Russian volleyball coach commits suicide, with colleagues blaming poor Olympic showing for his death Fourth-Place MedalBy Cameron Smith | Fourth-Place Meda

The aftermath of a poor Olympic showing for Russia may have become even more dire on Wednesday, when the coach of the country's women's volleyball team was found hanged in his hotel room with some blaming the team's poor results at the London Games for his death.

Former Russian women's volleyball coach Sergey Ovchinnikov — GettyFormer Russian women's volleyball coach Sergey Ovchinnikov — Getty

As reported by Eurosport and a handful of other outlets, 43-year-old Russian volleyball coach Sergey Ovchinnikov (also spelled Sergei in some outlets) was found hanged in a hotel room while he and his Dynamo Moscow squad were taking part in preseason training in Croatia. Ovchinnikov had recently finished a turbulent Olympic campaign leading the Russian women's volleyball team. The national team had entered as favorites but was eventually eliminated by Brazil in the quarterfinals, failing to convert a whopping six match points in the loss.

While there is certainly no proof that Ovchinnikov's death was brought on by the national team's poor results, two of his colleagues insisted that it played a part in the suicide.

"He took the Olympics very personally," Russian men's volleyball coach Vladimir Alekno told RT.com. "I saw what he was going through and how upset he was after the defeat. He didn't talk much. Even after victories he was always thinking about something and smoked a lot."

According to Sovetsky Sports news service, Ovchinnikov had also complained of recurring headaches in recent days, a malady which may or may not be connected to the Olympics and the stress it brought.

Regardless of reason, another of Ovchinnikov's former colleagues was distraught at the news of the coach's death, insisting that his suicide was simply the result of an irrational reaction to a single tournament.

"This is so stupid," former Russian women's volleyball coach Vladimir Kuzyutkin told Russian News Service. "He was my friend, my colleague. No one said a bad word about him. Yes, there was a blunder at the Olympics, well, to hell with it."

Taylor assault makes it New Zealand's day

A sizzling counterattack by New Zealand captain Ross Taylor produced a high-speed century that sparked an improved display from the visitors on the opening day of the second Test against India. At stumps, New Zealand, who had elected to bat, were 328 for 6. Led by Taylor's incandescent 113, New Zealand's batsmen had, in the course of a single day, scored more runs than they had in both innings in Hyderabad.

Play was stopped due to bad light and eventually called off for the day about half an hour before the scheduled close, the umpires offering light to the batsman after Umesh Yadav bowled half of his first over with the second new ball. Kruger van Wyk and Doug Bracewell strode off, van Vyk batting on a deftly engineered 63 and Bracwell on 30. The two had found themselves at the crease after Taylor's departure, and within an hour had put on 82 for the seventh wicket.

Taylor's seventh Test century formed the bulk of the New Zealand batting effort. It was buffeted by two fifties, one by Martin Guptill at the top of the order which ended in dismay and the other by keeper van Wyk. It ensured that New Zealand could dismiss the innings and 115-run defeat in Hyderabad as a nightmare that need not be repeated.

After the departure of New Zealand's top three batsmen before lunch, Taylor let his aggression and intent take over. It was a fearless innings, the runs scored both robustly and in fine style. Taylor slog swept Ashwin for six before the lunch interval and when he returned, cranked the scoring up a gear. The India bowlers were hit all around the Chinnaswamy Stadium, with lusty slog sweeps, crisp straight drives and spanking shots through cover. New Zealand, or rather Taylor, was scoring at nearly seven runs an over in the hour after lunch. The hardworking Ojha was punished with four boundaries in his second over after lunch, Zaheer for two including a disdainful straight drive in his second spell, Ashwin was guided fine down to the boundary past leg slip. Taylor got to his century in 99 balls, cutting Ojha to the point boundary and two balls later, hit him down the ground for his second six over long-off.

For a captain who had a miserable first Test - losing the toss, dropping catches in slip and scoring nine in two innings - Taylor's innings on Friday was a more just exhibition of his batting abilities. On New Zealand's miserable tour of the West Indies in July, it was Taylor who had scored the sole New Zealand century, in the fourth ODI in St Kitts. New Zealand's previous Test century had come six months ago from Kane Williamson in a drawn Test against South Africa in Wellington.

Taylor's innings lit up the Bangalore crowd that grew through the day; his aggressive mode of batting had also been welcomed at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, when he had played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL. The reception he received after his hundred against India, also, didn't lack in either enthusiasm or warmth.

It was vital for New Zealand that their batting continued forcefully, after Martin Guptill had shaken off the early dismissal of Brendon McCullum in the morning. Guptill played the aggressor in his 63-run second-wicket stand with Kane Williamson. After being troubled by Ojha and dropped off Zaheer on 17, Guptill found his groove, his innings resolute in judgement and positive in strokeplay. He struck three boundaries off Yadav in a single over and two off Zaheer, including a cracking backfoot drive through extra cover. Less than half an hour before lunch though, Ojha pulled in the fielders, tossed one up and lured Guptill. It was the perfect bait: the ball didn't turn, Guptill's intended shot on the on-side ended up in Gautam Gambhir's hands at midwicket. Despite India's slow bowling tradition, Ojha was the first specialist India spinner to open the bowling in a Test match, and took four of the six New Zealand wickets to fall today.

