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Unrest forces cancellation of Bahraini opening Grand Prix

AFP - The season-opening Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, due to be staged on March 13, was cancelled on Monday due to the deadly political unrest in the Gulf state, organisers announced.

The widely anticipated move was confirmed in an official statement shortly after reports emerged that F1 teams had decided not to go ahead with a scheduled testing session at the circuit next week.

Bahrain Crown Prince HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa said: "At the present time the country's entire attention is focused on building a new national dialogue for Bahrain.

"Although (F1 rights holder) Bernie Ecclestone had graciously made clear that a decision on the race was entirely Bahrain's to make and was not yet required, we felt it was important for the country to focus on immediate issues of national interest and leave the hosting of Bahrain's Formula 1 race to a later date."

The 2011 season will now get underway with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 27.

No date has been set for a possible rescheduling of the Bahrain race, which was first held in 2004 when Michael Schumacher won, later in the year.

Ecclestone, who has been in constant contact with organisers over the race's fate, gave his reaction.

The F1 chief said: "It is sad that Bahrain has had to withdraw from the race, we wish the whole nation well as they begin to heal their country.

"The hospitality and warmth of the people of Bahrain is a hallmark of the race there, as anyone who has been at a Bahrain Grand Prix will testify. We look forward to being back in Bahrain soon."

Prince Salman in his statement added: "After the events of the past week, our nation's priority is on overcoming tragedy, healing divisions and rediscovering the fabric that draws this country together; reminding the world of the very best that Bahrain is capable of as a nation once again united."

Circuit chairman Zayed Alzayani expressed the hope of restaging the race.

"Bahrain's Grand Prix is a time of celebration and hosting the race is a source of great pride for Bahrain and Bahrainis," he said.

"It is a showcase to the world and we look forward to welcoming the teams and drivers and everyone involved in Formula One back to Bahrain in the very near future.

"I hope that F1 and our friends around the world will understand our decision at this difficult time."

Monday's announcement follows the cancellation of last weekend's GP2 Series race in Bahrain after pro-democracy protests that have led to deadly clashes with police.

The unrest in the small Gulf state of Bahrain is part of a wave of protests that have rippled across North Africa and the Middle East since the revolt that ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January.

There had been unease in the pits over the staging of a race in a country in turmoil, with Red Bull's Mark Webber one of the drivers to voice his reservations.

"When you hear of people losing their lives, this is a tragedy," the Australian told the BBC.

"It's probably not the best time to go there for a sporting event. They have bigger things, bigger priorities."

Source: http://www.france24.com

Marseille and Manchester United share the spoils after a dreary draw

AFP - Manchester United and Marseille shared the spoils, but no goals, as the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie ended in a drab and forgettable 0-0 draw here on Wednesday.

With Marseille fearful of conceding an away goal and United rusty in attack the game was reduced to a war of attrition in which ponderous passing and stout defending were the order of the day.

The game's best chance saw Darren Fletcher draw a smart save from Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda with a low drive and it was one of few highlights on a night when the teams succeeded only in cancelling each other out.

In the absence of a knockout blow in the first leg, a goal for Marseille in the return match on March 15 will put them in a commanding position to reach the last eight for the first time since they won the tournament in 1993.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson conceded that the result left the outcome delicately balanced, though, he said his side had their fate in their own hands.

"This sort of result can be dangerous if you concede a goal at home," said the 69-year-old Scot.

"But its simple because if we win we go through."

Ferguson admitted that he had expected more of his side in terms of attacking potency.

"It was a disappointing game but they (Marseille) were desperate not to concede a goal," he said.

"But I also expected more of us offfensively as we didn't make the most of our chances when we got into offensive positions."

Marseille coach Didier Deschamps was delighted that his team had delivered on his wish not to concede a goal.

"I am very happy with my players because they have done their best tonight as Manchester United showed what a good team they are," said Deschamps, who captained Marseille to the 1993 crown.

"Maybe we will have an opportunity to score in the second leg. It is not a bad result for us but it is a good one for United," he added.

Deschamps side started the game in cautious fashion, allowing United to take the initiative.

