Cash pledge for Canada Olympics


The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will give extra cash to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games if there is a budget shortfall caused by recession.

There is a potential 30m Canadian dollar ($27m;£16.5m) revenue shortfall as the IOC has only signed up nine worldwide corporate sponsors.

Eleven had been expected when Vancouver's C$1.7bn operating budget was drawn up.

The games in the western Canadian city open in less than six months.

'Confident'

"With the commitment the IOC has made to us and the contingency we had in our budget I am now extremely confident we will achieve our targets," Dave Cobb, Vancouver Organizing Committee (Vanoc) executive vice-president said.

It comes after the IOC panel that is overseeing preparations for the games made a final visit to Vancouver.

The IOC and Vanoc denied that the issue of corporate sponsorship had caused a rift between the two groups.

Vanoc was able to meet its target for domestic corporate sponsorship monies.

But since the onset of the global recession it no longer believes it can exceed its C$760m goal.

The IOC has not promised to make up the entire shortfall, but the funding gap could end up being less than C$30m if new worldwide sponsors are signed before the games begin in February.

~ Friday, August 28, 2009 0 comments

GB wrestling medals impress boss


GB wrestling manager Shaun Morley said he was delighted with progress after the team won five medals in Europe.

Britain ranked fifth from 18 countries in Sardinia after Krasimir Krastanov, Myroslav Dykun and Leon Rattigan all took third-place finishes.

At the Krasnik International Tournament in Poland, Jatinder Rakhra and Craig McKenna also won bronze medals.

"Our young wrestlers are becoming very competitive at an international level," said Morley.

"As we look ahead to the London 2012 Olympics, I am delighted at the progress we are making."

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'Bobby' keeps the Lions in mint condition


The Lions have embraced most of the challenges they have encountered on this South Africa tour head on.

The on-field ones might have escalated this week, but away from the rugby there remains one that no squad member fancies, despite encouragement from the coaches.

Forwards coach Warren Gatland and defence guru Shaun Edwards have both offered tempting bets to any player who can 'bring down' the squad's physical conditioner Paul Stridgeon, a former freestyle wrestler who competed for England at the 2002 Commonwealth Games.

At 5ft 8in and 76kg (12 stone) he is a good deal smaller and lighter than all of them and dwarfed by the "big beasts" in the party, but is proud of the fact that no rugby player has ever got the better of him.

This may have something to what happened to the Lions' assistant forwards coach Graham Rowntree, the former Leicester and England prop, when Stridgeon started working for the Rugby Football Union last summer.

"Graham took on the challenge when I first started with England, and I killed him in front of all the lads," he recalled. "They enjoyed that."

Other front-row titans such as ex-All Black Craig Dowd, the former Wasps forwards coach, and Phil Vickery have also tried their luck before, without success.

"Warren and Shaun keep trying to get the players to have a go. We've been offering them good odds, minimum bet £200. I've thrown down the gauntlet and a few fancy their chances, but no-one has accepted yet. It's disappointing."

Stridgeon, 29 on Sunday, is not one for bemoaning his lot though, far from it.

Nicknamed "Bobby", amongst other things, after the Adam Sandler character in a 1998 film "The Water Boy", his energy, enthusiasm and sense of fun have made him a popular figure among the entire squad.

"He is the perfect bloke to have on tour," says Scotland hooker Ross Ford. "He's a livewire, always bouncing about, up to mischief, getting the boys in trouble. He keeps everybody going, there is never a dull moment."

One of Stridgeon's party tricks is being able to clamber up any pole or road sign and hold himself out parallel to the floor, with his feet in the air.

"He tries to break it out wherever possible to impress the boys," notes Ford, sounding suitably impressed.


Joe Worsley, who remembers Stridgeon as "an absolute legend" during his five years at Wasps, stresses his character merely underlines his professionalism.

"I didn't realise how much I missed him until this tour," said the England flanker. "But he is not just good craic, he also knows his stuff. On the professional side of things, he is brilliant, always saying the right things."

Every morning before breakfast, Stridgeon and the Lions' Head of Physical Conditioning, Craig White, check the weight of every player, and ask them three questions: 1) How they slept, 2) What their energy levels are like, and 3) How sore their muscles are.

"They give us a score from one to five for each one, one being bad, five being good, it all goes into the computer and we monitor it," Stridgeon explains. "If the scores fall gradually or someone reports a couple of twos, we can flag things up."

The sprightly duo supervise gym and pool sessions, as well as the physical side at training, and attend to each player's individual needs depending on their post-match recovery, response to injuries and readiness for matches.

Each evening at 9pm he and White meet with the squad's two doctors, James Robson and Gary O'Driscoll, and three physios - Prav Mathema, Phil Pask and Bob Stewart, plus masseur Richard Wegrzyk - to discuss player issues and plan for the next day.

"It is tough, hard work, a case of making sure no-one slips through the net," says Stridgeon, who shows no signs of slowing down with the finish line in sight.

"It is just my natural persona," he says. "It is a long old tour to be sat there being miserable isn't it? You need a bit of banter and I feel as a conditioner I have got to be the one to pick the boys up when they are down. You have to be an energiser, and I think that is partly why I was brought on this trip. Craig is the same."

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The two go back a long way.

Stridgeon, 29 on Sunday, got into wrestling when he went along with his grandfather to Riley's gym in Wigan at the age of six, and started competing as 10-year-old.

From the age of 12, his weights programme was looked after by White, another Wiganer held in the highest regard after his work with the Irish Rugby Union, Wasps, Leicester, the 2005 Lions and now the Welsh Rugby Union.

Stridgeon completed a sports science degree and then concentrated on wrestling full-time for a year, with the aid of Lottery funding, leading up to the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, where he competed in the 60kg freestyle category.

Once it was over though he opted to leave the sport, accepting an offer from White, who was joining Wasps, to become his assistant.

"I could have carried on wrestling, skimping and saving for a living, but it was just too good an opportunity," Stridgeon said.

He spent five years at Wasps, playing a key role alongside White in keeping the squad fresh enough to peak for the end-of-season Premiership play-offs. Three successive titles under Warren Gatland, plus the Heineken Cup in 2004, were their rewards.

When White moved on to Leicester, Stridgeon spent nine months working with Warrington rugby league club before joining the RFU last year, working with members of England's elite player squads.

Just as Ian McGeechan is fond of pointing out how certain players prosper in the Lions environment, the same appears to apply within their management team.

"We are very busy and don't have much time for other stuff but work is enjoyable enough for me," Stridgeon adds.

"It is a really special thing to be part of, a great bunch of lads, great group of coaches, awesome. I have really enjoyed it.

"It has been all I hoped for and more, and reminds you how lucky you are. I keep saying to everyone, 'we are living the dream, because we are'.

