PV Sindhu named BBC Indian Sportswoman of Year

Indian badminton player PV Sindhu won the inaugural BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year award following a public vote.

The shortlist of five contenders also consisted of sprinter Dutee Chand, boxer Mary Kom, wrestler Vinesh Phogat and para-badminton player Manasi Joshi.

In 2019, Sindhu became the first Indian to win badminton World Championship gold in Basel, Switzerland.

She is considered a medal prospect at this year's Olympics in Tokyo.

PV Sindhu is the first Indian singles badminton player to win an Olympic silver medal

"I would like to dedicate this award to my supporters and fans that have supported me all along and also voted for me," the 24-year-old said.

"Awards like BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year give us motivation and encouragement to go much further.

"My message to all young sportswomen is that as women we have to believe in ourselves. Hard work is the key to success. I'm sure soon there will be more Indian sportswomen winning medals for the country."

Sindhu has five World Championship medals and is the first Indian singles badminton player to win an Olympic silver medal.

She entered the top 20 of the world rankings in September 2012, aged 17, and has been in the top 10 for the past four years.

PT Usha is considered to be one of India's greatest athletes

The BBC award ceremony was held in New Delhi in the presence of eminent sportspersons, sports writers and influencers.

Former sprinter PT Usha was given the Lifetime Achievement award for her contribution to Indian sports and inspiring generations of players.

She won more than 100 international medals and awards during her career.

The Indian Olympics Association also named her Best Sportswoman of the Century.

She finished fourth in the 400m 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, missing out on a medal by one hundredth of a second.

The five nominees for the BBC Indian Sportswoman award were announced in February, having been chosen by a panel from all parts of India.

(Source: BBC)

Japan is turning its abandoned golf courses into solar power plants

The first will produce enough energy to power thousands of households

Abandoned housing and abandoned factories might be rife across the world, but Japan has a problem with derelictness you might not have heard of before – abandoned golf courses.

They're starting to pop up across the country, due to a huge number of them being built during a boom in the industry in the 80s which is now falling, with participation in the sport down 40%.

The courses could have been levelled for development, but instead Kyocera is using their vast open spaces to install solar panels.

Kyocera

The renewable energy initiative is being welcomed in Japan, which has been looking for alternatives to nuclear energy after the 2011 Fukushima disaster left a bad taste in the mouth.

The first 23 megawatt golf course project will launch in 2017 and produce enough power for around 8,000 homes.

Planning on an additional solar plant began in January 2014 and is now underway - it will cover approximately 2,000,000m2, accommodate 340,740 Kyocera solar modules, and is expected to generate roughly 99,230MWh annually – enough to power approximately 30,500 households.

There are several bold green initiatives in the works around the world right now, including one run by an ex-Nasa engineer who is hoping to plant one billion trees a year using drones.

(Source: Independent)

Muslim supermodel becomes first to wear burkini and hijab in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue

A Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue has featured its first ever hijab wearing model on the cover, the boundary-breaking Hamila Aden, and people are loving it.

The issue, which is set to hit newsstands on May 8, will feature the Somali-American model on its cover, while she models two custom burkinis.

In a statement about the progressive cover, the magazine's editor MJ Day said that the publication's priorities have shifted, and featuring Aden on the cover is representative of this.

In the release, Day said:

Having Halima as a part of SI Swimsuit is yet another example of the range and scope of the type of beauty that exists.

Her participation and inclusion further highlights the brand’s commitment and belief in supporting women to own who they are and what makes them unique and ultimately reaffirms what our messaging has been, that YOU are worthy.

Speaking to the Huffington Post about the cover, Aden described her appearance on the cover as a 'moment':

Being in Sports Illustrated is so much bigger than me.

It’s sending a message to my community and the world that women of all different backgrounds, looks, upbringings can stand together and be celebrated.

This is a moment, that’s for sure. Women everywhere should know their differences are what make them beautiful.

Aden was born in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, before moving to the US aged 7. The model returned to Kenya for the Sports Illustrated shoot at Watama Beach on the southeast coast.

Speaking to Sky News about the cover, she said:

I keep thinking [back] to six-year-old me who, in this same country, was in a refugee camp.

So to grow up to live the American dream [and] to come back to Kenya and shoot for the Sports Illustrated in the most beautiful parts of Kenya - I don't think that's a story that anybody could make up.

She also had a positive message for other young Muslim women, saying in a release quoted in the Huffington Post:

Young Muslim women need to know that there is a modest swimsuit option available to them so they can join the swim team, participate in swim class at school, and go with their friends to the beach.

Muslim girls should feel confident taking that step and doing so comfortably while wearing a burkini.

This isn't the first time the supermodel has made headlines. In 2016, Aden became the first Miss Minnesota contestant to compete wearing a hijab and burkini. She's also the first model to wear a hijab on the cover of Allure magazine.

Muslim supermodel Halima Aden has made history once again by becoming the first model to wear a hijab and burkini in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue https://t.co/cU4gM5p982 pic.twitter.com/cA6tgzJkIr

— CNN (@CNN) 29 April 2019

(Source: Independent) 

The way Americans regard sports heroes versus intellectuals speaks volumes

The difference between the way Americans regard athletes versus “intellectuals” is a touchstone for how we see ourselves, writes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the Guardian. Read on: 

On 19 April 1980, more than 50,000 Parisians marched through the streets to mourn the loss of one of their own. Was it for a famous pop star, a beloved politician or a nationally treasured athlete? Nope, it was the funeral of Jean-Paul Sartre, the French existential philosopher and winner of the Nobel prize in literature (which he refused, along with the $500,000 prize money, out of concern it would compromise his independent thinking). In America, that mass public display of grief and affection is usually reserved for pop culture icons, not unapologetic intellectuals. Maybe it’s time to rethink that priority.

I can’t imagine the death of an American philosopher or literary writer drawing such a large crowd. But we do turn out for our fallen sports heroes: Babe Ruth had 150,000 at his funeral and Muhammad Ali had 100,000. Both well deserved. On the other hand, how many attended the 1996 funeral of equally deserving American poet laureate Joseph Brodsky, an immigrant who won the Nobel prize in literature in 1987? I don’t know the answer because the information isn’t even available. Can most of us even name a single contemporary American philosopher or influential literary author with the ease we can a Kardashian? If the answer is no, our initial reaction should be a slight sense of shame (and maybe a quick Google search), but more likely it would be to scoff and dismiss the question with a smug “Who cares?” But this instant dismissal really reflects a troubling trend of lazy and arrogant anti-intellectualism that has very real and dangerous consequences to American society.

The difference between the way Americans regard athletes versus “intellectuals” is a good touchstone for how we see ourselves. One statistic showed 93% of men watching sports, while another concludes that about 60% of Americans consider themselves sports fans. Count me in. I’m grateful for America’s love of sports, a love I share as a major fan of baseball and basketball. Sports have become ingrained in our society as a means of activity for personal health and as an educational tool to teach moral values such as sportsmanship, discipline and teamwork. Even more significant, athletes are second only to parents as role models for kids. While that places a lot of pressure on athletes, some of whom are still very young themselves, many others have stepped up to accept that responsibility.

Athletes like Stephen Curry are second only to parents as role models for kids in America. Photograph: Nathaniel S Butler/NBAE/Getty Images

At the same time we’re increasingly embracing sports, the last few years have produced a rising anti-intellectualism, starting with facts, science and logic. Anti-vaxxers, climate change deniers, even flat-earthers are on the rise. Part of the reason for this is the promotion of fuzzy thinking as a positive political statement. All those people who were told in school that their opinions lack any meaningful support and are filled with logical fallacies can now band together in shared ignorance masquerading as conservative ethos. They get to thumb their noses at the “elite” thinkers.

President Trump is the figurehead of celebrating irrational thinking as a patriotic act. He’s the rabble rouser in the saloon whipping the mob into a lynching frenzy. Every time there’s a snow storm, he comments about this being proof that there is no global warming. And he keeps doing this despite the scientific experts explaining that there is a vast difference between weather and climate. Just as his explanations about “clean coal” show a fundamental lack of understanding about what that even means. And there’s his absolution of the crimes of Russia’s Vladimir Putin, North Korea’s Kim Jong-un and Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman, despite the evidence put forth by his own intelligence experts. This kind of convoluted thinking has led to the dismantling of EPA protections, attacks on voter access and open political corruption without consequences. The lesson for our children: ignore facts and evidence if it disagrees with what benefits you personally. Even if it means everyone else will suffer. Ironically, that’s the opposite lesson that sports teach about sacrificing for the good of the team.

