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 Penelope Cruz won the best supporting actress Academy Award
on Sunday for her fiery, funny role of a woman in a three-way relationship with
her ex-husband and an American woman in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona, saying
it was a sign of changing times in American film for foreign actors.
The achievement made Cruz the first...
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Europe's governing football body UEFA is facing a dilemma.
Nobody is questioning that the Euro 2012 preparations in the Ukraine and Poland are in trouble, but the million dollar question is: What to do about it.
For the first time in the history of the organization, the right to host the showpiece of European football could be...
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Novak Djokovic's upcoming defence of his Australian Open title was plunged into disarray on Tuesday as the Serb crashed out 6-4, 6-4 in his opening match at the Brisbane International.
The world number two was upset in his first match of the season and now has no chance to gain ranking ground this week on Roger Federer, who...
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Top seed Ana Ivanovic on Monday needed to escape a first set that lasted one hour on the way to a struggling 6-4, 6-2 win over Czech teenager Petra Kvitova at the Brisbane International.
The Serb top seed and defending French Open winner found herself in a battle. "I had to fight for each point (but) it was good in the first...
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Lleyton Hewitt and wife Bec Cartwright have taken a page from the idea books of Davis and Victoria Beckham by naming their newborn son Cruz.
The Beckhams used that name three years ago when the third of their three boys was born in Spain as their footballer father played for Real Madrid.
Hewitt and Cartwright waited nearly a...
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US cyclist Lance Armstrong will make his official comeback to professional road racing in January at the Tour Down Under in Australia, organizers of the Adelaide stage race said Wednesday.
Armstrong announced his retirement after winning the Tour de France a record seven times in 2005 but has said he would try for an eighth triumph in...
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China beat Germany 3-2 in a gripping semi-final to reach the final of the Olympic women's hockey tournament, where they will face either Argentina or the Netherlands.
Gao Lihua, Ma Yibao and Zhao Yudiao scored for China while Germany's goals came from Natascha Keller and Janine Beermann in a match that saw the Chinese fend off a...
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Germany beat Japan 1-0 to secure their semi-finals berth in the Olympic women's hockey tournament Monday, where they are likely to face either China or Australia.
Janine Beerman produced the sole score against the surprisingly tough Japanese with a 40th-minute field goal. Japan end their campaign second from bottom in pool B with four...
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World champions Germany were held to a 1-1 draw by Belgium on Wednesday but stay on course for a semi-final spot at the Olympic hockey tournament.
The Germany, who began the tournament with a 4-1 defeat of hosts China, took the lead in the 18th minute through Matthias Witthaus but were pegged back five minutes later by Cedric...
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Lewis Hamilton dominated qualifying for
Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of McLaren-Mercedes team-mate
Heikki Kovalainen as he seeks his third successive Formula One victory.
The 23-year-old Briton set a best time of 1 minute 20.899 seconds,
0.242 seconds ahead of Finland's Kovalainen to capture his fourth pole
position of the...
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London - The Los Angeles Galaxy were considering on Thursday a plea from David Beckham to let him join AC Milan on a permanent basis.
The England midfielder joined the Italian giants on loan last month, and is due to return to the US on March 9.
But the 33 year old's form there has confounded critics who expected him to make the...
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Seoul - South Korea staged a last-minute entry into the competition for hosting football's World Cup in 2018 or 2022, officials said Tuesday.
The world football association FIFA had been informed before the deadline for host applications expired Monday, South Korea's national football association said.
South Korea hosted...
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Madrid - Most fans and members of Real Madrid are keen for Florentino Perez to return as club president, according to polls in the news media.
According to the Marca sports daily - its poll results splashed on Tuesday's front page - Perez would get the support of no less than 62.9 per cent of club members, if the elections were held...
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Even the Prime Minster was moved as Portugal on Tuesday celebrated Cristiano Ronaldo's 2008 World Footballer honour.
Monday's announcement by the ruling body FIFA at a gala in Zurich delighted his home nation and England as well as the Manchester United winger Ronaldo is the first Premier League-based player to win the prestigious...
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The race for the Spanish league title has already become something of a one-horse race, so well are Barcelona playing -and so far are they ahead.
Lionel Messi and company are 11 points ahead of Valencia, 12 ahead of Real Madrid and Sevilla, and 13 ahead of Atletico Madrid and Deportivo Coruna.
Therefore, the talk in Spain now about...
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David Beckham made a quiet debut for AC Milan as the Italians ran out winners on penalties in a friendly against German Bundesliga side SV Hamburg in Dubai on Tuesday.
Beckham, wearing the number 32 shirt, played the first 45 minutes on the right side of midfield in the Dubai Football Challenge.
Milan won 4-3 on penalties after the...
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Three weeks ago, Sevilla tried to bring Barcelona down to earth - and were hammered 3-0 at home.
Two weeks ago, Valencia tried to do the same - and crashed 4-0 in the Camp Nou.
Last Saturday came the turn of Real Madrid - who lost 2-0 in the Catalan capital.
All of which has prompted the following question in Spain: is there any...
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European champions Spain remain top of the world football rankings issued Wednesday by the world governing body FIFA while Turkey jumped three places to move into the top 10.
Spain finish 2008 well clear of Euro 2008 finalists Germany while the Netherlands leapfrog World Champions Italy into third spot.
Brazil remain fifth,...
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Germany coach Joachim Loew has admitted to dissenting voices in the national team squad but still feels the Euro 2008 finalists can look back "positively overall" on the year.
Apart from the run to the final in the summer, where they lost 1-0 to Spain, Loew also pointed to his side's confident start to the 2010 World Cup...
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Sevilla jumped above Villarreal into third place in the Spanish Liga on Sunday with a somewhat fortunate 1-0 defeat of the "Yellow Submarine."
Sevilla were the beneficiaries of two crucial refereeing decisions. Just before half-time, Renato scored the only goal despite being offside when set up by Frederic Kanoute and...
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FIFA announced its remaining contenders Friday for the 2008 FIFA World Player awards Friday, with five players named in men's and women's categories.
European Footballer of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal will battle it out with Kaka (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Fernando Torres and Xavi (both Spain) for the award,...
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European Footballer of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo is one of five players shortlisted Friday for the 2008 FIFA World Player awards.
The newly-crowned Ballon d'Or winner will face competition from last year's winner Kaka of AC Milan while Barcelona pair Lionel Messi and Xavi and Liverpool striker Fernando Torres have also been nominated...