The visitors appeared keen to test former United player Gabriel Heinze's ageing legs in the Marseille left-back position and Nani was regularly sought out with searching passes into the space behind the Argentine.

Fletcher's chance arrived in the eighth minute as he tested Mandanda with a skidding effort from the edge of the box, while Souleymane Diawara showed alertness to block from Wayne Rooney.

The good positions that Marseille did manage to adopt were squandered due to a reluctance to shoot at goal, testament perhaps to the absence through injury of in-form striker Andre-Pierre Gignac.

A miscued overhead kick by Brandao was all they could muster in the first 45 minutes, while United's own momentum faded after a bright start.

The hosts enjoyed a more promising spell early in the second period, with Edwin van der Sar called into action by a Brandao header before Andre Ayew thrashed a half-volley across goal and wide from the left-hand side.

The hosts' flurry of attacking endeavour roused the notoriously demanding Stade Velodrome crowd but United -- who conceded just one goal in the group phase -- defended calmly and were not unduly troubled.

A moment of inattention from Rod Fanni gave Dimitar Berbatov a sight of goal at the other end but Diawara intervened smartly to get in the way of the Bulgarian's shot.

Deschamps introduced Mathieu Valbuena, freshly recovered from a knee injury, with 11 minutes to play but the France winger's first touch spoke of weeks on the sidelines as he tamely let the ball roll out of play.

Mandanda saved at Nani's feet to keep the Premier League leaders at bay before the fans' patience was finally rewarded by the final whistle.

Source: http://www.france24.com

Malaysian Riders Set To Dominate Tour Of Malaysia

Johor Bahru - The 47th Tour of Malaysia which starts tomorrow will be the platform for Malaysian riders to show their capability.

Tour of Malaysia 2011 chief operating officer Datuk Naim Mohamed said unlike Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL), the Tour of Malaysia has a class of its own.

"Don't compare Tour of Malaysia with the prestigious LTdL which has a high UCI status. Tour of Malaysia has a 2.2 status to give more opportunity to local riders."

Malaysia's oldest cycling tour has attracted participation of 30 teams, ten more than the previous year.

Naim said it is the highest number of entries since the race was introduced in 1963.

Twelve local teams - the Malaysian national team, two continental teams and ten club teams are vying for honours.

The two continental teams from Malaysia are Le Tua Cycling Team (L2A) and Terengganu Pro Asia Cycling Team (TSG).

TSG team is banking on Anuar Manan and Harrif Salleh. The challenge will come from Suhardi Hassan, Wan Mohamed Wan Mohd Najmee, Sayuti Zahit and Mohd Zamri Salleh.

A lot is also expected from young riders Muhammad Adiq Husainie Othman, Ahmad Fakhrullah Alias, Mohd Shahrul Mat Amin, Amir Mustafa Rosli and Mohd Fakharuddin Daud.

First stage of the 1,011km Tour of Malaysia is from Kota Iskandar to Bandar Penawar, a distance of 162.5km.

In KUALA TERENGGANU, TSG coach Syed Mohd Hussaini Syed Mazlan said national rider Anuar Manan will lead the team of six riders to Tour of Malaysia.

The other members are Mohd Harrif Salleh, Mohd Shahrul Mat Amin, Yusrizal Usoff, Mohammad Saufi Senan and Motoi Nara.

"These riders represented TSG at Tour De Mumbai in India last month," he told Bernama here Monday.

He is confident that the riders especially Anuar will be able to defend his spring jersey won last year.

-- BERNAMA

Source: http://www.bernama.com

Misbun's Silence Complicates Matters - NSC

Kuala Lumpur - The National Sports Council (NSC) is disappointed that men's singles badminton coach Datuk Misbun Sidek has not made any decision whether he still wants to continue training the national squad.

NSC director-general Datuk Zolkples Embong said Misbun's silence complicated the matter.

Misbun resigned abruptly from the post in January believed to be due to dissatisfaction over the new training structure lined up by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM).