That’s the philosophy of the anti-vaxxers, who have justified their silliness through junk science and discredited physicians. Suddenly, they know more than the scientists who have been researching it for years, more than the statistics that show measles having been nearly wiped out until they started allowing it to spread. Measles is now on the rise, killing people across the world. Doctors claim that if the current trend continues, 2019 could produce the worst measles outbreak in the US in decades. What is their criteria for when to reject or embrace doctors? Are they leaning over the surgeon’s shoulders during brain surgery on loved ones advising what to do next?

We should have a healthy attitude of skepticism regarding experts because they have not always been proven right. But skepticism isn’t the same as believing nutty conspiracy theories. Skepticism means requiring evidence through scientific method (something that ushered in the Enlightenment). Instead, we even have what psychologists call the Dunning-Kruger Effect, in which people of low knowledge have the illusion that their opinions are superior to those of experts. They like to tout their innate “common sense”, which throughout history has been proven to be the worst kind of sense. Worse, because they eschew logic, politicians have targeted them with a constant barrage of emotional gobbledygook reasoning to pump up their egos without challenging their minds. They are led around by the nose, voting how they are told but thinking they are independent.

A culture can admire both the physical and intellectual. The achievements of athletes inspire us to push the boundaries of what our bodies are capable of. We can run faster, jump higher, endure more punishment than we thought. That makes us all realize we have untapped potential. Equally, we can be inspired by the insights of our poets, the vision of our philosophers, the medical breakthroughs of our scientists. Both should make us strive to be greater: stronger and smarter. The problem is that when the average person sees an athlete perform an amazing feat, there’s the lurking belief that, if they really wanted to train and practice, they could do it, too. It is within their grasp. But with intellectual feats, some people see that as beyond their understanding and therefore beyond their reach. Rather than strive, they resent. It’s easier to look up baseball stats than read an article on melting ice caps. Plus, there’s an implied pressure to the latter: if I accept that something is wrong, am I not obligated to do something about it? It’s easier to deny, deny, deny. Like those “common sense” citizens who loudly decried the existence of germs, the benefits of penicillin, or the evidence of DNA, such anti-intellectualism leads to sickness, death and the hobbling of a society’s progress.

Intellectuals don’t help their cause when they are dismissive of pop culture and sports, by demeaning their great achievements. Neither high culture nor pop culture are a measure of intelligence, just of past exposure. Any attempt to use either as a means to imply superiority demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of what art strives to do: bring us closer together by showing that we are all equal in our needs to love, be loved, and strive to be better tomorrow than we are today. We accomplish this by understanding that the elegant idea is as uplifting as the slam dunk. And that a triple play is as graceful as a balletic arabesque. To disparage either the athlete or the intellect indicates someone not worthy of either.

Serena Williams wants to know why she’s drug-tested more than other athletes

“Just test everyone equally,” the seven-time Wimbledon winner said.

Serena Williams is curious why she’s tested for doping far more often than other top tennis players.

The star athlete took questions from media during a press conference on Sunday to discuss her upcoming match against the Netherlands’ Arantxa Rus at the Wimbledon tournament in London. One reporter asked her to comment on a recent Deadspin article that revealed Williams is tested for doping much more often than other male or female players.

“I never knew that I was tested so much more than everyone else,” the seven-time Wimbledon champion said. “Until I read that article I didn’t realize it was such a discrepancy with me as well as against the other players that they listed, at least the American players — both male and female.”

Deadspin’s report last week said Williams has been tested five times this year ― more than double the number of tests for other top American women’s tennis players.

“It would be impossible for me to not feel some kind of way about that,” said Williams, 36. “I just found it quite interesting.”

The Deadspin article recounted a controversy in which Williams missed a recent drug test. Williams said Sunday that the tester showed up 12 hours earlier than the time they had agreed upon, and she wasn’t able to get to the meeting in time.

And...... just like that anti doping is here ....again... second time this week. proud to participate to keep the sport clean. Even if they do test me at my current ranking of 454 in the world. Two times every week #BeingSerena

— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) May 21, 2018

Williams said it was “a little frustrating” that she received a “missed test” designation because the tester showed up unannounced.

According to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency guidelines, athletes are required to let the agency know of their whereabouts for a one-hour period of the athlete’s choosing every day, even when not competing. An athlete will receive a “missed test” rating for unavailability during the window.

Drug testers can make unannounced visits outside of that one-hour window, but if the athlete is not available they will not receive a “missed test” designation. Each athlete gets three “missed tests” before they receive a doping rule violation.

“How is it I’m getting tested five times? I’m OK with that. Literally verbatim I said: ‘I’m going with that, as long as everyone is being treated equally. That’s all I care about,’” she added.

“Tennis has given me so much. It’s such an amazing sport. I feel like equality, that’s all I’ve been preaching, it’s all about equality,” Williams continued. “If that’s testing everyone five times, let’s do it. Let’s be a part of it. It’s just about being equal and not centering one person out. Just due to the numbers, it looks like I’m being pushed out. Just test everyone equally.”

A spokeswoman for Williams told Deadspin earlier that the testing was “invasive and targeted.”

“Over her 23-year career in tennis, Serena Williams has never tested positive for any illegal substance despite being tested significantly more than other professional tennis players, both male and female – in fact, four times more frequently than her peers,” the statement reads.

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency “may target test athletes as USADA deems appropriate,” spokesman Brad Horn told Deadspin. “We test only in accordance with international standards and would never conduct testing in an unfair way. We are always available to discuss this with athletes, if they have concerns.” 

(Source: HuffPo)

Why Roger Federer has signed deal with new sponsor Uniqlo and is no longer wearing Nike

On Monday Federer appeared on Centre Court wearing a brand new Uniqlo strip, thus ending his 10-year partnership with Nike

Roger Federer’s career-long association with Nike has come to an end, as the reigning Wimbledon champion walked out onto Centre Court today wearing a new Uniqlo branded outfit.

On Monday Federer appeared for his first round match against Dušan Lajović wearing a brand new Uniqlo strip, thus ending his 10-year partnership with Nike which was said to have been worth $10m (about £7.5m) a year.

The Nike swoosh that adorns his characteristic bandana was gone, as was the elaborate RF logo that is usually stitched into his jacket and bag.

Federer is now unable to use the design as it is owned by the American apparel and equipment company, although that didn’t stop thousands of his fans from sporting the design around the All England Club.

“So the RF logo is with Nike at the moment, but it will come to me at some point,” Federer explained after his straightforward 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 win. “I hope rather sooner than later, that Nike can be nice and helpful in the process to bring it over to me. It's also something that was very important for me, for the fans really.

“Look, it's the process. But the good news is that it will come with me at one point. They are my initials. They are mine. The good thing is it's not theirs forever. In a short period of time, it will come to me.

Federer wearing his new Uniqlo kit (Corbis via Getty Images)

“Obviously we also need to figure out with Uniqlo when at one point we can start selling clothes for the public as well. All this has just gotten underway. We're hopeful the beginning of next year people can also start buying my stuff.

“For the moment, as fast at retailing as they are, as great as they are, it just needs a bit of time.”

Federer did however retain his Nike shoes — the company that has sponsored him during all of his previous record 20 Grand Slam wins — as Uniqlo do not currently manufacture tennis footwear. Uniqlo previously had a deal with Novak Djokovic, with the Serb wearing Asics shoes.

“I was excited to wear Uniqlo today,” Federer added. “I must tell you, it's been a long time coming. I felt very good out there. It's also crucial to play well, so it was helpful.”

Uniqlo meanwhile issued a statement to confirm it had signed the 36-year-old Swiss as a global brand ambassador.

“UNIQLO, the Japanese global apparel retailer, announces today a partnership with Roger Federer, the greatest tennis player of all-time and one of the world's most influential and universally admired people, as its newest Global Brand Ambassador,” it said.

“The new partnership means that Mr Federer will represent UNIQLO at all tennis tournaments throughout the year, starting with The Championships, Wimbledon 2018.”

And while no financial details were revealed, sources close to Federer have reported the new deal will be worth around $30m a year, compared with the $10m dollars a year agreement Federer had with Nike.

Uniqlo also sponsor Japan's number one men's player Kei Nishikori. Nike meanwhile sponsors Federer's long-time rival Rafael Nadal as well as leading women's players Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova.

(Source: The Independent)

Real Madrid won yet another Champions League

Gareth Bale scored one of European football's great goals to help Real Madrid overcome Liverpool and win their third successive Champions League title as goalkeeper Loris Karius suffered a personal nightmare.

Bale made his mark on another Champions League final with a magnificent overhead kick to put Real 2-1 up after 64 minutes.

