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Renault Driver Kubica in Hospital After Rally Crash

By Alan Baldwin

London. Polish Formula One driver Robert Kubica was flown to a hospital on Sunday after a high-speed crash while competing in a rally in Italy, his Renault team said in a statement.

A team spokeswoman said Kubica, Renault’s leading driver and a race winner in Canada in 2008 with his former BMW-Sauber team, was conscious but gave no further details.

The Italian news agency ANSA reported, however, that the 26-year-old had suffered serious injuries with little more than a month to go before the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.

“Lotus Renault GP driver Robert Kubica suffered an accident at high speed this morning while competing in the Ronde di Andora Rally,” the Renault statement said. “The driver was airlifted to Pietra Ligure Hospital, where he is currently undergoing medical checks. His co-driver is fine.”

Renault has Brazilian Bruno Senna and France’s Romain Grosjean as their official third drivers. Senna competed last season for the HRT team while Grosjean started seven races for Renault in 2009.

Neither has ever scored a point in Formula One. Kubica’s race teammate is Russian Vitaly Petrov, who made his debut last season.

ANSA said Kubica was heading to the start of the Ronde di Andora event near Genoa in a Skoda Fabia when the car went off the road and hit a church wall.

The co-driver, Jacub Gerber, got out unhurt while Kubica had to be extracted by firemen.

Kubica, a rally fan who has entered several events in the past, tested the new Lotus-backed Renault last week ahead of the Formula One season, which starts in Bahrain on March 13.

He closed Formula One’s first test session of the season with the fastest time over three days in Valencia, Spain.

The Pole walked away virtually unscathed from a massive crash in Canada in 2007 but still bears the scars of a serious road accident as a passenger in 2003 that left him with titanium bolts in his arm.

Reuters

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com

Schumacher: No Regrets for Scratchy Year Behind Wheel

Berlin - Michael Schumacher insisted on Wednesday that he did not regret returning to Formula One despite a disappointing 2010, finishing ninth for Mercedes behind fellow German Sebastian Vettel in the drivers’ title race.

The seven-time former world champion acknowledged in an interview on his official Web site that the season had been “a big challenge” and that in terms of results “we clearly did not meet our expectations.”

The 41-year-old German continued: “But then, you have to fight for the things you want to achieve, which has always been my credo. Mercedes, the whole team, me — we are working together to build something great.

“I think I have proved over many years that I love challenges and that I am able to handle them. I have not regretted my decision to come back at all.”

Schumacher mustered 72 points, almost half the tally attained by his younger compatriot and teammate Nico Rosberg, and was the target of some scrutiny, which he said he was taking in good spirits.

“I can live with criticism very well, you just have to differentiate it and it can bring you forward as well,” he said.

“What is much more important is that I deeply enjoy building what we are building here at this team and that is always the best base for success because you do not need to question the motivation.

“And please don’t get me wrong here; you don’t question the seriousness either. I can’t wait already to get the new season started.”

Despite his age, the motor racing legend said he was itching for the 2011 season to start.

“Yes, I look forward to some quiet days with my family over Christmas but I also notice that I am going all tingly already thinking about next year,” he said. “We ended the season with a positive feeling and things were starting to come together with a tendency that was clearly positive.

“So, knowing our developments for the new year makes me confident that we can fight for some race victories from our own power. This is a prospect which makes me look forward to competing again.”

Despite his modest showing on his comeback he stated winning the F1 title was still Mercedes’ objective.

“Hey, we are Mercedes! But this is a three-year project, and even if obviously it would be nicer if it worked out sooner, we are talking about competing at the absolute peak of motorsport.

“You cannot just come along, put a new team together and beat everybody. But you can be sure that we are working very hard with all our combined power to achieve our aims.”

Formula 1

Agence France-Presse

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com

Prince Has Final Call On Bahrain GP: F1 Boss

London - Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone will rely on Bahrain’s crown prince to decide whether the season-opening grand prix will have to be canceled because of unrest on the Gulf island.

The March 13 race has been cast into doubt over the last week as protests mounted, with people demanding the ruling monarchy gives up its near-absolute control over key policies and positions.

At least seven people have been killed and hundreds injured in the capital Manama, where the streets are lined with banners publicizing Bahrain’s premier international event.

Ecclestone said a decision on whether to postpone the race was set to be taken by Tuesday by Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, who is also deputy supreme commander of the armed forces.

“If anyone’s going to sort it out he’s the right guy to do it,” Ecclestone told BBC radio on Sunday. “He would decide whether or not it’s safe for us to be there. ... Let’s wait until Tuesday and see if this one’s going to take place before we decide what to do.”

Ecclestone said the race could be moved to later in the season, but said it’s not feasible to move the race to another circuit on short notice.

Meanwhile, the chances of resolving the complex Lotus naming dispute out of court look increasingly bleak, meaning there could be two teams starting the new Formula One season with almost the same name.

Automaker Proton, which owns a controlling stake in Lotus Group and says it alone has the rights to the Lotus name, and aviation tycoon Tony Fernandes have so far failed to agree on an out-of-court settlement.

With the case scheduled to be heard in London’s High Court on March 21, the two Malaysian protagonists had hoped to reach a deal well before then.

But if they cannot, Proton’s Lotus Renault GP team will be lining up on the Bahrain grid — assuming the race goes ahead — along with Fernandes’s Team Lotus, also known as 1MRT.

Syed Zainal Abidin Tahir, Proton’s group managing director, said Fernandes was seeking up to 37 million pounds ($60 million) to give up the famous Lotus name.

Proton offered five million pounds, he said.