Taylor, who owned the second session, was out in the fifth over after tea, forced to sweep against Ojha with the off side plugged. The ball was tossed up and Ojha hit Taylor in front of off and middle. His innings of 113 off 127 balls had slowed down only at the fall of Daniel Flynn's wicket, bringing to an end New Zealand's biggest partnership on this tour: 107 runs for the fourth wicket. Flynn had hung on gamely over an hour for 33, but for the third time in three innings, was leg before trying to sweep Ashwin. The loss of James Franklin - he hit a full toss from Ojha to a diving Suresh Raina at midwicket - had New Zealand stuttering at 215 for 5.

But inspired by Taylor's bold batsmanship, the undefeated 82-run seventh-wicket partnership between van Wyk and Bracewell added 32 runs in five overs following the captain's departure. Van Wyk's was an innings almost patented by chirpy, pocket-sized keepers; he was only 12 when Taylor was out and took charge, happy to have the quicker bowlers bowling at one end. Zaheer Khan was guided past slips, van Wyk taking 13 off the 16 balls he faced off him, and the quick-but-struggling Yadav went for 14 runs in six balls, including two fours an over. The partnership took New Zealand past 300, but they will be sobered by the knowledge that in the previous Test held in Bangalore in 2010, Australia had scored over 400 in their first innings and still lost.

The Indomitable Lions keen to keep up their good work

They don’t celebrate a goal as Roger Milla once did — a delightful jig near the corner flag. But this bunch of Cameroon players has yet left a mark on the Nehru Cup with their brand of football , justifying the tag of the Indomitable Lions.

Cameroon is a big football nation in Africa. “Football is No 1 in their country,” said Karim Bencherifa, the Salgaocar coach for three seasons now. Hailing from Morocco, he does know Cameroon. He also knows Indian football having been coached Churchill Brothers and Mohun Bagan for two seasons each.

Power house

Bencherifa rates Cameroon a ‘power house’ of football. “Africa has a rich history of football with teams like Nigeria, Cameroon, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt taking on the best in the world. Cameroon has two icons. Milla and (Samuel) Eto and football is growing in that nation.”

Cameroon, a team assembled in a mere two weeks time, has played the most attractive football in the Nehru Cup thus far. Cameroon, which meets India in the last league match here on Friday, has looked menacingly right through the tournament be it breathtaking finishes or the intensity it gets in the games.

Emmanuel Bosso, the Cameroon coach, asserted, “We have come to India to show what football in Cameroon is all about. We have mesmerized the world with our brand of football. We want India to have a feel of it too.”

Cameroon found support from Maldives coach Istvan Urbanyi. “India is a strong side but Cameroon are stronger; in fact, the strongest in this tournament. Forget their physical presence, they are much stronger tactically and technically. If you consider the physical ability, speed and endurance, Cameroon is way ahead.” he adds.

Bencherifa agrees. “Technically Cameroon has some very good players. Regular exposure overseas has helped them. They have some real quality players in No 17 (Kingue Mpondo), No 7 (Ashu Tambe), No 19 (Kologny Vigny Merime). They sometimes lose concentration in defence but they are a terrific bunch. Even if Cameroon had brought their third team here they would still have been a sensation.”

India coach Wim Koevermans’s reading of Cameroon is not different either. “Cameroon is surely a very strong side. The match (on Friday) will be interesting. It gives us a chance to have a look at our bench. We play Cameroon twice but the final stays the more important one.”

The Cameroon coach makes a healthy assessment of India too. “India has some good players. The No. 6 (Lenny Rodrigues) has impressed me a lot. He can play around in the midfield and stays a potent force. Also, the captain (Sunil Chhetri) and the goalkeeper (Subrata Pal) are key members. But we have our plans.”

Cameroon, which has attracted some club scouts with their performance here and might have a huge motivation in the stands if Milla keeps his promise.

Meanwhile in an inconsequential match, Syria defeated Nepal 2-0 with goals from Hani Altayar and Ali Ghlioum. Syria finished fourth in the tournament and Nepal fifth, behind third-placed Maldives.

The result: Syria 2 (Hani Altayar 9, Ali Ghlioum 49) bt Nepal 0.

Final: India vs Cameroon, 7 p.m.

IHF objects to IOA panel

 The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) on Thursday objected to the composition of the three-member Indian Olympic Association (IOA) committee, which was formed to sort out issues between Hockey India (HI) and IHF.

IHF said the committee, headed by IOA vice-president G.S. Mander, should ideally consist of independent persons.

“These members are from the IOA, which had disbanded IHF. There should be independent members, such as a retired judge of the Supreme Court or an eminent sportsperson, who are free from the influence of all,” said IHF chief advisor K.P.S. Gill at a press conference here.

The panel was to meet the representatives of the two bodies on Thursday, but the IHF sent a letter to the IOA expressing its disapproval.

“The Delhi High Court has already decided on the issue (in our favour). The IOA committee is not above the High Court,” said Gill.

However, Gill said the IHF was ready to talk to HI, which had the backing of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), in order to resolve the dispute.

Lamenting India’s 12th place finish in the London Olympics, the IHF top brass, along with a few well-known players, like M.P. Ganesh, Dhanraj Pillay, Joaquim Carvalho, Romeo James, M.P. Singh, Harendra Singh and Rajpal Singh, held HI responsible for the debacle.

Questions selection

They questioned the selection of the players. “It was not the Indian hockey team (which played in London). At least seven-eight players who played the World Series Hockey (WSH) were not selected. That affected the team’s performance in the Olympics,” said Pillay, adding HI secretary-general Narinder Batra should have resigned after the debacle.