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British wrestlers win four medals


British wrestlers picked up four medals at the Spanish Grand Prix tournament in Madrid on Sunday.

Krasimir Krastanov from Manchester won the gold medal in the 55kg category, thanks to a points victory over Tim Schleicher of Germany.

London Olympic prospect Leon Rattigan won bronze in the 96kg division, while Mohammadali Haghidoust also secured bronze in the 74kg division.

In the women's 55kg division, Jayne Clayson picked up GB's third bronze.

"It was another terrific performance from our wrestlers, and to bring home four medals from a prestigious European tournament is a great result," said GB performance director Shaun Morley.

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Matt Roberts' Indianapolis practice report


The wet weather curse that forced last year's race here at Indy to be halted eight laps from the end struck again on Friday, with the first free practice at the Brickyard a virtual washout.

The riders were at least able to complete a full session in the soaking conditions, with Dani Pedrosa the surprise package at the front ahead of Nicky Hayden, who is determined to put on a good show for the locals just three hours drive from his Kentucky home.

Hayden is wearing a special edition helmet this weekend featuring the logo of the 'Make a Wish' foundation, which will be auctioned off after the race.

"All the money will go towards the foundation which helps kids' dreams come true," explained Nicky.

"I have worked with this charity for five years now and it always feels good to help out such a solid cause, and yes, I have already made my wish for the weekend!"

That wish could be for a new contract with Ducati, with Jorge Lorenzo having played the role of an unlikely fairy godmother this week in turning down the offer of Nicky's ride in favour of an extra year at Yamaha.

Lorenzo, who also does a lot of work for children's charities in Spain, was somewhat more self-indulgent with his choice of special helmet design for this weekend - the self-styled superhero going for a conspicuous Captain America look.


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With Loris Capirossi confirmed as team-mate to Alvaro Bautista at Suzuki for next year, Chris Vermeulen - who shares Hayden's manager - is also keeping his fingers crossed for good news.

"At the moment I'm still unsure although it is clear that I won't be with Suzuki," admitted the Australian.

"I want to stay in the MotoGP paddock and we are talking with some teams at the moment, but things are not decided yet and hopefully I will know a lot more after this weekend. The teams are private teams, but we have to wait and see."


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Aleix Espargaró (I told you to remember his name!) made an impressive MotoGP debut in the treacherously wet conditions.


Espargaro got his chance in MotoGP because of Casey Stoner's illness

His first run-out was all the more impressive considering the three different types of asphalt used at Indy, which make it an unpredictable place to ride even in the best of conditions.

Riding the notorious Ducati Desmosedici for the first time ever, Espargaró was more than two seconds quicker than his team-mate Niccolo Canepa and also outpaced Gabor Talmasci on the satellite Honda.

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Capirossi extends Suzuki contract


Loris Capirossi has signed a one-year contract extension with the Rizla Suzuki MotoGP team to finalise their line-up for the 2010 season.

He will race alongside newcomer Alvaro Bautista, meaning there is no place for his current team-mate Chris Vermeulen.

Speaking ahead of this weekend's Indianapolis Grand Prix, Capirossi, 36, said: " I love working with my crew and feel really at home here.

"I love the competition and my ambition to succeed is as strong as ever."

Capirossi is the most experienced rider on the MotoGP grid, having won his first 125cc race at the age of 17 and been world champion in both the 125 and 250cc classes.


He joined Suzuki in 2008, replacing John Hopkins, and will now continue in the bright blue colours for a third year.

"Loris brings so much character, bravery and experience to Suzuki, and his technical input is invaluable," said team chief Paul Denning.

"We hope that Loris, with the youthful exuberance of Alvaro alongside him next season, will be a good partnership.

"Loris is a great team-mate but certainly won't want to be beaten by the younger guy so I am sure he will be fighting hard!"

Australian Vermeulen has been reported to be a challenger for Briton James Toseland's ride with the Tech 3 Yamaha team, and is keen to stay in the MotoGP paddock.

"We are talking with some teams at the moment, but things are not decided yet. Hopefully I will know a lot more after this weekend. The teams are private teams, but we have to wait and see," he said.

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England secure semi-final place


England reached the semi-finals of the EuroHockey Nations Championships and secured their place at the 2010 World Cup thanks to an 8-2 win over Belgium.

An Ashley Jackson brace and goals each for Richard Mantell and Jonty Clarke, sandwiched between two Belgium strikes, gave England a 4-2 half-time lead.

England dominated the second half with further goals from Jackson, Clarke, Richard Alexander and James Tindall.

"We're delighted," said England manager Peter Nicholson.

"Our first target here was World Cup qualification and the players have coped well with the expectation and delivered.

"Based on that performance I think we're a match for anybody."

England now await the result of Germany's match against Austria and the final Pool B matches to determine who they will meet in Friday's semi-final, with Spain, Netherlands and France all possible opponents in Amstelveen.

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German golden goal beats England


A golden goal by Germany's Maike Stockel knocked England's women out of the EuroHockey Nations Championships with a 2-1 defeat in the semi finals.

Germany took the lead through Natascha Keller in the 27th minute before Jo Ellis hit the equaliser.

England held on early in the golden goal first-half but Stockel's flick over Becky Duggan sealed Germany's win.

England's women face Spain for the bronze medal on Saturday (1200 BST) while Germany meet the Netherlands.

It was a cruel end to an entertaining game.

As the first extra-time period began England survived several flash balls across the circle and, having weathered the storm, they began to probe through the German midfield in search of the golden goal.



However, with 90 seconds of the half remaining a ball down the right inside channel split the English defence and a diving German forward deflected the ball into the path of Stockel, who finished classily.

England coach Danny Kerry said too many small errors had undermined her side's performance.

"We're obviously a bit down. I think we let ourselves down with poor basic skills, which can be worked on, and when we do we will be beating teams like Germany," said Kerry.

"We were the second best team out there tonight and we've come out of a great game as losers.

"But we know what we need to do to improve and we will be doing that.

"The girls will pick themselves up for Saturday's game against Spain though; after all, there's a bronze medal at stake."

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From 'terror toddler' to hockey star


Kerry Williams has described her younger self as a "terror toddler" whose mother made her get involved in sport to calm her down.

Now, Williams shares her experience of being "like one of those kids on Supernanny" in a programme aiming to engage 30,000 young people through sport by 2012.

She endured sitting at home last August, watching the Olympic hockey on TV as her Great Britain team-mates secured sixth place in Beijing.

But by 2012, when she will be 26, the forward aims to be a fixture in Great Britain's Olympic team, spurred on by the disappointment of missing out last time.

A major milestone comes this week as she travels to Sydney with a young England squad to take part in the Champions Trophy, for the top six teams in the world.

