Former Nigeria Olympic Committee President, Engr Sani Ndanusa has been elected into the Sports Committee of the Commonwealth Games Federation.
Ndanusa, the Nigeria Tennis Federation boss, defeated William Blick, the President of Ugandan Commonwealth Games Association by 8-4 votes at the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) Annual General Meeting held in Auckland, New Zealand.
Ndanusa, who travelled to the AGM together with NOC boss Engr. Habu Gumel, described his victory as extraordinary and unprecedented as he was unavailable at the poll due to his flight being delayed in Dubai.
“We were scheduled to fly direct to Auckland, New Zealand but we encountered some delay in Dubai as we were not having transit visa of Australia, which took some time before it was resolved.
“We realized that we won’t be able to reach New Zealand on time and we called the Secretariat to explain to them that we will be arriving late, the CGF Executive Board agreed that the election should go on and Ndanusa can contest in abstentia by the time we landed in Auckland, New Zealand, the election had been held and we were told that I won,” stated Ndanusa.
He also who pointed out that the manner at which he was elected showed a strong goodwill among African Commonwealth Games Association Presidents.
Engr. Sani Ndanusa, President Nigeria Tennis Federation
He commended the National Sports Commission (NSC) under the leadership of Dr. Alhassan Yakmut for the resolve to develop Nigerian administrators in international sport politics which the country has been lacking.
He was also full of praise for Engr. Habu Gumel for his support at making sure that Nigeria becomes more relevant in global sports politics.
Ceremony to take place during New Zealand v Australia match in Auckland
New Zealand great Martin Crowe, one of the most stylish and elegant batsmen of his generation, will be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 match between New Zealand and Australia at Eden Park in Auckland on 28 February, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced today.
When Crowe receives his commemorative cap from ICC Director and Chairman of Cricket Australia, Mr Wally Edwards, during the innings break, he will become the 79th inductee into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame and third New Zealand player after Sir Richard Hadlee and Debbie Hockley.
Crowe made his international debut against Australia in Wellington in February 1982 at the age of 19. He retired 13 years later after playing 77 Tests, he had scored 5,444 at an average of 45.36. This included 17 centuries, the most by a New Zealand cricketer, while his 299 against Sri Lanka in Wellington in January 1991 stood as a national record until Brendon McCullum scored 302 against India in Wellington last year in February.
Crowe also played 143 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) in which he scored 4,704 runs at an average of 38.55 with four centuries and 34 half-centuries. He played in three ICC Cricket World Cups, and led New Zealand to the semi-final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992 where his side lost to eventual champion Pakistan in Auckland. However, his innovative captaincy and most runs in the series won him player of the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992 award.
Crowe captained New Zealand in 16 Tests and 44 ODIs.
Overall, Crowe played 247 first-class matches in a 17-year career in which he scored 19,608 runs with 71 centuries and 80 half-centuries. Apart from representing New Zealand, he also played for Auckland, Central Districts, Somerset and Wellington.
Last week in Melbourne, former India captain Anil Kumble and Australia’s Betty Wilson were inducted in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.
The process for the selection of players into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame started last year when the ICC Chairman invited all the living ICC Cricket Hall of Famers to send their nominations. The ICC Nominations Committee reduced the long-list to 10 men’s and three women’s cricketers.
The short-list was then sent to the Voting Academy, which included representatives of all the 10 Full Members, media representatives from all the 10 Full Members, Associate & Affiliate Member, women’s cricket and FICA representatives as well as living ICC Hall of Famers. The ICC collated the nominations and forwarded the ballot papers to the auditors who provided the final results.
