Youth Bollywood

Kaka guaranteed to stay at Milan, says club

2007-07-12T02:13:00.000-07:00

ROME, July 2, 2007 (AFP) - AC Milan's delegated administrator Adriano Galliani on Monday poured cold water on rumours that Brazilian star Kaka is heading to Real Madrid.
Galliani said he can guarantee that the talented playmaker, widely regarded the world's best player of the moment, will be plying his trade at the San Siro next season.

"I guarantee to Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon that on July 23 (when AC Milan regroup for pre-season training) Kaka will be present at Milanello (Milan's training headquarters) to begin preparation with his teammates," Galiani told his club's website.

"On August 31 in Monaco he, as European champion, will play the final of the European Super Cup against Sevilla and then he will play in the World Club Championships in Japan in December."

Real have been chasing Kaka for months and Calderon is no stranger to making outrageous promises to fans around the Real presidential elections.

"Milan will not make it easy but we're going to explore every avenue," Calderon said on June 22.

"When a player wants to leave, it's impossible to keep hold of him. I don't know if it's the case with Kaka. Keep watching in the coming days."

Milan have always claimed that Kaka is irreplaceable.

Meanwhile much-maligned Brazilian striker Ronaldo, who has struggled with weight problems in recent years and been derided for it, has enlisted the help of a personal physical trainer in Rio de Janeiro.

Milan have sent their trainer Daniele Tognaccini to Rio to help prepare Ronaldo for the season ahead.

2007-07-10T22:50:00.000-07:00

A love match? Jamie Murray and his perfect partner have a real ball

Jamie Murray and Jelena Jankovic arrived at the Wimbledon Champions' Dinner looking just as much the winning couple as they did on the Centre Court a few hours earlier.
But as they celebrated their mixed doubles victory, there were still a few more questions left unanswered... such as: Are they? Have they? Will they? And will little brother Andy be best man?
Ever since Murray and Jankovic first stepped on to the court together in the first week of the tournament, tennis fans have been indulging in feverish speculation about the exact nature of their relationship.
They have flirted, giggled, held hands and displayed such extraordinary on-court chemistry that some cheekier spectators have been moved to shout out, "Come on you lovebirds."
In the great tradition of these things, Murray and Jankovic have insisted their relationship is entirely professional - a stance which was somewhat marred by Jankovic's promise that she would kiss him all over if they won.
When the 22-year-old Serb talks about how fate brought them together, and how it is something she has always dreamed of - well, one has to ask: Jelena, are we actually talking about tennis here?
As they beat Sweden's Jonas Bjorkman and Australian Alicia Molik 6-4,3-6,6-1, Jankovic and Murray were on top form - and we are not talking about her two-handed backhand.
She said: "When it was a breakpoint I was telling him if he got a good return he would get many kisses, but he kept putting it out.
"What do I have to do to pump him up a little bit to play great tennis?

"Playing with Jamie, it was a great experience. It's really an incredible feeling for me to be there and to hold the trophy. It's something I always dreamed of."

The ever-smiling Jamie Murray and Jelena Jankovic who won this year's Wimbledon mixed-doubles title

Jankovic proffers a cheek - the pair are rumoured to be an item
It even carried on after the match was over, as 21-year-old Murray worked himself up into a heightened state of speculation about what she would wear to the ball.
Jankovic said: "He kept asking me what kind of dress I am going to wear, long or short ... and I had to disappoint him by telling him it is very long!" Judging by their remarks after their victory - Britain's first Wimbledon title for 20 years - the pair have both played their parts to perfection.
Jankovic started off playing hard to get - and Murray being the perfect gentleman.
Their victory, Murray said, was entirely down to her. "She won the match because she kept returning the guy's serve and I couldn't do that. I've got to say thanks to her." The two have struck an instant understanding on court and their tennis styles combine perfectly.
But they would not have got together if it had not been for his persistence.
"It was amazing," said Jankovic. "His agent asked me first and I said I would think about it.

Jamie Murray and Jelena Jankovic congratulate each other on their historic win
"Because I have played a lot of matches this year, I'm very tired and I didn't know how I would feel, especially on grass, which is really tough on your body.
"Then two weeks ago we arrived at the same time in the vans and he said, 'will you play with me?' I said, okay, go and sign. I didn't think too much.
"Maybe it was like destiny, it was meant to happen. We won this tournament so I made a good decision and I'm very, very happy."
"Playing with Jamie was a great experience. He's a very nice guy, very sweet as well."