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek, BAM president Datuk Seri Mohd Nadzmi Salleh and Zolkples had met Misbun to discuss the impasse soon after the coach announced the resignation.

Zolkples told reporters here that Misbun should cooperate with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to resolve the problem and give priority to the nation.

He said however that the NSC would not make any follow up on the matter as long as it did not affect Misbun's protege Datuk Lee Chong Wei's performance.

He nevertheless hoped that the conflict would see a solution soon.

On the request for allocations by the Sabah Sports Board to improve the facilities at the Ranau Sports Complex, Zolkples said the NSC had to say no to it because the council had no fund for the purpose.

"It's not that we don't want to help but even here, the facilities are far from sufficient," he said, adding that the Ranau Sports Complex was under the jurisdiction of the board and not the NSC.

He also said that the NSC had approved the training programmes for 15 athletes at the sports complex but so far only two of them -- walkers Teoh Boon Lim and Yuan Yufang -- had begun the training there.

-- BERNAMA

Source: http://www.bernama.com

Gattuso hits winner as AC Milan beats Juventus 1-0

Gennaro Gattuso ended a run of more than three years without a goal to give Serie A leader AC Milan a 1-0 win over Juventus on Saturday.

The defensive midfielder struck midway through the second half to decide a dour game in which both sides struggled to break down one another's defense and create chances.

Juventus talked of derailing Milan's progress to the title, but lacked ideas and a cutting edge. Coach Luigi Delneri eventually turned to the team's talisman Alessandro Del Piero, but even he failed to spark any life.

Milan leads the Serie A by eight points from Inter Milan, which could close the gap to five by beating Genoa on Sunday.

The loss was Juventus' seventh in its last 11 games.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com

Arsenal misses chance to pressure United

Arsenal was held to 0-0 by Sunderland to halt its charge for the Premier League title while West Bromwich Albion and West Ham picked up crucial victories at the other end of the table on Saturday.

Sunderland was thankful to Simon Mignolet at the Emirates Stadium, with the goalkeeper producing an inspired display to keep second-place Arsenal at bay in a one-sided match.

League leader Manchester United, which has played the same number of games as the Gunners, can move six points clear at the top if it beats Liverpool away on Sunday.

Third-place Manchester City moved four points behind Arsenal by beating bottom side Wigan 1-0. Midfielder David Silva grabbed the winner when his low shot in the 38th was bundled into his own net by Wigan goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi.

In-form West Ham eased past Stoke 3-0 to climb out of the bottom three, replaced by Birmingham which lost 3-1 at home to relegation rival West Brom.

In the other games, Bolton and Fulham both scored late goals to clinch 3-2 wins over Aston Villa and Blackburn respectively, and Everton rallied to defeat Newcastle 2-1 away.

Substitute Marouane Chamakh's close-range header against the crossbar was the closest Arsenal came to breaking the deadlock on a day of frustration for the London team, which will now travel to Spain ahead of the second leg of its Champions League last-16 match with Barcelona.

With Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie among the players already out for Arsenal, manager Arsene Wenger will be unhappy to see midfielder Jack Wilshere come away nursing a minor ankle injury. The England international should be fit for the Barcelona game, though.

Wenger was more concerned his side wasted the chance to apply heavy pressure on United and was unhappy at what he believed was a wrong decision to disallow Andrey Arshavin's second-half goal for offside.

"I am too disgusted to speak about these things," Wenger said. "These kind of things have too big an impact on the Premier League and we are really disappointed but we have to take it on the chin for the next game."

Mignolet defied Nicklas Bendtner with a superb tip over the bar at the end of the first half, while Samir Nasri saw the Belgian deny him three times to somehow keep the score level.

City was lucky to come away from Eastlands with three points, given the circumstances surrounding Silva's goal and with Wigan wasting a host of clear-cut chances in the second half.

City, in the middle of a busy run of fixtures and playing three days after an FA Cup win over Aston Villa, was lethargic all match.

"In the first half, we played well, but in the second half we were so tired and Wigan played well," City manager Roberto Mancini said.

There was more movement at the foot of the standings as West Ham continued its upward progress with a comfortable victory over Stoke.