Liverpool had already suffered the devastating blow of losing top scorer Mohamed Salah midway through the first half - with a shoulder injury sustained in a challenge with Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos - when calamity struck for Karius.

Gareth Bale is the first player ever to come on as a substitute and score
 twice in a European Cup/Champions League final

Six minutes after half-time, the German inexplicably threw the ball against Karim Benzema, who was not even challenging with urgency, and watched in horror as the ball rolled behind him into the net.

Liverpool recovered from the shock to equalise through Sadio Mane before Bale stepped off the bench to score his wonder goal.

There was to be no comeback from Liverpool this time and Karius's misery was complete when he fumbled Bale's hopeful 30-yard shot behind him to seal Real's win.

It sealed Real's record 13th win in this competition, and their fourth in five seasons to give coach Zinedine Zidane this third triumph in three years.

For Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, it was disappointment again - he lost his third successive final since arriving at Anfield, having suffered defeats in the League Cup and Europa League finals of 2016.

Real Madrid have become the first team to win the European Cup/Champions
League in three successive seasons since Bayern Munich between 1974 and 1976.

Calamity for hapless Karius
When the story of this Champions League final is told from a Liverpool perspective, it will be the tale of Karius' nightmare alongside that of Salah's injury.

The 24-year-old German has been shown huge faith by Klopp, who brought him in from Mainz and made him first choice ahead of Simon Mignolet.

He has never fully convinced and on this, the biggest night in Liverpool's recent history, he had the sort of night to leave you wondering how he will rebuild his Anfield career.

Loris Karius made more errors leading to goals in the final against Real Madrid (two)
than he had in his previous 32 competitive appearances for Liverpool

Karius inexplicably threw a clearance against Benzema for Real Madrid's opener before fumbling Bale's speculative, long-range effort into the net to snuff out any hopes of a comeback.

The keeper lay flat on the turf at the final whistle, being consoled by Real Madrid's players before apologising tearfully in front of Liverpool's fans.

Klopp clearly rates Karius but there are too many holes in his technique. That, along with his temperament, must be questioned after a complete horror show here in Kiev.

Salah setback shifted the balance of power
The whole emphasis of the final shifted as Salah slumped to the turf for a second time after realising he could not carry on with the shoulder injury sustained in the tangle with Ramos.

Ronaldo, who went off early in the Euro 2016 final with a knee injury,
comforted Salah when he was substituted

Liverpool had started well and Real's deep defending hinted at the apprehension they were felt faced with the attacking trio of Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane.

As Salah left the pitch, inconsolable and in tears, even Liverpool's fans were temporarily hushed and it was clear Real had suddenly been given fresh impetus.

Liverpool, with the magnificent Mane leading the fight, showed commendable heart but they had been robbed of their world-class talisman who, before his substitution, had scored 33% of their goals in all competitions.

It will be the great unknown as to what might have happened had Salah stayed on but there is no question his departure was a savage blow to Liverpool and a lift for Real Madrid.

Bale bounces back
Bale's Real Madrid future has been under constant scrutiny this season - a quirk at a club that lives by its own rules.

The Welshman did not even make the starting line-up here and only emerged just after the hour - but within two minutes he scored one of the great Champions League goals, an overhead kick that was a triumph of athleticism and technique, and begged the question as to how Real could even contemplate life without him.

Gareth Bale scored just two minutes and two seconds after coming off the bench.
It was the second-fastest by a substitute in a Champions League final, after
Lars Ricken for Borussia Dortmund against Juventus in 1997.

As for Bale's second goal, make no mistake - when he took on that long-range shot, he would have been street-smart enough to know Karius was living on his nerves after his earlier error.

Bale delivered a reminder, if it were needed that he remains a world-class player.

It may just have been an expensive night for suitors such as Manchester United as his display here will have added millions to any potential transfer fee.

When asked about his future after the game, Bale told BT Sport: "I need to be playing week in, week out and that has not happened this season.

"I had an injury five, six weeks in but have been fit ever since. I have to sit down with my agent in the summer and discuss it."

Zidane the history man
Zinedine Zidane has joined Liverpool's Bob Paisley and his Real Madrid predecessor Carlo Ancelotti in the elite ranks of managers to win this tournament three times - but added extra gloss by becoming the first to win it in three successive seasons.

Bob Paisley, Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane (left to right) are
the only managers to win the European Cup/Champions League three times

Zidane has often been damned with faint praise about his abilities and record, despite his Champions League invincibility, by those who claim he simply keeps an outstanding team on track but he makes a nonsense of that with his tactical approach, handling of world-class players (and world-class egos) and a very happy knack of making decisive substitutions.

Three Champions League wins in three seasons ends all argument about his greatness as a coach. He is in charge of a team who know how to get the job done.

Man of the match - Gareth Bale (Real Madrid)

Bale is also only the second British player to score twice in a European
Cup/Champions League final, after Bobby Charlton for Manchester United in 1968

'This team is magnificent' - what they said
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane, speaking to BT Sport: "Great emotions. To lift three Champions League trophies with this club, this team is magnificent. We don't quite realise what we have achieved yet.

"We are going to enjoy the moment. We had a complicated season but to finish with this makes us really happy.

"I have had a little bit of time to think about what this means. This is the status of this club. It is a legendary club, one that has won 13 Champions Leagues and I am happy to be a part of its history too."

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp: "The plan is only to play to win, nothing else, not a lot to say. We started well and played exactly like we wanted to.

"The situation with Sergio Ramos [and Mohamed Salah] looked really bad and it was a shock for the team, we lost the positive momentum and they immediately came up.

"We dropped deep and we could not get to Luka Modric or Toni Kroos. We had to run and work, we did that and half-time came. What can I say about the goals? We scored one, they scored three."

A first in 42 years - the stats

• English teams have suffered a defeat in their past seven UEFA club competition finals against Spanish opposition (four Champions League finals and three UEFA Cup/Europa League finals).
• Jurgen Klopp has lost six of his seven major finals as manager, only winning the DFB-Pokal with Borussia Dortmund in 2012.
• Real Madrid started with the same XI as in the 2016-17 Champions League final; the first time a team has started with the same 11 players in different European Cup/Champions League finals (excluding replays).
• Karim Benzema has scored four goals against Liverpool in the Champions League; no player has managed more (also four for Didier Drogba).
• Liverpool became the first team in history to see three players score 10-plus goals in a single Champions League season (Salah 10, Firmino 10, Mane 10).
• Sadio Mane is only the fourth African player to score in a European Cup/Champions League final and the first since Didier Drogba for Chelsea v Bayern Munich in 2012. The other two were by Samuel Eto'o for Barcelona in both 2009 and 2006, and Rabah Madjer for Porto in 1987.
• Mane became the third Liverpool player to score 20-plus goals in all competitions this season (Salah 44 goals and Firmino 27 goals); the last time that three players hit the 20-goal mark for the club in a single campagn was 1981-82 (Dalglish, McDermott and Rush).

(Source: BBC)

Why the French love horses

In France, riding is the top outdoor sport, one enjoyed, according to the French Equestrian Federation, by two million men, women, and children, writes Chantel Tattoli  in the Paris Review. Read on: 

Years ago, the German photographer Jaroslav Poncar told me about running into the legendary French anthropologist Dr. Michel Peissel in Himalaya in the seventies. “People were saying, ‘Peissel is coming! It’s Peissel.’ So I went out to meet them—Peissel and his nice blonde companion,” Poncar added with a grin. Later, in Paris, Peissel and Poncar ended up living on the same street, and Peissel would hang around Poncar’s studio. He was, Poncar said, “a braggart.”

Peissel would do things like forget to mention the two mathematicians he met during his seminal travels on the steppes—as if he were the only European to venture so far afield. “And! Michel did not discover that horse,” Poncar had sniffed, referring to an archaic Tibetan breed called the Nangchen, which Peissel is credited with bringing to light.

“But the French love horses,” Poncar offered by way of explanation. I didn’t quite absorb his meaning. What he seemed to suggest was that Peissel could be forgiven because the French simply love horses so much. Recently, I attended the ninth edition of the equestrian competition Saut Hermès in Paris. There, people again and again recounted this fact: “The French love horses.”

In France, riding is the top outdoor sport, one enjoyed, according to the French Equestrian Federation, by two million men, women, and children. I had heard there are some five thousand equestrian centers here, a remarkable figure, but when I reached the federation to confirm, I was told, “In fact, we have 9,351.” A preponderance of France’s competitive horsemen and horsewomen came out of the pony clubs—France hosts more international equestrian competitions than any other nation and is home to Equidia, Europe’s only television channel dedicated to horse sports. (Not to mention, here in the capital, beyond carousels, all the major parks from the Luxembourg Gardens to Buttes-Chaumont tender pony rides.)

