S P O R T S

He’s Back
Former F1 world champion Michael Schumacher confirms his return to the sport in 2010 with Mercedes GP
Berlin, December 23
Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher said today he has signed a deal to return to Formula One racing with Mercedes GP for the 2010 season. Having retired in 2006, Schumacher, who turns 41 on January 3, will reportedly be paid seven million euros (9.9 million US dollars) to be on the grid when the new season starts with the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 14.

COCOM: CWG risks failure in many areas
New Delhi, December 23
The capital’s preparation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games has picked up the pace over the last two months but the October 3-14 multi-discipline event still risks failure, according to the CGF Coordination Commission (COCOM).

Sl Tour Of India
4th ODI: 2.30 pm
India eye series
Kolkata, December 23
India’s batting may have lost some sheen in the absence of M S Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh but the hosts still have enough firepower as they go into the fourth cricket one-dayer against Sri Lanka here tommorrow hoping to wrap up the series by taking an unassailable 3-1 lead. The hosts were already missing regular skipper Dhoni due to a ban imposed on him, and were dealt a blow when the dangerous Yuvraj Singh was also ruled out of the series due to a recurring finger injury. The Lankans, who have also been hit hard by a spate of injuries, will be desperate to level the series in what promises to be a keen contest at the historic Eden Gardens.
The master has a ball: Sachin Tendulkar plays football during a training session at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday. — Reuters

CWG CAMP
Foreign coaches from Patiala removed
Bathinda, December 23
A tug of war has erupted between the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the Athletic Federation of India (AFI) over the formers decision to dismiss two top foreign coaches attached with the Commonwealth Games camp currently being held at Patiala.

‘I want to be the world’s best keeper’
Chandigarh, December 23
What does a 19-year-old think about life? What is his ideal way of spending a day, a year or even his foreseeable future? College, parties, friends, fun…? But then there are some other 19-year-olds, who make you sit back, tear down the clichés and watch in awe their grit, determination and focus.  For Chandigarh-lad Harjit Singh, life is what happens under the crossbar, in the stipulated 70 minutes and in the countless training hours too. 

Harjit at the hockey stadium in Chandigarh. Tribune photo: Vinay Malik

He’s Back
Former F1 world champion Michael Schumacher confirms his return to the sport in 2010 with Mercedes GP

Berlin, December 23
Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher said today he has signed a deal to return to Formula One racing with Mercedes GP for the 2010 season. Having retired in 2006, Schumacher, who turns 41 on January 3, will reportedly be paid seven million euros (9.9 million US dollars) to be on the grid when the new season starts with the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 14.

“After a three-year break, I have all the energy again that I was lacking,” Schumacher told a teleconference with reporters after signing the contract late Tuesday. Schumacher had been due to make a remarkable return last season for Ferrari - for whom he acted as a consultant after retiring - as a replacement for the injured Felipe Massa but was unable to because of a neck injury.

But the German said today the pain was behind him. “My neck is no longer a problem,” Schumacher said. “Over the summer it was too soon after the accident. Now everything has healed.”

The pilot will return to Formula One having won 91 of his 250 Grand Prix races and started in Pole Position 68 times. Schumacher will be linking up with Mercedes’s team principal Ross Brawn, who was the brains behind all of his world titles. The German won the first of his World Drivers' Championship titles at Benetton in 1994 and was successful with the Italian team again in the 1995 season.

In 1996, he transferred to Ferrari where he proved virtually unbeatable between 2000 and 2004, winning five further world titles. There will be huge interest in the impact Schumacher and Brawn will have now for Mercedes.

Sl Tour Of India
4th ODI: 2.30 pm
India eye series

Kolkata, December 23
India’s batting may have lost some sheen in the absence of M S Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh but the hosts still have enough firepower as they go into the fourth cricket one-dayer against Sri Lanka here tommorrow hoping to wrap up the series by taking an unassailable 3-1 lead. The hosts were already missing regular skipper Dhoni due to a ban imposed on him, and were dealt a blow when the dangerous Yuvraj Singh was also ruled out of the series due to a recurring finger injury. The Lankans, who have also been hit hard by a spate of injuries, will be desperate to level the series in what promises to be a keen contest at the historic Eden Gardens.

Even though India have a decent batting order, a good start at the top will be imperative for them to do well in tomorrow’s flood-lit encounter.