Gill said the IHF had given a list of 21 players who had done well in the WSH, but they were not considered while selecting the National team for the Olympics.

Ganesh cast doubts over the credentials of Chief coach Michael Nobbs, while Rajpal queried the inaction against Nobbs after the Indian side finished last in London.

IHF president R.K. Shetty questioned FIH’s interference in the affairs of Indian hockey. “Why did the FIH not object to the Pakistan players who played in the WSH and went on to participate in the Olympics? Why is it only against India?

“The problem between IHF and HI is an internal issue in Indian hockey. Why is the FIH trying to get into it?” Shetty asked.

Sachin back to ironing skills, Pujara fit

Hands, pads, and a slightly crouched body, all right behind the ball, that was Sachin Tendulkar at work at the Chinnaswamy Stadium nets on Thursday.

Bangalore has been witness to a circumspect, reined in Tendulkar, concentrating hard on his defence for long hours, clearly
following the dismissal in Hyderabad, where a Trent Boult delivery breached his defence, which was ungainly and very un-Tendulkar like.

At the nets, coach Duncan Fletcher chatted with Tendulkar, demonstrating the batting stance etc. From a distance, it was not clear what Fletcher was telling the master batsman but Tendulkar had his eyes fixed on his coach.

Skipper MS Dhoni brushed aside any suggestion that Tendulkar was under any fresh pressure."He is perfectly happy and the thing is, he has always been under pressure (of expectations). He may score 45 or 50 but for people it is not enough. He has always been under such pressure." He added there is nothing to worry about Tendulkar's form. "I think he is enjoying his game, which is very important. He works so much in the nets."

There was good news for Cheteshwar Pujara, who is fit to play and will retain his No. 3 spot. Pujara, who hit his maiden Test hundred in Hyderabad, took a hit while fielding at forward shortleg.

"Pujara is a bit sore, so the good thing is he batted today at the nets and also fielded. He got a hard hit which means it will take some time to heal, but I don't think it's restricting him in the field. I think he will be available," said Dhoni

Sports minister, Dhoni back Unmukt

India skipper MS Dhoni and sports minister Ajay Maken came out in support of under-19 skipper Unmukt Chand in his ongoing battle with St Stephen’s. The college barred Chand from taking his BA second semester exams due to lack of attendance. “Marks for sports takes backseat
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attendance takes centrestage. Shows how much importance sports has in India,” tweeted Dhoni.

Maken said, “I intend to take up the issue with the Delhi University and with his college.”

There is a chance of the issue being resolved soon with DU Vice-Chancellor, Dinesh Singh, promising to find a way to help the player.

US Open: Paes-Stepanek win, Bhupathi-Bopanna knocked out

New York: Fifth seeds Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek advanced to the men`s doubles second round at the US Open while eighth seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna crashed out of the competition here.

Sania Mirza, playing alongside new mixed doubles partner Coling Fleming after splitting with Bhupathi, cleared the first hurdle at the Flushing Meadows here Wednesday.

Paes and his Czech partner Radek Stepanek downed Germany`s Dustin Brown and Christopher Kas 6-3, 6-3 in the opening round match lasting 54 minutes. They next play Brazilian duo of Thomas Belluci and Joao Souza, who edged out Croat Ivo Karlovic and German Frank Moser 7-6, 7-6.

The Indian combine of Bhupathi and Bopanna lost to Australia`s Bernard Tomic and Matthew Ebden 3-6, 6-7, making a pre-mature exit from the last Grand Slam of the year. 

A break was enough for the Australian pair to secure the first set while the second went down to the wire. Tomic and Ebden won the crucial points to seal the tie-break 7-4 and the match. They face Russia`s Alex Bogomolov Jr. and South Africa`s Raven Klaasen in the second round.

In the the mixed doubles, Sania and Fleming beat Germany`s Andrea Petkovic and American Eric Butorac 6-2, 7-6 and next play either local hope Melanie Oudin and Jack Sock or the Serbian-Slovakian pair of Nenad Zimonjic and Katarina Srebotnik.

Sania advances, Bhupathi-Bopanna out of US Open

New York: Sania Mirza entered the mixed doubles second round with a new partner, but the Mahesh Bhupahti-Rohan Bopanna combo made a shock first-round exit from the men`s doubles event of the US Open here.

Sania ended her successful partnership with Bhupahti in the mixed doubles circuit after being "sacrificed" by the veteran in the infamous Olympic selection row in July.

And the Hyderabadi made a freash start with Englishman Colin Fleming when the duo defeated the British-American combination of Andrea Petkovic and Eric Butorac 6-2 7-6 (5).

Sania and Fleming will now be up against winners of the match between Americans Melanie Oudin and Jack Sock and the fifth-seeded Slovak-Serbian pair of Katarina Srebotnik and Nenad Zimonjic.

In men`s doubles, Bhupathi and Bopanna, who have been dumped from the Indian Davis Cup team for revolting against the All India Tennis Assoiation before the Olympics, were shown the door in the first round itself.

The eighth-seeded Indian team was defeated 3-6 6-7 (4) by unseeded Australians Matthew Ebden and Bernard Tomic.

But Leander Paes sailed into the second round with Czech partner Radek Stepanek. The fifth-seeded team outplayed the unseeded German duo of Dustin Brown and Christopher Kas 6-3 6-3. 

