WSB appearance of the season in fight number one, and he faces Uzbekistan’s Hasanboy Dusmatov representing the Otamans, who is 1-0 this season after an opening win against Joselito Velázquez Altamirano.
Dusmatov tired in the middle part of his fight against the Mexican, which Jiahao will look to take advantage of.
Ukrainian Bantamweight (56 kg) Mykola Butsenko, a former AIBA World Championships bronze medalist displayed just why he was ranked in the top ten of WSB last season as he won every single round against Mexico’s Sergio Alfredo Chirino Sánchez in week one.
He looks to go 2-0 against Diao Jianhao who is 0-1 having lost his opening match to England’s Qais Ashfaq.
China’s Light welterweight (64 kg) Sairike Tuoliaowutayi also lost his first WSB match to Samuel Maxwell, and will have to improve against Ukraine’s Dmytro Grynchenko who is making his first appearance of the season.
Huang Jiabin will hope to make a winning start to his WSB career, and the Dragons fighter competes in a magnificent Middleweight (75 kg) bout as he faces Uzbekistan’s Hurshidbek Normatov, who will look for his second win of the season for the Otamans after his opening victory against Misael Uriel Rodríguez Oliva.
The Heavyweights (91 kg) complete the action in Sanya, and China’s Li Mingtao, who has won many tournaments over the course his career, faces 2006 European Champion Denys Poyatsyka who didn’t drop a single round against Christian Demaj in his first WSB match.
For his sportsmanship conduct after his quarterfinal loss to Egypt’s Mohamed El-Beiali in the men’s singles event of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Africa Senior Championship, the world table tennis governing body, ITTF has described Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri as a perfect example for the game globally.
ITTF Publication Editor, Ian Marshall, said despite the narrow loss to the Egyptian, he exhibited maturity, which he described as an advantage to the sport worldwide.
“I am really thrilled with the way the young Nigeria conducted himself. It is usual with anybody that loses a crucial match to be angry. But despite his close defeat in the men’s singles, he found a place in his heart to hug his opponent in spite of the wild jubilation among the Egyptians. Even this is not even common with the best players in the world. But what Quadri has shown tonight really says a lot about him as an athlete. This is indeed a plus to table tennis,” Marshall said.
Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri
Even some of the Egyptians present during the epic encounter were thrilled by the Nigerian, whom they described as a true champion.
Baseem Mohammed said: “I am touched by Quadri’s loss despite being an Egyptian because he played and fought like a true champion. When he lost the first two games, you will never notice in his face that he was losing. He just focused on the match and had to level up to make it 2-2. If it had been other players, they would have given up and get frustrated during the match. But he was calm and was doing as if the game was 0-0. I am happy that it was my compatriot that won, but the manner in which Quadri approached the match showed that he is a good player and a well-cultured individual off the table. Some of us were moved by the way he went ahead and congratulated his opponent and also shook hands with the officials. This is a rare trait of a champion. For me, Quadri is a complete player that should be emulated by upcoming athletes not only in table tennis but in all sports,” the North African admitted.
Andy Murray came from a set down to beat Czech and 7th seed Tomas Berdych 6-7(6),6-0,6-3,7-5 to book a fourth appearance in the Australian open final.
Murray said “there was a little bit of extra tension-it was a big match. A lot was made about Dani Vallverdu,my former coach working with Tomas. But we’ve been friends since we were 15years old and I felt that the focus was unfair and unnecessary. This is sports and there is more to life than sport”.
According to the Guardian Murray complained to the umpire about something Berdych said on the changeover,and it simmered like a lawsuit from that point.
Murray has never won the Australian Open and is one of only two players to lose three times in the final( Stefan Edberg is the other) but he has high hopes for this one as he awaits the winner of the other semi-final between Djokovic and defending champion Wawrinka.
Serena Williams
In the ladies, Serena ended the fairytale run of fellow American Madison Keys beating her 7-6(5),6-2 in the process.
Keys said she was pleased with her performance and ability to compete with the injury she had.
Serena made her feelings known saying “I was just happy to get through it today. I think i was able to serve big when I needed to. So that really helped a lot. She hits a very,very hard ball,she also hits it very deep. So its a little different trying to prepare for that. So i wasn’t really ready for that”.
The world No. 1 will next face Russian Maria Sharapova in the final who defeated Ekaterina Makarova 6-3,6-2.
Shararpova was too strong for her fellow Russian who really had no Plan B against the former world No.1.
Sharapova has lost 15 times in a row against Williams so she knows she has to be at her best if she is to win the first Grand slam of the year.
The ITF has announced the official team nominations for the 2015 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group and World Group II first round ties taking place on 7-8 February.