My role is to help disengaged kids so I have to be honest and open, using my own experience

Kerry Williams

England will face world and Olympic champions Netherlands, Germany, Argentina, Australia and China in the tournament, which begins on 11 July.

"This is a real test for us as a new squad," Williams told BBC Sport.

"If our aim is to win gold in 2012, we've got to be able to compete with the likes of Holland and Germany so hopefully this will give us a good foundation."

Williams, from Leicester, talks candidly about how much of a handful she was as a child, admitting she once put her hands over her mother's eyes while she was driving.

"In a big family I always wanted to get noticed," she said. "And I did it by being horrible."

It is this willingness to open up that has helped her work with the Youth Sports Trust, where she is one of a team of athlete-mentors, including badminton star Gail Emms and former swimmer Nick Gillingham.



"My role is to help disengaged children so I have to be honest and open, using my own experience, to get them to open up," she explained.

"They see what I've achieved and once they realise I'm a normal person they see what they can achieve."

Williams is involved in one programme targeting under-achievers in schools and another that helps make sure top athletes have their best interests looked after in the rest of their school lives.

She knows just how difficult juggling priorities can be after being encouraged into all kinds of sports and pastimes by her parents.

"My mum started getting me involvement in sport to calm me down - she said I needed to learn discipline," Williams explained.

"I used to do so many sports and it calmed me down, made me focus and helped me move to the top of my classes."

At the age of 15, though, she had to make a choice between an audition for the Royal Ballet School and England U16 hockey trials.

"I got to the stage where I was playing hockey then jumping in the car for ballet, having to put my leotard on and do my hair in the car - it was too much," she said.

"I decided on hockey because it's a team sport and it's so unpredictable. I miss performing but it can be the same thing night after night."

Williams impressed on her international debut against Argentina three years ago and became a key part of the England team that won bronze in the 2007 Euronations tournament to secure Olympic qualification.

But she began the 2008 season slowly and found herself left out of the Great Britain squad for Beijing, an experience she is determined not to repeat.



"I didn't play to the best of my ability at the start of the year - I thought I was going to Beijing and got ahead of myself," she admitted.

"I was devastated, I'm still disappointed and I don't ever want to feel like that again.

"Next time I want to be so sure of going that I won't even have to look at the call-up email."

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England beat Dutch in Euro semi


England reached the EuroHockey Nations Championships final for the first time in 22 years with a dramatic 2-1 win over hosts the Netherlands.

With less than a minute left, Simon Mantell cut in off the left baseline and fired a shot across goal which Ashley Jackson sent past Guus Vogels.

England had taken the lead on 31 minutes through James Tindall but Taeke Taekema levelled it up on 49 minutes.

Spain take on Germany in the second semi-final in Amstelveen.

"When we arrived, securing a place in the top four and the World Cup was our priority," said England assistant coach Bobby Crutchley.



"Most of our guys haven't played in a semi-final at this level before so today was a challenge.

"In all honesty, we were too passive for too long in the middle of the game but our defence was strong and James Fair in goal was superb.

"Towards the end of the match we returned to playing our own game and it clearly reaped rewards for us. We created a couple of chances before Ashley scored and we were obviously delighted about his goal."

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GB positive despite defeats


In hindsight, showcasing the GB team that has started attracting considerable attention in a great setting like the O2 Arena and against three bona fide EuroBasket qualifiers was a good idea.
Unfortunately the timing (the original schedule put GB up against Michael Jackson's farewell tour) meant the team was playing its first games of the summer in front of expectant fans but, perhaps inevitably, was somewhat rusty.
To do it without five of the team's frontline players (Luol Deng, Robert Archibald, Pops Mensah-Bonsu, Andy Betts and Flinder Boyd, the latter for most of the weekend) was doubly unfortunate, but coach Chris Finch does not accept that starting preparation for next month's EuroBasket finals in Poland with three home defeats is a setback.
"It didn't enter into my mindset in planning - I didn't think it added any pressure on us at all," he said flatly at the final press conference of the weekend.
"I wanted us to have training camp and then come and play right here. When you play in a venue like this you're somewhat locked into the available dates too."

A stress fracture of the leg has ruled out Deng, Archibald is just short of a return from hernia surgery, Mensah-Bonsu is said to be on the point of signing an NBA contract for next season and Betts is back in Spain with his family for personal reasons.
"We have the players - we just don't have all of them here," said Finch. "But if we wanted easy games we could have stayed in Division B - this is what we wanted, this is what we earned. I expected us to come here, compete and play hard and get better and I think we did that."
Finch need not worry about there being too many easy games in the next warm-up tournament, which starts in Seville on Wednesday.
In addition to Olympic silver medallists Spain, GB will play Lithuania, who made it to the semi-finals in Beijing and Slovenia, a team boasting an abundance of NBA talent. Archibald, Boyd and possibly even Betts and Mensah-Bonsu could feature in that tournament
Once Deng was ruled out for the summer, the wide variety of offensive permutations GB could generate from his creativity were lost and Finch's squad spent much of the weekend in Greenwich examining the alternatives, with mixed degrees of success.
The bad news was that the passing and shooting of the guards produced little in the way of significant scoring contributions all weekend.
"I actually like our guard combination - we just have to find a way of getting them some shots," said Finch.
The best contribution was the 16 points against Israel from Mike Lenzly, who is back with the squad after missing last summer.

Finch has plenty to think about as GB warm up for Poland
"Mike's back in the mix and he's much sharper right now," said Finch. "I told him I wanted him to be more aggressive. Having him back is big - it gives us another guard with experience who can make shots."
Another plus from the weekend were the first senior appearances for 20-year-old Dan Clark, whose mother played for England and whose father was, until recently, the GB women's coach.
Raw on Friday on debut against Poland, he made significant contributions in Saturday's second half against Turkey as the pedigree kicked in and looked comfortable for the whole of Sunday's game against Israel.
"With Dan, we're looking for a little bit of a breakout like Joel (Freeland) had last year," said Finch. "When he gets in game shape, a lot of his shots will fall for him. He probably hasn't played so many games back-to-back since he was in our under-18s."
Freeland, who found himself playing at centre in Betts' absence and carrying a lot of the scoring load, was GB's best player of the weekend, with the ever-energetic Nick George a close second.
Freeland's maturity and strength at the defensive end belied the fact that he is still only 22 years old. He will join Euroleague giants Malaga next season but his consistent development leaves little doubt he is destined for the NBA.
"It's been great for me from an experience standpoint," he said. "I haven't had that sort of pressure on me before but I enjoyed every minute of it.
"I feel like I'm going to grow, the team's going to grow and when Poland comes around we're going to be ready."