Horse country is up in Normandy. It is where, for example, most of France’s national stud farms, created in 1665 for the benefit of the nation’s cavalry, are located, including le Pin, the very best one, and where Thierry Hermès, a half-French, half-German orphan, went to learn the harness-making trade before founding a workshop in 1837 in the Grands Boulevards quarter of Paris.

In its earliest days, the Hermès brand was well known for its saddlery. The luxury leather-goods house, heralded by its orange Pantone, is now popular for the Birkin bag, but Hermès still makes saddles, starting at six grand—for puissance, polo, dressage, or all-purpose—as well as other accoutrements for your horse, including stirrups, ear nets, bits, and brushes. These products are advertised as “doubly bespoke,” crafted for the rider as well as for the ride. Hermès’s partner riders (whom you could—but shouldn’t—call sponsored athletes) consult with a staff veterinary surgeon to develop products that keep all parties happy in the saddle.

Saddles are the only thing still manufactured on-site at the Hermès HQ, on rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, in a small atelier of twenty artisans. On-site, too, is a museum, closed to the public, of horse-related artifacts. Often, these items inspire the designers. There’s a leather-bound volume dating to the early seventeenth century,—which includes life-size illustrations of bridles and horses pulling ornate sleds with bears, ostriches, or mermen for coachmen—that’s influenced more than one scarf print.

The brand DNA is basically equine. Because of this, where the Louis Vuitton Cup and Rolex 24 at Daytona play as naked advertising opportunities, the puissance competition mounted annually by Hermès feels realer.

On the morning of the first day, we took seats in one of the two stadiums that flanked the main arena. It was bedded with damp sand and laid with jumps modeled on the facade of Hermès HQ, a rocking horse, chess knights, horseshoes, orange h’s, Gothic church windows, and flower trellises.

Edwina Tops-Alexander, an athletic blonde from Australia and last year’s titleholder, rode in on a reddish-brown mare with a scarlet ribbon tied in her tail named Lintea Tequila. They placed eleventh, for reasons beyond me. Like watching Olympic ice skating with nil knowledge of the sport, watching showjumping as a novice means you default to the obvious issue of grace. Not all horses who clear jumps are equal—that I could tell. Sometimes their legs looked rickety. Sometimes, in puissance speak, they “jumped clear”: charging and tucking, soaring something fierce through the course, and an announcer would declare, “Oh, parfait! C’est magnifique!” as speakers bleated a James Brown lyric (“So good / so good”).

Around the arena, the Grand Palais was set with an Hermès boutique, a library dedicated to books about horses, a club for the riders, a photo studio, an interactive station where you could mount and learn about the models of saddles, and an outpost of the saddle workshop itself. Marco, one of the artisans, showed off the stencils he uses to pattern the saddles from three types of exquisitely graded French leather. Each saddle takes him four hours to cut out—and another thirty hours of work for the rest of the atelier team to finish. An expert named Juliette demonstrated the EQUIscan, a spidery blue device that measures ninety-eight different points on the horse’s back, and with which she and colleagues travel across Europe, the U.S., Japan, and Australia, fitting the animals for saddles. “We watch them moving too,” she explained. “That’s very important.”

During the halftime for the show, the French horse trainer Bartabas, who is behind the popular Théâtre Équestre Zingaro, released some seventy Welsh ponies and one kicking donkey into the arena. They were unsaddled and unbridled. Their handlers kept to the sidelines, communicating only with rattles and whistles while the glass-domed exhibition hall swelled under the effect of classical music. It is hard not to like the sight of a horse herd.

Semiloose, swirling sheens of muscle under coats the colors of nuts and river stones: the horses recalled the walls of Chauvet and Lascaux Caves, upon which ancients sketched and painted their portraits. (Yesterday, in Paris, I trotted by an entire window display of books about these horse-art grottos.) As John Jeremiah Sullivan notes in Blood Horses, historic zoologists who catalogued the artwork in prehistoric caves found that “horses outnumbered every other group of animals.” Sullivan adds, “Our awe in their presence—who has not felt it, just standing across the fence from one?—is as old as anything we can call ours.”

Afterward, I went to browse the pop-up library. Among the titles were Le carrousel du roi-soleil, about the two days of horseplay that Louis XIV organized at Tuileries Palace to celebrate the birth of his first son, and Western Camarguais, on the very first Westerns, filmed in France’s rugged marshlands south of Arles. (“Bouillabaisse Westerns,” those silent movies were dubbed.)

The Rhône delta there is inhabited by the Camargues, a wild stock of gray-white horse bred by the Phoenicians and Romans, who brought them over, and recruited by Napoléon Bonaparte, who lived to ride as much as to rule. The emperor restored the national breeders that were shut down after the Revolution and boosted the cavalry into a fantastic force; usually, he is depicted atop a silvery mount called Marengo. (The warhorse was captured at Waterloo and brought to England, where he eventually died of advanced age; last year, his skeleton was put on exhibit at London’s National Army Museum.)

If you ask the French why they so love horses, many respond, “Because of Napoléon.” An architect—who self-identified as “end-of-race aristocracy”—explained how horse culture further embodies apparat: formality, prestige, pomp. A tired colleague answered, only half-joking, “Because we love lasagna!” She was referencing the 2013 scandal when horsemeat was found in ready-made beef lasagna sold in the UK. The revelation dominated headlines in Europe, and in a fun turn of national pride, French consumption of the horse steaks and horse sausages (still sold at boucherie counters) rose by fifteen percent.

I picked a digestion of Albert Lamorisse’s Palme d’Or-winning, Camargue-starring short film Crin Blanc (1953), handed back to me by the clerk in a signature orange shopping bag. If any one cultural product points up the French zoolatry, it’s Crin Blanc. White Mane, as the name translates, is the Gauls’ equivalent of The Black Stallion (1979). In it, a herd leader—a white stallion—is collared by ranchers. White Mane escapes them only to be approached by the young grandson of a fisherman, whom he nearly drowns, then befriends, and ultimately chooses over his herd. A horse and a human are better together.

No more grid girls in Formula 1: Sport needs women to compete and not just act as accessories

The problem with the concept of ‘grid/ring/walk-on girls’ is not with independent women choosing their occupation, but with the blatant objectification, writes Zenia D'Cunha in Scroll. Read on: 

“This custom… is clearly at odds with modern day societal norms,” read the statement by Formula 1 announcing the end of the long-standing practice of grid girls during races.

Lewis Hamilton sprays champagne at a grid girl as he celebrates his victory on the podium after the Chinese GP in 2015. | Carlos Barria / Reuters

The move to remove grid girls from the 2018 season, as most things do, met with extremely polarising views on social media. While many credited Liberty Media for taking the progressive step, some, including several grid girls themselves, have slammed it as “political correctness to please a minority”, “fake feminism” and even as “taking independence and employment opportunities away from women.”

While it would have been naïve to imagine that such a move would be universally accepted, the intensity and bitterness in criticism of the move and the feminist movement is baffling, and a little annoying given it is 2018.

But let’s keep that emotion aside for moment and say it straight: The problem with the concept of “grid/podium/ring/walk-on girls” is not with independent women choosing their occupation, but with the blatant objectification and even sexualisation, of women in the job.

Using women as “decorative” items in sport, a field where gender imbalance is a daily concern on several levels, is problematic and sets a wrong precedent for those participating and watching.

Thank you @F1 for deciding to stop using grid girls. Another sport making a clear choice about what they want to stand for:
“We feel this custom does not resonate with our brand values and clearly is at odds with modern day societal norms.” https://t.co/Rrwxf5VcjY

— Women's Sport Trust (@WomenSportTrust) January 31, 2018

On most days, the grid girls are only required to hold driver names, position boards or umbrellas on track, dressed with clothes that have either sponsor names or native to the country. But their duties also include lining up the way to the podium, and often being part of the presentation ceremony and have champagne sprayed on you by the winners. In certain cycling races, it goes on further, such as kissing the winners cheeks or posing with them for suggestive photos.

‘Good-looking’, a job description
Among those criticising the move to abolish grid girls is Ex-Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, to very little surprise.

“The country at the moment is getting a bit prudish. I can’t see how a good-looking girl standing with a driver and a number in front of a Formula One car can be offensive to anybody. They are all nicely dressed I would think people like Rolex and Heineken wouldn’t have girls there who weren’t presentable,” he was quoted as saying by The Sun.

Unwittingly, Ecclestone has answered the question himself in his statement, with the emphasis being on good-looking and then the comparison to luxury brands.

