I was invited at PM's residence, but was too busy: Kalmadi

Published>Tue, Oct 19 10 05:37 PM

New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) His absence at the felicitation of the medal winning athletes raised lot of eyebrows, but Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, said Tuesday that he was invited to attend the function at the Prime Minister's residence but couldn't attend since he was too busy seeing off foreign athletes.

Kalmadi said that too much is being made out about his absence from both the functions, to felicitate Indian medal winners, hosted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

'Too much is being made out of that. I was busy seeing off the thousands of international athletes who had come for the Games. The chef de mission rang me to tell that we have to attend a function at the PM's residence but I told him that I cannot go because I was busy,' Kalmadi was quoted as saying by CNN-IBN news channel.

'I am not at all a persona non grata. I was seeing off athletes,' said Kalmadi.

Kalmadi's statements come on a day when Income Tax officials raided 30 locations in Delhi on charges of bungling in funds of the Commonwealth Games.

Kalmadi, however, said that it was good that the probe has started and the Organising Committee is ready to answer all questions.

'I have not taken any decision on my own. It's good that a probe has been ordered because the Prime Minister had committed this to the Parliament and the public. We will give all the answers,' he said.

Asked if he was nervous about the inquiry, Kalmadi said: 'The storm was much earlier but now that we have delivered a good Games, it's over. I am not at all nervous. We have given great Games and we are ready to give the answers now.'

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Indian cricket on 'absolutely right track' for World Cup success: Akram

Published>Tue, Oct 19 10 05:17 PM

Lahore, Oct 19(ANI): Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has said that Indian cricket is on the right track in its preparations for next year's World Cup.

"At this stage, all nations must be planning for the World Cup early next year and I think, India seem to be making the right moves," the Nation quoted Akram, as saying.

"Indian cricket is surely on the right track. The Test series win against Australia justified their status as world number one team and I must laud the national selectors for doing a good job in picking a balanced side for the two matches," he added.

The former captain also backed the Indian selectors' decision to rest five senior players to test their bench strength in the ongoing ODI series against Australia.

"The decision to drop five senior players for ODI series against Australia has been a brave one. Sehwag and Gambhir are the best opening duo in the world and Sachin is getting better every day," Akram said.

"More than the batsmen, the decision to rest Zaheer and Harbhajan will definitely impact the bowling attack. But I am sure this is for a justified cause. Even if India lose the ODI series against Australia, there will be nothing to worry," he added.

He further said that India's bench strength has been well established, which is a great sign for the country.

"India are by no means a weak side, folks like Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and Yuvraj Singh are good enough and Australia will not have it easy. This is a great opportunity for youngsters like Saurabh Tiwari and Shikhar Dhawan to prove themselves," he added. (ANI)

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Photog sues Mike Tyson for 25m dlrs

Published>Tue, Oct 19 10 05:07 PM

Washington, Oct 19 (ANI): Former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson has been sued for 25 million dollars by a photographer, who claims the boxer beat him down last November.

Tyson was arrested after a run-in with a photog at LAX, reports TMZ.com.

He was initially booked for misdemeanor battery, but the L.A. City Attorney officially rejected the case, citing "insufficient evidence."

According to the civil lawsuit, the photographer -- Antonio Echavarria -- claims Tyson attacked him, hit him with a closed left fist, and broke his camera.

Echavarria also claims he suffered a concussion and strain to his spinal cord.

He's asking for 25 million dollar in damages. (ANI)

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'Only worrying thing in Indian cricket is crisis over IPL': Akram

Published>Tue, Oct 19 10 04:51 PM

Lahore, Oct 19(ANI): Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram insists that the Board Of Control For Cricket In India (BCCI) should take quick decisions regarding the Indian Premier League (IPL) to hold the Twenty20 tournament without any hitch next year.

"The only thing that is worrying me in Indian cricket is the crisis over the IPL. Whatever it is, the BCCI should quickly make its decisions so that the 'clean' franchises can plan ahead and make the tournament a success," the Nation quoted Akram, as saying.

The BCCI has terminated the IPL franchise agreements of Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab over 'breaches committed by the franchisees'.

The decision was taken in an IPL Governing Council meeting held in Mumbai earlier this month.

It also issued a notice to the Kochi Team, and asked the franchise to settle its internal differences.

"The GC of the IPL met today (Sunday) to discuss and decide on the breaches committed by three of the franchisees, K.P.H. Dream Cricket Pvt Ltd, the owners and promoter of the Kings XI Punjab cricket team, Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt Ltd and the unincorporated joint venture holding the Kochi franchise," a BCCI statement said.

"It was also unanimously decided that the franchise agreement with K.P.H. Dream Cricket Pvt Ltd and Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt Ltd be terminated forthwith based on the legal opinions obtained by BCCI in the matter.

"It was also decided to issue a notice to the unincorporated joint venture holding the Kochi franchise calling upon them to resolve all their disputes and form a joint venture company which will hold the IPL franchise rights," it added.

The Rajasthan Royals was acquired by Emerging Media group for 67 million dollars.

