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David Beckham introduced as Real Madrid player MADRID, July 2: England captain David Beckham was formally introduced today as a real Madrid Player, adding the world’s most marketable soccer star to an already glittering lineup. With TV cameras broadcasting the ceremony......more Imran for resumption of Indo-Pak cricket ties now NEW DELHI, July 2: Legendary Pakistan all-rounder Imran Khan feels the time is ripe for India and Pakistan to........more Ganguly
bounces NAKHCHIVAN (Azerbaijan), July 2: Grandmaster Surya Shekhar Ganguly bounced back into reckoning for a medal with a crushing victory over. ..........more Tired
Williams LONDON, July 2: Reigning champions Venus and Serena Williams, having just reached the singles semi-finals, crashed out of the women’s doubles at Wimbledon yesterday, losing in three sets to Russian 15th seeds Elena Dementieva and Lina Krasnoroutskaya. . ..........more |
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Karan Nagar(Jr) enters semis of Jasbir Memorial Cricket Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Karan Nagar (Jr) Cricket Club defeated Suriyavanshi Cricket Club (SCC) by 68 runs in the first quarterfinal....more A
new beginning in State Soccer Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Iqbal Sports Club, Srinagar has made a new beginning a friendly match.....more Inter-school
tourney Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Inter-school tournaments of Mandi and Surankote zones concluded at Higher Secondary ......more 50% of all international cricket now exclusive on Ten Sports Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Ten Sports has purchased the Indian sub-continent and Middle .. .....more |
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Choudhary Club wins by 49 runs ...... Powerlifting trials on July 5...... Working Committee ratifies contracts of support staff ...... |
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David Beckham introduced as Real Madrid player MADRID, July 2: England captain David Beckham was formally introduced today as a real Madrid Player, adding the world’s most marketable soccer star to an already glittering lineup. With TV cameras broadcasting the ceremony live around the world, team president Florentino Perez unveiled his fourth multi-million dollar man in as many years and hailed Beckham as one of the best English soccer players of all times. "David, welcome to the league of dreams," Perez told the former Manchester United star. Beckham, 28, opened a brief speech by thanking team officials in Spanish - "gracias", he said with a smile, then added: "Football is everything to me and joining Real Madrid is a dream come true". Beckham wore a powder blue suit, open white shirt and a pair of earrings. His wife Victoria, the former posh in the spice girls pop group, sat in the front row. More than 500 journalists from 25 countries were on hand to cover the event at Real Madrid’s basketball arena, the Raimundo Saporta pavilion. The photogenic midfielder received a white Real Madrid jersey - bearing his name and the number 23 - from honorary president Alfredo Di Stefano, an illustrious Real Madrid hero from the 1950s. Beckham later donned the white real uniform and kicked a ball around a bit on a practice field. Hundreds of fans cheered as they sat in a hot Madrid sun. The unveiling ceremony unfolded on a stage featuring a giant closeup photo of Beckham’s face, his last name and that of his new employer. Perez noted Beckham is a cultural icon and trendsetter with followers all over the planet, a man described as casting a "global spell". "That may be true," Perez said. "But what is really true is that Real Madrid signed David Beckham because he is a great soccer player, a great professional whose dedication and spirit of sacrifice, whose team spirit and simplicity are recognised by all who have dealt with him." "For us he is one of the best english soccer players of all times," Perez said. "For that reason and none other Beckham is here with us today." Beckham, transferred last week from Manchester United for 35 million ($US40 million), is the latest of a string of big-money recruits to join the 9-times European Cup champion and 29-times titlist of the Spanish league. He will play alongside other Perez acquisitions such as Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo. Beckham arrived yesterday with his wife and their eldest son, 4-year-old Brooklyn, amid a frenzy of media coverage, bodyguards and police protection. One Spanish newspaper said some visiting heads of state don’t get such VIP treatment. (AP) |