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Espanyol midfielder Ivan de la Pena will be out of action for around a month with a torn muscle in his right calf, the struggling Spanish Liga side said Thursday.
The veteran playmaker sustained the injury in Sunday's 1-1 draw away to Betis, a result which leaves Espanyol third from bottom in La Liga.
The former Spain midfielder,...
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Football's controlling body FIFA on Friday said that the global economic crisis has not caused a problem for the organization.
"We are glad that the crisis has not touched FIFA. We are not Swiss for nothing. We are still a safe company," general secretary Jerome Valcke said.
Addressing a press conference in Johannesburg...
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In 2010 South Africa hosts the world's premier footballing event, the World Cup, for the first time, yet there are still many who doubt whether South Africa will be ready to host the huge event.
Infrastructural problems, an alarmingly high crime rate and delays with the building of stadiums are some of the obstacles that need to be...
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Spain manager Vicente del Bosque has won applause by calling up young strikers Fernando Llorente and Juan Mata for Wednesday's friendly against Chile.
Llorente, 23, is the tall and angular centre-forward for struggling Athletic Bilbao, strong in the air though not a natural goalscorer.
Mata, 20, in contrast, is small and...
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Bernd Schuster has reportedly been told by Real Madrid to win in Valladolid on Saturday or start packing his bags.
Madrid sports dailies AS and Marca said on Wednesday that Real have lost confidence in their controversial German coach after a shock cup elimination against third division side Union Irun the previous night.
Real beat...
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Liverpool have three fresh injury doubts ahead of Sunday's top of the table meeting with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge,
Already without striker Fernando Torres, who suffered a hamstring injury while on international duty with Spain last week, they could also find themselves missing forward Robbie Keane and midfielders Steven Gerrard and...
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Premier League club Aston Villa begin their UEFA Cup group phase campaign on Thursday against former Champions League winners Ajax Amsterdam.
With SV Hamburg, Slavia Prague and MSK Zilina the other teams in Group F, the teams will be all out to ensure that they get enough points to progress to the next round.
Villa are one of three...
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Midfielder Torsten Frings is the latest Germany player toying with retirement as coach Joachim Loew now longer guarantees anyone a place in the starting 11.
"I am really thoughtful, retiring is more and more on my mind," Frings told Friday's edition of the Bild daily.
The 31-year-old from Werder Bremen was a key player in...
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Osasuna raised eyebrows across Spain on Monday by sacking coach Jose Angel Ziganda - and replacing him with former national manager Jose Antonio Camacho.
Camacho has still to sign a contract with Osasuna, but the digital versions of AS and Marca are claiming that he has already agreed to take over the struggling Pamplona...
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European champions Spain will be seeking to maintain their winning run, while losing Euro finalists Germany have a tough test when Russia are the visitors in World Cup qualifiers on Saturday.
Meanwhile France and Portugal are among teams under pressure after mixed starts to their World Cup campaign as they visit Romania and Sweden...
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Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke has pulled out of Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Russia after fracturing his hand in training.
A scan Thursday confirmed the fracture in the base of the keeper's left hand.
It means Germany will go into the Group 4 qualifier in Dortmund fielding an uncapped goalkeeper, with Bayer...
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Euro 2008 hero Fernando Torres has been recalled to the Spain squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Estonia and Belgium.
Torres, who scored the winning goal in the Euro 2008 final against Germany, missed Spain's September defeats of Bosnia and Armenia due to an injury picked up playing for Liverpool.
Two other players...
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Russia's Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko has rejected claims of possible match-fixing at last season's UEFA Cup semi-final involving Zenit St Petersburg and Bayern Munich.
"Do you think that such world and European champions like (Bayern players) Kahn, Klose, Ze Roberto and Lucio can be bought," Mutko was quoted as saying...
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Revitalized Valencia are keen to stay on top of the Spanish Liga - by winning away to modest Valladolid on Sunday.
Unai Emey's new-look Valencia are completely different from the fractious, chaotic side that finished 10th last season under Ronald Koeman.
Where once there was division, disorder and frustration, there is now unity,...
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Europe's top coaches have praised Juventus Turin for their brilliant start to the season and named them top rivals of champions Inter Milan for the Serie A title.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reported on Tuesday that the favourable remarks came during a meeting of national team coaches organized by the continental body UEFA in...
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Germany is not available to host Euro 2012 if Poland and Ukraien are stripped of the event, the German football federation DFB said on Tuesday.
"This is not an issue. We respect the hosts and fully support them. There has been no query from UEFA either," DFB general secretary Wolfgang Niersbach told Deutsche Presse-Agentur...
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Saturday will be a red-letter day for Espanyol.
That is when they will hoping to remain on top of the Spanish Liga, by beating Getafe at home.
Espanyol are the only team to have won their first two league matches, thanks to two goals from Spain striker Luis Garcia.
"We just have to take this thing one step at a time,"...
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Germany captain Michael Ballack and national team manager Oliver Bierhoff have ended a dispute which had cast a shadow over the team since the summer's European Championships.
The German Football Federation (DFB) said Tuesday the pair had settled their differences in a telephone conversation on Monday evening.
Bierhoff was quoted...
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Former Danish international Michael Laudrup is poised to sign a contract as coach with Russian team Spartak Moscow, reports said Tuesday.
Laudrup, 44, was quoted as telling the Politiken newspaper that some "minor" but important issues related to his family remained to be settled before he inks a contract.
According to...
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Germany face a first stern test of their 2010 World Cup credentials when they take on Finland in a Group 4 qualifying match in Helsinki on Wednesday.
The Germans began their qualifying campaign with a comfortable 6-0 outing against Liechtenstein in Vaduz on Saturday, and coach Joachim Loew looks like keeping an unchanged side against...
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German Football Federation (DFB) president Theo Zwanziger Monday called for end to a dispute between captain Michael Ballack and team manager Oliver Bierhoff.
The dispute has been simmering since the Euro 2008 final in Vienna at the end of June after an altercation on the pitch following the 1-0 defeat to Spain.
Zwanziger told...
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Vicente del Bosque, new national manager of European champions Spain, raised eyebrows on Friday afternoon by excluding Bojan Krkic from his squad for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers.
Del Bosque justified leaving out the Barca starlet by saying that: "We are counting on him for the future, but the competition (for places) in...
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Liverpool are on the point of signing midfielder Albert Riera from Espanyol, according to media reports in Spain and England on Tuesday.
According to Madrid sports daily Marca, Liverpool are prepared to pay up to 12 million euros (17.71 million dollars) for the left-sided Riera, who has already tasted Premier League action with...