Sachin Tendulkar rules out retirement for now

Bangalore: Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar on Wednesday indicated that he would not retire for now.

"As long as there is a reason to wake up with a reason in the morning, it makes sense in continuing (playing cricket). The day I don`t enjoy wielding bat in my hands, I will think otherwise. But that moment hasn`t come as yet. When I will get that feeling, I will confirm on that," he said after receiving the Castrol Test Cricketer of 2011 at an awards function here.

His younger contemporaries like Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman have hung up their boots from international cricket.

Receiving Special Award for notching up a double ton in a ODI match against Sri Lanka, Virender Sehwag said his next target was to play 100 tests for the country.

In a lighter vein, Sehwag said superstition did not apply to him when he approached double ton in any form of cricket as he did not give any room for the bowlers to think much.

"If the ball is there to hit along the fence or over it, I do that without much thinking," he said.

However, Sehwag said he was a bit superstitious when Tendulkar neared his first double ton in one-day internationals.

"We all thought even if Sachin gets out on 190s, we will all stand up and clap anyhow. But when he got there, all players and sports staff gathered at the players balcony and applauded his achievement. That feeling cannot be expressed," he said.

Receiving ‘Performance Under Pressure Award’, Gautam Gambhir said last two T20 World Cups were disappointing for Team India after winning the first. However, the team would try to give 100 per cent and play well in the competition.

"I am not sure of winning the cup. It is not in our hands, but will put up a good show in the upcoming T20 World Cup to be played in Sri Lanka," he said.

On lifetime achievement awardee Ajit Wadekar, Tendulkar said the former Indian captain was a fantastic coach who knew the art of mentally preparing before he walked out on the field. 

Spanish Supercup: Higuain and Ronaldo seal title for Real Madrid

Madrid: Real Madrid have claimed the 2012 Spanish Supercopa after a gripping 2-1 second-leg victory over Barcelona in their Santiago Bernabeu clash on Wednesday.

Los Blancos triumphed on away goals after a 4-4 aggregate score, but it should have been a lot more after a shambolic defensive start from Tito Vilanova`s men.

A missed clearance from Javier Mascherano saw Gonzalo Higuain gifted the opener, and an outrageous flick from Cristiano Ronaldo on Gerard Pique put him in position to make it 2-0 after 19 minutes.

Adriano`s red card just before half an hour seemed to signal the the end of Barca`s hopes, but Lionel Messi dragged them back to their feet with a fantastic free-kick on the stroke of half-time.

The second-half was far more tense as a much-improved Barca had their chances to score again, but there was no way back for the visitors as Madrid hung on to claim the first trophy in Spain this season.

Pepe returned from a concussion to start alongside Sergio Ramos in defence, but there was no place for new signing Luka Modric, who began the game on the bench.

An injury to Dani Alves during the warm up, forced Tito Vilanova to draft Jordi Alba in at left-back, with Adriano shifting to the opposite flank. Carles Puyol was another notable absentee after fracturing a cheekbone in the 2-1 win over Osasuna on the weekend.

And the Barcelona captain may have well had a thing or two to say after a dreadful defensive opening that saw Madrid storm into a two goal lead after 20 minutes.

Mascherano had already allowed Higuain to slip past him for an early one-on-one that was saved by Victor Valdes, and the Argentine gifted his compatriot an even greater chance in the 11th minute, when his missed attempt at a clearance allowed the striker to steal in and slot home the opener.

It went for bad to worse for Barca eight minutes later, as Madrid struck again after pouncing on another lapse at the back. Pique was left bamboozled by a heel flick from Ronaldo, who advanced on goal and had time to steady himself before blasting in via the leg of Valdes.

Valdes was called into action once more to deny Higuain, who was again able to get behind the defence, while Madrid saw a third goal questionably disallowed for an infraction after Pepe nodded in a free-kick.

The visitors were all at sea, and their chances seemed to be virtually extinguished just before the half hour mark, when Adriano was shown a straight red card for pulling down Ronaldo on a clear break towards goal for the Portuguese.

Vilanova was forced to throw on Martin Montoya for Sanchez in a bid to shore up his defence as Madrid continued to dominate. Sami Khedira’s volley was thwarted from point blank range by Valdes, before a last ditch challenge from Mascherano halted Higuain as he bore down on goal.

However, there were a few signs of life from Barca as the first-half drew to a close. Montaya came within inches of connecting with Andres Iniesta’s low cross, and then, in stoppage time, a moment of magic from Messi gave the visitors a fighting chance.

The Argentine took charge of a free-kick after Xavi was felled 30 yards from goal and bent a breathtaking effort around the wall, past the outstretched arm of Iker Casillas and into the back of the net.

Still, Madrid nearly responded in the dying embers of the first-half. Ronaldo’s 35-yard drive bounced inches wide, and Higuain also narrowly missed, after cutting onto his left foot deep inside the area.

Barca headed into the break knowing that they still had a lot of work to do, and looked to wrestle control from the hosts as the second-half unfolded.

Madrid seemed content to sit back and protect their advantage, which allowed the Blaugrana the chance to dictate proceedings with their famed tiki-taka football.

Their improved endeavour was almost rewarded on the hour mark, after a searching ball from the back by Mascherano was taken in stride brilliantly by Pedro, who saw his shot met by an equally fantastic save from Casillas.