*ICC Cricket Hall of Fame – initial inductees (55)
Sydney Barnes, Bishan Bedi, Alec Bedser, Richie Benaud, Allan Border, Ian Botham, Geoffrey Boycott, Donald Bradman, Greg Chappell, Ian Chappell, Denis Compton, Colin Cowdrey, Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, Lance Gibbs, Graham Gooch, David Gower, WG Grace, Tom Graveney, Gordon Greenidge, Richard Hadlee, Walter Hammond, Neil Harvey, George Headley, Jack Hobbs, Michael Holding, Leonard Hutton, Rohan Kanhai, Imran Khan, Alan Knott, Jim Laker, Harold Larwood, Dennis Lillee, Ray Lindwall, Clive Lloyd, Hanif Mohammad, Rodney Marsh, Malcolm Marshall, Peter May, Javed Miandad, Keith Miller, Bill O’Reilly, Graeme Pollock, Wilfred Rhodes, Barry Richards, Vivian Richards, Andy Roberts, Garfield Sobers, Brian Statham, Fred Trueman, Derek Underwood, Clyde Walcott, Everton Weekes, Frank Woolley, Frank Worrell
2009-10 Inductees
Herbert Sutcliffe, Steve Waugh, Wasim Akram, Victor Trumper and Clarrie Grimmett
2010-11 Inductees
Rachael Heyhoe-Flint, Ken Barrington, Courtney Walsh and Joel Garner
2011-12 Inductees
Belinda Clark, Frederick Spofforth, Curtly Ambrose and Alan Davidson
2012-13 Inductees
Enid Bakewell, Brian Lara, Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne
2013-14 Inductees
Adam Gilchrist, Debbie Hockley, Bob Simpson and Waqar Younis
2014-15 Inductees
Anil Kumble, Betty Wilson and Martin Crowe. One more to be announced in due course
With another thrilling year for international water polo in sight, world-class players and their national teams are already making waves in the European preliminaries. In round 3 of the home-and-away games held on December 29, 2014, Olympic champions Croatia beat Montenegro 14-8 in Rijeka.
A total 13 teams are taking part in the qualification phase for Europe, divided in the following groups:
Group A: Hungary, Greece, Romania, Slovakia Group B: Serbia, Russia, Germany, Spain Group C: Montenegro, Italy, Croatia, Turkey and France
Round 4 on January 20, 2015 will see Greece meeting current World champions Hungary in Athens (GRE); Romania receives Slovakia in Bucharest (ROU); Russia faces five-time World League winner Serbia in Astrakhan City (RUS); Germany plays Spain in Bremen (GER); 2014 World League bronze medallist Montenegro meets Turkey in Budva (MNE) while Italy, 2012 Olympic silver medallists, will pit their strength against the Croatians in Turin (ITA).
Meanwhile, teams from the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania (to be announced soon) are gearing up for the upcoming FINA World League Intercontinental Tournament to be held from March 30 to April 4, 2015 in Corona del Mar (USA).
A total eight teams will earn a ticket for the men’s Super Final taking place in Bergamo, Italy on June 23-28, 2015: four from Europe, including host Italy, and four from the Intercontinental tournament.
In the women’s competition, round 3 of the European preliminaries is scheduled for January 27, 2015 with the following match-ups: Russia receives Italy in Kirishi (RUS); Hungary meets France in Gyor (HUN); Greece faces reigning World champions Spain in Athens (GRE) and Germany visits the Netherlands in Drachten.
Auckland in New Zealand will welcome the teams for the women’s Intercontinental Tournament from April 28 to May 3, 2015 while the Super Final will be staged in China (city to be announced soon) on June 9-14, 2015.
When the All Blacks beat France in the Rugby World Cup 2011 final, edging Les Bleus 8-7 in a dramatic encounter in Auckland, the whole of New Zealand almost audibly breathed a collective sigh of relief. After 24 years of waiting since their triumph at the inaugural World Cup, the All Blacks were finally world champions again.
Victory was the crowning moment in the already iconic and record-breaking career of New Zealand captain Richie McCaw, following in the footsteps of David Kirk in 1987 as he lifted the coveted Webb Ellis Cup to return the All Blacks to the undisputed pinnacle of the game.
It was also a cathartic result for a country desperate for World Cup success but despite the euphoria that followed their victory over the French, McCaw insists he and the All Blacks will not allow themselves to be distracted by memories of their famous triumph at Eden Park at RWC 2015.
“As a player you move on pretty quick from a World Cup final whatever the emotions after the final whistle. The sense of pride at what we were able to achieve remains but you have to remember test rugby is all about moving forward.
“I have watched highlights of the final against France and it made me realise just how tense the match was, how much it was on a knife edge. As a player out on the pitch you focus on your own job and sometimes you’re not fully aware how dramatic a Test match has been.
“As the host nation, we went into the tournament under big pressure but personally I think there’s only as much pressure as you want to experience. It’s a privilege to play in a World Cup but to play in a World Cup at home is even more special and only a few players get that chance in their careers. There’s always pressure when you pull on the All Blacks jersey and rather than worrying about the expectation, I focused on the positives, the chance for family and friends to share the experience. Everyone in the squad was aware what was going on out there but we also had to make sure we kept ourselves detached.”
The 2011 All Blacks became only the third team to win the World Cup on home soil after the New Zealand side of 1987 and the Springboks in South Africa eight years later. England, Wales, Australia and France have all failed to lift the trophy when they have staged the tournament and although the hosts have reached the final in six of the previous seven tournaments, home advantage has not always proved a blessing.