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How sport can save the world

Towards the end of Ian Thorpe's swimming career, the Australian took a trip that would change him forever.He visited parts of the world suffering from the most demeaning poverty, places where the inhabitants had almost no opportunities for escape or improvement and where diseases eradicated in the developed world still took a terrible toll.It was a trip that shocked Thorpe because it was a journey to the heart of his own country and those inhabitants were fellow Australians. In fact, they were the original Australians. I heard the 26-year-old tell this story at a conference last week called Beyond Sport, an apt title because sport has played a vital role in Thorpe's journey from Olympic hero to campaigner for aboriginal rights. But his story is about more than sport, or more than we usually assume sport can achieve.
Prodigiously talented, hard working and expertly coached, Thorpe was the Aussie dream personified.At 14, he became the youngest male to swim for his country. At 15, he won his first two world championship golds. At 16, he set four individual long-course world records. At 17, the Sydneysider became a triple Olympic champion in his hometown.The following year was even better. He won six golds at the 2001 Worlds, setting new records in his three individual races - the 200m, 400m and 800m freestyle - to lead Australia to its first medal-topping performance at a global swimming meet since 1956.At this point it seemed certain "Thorpedo" and his size 17 feet would go on to emulate Mark Spitz's haul of seven golds at the 1972 Olympics. Already the finest middle-distance freestyler in history, he only needed to find one more event.But it wasn't to be, and despite a last hurrah at the 2004 Olympics, where he famously resisted the rising challenge from a young American called Phelps to claim his fourth and fifth Olympic golds, illness, injury and a waning of the desire to put in those long hours in the pool led him to make an emotional farewell to swimming in 2006.So what next?
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"I knew what I didn't want to do but wasn't sure quite what I wanted to do, I'm still not sure now," Thorpe told me.
"But I've made a start and I've thrown myself into it. I get a lot of balance from the things I do around the world."
Balance is an intriguing word to use and it struck me that Thorpe has been looking for equilibrium from the first moment he came to the world's attention - he set up a charity to help disadvantaged children when he was only 17 himself.
That charity, Fountain for Youth, is now focused on health and education projects in indigenous communities in Australia's remote Northern Territory.
"There is a tremendous need there," he explained. "There is a huge difference between the life expectancy of aboriginal people and that of non-indigenous Australians (almost 20 years, according to Oxfam).
"There are people in Australia who suffer from illnesses at the same rate as people in the developing world. Australia is a rich country so I don't find that acceptable. We have the means to fix these problems but it's not happening.
"We're talking about a story that should be on the front page of newspapers but it isn't. We're talking about incredible poverty, pain and despair."
He went on to explain how desperate the "health emergency" is in some of these communities and just how isolated they are from the rest of the population.
I must admit I had little idea just how awful the situation remained for many of Australia's aborigines. I thought apologies had been made, policies implemented and scars were starting to heal.
I was wrong. But, believes Thorpe, I was no more wrong than millions of Australians who don't know any aborigines, don't want to know any aborigines and think more than enough money has already been spent on their problems.
It is a perception Thorpe has dedicated himself to changing and if it means making a few waves, so be it. Sport has given him a platform and he's not about to waste it.
Another sportsman with something to say - and the conviction to back those words with deeds - is NBA great Dikembe Mutombo. The 7ft 2in star from the Democratic Republic of Congo was also at the conference and like Thorpe he had an incredible tale to tell.
Mutombo will not be a familiar name to many of you but he has been part of the furniture for US basketball fans for two decades. Having arrived at Washington DC's Georgetown University to study medicine (but speaking almost no English), it wasn't long before he was persuaded to give basketball a try.
Up until this point his sporting passions had been football and karate but within a few years he had graduated from college basketball to the NBA's All-Star team in his first season in the league with the Denver Nuggets.
Eighteen years, five more teams and a total of 3,289 blocked shots later, a 42-year-old Mutombo finally retired from the sport, famous, popular and wealthy.
But that is only half of the story because in his spare time he built a $30m hospital in Kinshasa. OK, he didn't dig the foundations and cement the bricks but he did drive the project through from beginning to end and shell out $15m from his own pocket.
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"I worked hard to become a success but I never forgot the place that made me. I knew I had to go back home and help my people," said Mutombo, who shared the conference stage with Tony Blair, Prince Faisal of Jordan and Unicef ambassador Lord Puttnam.
"Lots of people asked me why I had come back and others wondered if I was going to be one of those guys who only do the 'talky talky'. I said I'm not just 'talky talky', I'm here to make a difference."
The end result for his war-torn land was the first modern, well-equipped hospital for nearly 50 years.
In another parallel with Thorpe, Mutombo is not afraid to throw a few elbows pour encourager les autres.
"I've been in verbal fights about (philanthropy), even with my team-mates at the Houston Rockets (his most recent team)," Mutombo admitted.
"I've challenged Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, Shane Battier - young men making good money - to give something back. Tracy went to Darfur to see how he could bring food there. I persuaded Yao Ming to start a foundation to help young people in China. I passed the torch to others."
And he's not done there. For his next miracle he will attempt to persuade the developed world to do more for sport in Africa than just mine for talented Africans. He believes the West has an "obligation" to do more than that.
"Sport stops violence," he said. "And it can be like a classroom for teaching youngsters, especially for things like HIV prevention. That disease has killed 25 million in Africa and left 50 million orphans.
"If we can get kids together playing basketball or soccer we can then tell them what they need to know to survive. We can change living conditions and give hope and we can do it now."
I know Thorpe and Mutombo aren't the only sports stars who give more than just a little bit back but they are among a select few who are not afraid to step where others fear to tread.
They also instinctively understand sport's unrivalled ability to improve lives and promote change. They have gone beyond sport in every sense.

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Warm-up weekend's winners and losers