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Sevilla striker Arouna Kone has been badly injured playing for the Ivory Coast, the Spanish club said Friday.
Kone has, apparently, torn a cruciate ligament and both cartilages in his left knee, and will be out of action for around eight months.
The injury occurred after just 10 minutes of Thursday's friendly international in Paris...
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Germany coach Joachim Loew is relying on the core of his Euro 2008 squad in his only test before the World Cup qualifiers when Belgium are the visitors in Nuremberg on Wednesday.
However injury to Rene Adler has scotched what probably would have been an international debut for the promising Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper.
The decision...
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Ever since the 1950s, Spanish football has been dominated by foreign coaches.
The likes of Helenio Herrera, Luis Carniglia, Rinus Michels, Milan
Miljanic, Vujadin Boskov, Johan Cruyff, Leo Beenhakker, Guus Hiddink,
Fabio Capello and Frank Rijkaard have monopolized the trophies in
recent years - and established the tactical...
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 The fossils and stone tools were found last June in a cave
called Sima del Elefante in the Atapuerca hills near Burgos in the North of Spain. The find brings
light upon this highly debated issue of human ancestors, leading to the
conclusion that "the occupation of Europe
happened very early and much faster than we had thought,"...
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 “The Dark Knight” star Christian Bale asked
for privacy in his first comments since he denied the allegations he assaulted
his mother and sister in a London
hotel.
Speaking about the alleged family dispute,
the Welsh-born actor told reporters at a press conference it is “a deeply
personal matter.” “I would ask you to respect my...
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 In less than a week after her outstanding success at the
Academy Awards, skeletons in Marion Cotillard’s closet are showing their faces.
The French actress which received the Best Actress Oscar is
now haunted by some far-fetched remarks she made in an interview a year ago.
Her comments made back than were transcribed and surfaced...
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 Today, Microsoft announced its
decision to get involved in bringing up the next generation of engineers,
software developers and other high tech specialists. The software maker
announced today the so-called DreamSpark program, which is nothing else than a philanthropic
initiative meant to help school and college students from all...
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 Facebook revealed on Thursday the
Spanish version of the web site. For the first time since founder Mark
Zuckerberg launched Facebook, the popular social networking web site targets
users speaking other language than English. Through this move, the company
hopes to expand its target audience as well as catch up to rival MySpace,...
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 During the Asian Development Bank’s annual meeting that took place in Spain, leaders from Asia warned that the growing food prices are likely to push millions of people throughout the continent into poverty and cause social unrest.More than a billion vulnerable people became seriously affected by the food prices surge, as they spend...
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 A survey that was published on Wednesday by the Office of Communications (Ofcom) showed that the United Kingdom offers the lowest prices for telephone, broadband and television in Europe and also that the country is the leader in the take-up of digital television out of the 12 countries that were included in the survey.The survey...
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Washington - US intelligence officials helped India and Pakistan swap top secret intelligence in the aftermath of the Mumbai terrorist attacks in November, the Washington Post reported Monday.
The intelligence sharing between the two countries, whose relationship is often shaky at best, was facilitated by the Central...
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At the 2009 Confederations Cup, the United States will be anxious to test their progress on the international stage along the way to the 2010 World Cup.
Getting to the world's showpiece event shouldn't be a problem - the US are champions of their region and figure to make their sixth consecutive finals appearance in South Africa - but...
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The International Monetary Fund drastically cut its global economic forecasts on Thursday in the face of a growing credit crisis, predicting a recession in the United States and the world in 2009.
In an update of its World Economic Outlook from October, the IMF said global growth would slow to 2.2 per cent in 2009, down from the...
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 Authorities released on Friday a statement through which they reported that two planes were only a minute far from a collision that endangered hundreds of lives. The risk of the collision happened when one of the airplanes turned away from the other over the Atlantic Ocean this week.The planes involved in the nearly-incident were a Delta...
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Spanish police have arrested a suspected
leading member of Colombia's FARC guerrilla movement near Madrid,
authorities announced Sunday. The 57-year-old Spaniard had
served as an 'ambassador' for the Marxist rebel group to Europe and had
answered directly to orders of Raul Reyes, the FARC commander killed in
Ecuador in March, the...
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Bernard Jean Ternus, 55, pleaded guilty on Thursday
after he had conspired to sell paintings by Monet, Sisley and Brueghel. He
had stolen the paintings on August 5, 2007, from the Musee des Beaux-Arts in the
French city of Nice.
Ternus was arrested in Florida after he had tried to
sell the paintings to undercover FBI agents and an...
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Governor of Florida Charlie Crist proposed to Carole Rome on Thursday morning. Their relationship lasted for nine months before he decided to make Rome his wife.The two met in September last year during a governor’s trip to New York. The 51-year-old Charlie Crist has waited for 30 years to get married again.Florida’s Gov. will get...
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 Gordon Hinckley, the president of the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church, died Sunday, in his
apartment in Salt Lake City,
Utah, at the age of 97. Church
spokesman, Mike Otterson, announced in a statement on the church Web site, that
his death occurred at 7:00 pm, “from causes incident to...
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Americans and Europeans agree that Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton would make the best US president of the current candidates for the post, according to a poll made public on Friday.
However, the survey by the Harris Institute for France 24 television and the Paris-based International Herald Tribune found that enthusiasm...
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Hamburg - Spain's Rafael Nadal continues to head the latest ATP men's tennis rankings issued by the ruling body on Monday.
The top ten remained unchanged for the second week in a row and although Nadal lost in the final of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament to Andy Murray, he continues to hold a convincing lead from former number...
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Novak Djokovic's upcoming defence of his Australian Open title was plunged into chaos on Tuesday as the Serb crashed out 6-4, 6-4 in his opening match at the Brisbane International.
The world number two was upset in his first match of the season and now has no chance this week of gaining ranking ground on Roger Federer competing in...
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Roger Federer will play only two tune-up events on clay in 2009, ahead of the only Grand Slam he has never won, the French Open.
The former world number one Federer said on his website that he will play at the Madrid and Rome 1000 Series (formerly Masters Series) events ahead of the May 24 French Open start in Paris.
Switzerland's...
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Rafael Nadal of Spain tops the men's final tennis rankings of the year released Monday, while Serb Novak Djokovic moves closer to number two Roger Federer of Switzerland.
Djokovic, who won the Masters Cup title in Shanghai at the weekend, has now climbed to within just 10 points of Federer.
ATP top 10 as of November 17 (previous...