Four Zone Group events are also taking place in the week commencing 2 February: Europe/Africa Zone Group I in Budapest, Hungary (4-7 February); Americas Zone Group I in San Luis Potosi, Mexico (4-7 February); Asia/Oceania Zone Group I in Guangzhou, China (4-7 February); and Europe/Africa Zone Group II in Tallinn, Estonia (4-7 February)
All nations contesting the Zone Group I events will be bidding to qualify for the Fed Cup World Group II play-offs on 18-19 April, with two teams qualifying from the Europe/Africa Zone, and one team from both the Americas and Asia/Oceania Zones.
Live scoring for the World Group and World Group II ties will be available on the official Fed Cup website throughout the weekend of 7-8 February and both the English and Spanish websites will feature a live blog, reports, photographs, audio interviews, podcasts and live streaming. A live blog and full coverage of the Zone Group events will run 4-7 February. There will also be a fan zone showing the best social media content at http://www.fedcup.com/showyourcolours.
There’s a world of difference between skiing a long, smooth run and skiing on moguls. Today, forget the waves, it was the breeze on Biscayne Bay that was “moguls.” Shift upon shift upon shift upon shift.
This is the ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, presented by Sunbrella, with 599 boats and 768 sailors who were adjusting all day to one thing or another. If it wasn’t the wind direction that was changing, it was the wind speed. Which made it all the more notable that three classes produced back-to-back race winners.
Dave Ullman, among many things the 1996 US Rolex Yachtsman of the Year and a three-time 470 world champion, is now coaching U.S. Olympic hopefuls. He was a keen observer of the day’s events. The direction shifts, he said, were coming at “15 to 20 degrees, but more than that it was about velocity-on and velocity-off. Downwind, if you were in the velocity, you could make big gains.
“It was much windier today than the forecast called for,” Ullman said, “but the racecourse is fine. The race officials are doing a good job with some challenging circumstances.
“But, it was cold out there.”
He wasn’t the only one who said so.
Wednesday was the third of six days of racing for ten Olympic classes. Top qualifiers will sail a Medal Race on Saturday. Competitors in three Paralympic classes will conclude their racing on Friday.
ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP
Men’s 470
A second win in six races settled Luke Patience and Elliot Willis of Great Britain into a six-point lead in their 44-boat fleet, and they had reason to be glad that race six went as long as it did, and ended when it did. They had boats to pass. And then it was over. Second-place skipper Mat Belcher of Australia observed that Patience and Willis had a good second weather leg, “They went heavily to the right, and that got them around a lot of boats.”
With four more races scheduled before Saturday’s Medals Race, Patience and Willis have scores of 1-2-(5)-4-3-1 to a count of 5-1-2-(12)-2-7 for Belcher and crew Will Ryan. The six-point delta allows for discarding worst scores. Panagiotis Mantis and Pavlos Kagialis dropped out of their leadership position (two firsts on Tuesday) and now are looking at (25)-4-1-1-8-10 for third place.
Farther down in the lists, Matthias Schmid’s Austrian crewman, Florian Reichsteaedter, like everyone out there in a 470, spent his day balancing on the wire, adjusting in and out with the puffs. “There was no system to it” he said. “Sometimes you had to be on the left. Sometimes you had to be on the right. And it was up and down, up and down all day. Eight knots. Eighteen knots.
“And it was cold out there.”
His handshake proved that.
And we may have already mentioned that. But, to be fair, it was Miami-on-the-water cold. Readers in northern climes, please hold those cards and letters.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Laser-Radial—Constance-Stolz
Women’s 470
The London 2012 gold medalists Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie, aka Team Jolly, tightened their grip on the lead in the Women’s 470 with a pair of firsts, demonstrating that, yes, there must be an answer to the dilemma of a dicey racecourse. “We’re sort of getting used to the wind being up and down and shifty,” Aleh said.
She offered, “If you can’t pick the right place to be on the racecourse, try to not pick the wrong place. We didn’t always have the best start or the best first leg, but we would keep chipping away and chipping away until we could look around and say, Oh, we’re in front. We’ll take it.”
Team Jolly, sailing out of Auckland, New Zealand, has placings of 2-2-1-(7)-1-1. The London 2012 silver medalists, Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark of Great Britain, are nine points back at 6-1-(7)-1-3-5.
Sophie Weguelin and Eilidh McIntire, also of Great Britain, are in third, another ten points back.
49er
Diego Botin and Iago Lopez’s (ESP) overnight 14 point lead was shattered by a culmination of bad results and tight performances from their rivals.
John Pink and Stuart Bithell (GBR) and Joel Turner and Iain Jensen (AUS) kept things together, remaining at the front of the pack and now share the lead on 42 points. But for Botin and Lopez, a U flag penalty, a tenth and an 18th allowed the British and Australian teams to advance, leaving them one point behind.