The investors in the team include Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, Lachlan Murdoch, Aditya S. Chellaram and Suresh Chellaram.

The first owners of Kings XI Punjab included Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia (Bombay Dyeing), Karan Paul (Apeejay Surendera Group) and Mohit Burman (Dabur).

The group had paid a total of 76 million dollars to acquire the franchise.

The Kochi Team franchise is owned by Rendezvous Sports World and shoor Namrood. It is one of the two franchisees added to the IPL for the 2011 season. (ANI)

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Jr national athletics championship from Dec 1-5

Tue, Oct 19 10 04:47 PM

Bangalore, Oct 19 (PTI) The 26th National Junior Athletics Championship will be held here from December 1-5, Karnataka Athletic Association said here today. Competitions will be conducted in the age group of 14, 16, 18, 20 for boys and girls, KAA Secretary Satyanarayana said in a statement here. Twentysix states have confirmed participation, he said. About 2,500 athletes from all over India will take part in the championships, which is also a selection trial to pick the Indian team for the forthcoming World Youth Meet and the probables for Asian Games.

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Delhi Games corruption charge stirs politics

Tue, Oct 19 10 04:37 PM

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday accused the government of corruption surrounding the just-finished Commonwealth Games, saying it would stall parliament next month unless an impartial probe was ordered.

The threat from the BJP comes as the government struggles to find political support for tough reforms bills in parliament which opens on Nov. 9.

The government is also preparing for a visit by U.S. President Barack Obama, who is also scheduled to address Indian parliament.

BJP chief Nitin Gadkari told a press conference that his party had evidence linking ruling Congress politicians and the office of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, to Commonwealth Games corruption.

An investigation into allegations of financial mismanagement by organisers and contractors resumed on Friday, a day after the Games -- which spiralled to a cost of $6 billion from an original budget of $450 million -- ended last week.

"Every time a revised budget was presented to the cabinet it was cleared," Gadkari said. "This means the prime minister justified (the cost escalations). Whether he was right or wrong that should be probed."

The Oct. 3-14 Games, intended to show India as a rising global power, were crippled by corruption allegations, health and security issues and chronic mismanagement, forcing the central government to rescue the event and avoid national embarrassment.

Local media investigations in the run-up to the Games claimed to have found financial irregularities with companies contracted to provide services and products to the event, forcing Prime Minister Singh to promise a full probe after its conclusion.

As part of the ongoing investigation, over 200 officials from India's Income Tax department searched homes and offices of several people, including BJP activist Sudhanshu Mittal and other Games contractors on Tuesday, local media reported.

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Force India look for points at new Korean circuit

Tue, Oct 19 10 04:26 PM

Yeongam (South Korea), Oct 19 (PTI) Force India will look to leave behind the Japan disappointment and improve their position in the constructors'' championships with a few car upgrades when they hit the brand new Yeongam circuit for the Korean Grand Prix on Sunday. Both drivers -- Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi -- failed to finish in the Japan leg of the Formula One Championship but with a few upgrades on the anvil, team principal Vijay Mallya is hopeful of scoring points this weekend. "We were disappointed by the Japanese event. We didn''t make the most of qualifying and we had a double retirement in the race. We''ve got some work to do to maintain our advantage in the constructors'' championship," said chairman and team principal Mallya. "We''ve put a lot of effort into Korean Grand Prix. We''ve got some changes to front wing and a small mechanical update that we didn''t use in Suzuka because of the weather. We are also looking at introducing some new aero tweaks to strengthen performance, but of course we want to make sure any effort is targeted and will give a genuine improvement," he said. "It''s a new track ... a big challenge. We''ve tried to gather us much information on both the facility and the area in advance to make it as smooth as possible. Both drivers have been in the simulator to learn the layout and the team will fly out earlier than usual to get used to the area, the track," he added. Sutil, who was on the simulator of the circuit earlier this week, fancies an opportunity for overtaking in the race. "I drove the Yeongam circuit on the simulator earlier this week to get a head start. It looks as though it is a good circuit with plenty of interesting corners and sections that could provide some overtaking opportunities. I would say, overall it''s a medium speed circuit," he said. "We''ve got to do better in qualifying this race and then of course finish. It was a disappointment not to get to the end (in Japan) as the car has been reliable this year, but it just makes me more determined to get points this time out, both for myself and for the team," said Sutil. Liuzzi is looking ahead for a finish at the new circuit after two very short races in Singapore and Japan. "I now can''t wait to get out there in Korea to get a proper race. There was nothing I could do about the outcome of my Japanese Grand Prix. I had had a really good start and I was already past five or six cars as I went into the first corner, but then suddenly I saw Massa coming across the circuit at me like a rocket. The real shame is that at that point I was in a brilliant position for the race and we could have scored some very good points," he said. "We''ve got a couple of new tweaks on the car as well that will make the programme even more charged. Plus I will have another chassis to use in Korea and for the last three races as my car was very badly damaged in Japan," PTI PDS PM

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