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Rafael Nadal tops the men's tennis rankings issued on Monday and is also assured of first place in next week's final standings despite his injury-related absence from the season-ender in Shanghai.
Spain's Nadal leads an unchanged top 10 with 6,675 points from former top man Roger Federer of Switzerland (5,205) and Serb Novak Djokovic...
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Ailing Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer head the men's tennis rankings going into next week's season-ending Masters Cup while Jo-Wilfried Tsonga shot to a career-high number seven in the ATP rankings issued on Monday.
Spain's Nadal is assured of the year-ending top spot and has 6,675 points. Former leader Federer of Switzerland has...
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David Nalbandian defeated compatriot Juan Del Potro for the second week in a row, earning a 6-4, 6-0 victory in the third round of the Paris Masters on Thursday.
Nalbandian's victory over his 20-year-old rival also mathematically delayed Del Potro's chance of formally clinching a place in the Masters Cup.
Del Potro has been nursing...
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German Philipp Kohlschreiber dealt a likely fatal blow to the season-ending hopes of Spain's David Ferrer as he defeated the Spaniard 6-3, 6-2 on Wednesday in the second round of the Paris Masters.
Ferrer, seeded fifth, will be unable to make the trip to Shanghai as a direct qualifier next week as his progress was halted while...
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Rafael Nadal's run to the semi-finals of the Madrid Masters at the weekend ensures the Spaniard will remain top of the ATP tennis rankings until the end of 2008.
The French Open and Wimbledon champion Nadal has 7,100 points in the new rankings issued Monday, to sit ahead of former number one Roger Federer of Switzerland (5,805) and...
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Roger Federer will end his short break from tennis after three weeks after confirming after he will be a starter in the Madrid Masters which begins Sunday.
The Swiss, who has spent the past days in Dubai, confirmed through his management that he would show up in the Spanish capital.
His manager had made a preliminary hotel booking...
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Argentine's Juan Martin Del Potro moved into the men's top ten for the first time in his career when he was ranked ninth in the rankings issued on Monday by the ATP.
The 20-year-old, who already won four tournaments in 2008, lost the final of the Japan Open against Tomas Berdych on Sunday 6-1, 6-4. He is the only newcomer into the top...
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Collated results on Friday at the 1.03-million-dollar Japan Open (x indicates new result).
Women, quarter-finals:
Caroline Wozniacki, 1, Denmark, def. Tamarine Tanasugarn, 7, Thailand, 6-4, 6-1
Kaia Kanepi, 5, Estonia, def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia, 7- 6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-1)
Jarmila Gajdosova, Slovakia, def. Klara...
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Results Friday at the 1.03-million-dollar Japan Open:
Women, quarter-finals:
Caroline Wozniacki, 1, Denmark, def. Tamarine Tanasugarn, 7, Thailand, 6-4, 6-1
Kaia Kanepi, 5, Estonia, def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-1)
Jarmila Gajdosova, Slovakia, def. Klara Zakopalova,...
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Results on Thursday at the 1.03-million-dollar Japan Open (x indicates new result).
Women, second round
Caroline Wozniacki, 1, Denmark, def. Ayumi Morita, Japan, 6-2, 6-1
Samantha Stosur, Australia, def. Anabel Medina Garrigues, 2, Spain, 6-1, 7-5
Aleksandra Wozniak, 8, Canada, def. Ryoko Fuda, Japan, 6-1, 6-1
Klara...
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Officials took cover indoors as rain from an approaching typhoon dampened the Japan Open for a second day on Tuesday, with teenaged tennis hero Kei Nishikori securing an opening win under the roof.
The 18-year-old, who claimed his nation's first ATP title in 16 years when he won Delray Beach in February, took two hours to overcome...
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Rafael Nadal of Spain maintains top spot ahead of former number one Roger Federer in an unchanged men's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the ATP.
French Open and Wimbledon champion Nadal continues to lead the way on 7,000 points, with US Open winner Federer on 5,930 and Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic of Serbia third on...
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Rafael Nadal of Spain maintains top spot ahead of former number one Roger Federer in an unchanged men's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the ATP.
French Open and Wimbledon champion Nadal continues to lead the way on 7,000 points, with US Open winner Federer on 5,930 and Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic of Serbia third on 4,855...
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Results on Friday at the Davis Cup semi-finals (x indicates new result).
At Madrid, Spain v US
Singles
Rafael Nadal, Spain, def. Sam Querrey, US, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-3, 6-4
Spain lead US, 1-0 more
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Rafael Nadal struck the first blow for Spain, recovering after losing the opening set to impose a 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 defeat on Sam Querrey Friday to start the Davis Cup semi-final against the US.
The world number one spoiled the debut of Californian, Querrey, whom he beat less than a month ago in the US Open fourth round,...
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Rafael Nadal of Spain maintained first place ahead of former number one Roger Federer of Switzerland in the latest men's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the ATP.
The French Open and Wimbledon champ Nadal commands the standings with 7,000 points, with US Open winner Federer on 5,930 points and Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic...
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Roger Federer continues to top an unchanged men's top 10 ATP tennis rankings issued Monday with Rafael Nadal the Swiss player's nearest challenger.Federer leads the way with 6,600 points followed by Wimbledon champion Nadal on 5,830 with Serbia's Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic a distant third on 4,945 points.ATP top 10 as of July...
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 Andy Roddick expects a wave of support from boisterous American fans as
he opens the US-Russia Davis Cup final on Friday against surprise
starter Dmitry Tursunov.
Roddick will get the chance to put the hosts into the lead after
the draw made Thursday and the American expects a sellout crowd to
immediately become a factor in the...
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Cuba is confident that Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero will become the first Spanish prime minister to make an official visit to the island since 1986, Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque said Wednesday.
Zapatero would also be the first Western European leader to visit the island since 1999, when his predecessor Jose Maria Aznar...
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 Venezuelans went to the polls Sunday to vote in a referendum on
amendments to the constitution, which if approved would allow a
socialist form of government and the unlimited re-election of the
president. At present, the president can be re-elected only once.
Government supporters roused Caracas residents at 4 am with
trumpets and...
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 On the eve of a critical referendum on the Venezuelan constitution,
President Hugo Chavez threatened Saturday to stop delivery of oil to
the United States if it does not accept the results of the vote.
Venezuelans are to vote Sunday on changes to the oil-rich nation's
constitution, which if approved would allow a socialist form...
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 Recent events have President Hugo Chavez facing his toughest vote
to date this weekend in a referendum to scrap term limits on his rule as polls
show Venezuelans shying away from the Cuba ally's drive for socialism in the
OPEC nation.