AFP, AP

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com

NGO Field Coordinator (Refugee Camp) Job in Kenya

Programme Background:

A leading non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Kenya is seeking to recruit candidates to fill the post of Field Coordinator.

The NGO’s current activities in Kenya are in the sectors of Health/HIV and education in the following provinces: North Eastern, Rift Valley, Nairobi and Western Provinces.

Position: Field Coordinator (Refugee Camp)

Duties and Responsibilities

Overall leader and Manager of the project that includes Health/HIV and Primary education.

Preparing of assessment plans, proposals and budgets for existing and new projects in conjunction with the relevant team and Nairobi office, while ensuring operational, programmatic, administrative, financial and procurement systems/procedures are functional and effective.

Basic requirements

A degree in social or medical sciences with a Masters Degree preferable in public health and minimum 8 years’ experience in a senior project/programme management position in the context of emergency relief and development.

Interested candidates can submit their CV/Resume and cover letter including salary requirements to:

Human Resource Officer,

P. O. Box 67509, 00200,

Nairobi

by 14th March 2011 or email teneyeslimited@gmail.com

Full Job description may be viewed on the website; www.bentleysinter.com

Telephone: 020-2224319/2225841.

Source: http://kenyanjobs.blogspot.com

AMREF IT Officer Job in Nairobi Kenya

AMREF has various job opportunities at its headquarters in Nairobi, country offices in Africa and national offices in Europe and North America.

Position: Information Technology (IT) Officer

Reference Number: CHR/11/02-04

Stationed in Nairobi, and reporting to the Corporate IT Manager, the IT Officer will be responsible for timely and effective designing, maintaining, implementing and securing of quality IT infrastructure to required corporate standards for AMREF Headquarters, country and national offices.

Key Responsibilities

Performing infrastructure/software design/development to ensure compatibility and operational ability with AMREF'S LAN and WAN requirements;

Implementing adequate system security (on a Security and Acceleration server) and hardware (CISCO PIX firewall) for AMREF’s client/server environment and monitor performance;

Providing technical support and trouble-shooting for installed servers, including implementation of disaster recovery plans and prepare standard procedures for monitoring servers, and ensure that they are fully operational;

Participating in the definition, designing, testing and implementation of new IT hardware and software standards for AMREF based on user requirements and in accordance with the strategy and direction. Resolve any Hardware (PCs, Routers, switches, Servers & PABX) Configuration related problems. Test and configure all new equipment, particularly notebooks, desktops, and servers, to ensure compatibility with AMREF requirements and standards;

Undertaking unexpected and regular ICT support visits and on-site follow-ups;

Coordinate the production of Technical Instruction materials for Technical and User Support and ensure the documentation is kept up to date;

Providing comprehensive and effective IT help desk services to staff members;

Supervising equipment preventive maintenance and carry out a regular evaluation of current hardware/software in order to provide a timely replacement schedule or upgrade

Develop staff ICT skills

Qualifications, Experience and Skills

The ideal candidate will have a first degree in IT or related discipline.

S/he should be a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer and Cisco Certified Network Associate with six years working experience in a network environment infrastructure.

In addition, the candidate should have excellent interpersonal, communication, influencing and facilitation skills.

If you would like to join a dynamic team and help bring better health for Africa, please quote reference number (CHR/11/02-04) and send a copy of your CV, remuneration requirements and contact details of three work-related referees, addressed to The Director of Human Resources, AMREF Headquarters by email to jobs@amref.org.

We regret that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

We encourage those interested to send their applications by March 9, 2011.

AMREF is an equal opportunity employer and has a non-smoking environment policy.

Source: http://kenyanjobs.blogspot.com/

Senior Programmer Job Vacancy in Nairobi Kenya

Our client a leading ERP and Retail business software vendor is seeking to employ a Senior Programmer for their offices in Nairobi, Kenya.

Purpose and Scope

The application programmer is responsible for customization of the Retail software and ERP software and its derivatives to the customers' requirements. This is a customer-orientated role.

Responsibilities

Plan, develop, test, and document programming projects.

Evaluate user requests for new or modified programming.

Provide technical consultations to colleagues.

Main point of contact for programming related issues for partners and customers.

Conduct classroom style training for use of the software.

Software support.

Requirements

Degree in Information Technology/Informatics/Software Development.

Good knowledge of C, C++ and Visual Basic programming languages among others.

Good knowledge of RDBMS, ODBC

Knowledge of mobile device programming will be an added advantage.

3-5 years business software programming experience or related.

Fluent English command, both verbal and written.

Good communication skills to work with customers, partners and colleagues internationally.

Eager to learn and take responsibility; organized and self-motivated individual.

Valid Kenyan passport/visa

If you are qualified for the above position, kindly send your application along with an up-to-date CV with telephone contacts for three professional referees to swift.recruitment.recruit@gmail.com including your daily telephone contact.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Source: http://kenyanjobs.blogspot.com

Ancelotti denies Roma rumors

London - English Premier League side Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti said on Friday that he plans to stay at Chelsea despite the team's poor results recently.

Chelsea dropped off the pace in the race for the Premier League title and also crashed out of the FA Cup to Everton, which made the 51-year-old's future and Stamford Bridge in doubt.

Ancelotti has been linked with a move to former club Roma after ex-Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri left the Stadio Olimpico last week.

However, Ancelotti said he remains committed to Chelsea and is focused on finishing the season well with the West London outfit.

"I count on staying where I am," Ancelotti said. "I am still Italian, but I appreciate the English, even if at times their press exaggerates things, like in the case of Rino Gattuso."

"I am thinking about the Champions League and fourth place at the minimum in the Premier League. I have drummed it into the team: think about the final at Wembley. I am working a lot," he said.

Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com