Former World Heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali on Wednesday in a Press Statement has rejected the recent onslaught on Muslim by Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump.
Trump On Monday had called for the temporary ban on Muslims from entering the United States following a spate of violent attacks by terrorist In Europe and even on American soil following the deadly attack by a radicalised couple in San Bernadino, California, USA.
The controversial Billionaire who as been very vocal with his attacks on various ethnic nationalities is arguably the top contender for the Republican Presidential Ticket, but he as come under a lot of attack for his utterance on Muslims on monday.
The Muhammad Ali Statement didn’t mention Trump specifically but it is obvious that it was written in response to Trump’s statement.
“I am a Muslim and there is nothing Islamic about killing innocent people in Paris, San Bernardino, or anywhere else in the world,” Ali said in the statement. “True Muslims know that the ruthless violence of so called Islamic Jihadists goes against the very tenets of our religion.”
“I believe that our political leaders should use their position to bring understanding about the religion of Islam and clarify that these misguided murderers have perverted people’s views on what Islam really is,” he Said.
Several World leaders and even fellow Republican and Democratic Presidential Aspirants have also condemned Trump’s Call of the ban of Muslim Entering America.
The ITF today announced that the UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters will continue to be staged in Mission Viejo, California, USA through 2016. The 2015 event will be held at the Marguerite Tennis Pavilion on 3-7 November.
The UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters is the ITF’s flagship wheelchair tennis doubles event. First staged in 2000, the season-ending event currently features the world’s top eight men’s pairs, top six women’s pairs and top four quad pairs. USA is one of three countries to have hosted the tournament since its inception in 2000.
This is the third year that Mission Viejo has hosted the Doubles Masters. The city has long supported wheelchair tennis and for the last eight years has hosted the ITF Cruyff Foundation Junior Wheelchair Camp for the Americas in association with the USTA.
UNIQLO became title sponsor of the Doubles Masters in 2014 as part of a three-year sponsorship agreement for the ITF’s major wheelchair tennis properties that also includes title sponsorship of the ITF Wheelchair Tennis Tour.
“UNIQLO is proud to be the title sponsor of the UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters, the ITF’s flagship wheelchair tennis doubles event,” said Larry Meyer, CEO of UNIQLO USA. “Following the success of the past two years, we are pleased that this tournament will be held in the City of Mission Viejo once again in 2015 and 2016. Southern California and Mission Viejo in particular have had close ties to the early days of wheelchair tennis, and we believe the decision to continue to hold the event in this city is great news for both the sport and the event itself.”
“To have the UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters locked in for the 2015 and 2016 season here in Mission Viejo is tremendous,” said Jason Harnett, co-Tournament Director since 2013. “We all get a chance to enjoy the very best in this Paralympic sport leading into Rio 2016, and there is no better way to wrap up our annual roster of international wheelchair tennis tournaments in the United States.”
“We are delighted that Mission Viejo will continue to host the UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters,” said ITF Wheelchair Tennis Manager Mark Bullock. “Mission Viejo’s commitment to the development of wheelchair tennis over many years has been outstanding and we look forward to working with the team at the City of Mission Viejo Recreation and Community Services and Marguerite Tennis Pavilion to stage another memorable event in November.”
The FINA Men’s Water Polo Intercontinental Tournament is underway in Corona del Mar, California (USA) for the 2015 edition of the World League taking place from March 30 – April 4 2015.
Eight non-European nations (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, Kazakhstan, USA) from three continents have started to battle for a place in the World League Men’s Super Final which will take place in Bergamo (ITA) on June 23-28.
The first day in Corona del Mar began with the unpredictable duel between Australia and Brazil (the 2016 Olympic hosts ultimately lost 10-13) and ended when a young U.S. team barely fell to Canada 10-9. In between, Kazakhstan topped China 10-9, and Japan overtook Argentina 14-9.
On Day 2, Canada blew out Argentina, 15-6, to remain undefeated. Australia also beat Kazakhstan, 13-7, to maintain its perfect winning record in the competition.