Accustomed to easy election victories, Chavez enters the
referendum vote on Sunday with surveys...
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 According to top United Nations' scientists, the world will
have to end its growth of carbon emissions within seven years and become mostly
free of carbon-emitting technologies in about four decades to avoid killing as
many as a quarter of the planet's species from global warming, according to top
United Nations' scientists.
The...
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Los Angeles - At some point during the 58th NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Kobe Bryant will have one of his current Los Angeles Lakers teammates alongside him in Spanish star Pau Gasol.
He will also have one of his former Lakers teammates alongside him in Shaquille O'Neal.
Bryant and O'Neal, the argumentative duo which led the Lakers...
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Spain eased past Croatia in the quarter-finals of the Olympic basketball tournament on Wednesday.
The 72-59 victory means they will play either hosts China or Lithuania in Friday's semi-final match.
The world champions took the first quarter 22-11 and led 37-26 at half-time. Looking in much better form than in any of their group...
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 Dallas Mavericks has defeated Memphis Grizzlies, which recorded its 12th straight loss, 108-105, on Saturday night.Josh Howard matched a season high with 27 points and German juggernaut Dirk Nowitzki added 21 for the Mavericks, who managed to succeed its 5-0 at home."We were up three and gave them a clean look to tie it,"...
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 According to a new study made
public in Monday’s online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences, it seems that Americans are more likely to communicate with their TV
sets and personal computers, than with nature. A team of U.S. researchers discovered that since the 1980s outdoor activities have fallen by
more than...
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 UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said "global sweeping concerted
action" was now needed on climate change, as the final "synthesis"
report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was released
Saturday.
The worst-case scenario envisaged by the report was as frightening as a science fiction film, Ban...
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 “The Dark Knight” smashes the box office mark by reaching to $400 million in only 18 days. This amazing score jumps all Hollywood records. Friday and Sunday, the Batman sequel grossed $42.7 million and it jumped straight to No. 1 in U.S. and Canadian theatres.On Monday, though, the movie gathered such an audience that $6.3 million were...
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 Movie icon Clint Eastwood and Woody Allen will be among U.S. directors
showing their work at this year’s Cannes International Film Festival next
month, BBC News reports. The 61st festival runs from 14-25 May in
the south of France.
Eastwood’s latest directorial outing is a 1920s thriller,
called “Challenging,” and it stars...
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 Globalization is not felt only in the economic and social
field, but in the movie industry as well, as the Academy Awards ceremony last
night demonstrated.
We were accustomed that the leading artists at the Oscars to
be the US
talents. Well, it’s a stereotype we should get rid of, as the last night
ceremony acknowledged the...
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 As its title clearly suggests, “Vantage Point” is based on
the cinematographic technique of
alternative points of view.
Despite that fact that it brought remarkable recognition in
“Rashomon,” that combined brilliantly four perspectives on the same event, it
fails to earn director Pete Travis’ “Vantage Point” the same success. On...
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 Cate Blanchett reaffirms her royal figure in the Hollywood world, with a new portrayal of Queen Elisabeth
I, after almost 10 years from her last experience as the British Queen.
“Elizabeth: The Golden Age”
focuses more on the conflict with Spain and depicts a virtual love
triangle that includes the British Monarch and British...
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 Apple Inc. has announced its
plans to hold on Tuesday, the 18th of September 2007, another press
conference featuring a mysterious subject. Will Apple announce another
surprising move or is this just the American company’s already known strategy
of drawing both the press and the users’ attention?
However, it is obvious that...
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Hailed for keeping people
slim, healthy and living longer, the Mediterranean diet has followers
all over the world - but is increasingly disregarded around the
Mediterranean, a United Nations expert said Tuesday.
According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Senior Economist
Josef Schmidhuber, over the past 45 years the...
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 Diabetes, overweight and underweight people are perilous to their sperm production, showed two reports presented Wednesday at the annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction & Embryology, in Barcelona, Spain. Scientists from University of Aberdeen, Scotland, analyzed the sperm of more than 5000 men in couples...
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 Coffee isn’t harmful to your health, says a
new study. Is it true that long term, regular coffee consumption has beneficial
health effects? It appears that the main benefit is that it reduces the risk of
dying from heart disease.
The study research, published in the “Annals
of Internal Medicine,” tracked over 84,000 women and...
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 A study carried out by Spanish
and Portuguese researchers found that patients suffering from fibromyalgia experience
a great deal of pain relief when they exercise regularly in a heated pool.
The study conducted by Narcis
Gusi, of the University of Extremadura in Caceres,
Spain and Pablo Tomas-Carus
of the University of...
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 A new study shows it's very likely that bipolar disorder in children and teens may often be erroneously diagnosed and experts believe some kids have been mislabeled. There has been a fortyfold increase in bipolar diagnostics over the 10 years spanning from 1994 to 2004. The study was published in the September issue of the Archives of...
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The decision to strip Lewis Hamilton of his victory at the Belgian Grand Prix has been greeted by a mixture of bemusement and cynicism in Britain.
Meanwhile one Italian media report said the race stewards decision to penalise the McLaren-Mercedes driver, thus gifting the race to Ferrari's Felipe Massa, was justified.
Italian media...
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 Ferrari's Felipe Massa emerged victorious at the Turkish formula one Grand Prix and was closely followed by his Ferarri team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, who crossed the finish line 2.2sec after Massa. McLaren Mercedes’ Fernando Alonso completed the podium.Britain's Lewis Hamilton had to settle for the fifth place, and now his title lead over...
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 The famous Finnish mobile device
manufacturer Nokia and Microsoft have announced they have become partners.
Through the new deal Microsoft will start to provide Nokia devices’ users with
a new suite of Windows Live services. The American company has designed the
suit specifically for the Finnish-branded devices.
So, starting with...
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 Good news for US and UK developers from Google, which now allows them to include price tags whenever uploading mobile apps to Google’s Android Market. According to a blog post, non-free apps will reach non-US handsets in the coming months, as priced apps in the US will go on-sale sometime this week. By the end of March, Google will allow...
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 PlayStation 3 has been announced
by Sony Corp. to get equipped with a new external device that will allow it to
function also as a digital TV tuner and recorder. The new device for Sony’s
video game console is called PlayTV and it will allow the gamers to watch and
also record high-def TV broadcasts. PlayTV will also allow the users...