Champions: The pair hold their trophies aloft in the Wimbledon evening sun
He has now invited her to join him in Scotland for Christmas - which, from what one can tell, would make his mother Judy very happy.
She said: "The mixed doubles started out as a bit of fun for Jamie but had ended up as a fairytale.
"Jamie's coach Louis Cayer said the number one rule in mixed doubles is to 'keep the lady smiling' and he has certainly done that."
Meanwhile a celebratory dinner held at The Savoy for all the Champions of Wimbledon revealed more than the doubles' stars burgeoning relationship.
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2007-07-10T06:34:00.001-07:00

LONDON, July 10, 2007 (AFP) - Chelsea confirmed on Tuesday the transfer of France international Florent Malouda from Lyon on a four-year contract.
The winger switches to Stamford Bridge for an undisclosed fee although press reports had put the fee at upwards of 13 million pounds (20 million euros).

Malouda will waste no time in joining his new team-mates in Los Angeles where they are currently preparing for the new season.

The reigning Ligue 1 Player of the Year becomes Chelsea's first big-money summer signing (Action Images / Lee Smith)

LONDON, July 10, 2007 (AFP) - Chelsea confirmed on Tuesday the transfer of France international Florent Malouda from Lyon on a four-year contract.
The winger switches to Stamford Bridge for an undisclosed fee although press reports had put the fee at upwards of 13 million pounds (20 million euros).

Malouda will waste no time in joining his new team-mates in Los Angeles where they are currently preparing for the new season.

"The Chelsea squad landed in California to the news that they have a new team-mate," the official Chelsea website reported.

"Florent Malouda successfully completed a medical at Stamford Bridge during the day of Monday and signed a four-year contract."

Jose Mourinho's squad left for Los Angeles on Monday after confirming that a fee had been agreed with the French champions leaving just the medical and agreement on personal terms to seal the deal.

Malouda, 27, was signed by Lyon in 2003 from Guingamp for 4.5m euros having begun his playing career with Chateauroux in 1996. Last season he scored 10 goals as Lyon won the title for the sixth straight time.

He won the first of his 30 international caps in November 2004 and was part of Raymond Domenech's side that made it through to last year's World Cup final against Italy.

Chelsea's new recruit won the French championship four times with Lyon and was voted the best player in the French first division in 2006-07.

Malouda is Chelsea's latest summer purchase following Steve Sidwell, Claudio Pizarro and Tal Ben Haim.

ssc result official website

2007-06-25T12:15:00.000-07:00

1) http://mahresult.nic.in/ - OFFICIAL WEBSITE GIVES SSC EXAM RESULTS ONLINE

Henry leaves, Anelka to step in

2007-06-25T07:43:00.000-07:00

LONDON, June 24, 2007 (AFP) - Mercurial French striker Nicolas Anelka is being lined up for a dramatic return to former club Arsenal as a replacement for compatriot Thierry Henry, according to reports Sunday.
Arsenal confirmed on Saturday they had reached agreement to transfer their star striker Henry to Spanish giants Barcelona.

The four-year deal, believed to be worth 24 million euros (32 million dollars), will be subject to a medical and the completion of formalities which are expected in the next two or three days.

The iconic Henry's departure after eight years at the club will leave a gaping hole in the Gunner's front line, and manager Arsene Wenger has already drawn up a shortlist of replacements.

According to The Sunday Telegraph and the News of the World, Bolton striker Anelka - who has been on sizzling form for France during the Euro 2008 qualifiers - is top of the list.

Anelka's contract at Bolton does not expire until 2010, however the former Paris St Germain, Real Madrid and Liverpool striker is desperate to play in the Champions League. He also declared recently he would jump at the chance to move to one of the Premiership's 'big' clubs.

Recent boardroom changes at Arsenal, which played a hand in Henry's decision to leave, have led to uncertainty over Wenger's commitment to the club.

Creative midfielder Cesc Fabregas said he would almost certainly leave if Wenger quits, however the fact the Frenchman has already been busy sounding out a replacement for Henry suggests he is going nowhere.

According to the News of the World Wenger will target Ajax stars Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Ryan Babel as back-up if he fails to land Anelka.

The paper reported a source close to the Arsenal boss as saying: "... Arsene definitely believes Anelka is the ideal replacement.

"If he doesn't get Anelka then he will go for Jan Huntelaar - and Babel is also a possibility."