Who would be an event organiser for an Olympic sport?
The sleepless nights even in 2009, three years from the Games themselves, must be torture.
While the British public aren't yet tattooing the Olympic rings to their chests, organisers know that their sports, other sports, the media, UK Sport, the government, the IOC and others are watching every big sporting event in London from now on.
On Saturday that meant modern pentathlon's World Championships in Crystal Palace, triathlon's World Series in Hyde Park, and basketball's Game On tournament at the O2 Arena in Greenwich.
So how did those events match up, and which Olympic organisers will sleep easiest once their walkie-talkies and lanyards are packed away?
I spent the day travelling between all three events, and there's a clear winner. It's GB Basketball.
A few years ago, the thought of nominating British basketball for anything approaching the title "best organised" would have been ridiculous.
The team itself was only formed in late 2005, so it hasn't even had four years to bed down, yet has the task of proving that Britain deserves to have a home team in the 2012 competition.
Quite how the British team goes about proving it will be competitive in 2012 has never been clearly defined - but this tournament goes some way to showing the sport has got its act together.
For a start, as a minority sport (in terms of British crowd figures at least - basketball is a huge participation sport, but those who play rarely spectate), you need to have real guts to pick a venue like the former Millennium Dome.
I've no idea how much it is costing organisers to host the six-game tournament, but you have to be confident of getting a return, one you can measure in terms of spectators and buzz around your sport.
The arena was by no means full for GB's 70-63 defeat by Turkey on Saturday night, but there were several thousand fans, and they didn't shut up for the entire game.
They were helped, admittedly, by a passionate and vocal Turkish contingent, whose light-hearted barracking of British fans inspired their rivals to answer back.
But as one wide-eyed basketball journalist exclaimed, gazing around the arena: "A British crowd are actually getting into basketball."
Outside the arena, children danced around the concourse with miniature basketballs or tried their hand at a number of basketball-themed games set up by the entrance.
Inside it, fans bathed in a light and sound extravaganza, helped by an under-strength British team finding it within themselves to take Turkey all the way in a genuinely exciting game to watch.
The score had been tied at 48-48 heading into the final quarter. Only in the final five minutes did the British throw it away, stupidly - or rather, tiredly - conceding a succession of free throws which let Turkey out of sight.
But by then, the crowd had taken the bait. Every basket got a cheer. Opposition players were booed (as good-naturedly as it's possible to boo someone) on cue. At one point there was even the threat, enthusiastically received, of a fight on court.
I defy anyone to come away from the O2, slop down on the sofa and say, "Well, that was a bit rubbish."
It pains me to say I'm not sure the same applies to modern pentathlon.
I really like modern pentathlon. To most people it sounds bizarre, and it is a bit odd - it's not a sport you can pick up in a playground, requiring as it does a horse, a sword and a gun - but if you give it a little time to prove itself, it can be a rewarding watch.
Sadly, sports get less and less time to prove themselves.
Basketball gave us 24-second shot clocks, lightning-fast 10-minute quarters, and pounding music dropped into every break in play.
Pentathlon gave us 40 horses being introduced, one by one, to a crowd of a few hundred, and then a further 30-minute wait after the last horse had taken its bow until anyone returned on one to actually compete in the show jumping.
That wait was agonising. I didn't see anybody leave but, given the fencing started nearly six hours earlier and there had been swimming in between, by this point in the day you either had the stamina for the finish or you'd already gone home.
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This is a sport that, until fairly recently, allowed five days for each Olympic final to run its course. Cutting it down to one day has been an achievement; trimming it to a length that suits a modern audience will be another matter.
The "combined event", running and shooting at the same time, is being used for the first time at a major competition here. That came into being with the aim of making pentathlon more spectator-friendly.
But it would take the equivalent of cricket's Twenty20 to give pentathlon the edge it's trying to find. How do you distil five events into a few hours? Can you? If you could, would you want to (some might say) rip the heart out of the sport in order to grant it wider appeal?
Sunday at the National Sports Centre in Crystal Palace may be different. That's the women's final, in which there are four British entrants, lending the host nation a strong chance of at least a medal, if not a world champion.
That ought to draw in a bigger crowd and generate a bit more atmosphere, but I suspect the location of the competition really hasn't helped either.
Crystal Palace is a trek out of central London, is well off the tourist trail, and didn't seem to be offering much apart from the pentathlon to the casual visitor. Nor is it the 2012 venue (in three years' time, the climax to the event will come at the temporary venue in Greenwich Park).
Triathlon, by contrast, struck gold by holding its World Championship Series event for the next three years on the Olympic course in the middle of London's Hyde Park.
Hyde Park is central, it's a tourist destination in its own right, and is an open space as popular with locals out for a stroll as it is with people coming to visit.
You could have done no publicity whatsoever for the triathlon - I didn't see much - and still guaranteed an audience in the thousands, based purely on people stumbling across it.
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And the crowd watching the elite men's and women's races on Saturday was duly impressive. At the start of the men's race, it was a struggle to fight your way through some of the nearby paths. The transition area (where swimmers ditch their goggles, strap on a helmet, and pedal off on a bike) was briefly lined by crowds four-deep.
Spectators fell into two camps: triathlon enthusiasts, often dressed as though they might reasonably be called to compete as late replacements, and passers-by who had stopped to admire the bewildering event unfolding before them.
When I spoke to members of the latter, they were all earnestly enthusiastic. "Isn't it exciting," cooed a lady propped up on a barrier as the male cyclists thundered past. A young couple had abandoned their Hyde Park roller-blading plans (a wise move) to take in the triathlon instead.
Having Hyde Park as a venue almost guarantees reactions like those, not least because it's impossible to charge anyone to watch, so everybody feels delighted to have snagged free sporting entertainment.
I reckon if you'd pitched up with some horses, fencing mats and a temporary shooting range, you could have held a very successful modern pentathlon there, too.
Triathlon is on to a sure-fire winner with this, and it knows it. In three years' time, that park will be rammed.
But basketball still takes the gold. They got thousands of people out to Greenwich (despite the only tube line to the O2 - the Jubilee - being closed) rigged up an array of games and sideshows for children, and put on a show.
Now, you decide if putting on a show is worth risking what your sport is about. If you were organising modern pentathlon, would you tinker with your sport to make it as watchable and entertaining as possible, or decide that the sport exists as it does for a reason, and leave it be?
I ask because I wonder if pentathlon's Olympic days are numbered - and what will happen to it if afterwards, if that's the case.
Sports like rugby sevens and women's boxing deliver punch, if you'll excuse the pun, in a way pentathlon never will. The sport has to be looking over its shoulder after the IOC looked favourably on those newcomers, and wondering if the axe will fall.
After all, driving home from Greenwich on Saturday evening, which was the only sport (besides football) to make it onto a leading commercial radio station's news bulletin?
The world championships of free running, in Trafalgar Square.
Not one of the Olympic trio warranted a mention. If it's a quest for relevance, there is work to be done. If it's a quest to preserve sports in their purest form, lack of appeal will be the price.
If you were at any of these events - including the free running! - I'd love to know what you made of them, what could have been improved, and what you enjoyed.

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GB 'embarrassing' in latest loss


Great Britain will play hosts Turkey on Saturday for fifth place after losing 78-67 to Macedonia in their second game of the Efes Pilsen event in Ankara.
Chris Finch's team slipped 16 points down in the third quarter and he described his team as "embarrassing".
Nick George led GB's scoring with 14 points and Andrew Betts added 11.
"For the first time in our campaign I'm very disappointed with my team - I thought we showed no heart," coach Finch said after the game.
Flinder Boyd made yet another return from his recurrent ankle problem but Joel Freeland stayed back at the hotel with a stomach bug.
GB started brightly with a 9-0 run - all of it coming from the big men Betts and Robert Archibald - but Macedonia's immediate reply was a 10-0 tear and they led 23-17 at the end of the first quarter.