Are the drivers racing in those fancy, expensive cars or the engineers fixing them expected to look good or presentable? But here the job description itself included being “good-looking”, reducing the worth of the person to merely a physical attribute.

A practise across sports
This practise is, sadly, seen is different ways across different sports. Many international-level competitions have women dressed in a certain way doing odd-jobs that have little bearing on the actual outcome of the result.

In combat sport events, there are ring girls who hold the placard announcing which round is going on, in some cycling races, they are there at the trophy presentation, and in darts, to accompany a player to their spot.

In fact, at most sporting events, it is not uncommon to see women as hosts, on-field announcers, tray bearers at prize distribution, etc, who are more often than not adhering the conventional standards of beauty and fashion, dressed and paraded

Recently, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), after talks with broadcasters, ended the long-standing practice of walk-on girls. This was met by backlash from certain quarters, and prompted a widely-received online petition to reinstate the walk-on girls, getting support from players themselves.

The recent draw ceremony of the ATP Next Gen Finals involved the players choosing females models to reveal their group. What was the purpose? To spice up the show, and use women as bowls to draw out names. That is textbook objectification.

Why are women being used as accessories in male sport? And why do are they almost always scantily clad and doing something mundane? More importantly, why is it still so widely accepted as tradition?

Some would say that grid girls are essentially cheerleaders, which are the norm in most sports and even have organised events and teams. Needless to say, majority of the cheerleaders are women. However, it should be noted but being a cheerleader requires the person to do something –a dance routine, a coordinated move. But the main job of a grid girl is to carry name cards and such to the field – essentially a decorative accessory, something nice to look at.

Much-needed move
With growing gender awareness and representation in the world we live today, using women to entertain the crowd and onlookers is plain ridiculous. Whether this comes in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement or is a product of a more sensitive world, fact is that this is a much-needed move.

This thought was best summed up by Women’s Sports Test – a London-based charity which works towards “raising the visibility and increasing the impact of women’s sport” – Women in the sporting environment should be judged by their sports appeal and not sex appeal.

A thought echoed by former Indian F1 driver Karun Chandok as well, who saw this is an opportunity to invest into getting more female drivers into the sport.

Would be a good idea to use the money saved from paying the ‘grid girls’ to make a small investment in getting more female drivers into the sport... https://t.co/dS8B2WSrQg

— Karun Chandhok (@karunchandhok) January 31, 2018

Coming to the argument of freedom of choice, yes, these women are at a liberty to be whoever they want and yes, it is a form of employment. Many of them are models and will have many other avenues to continue in this line of work. But it won’t be on TV and the grounds, where thousands of fans of all ages are watching how the athletes behave.

Sport, and its organisations, have to be more than a commercial venture. A part of people’s culture, they are accountable to the society.

And as much as this is about the image of women, this is also about sport, that is played, followed, managed by both genders.

Sport is enthralling and entertaining, even without the theatrics and fancily dressed woman. The thrill of a dangerous overtake on the first corner won’t be diminished by the absence of a girl carrying a driver name, nor will an action-packed fight be any lesser if a lady didn’t parade the number of the round on a placard.

Sport doesn’t need grid or podium or walk-on girls to be more watchable. But sports definitely need more focus and balance for the watching female audience, the segment promoters often forget.

As workouts intensify, a harmful side effect grows more common

Three years ago, Christina D’Ambrosio went to her first spin class, pedaling fast on a stationary bike to the rhythms of popular music as an instructor shouted motivation.

But Ms. D’Ambrosio, who exercises regularly, found the hourlong class was harder than she anticipated. By the end her legs were sore and wobbly.

“I thought my body just wasn’t used to that kind of muscle ache because it was my first class,” said Ms. D’Ambrosio, a kindergarten teacher from Pleasantville, N.Y.

Over the next two days, her legs throbbed with excruciating pain, her urine turned a dark shade of brown, and she felt nauseated. Eventually she went to a hospital, where she was told she had rhabdomyolysis, a rare but life-threatening condition often caused by extreme exercise. It occurs when overworked muscles begin to die and leak their contents into the bloodstream, straining the kidneys and causing severe pain.

After a two-week hospital stay, Ms. D’Ambrosio was released and has since recovered. Her case was highlighted in April in The American Journal of Medicine along with two other cases of spinning-induced rhabdomyolysis treated by the same doctors.

The report noted that at least 46 other cases of people developing the condition after a spin class were documented in the medical literature, 42 of them in people taking their first class. The report cautioned that the condition was very rare, and not a reason to avoid high-intensity exercise. But the authors said their goal was to raise public awareness so that people who begin a tough new workout program will ease into it to lower their risk of injury.

“I would never discourage exercise, ever,” said Alan Coffino, the chairman of medicine at Northern Westchester Hospital and a co-author of the new study. “Spin class is a great exercise. But it’s not an activity where you start off at full speed. And it’s important for the public to realize this and for trainers to realize this.”

Rhabdo, as many experts call it, has long been documented among soldiers, firefighters and others whose professions can be physically demanding. An Army study in 2012 estimated that about 400 cases of the condition are diagnosed among active-duty soldiers each year. On occasion there have also been large clusters of college athletes hospitalized with it after particularly grueling workouts.

But doctors say they are now seeing more of it among weekend warriors driven in part by the popularity of high-intensity workouts. Spinning in particular has gained a huge following; large chains like FlyWheel, SoulCycle and others report millions of rides and tens of millions in annual sales. Studies show that high-intensity exercise offers myriad health benefits, but for a small subset of people, many of them beginners, rhabdo can crop up and quickly turn ugly.

In 2014, doctors at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center published a report on two patients who arrived at the emergency room with rhabdo shortly after their first spin class. One was a 24-year-old woman hobbled by pain, her legs swollen and feeling “as tight as drums.” She was rushed to surgery, where doctors sliced her thighs open to relieve a dangerous buildup of pressure.

Another study found that between 2010 and 2014, there were 29 emergency room visits for exercise-induced rhabdo at NewYork-Presbyterian alone. Weight lifting, CrossFit, running and P90X were the reasons for some visits. But the most common one was spinning. Dr. Todd S. Cutler, an internist at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian and lead author of the study, said the patients all fit a similar profile.

“These are people who are not unfit,” Dr. Cutler said. “They are being pushed too hard, and they’re not trained to do this, and so they get really bad muscle trauma.”

There is some evidence that certain medications, including statins, stimulants and antipsychotic drugs, as well as genetic susceptibilities may contribute to the condition, said Patricia Deuster, a professor of military and emergency medicine at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.

But in general it occurs when people simply do not give their muscles time to adjust to an aggressive new exercise, experts say. A little damage to muscles is a good thing because that stimulates them to grow and adapt to stress. But when the stress is too great, fibers are destroyed. When that happens they break apart and release compounds that can be harmful to the liver, such as a protein called myoglobin, which causes brown or tea-colored urine, a classic symptom of rhabdo.

While almost any intense activity can cause rhabdo, it almost always strikes people who are doing something new. That is why people should always progress from light to moderate and then vigorous intensity when doing a new exercise, said Eric Rawson, chair of the department of health, nutrition and exercise science at Messiah College in Pennsylvania.

“You can be fit, and I can come up with a workout that you are unaccustomed to, and that could be what causes rhabdo,” he said.

Even elite athletes are not immune. Amy Purdy, a bronze-medalist Paralympic snowboarder and “Dancing With the Stars” contestant, went to an exercise class last year after taking three weeks off from her training regimen. The class consisted of a circuit of challenging exercises, she said, including dozens of pull-ups.

“About halfway through I realized my arms were completely fatigued,” she said.

The next morning she could not straighten her left arm. Then it became sore, stiff and swollen, prompting her to go to a hospital. She remained there for eight days as doctors flushed her kidneys with water, she said. She was diagnosed with rhabdo, and when she wrote about the experience on social media she was inundated with responses.

“Thousands of people have reached out to me on my Instagram page who have had it as well,” she said. “Almost everyone was fit before, got it from pull-ups and is trying to figure out the way to get back into fitness without risking a recurrence.”

Two things can help you avoid rhabdo, said Joe Cannon, an exercise physiologist. Before starting a new program, do a less intense version of it first. That means riding a stationary bike at a moderate pace before starting a spin class, or doing just one set of a weight lifting exercise rather than multiple sets and repetitions.

But the most important advice is to know your limits: Don’t be afraid to leave a class or to say no to a trainer if you are struggling.

“One thing I’ve noticed when people tell me they’ve gotten rhabdo in the gym is that they gave up their personal power,” said Mr. Cannon, author of “Rhabdo: The Scary Side Effect of Exercise You’ve Never Heard Of.” “They kept doing what the instructor told them to do because they did not want to look weak.”