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 Reuters has translated a Rheinische Post article in which the German publication speaks about the contract Apple signed with T-mobile to sell the famous iPhone in Ludwig van Beethoven’s country starting November 1.The cost of the phone for the German market is said to be 450 euros (US $612), but Rheinische Post did not cite any sources...
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Collated results on Monday at the 220,000-dollar Moorilla International (x indicates new result):
First round x Flavia Pennetta, 1, Italy, def. Shahar Peer, Israel, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
Carla Suárez Navarro, Spain, def. Anna Chakvetadze, 3, Russia, 7-6 (7-5), 1-6, 7-5
Ursula Radwanska, Poland, def. Aleksandra Wozniak, 8, Canada,...
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Collated results on Thursday at the 785,000-dollar Brisbane International (x indicates new result):
Women, quarter-finals
Amelie Mauresmo, 5, France, def. Ana Ivanovic, 1, Serbia, 6-3, 6-2
Victoria Azarenka, 2, Belarus, def. Lucie Safarova, Czech Republic, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4
x Marion Bartoli, 3, France, def. Tathiana Garbin,...
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Results on Tuesday at the 785,000-dollar Brisbane International (x indicates new result):
Women, first round
Victoria Azarenka, 2, Belarus, def. Jarmila Gajdosova, Australia, 7-6 (7-4), 7-5
Tathiana Garbin, Italy, def. Alisa Kleybanova, Russia, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
Marion Bartoli, 3, France, def. Melinda Czink, Hungary,...
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Results on Tuesday at the 220,000-dollar ASB Classic (x indicates new result):
First round
Elena Dementieva, 1, Russia, def. Chan Yung-Jan, Taiwan, 7-5, 6-3
Caroline Wozniacki, 2, Denmark, def. Alberta Brianti, Italy, 6-1, 6-0
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 7, Russia, def. Kristina Barrois, Germany, 6-3, 6-1
...
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Spain's opposition Thursday expressed concern over the possibility of the oil and gas company Repsol YPF coming partly under Russian control.
Companies from outside the European Union should not get involved with strategic sectors in Spain, Cristobal Montoro of the conservative People's Party (PP) said amid reports that the Russian...
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Because of the crisis in the auto market, global sales for French car maker Renault plunged in October, forcing it to reduce its production levels, the company said on Friday.
The three makes produced by Renault - Renault, Dacia and Renault Samsung - sold 188,116 vehicles last month around the world, down 14.1 per cent compared to...
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Argentina on Tuesday won their first-ever Olympic cycling medal when they won men's madison race at the Beijing Olympics ahead of Spain, while Britain's Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton took the sprint titles.
In the madison race, Juan Esteban Curuchet and Walter Fernando Perez beat Joan Llaneras and Antonio Tauler into second place...
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Paul Goodison claimed Great Britain's third sailing gold of the Beijing Games with victory in the men's Laser category Tuesday while American Anna Tunnicliffe won the women's Laser Radial.
Goodison made up for the disappointment of finishing fourth in Athens four years ago by holding on to his lead in the 10th and final race, winning...
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Coach Marcello Lippi is back in the fray after a two-year rest to begin a second stint at the helm of world champions Italy.
He rejoins the national team, which he steered to a fourth World Cup in 2006, for a friendly with Austria on Wednesday in the French seaside town of Nice.
A month and a half after being called back to replace...
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Spanish police have arrested a suspected
leading member of Colombia's FARC guerrilla movement near Madrid,
authorities announced Sunday. The 57-year-old Spaniard had
served as an 'ambassador' for the Marxist rebel group to Europe and had
answered directly to orders of Raul Reyes, the FARC commander killed in
Ecuador in March, the...
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A court in Equatorial Guinea Monday sentenced
mercenary Simon Mann to over 30 years in prison for his role in failed
2004 coup in which the son of former British prime minister Margaret
Thatcher was also implicated.
The BBC reported that a Malabo court handed Mann, a former British
soldier, 34 years and four months in prison for...
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the 126th day of 2008 with 240 to follow. The moon is new. The morning stars are Venus, Neptune, Uranus and Jupiter. The evening stars are Mars, Mercury and Saturn.Those born on this date are under the sign of Taurus. They include Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard in 1813; German political theorist Karl Marx in 1818; hatmaker John...
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 The queue outside the Colosseum is long and winding. But with aching feet and the sun burning, waiting for an hour or so to get into the ancient amphitheatre does not seem an option.
A few metres away, two young Italians dressed as gladiators or Roman legionaries are having their picture taken by an enthusiastic tourist. Surely,...
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European champions Spain remain top of the virtually unchanged football rankings issued Wednesday by the world governing body FIFA.
Germany continue to trail Spain in second spot, followed by the Netherlands and world champions Italy.
Brazil lie fifth, ahead of Argentina and Croatia with England, Russia and Turkey completing an...
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Sweden and Norway plan a
joint bid to host the Euro 2016 football tournament, a leading Swedish
football official said on Tuesday.
Sune Hellstromer, general secretary of the Swedish football
federation SFF, told Stockholm radio station SR that the necessary
documents would likely be sent to the ruling body UEFA in autumn....
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All doping tests examined at
Euro 2008 have returned negative, the Austrian Research Centers' doping
control laboratory announced in Vienna on Tuesday.
With only the test results from Sunday's final between Spain and
Germany missing, 'one can assume that there was no doping at play
during and before the Euro,' Guenter Gmeiner, the...
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 Timo Hildebrand, who joined Valencia on a free transfer, in July, after playing for Stuttgart, has declared that he is not afraid of having to compete with Santiago Canizares, a veteran goalkeeper at Valencia, according to the digital version of Marca."I am not nervous," said Hildebrand, "at having to compete with another...
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 The finalists of this year’s Copa America held in Venezuela climbed back on the two top spots of the rankings published by FIFA dethroning the former No.1 but still World Champions Italy.Before gloriously finishing the South American tournament with a 3-0 win in the final against their archrivals Argentina, the Brazilians were on the...
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 The U.S. youth team has to advance for the first time in the semifinals of the Under-20 World Cup - since the field was expanded to 24 teams - when it plays Austria in Toronto on Saturday.In the previous decisive match against Uruguay, Michael Bradley, the son of senior team coach Bob Bradley, stepped up to the task and scored the most...
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 Finally English footballer David Beckham will arrive at his new team Los Angeles Galaxy on Thursday after a divorce from Real Madrid that made rivers of ink flow throughout the globe.Beckhams well advertised arrival is due to take place today, after the British superstar’s transfer was announced with high falutin’ by his new team,...