Last to arrive back on-shore, last to take their sails down and last out of the boat park, Botin and Lopez looked deflated on the slipway. After their bright start they received a thorough debrief from their coach upon conclusion of the third day. All is not lost. They remain in contention; teachings will be applied and tomorrow is another day.
For Turner and Jensen, their short term partnership, is a one off for Miami with Jensen’s usual helm Nathan Outteridge missing out for personal reasons.
“It’s the first time I’ve sailed the 49er without Nathan for a long time,” said Jensen. “Joel’s doing great and he’s picking some clever shifts out there and we’re doing a lot better than we expected considering we only had three days in the boat together before this.”
Routine, rhythm and reliability are three buzz words for Outteridge and Jensen. The pair sailed together as teenagers, winning the ISAF Youth Worlds, and a partnership in the 49er was inevitable.
Seven years after forming, three 49er world titles and an Olympic gold medal later, Miami is the first time Jensen has been without his formidable helm in the Men’s Skiff, “If you sail with someone for years, like I have with Nathan, you get stuck in your routine. It’s always the same but if you sail with someone else it forces you to problem solve differently and that’s beneficial for when you go back with the other person.
“The roles are still the same with Joel as with Nathan. There are subtleties with the way he [Turner] sails and the way Nathan steers and approaches things. Neither is right or wrong, it’s just the individual style.”
Whilst the partnership is flourishing in Miami, when teased with the question – reckon you’ll stick with Turner? – Jensen replied, “Joel’s doing an awesome job and I think he’ll be a force in the 49er for years to come, he’s 19-years-old and got a bright future but in the next couple of years I might just stick with what I know.”
Outteridge will be flying in on Thursday, ensuring his crew sticks to what he knows and to enjoy the Miami racing from the coach boat.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Laser—Herman-Tomasgaard
49erFX
When those around you all discard 41 points from a DNF or a DNC, the odds will always be stacked in your favour. That’s the case for Alex Maloney and Molly Meech (NZL) who have opened up a 25 point lead in the 49erFX.
The Kiwis were just one of eight teams to complete the single race on the first day and they are reaping the rewards. Their discard is a 21 and they hold a comfortable advantage after nine races.
Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze (BRA) are second overall on 62 points whilst Nina Keijzer and Claire Blom (NED) sit third on 90 points.
Maloney and Meech certainly won’t be resting on their laurels with six fleet races and Saturday’s Medal Race ahead of them but things are certainly going their way.
Women’s RS:X
Two wins and a second is a perfect day for some but not for 2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup Final gold medallist Bryony Shaw (GBR).
On the face of it, the Briton dominated the day but in her words, “It’s strange, it didn’t feel like a perfect day out there. I made a lot of mistakes actually. It was really shifty and puffy and I think it was my awareness, especially on the downwinds that really pulled me through.
“I made a couple of silly calls by going a bit too extreme at the start so I had to make some pretty big comebacks today.”
Shaw, the defending champion, is firmly in control. She is 17 points clear of the second placed Olga Maslivets (RUS) and is carrying a superb 2014 conclusion forward into the New Year, “I feel like this [leading in Miami] is momentum from winning in Abu Dhabi at the end of last year and the event we had in Rio. It’s nice to come out here and put on a good show.
“I really feel like 2015 is my year and it’s important for performance. I want to try and be selected for the games and win a medal in Rio, so I need to be performing at that level now.”
ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Finn fleet in front of the City of Miami
Men’s RS:X
Consistency was at a premium for the first day of gold fleet racing in what was an up and down day for all.
Only the second placed Nick Dempsey (GBR) put together a trio of top ten finishes, 8-8-3, whilst those around him finished out of the top ten at least once.
It’s still France atop of the leader board, but with a new face lighting the path ahead. Overnight leader Louis Giard (FRA) has dropped to fourth whilst Thomas Goyard (FRA) claimed a 12-4-2 which is enough for a slender one point lead over Dempsey.
Dorian Van Rijsselberge (NED) took out the first bullet of the day and is third overall. The remaining victories went the way of Byron Kokkalanis (GRE) who is in seventh and the 14th placed Mattia Camboni (ITA).
Laser
If others demonstrated that it is possible to win two race back-to-back on a wacky race course, five-time Olympic medalist Robert Scheidt of Brazil demonstrated that the best can stumble. He won his first race of the day, then burned his throw-out race on a 27th.
Scheidt’s closest competition, Australian Matthew Wearn, went with him and burned his throw-out on a 20th.
Neither of the two leaders can afford another bad race. Scheidt has a seven-point cushion over Wearn, but Germany’s Philipp Buhl is only one point behind Wearn, and only four points separate him from Julio Alsogaray of Argentina and Nick Thompson of Great Britain.