On the other side of the Atlantic, in the European preliminaries, world champions Spain stun Netherlands (11-8) in the penultimate round on March 25 in Madrid and Greece crushed Germany 21-5 in Athens. In more recent action, on March 31, host France lost to Montenegro (8-14) whilst Italy beat Turkey 17-6.
The four best teams of the Intercontinental Tournament will join the best European teams in Bergamo for the eight-squad Super Final of the 2015 World League.
FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 – Leagues Update 3
All the qualifiers for the Longines FEI World Cup™ 2014/2015 Final have now concluded, following the Central European League Final in Warsaw, Poland 12 days ago and the last legs of the North America East and West Coast Leagues at Ocala, Florida and Thermal, California.
The excitement is building by the day, with the deadline for receipt of nominated entries coming up tomorrow, 27 March, and definite entries due to be confirmed by 6 April, just a week before the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final begins at the Thomas & Mack Arena in Las Vegas, USA, the 37th running of arguably the sport’s most sought-after individual title.
Ireland’s Bertram Allen clinched his second victory in the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 Western European League at Bordeaux, France riding Romanov. (FEI/Pierre Costabadie)
Central European League
Latvia’s Kristaps Neretnieks emerged as Central European champion at the exciting Final in Warsaw where 17 riders from eight countries – Belarus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Turkey – battled it out for the honours.
The Central European League is sub-divided into two regions due to the vast land-base over which it takes place, and Turkey’s Derin Demirsoy was the sole representative from the Southern Sub-League at the Final staged in Poland’s capital city.
There were 11 points-gaining events in the Northern Sub-League and four in the Southern Sub-League, and riders arrived at the Central European League Final carrying their best five results to which points earned from three further competitions would also be added.
Neretnieks didn’t get off to a great start when collecting 12 penalty seconds in the opening Table C Speed class with Casscare which left him well down the line. It was the host nation’s Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski who scored best here when runner-up with Inferno ahead of Turkey’s Demirsoy riding Harry K. The win went to Germany’s Marcel Braig, but he was not in contention for Central European League points.
And in the Table A class that followed, it was Estonia’s Gunnar Klettenberg who seized the maximum 20 points available when second with Lance S, while Aleksandr Lis from Belarus was next best in fifth place with Que Pasa. A single error with Caramsin pinned Neretnieks back into 11th position here, but in the Grand Prix his 10-year-old bay Hannoverian stallion secured victory in style.
Latvia’s Kristaps Neretnieks won the FEI World Cup™ Jumping Central European League Final 2015 at Warsaw, Poland. (FEI/Karol Rzeczycki)
All to play for
There was a massive 40 points up for grabs this time out, so it was all to play for. Producing one of just four double-clear rounds from the starting field of 40 horse-and-rider combinations, the 25-year-old Latvian left the rest floundering in his wake as he galloped to victory in the quickest time of 38.48 seconds. Poland’s Msciwoj Kiecon (Urbane) and Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski (Crazy Quick) slotted into third and fourth places, but it was his seventh-place finish with Rocketman that secured runner-up spot on the series table for Russia’s Vladimir Beletskiy.
Latvia’s Andis Varna finished third on the final leaderboard ahead of Ales Opatrny from the Czech Republic in fourth while Skrzyczynski, fellow-Pole Michal Kazmierczak and Turkey’s Demirsoy filled fifth, sixth and seventh spots.
Neretnieks, Beletskiy and Varna are already on the list of nominated entries for the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 Final in Las Vegas. Neretnieks previously competed at the 2013 Finals in Gothenburg, Sweden and at last year’s Longines Final in Lyon, France. Riding Conte Bellini, he also competed at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy, France.
North American Leagues
Todd Minikus won the FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 North America East Coast League, while fellow-American and 2012 FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion Rich Fellers topped the West Coast League.