Macedonia had blazed 16 three-pointers in Thursday's easy win over Latvia and they hit four against GB in the first half, the last one capping a 10-0 run to give them a 39-27 half-time lead.
George, one of the successes of the summer, started the second half with five points in a 7-0 run that offered hope to GB.
That all but evaporated when Todor Gecevski, Riste Stefanov and Damjan Stojanowski all hit threes in a 13-2 run that gave the former Yugoslavs a 16-point advantage.
Trailing by 12 going into the fourth quarter, GB finally hit their first three-pointers of the game - a pair from Jarret Hart and another from George - as the final period threatened to become a shoot-out, Macedonia edging them with four successes.
A pair of free throws from Archibald reduced the lead to 10 points with 4:17 remaining in the game and a three from Mike Lenzly 33 seconds later brought the deficit into single figures.
Lenzly's next two efforts missed, however, and GB's hopes of an unlikely comeback win expired with them.

GB captain Andrew Sullivan admitted the defeat to Macedonia was, "Not one of our better efforts."
He added: "We've been playing well of late and all the guys are extremely disappointed with the effort we put out today. We know as group we can play better than this."
Finch sounded at the end of his tether after a seventh defeat in eight starts this summer for his patched up team, already missing Chicago Bulls star Luol Deng and last year's impact player, Pops Mensah-Bonsu.
"It was embarrassing, our teams always play hard, (but) tonight they didn't play hard, they didn't help each other out," he told BBC Sport.
"I thought they played like spoilt kids and they have no right to do so because we haven't accomplished anything yet.
"It's even harder because we've been trying to work with them and cater to some of their requests and this is the performance that we get.
"The British mentality is always one of a fighter. Tonight we didn't do that any honour."
The coach also looked ahead to Saturday's test against Turkey in a consolation game that will be the team's final outing before they travel to Warsaw for the start of next month's EuroBasket finals.
"I think it's a perfect test for us given our circumstances because I know they'll be pretty upset with the way that they've played over the last couple of days.".
"We know we have a good game of basketball in us and we're expecting a tough game and a good crowd. Hopefully we'll have a little more motivation tomorrow."

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Angola in race against time


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Diving me crazy


Did you see that swarm of angry bees at the Emirates on Wednesday night?

What a terrible away kit that is, my Celtic friends - pipped only by the knockdown ebay deckchair fabric on offer when Newcastle United come to visit.

Any road, Scott Brown, Snr Donati and all were desperate to get their stingers into one Eduardo da Simulata's face after he plunged to the turf in the box. It was such a sentimental piece of play-acting I could almost smell the whiff of the caps in me cowboy gun going off as he hit the deck.


There are many of us who suspect that football is becoming a non-contact sport and looking at the Boruc-Eduardo incident I've not changed me mind. For the record the regulars at The Blue Bell love it when Celtic play 'cos you can always strike up the same conversation with an irregular in the pub:
Celtic's Scott Brown was unhappy with Eduardo's antics

"Excuse me mate. What's the name of the Celtic keeper?"
"Boruc"
"All right, mate I only asked!"

I tell you it's a laugh a flaming minute down our gaff.

Wenger adjusted his official line of 'I didn't see it' to 'he was probably trying to get out of the way what with his horribly shattered leg only just being fixed 'n' that'.

It's a persuasive argument. I'd use it meself if he was my kid playing in my team. I don't want to even think about the state of that lad's leg ever again.

But the fact is that Eduardo's headlong theatrical plummet was symptomatic of a great malaise in our game. Namely that a forward passing a prone keeper is pretty much programmed to go down these days - even one who can appreciate how lucky he is to still be playing the beautiful game.

An onrushing goalie makes 'em stumble just as surely as Pavlov's dogs used to salivate. The fall is as inevitable as the sulk of a defeated Benitez or the jeers of a temporarily let-down Aston Villa fan.

So what to do about this flagrant and cowardly conmanship?The Scots are up for banning folks for a couple of matches - and Eduardo has now been charged by Uefa - but the point with the Gooners is that the damage has been done. The lad stepped up and slotted the pen and it was Game Over.

Anyway, what you want to do is change the players' behaviour and to me there is only one route: humiliation. Here's how I'd go about it:

1.If someone is pretty much proved to be a diver then they should be treated as one. Don't ban them. Make them play the next game in mask and flippers. Forty-five minutes of Eduardo togged up like Jacques Bloomin Cousteau charging up and down the left flank should make him change his ways.

2. If you do want to enforce a ban then don't let the sneaky little oik have the afternoon off. Clad him out in the wetsuit and the oxygen tanks and make him watch the game through the walls of a water-filled glass cube on the touchline.

Maybe Noel Edmonds could do that hilarious filling the tank with gunk thing that he used to do on House Party. Lord, I miss Edmonds. Covering someone with tons of funny-coloured paint is just about as hilarious as life can get!

3. Send the offender to primary schools across the local area and get them to look into the Disney innocent eyes of the child-fans and get him to explain what the hell he was trying to do as he flopped on to the floor like some two-bit model onto a mattress in a cut-price bed commercial. See how they respond when some naive waif with teary eyes bleats "Say it ain't so, Eduardo".

4. Pursuing the diving theme, give them a good five-game ban and get them to spend that time joining in with one of them macho muppets that makes nature TV programmes about Wild And Dangerous Creatures.

In short, get them swimming with sharks in just their underpants. None of this iron cage on a cable rubbish either. Just the cheating little tumbler and a pack of toothy cartilaginous killing machines and a numpty with an in-mask mike shouting "Isn't this Brilliant, Stevie G!?" To be fair Mr Gerrard has on at least one occasion been marked by one J Barton so it's hardly going to terrify the lad to be submerged in the company of a Great White.

5. A Tom Daley masterclass - from the highest board you can find (brown trunks obligatory I would guess).

6. Failing this we must acknowledge and embrace the concept of simulation within the game and allow each team to nominate their designated diver. (A regular poster invented this term - please take the credit yourself son or I'll start telling everyone that I was the genius that came up with it).

One of our divers is missing - Ronaldo has moved on
The designated diver would be the only player allowed to collapse like a half-price self-assembly bookcase. Everyone else would be ignored if they got clogged in the box but the designated diver, subject to the scores proffered by a panel of nine faceless judges, could earn penalties for his side by legitimately cheating. Could be a winner.