The Spanish forward had another opening moments later after sneaking in on the right, but Casillas was again alert to stop him from poking home at the near post.

Madrid were far from ruthless, but still harboured a significant threat on the break. Khedira nearly scored a third after beating multiple defenders en-route to goal, but Valdes was able to block strongly.

Alba was thwarted at the last by a great challenge from Ramos, before Higuain was allowed through on goal for the umpteenth time, but could not finish the chance as his effort bounced off the base of the post.

Late openings appeared for both sides, but no more goals were forthcoming as Madrid held on to claim the Supercopa and set the pace for what is sure to be a enthralling season in Spain.

`Spirit in Motion` gala opens London`s Paralympics

London: Volleys of fireworks lit up the night sky, Beverley Knight belted out "I am what I am," and Britain`s first Paralympic gold medalist lit the cauldron to open the 2012 London Paralympic Games.

It was a night of empowerment for the disabled worldwide. "Enlightenment" was the theme, physicist Stephen Hawking the guide and Olympic Stadium the venue Wednesday as the British capital welcomed 4,200 athletes from more than 160 nations.

Who better to greet the Paralympians than a scientist who has shown that physical disabilities do not limit human potential?

"The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world. We are all different, there is no such thing as a standard or run-of-the-mill human being, but we share the same human spirit," said Hawking, who was given two years to live in 1963 after he was diagnosed with motor neuron disease.

"What is important is that we have the ability to create ... however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at," he added.

The extravaganza, directed by Bradley Hemmings and Jenny Sealey, was billed as a voyage across "a sea of ideas" — including Isaac Newton`s discovery of gravity, the force that all Earth-bound athletes strive against. The show included 73 deaf and disabled professional performers and 68 disabled people among its 3,250 volunteers.

Sebastian Coe, chief of the London organizing committee, issued a big welcome home "to a movement that shows what sport is all about."

"Sport is about what you can do, what you can achieve, the limits you can reach, the barriers you can break. Sport shows what is possible. Sport refuses to take no for an answer," Coe told the audience of 60,000.

The London event is on track to be the most-watched Paralympics ever, with 2.5 million tickets expected to be sold by the time it ends Sept. 9.

As the athletes paraded in under a full moon, a huge roar filled the stadium for South African flagbearer Oscar Pistorius, the sprinter who is making history by running in both the Olympics and the Paralympics this year. Glittery ticker tape and a standing ovation then greeted the enormous British team as they entered to the David Bowie song "Heroes."

The parade took two hours — nearly an hour longer than expected — but the joy and pride that accompanied it was stirring to watch. Some athletes came in motorized carts, others propelled themselves in their wheelchairs, still others were pushed by coaches or volunteers. Athletes walked in with canes or crutches, eye patches and sunglasses, prosthetic limbs, no limbs and walking sticks, determined to make it around the imposing stadium to a global music mash-up by local DJs.

In a nod to the famously erratic British weather, umbrellas were a central theme. Seeing performers with no legs beneath the knee doing aerial flips while carrying umbrellas could inspire the most ardent couch potato.

After blind soprano Denise Leigh sang the tribute song "Spirit in Motion," several Paralympians took flight in an elegant, slow-motion aerial ballet.

And of course, this being Britain, the words of Shakespeare once again made an appearance, with both Miranda of "The Tempest" and British actor Ian McKellen announcing that "the greatest adventure is what lies ahead."

That, over the next 11 days, includes Paralympic athletes competing in 20 sports, including archery, cycling, rowing, equestrian, sailing, sitting volleyball, wheelchair rugby, wheelchair tennis and wheelchair basketball.

At the start, Hawking directed the fictional Miranda to "be curious" — and the stadium was transformed into a giant blinking eye, with performers on huge waving sticks acting like eyelashes. Along her travels, Miranda navigated a maze to find an apple — and everyone in the stadium took a bite out of their apple along with her.

Outside the stadium, hundreds of performers cheered, sang and danced. Jason Kajdi, an 18-year-old from south London, did huge splits with bouncy legs that resembled the "Cheetah" prosthetic limbs worn by Pistorius.

"Never used these before this," Kajdi admitted. "They are brilliant fun but hard work."

Authorities, meanwhile, promised to provide "a grand and global stage" for a games that everyone will remember.

Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the games, saying the nation looked forward to "celebrating the uplifting spirit which distinguishes the Paralympic Games from other events." She was accompanied by her grandson, Prince William, his wife Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, and Prime Minister David Cameron.

The Paralympic movement tracks its beginnings to the vision of Dr. Ludwig Guttmann, who in 1948 organized an archery competition for 16 injured patients at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Britain.

Wednesday`s ceremony concluded with a bevy of fireworks and Miranda breaking a glass ceiling — just as Paralympians must smash through their own barriers. Margaret Maughan, who won Britain`s first gold medal at the 1960 Rome Paralympics in archery, then lit the cauldron.

Society, too, was encouraged to abandon old-fashioned perceptions of what disabled people can and cannot do.

Pistorius, at an earlier news conference, praised London for its inclusivity.

"Kids didn`t stare at people`s prosthetic legs and they were asking guys in wheelchairs what events they do," Pistorius said. "There are a lot of people here who don`t focus on the disability anymore — they focus on the athletes` abilities ... there`s nothing to be ashamed of."

