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Olympics: Putin opens Sochi Games after stunning show BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia, Sarawak Daily News » Sports - New 2 Borneo

Olympics: Putin opens Sochi Games after stunning show

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 03:03 PM PST

SOCHI, Russia: President Vladimir Putin on Friday opened the Winter Olympics Games in Sochi that are inextricably linked with his name, after a stunning ceremony where Russia sought to convince the world it is a worthy host.

The high-octane ceremony at the 40,000 capacity Fisht stadium on the Black Sea got off to a rocky start when one of five illuminated snowflakes which were supposed to morph into the Olympic rings failed to appear, leaving an embarrassing set of just four rings.

But thereafter the show charmed and stunned in equal measure, taking hundreds of millions of spectators around the world on a lightning tour of Russian history and culture guided by a young girl named Lyubov (Love).

In a nod towards Russia's proud sporting past, the Olympic cauldron was lit by two triple gold-winning Soviet winter sports icons – figure skater Irina Rodnina and ice hockey legend Vladislav Tretyak – as fireworks rained into the sky.

The flame had been brought into the stadium by US-based Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova and the final relay included Olympic rhythmic gymnastics champion Alina Kabayeva who has been rumoured in some quarters to be Putin's lover.

Russia is under huge pressure to organise a glitch-free Games after a build-up dogged by controversies over gay rights, construction delays and security.

The concerns that have shadowed these Games were underlined when Turkish media reports said a Ukrainian man attempted to hijack an airliner en route from Ukraine to Turkey and divert it to Sochi.

But a Turkish military jet forced the plane to land in Istanbul.

There were no signs of such tension in Sochi as the teams entered the stadium – led by tradition by Olympic Games founder Greece – to the sound of pumping dance house music in an effort to dynamise the procession.

The Russian team won huge cheers as they entered to the song "Nas Ne Dogonyat" ("Not Gonna Get Us") by female pop duo Tatu known for their raunchy lesbian-tinged pop videos.

Although both girls are heterosexual, their involvement could be seen as a coded riposte to Western allegations that Russia is intolerant of homosexuality.

In line with Olympic protocol, Putin, who has championed the drive to host the Olympics in Sochi since before the successful bid in 2007, made no speech save declaring the Games open.

Putin welcomed more than 40 other heads of state and leaders for the ceremony, including United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and embattled Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.

However US President Barack Obama as well as the leaders of key European Union states Britain, France, and Germany are conspicuous by their absence, a move seen by many as a snub over Russia's now notorious anti-gay law.

IOC President Thomas Bach made an impassioned call for politicians to stay out of sports, saying "have the courage to address your disagreements in political dialogue and not on the back of your athletes."

Some 3,500 fireworks weighing a total of 22.5 tonnes were set off in the course of the ceremony which involved some 3,000 performers and 2,000 volunteers.

The ceremony aimed to tell the story of Russia's history – from ancient times through the imperial era and the revolution – in a way comprehensive and exciting for both Russians and foreigners.

The ceremony included a new ballet based on the ball scene from Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace" performed by dance stars including Svetlana Zakharova of the Bolshoi Ballet and the gravity defying superstar Ivan Vasliev.

Burly shaven-headed heavyweight boxer Nikolai Valuev played the role of a giant but friendly Soviet policeman Uncle Styopa in an episode that sought to portray 1960s USSR as a jazzy and stylish haven for lovers.

For many older Russians, the ceremony may bring a pang of nostalgia for the 1980 Moscow Summer Games in the Soviet era, which are still remembered fondly, in particular for the cute mascot Misha the bear.

But it remains to be seen whether the Sochi opening ceremony will shift the cloud of controversy that has hung over the Games, the most expensive in history with an estimated price tag of US$50 billion.

In a symbolic gesture, Google marked the Winter Games by flying the gay flag Thursday in a search page Doodle that linked to a call for equality in the Olympic Charter.

Security concerns had already intensified as the United States announced a temporary ban on liquids and gels in hand luggage on Russia-bound flights, following a warning that militants could stuff explosives into toothpaste. – AFP

Selangor PKNS FC 0 – 2 Sarawak FA; Super League match

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 11:37 AM PST

Posted on February 8, 2014, Saturday

KUCHING: Sarawak moved to the top spot in the Super League after collecting three points by defeating Selangor PKNS FC 2-0 at Selayang Municipal Council Stadium.