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Imran for resumption of Indo-Pak cricket ties now NEW DELHI, July 2: Legendary Pakistan all-rounder Imran Khan feels the time is ripe for India and Pakistan to resume cricket ties as the game could become a cementing factor for friendly ties between the two countries. The cricketer-turned-politician said it was a "good idea" to resume rivalry on the cricket field now in the background of peace intiatives taken by the political establishments in both India and Pakistan. "I think because there is a perception in the public that a dialogue is starting, there is first step forward. So, once you go in that direction cricket is going to help," Imran Khan said in an interview to worldview India to be telecast on Doordarshan national network tomorrow. Khan disagreed with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf’s perception that cricket was a trivial issue in India-Pakistan relations. "If there is animosity between the two countries then cricket plays a divisive role. It further accentuates the animosity and if the relationship is cordial or getting closer then cricket plays a cementing part," he said. To hammer home his point, Khan said, "you see if there is tension, for instance as it was after Kargil, then cricket would have made it worse. Because you know then cricket becomes the battlefield. And the supporters then are at each other’s throats. "On the other hand, as there seems to be light at the end of tunnel right now, then I think cricket helps. It is going to cement more. (PTI) |
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Ganguly bounces back with victory NAKHCHIVAN (Azerbaijan), July 2: Grandmaster Surya Shekhar Ganguly bounced back into reckoning for a medal with a crushing victory over Levan Pantsulaia of Georgia in the 11th round of the World Juniors Chess Championship here. Top seed Shakhriyar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan remained at the top of the tables after a draw with Sergei Azarov of Belarus in a Ruy Lopez game lasting 26 moves. Mamedyarov has 8.5 points in his kitty with just two more rounds remaining in this 50-player championship. Azarov and Sergey Erenburg of Israel followed the leader on 8 points while Ganguly, seeded fifth, moved to joint fourth place on 7.5 points along with Kadir Guseinov of Azerbaijan. The other Indian hope Grandmaster P Harikrishna tried hard but failed to break the defences of Vugar Gashimov of Azerbaijan and had to settle for a truce after a long drawn battle. Harikrishna is in a pack of five players on 7 points and is still in with a chance for a medal should he do well in the remaining games. In the girls section, Nana Dzagnidze of Georgia stretched her lead by a whopping 2-point margin outclassing Azerbaijani Afag Khudaverdieva. Nana has amassed 8.5 points so far in the championship and is now assured of the title. Dronavalli Harika received a jolt in her quest for a silver medal after she went down fighting to Ekaterina Ubiennykh of Russia. As a result of this result, Zeinab Mamedjarova of Azerbaijan moved to sole second position on 6.5 points while Harika slipped to joint third spot along side Ubiennykh and Cristina Calotescu of Romania. Harika’s chances for a medal are still bright provided she does well against Calotescu in her next round game. The other Indian girls in with a chance is Asian juniors girls champion Tania Sachdev who drew with compatriot Eesha Karavade and took her tally to 5.5 points. Tania is placed on sole sixth position but Eesha went out of contention after this draw, as she was half a point behind Tania. Ganguly had the advantage of white pieces against Pantsulaia and he gave it a real hard try. The Georgian employed the Sicilian Nazdorf against which Ganguly restored his faith in the classical variation that has been holding his forte for many years now. Obviously well-prepared, Pantsulaia played the opening quite well and managed an evenly balanced position with chances for both sides. The queens got traded on the 36th move and thereafter Ganguly pushed his pawns on the queen side to win a piece. The resulting endgame might still have been a draw with correct play but Pantsulaia erred and lost after 101 moves. Harikrishna got the game transposed into less trodden variation but did not succeed in getting the desirable result against Gashimov. Playing white, the Indian encountered an off beat move order in a queen pawn game and subsequent exchanges led to an endgame where Hari could not do much. The peace treaty was signed after 89 moves. (PTI) |
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Tired Williams sisters crash out of doubles LONDON, July 2: Reigning champions Venus and Serena Williams, having just reached the singles semi-finals, crashed out of the women’s doubles at Wimbledon yesterday, losing in three sets to Russian 15th seeds Elena Dementieva and Lina Krasnoroutskaya. The Russians won 6-3 3-6 7-5 when Venus double faulted on match point to advance to a quarter-final against Venezuela’s Maria Vento-Kabchi and Angelique Widjaja of Indonesia. "We both put a lot of work into our singles," explained Serena afterwards. "It’s hard to turn around 15 minutes later and go out for a doubles match. We were a bit fatigued mentally and physically." In contrast, 46-year-old Martina Navratilova is still fighting alongside Russian teen Svetlana Kuznetsova after the eighth seeds saw off Czech pair Daja Bedanova and Renata Voracova 6-3 6-1. Navratilova and Kuznetsova, earlier dumped out of the singles by Justine Henin-Hardenne of Belgium, now meet second seeds Kim Clijsters of Belgium, a singles semi-finalist, and Japan’s Ai Sugiyama. (AFP) |