Cash awards continue to pour in for Olympic medallists

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Government has announced a cash reward of Rs one crore each to Olympic silver medallist wrestler Sushil Kumar and shooter Vijay Kumar, while the bronze medal winners will be given Rs 50 lakh each.

The announcement was made by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan during the `Shikhar Khel Alankaran 2012` awards ceremony here last evening.

The ceremony is held every year on the occasion of the birth anniversary of the hockey legend, Major Dhyanchand.

"The government will give the bronze medallists of the Londond Olympics -- Saina Nehwal (badminton), Gagan Narang (shooting), Mary Kom (boxing) and Yogeshwar Dutt (wrestling) -- Rs 50 lakh cash award," Chouhan said.

The Chief Minister, meanwhile, added that his state was ready to adopt hockey in the better interest of the nation and urged the Centre to give permission in this regard.

"We want to adopt hockey, so that we can provide proper facilities to the players to prepare for 2016 Olympics," he said.

Sushil Kumar, who was also present on the occasion, said he was overwhelmed by the honour given to him on his arrival in Madhya Pradesh and added that his only aim was to win a gold for the country.

London: A defiant Lance Armstrong has rebutted the doping claims by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), which accuse of him taking drugs during his Tour de France years.

“I won the Tour de France seven times,” Armstrong was quoted as telling throngs of supporters during a Montreal cancer conference by a website. 

The US cycling icon and cancer survivor maybe stripped of his 7 titles after he declined to fight the charges made by the USADA and withdrew from taking his case into arbitration.

“My name is Lance Armstrong, I`m a cancer survivor... and yes, I won the Tour de France seven times. And for those who don`t know what I`m talking about, I love you,” Armstrong told the crowd during the World Cancer Congress in Montreal.

He told the conference delegates that there is still "too much to be done" in the fight against cancer and that "we can`t be distracted," alluding to the doping scandal, the report said.

Armstrong’s Livestrong campaign has collected nearly 500 million dollars for cancer research and helping people cope with the disease, it added. 

London: Ace striker Wayne Rooney, who is recovering from a badly cut thigh, has rubbished reports about leaving Manchester United.

The England striker is recovering from a thigh injury that he suffered at the weekend against Fulham.

Boss Sir Alex Ferguson has always insisted that Rooney remains key to his plans, despite dropping him to the bench for Saturday’s win.

Dismissing speculation about leaving Old Trafford, Rooney tweeted: “Read the nonsense in the papers, and heard what people have to say. Absolute rubbish. Here to stay.”

Rooney faces at least four weeks out of action and will miss England’s upcoming games against Moldova and Ukraine, the Daily Star reports.

Why Cristiano Ronaldo is better than Lionel Messi!

As the Spanish football league known as the La Liga opens to a new season, excitements are already high as to which team will hold aloft the trophy by next May. Will Real Madrid retain the cup they won over from Barcelona or will Barca regain it? A tough question considering the league’s just starting.


And while La Liga is known for its tactical smooth football style, it also has the two best players in the world right now - Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. This automatically brings us the debate of who’s a better player between the two.


Perhaps, this is the biggest question in the world of football at present, and it is likely to remain so for a few more years.


Fans of both the players have claimed their favourite as the greatest player. However, to compare these two players who are completely different in style, both on and off the field, is actually a very difficult task. While Messi is known for his talent and fluency, Ronaldo is known for his sheer passion. Besides, these two players play for two different teams in the La Liga that are known for their different style of play too.


Therefore, comparing these two players as to who is better is a difficult task. Critics and fans say different things about these two ‘different’ players thus claiming one to be better than the other. However, there are certain reasons why Cristiano Ronaldo is a better player at the end of the day.


Ronaldo is a winger, not a striker


So, Messi has scored more goals that Ronaldo in the 2011-12 season. But what one has to realise here is that Messi is a forward/striker where as Ronaldo is a winger and for a winger to score as many as 60 goals in 55 appearances in a season is no mean achievement. While with Manchester United, he also had the distinction of being the first ever to win the European Golden Boot award in the 2007-08 season – as a winger.


With Real Madrid, Ronaldo also has the distinct achievement of being the second fastest La Liga player to score 100 goals in just 92 matches. He also became first player to reach 40 goals in a single season in two consecutive years in any of the top European leagues – all these achievements as a winger and not striker. And while Messi has score just 169 goals in 214 appearances for Barcelona as a striker, Ronaldo has score 112 goals in just 101 appearances for Real Madrid, a much faster scoring rate.


Move Messi out of Barcelona


So far, Messi has played for just one club, Barcelona FC, thus proving his ability with one club. On the other hand, Cristiano Ronaldo has proved that he can play in any league across the world - Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Manchester United (England) and now with Real Madrid (Spain), winning the leagues with Manchester and Real Madrid.


Barcelona FC is no doubt, the best club in the world right now. But as many critics had said then, Barcelona is what Ronaldnho made it; prior his arrival Barcelona was distance away form Real Madrid. This means that Messi is enjoying the outcome of what Barcelona has turned out to be though his contribution cannot be denied either. 


Moreover, the support that Xavi Hernandez and Andrea Iniesta, considered the best midfielders in the world, are giving him is nothing like any in the world of football. Hence, many have wondered what would happen to Messi’s football without the support of these two players. Moreover, with Pep Guardiola having left the club, one never know how the Barcelona FC will perform.


So, can we move Messi out of Barcelona FC and see what happens? It would be interesting indeed.