Sikh groups demand ban on 'Shootout at Lokhandwala'

2007-06-21T03:47:00.000-07:00

Chandigarh: Several Sikh organisations have demanded a ban on screening of Bollywood multi-starrer 'Shootout at Lokhandwala', alleging the film tarnished the image of the community by portraying them as "terrorists".

Scenes relating to Sikhs in the film had "not only tarnished the image of the community in the world but was also affecting the minds of the Sikh younger generation," Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle Media Study Centre coordinator Balwinder Singh told reporters in Hoshiarpur.
He said representatives of Dal Khalsa, Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle, Sikh Missionary College, Baba Deep Singh Sewa Society, Shubh Karman Sewa Society and Tiba Sahib Gurdwara met last night and condemned the film directed by Apoorva Lakhia for dipicting Sikhs as terrorists.

There is a flashback in the film where inspector Abhishek Mhatre (played by Abhishek Bachchan) is shot by a group of Sikh terrorists. The organisations urged the Central government to impose a "complete ban" on the film's screening and include a person nominated by SGPC as a member of the censor board to evaluate the objectionable scenes.
They also appealed to Sikhs across the country to "bitterly oppose" the film.

The real life-based film starring Sanjay Dutt as police inspector Aftab Ahmed Khan and Viveik Oberoi as gangster Maya Dolas, has already run into controversy with Dolas' mother filing a petition against it in the Bombay High Court.

Hamilton grabs win, dedicates it to father

2007-06-11T02:07:00.000-07:00

Hamilton samples the taste of victory in only his sixth Formula One race. (Action Images / J.P. Moczulski)

Hamilton grabs win, dedicates it to father

by Andrew Fagan

MONTREAL, June 10, 2007 (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton dedicated his maiden Formula One race victory to his father Anthony on Sunday after cruising to an assured, cool and measured triumph in the Canadian Grand Prix. The 22-year-old British rookie, the most successful newcomer in the sport's history, said he felt "fantastic" and "on a different planet" after emerging clear of his rivals following a crash-hit and incident-filled 70-lap contest at the Gilles Villeneuve circuit.

He even said that driving around and keeping his concentration during the four periods in which he was leading while following a Safety Car was "boring."

Hamilton said: "It has been a fantastic day for me and my family -- this is history. To come here for my first visit to Canada and to win -it has been just a fantastic feeling and this season already we have had six podiums.

"I felt that I have been ready for this win now for quite some time and for me it was just a matter of when and where. The team gave me the best car and it was great. I had no problems at all during the race.

"A few Safety Cars were there, but that's all - they made it a little bit boring at some points. But as soon as we got going again, it was exciting again. Yesterday I was over the moon, yes, to get pole. But today, this is definitely on a different planet for me."

Hamilton's father Anthony has looked after his career for the last 15 years and at one time held down three jobs in order to help fund his son's burgeoning career.

He could hardly have expected this sort of return from his first six races in Formula One as the young rookie wrote another amazing chapter in his heroic, if brief, and unprecedented motor racing history when he won the Canadian Grand Prix.

The first man of Afro-Caribbean descent to race a Formula One car claimed his maiden victory with a superb, assured drive through the carnage of a dramatic, wild and incident-filled Canadian Grand Prix.

Hamilton, 22, in his McLaren Mercedes-Benz, took full advantage of the first pole position of his career to grab his first win in only his sixth race at the highest level in typically composed and perfectly-focussed fashion.

No wonder sports writers all over the world are predicting a phenomenal career for the youngster from Stevenage in Hertfordshire, England, and also dubbing him as F1's answer to golf's black superstar Tiger Woods.

Hamilton's superb win lifted him eight points clear of Alonso and 15 ahead of Brazilian Felipe Massa of Ferrari. In the constructors' championship, McLaren lead now with 88 points to Ferrari's 60.

"He deserved it and I am proud and very happy for him, for Lewis," said the McLaren team chief Ron Dennis afterwards, brushing aside all controversy following last month's Monaco Grand Prix where Hamilton was ordered to finish second behind team-mate Fernando Alonso.

"He won it fair and square and drove superbly. We came to win, but we like to see both cars do well and today it was not Fernando's day. Once there had been the first Safety Car intervention, it was not going to be possible for him."

But the race was overshadowed by a series of massive accidents and unexpected incidents as the Safety Car was deployed four times.

Poland's Robert Kubica survived a massive high-speed accident with just a broken leg in his BMW Sauber car and two top drivers were disqualified and two others penalised for infringements.