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Karan Nagar(Jr) enters semis of Jasbir Memorial Cricket Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Karan Nagar (Jr) Cricket Club defeated Suriyavanshi Cricket Club (SCC) by 68 runs in the first quarterfinal of the Ist Jasbir Memorial (Cosco ball) Cricket Tournament being played at Baba Jamuna Dass grounds, Paloura here today. Batting first, Karan Nagar set a target of 163 runs for seven in 16 overs, which, in reply, SCC could not chase and lost all the wickets for 96 runs in 13.1 overs. Atul was top scorer with 78 including nine sixes and four boundaries. Manu and Sameer contributed 29 and 13 runs respectively. Taggar, Vicky and Rajat bagged three one and two wickets respectively. Batting second, SCC could not face the bowling wrath of Karan Nagar bowlers especially of Nasar, who clinched four wickets. Deepak and Shanu were maximum scorers with 17 and 14 runs respectively. Salman took three wickets. Ranjit Singh Sambyal and Nareshwar Singh were umpires while Ninda was scorer. Next match: Aap Shambu Club V/s Friends Club. |
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A new beginning in State
Soccer Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Iqbal Sports Club, Srinagar has made a new beginning a friendly match between Jammu XI and Kashmir XI teams which Jammu XI won 1-0 at Bakshi Stadium, Srinagar. A strong 5000 crowd, fans from both Jammu and Kashmir provinces, witnessed the cream of the State football playing before them. The match played on the occasion of final of the Ist Dr Sir Mohammad Iqbal Football Tournament. It was a keenly contested match with both sides fighting for the supremacy over either side. But at the end, Jammu XI emerged triumph scoring one goal through skipper Deepak Sangral on a rebound from Amardeep Deepak. Ramesh Kumar was manager while Ram Rattan was assistant manager of Jammu XI. M Y Khan, chairman, J&K Bank, who was chief guest on the occasion, appreciated the crowd for admiring the players throughout the match. Man behind this historical tie was Bashir Ahmed Malik who was assisted by his team including Nissar Ahmed, Nazir Ahmed, Zahoor Teli, Nazir Ahmed (national referee) and Bakshi. "Holding of such a unique match after a long gap of 25 years provided the palyes an oppotunity to interect with the top playes from either side", said Amardeep Singh who was captain of the under-21 team which for the first time had won the North-Zone championship at Jammu last year. An international player in under-19 Asian School Championship held at Korea in 1999, Amardeep was of the of the view that such competitons should he held on regular intervals. |
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Inter-school tourney of Mandi, Surankote zones ends Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Inter-school tournaments of Mandi and Surankote zones concluded at Higher Secondary School, Surankote in Rajouri. Competitions were conducted in the age groups of U-14 and U-17 boys in the discipline of Kabaddi, Kho-Kho and Volleyball. In the finals and prize distribution function, Principal, Higher Secondary School, Mandi, Lal Singh was chief guest. In Surankote, Principal, Higher Secondary School, Mr Jaffri was chief guest. |
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50% of all international cricket now exclusive on Ten Sports Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Ten Sports has purchased the Indian sub-continent and Middle East television rights to broadcast all cricket played in the West Indies. The period for new agreement is from 2004-2008 inclusive and starts with the next cricket due to be played in th West Indies-the England tour of the islands in March 2004. In total, the new agreement guarantees a further 180 days of international cricket to Ten Sports including the India tour of the West Indies in 2006. Chris McDonald, the CEO of Ten Sports, and "its a huge step forward for the channel and will be a real pleasure to show the unique atmosphere and character of West Indies cricket live and exclusive on Ten Sports". Ten Sports purchased the Asian television rights for the West Indies from UK broadcaster Sky Television, who have taken over the worldwide television rights for West Indies cricket. For the past 10 years, either Star Sports or ESPN had showed cricket in the West Indies. McDonald added "we now have agreements in place to show as much international one day cricket on Ten Sports alone as ESPN and Star Sports combined in the coming