That was the case for Nancy Weindruch, a communications executive at the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a trade group in Washington. In 2015 Ms. Weindruch, who exercised regularly, attended a spin class with her sister, but was not prepared for the instructor’s fast pace and directions to “push past your limits.”

“It went from zero to 60 very quickly,” she said. “Within minutes I knew that I was in over my head. But I swallowed my pride and kept going.”

Three days later, after unbearable pain in her legs, she was admitted to a hospital with rhabdomyolysis and was kept there for six days. Ms. Weindruch eventually returned to exercise, but now she sticks to activities like walking, yoga and the elliptical machine.

“I never thought that exercise could be dangerous,” she said. “But it can be when your body is not prepared for really intense levels.”

(Source: NYT)

Serena Williams’s pregnant victory reminds us how amazing women’s bodies are

The news that Serena Williams won the Australian Open final while eight weeks pregnant has sent the world into a frenzy. Some evidently still think that women are the fairer sex, the weaker and the less capable of the two genders.

Believe me when I say we are far from fragile.

Williams is not the first elite athlete to compete during a pregnancy, but she is definitely the most prominent, given her recent win, defeating her big sister Venus. Triumphing 6-4, 6-4 in the final, she didn’t drop a single set on her way to lifting the trophy. I’ll repeat that: not a single set.

Now rumoured to be about 20 weeks – about halfway through a normal pregnancy – she will regain her place as world No 1 next week. That place at the top of women’s tennis will be held for her if she returns to competition within 12 months of giving birth, as per the Women’s Tennis Association special ranking rule.

As much as I could pontificate about Williams’s achievements as a supreme athlete, role model and beautiful woman of colour all day, I just want to thank her for reminding us how amazing women’s bodies can be – particularly in an era when we are constantly peppered with examples of how they aren’t good enough, how we should alter them or how they should look.

While in the first trimester, the 35-year-old played tennis at the highest level in sweltering conditions. And as if her physical exertions weren’t enough, she also had to deal with the emotional stress of playing against her big sister.

But as GP Dr Matt Piccaver told me: “In general, physical activity during any stage of life, including pregnancy, is a good idea. Serena Williams is an elite athlete, and has overcome a number of significant health challenges in her career. The human body is an amazing thing, and Serena proves that we are more robust than we think.”

Should she return to the tour and go on to win a grand slam, she will follow in the footsteps of Kim Clijsters, who won the US Open 18 months after giving birth to her daughter.

‘Who can forget the picture of Alysia Montaño running the 800m while 34 weeks pregnant?’ 

Jessica Ennis-Hill, Paula Radcliffe, Katie Chapman and Victoria Azarenka have all returned to compete at the top level in their respective sports after having children. And who can forget the picture of Alysia Montaño running the 800m while 34 weeks pregnant with her daughter?

Obviously every pregnancy is different, as is every woman’s relationship with fertility; but don’t the revelations of the last 24 hours remind you to consider what your body can do?

Like Serena Williams said: “You just have to prove to yourself that you can go out there and be the best that you can be and not prove anything to anyone.”

Maybe we should listen to her and just embrace our strength, our fabulousness and our beauty a bit more, as well as each other’s.

(Source: Guardian)

Andre Agassi: ‘One day your entire way of life ends. It’s a kind of death’

The former world No1 reflects on life after tennis married to another of the sport’s greats, Steffi Graf, and says: ‘If I went back in time I would probably retire sooner’

Eight years ago, in his raw and poignant autobiography, Open, Andre Agassi wrote: “My father yells everything twice, sometimes three times, sometimes 10. Harder, he says, harder. Hit earlier. Damn it Andre, hit earlier, Crowd the ball, crowd the ball. Now he’s crowding me. He’s yelling. It’s not enough to hit everything the dragon fires at me: my father wants me to hit harder and faster than the dragon. He wants me to beat the dragon.”

Andre was seven years old, in 1977, and the dragon was a ball machine his dad, Mike – a former Olympic boxer from Iran – turned into a beast. “Nothing sends my father into a rage like hitting a ball into the net. He foams at the mouth … My arm feels like it’s going to fall off. I want to ask: How much longer, Pops? But I don’t ask. I hit as hard as I can, then slightly harder.”

Andre Agassi responded to his tough tennis education early in life by establishing foundation schools for underprivileged children. Photograph: Mary Altaffer/AP

Forty years on an hour of conversation with Agassi is like little else in sport. The lost boy from Las Vegas is now a venerable educationalist whose eight grand slam titles and happy marriage to Steffi Graf dwarf his previous hatred of tennis and brief brush with crystal meth. But how did his dad, now 86 and described as “loyal” and “passionate” by Agassi, react to his depiction?

“When people didn’t have my nuanced take on him they just represented him as abusive. But my dad was clear. He said: ‘Andre, I know how I’ve lived and I know who I am and who I’m not. If I could do everything all over again I would change only one thing – I wouldn’t let you play tennis.’ I’d pulled the car over when he said: ‘I would only change one thing.’ I said, ‘Wow, why’s that Dad?’ He said: ‘Because I’d make you play baseball or golf so you can do it longer and make more money.’ I got back on the freeway with a chuckle.”

Agassi’s knowing laugh echoes his belief that “you can’t spread who you are without being broken first. Sometimes, when you’ve been broken into pieces, you come back and give much more to people. You can see my scars and they’re key to me making a difference in other lives now. You can’t have any wounds in this game that don’t leave scars. They never quite heal but they make you who you are.”

Agassi is so obviously intelligent it’s tempting to wonder what he might have done if his father had been obsessive about education rather than tennis. “Yeah, but my dad is the reason I’m in education now,” Agassi says. “My lack of education, a lack of choice, had a huge impact. The question always remains: what might you have done? But I don’t have any deep regrets.”

A possible outcome, if his dad had turned the classroom into his battleground, is Agassi would have ended up hating learning and buried himself now in middle-aged games of tennis. Instead he has made a substantial impact on education. He was only 24 years old, wearing a mullet and hot lava pink shorts, when he started his first education foundation for underprivileged children in Vegas. In 2001, he opened a school which became an educational model in Clark County.

“That school is still thriving and our endowment allows it to live in perpetuity,” Agassi says. “I then figured out a way to scale that mission across the country and in the last three and a half years I deployed over $650m nationally to build 79 new schools.”

How many kids has Agassi helped educate? “I’ve got 1,200 kids in my foundation school and they revolve annually. I now have 38,000 kids nationwide revolving. I can’t do the math but the numbers go up pretty quickly.”

He has also launched an online tennis coaching course with Udemy, which chimes with his philosophy that teaching should be available widely. The most interesting facets of the course focus on Agassi’s tennis psychology – and his attempts to help players of different levels understand that improvement cannot always be measured in victory or defeat.

Andre Agassi, aged seven, playing tennis in Las Vegas. Photograph: John Russell/Getty Images

Agassi knows more about winning and losing than most – and his fall from being the world No1 in 1996 contains a significant lesson. “The real tragedy in my decline was happening during my success – it was the disconnect I felt from the game. Despite being good at it I had a deep resentment and even hatred of tennis. That disconnect after getting to No1 was even worse because you believe being the best will fill the void. I felt nothing. Every day is Groundhog Day and what’s the point? I declined in different ways. In some cases it was lack of work. In others it was the self-inflicted damage of drugs. I found many ways to hurt myself.

“But I got to a point where I realised that just because I didn’t choose my life doesn’t mean I can’t take ownership of it. That was the epiphany. But epiphanies don’t change your life. It’s what you do with them that changes your life. That’s when I saw children whose lack of choice was far worse than mine. I found myself feeling pretty blessed but compelled to confront the unconscionable reality of these kids – which is that, without education, there’s no hope, no choice, no breaking the downward spiral. Once I started to focus on that, tennis became a vehicle for me. I started to appreciate it. I learned a lot when trying to get back to No1 as it’s much harder. I realised you had to plan your work and work your plan. That became my mantra.”

Agassi became the world No1 again in 1999 and competed in grand slam tournaments for another seven years. In 2005 he lost the US Open final to Roger Federer while, the following summer, he was defeated in his last match at Wimbledon by Rafael Nadal. Agassi watched his old adversaries play the Australian Open final in January – with Federer winning his 18th slam over five sets.