Ronaldo is from Portugal, not Argentina


Messi is lucky to be born in the South American country of Argentina known for their football, while on the other hand Ronaldo is from Portugal, a country not as good and popular as Argentina in football. This means that while Messi has been almost genetically and ethnically gifted with the skills of football, Ronaldo has put himself in a place where he is today through sheer passion and hard working.


Imagine Cristiano was from Brazil. Perhaps, the outcome would have been a different story.


Performances for country


While Messi might have won the Olympics gold in football at the Beijing games in 2008, he has otherwise failed to impress in the national shirt. He failed again to help his country qualify for the London Olympics 2012 despite being the defending champions.


Thus, when it comes to the senior side, Messi has failed to perform for the country – he was goalless at the FIFA World Cup 2010 held in 2010 while Argentina were knocked out by Germany 4-0 in the quarter finals.


On the other, Ronaldo almost single handedly took Portugal to the round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup 2010 and the quarter finals of the Euro Cup 2012.


Thus, when it comes to performance for the nation at the highest level, Cristiano has performed better than Messi.


No. of Awards


One might also argue that Ronaldo has just one FIFA Player of the Year award to Messi’s three, but the latter’s award in 2010 did not come without its share of controversy; many players and critics expected Wesley Sneijder of Holland to win it after having led the Orange to the finals of the of the FIFA World Cup 2010, winning the Bronze Boot award for five goals and the Silver Ball for being the 2nd best player of the tournament. He was also heavily instrumental in Inter Milan winning the EUFA Champions League in the same year.


So, at the end of the day, Messi has higher number of awards, both group and individual. But that said again, Messi has been stuck with the same best club of the world. Had he moved out to other team, he might as well win so many awards.


But that said and done, both these players are amazingly talented and the competition between the two will continue for few more years to come.


Thus, at the end of the day, the debate of who is a better player will definitely continue. However, if one has to analyse every angle, situation and the likes, Cristiano takes the edge as the better player between the two. 

Castrol awards- A noble idea that needs ratification

Sport, unlike other walks of life, tests a person's ability to deal with immense pressures of expectations while putting the body on the line, every single day. Being a sportsperson is probably one of the most demanding things in today's day and age and being a successful one; possibly the most challenging. 

When one has to go through a roller-coaster of emotions, highs and lows, stress and jubilation, a slight amount of motivation in the form of an award can act as a symbol of reassurance. That reassurance is exactly what Castrol aims to give a select section of cricketers from a particular nation, "These are the only awards given away in India specifically for Indian cricketers consistently, since it was launched in 1998," says Dilnaz Anklesaria, Associate Vice President of Corporate Communications for Castrol. 

Apart from giving a cricketer reassurance, an award also recognizes the contribution made by him to the game, hence it isn't just enough to felicitate any cricketer. The right man needs to be awarded and herein lies the real challenge. Dilnaz points out exactly how Castrol overcomes that hurdle, "The most unique bit about these awards is the Castrol Indian Cricketer of the Year award. That is selected on a two-tier basis. The first tier is based on a robust point ranking system, where the performances of Indian cricketers in ODIs and Tests are put together. The top five are then shortlisted as the nominees for the award, and in the second stage all the Indian cricketers who have played either one Test or five ODIs are asked to vote for their choice." 

Statistics alone cannot reveal the true success of a cricketer and that is why it becomes imperative to have a system of voting, just to add a qualitative aspect. "A player could have scored a triple century against a team that is not so difficult, whereas a hundred scored against say powerful team like Australia is more valued," adds Dilnaz. 

There are a few points of debate though, in the latest edition of the Castrol Awards for Cricketing Excellence. Sachin Tendulkar was awarded the best batsman of the year, Tests and ODIs included, for the 2011 season. Now in that calendar year he did score a fair amount of runs in Tests, 756 to be precise, but got just one century. What's more startling is the fact that he played just 11 ODIs, most of which came during the World Cup, and scored 513 runs. Virat Kohli on the other hand played 34 ODIs and scored 1381 runs, including four centuries and eight half centuries. Add Sachin's total runs scored in both formats in that year and it still falls short of what Kohli has managed in just one format. 

Obviously there will be a side that says Virat didn't play much Tests, but he didn't stay out of the format by choice. Tendulkar on the other hand chose not to play in the ODIs. So would it not have made more sense to give it to a player who served his team without feeling the need to dedicate time for his personal life (not that there is anything wrong in taking time out for oneself)? Besides, Kohli would surely be better served with the award at this stage in his life than Tendulkar. Think about it, who is in greater need of reassurance, a man who has achieved it all or a man who has just embarked on a journey? 

Another thing that seemed to be neglected was the achievement of Indian cricketers in something that is very Indian, domestic cricket. R.Ashwin while collecting his award said, "People don't really take notice of first class cricket." Sadly, that isn't far from being true and that remained to be true at the award function as well. There was no award for a domestic cricketer of the year, which meant that household names like Subramanium Badrinath and Wasim Jaffer went unnoticed. Names that have certainly contributed a lot to Indian cricket, albeit at the domestic level. Dilnaz, however, did show a glimmer of hope, "We are not looking at domestic cricket awards. We are looking at Indian players who have played at the international level. But that is not to say that we might not have something like that in the future, every year we have been adding awards and this is something we could look at." 