years. Considering that we launched only just over a year ago, it is remarkable that we are now the top rated sports channel in the sub-continent and with more live cricket to come, we can only keep on growing". Ten Sports has already entered into long term deals with the Pakistan and the Sri Lankan boards for their worldwide television rights as well as acquiring the right to all Sharjah and Morocco triangular cricket events. Ten Sports broadcast the 2002 Football World Cup exclusively in the sub-continent and the 2003 Cricket World Cup in Pakistan. According to McDonald "The next 12 months promises to be a fantastic period for Ten Sports. In addition to our unique wrestling content from WWE, we can look forward to live and exclusive coverage of events such as South Africa’s tour to Pakistan, England and Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka, the English tour of the West Indies, the Sharjah Cup, India playing Pakistan in the Champions Trophy hockey and more of the worlds biggest golf and tennis events. It should be a great year!" Choudhary Club wins by 49 runs Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: Choudhary Cricket Club defeated Young Cricket Club (YCC) by a margin of 49 runs in the 3rd A P Singh Memorial Cricket Tournament being played at Nowshera in Rajouri. Earlier, Choudhary Club won the toss and decided to bat first. They made 140 runs for the loss of eight wickets in the stipulated 20 overs, which, in reply, Young Club could not chase and lost all the wickets for 91 runs. Jaspal was highest scorer with 37 runs made with the help of four hits to the fence while Raj Kumar contributed 35 runs including six fours. Suraj and Sumeet Choudhary added 15 and 10 runs respectively. Naresh bowled well for Young Club taking four wickets for 28 runs in four overs. Happy and Satish shared two wickets each. Chasing a target of 141 runs, YCC could not reach the double figure mark and lost all the wickets for 91 runs. Happy was top scorer with unbeaten 33 including five boundaries. Sunny and Balveer contributed 15 and 10 runs respectively. For Choudhary Club, Rajesh Choudhary took three wickets for 17 runs while Susheel, Bittu and Jaspal bagged two each. Later, Jaspal was declared as man of the match for his all-round performance. Harmik singh and Paramjeet Singh were umpires in today’s match. Deedar Singh was scorer. Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 2: All J&K Powerlifting Association is conducting selection trials for the forthcoming North Zone Powerlifting Championship at M A Stadium, here on July 5 at 9 am. After conducting trials in the weight groups of below 52 kg, 56 kg, 60 kg, 67.5 kg, 75 kg, 82.5 kg, 90 kg, 100 kg, 110 kg and 125 kg, the final state team will be named, a handout issued here today said. North Zone Championship will be held from July 10 to 13. Recipient of gold medal from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Arun Gupta S/o Mr Darshan Kumar Gupta of Udhampur, who has been awarded gold medal in 11th Convocation of the JU for securing first position in M.Lib Science in 2001. Vijender Kumar S/o Mr Dharam Chand Sharma of Sarna in Samba, who has been awarded gold medal in 11th Co-nvocation of the JU for securing first position in MA Sanskrit in 2002. Parminder Kour, who has been awarded gold medal in the 11th Convocation of University of Jammu for secuirng first position in MA Economics in 2002. Silky Vaid S/o Mr Mohinder Kumar Vaid, who has been awarded gold medal in the 11th Convocation of the University of Jammu for securing first position in MSc Geology in 2002. Working Committee ratifies contracts of support staff NEW DELHI, July 2: The cricket board today formally extended the contracts of national coach John Wright and physiotherapist Andrew Leipus for one year while ratifying the appointment of new trainer Gregory Allen king. The extensions, which were only a formality, were given by the BCCI’s working committee which met here today. King, who was appointed after Adrian Le Roux resigned last month, has also been given a one-year tenure. The BCCI has also decided to appoint an agency to investigate as to why World Cup marketing by Global Cricket Corporation (GCC), rights holders of all ICC events till 2007, was "done so poorly," board president Jagomhan Dalmiya told a press conference. "We felt that nimbus, the GCC’s agent in India, had done a poor marketing of the World Cup. We have decided to appoint an agency to investigate as to why it was done so poorly", Dalmiya said. The working committee also announced the itinerary of the test series at home against New Zealand and the subsequent Tri-series with New Zealand and Australia. The contract dispute with the International Cricket Council was discussed extensively with a view to finding a way to recover India’s minimum guarantee money of 6.5 million US dollars which has been withheld by the ICC. (PTI) |
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