I hated what the scoreboard doesn’t say. It just tells you if you won or lost
“I don’t think anyone who cares about tennis could have missed that match. I was as neutral as possible because they’ve both given so much and have great stories. Of course seeing Roger win at that age was special. He never ceases to impress me but he’s stopped amazing me. I expect it from him. And Nadal persevered through so much adversity and with people writing him off. I didn’t believe that with the amount of physicality he’s put into his career he’d ever get his game back to that level. He certainly proved me wrong. It was a beautiful match and one of those times you truly wish there wasn’t a loser.”

Did Agassi also wish he could be on court playing Federer or Nadal? “No. You can’t believe you once were at that level – and, even if I could do it, I think of my life now and ask: ‘Why do they do it?’ Steffi said: ‘Can you believe what these guys are still willing to put themselves through?’ It’s remarkable but if I went back in time I would probably retire sooner.”

Surely he misses the intensity? “I miss that the least. That was always the tough part for me. I enjoyed the work that went into making yourself the best you can be but I hated what the scoreboard doesn’t say. It just tells you if you won or lost. But the biggest issue for most athletes is you spend a third of your life not preparing for the next two-thirds. One day your entire way of life comes to an end. It’s a kind of death. You just have to go through it and figure it out. In her own quiet way Steffi feels stronger than me. She’s pretty linear in how she lives. I probably do a little more reminiscing than she does – which says a lot.”

Andre Agassi in action at his final tournament – the 2006 US Open. He lost to Benjamin Becker in the third round. Photograph: Al Bello/Getty Images Sport

So Graf did not mind Serena Williams overtaking her, after they had been locked on 22 slams, by winning the Australian Open? “It has no relevance in her world. The hardest part of Serena chasing down those numbers was respecting the game. Steffi doesn’t want people to feel she doesn’t care about tennis. She cares but she’s so disconnected. Every time she was asked she felt obligated to put importance on it for the sake of tennis and an incredible champion in Serena.”

After Djokovic won the French Open last year, his 12th slam title, it looked like the Serb might challenge Federer’s record. But he has since lost every major, relinquished his No1 ranking to Andy Murray and was defeated again last week by Nick Kyrgios in Indian Wells.

“If it was a physical thing it would be obvious,” Agassi says of Djokovic. “You don’t lose it quickly unless you’re dealing with a significant injury. So there’s got to be something emotional, mental, behind the curtain that only he and his team know. But he’s way too good to not find the solution. He’s also going to find perspective given his history. After clearing the courts of bomb shrapnel to practice I’m sure he understands how cruel and tough life can be.”

Murray also lost early in Indian Wells and, like Djokovic, will miss Miami this week with an injured elbow. “Andy has skills that are rarely outmatched. I was never the best athlete and had to think strategically. But he has so much athleticism he has a tendency to rely on that and make matches harder than they need to be. If you brought down his speed, matches might get easier because he’d have more conviction to go after [opponents]. He’s getting more assertive and that will help because long-term wear and tear is a factor. But Andy would be terribly disappointed if he didn’t win another slam or two. There’s no question he can win more.”

Andre Agassi, in action at the 1990 French Open, is one of only eight men to have won all four grand slam tournaments. Photograph: Dimitri Iundt/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images

Who would Agassi like to coach if he returned to tennis? “I can point to people that would be fun and interesting. To me there’s a gap between what [John] Isner, [Gaël] Monfils and Kyrgios do and what I think they could do. That’s interesting and exciting but if they don’t want to be coached it would be short-lived and painful. I would pay to watch all of those guys play but it’s impossible to say whether I could coach them.”

The idea of Agassi working with Kyrgios is fascinating. Could it be a short-term option? “I would not have any room now with my kids, who are 15 and 13. So the answer is no. I wouldn’t be able to do it because I couldn’t do it the way I would need to do it.”

Has Agassi learned to like tennis? “There’s a deep appreciation for the sport. That’s the best way to put it.”

Agassi pauses when asked if he and his wife sometimes hit a few balls in Vegas – for old time’s sake? “No. It sounds a nice idea but as soon as you hit the first couple of balls you remember you can do this but you’re also reminded of what you can’t do. I just thank God I played the game long enough to enjoy lots of good moments. It gave a lot and it took a lot. I think me and tennis are about even now.”

(Source: Guardian)

Arab Games opening ceremony

With great difficulty, we got tickets for the Arab Games opening ceremony as all the tickets were sold out pretty earlier. The doors of the stadium opened as early as 4 pm to let in the large crowd of people turned up to watch the much-talked about Arab Games opening ceremony. We reached the place at 4.30 pm and there was a huge crowd to enter the stadium.

Khalifa Stadium

For men, there were three counters and Vij and Umer could get inside the stadium within five minutes. And unfortunately, there was only one counter for women and the line was too big. After standing for over 45 minutes, my turn came and the security guy torn my ticket and the lady security told me that I cannot take water bottle inside. I asked her if I can empty my flask and take the flask inside and all she could say was “No, water. No, water.” I asked the security how I could enter the stadium as he had already torn my ticket. He didn’t seem to understand my plight and he said “go back, go back.” Women behind me started pushing me, and with great difficulty I came had to leave the queue to throw the water flask, and since the ticket was already torn, I had to buy the ticket again. At last, after waiting for another 30 minutes, my turn came and I entered the stadium. The rows were still empty and Umer had reserved two seats for me and Vij, as it was first come, first serve basis, and the seats had no numbers.

Surprisingly, we heard people conversing in Kannada and I asked the woman sitting next to me about her whereabouts and she told me that she, from Bangalore, was on a visit to her sister-in-law, who is living in Doha for the past 14 years.

Around 7 pm, the ceremony started and the magnificiently-lit Khalifa Stadium, with a cheering crowd of 40,000, took us to a magical world, thanks to the work of David Atkins Enterprises (DAE). Around 700 performers from across the Gulf treated us with a gripping 90-minute extravaganza that ended with a dazzling fireworks display. Not to forget the fact that DAE had previously produced opening ceremonies of the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand and Shanghai 2010 World Expo; the ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, Doha 2006 Asian Games and Sydney 2000 Olympic Games; and the handover ceremony of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.

David Atkins Enterprises (DAE), which dazzled local and worldwide audiences during the memorable opening and closing ceremonies of the Doha Asian Games five years ago, lived up to its billing in delivering a block buster. In collaboration with the Arab Games Organising Committee (AGOC), it created a story inspired and informed by the stories and images of pre-Islamic and Islamic history. The event looked like as if it was created to acknowledge the heritage of these times, in a time when the very pages of Arabic history are being rewritten.

A 30-minute pre-show featuring performances by Alarda Dance Group and Almuradah Dance Group gave the audience a foretaste of what was to follow. Well-known Egyptian singer Ehab Tawfeeq also entertained the audience with a number of his famous songs. Arab singers Fahad Al Kubaisi and Asala Nasri, radio presenter Nadim Sawalha and actress Abir Issa enthralled us at the ceremony before the participating teams took part in the traditional athletes’ march-past.

At 8 pm, the first part of the programme started. Right after the presentation of video package about Qatar, everybody in the stadium stood up to welcome the Emir. After the countdown, the entire stadium was flooded in light with "Bismillah" written by famous Iraqi calligrapher Sabah Arbili projected on the stadium floor besides the Qatari flag through the LED Audience Net. The technology was the world's first fully-integrated audience LED screen using over 60,000 individual LED pixels installed on audience seats that allowed the spectators to become part of the projection.

Qatari singer Fahad al Kubaisi with SIWAR-JCC Children's Choir led the solemn singing of the Qatari national anthem followed by a recitation of verses from the Holy Quran. The holy scripts were projected on the stadium floor.

Deafening applauses and cheers went up in the air as the spectators welcomed the athletes of the 21 participating nations of UANOC. The parade got under way in a colourful and a truly Arabian fashion. Each group was preceded either by a horseman or a falconer, a placard-bearer and a flag-bearer. Also, legendary athletes from each country accompanied the delegations. The huge Qatari contingent was the last to make its way into the stadium. The parade was followed by a heart-warming rendition of Syrian singer Asalah al Nasri's 'Dream of Champions, a tribute to the athletes of Arab Games 2011.

The second half of the show was a cultural show "Journey to Light", a presentation in four segments and was filled with significant messages and tributes to the Arab heritage. For this programme, the Khalifa Stadium was transformed into a desert.

We gasped in awe at various elements in the show, especially when the Stadium turf was instantly transformed into a moonlit desert a few minutes with the help of modern video projection technology never used before at a sporting event! We watched in amazement as members of two medieval Arab tribes pitched their tents on the sand, engaged in poetry competitions and even fought battles before reconciling their differences and embarking on the road to peace and prosperity.