Stand-in skipper Virender Sehwag and seasoned Sachin Tendulkar will have to stay at the crease for a long period to ease the pressure on the middle-order.

Opportunity for youngsters: Sehwag

The absence of key players like M S Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh will give an opportunity to test youngsters ahead of the 2010 World Cup, according to India’s stand-in skipper Virender Sehwag who said it was necessary to work towards improving the bench strength. “When the series is going on the team has to play the matches, irrespective of who is in or out. Definitely, we will miss their services but we have to look at our other options. The youngsters are getting an opportunity to play for their country and if they do well and make a mark it’s good for the team as well. The bench strength will get stronger and stronger,” Sehwag said.

Lankans breach security cover

Sri Lankan cricketers, including senior batsman Sanath Jayasuriya and Tillakaratne Dilshan, gave the local police some anxious moments when they went for a night-out in the city without security cover yesterday. According to sources, some members of the visiting team went partying at a bar at Camac Street putting local police in a tizzy. The cricketers left the hotel at around 11:00 pm.

COCOM: CWG risks failure in many areas

New Delhi, December 23
The capital’s preparation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games has picked up the pace over the last two months but the October 3-14 multi-discipline event still risks failure, according to the CGF Coordination Commission (COCOM). Chaired by Commonwealth Games Federation treasurer Austin Sealy, the COCOM visited the capital from December 14-16 and made public their report on Delhi’s preparation.

“While substantial progress has been demonstrated by OC (Organising Committee) and its delivery partners since last COCOM, it is clear successful delivery of the Games remains at risk in many key areas,” the panel said in its conclusion.

Making it clear that things should have been put in place by now, the report said, “Many of these risks are atypical of an OC at this stage of preparation and they require the OC Executive and the Government to initiate immediate and ongoing remedial work with expert assistance in some areas.”

The COCOM welcomed the late alacrity on the OC’s part but insisted the organisers have a difficult task at hand. “The overall standard of presentations and dialogue demonstrates that the OC and its delivery partners are starting to ‘turn the corner’ and are addressing the myriad of issues they face. However, compared with any recent major event of a similar scale including recent Commonwealth Games, most focus areas reviewed by the COCOM present a high level of risk to successful Games operations,” it said.

The COCOM singled out venue delivery - especially the SP Mukherjee Swimming Complex and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium - as a matter of grave concern. “Venue delivery and handover schedules have been recently pushed back from January to the end of March and, for aquatics and ceremonies/athletics, to June. This has had a detrimental impact on test event and any further delay will have a substantial impact on Games operational delivery,” it noted. — PTI

CWG CAMP
Foreign coaches from Patiala removed
Ravi Dhaliwal

Bathinda, December 23
A tug of war has erupted between the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the Athletic Federation of India (AFI) over the formers decision to dismiss two top foreign coaches attached with the Commonwealth Games camp currently being held at Patiala.

SAI has decided to terminate the services of Ukrainian Yuri Ogrodonic, attached with 400m women runners and Prof Arnold Stassuik from Belarus, who is overseeing preparations of Javelin throwers, on health grounds.

This development has tossed the national camp in a state of confusion. A SAI official disclosed that both Yuri and Arnold had heart problems and that was the reason why their services have been discontinued.

SAI, in its contract with foreign coaches, has made it mandatory for them to undertake medical tests before they are allowed to join national camps. However, when SAI officials learnt that both these coaches had skipped the mandatory medical tests, their services were put on hold.

However, the AFI has fully backed these two coaches with the Federation secretary general Lalit Bhanot claiming from New Delhi that both the coaches will be running the show at Patiala in their respective disciplines notwithstanding SAI’s decision to terminate them.

It is pertinent to mention here that both Yuri and Arnold are 75 years old and have been contracted by SAI at $5000 per month. AFI officials say that the coaches can not be taken off from their duties at the Patiala camp because “this is a crucial phase in the run up to the Commonwealth and Asian Games.”

Yuri Ogrodonic is imparting training to medal hopeful Manjeet Kaur and other runners like Chitra Soman, Sini Jose, K Mridula, Jaseer N.K and Mandeep Kaur.

He has been with these runners for a long time and sources say that athletes at the camp are happy with his training methods. On the other hand, Prof Arnold Stassuik is imparting training to another medal hopeful K N Rai of Services and Anil Kumar Singh, Sandeep Yadav, K.N Tripathi and Rohit Kumar. 