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 Sweden have been awarded by UEFA the a 3-0 victory after their Euro 2008 qualifier in Denmark on 2 June was abandoned when a fan ran on to the pitch and attacked the referee. The Danish Football Association was fined 100,000 Swiss Francs (about €61,000 or $81000) and will play their next four home Euro 2008 qualifiers at least 250 km...
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With finite reserves of oil and gas, Iran is
desperately looking for alternative revenues to fuel, which makes up
more than 80 per cent of the country's income. Iran believes it has found the perfect solution in tourism and is therefore planning huge investments in the travel industry.
The aim is easier said than done,...
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 Defence ministers from the eight countries involved in the
international coalition fighting in southern Afghanistan have agreed a
"strategic plan" on how to go forward, Australian Defence Minister Joel
Fitzgibbon said Friday.
Fitzgibbon, speaking after a one-day ministerial meeting just
outside Edinburgh, Scotland, said...
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 A suicide attack targeting a tourist convoy in Yemen
killed six Spanish citizens and two Yemenis on Monday.
Security sources said the terrorist attack was surely carried
out by al-Qaeda, who previously threatened with violent reprisals if several
members detained in Yemen
are not released.
The blast occurred near the Queen of...
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 Lebanon tends to become a war zone like other countries in the Middle East, after six soldiers belonging to the United Nations peacekeeping forces were killed Sunday by a savage explosion.All soldiers were Spanish and died while patrolling near the Lebanese-Israeli border when a car packed with about 50 kilos of explosives was detonated...
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 Footage of Alan Johnston, the British reporter abducted in Gaza more than two months ago appeared on the internet Friday, London authorities confirmed.The video shows Johnston between masked men, most likely Islamic militants speaking of his health condition and his experience in the Gaza Strip. “My captors have treated me very well,...
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 EA Sports’ sequel for the popular FIFA franchise will feature renowned Brazilian soccer player Ronaldinho, currently enrolled at FC Barcelona, along with other two European players.Two times winner of FIFA World Player of the Year Ronaldinho will be presented on the box art of the upcoming soccer title FIFA 08, currently being developed...
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 The World Health Organization is asking for a ban against smoking indoors in public buildings and at work, on a global level.
This is the UN health agency’s strongest recommendation yet as to controlling tobacco use, urging all countries to issue a ban against smoking in enclosed public spaces.
“The evidence is clear....
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Spaniard Carlos Sainz edged Qatari driver Nasser al-Attiyah by six seconds to win the fourth stage of the Dakar Rally on Tuesday.
Sainz, driving a Volkswagen Race Touareg, fought an exciting duel with BMW X3 driver al-Attiyah on the ascent to the 1,314-metre-high Col Calderon during the 484-kilometre stage from Jacobacci to Neuquen...
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Ukraine's parliament formed a new ruling coalition on Tuesday, allowing the legislature to take up long-stalled legislation for stimulating the economy.
Leaders of three centrist parties, the senior Block of Yulia Tymoshenko (BYut), Our Ukraine National Defence (OUND) and the junior Block of Litvin (BL) signed the coalition agreement,...
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German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier called Thursday for a stronger presence by India in international policy circles, adding that the challenges of the 21st century cannot be faced "without a strong partner such as India."
He said during a three-day visit to India that it was now time to expand beyond the...
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When South Africa was awarded the right to host the 2010 World Cup football officials in the country embarked on an ambitious plan.
Not only did they want to ensure that the World Cup itself would be a huge success, they also wanted to make sure that they would be able to field a strong team at the showpiece of international...
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New Zealand's All Whites see 2009 as their most important year since the national team reached the World Cup finals 26 years ago, an achievement that gave them their highest ever FIFA ranking of 47th.
After slumping to a record low ranking of 156th last year, New Zealand have risen to 54th after five wins in five games in a successful...
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Few international football tournaments have had such a troubled history as the Confederations Cup.
Considered arguably the second most important competition staged by the sport's governing body FIFA, the Confederations Cup has seen teams declining to participate and tragically, it has seen the only death of a player on the field of...
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Andy Roddick earned a 6-3, 7-5 Paris Masters win over Gilles Simon on Thursday to secure the sixth place in the season-ending Masters Cup, in China for a third consecutive year.
The American joined Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Nikolay Davydenko in the field for the wrap-up in Shanghai which begins a...
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NATO defence ministers reached a compromise Friday over controversial plans to help Afghanistan fight its thriving drugs industry, whose profits the Taliban rely on to fund their insurgency.
"Yes, there is an agreement," a NATO diplomat told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa during talks in Budapest.
Ministers overcame...
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Nearly 50 would-be immigrants have gone missing while trying to cross over from Morocco to Spain, Spanish and Moroccan media reported Thursday.
The body of a young man was found on a beach in Kenitra province north of the Moroccan capital Rabat on Wednesday.
The only known survivor, who was found nearby, said the boat carrying...
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Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said on Thursday the United States could not win its fight against terrorism without Pakistan's support, a day after he condemned US aerial attacks inside the country as "acts of terrorism."
"Pakistan is a frontline ally in the fight against terrorism. It has a unique strategic position...
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A car bomb attributed to the militant Basque separatist group ETA killed a Spanish soldier and seriously injured another overnight in Santona in the northern Cantabria region, officials said Monday.
A road assistance service in the neighbouring Basque region received a phone call in the name of ETA, warning that a bomb was about to...
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A Greek-owned bulk carrier cargo ship was attacked Thursday by armed pirates off the eastern coast of Somalia, an anti-piracy watchdog said.
The ship had been travelling to Kenya when a group of pirates launched an attack about 200 nautical miles, or 370 kilometres, off the coast of Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, Noel Choong of the...
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Russia's synchronized swimming team collected their third Olympic gold medal in succession Saturday at a sold-out National Aquatics Centre in Beijing.
Anastasia Ermakova and Anastasia Davidova, winners of the duet gold three days ago, led their team to victory with a total of 99.500 points.
European champion Spain took silver with...
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The ad hoc division of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Beijing turned down Saturday protests by Spain and Italy over the decision to award the 49er category sailing gold medal to Jonas Warrer and Martin Ibsen.
The Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) and the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE) took the move after having two...
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Australia beat Great Britain 2-0 to secure a final fifth place in the Olympic women's hockey tournament Friday as China and the Netherlands prepared to battle for the gold medal later.
Madonna Blythe and Hope Muntro scored in each half for the Asutralians' victory. In an earlier match, South Africa beat New Zealand 4-1 in the match...