At 106 boats in two divisions, the Laser is by far the largest class here and as hard as any when it comes to getting to the top. A few years ago, American Jensen Mctigh was acing it in the Snipe class. Here he’s paying his dues (“I’m probably the youngest person here”) with three-digit standings, but he’s seeing the racecourse as clearly as anyone. McTigh’s take from his end of the Laser fleet, “The shifts were bigger yesterday, but those blew evenly across the course. Today the shifts were smaller, but they never stopped. They never stopped.”
ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP MIAMI 2015 Diego Botín Iago Lopez 900 49er Santander, Cantabria ESP, photo credit US Sailing
Laser Radial
Denmark’s Anne-Marie Rindom took two bullets today.
And, frankly, that ought to be enough said. Difficult. Shifty, Tricky. Challenging. Those are the sort of words used throughout ten Olympic and three Paralympic fleets to describe race day three and — Did we mention, Anne-Marie Rindom took two bullets today. She was 13th at the 2012 Olympics. She was seventh at the 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championship in Santander. Maybe something made her mad.
Allowing for a throw-out race apiece, Rindom is now in first with a four-point lead over Annalise Murphy of Ireland and a 12-point lead over the Santander winner from the Netherlands, Marit Bouwmeester.
Bouwmeester was the Radial silver medalist at the 2012 Olympics.
Murphy, known for liking a big breeze, took advantage of a big-breeze day at the Worlds in Santander to qualify Ireland for the Laser Radial class in the Rio de Janeiro Olympiad of 2016.
And Miami? It’s a long week.
Finn
It was Ioannis Mitakis day in the Finn fleet on Biscayne Bay today.
Mitakis, who represented Greece in the 2012 Olympic Games and won the European Finn Championship the same year—leading the Medal Race start to finish—today took back-to-back firsts. Fleet leader Giles Scott of Great Britain faded.
Faded, but not far enough to cost Scott the lead that he hopes will keep an 18-month winning streak intact.
With a worst score of sixth to discard, Scott now has finishes of 1-1-1-5-4-(6). Computing throw-out races, he has a five-point lead over Jake Lilley of Australia and a 12-point lead over Mitakis. Anything can happen, but Lilley is carrying a 22nd as his discard. Another bad race would probably sink him below the podium. It’s game faces all around.
Nacra 17
It’s a high scoring affair in the Nacra 17 with consistency a rarity in a highly competitive fleet.
Defending Miami champions Vittorio Bissaro and Silvia Sicouri (ITA) and Ben Saxton and Nicola Groves (GBR) share the lead on 50 points. The teams recorded two scores outside the top ten with one top ten finish.
Anything can happen in the 49-boat fleet and early front runners Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders (NZL) fell victim to a 29-14-28 day that sees them drop to seventh. Not helped by a late night disqualification after a jury hearing the pair count all three scores and are 36 points off the top. But as shown, anything can happen.
ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP MIAMI 2015 Charlie Buckingham 206151 Laser, Newport Beach, CA USA
Paralympic Events
There’s a tussle at the top in the 2.4mR between Megan Pascoe (GBR), Helena Lucas (GBR) and Bjornar Erikstad (NOR) with one point of separation. An intriguing two days is ahead with four more races to decide the winner.
Dan Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch (AUS) are on track to make it two ISAF Sailing World Cup Regatta wins in a row with a two point lead over Marco Gualandris and Marta Zanetti (ITA) in the SKUD18. Defending champions Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell (GBR) complete the podium after six races.
In the Sonar, Alphonsus Doerr, Brad Kendell and Hugh Freund (USA) and John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Steve Thomas (GBR) are tied atop on 11 points.
ISAF Sailing World Cup, Biscayne Bay, ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Sunbrella, Miami,
There’s a world of difference between skiing a long, smooth run and skiing on moguls. Today, forget the waves, it was the breeze on Biscayne Bay that was “moguls.” Shift upon shift upon shift upon shift.
This is the ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, presented by Sunbrella, with 599 boats and 768 sailors who were adjusting all day to one thing or another. If it wasn’t the wind direction that was changing, it was the wind speed. Which made it all the more notable that three classes produced back-to-back race winners.
ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami – Day 3 Highlights
Spotlight on the 49er, Women’s RS:X, 49erFX and Finn at ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Presented by Sunbrella.
URL – http://youtu.be/wwdU0DOvrzY
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Sharks football club of port Harcourt has intensified preparations for the new season with the addition of former shooting stars sports club of Ibadan handler Festus Allen who takes over from Abdul Maikaba who has pitched his tent with Wikki Tourists of Bauchi.
Allen who is no stranger to top flight football is expected to bring his wealth of experience to bear in the team as Sharks takes its search for a major silver ware in the land to the new season.
The team is currently training in Ijebu Ode to perfect strategies for the new season.
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