“I can assure you that people make too much of home advantage. The history of the World Cup shows us that the host nation has come up short more times than becoming champions and once you get past the group stages and into to the knockout phase, anything can happen. The venue becomes irrelevant at that stage and if you’re not on your mettle, your tournament can be over very quickly. Three winner-takes-all knockout games in succession can make a bit of a mockery of form or world rankings.”
As captain, McCaw joined an exclusive and star-studded list of World Cup winning skippers alongside Kirk, Nick Farr-Jones, Francois Pienaar, John Eales, Martin Johnson and John Smit. The image of the Crusaders flanker brandishing the Webb Ellis Cup is now an unforgettable part of All Black history and was the culmination of a decade of service as the leader of the team.
“I don’t pretend to know it all myself and the contribution of the senior players in 2011 was a massive factor in our success. To lead the All Blacks to the title was incredible but captaincy is certainly not just a one-man job.
“When you have players in the team with such a huge amount of knowledge of the game, it is the skipper’s job to tap into that and ensure the team is pulling in the same direction. You get that right and you’ve got a powerful group that can drive a team to where you want to go.”
The 2015 tournament will be the fourth to be staged in Europe since England were hosts for the first time in 1991. New Zealand have not enjoyed the best fortune in the northern hemisphere while on World Cup duty, missing out on an appearance in the final each time they have ventured to Europe.
In contrast both of the Wallabies’ World Cup triumphs have come north of the equator while South Africa became champions for a second time after their victory over England in Paris in 2007. It is perhaps a surprising anomaly but despite the All Blacks’ previous disappointments, McCaw insists New Zealand, who begin their campaign against Argentina at Wembley Stadium, are relishing the prospect of playing in England.
“A World Cup in the UK is hugely exciting. I love going to play Test matches in the UK at the end of each year and with 80,000 odd people in the stadiums, it is always a fantastic atmosphere to play in. The tournament in New Zealand in 2011 was special because it was small and compact but to play in the stadiums in the UK in 2015 I think will be a great experience.
“There’s a big rugby following in the UK and Europe so I’ve no doubt there will be millions of people getting into the tournament. I’m looking forward to the six or seven weeks of what will be an incredible competition.”
As befits their number one ranking and status as defending champions, New Zealand will begin Rugby World Cup 2015 as favourites. The southern hemisphere challenge to the reigning champions will as ever be spearheaded by Australia and South Africa while Europe’s hopes will rest squarely on the shoulders of the Six Nations sides.
“The World Cup isn’t just about which teams reach the final and which country lifts the trophy. It’s a chance for the lower ranked countries to play the top nations, to gain more exposure to that level of rugby and to improve. It’s vital to the health of the international game that these teams are given this kind of opportunity.
“At the moment you can say that the top eight teams are all capable of beating each other on their day but I’d like to see a dynamic in the future when we are talking about the top 10 teams on more of a par and then that leading 12. The World Cup is an important part of that process.”
“I think we’re getting there. A few years ago shocks at Test level were relatively rare but look at the 2011 World Cup and the result that immediately springs to mind is Tonga’s victory over France in the group stages in Wellington.
“France still reached the final but these kind of results are increasingly possible now. The more top level exposure teams like Tonga get, the more upsets we will see.
“For a side like the All Blacks to go and play one of the Pacific Island teams knowing we could lose if we’re not at it is great for the game. Increased competition is exciting for players and spectators and reflects well on a sport which is continually looking to grow and develop.”
This is abridged from the World Rugby Yearbook 2015
Durban and Edmonton teams attend 2022 Games Briefing
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has hosted its Orientation Briefing for representatives of the two cities, Durban, South Africa and Edmonton, Canada which have indicated their interest in bidding to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Led by CGF Chief Executive Officer Mike Hooper, the day-long session provided both cities with a detailed insight into the candidature phase of the bidding process.
Topics under discussion included the importance of establishing robust financial parameters, drafting of strategic frameworks and processes for strengthening existing stakeholder relationships.
Mr Hooper said: “As the first tangible step towards the 2022 Commonwealth Games, I’m overwhelmed at the level of enthusiasm already demonstrated by the teams from Durban and Edmonton. While recognising much work is still to be accomplished before next year’s bid deadline, I’m confident both cities will continue to engage as the bid process evolves.”
Bids for 2022 Commonwealth Games are due to be lodged with the CGF by 2 March 2015. The host city will be elected by the CGF membership at the General Assembly, which will be held in Auckland, New Zealand on 2 September 2015.
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