‘I want to be the world’s best keeper’
Vaibhav Sharma
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 23
What does a 19-year-old think about life? What is his ideal way of spending a day, a year or even his foreseeable future? College, parties, friends, fun…? But then there are some other 19-year-olds, who make you sit back, tear down the clichés and watch in awe their grit, determination and focus. For Chandigarh-lad Harjit Singh, life is what happens under the crossbar, in the stipulated 70 minutes and in the countless training hours too. A product of the Chandigarh Academy, Harjit has been recalled for the national camp at Lucknow, to be held from December 27.

“It has been my dream to play for India. My parents have invested so much to make me what I am today. My father, just to ensure that I follow my training regime carefully, is always a step ahead of me. I really want to repay his faith in my ability, and also fulfill my ambition of being the best goalkeeper in the world,” says a sweat-drenched Harjit, who has been who has been blossoming under the watchful eye of Chandigarh coach Jasbir Singh Bajwa, also the coach of current national captain Rajpal Singh and goalkeeper Baljit Singh.

His coach Bajwa says, “The moment he steps on the ground, he is totally focused. He has the talent and, God willing, will soon have the national colours too.” Harjit is expecting a call-up to the national team this time around and he knows that it would be the only way he can make up for his father’s sacrifices.

BRIEFLY

Shane Bond retires  from Test cricket
WELLINGTON: Kiwi paceman Shane Bond on Wednesday bid adieu to the Test cricket but would continue playing one-day and Twenty20 formats. Bond said never ending injuries forced him to take the ‘tough’ decision. “The hardest thing is that I’ve always considered myself a Test bowler - and it was such a great feeling to be back in the team last month and playing Test match cricket with the Blackcaps. Unfortunately my body just won’t let me continue to play at that level,” he said. — PTI

Jhulan to lead India Green
CHENNAI: India captain Jhulan Goswami will lead the India Green team while Amita Sharma will captain the India Red team in the women’s cricket Challenger Trophy tournament, scheduled to be held in Ahmedabad from January 2-5. Reema Malhotra was named as the skipper of the India Blue team with the All India women’s selection committee on Wednesday naming 12-member squads for the tournament here. — PTI

England’s Kevin Pietersen poses in front of a mural at the Oyster Box Hotel in Durban on Wednesday.— Reuters

Ranji: Punjab play Karnataka
MYSORE: Karnataka would strive to continue with their unbeaten journey in the Ranji Trophy when they take on a Punjab in quarterfinal commencing on Thursday at the Gangothri Glades cricket ground here. Karnataka have performed magnificently right through the league phase and topped the Group B with 28 points. On the other hand, Punjab have qualified for the final-eight stage from Group A after finishing second in the league stage. — PTI

Anand mum on World C’ship team
NEW DELHI: Viswanathan Anand doesn’t want the world, Veselin Topalov to be precise, to know how he is planning his title defence in next year’s World Chess Championship and remained tightlipped about his team of seconds. “I can tell you the name of (Peter Heine) Nielsen (of Denmark) but would not name anybody else,” Anand said with an impish smile. — PTI

Advani, Kothari reach quarters
CHENNAI: Top seed Pankaj Advani, Sourav Kothari and Rafath Habib advanced to the quarterfinals of VIP Matrix All-India invitational snooker tournament here on Wednesday. In a day that witnessed five breaks over the 100-mark, India No 2 Sourav gained the mark with a break of 112 to notch up a clinical 4-1 win over Kamal Chawla. — PTI

National Tug of War C’ship
CHANDIGARH: The 18 th National Senior Tug of War Championship will be held at Layalpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar from 25-27 December, according to H S Bhadu, secretary, All India Tug of War Federation. He further added that the Championship will be conducted by Punjab State Tug of War Association under the aegis of All India Tug of War Federation. About 400 sportspersons are expected to participate in both men and women categories. — TNS

Phagwara beat Patiala
CHANDIGARH: All India Baba Zorawar Singh Baba Fateh Singh Shaheedi Football Tournament was held on the premises of Baba Zorawar Singh Baba Fateh Singh Senior Secondary Public School, Fatehgarh Sahib on Wednesday. In the first match, International Club, Phagwara beat Dalbir academy Patiala 2-1. In the second match Punjab Police, Jalandhar defeated Mata Gujri College, Phagwara 2-1. — TNS