The two men black-flagged and disqualified were Ferrari's Brazilian world title challenger Felipe Massa and Renault's Italian Giancarlo Fisichella, both for exiting the pit-lane under red flags.

The two penalised for pitting were defending double drivers world champion Spaniard Fernando Alonso, Hamilton's team-mate at McLaren, and German-born Nico Rosberg of Williams, both for pitting when the pit-lane was closed during the first Safety Car period.

All of this drama left experts praising the integrity of the Formula One cars, following Kubica's 300 kph crash, and predicting that Hamilton is a future Formula One champion in the making.

Hamilton has reeled off a series of astonishing results in his first six races - third in Australia followed by four seconds in Malaysia, Bahrain, Spain and Monaco and then this stunning victory.

His win here on Sunday was overwhelming evidence of his class in a race that saw German Nick Heidfeld finish second for Sauber BMW ahead of Austrian Alex Wurz in a Williams. Finland's Heikki Kovalainen was fourth for Renault, compatriot Kimi Raikkonen fifth for Ferrari and Japan's Takuma Sato sixth for Super Aguri.

This left Alonso, after a desperate race riddled with problems and off-track excursions, to finish seventh ahead of under-pressure German Ralf Schumacher in a Toyota.

Kubica was reported to be stable and conscious, despite breaking his leg in a horrifying accident that saw his car smash into a wall, barrel-roll across the circuit and then rebound off a steel barrier.

He was lifted out of the car and taken to the circuit medical centre from where he was later air-lifted to hospital.

Dharmendra-Amitabh relive Jai-Veeru magic at IIFA

2007-06-11T01:44:00.000-07:00

Sheffield, Bollywood veteran Dharmendra and his two sons Sunny and Bobby Deol turned emotional as thousands of fans gave a standing ovation to the thespian when he was honoured at the IIFA awards Saturday night for his outstanding contribution to the Indian film industry.

The popular Jai-Veeru duo of blockbuster "Sholay" came together as Amitabh Bachchan recounted his long association with Dharmedra and presented the award for 'Outstanding Contribution to the Film Industry'. Bachchan went on to disclose a secret.

He said: "Had it not been for Dharmendra, I would never have worked in Sholay. He recommended me. He insisted to (director) Ramesh Sippy to cast me in the role of Jai. I am very grateful to Dharmedra for this".

As Dharmedra came on to the stage to receive the award from Bachchan, the thousands of fans gathered in the Sheffield FM Arena gave a standing ovation for the simple man from Phagwara, Punjab who made it big in the Indian film industry.

A clip showing a selection of Dharmendra's old films sparked off a wave of nostalgia among the audience.

Moved by the accolade and the standing ovation, Dharmendra paid tributes to his fans, and went on to emotionally recollect his association with Bachchan who, earlier, had regretted that "we live about 50 feet away from each other in Mumbai, but we never meet. We had to come all the way to Yorkshire to meet".

Dharmendra said: "I don't remember if I had recommended him for the role in Sholay. In the film, he always used to get the upper hand by using the coin that had the same image on both sides. Today also he has scored over me.

"While shooting for Sholay, I remember Amitabh as an extremely introvert, painfully introvert, kind of a person. I tried to open him up by cracking jokes. He did open up later but not to the extent that I wanted.

"He is my neighbour in Mumbai and I wish I could just go across and pick up a bottle of liquor from his house."

Dharmendra endeared himself to the large gathering comprising mainly Asians from Yorkshire and elsewhere in the UK when he said in an emotionally charged voice that India was his mother, but that he also held what he called his 'mausi' (mother's sister), Pakistan, close to his heart.

"I get emotional when I talk of Pakistan. I am everyone's", he said.

His two sons, Sunny and Bobby, joined him on stage, and the three spoke about their new film, "Apne" in which they act together for the first time. Bobby Deol broken down in tears when he took the mike as he said: "He's the best."

During the awards ceremony, Basu Chatterji was honoured for his contribution to the industry, while Deepa Mehta was honoured for her contribution to the industry from outside India.

Popular actress Shilpa Shetty was honoured by reputed Yorkshire crickter Geoffrey Boycott on behalf of the local authorities for the poise and dignity she showed in the face of bullying in the January episode of Celebrity Big Brother.

The event saw scintillating dance performances by Akshay Kumar, Shilpa Shetty, Bipasha Basu and the Amitabh-Abhishek duo