When one talks of cricketing excellence then it surely means excellence of the sport as well and that is something which cannot be done without the presence of the men officiating the game. Unfortunately there aren't too many awards for umpires and this occasion was going to be no different. "The lifetime achievement award can be given to anyone who has contributed to the game of cricket. It could be a journalist, a cricketer or an umpire, so there is nothing to stop us from recognizing that," said Dilnaz. Those lines did sound reasonable at first, but on hindsight there appeared to be a loophole. An umpire has a horribly difficult job in the middle and needs to put in hours of concentration to pass judgements over the course of the game, surely he deserves an exclusive spot. Surely there needs to be an award dedicated purely to umpires and he definitely does enough to get one every year rather than after an entire lifetime. 

As of now the Castrol Awards for Cricketing Excellence can have a few additions, however, it still is a noble idea and it does give Indian cricketers the recognition they deserve. After all, international cricket can be one hell of a challenge and Indian cricketers need to be rewarded for putting in their best at the highest level. Let's just hope that the silver screen cricketers slowly get their due as well. 

India start overwhelming favourites

It's not often than an Indian Test win fails to top the sports pages, never mind the cricket pages. India's comprehensive victory over New Zealand in Hyderabad though was relegated to a sideshow last week as Unmukt Chand's Under-19 team won the World Cup in Australia. That India's first five-day success in nine months was so overshadowed was a measure of how lightly New Zealand are treated as a Test opposition, and how heavily India are expected to win.

New Zealand's Test fortunes seemed on an upswing after upsetting Australia in Hobart, following that up with their biggest Test win ever - an innings-and-301-run thumping of Zimbabwe - and the emergence of several talented young quick bowlers but the optimism has faded over the past few months. The home series against South Africa was always going to be a difficult challenge, but the capitulation on the tour of the Caribbean and against India last week has led to despondence among New Zealand fans. Much has already been written about the frail batting, the scarcity of centuries and the doubts against spin. The Bangalore Test presents a chance to show they are better than they have shown in recent times.

India, meanwhile, couldn't have asked for a better series to gauge how to fill the void left by the retirement of middle-order stalwarts Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. Cheteshwar Pujara will be relieved after marking his return to the Test arena following a one-and-a-half year absence with a big century. Virat Kohli also solidified his position with a fifty and, after a wretched Australia series, India's attack finally looked Test-quality again.

Form guide

India WLLLL (Most recent first)
New Zealand LLLDL

Watch out for

Suresh Raina has been an integral member of India's limited-overs sides for several years now, but Test cricket has proved tougher to crack. Kohli and Pujara have earned themselves middle-order spots at least for a handful of Tests, leaving Raina's place as the most vulnerable. The Test against a feeble New Zealand offers Raina the chance to make the runs necessary to keep a host of challengers at bay.

Ross Taylor has repeatedly stressed on the need for his batsmen to make centuries if New Zealand are to compete in Tests. He himself has only one hundred in more than two years, and that too against a lightweight Zimbabwe. With Jesse Ryder sidelined, Brendon McCullum promoted to the opening spot, and Daniel Vettori injured, New Zealand need Taylor to shore up the middle order.

Pitch and conditions

The Chinnaswamy track isn't expected to be as spin-friendly as the one in Hyderabad last week, and the quicker bowlers are likely to have more of a role to play. The big concern for the organisers, though, is the weather. There have been evening showers over the past few days in Bangalore, and the predictions are for rains over the weekend as well.

Team news

MS Dhoni has ruled out experimenting with the India line-up ahead of the tougher Tests against England and Australia later in the season, which means the same XI which won the first Test is likely to feature in Bangalore as well. There have been some fitness concerns over Pujara, who was struck on the knee while fielding at short leg in the first Test, but Dhoni said Pujara is expected to play. "Pujara is a bit sore, but the good thing is he batted today at the nets and fielded also," Dhoni said. "He got a hard hit which means it will take some time to heal but I don't think it is restricting him in the field."

India (likely) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Cheteshwar Pujara, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Virat Kohli, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 8 R Ashwin, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Pragyan Ojha, 11 Umesh Yadav.

New Zealand also aren't expected to make too many changes. Taylor said he was backing his batsmen to deliver after the dismal performance in Hyderabad. The one change they could consider is bringing in either Neil Wagner or Tim Southee for Chris Martin, who was dropped as recently as the second Test against West Indies last month.

New Zealand (likely) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Brendon McCullum, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Ross Taylor (capt), 5 Daniel Flynn, 6 James Franklin, 7 Kruger van Wyk (wk), 8 Doug Bracewell, 9 Trent Boult, 10 Jeetan Patel, 11 Neil Wagner/Chris Martin.

Stats and trivia

• The Chinnaswamy Stadium isn't India's happiest hunting ground, with only one Test win in close to 17 years. Against New Zealand, though, India have won both Tests at the venue.
• After his pair in Hyderabad, Martin is now level with Glenn McGrath on 35 Test ducks, with only Courtney Walsh (43) ahead. Martin's seven Test pairs is a record.
• Brendon McCullum is 45 short of becoming the sixth New Zealand batsman to reach 4000 Test runs

Quotes

"Sachin Tendulkar may score 45 or 50, still people think he has not scored runs. He has always been under this kind of pressure. He is enjoying cricket and he wants to still improve in every practice session."
MS Dhoni

"You have to reach a stage where mentally as well as with your stroke-play in attack and defence, you can dominate them. Not the other way around by letting them dominate you."
Former New Zealand coach John Wright has some advice for the visitors' batsmen