London begins 100-day countdown
Mokitul Islam
London Olympic organizers stressed the importance of creating a legacy from the Games on April 18. As they started the 100-day countdown by unveiling the event’s motto: ‘Inspire a generation’. The milestone was marked by celebrations around the world as well as the start of three test events to iron out any operational problems before the opening ceremony on July 27, and Olympic bosses insisted London was ready. ‘Expectations are high, and we won’t disappoint,’ said former Olympic gold medalist and London Games chairman Sebastian Coe.
At the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, southwest London, where 20,000 flowers were planted on that day in the shape and colors of the five Olympic rings. They are visible from planes flying into London Heathrow Airport. Some 31 out of 42 sports test events have been completed so far. Olympic fever will spread beyond Britain’s borders as sports fans around the globe join in the countdown.
In the United States, former heavyweight boxing champion Lennox Lewis will lead 100 cyclists and an open-top London double-decker bus on a ride down Miami’s South Beach. Queen Elizabeth II will open the Games at a lavish ceremony at the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, east London, on July 27, preceded by fly-past displays by the Red Arrows, the Royal Air Force’s acrobatics team. London will be the first city in the modern era to host the Olympics three times, having already held them in 1908 and 1948, and hopes the event will give the ailing British economy a much-needed boost. Despite a budget of £9.3 billion ($14.8 billion, 11.2 billion euros), organizers have long accepted that they cannot match the spectacle provided by the 2008 Beijing Olympics. But they hope the opening and closing ceremonies will bring together the country’s most creative minds to produce a celebration of Brutishness.
IPL 5
another season of entertainment
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional league for Twenty20 cricket competition in India. The 2012 Indian Premier League season, abbreviated as IPL 5 or the IPL 2012, is the fifth season of the Indian Premier League, initiated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2007 with the first season played in 2008. This year the opening ceremony was held in the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, the home venue of the reigning champions Chennai Super Kings. The closing ceremony will also be held at the same venue. The tournament began on 4 April and will end on 27 May 2012. This season the number of teams in the league went from ten to nine with the termination of Kochi Tuskers Kerala. The IPL Committee has terminated the IPL franchise Kochi Tuskers Kerala after breaching the BCCI’s terms of conditions. The other nine teams are: Chennai Super Kings, Deccan Chargers, Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians, Pune Warriors India, Rajasthan Royals ,Royal Challengers Bangalore. Sakib Al Hasan is playing for Kolkata Knight Riders and Tamim Iqbal in called for Pune Warriors this time. Sakib played in few matches and he becomes the first Bangladeshi player to be Man of The Match. Nevertheless, Tamim has not been able to make debut in IPL 5. Sachin Tendulkar, who was one of the leading run scorer in last IPL has resigned from the captaincy of Mumbai Indians. Former captain of KKR Sourav Ganguli is now the Captain of Pune Warriors.
El Clasico In Numbers
El Clásico also known as El derbi español, is the name given in football to any match between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. Other than the UEFA Champions League Final, it is the most followed club football match in the world, watched by hundreds of millions of people. Last El Classico match held on April 21st. Real Madrid beat Barcelona by 2-1 goal score. The win, a first for the club in eight league games against Barca, put them seven points clear of their bitter rivals with four matches left and within touching distance of a first La Liga title for the first time in four years. Today El Classico means match between Lionel Messi and Christiano Ronaldo. Here are some of the numbers significant to this game:
9 — The number of victories for Barca coach Pep Guardiola in 14 ‘Clasicos’ since he took over in 2008 (La Liga, King’s Cup, Champions League and Spanish Super Cup).
11 — The number of La Liga matches Barca have won in a row since losing 3-2 at Osasuna on Feb. 11. The streak has helped them trim six points from Real’s lead as Jose Mourinho’s side slipped to draws against Malaga, Villarreal and Valencia.
13 — The number of goals scored by Lionel Messi in 18 ‘Clasicos’. The World Player of the Year is the highest scorer among current members of either squad and is joint-fifth on the all-time list with former Real winger Gento. He has not scored in his last three games against Real.
18 — The number of goals former Real player Alfredo Di Stefano, now the club’s honorary president, scored to top the all-time ‘Clasico’ scorers’ list.
18 — The number of cards the most booked player, former Real and Spain defender Fernando Hierro, collected in official ‘Clasicos’ (17 yellow and one red).
63 — The number of goals Messi has scored in all competitions this season (including the Spanish and European Super Cups and the Club World Cup). He and his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo both have a record 41 in La Liga and Ronaldo has 53 in all competitions.
86 — Barca and Real have both beaten each other 86 times in official matches, with 46 draws.
218 — The number of official ‘Clasicos’ played since the pair’s first encounter in the last four of the Spanish Cup on May 13, 1902, which Barca won 3-1.
367: The number of goals Real have scored in official ‘Clasicos’, 13 more than Barca.
11-1: largest victory of El Classico. Real Madrid beat Barcelona in 1943.
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