I haven't passed comment on goings-on at Upton Park this week. There's not been a lot of hooliganism at the Riverside for the last 10 years or more. I was caught square in the face by a rogue parmo two years back - the hot cheese left a nasty blister and the garlic sauce doesn't half sting your eyes. That's the least the Irons and Miwwaww 'fans' involved deserve.

I'd use the CCTV pics to ID them and then the whole bunch of 30-something, beer-gutted brain-dead no-mates with no moral compass can become the guinea-pigs for a prototype floating prison.

Push 'em off at Falmouth - no prison officers need be involved bar locking them in - and let em drift towards God knows where while the rest of us watch the football.

(Although we could let some of em - if they behave well - jump into the ocean with errant Arsenal forwards and those lovely sharks)

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Arsenal's revival faces Man Utd test


Arsene Wenger's confidence in Arsenal is almost set in concrete - unbreakable even under the greatest strain. And yet it has rarely been as hopelessly misplaced as it was before a meeting with Manchester United last May.

Wenger watched Arsenal being outclassed in the Champions League semi-final first leg at Old Trafford and used this flimsy (make that non-existent) evidence to announce victory would be theirs in the return - even inviting one cynic to meet him at his triumphant media conference.

A slight problem then arose. United exposed a rather glaring failing in Wenger's optimism by scoring twice in the first 11 minutes at the Emirates, transforming what was meant to be a glory night into what the Arsenal manager confessed was the worst moment of his career.

Arsenal meet Manchester United again at Old Trafford on Saturday and Wenger once again travels with great hope after a virtually flawless start to the season, recording four emphatic victories.

It is not hope without foundation because circumstances, and more significantly personnel, have changed. Cristiano Ronaldo, the two-goal tormentor of Arsenal that night at the Emirates has gone to Real Madrid, and Wenger has gone some way to addressing a flaw in his side's make-up.



Arsene Wenger will fancy his side's chances against Manchester United

Wenger accepts confidence is a crucial commodity to take on your journey to Old Trafford. He never travels without it - and Arsenal should also have a plentiful supply after impressive opening exchanges in the new campaign.

It is a game laced with intrigue on both sides. Too much can be written into early defeats or victories, but this will undoubtedly prove a test of Wenger's renewal of his Arsenal team after last season fizzled out - and also an examination of United's potency post-Ronaldo.

And as the first meeting between two of the Premier League's four accepted heavyweights, points are to be made, markers to be laid down.

Wenger has already promised a positive approach, accepting Arsenal's passive nature undermined their hopes of winning the Champions League games.

In his own words Arsenal are "structured to go forward" - but he has also made what, on first evidence, looks to be a typically shrewd investment at the back in Belgian Thomas Vermaelen. The £10m paid to Ajax for Vermaelen and the £16m raked in from Manchester City for Kolo Toure seems a fair exchange.

Vermaelen, while not a giant in defensive terms, has played with reassuring authority and even got on the scoresheet against Everton. It will, however, be a test of him as well as Arsenal against Manchester United.

The question mark over Arsenal's start comes with the quality of opposition. Everton were a broken team almost before they took the field at Goodison Park as a result of the Joleon Lescott transfer saga - although it is churlish to undermine the quality of the football that brought a deserved 6-1 rout.

What cannot be underplayed is the excellence of the 2-0 win at Celtic. Giants have fallen on that hostile territory and a team with a faint heart does not win Champions League games at Celtic Park.

Wenger also drew on his time-honoured mantra about the potential of Arsenal's side, although four years without a trophy suggests this has also been used as a cover for under-achievement.

He revealed somebody told him (a keen statistician presumably) that Arsenal's average age against Celtic on Wednesday was only 23.9 - a figure that he believes ensures greater strength and improvement as the season progresses.

Vermaelen will be put to the test by Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and perhaps Michael Owen but he has the appearance of an unruffled individual.

Wenger will also have been delighted that Arsenal emphasised a vast gulf with Celtic while keeping Robin van Persie in reserve and only introducing Andrey Arshavin for 19 minutes. Their inspiration will be needed at Old Trafford, especially if Cesc Fabregas is still out with a hamstring injury.


Michael Owen scored his first Premier League goal for Manchester United in the 5-0 triumph at Wigan

If Arsenal can take at least a point, or even better, back to London on Saturday then the somewhat pessimistic predictions about their Premier League ambitions may be revisited, albeit marginally.

For United, it is an opportunity to reassert the authority that has been questioned after the sale of Ronaldo and the loss at Burnley. The 5-0 win at Wigan went some way towards addressing those questions, but it should be placed in the context of a display by Roberto Martinez's side that was as compliant for 45 minutes as Everton were for 90 minutes against Arsenal.

Arsenal's agonising defeat over two legs against United in the last four of the Champions League last season will still be fresh in Wenger's memory. It is easy to recall that pained expression as he sat in the Emirates media theatre that night and a win will go some way towards easing that lingering pain.

For United, a convincing win again against an Arsenal team that may yet emerge as a potential threat to a fourth successive Premier League title will be regarded by Sir Alex Ferguson as an important statement of intent.

This season may be in its infancy - but the stakes will be as high as ever at Old Trafford.

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Wenger angry over Eduardo charge


Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has accused Uefa of conducting a "witch-hunt" after it charged Eduardo with diving in the Champions League clash with Celtic.

Striker Eduardo appeared to dive to win a penalty last Wednesday and Uefa could ban him for up to two games when its disciplinary body meets on 1 September.

"I find it a complete disgrace and unacceptable," said Wenger.

"It singles out a player to be a cheat and that is not acceptable. We will not accept the way Uefa has treated this."

If Eduardo is suspended he would miss Standard Liege away on 16 September and the home match with Olympiacos on 29 September.

And Wenger added: "I believe you can debate whether it is a penalty or not. But this charge implies there was intent and a desire to cheat the referee. Having seen again the pictures again, nothing is conclusive.

"It's a witch-hunt that we see and not an objective judgement of a case."

Wenger said the Croat may have taken evasive action in light of the career-threatening broken leg he sustained two seasons ago.



And the Frenchman added that European football's governing body would have difficulty proving the 26-year-old intended to deceive the referee.

"We will defend our player as far as we can because he is not being treated fairly," said Wenger.

"It's funny in football because you can break the legs of players and it doesn't make a debate for anybody.

"I'm the first to say that it doesn't look like a penalty but it's another thing to say that he went down with intent. I wish good luck in proving that having seen the pictures again."

In charging Eduardo, Wenger claimed Uefa had set off down a dangerous path whereby any decision made by an official can be contested after the match.

He said: "There is completely lack of logic in this case. Why? Because people have reacted emotionally.


Eduardo wins a penalty after going down in the penalty area

"This case has been ruled by the media and emotionally by Scotland, by the Scottish FA and by Scottish people working at Uefa.