The visiting team's goals were scored by Milorad Janjus in the ninth minute and Gabor Gyepes, seven minutes later. — BERNAMA

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Winning Olympic gold not impossible

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 08:43 AM PST

Yang Zhuliang wants to help Malaysia win its first diving gold at 2016 Olympics in Brazil

KUCHING: National diving coach Yang Zhuliang has always harboured a dream – to help Malaysia win its first Olympic gold medal through diving in the 2016 Olympics in Rio, Brazil.

After that target is achieved, he will return to Australia to be reunited with his family there.

Although that is a daunting task, Yang feels it is not impossible, saying: "However difficult it might be, that cannot stop the burning desire and determination of our divers to win."

"While our training is amateur, the results that we achieved are that of professional training. In Malaysia, the diving facilities are inadequate and it is hard to compare with China's professional training programme."

"The divers cannot fully concentrate on the training as they have to juggle their time between studies and training," he pointed out.

"Just let the national diving team make the breakthrough by capturing the first Olympic gold for Malaysia," added Yang.

He said many countries had regarded the Malaysian diving team as a miracle as it had successfully secured seven tickets to compete in the 2012 Olympics in London, United Kingdom.

Malaysia were the second biggest participating team after China and its divers had qualified despite inadequate training facilities and most of them were unable to train full-time as they had to cope with their studies.

National diving queen Pandelela Rinong Pamg, who is from Bau, had created history by becoming the first Malaysian woman to win an Olympic medal in a sport other than badminton.

She finished third in the women's individual 10m platform in the London Olympics.

"The national divers are all fantastic. They are willing to train very hard and the team spirit is very high too. Although Pandelela is an Olympic medallist, she is very humble and mixes around well with her juniors and teammates," Yang said of the national team.

He was also impressed by senior diver Leong Mun Yee who was always punctual during training and never leaves early.

Meanwhile, Yang said the door of the national team is always open for Bryan Nickson Lomas, 22, who quit the national team in May last year to complete his studies.

"Malaysia has many talented divers but Bryan is an outstanding athlete because he has all the qualities of a world or Olympic champion," said Yang.

"Although Ooi Tze Liang, Ahmad, Nazreen and others have improved significantly, it doesn't mean that Malaysia doesn't need Bryan now."

"He is such a talented diver and it is hard to find such talent in the world. If Malaysia can have a professional diving programme like China, Bryan could have become a world champion already," said Yang.

He was unable to say when Bryan will return to the national fold as the former national is pursuing his sports science degree at University Malaya.

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SMK Julau sweep Sarikei cross-country titles

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 08:43 AM PST

JULAU: SMK Julau dominated the Sarikei MSSB Cross-Country championship when they made a clean sweep of four categories contested here yesterday to emerge the overall champions.

The runners-up were SMK Bandar Bintangor while SMK Pakan came in third.

State athletes Endang Ringgit and Banended Limau, both of SMK Julau, were just too good for their opponents as they captured the Boys U-18 and Girls U-18 titles respectively.

Stanley Joseph made it a one-two finish for SMK Julau by finishing second in the Boys U-18 race while Mohd Anix Rosmizam Damianus from SMK Bandar Bintangor was third.

The runner-up in the Girls U-18 race was Prika Sujun of SMK Pakan and finishing in third place was Hozanna Thenissya also of SMK Julau.

In the Boys U-15 and Girls U-15 categories, SMK Julau's Cassidy Mike Egoh and Michelina Kedaya made a successful defence of their titles by winning the races.

Finishing second and third respectively in the Boys U-15 event were Jenoriki Atat of SMK Bandar Bintangor and Ambrose Billon from SMK Julau.

As for the Girls U-15, SMK Bandar Bintangor's Madelinda Balau finished in second spot while Catherine Imba of SMK Julau was third.

Eleven secondary schools in the Sarikei Division competed in the championship that was aimed to select Sarikei representatives for the MSSB Sarawak Inter-Division Cross-Country Championship in Miri on Feb 22.

Thirty-two athletes were selected to represent the division.

SMK Julau's principal Christopher Kelebit Ansa closed the event and gave away the prizes.

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Reds fear no one, warns Rodgers ahead of Gunners visit

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 08:42 AM PST

LIVERPOOL: Brendan Rodgers says Liverpool now expect to beat the Premier League's big guns as they prepare to face leaders Arsenal at Anfield tonight.

Rodgers' team may have only beaten the Gunners once in their last seven meetings at Anfield and once in their last 12 games home and away, but the Reds boss believes his side have the confidence to take on any side, a belief which was sorely missing when he arrived at the club in 2012.