The East Coast League embraced results from 13 events staged across the USA and Canada with the opportunity to gain crossover points from the West Coast and Western European League series. A total of 114 athletes participated, with 80 collecting points and each rider counted their best five results to decide the eventual winner.
It’s going to be a star-studded East Coast line-up at Las Vegas, with Minikus joined by Beijing Olympic team gold medallist Laura Kraut and 2013 FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion Beezie Madden along with Jack Towell, Kirsten Coe and McLain Ward.
Minikus began his march to the top of the leaderboard by taking maximum points at the opening leg in Bromont, Canada last July, and again at the sixth leg in Harrisburg, USA in October. He picked up more points in Washington, and although he missed out at Lexington in Kentucky a few weeks later, he brought his tally of points to 81 when runner-up behind McLain Ward at the qualifier in Toronto, Canada in November. He then sat back and left it to the rest to catch up with him.
Kraut came with a late run, helped by a double of wins in Wellington, Florida in November and again earlier this month, while Madden also scored a double, topping the leg at Lexington and finally securing her spot when second to Ireland’s Cian O’Connor in the Grand Prix at Live Oaks Plantation in Ocala, Florida last weekend. As the Irishman was not in contention for North American East Coast League points, Madden took the maximum 20 to leave her on a final total of 76, just one behind Kraut.
Towell completed with 71 points on the board while Coe collected 66 and Ward 61 to make the cut. Also finishing on 61 points was Leslie Burr Howard who, at the age of 29, became the sixth American to be crowned FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion at the Final in Gothenburg, Sweden back in 1986. She won’t compete at this year’s Final however, so her place goes to the next rider on the North America East Coast League table, 21-year-old Katie Dinan.
East Coast champion, Minikus, has enjoyed a great run of form with his talented 12-year-old Oldenburg mare, Quality Girl.
West Coast
There were nine chances to qualify from the North America West Coast series, with the opportunity to also gain crossover points from the East Coast and Western European Leagues. Rich Fellers, the man who brought the FEI World Cup™ Jumping title back to the USA for the first time in 25 years when coming out on top at the 2012 Final, won through ahead of Susan Artes who also finished with 65 points but who had to settle for runner-up spot due to Fellers’ higher placings. Just three qualify from this region, and Karl Cook has earned the third qualifying spot.
A total of 75 athletes competed, with 47 earning points and, again, the five best results decided the league title. Events took place across Canada and the USA, and Fellers kick-started his campaign at Langley in Canada where he collected 13 points before claiming the maximum 20 at the fourth leg in Rancho Murieta in California last October. He maintained his momentum with 17 more to add at the next leg in Del Mar, California, but it was his trip to the last qualifier at Live Oak Plantation in Florida last weekend that finally and firmly booked his ticket to Las Vegas.
Artes was thoroughly consistent throughout her seven outings, missing out on points just once at the seventh leg in Las Vegas, so she will be hoping that her return visit to the entertainment capital of the world will be more productive in just over two weeks’ time. She has a legion of fans who follow her every move, partly due to her relatively unusual path to the top of her sport. Originally a hunter/jumper rider on the US circuit, the 50-year-old from Burbank in California has honed a tremendous partnership with the 11-year-old Dutch-bred gelding Zamiro which she has had since he was five. Together they collected all their points at Californian venues including Del Mar, Rancho Murieta and Thermal. Artes previously qualified for the FEI World Cup™ Final in 2007 but didn’t compete. This time around she has every intention of giving it her best shot.
Karl Cook was only 23 years old when competing at the 2013 Final at Gothenburg. He lined out at seven events in the North American West Coast League this season, and his third-place finish was boosted by maximum points at round six in Thermal last October, and 17 points at the following leg in Las Vegas.
Fellers and the 19-year-old stallion Flexible took the sport by storm when winning the coveted trophy at ‘s-Hertogenbosch in The Netherlands three years ago. This horse has experienced so many come-backs from illness and injury during his career that he has long been a legend, and together with his 55-year-old rider he will have huge support when the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 Final gets underway in Las Vegas on 15 April.