Together with a cast of more than 3,250 dancers, musicians, athletes, horsemen and falconers, the show was a pageant of performance, costumes, scenic elements and gargantuan props set against an unprecedented display surface that turned both the stadium floor and entire audience bowl into the world’s largest screen. The show narrated the story of two warring tribes and how their conflict was resolved by the central character and heroine of the show named Dignity. The character represented mother, nations and the earth.

The universal theme of 'good' versus 'evil', timely for the Arab world currently in the throes of political upheavals, was illustrated through a classic tale featuring a 3,240-strong cast including 700 Arab performers, an orchestra of 40 and the 2,500 parading athletes.

More than just being a lavish ceremony to highlight Qatar's glory in hosting the first Arab Games held in a Gulf state, the event paid tributes to Arab traditions and history. The ceremony was inspired by the stories and images of both pre-Islamic and Islamic Arab history. Iconic Arab symbols such as the Arabian horses, poets, falcons, camels, the majestic desert and other breath-taking effects were created right at the venue using new technologies.

The technical innovation which played a major role in the opening ceremony marked two world firsts. With 86 projectors video mapping 126,000 cubic metres on the field of play, the show set a world record for the largest stadium projection surface attempted in history. Also, for the first time in stadium entertainment, the 40,000-strong audience was integrated into the display surface to form a giant LED screen made up of 85,000 individual pixels. This extended the display surface by 41,500 square metres to encompass the entire stadium bowl, adding the audience to the vast canvas of visual content.

The central character of the ceremony was “Dignity” who confronted the “monster” of ignorance and discord before eventually destroying it with the “torch of knowledge”, thus driving home the message that eventually, knowledge and wisdom will overcome all conflict. The fact that “Dignity”, the possessor of knowledge, was a woman in itself was of special consequence, especially for the Middle East where their roles are often defined by men and restricted by age-old customs that have become largely irrelevant in modern times.

In another act of symbolism, at the end of the event, a young girl, rather than a well-known athlete, lit the Games cauldron, signifying the fact that the children are the future and that they need to be provided with all they need to equip them for the future. “Go ahead child, light the flame of your bright future,” “Dignity” tells the child before handing over the torch to her.

All the 21 nations took part in the parade, with Jordan trooping in first and hosts Qatar, led by volleyball star Mubarak Eid, rounding off the formalities.

The crowd cheered enthusiastically as the athletes came to the Stadium. Qatar obviously were cheered the loudest, but Egypt, Libya and Tunisia, where recent revolutions toppled unpopular leaders, were not too far behind. Even teams from nations hardly known for their sporting prowess, such as Somalia, Djibouti, Mauritania and the Comoros, were also present in significant numbers.

The event had a simple theme, but it was done very elegantly. We had never seen such a ceremony and it was worth the money they had spent and we had spent on our tickets ;)

Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Emir’s Personal Representative Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani and Emir’s Special Adviser Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Thani and other dignitaries were present at the event.

UANOC and the Qatari flags were unfurled at the Stadium and the athletes and judges took oaths before the Emir declared open the Games. Qatari athlete Hannah Khalifa Al Bader, took the oath on behalf of the athletes and Saoud Hamad Al Qahtani took the oath on behalf of the judges.

The ceremony, attended by 6,000 athletes and officials from 21 participating nations, carried a message of peace and freedom conveyed through the unity of sport and the celebration of Arab culture, ended with a brilliant display of fireworks.  Fahad al Kadasi crooned a song that paid tribute to Arab countries. A spectacular fireworks display brought the grand event to an end even as the eyes of the world turned to Qatar.

The two-week long sporting extravaganza will have over 6,000 athletes from 21 countries participating in 33 disciplines. The notable omission from the list is strife-torn Syria, which has pulled out of the Games.

The Arab Games Organising Committee (AGOC) has selected 4,000 volunteers working across different areas to help deliver a world-class regional sporting event. Qatar, with a few firsts against its name, will add another feature by becoming the first Gulf nation to host the Arab Games, which where were first hosted by Egypt back in 1953. Qatar has already won the rights to host FIFA 2022 World Cup, and it is now bidding to host the 2020 Olympics.

The two-week multi-sport event will enable Qatar to share its unrivalled experience to create a games of Olympic standards for the benefit of all Arab nations and future regional Games. Qatar’s message to the Arab nations is very much clear. Through the Arab Games, it aims to bring together everything that Arab nations share and love, from sports to live music, culture, and arts, featuring events and stunning performances representing different parts of the Arab world to entertain fans of all ages and nationalities.

It is the first time the Arab Games are being held in a Gulf country after Qatar won the hosting rights following a tough competition with Lebanon. The athletes will represent 21 Arab countries following the withdrawal of Syria after the Arab League suspended their membership following the political turmoil in their country. The Arab Games is the biggest sporting event in the Arab world and started in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1953. It was planned to be held every four years, but political problems and financial difficulties made the regional tournament unstable and, in the past 58 years, it was held only 11 times, with the 12th edition now under way in Doha.  Egypt has hosted the Games three times, while Morocco, Lebanon and Syria have all played host twice.

Over the years, Qatar has established a stellar track record of hosting successful, large-scale sporting events with the ultimate aim of introducing a new level of service in the Arab and international sports arenas. Qatar has a blazing trail of hosting successful sporting events such as the Asian Games, IAAF World Indoors, Diamond League, Asian Cup, World Volleyball Championships, and WTA Tour’s season-ending championship. The Arab Games Doha 2011 will feature 29 sports, and 6,000 athletes in one action-packed event.

The Arab Games Doha 2011 coincide with the country’s National Day celebrations on December 18 – an annual reminder of Qatar’s culturally rich past, rapidly evolving present and progressive future – making it an ideal opportunity for visitors to experience Qatar during one of its most of festive times of the year.

Despite recently losing out to London for the hosting rights for the 2017 IAAF World Championships, Qatar has emerged as a serious player in world sporting events. As well as winning the hosting rights to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Doha is also bidding for the 2020 Olympic Games.

History of theArab Games

The Arab Games were the brainchild of Abdul Rahman Hassan Azzam, the first General Secretary of the Arab League (1945-1952). In 1947, Azzam submitted a memorandum to the League, advocating a multi-sport tournament which involved the participation of all Arab countries.

According to Azzam, sport serves as the best way to connect the youth of Arab countries and enable them to build the future of the Arab identity. As a common favourite of young individuals, sports tournaments encourage them to reach out across boundaries, bond with fellow Arabs, and eliminate differences among them.

In the same vein, Azzam announced that the youth of the larger Arab nation is eager to gather all the dispersed Arab sports in an annual tournament which will be held in one of the Arab cities.

From then onwards, the youth of the Arab nations began to look forward to the Arab Games as a means of uniting them on social and spiritual platforms.

However, the Arab Games tournament did not gain official approval until 1953, when Eng. Ahmed El Demerdash Touny, an Egyptian national and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), managed to convince the concerned parties within the Arab League that an Arab Games tournament would be instrumental to the overall success of the Arab identity.

In response to Touny’s proposal, the Arab League agreed on establishing the Arab Games, making Egypt the first country to organise an Arab Games tournament, which was held in the scenic and culturally rich city of Alexandria from July 26 to August 10,1953.

Eight Arab nations and Indonesia competed in the first Arab Games tournament.

Since then, 11 Arab Games tournaments have been held in various Arab cities. The last tournament, which earned widespread praise for its organisation, technical management, and quality of participants, was held in Cairo, Egypt in 2007.

With the growing popularity of successful Arab Games tournaments, passion and interest on the part of sports fans in Arab nations swelled.

The number of participating countries and sports escalated, long before the cultural, social, political, and economic objectives of the Arab nations could be achieved.

From nine participating nations in the first-held Arab Games to 22 this year, the Arab Games have come a long way.

Egypt, with its immense organising and hosting experience with Olympic and African games, has won the most amount of medals at a total of 985, with Morocco and Syria in two in terms of ranking, at 589 and 692 respectively.

The former United Arab Republic – present-day Egypt and Syria – also scored two major victories in 1961 in Casablanca, Morocco and in 1965 in Cairo, Egypt.

In terms of hosting abilities, progress is evident in other participating nations too. In 2004, the tournament in Algiers, Algeria, witnessed several broken records, remarkable numbers of athletes, greater variety of sports, higher numbers of medals awarded, a wider range of sporting facilities, and a massive turnout of fans.

Syria, independently, has won the Arab Games in 1976 and 1992 in its capital, Damascus.

Empirical evidence suggests that host countries, such as Egypt and Syria, have often met victory on their soil. However, the United Arab Republic’s victory in Morocco in 1961 and Egypt’s victory in Lebanon in 1997 were exemplary of success on foreign turf.