"I think we are a team that, because of how we play and work, we get the most out of our opponents because they have to be on top of their game to play us," Rodgers said.

"We are confident going into every game and the big change for us now is to expect to win these games now.

"When I first came in the pressure to win was difficult for us. We were maybe never that confident to consistently do it.

"Now because of the level and consistency of our work, we actually go into every game expecting to win and none more so than at Anfield. That belief and expectancy can be seen in our results.

"We always respect every opponent that we play and none more than the league leaders, but we will come into the game looking to perform and hopefully win."

Rodgers revealed that defensive duo Daniel Agger and Glen Johnson will not be fit to face the Gunners with the game coming just a few days early for them as they recover from injury.

But one player who definitely will feature is Luis Suarez, the striker Arsenal tried to lure to the Emirates Stadium before the start of this season.

Suarez has been in prolific form in front of goal this season with 23 goals already to his name but he has failed to net against any of last season's top four sides – Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea.

"I think he has made an impact," said Rodgers. "He may not have scored but certainly did so in the games last season when I was here. He makes a great contribution to the team.

"The onus isn't always on Luis to score the goals – it's on the rest of the team.

"As long as he works hard and does his best, which he does every game, I'll have no complaints about that."

Meanwhile, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was adamant he had no regrets about his club's bid of £40,000,001 (US$54.34 million) for Suarez, which triggered an angry response from Liverpool and ultimately failed to land the Uruguayan.

"No," he said. "You sometimes have regrets when a player played for you, and scores goals or does well somewhere else. He was never our player, it is just a situation that did not come off and that is it."

Arsenal will kick off at Anfield two points clear of both Manchester City and Chelsea and eight ahead of Liverpool, who are fourth.

The Gunners' success has been achieved mainly by using Olivier Giroud as a lone striker and Wenger made it clear Suarez's arrival would not have been at the Frenchman's expense.

"We never wanted to replace Giroud, we always had complete confidence in him," Wenger said.

"I said at the beginning of the season that he always does better in the second year everywhere and he shows that again this season."

Wenger backed his defenders to get the better of Liverpool's attacking players, who also include Daniel Sturridge, Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling.

"The key is for us to dominate the game and leave them as few balls as possible," he said.

"At Liverpool the task might be a bit more difficult but the philosophy on our side has to be the same – to master the ball.

"Liverpool have a strong offensive force. So what you want on our side is a strong defensive performance." — AFP

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Terengganu MB slams FAM over Larkin incident

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 08:40 AM PST

Ahmad: Competitions committee's decision to award match to JDT not apt

HULU TERENGGANU: Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Said yesterday questioned why FAM did not take into account the security of

T-Team's players and officials when giving a 3-0 win to Darul Ta'zim (JDT) over their abandoned second leg FA Cup tie at the Tan Sri Datuk Haji Hassan Yunos Stadium in Larkin, Johor Baharu last Tuesday.

He said T-Team were not stupid to withdraw from the match and that FAM should have studied the case more deeply and not decide merely based on the reports of the referee and match officials.

"If not due to security reasons, for what? I was informed the players had to be escorted out by police right up to the Mersing border, and requested not to wear their jerseys. Is it not a question of security?," he said.

He said this to reporters during a visit to the Telemong state constituency together its assemblyman Rozi Mamat, who is also State Youth and Sports Committee chairman, here.

Ahmad said FAM Competitions Committee's decision (to award the match to JDT) was not apt because the referee and match officials were not involved and did not actually see what actually took place in the tunnel during half-time.

"Yes, I am definitely disappointed with FAM's attitude which has caused the national football to be in limbo compared to South Korea and Japan who Malaysia used to easily beat in the past.

"South Korea and Japan have advanced to the semi-finals of the World Cup, but Malaysia are still struggling because its management (FAM) is not competent, not responsible and incapable," he said.

Meanwhile, the players and officials of the T-Team who witnessed the event in the tunnel of the Tan Sri Datuk Haji Hassan Yunos Stadium, have been asked to swear on the Quran to uphold truth.

Ahmad said this was because as Muslims, lying on what happened would damage the image of the country's football.

He added that he would also leave to the team's management pertaining to appeals.

In the incident, T-Team refused to resume the match after half time, claiming the safety of the players was at stake, since a high ranking JDT official had allegedly assaulted a player and the fitness coach from T-Team while heading to the dressing room. — Bernama

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