Here are the results for day 2 of the 2014 UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters taking place in Mission Viejo, California, USA on 5-9 November. The ITF’s year-end wheelchair doubles event features eight men’s pairs, six women’s pairs and four quad pairs.
The UNIQLO Wheelchair Doubles Masters was first held alongside the NEC Masters in 2000, and became a standalone event in 2003. In the men’s event, eight pairs compete in two round-robin groups, with the top two pairs in each group reaching the semifinals. In the women’s event, six pairs compete in two round-robin groups, with the top two pairs in each group contesting the semifinals. In the quad event, four pairs compete in one round-robin group, with the top two pairs contesting the final.
WOMEN’S WORLD LEAGUE 2014 – The FINA Women’s Intercontinental Water Polo Tournament kicked off in Riverside, Cal. (USA) on May 20 with 8 teams vying for a Super Final spot at the end of the six-day qualification event.
In the tournament’s first encounters, 2013 World silver medallist Australia faced pressure from defending World League champions China, eventually winning 13-10. Reigning Olympic champions USA defeated Japan 14-5, Brazil topped Venezuela 12-2, and Canada crushed Kazakhstan 21-7.
The match schedule of today May 21 (local time) is as follows:
3pm: Venezuela vs China 4.30pm: Canada vs Japan 6pm: Australia vs Brazil 7.30pm: USA vs Kazakhstan
World League participation and honours – The FINA Women’s World League was launched in 2004. Australia’s best result in the event is a second-place finish in 2007, 2010 and 2012. Brazil took part in three editions, placing eighth in 2006. Canada was a World League silver medallist in 2009. China’s first podium appearance in the event was in 2010, capturing bronze.
The Chinese proceeded to clinch their first international water polo title at the 2013 edition. Japan took part in four editions, taking seventh in 2008. Kazakhstan competed in the inaugural edition in 2004, finishing eighth while Venezuela is taking part in their first World League. Last but not least, Team USA holds a record seven World League crowns. Australia, Canada and USA never missed a World League edition.
MEN’S INTERCONTINENTAL TOURNAMENT – Meanwhile, the men’s teams of Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, Kazakhstan and USA are gearing up for the FINA Men’s Intercontinental Tournament to be held in Shanghai, China, from May 27 to June 1, 2014.
The ITF today announced that the 2014 ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters will return to Mission Viejo, California, USA for the second successive year. The event will take place at the Marguerite Tennis Pavilion on 5-9 November.
The ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters is the ITF’s flagship wheelchair tennis doubles event. First staged in 2000, the season-ending event currently features the world’s top eight men’s pairs, top six women’s pairs and top four quad pairs. USA is one of three countries to have hosted the tournament since its inception in 2000.
Last year Mission Viejo hosted the ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters alongside the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters, the season-ending championship for the world’s top ranked singles players. The city has long supported wheelchair tennis and for the last seven years has hosted the ITF Cruyff Foundation Junior Wheelchair Camp for the Americas in association with the USTA.
As a result of hosting last year’s event, Mission Viejo was recently named as the first city to receive the USTA Brad Parks Award, which is awarded annually to recognise outstanding contribution to wheelchair tennis. The award is named after the founder of wheelchair tennis, Brad Parks, who hails from the nearby city of San Clemente. Parks, one of six ITF Wheelchair Tennis Ambassadors, will be the Honorary Chair of the ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters again this year.
“We are delighted that Mission Viejo will host the 2014 ITF Wheelchair Doubles Masters after such a tremendous event in 2013,” said ITF Wheelchair Tennis Manager Mark Bullock. “Mission Viejo’s commitment to the development of wheelchair tennis over many years has been outstanding and I would like to congratulate the city on receiving the USTA Brad Parks Award. We look forward to working with the team at the City of Mission Viejo Recreation and Community Services and Marguerite Tennis Pavilion to stage another memorable event in November.”
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