"I've fought my whole life against cheating and I've seen some obvious cases where Uefa didn't intervene. On and off the pitch things have happened where no action was taken.

"But now the existing rules of football have been changed just for one case so we will from now on challenge every single decision that is made in Europe by the referees.

"This is the first time since I've been in football that the judgement made by the referee is not accepted by the football bodies."

There appeared to be no contact between Eduardo and Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc but referee Manuel Gonzalez still gave a penalty midway through the first half.

After Eduardo converted the resulting spot kick, the Gunners went on to win 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium. They won 5-1 on aggregate to secure a spot in the group stages.

Scottish FA chief executive Gordon Smith has called for the Brazil-born Eduardo to be banned.


"Eduardo showed disrespect to the game by his actions," he said.

"We have shown courage to use retrospective punishment when it comes to simulation. I'd urge Uefa to do so."

Uefa president Michel Platini believes additional assistant referees behind each goal line would combat diving.

He said: "One day players will give up simulating because refs will see them. I am convinced that you have referees nearby, then you will stop this."

Celtic had travelled to the Emirates 2-0 down from the first leg in Glasgow, when Arsenal had been the better side but had scored with a deflection and an own goal.

The first goal in London, then, was likely to be crucial and Boruc was incensed when Gonzalez pointed to the spot.


Cannot play media.You do not have the correct version of the flash player. Download the correct version
Video evidence can help referees - Benitez
And Boruc's team-mate Danny Fox congratulated Uefa for taking action against Eduardo and said he would welcome a ban for the Gunners player.

"It shows that it doesn't matter who you play for and who you are, if you are going to bring the rules into disrepute you should be made an example of, and fair play to Uefa for doing that," said the Celtic defender.

"You can't do anything about the game but I think a ban to make an example of him would stop other players doing it. No-one likes to be done by cheating.

"If you ask any of the Arsenal players honestly, they will way it wasn't a penalty either."

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Sunderland snap up Lyon's Mensah


Sunderland have completed the loan signing of Ghana defender John Mensah from Lyon until the end of the season.

The 26-year-old joins new signings Paulo da Silva, Lee Cattermole, Lorik Cana, Fraizer Campbell and Darren Bent at the Stadium of Light this summer.

The Black Cats will have the option to make the deal permanent at the end of the season.

"John is relishing the challenge of making an impact at Sunderland," boss Steve Bruce told the club website.

Mensah added: "I'm very delighted to join Sunderland today, it's like a dream come true for me because it's not easy to play in England.

"I want to tell my fans that they should not expect magic from me but that I will be giving my best.

"I have a lot of experience from Italy and Europe, while I have played a lot of games for my country and competed in the World Cup and the African Nations Cup.

"Because of this it is not difficult for me to play in England. Now I hope I can do well here in Sunderland and I will listen and do whatever the coach tells me to do."

Mensah has also had spells in Italian football with Modena, Chievo and Genoa, as well as Rennes in France.



The defender was a key player of the Ghana squad - along with Chelsea's Michael Essien, and Sulley Muntari of Inter Milan - which reached the 2006 World Cup finals.

Bruce added: "I'm a huge admirer of John having seen him on a number of occasions. I'm delighted to have added him to our back line.

"He's a solid, uncompromising defender who adds that extra steel that I believe is essential to have in the top flight."

Mensah will now compete for a place in the Black Cats' rearguard with Anton Ferdinand, Danny Collins, Nyron Nosworthy and Paulo Da Silva.

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Barcelona seal Super Cup triumph


Barcelona warmed up for the new season by lifting the European Super Cup as Pedro's extra-time goal earned them a 1-0 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk.

The substitute played a one-two with Lionel Messi and slotted home five minutes before the end of the game.

It was an uninspiring contest on a pitch that cut up badly at the Stade Louis II in Monaco and both teams struggled to create opportunities.

Julius Aghahowa forced Victor Valdes to save, but Shakhtar rarely threatened.

Barca, who became the first team to win the treble of Champions League, La Liga and Spanish Cup last season, open their league campaign on Monday against Sporting Gijon.

They fielded summer signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front, but the £60m Swedish striker had a quiet start to his Barca career in a disjointed match on a poor pitch in the principality.



The Catalans - missing the injured Andres Iniesta - struggled to find their rhythm as passes uncharacteristically went astray on a regular basis.

Uefa Cup winners Shakhtar were content to contain and offered little in the way of an attacking threat, with striker Luiz Adriano starved of possession.

Barca thought they should have had a penalty just before the break when Messi's free-kick appeared to strike an arm, but referee Frank De Bleeckere waved away their appeals.

It was much the same story after the interval as chances failed to materialise, Ibrahimovic in particular toiling as he began the lengthy process of trying to justify his lofty price tag.

Messi went on a couple of jinking runs at the heart of the Ukraine side's defence, but even the Argentine wizard was being frustrated in his attempts to open the game up.

Ibrahimovic shot wide from 20 yards when he should have teed up Thierry Henry, and the Swede's miserable night was compounded when his penalty appeals were turned down shortly before being he was taken off by coach Pep Guardiola.

With time running out Henry missed his kick at the far post when it seemed easier to score, but extra-time loomed large - a scenario not ideal for either team, especially on such an energy-sapping surface.


Messi and Srna have a disagreement

Shakhtar captain Darijo Srna was obviously not best pleased at the prospect as he appeared to headbutt Messi in injury time - though the Croatian avoided punishment as Messi was booked for his furious reaction.

When the extra period started Shakhtar improved, substitute Aghahowa latching on to a clever pass and hammering in a shot that Victor Valdes parried away from danger.

But Barca's class eventually told and after Messi twice went close from range he brilliantly teed up Pedro to slot past Andriy Pyatov.

The Catalans' celebrations after the goal and on the final whistle left observers in no doubt whatsoever about how keen they were to get their hands on the trophy - the fifth Guardiola has won in only 14 months as a manager.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Barcelona: Valdes, Dani Alves, Puyol, Pique, Abidal, Xavi, Toure Yaya (Busquets 100), Keita, Messi, Ibrahimovic (Pedro 81), Henry (Bojan 96).
Subs Not Used: Pinto, Gudjohnsen, Maxwell, Muniesa.

Booked: Messi, Pedro.

Goals: Pedro 115.

Shakhtar Donetsk: Pyatov, Srna, Kucher, Chigrinsky, Rat, Ilsinho, Gai (Kobin 78), Hubschman, Willian (Aghahowa 91), Fernandinho (Jadson 78), Luiz Adriano.
Subs Not Used: Khudzamov, Gladkyy, Polyanskyi, Chyzhov.

Booked: Ilsinho, Srna, Kucher, Kobin.

Att: 17,000.

Ref: Frank De Bleeckere (Belgium).

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