Demba Ba, with his fourth goal in three games, Manuel da Costa and Thomas Hitzlsperger were the scorers for the Hammers as they moved a point above Birmingham, which came back down to earth after its 2-1 win over Arsenal in the League Cup final last weekend.

Alex McLeish's side was deservedly beaten by West Brom, which produced an inspired second-half performance to claim a first win since mid-January.

Youssouf Mulumbu, James Morrison and Paul Scharner found the net for the visitors after the break, with Chile midfielder Jean Beausejour scoring Birmingham's consolation.

Those two victories brought Blackburn back into the relegation picture after its defeat at Fulham.

Bobby Zamora scored the winner from the penalty spot, his first goal in more than a year, to see Fulham home and leave Blackburn just two points off the bottom three.

Blackburn twice came from behind to equalize, through goals by Grant Hanley and David Hoilett, after strikes from Fulham winger Damien Duff at Craven Cottage.

Bolton provisionally moved above Liverpool into sixth place thanks to the victory over Villa, whose winger Ashley Young will rue missing a penalty when his team was 2-1 up.

Darren Bent and Marc Albrighton twice put Villa ahead only to be hauled back by a brace from Gary Cahill, before substitute Ivan Klasnic scored the winning goal for Bolton.

Leon Best opened the scoring for Newcastle at St. James' Park but goals by Leon Osman and Phil Jagielka earned Everton the win. (Steve Douglas)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com

Stewart slams Tilke-designed tracks

Sir Jackie Stewart has come out and slammed the German architect, saying 'he has not done much for the spectators'.

Tilke's association with Formula One started way back in 1999 when he designed the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia and since then he has been involved in the design of Bahrain International Circuit, China's Shanghai International Circuit, Istanbul Park Racing Circuit in Turkey, Valencia Street Circuit in Spain and Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit, to name just a few.

Overtaking is notoriously difficult in Bahrain and Valencia and, instead of looking at the design of the circuits, F1's powers that be have opted to alter the cars. In recent years they've introduced KERS and adjustable rear wings in an attempt to boost passing.

However, overtaking remains very difficult at most tracks and Stewart is convinced Tilke's designs are the big problem.

'My belief is that the major reason for the lack of overtaking in modern grand prix racing is down to the modern tracks, nearly all of which have been designed by the same man, the German architect Hermann Tilke,' he wrote in his The Telegraph.

'Yes, braking zones are now much shorter due to highly efficient brakes and aerodynamic downforce, meaning there is a much smaller overtaking zone (in my day it may have been as much as 200m; now it is more like 50m).

'But the new circuits themselves must take their share of the blame. Put simply, they are largely carbon copies of each other and they tend not to penalise mistakes.

'Take the last race of 2010 for example. There were four drivers who could have clinched the championship in Abu Dhabi but Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was the overwhelming favourite.

'He had only to finish fourth to secure his third world crown. It didn't happen because he could not find a way past Vitaly Petrov, a rookie in his first season in F1 and with little or no experience of being under such pressure.'

He added: 'Tilke has been behind almost every new circuit in F1 since the early 1990s. In some respects, he has done a great job, bringing fantastic amenities and luxuries to the sport. But I fear he has not done much for the spectators.

'Unless circuits are modified, spectators and television viewers might have to live with a lack of overtaking for some time.'

Although thankful that racetracks are no longer as dangerous as they used to be, Stewart believes maybe it's 'we have now gone too far the other way'.

'Racetracks have changed since my day and thank God for that. Back then a driver who raced for five years had a two in three chance of being killed.

'Four to six drivers a year lost their lives. It was totally unacceptable and I campaigned hard for improved safety in the sport, which happily came to pass.

'It is nearly 17 years since a life was lost in an F1 car. I can't think of an industry, a sport or a business where that standard of risk management has been achieved.

'But we have now gone too far the other way. Circuits should not permit liberties to be abused without a penalty that can be instantly recognised by spectators or TV viewers. Safety is one thing; abuse of privilege is another.'

Source: http://www.planetf1.com