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Argentina beat Germany 3-1 to win the women's hockey bronze medal on the final day of the Olympic tournament Friday.
Playing before a capacity crowd including football icon Diego Maradona, the Argentines repeated their bronze medal success of 2004 with first-half goals from Claudia Burkart and Carla Rebecchi before Noel Barrionuevo...
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At one stage Natalie Du Toit's agent got lost.
"Which arm was it again? Left? Right?" the agent, wondered Anina Strydom when she wanted to explain which arm Du Toit needs to move up to counterbalance the missing lower leg to stay afloat in the water.
The statement only underlines how natural it was for the 24-year-old to...
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 The South Korean Navy launched Friday a new ship: the Sejong the Great class destroyer, also known as KDX-III.This is the first guided missile destroyer equipped with a Aegis combat system built by South Korea and will certainly strengthen the combat possibilities of the country, which is still at war with neighbouring North Korea.The...
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 Dow Chemical, the largest US chemical company, announced on Tuesday its plans to restructure, as it would shut down the less profitable plants, besides cutting around 1.000 jobs, including 250 jobs in Europe, as a solution for lowering costs and concentrating on its most expectant units.The company declared that the measures taken would...
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 Sharp Corp. and Sony Corp. represent
two of the largest makers of the already popular liquid crystal display (or
LCD) TV sets; and they have both recently opened new factories, which are to produce
even more of the companies’ flat-panel devices.
Sony Corp. has started the
production of the LCD TV sets at a new $93.6 million plant...
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 The European Commission fined Spanish telecommunication company Telefonica 151.9 million euros for edging competitors on the broadband internet access market.According to the executive agency, Telefonica set prices in a manner that constrained other companies to raise tariffs, thus record loses for the past five years.”Through this...
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 Barclays Plc plans to take over one of the biggest banks in Europe, ABN Amro seem to be going up in smoke after Atticus Capital didn’t agree with the 65-billion-euro deal and announced it will firmly oppose to “an inferior business in an auction at inflated prices.”Atticus Capital LLC is a US hedge fund that currently holds a 1-per-cent...
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 Bidders for ABN Amro, one of Europe’s
largest banks, sharpen their knifes and prepare for a fierce battle after the
stake was raised by a consortium on Tuesday with more than ten billion euros.
The Royal Bank of Scotland, Banco Santander SA from Spain
and Belgians Fortis NV formed an alliance and offered 71.1 billion euros for
the...
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 British Airways and TPG Capital decided to unite forces and make a bid for Spain’s largest airline, Iberia, the British operator announced Tuesday.Former Texas Pacific Group is a private equity investment firm with offices in Hong Kong, Japan and the United States. Its main area of activity regards major turnarounds and management...
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 According to a new report from market research firm Nielsen Online, which tracks time spent online visiting different websites, social networking websites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter is now the most popular web activity, surpassing even email. Nielsen's global study of social networking, released this week, found that 67...
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 The most popular photo sharing site on the Web is now moving towards a truly international audience, by releasing a version of the site in no less than 7 different languages.The main reason for this change is the affluence of foreign users outside the US or Canada, who don’t always speak English. Flickr was founded three years ago by...
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 Yahoo recently updated its Maps Search service, with the most obvious changes noticeable in the user interface area and in the overall speed of the service.Yahoo said it has moved its map indexing from the platform used for at least five years (with the technology provided by deCarta Inc.) to its own proprietary, in-house platform at...
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 Israel Lopez died on Saturday, in
Miami. Known
also as “Cachao,” Israel Lopez was a popular Cuban bassist and composer, as
well as pioneer of mambo, a Cuban style of music that he has started
promoting in 1938.
Israel “Cachao” Lopez was also a
Grammy-winning musician and a real model for other composers, and also for
fans. He...
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 The legendary Cuban bassist, band leader and mambo pioneer Israel ‘Cachao’ Lopez died Saturday at Coral Gables Hospital
near Miami. The
89-year-old Cachao died after complications from kidney failure, according to
the Miami Herald. Spokesman Nelson Albareda said according to The Associated Press that the musician had fallen ill in the...
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 Grammy and Latin Grammy-nominated Mexican singer and actress Paulina Rubio gave the press details about her upcoming U.S. tour, the largest of her career, which will consist of 27 concerts over seven weeks, beginning in Houston on Thursday night.Stops on the first leg of the tour also include Dallas, Chicago, Denver and Boston and it...
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 The release of a new album and the start of a new tour are all in the near future for a reunited The Smashing Pumpkins. Original guitarist James Iha and bassist D’Arcy Wretzky will not be part of the lineup, but front man Billy Corgan, drummer Jimmy Chamberlin and two other persons will, according to media reports. The band, one of the...
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Valencia, Spain - A fire destroyed a 19th-century theatre in the eastern Spanish city of Valencia overnight, police said Friday.
There had been plans to restore the privately-owned Princess Theatre, which dated from 1853 and was located in the old city centre.
The theatre designed by architect Jose Zacarias Camana was regarded as...
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Hanover, Germany - It's that geeky time of the year, as the world's biggest three computing, mobiles and digital fairs get "early adopters", as the industry calls them, excited about the latest trends in electronic devices.
At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, tech writers went into raptures last month over...
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Madrid - The glaciers on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees mountains straddling Spain and France are set to melt completely by mid-century, the daily El Pais on Tuesday quoted an Environment Ministry report as saying.
The glaciers covering parts of the Spanish Pyrenees have lost 88 per cent of their surface since 1894, down to 206...
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Madrid - Spanish movie professionals, officials and media were Monday euphoric over the Oscar awarded to Penelope Cruz, 34, the first Spanish actress to win an Academy Award.
Cruz took the Oscar for best supporting actress for her role in US director Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona, which was shot in Spain.
Culture Minister...
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Stuttgart - A long-sought Nazi war criminal known as "Dr Death" is "presumedly dead," German police said Thursday, a day after two media outlets reported he died in Cairo 16 years ago.
A spokesman in the southern city of Stuttgart said police had "meaningful information" that Aribert Heim lived undetected...
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Copenhagen - A two-day conference hosted by Denmark on how to halt arms smuggling into the Gaza Strip opened on Wednesday, the Dutch foreign ministry said.
The meeting was organized in conjunction with the United States to review how international help could be offered to prevent weapons smuggling, legal issues as well as charting the...
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Geneva - The Swiss set a new record for themselves, exporting in 2008 some 17 billion francs' (14.7 billion dollars) billion francs) worth of watches, a report released Tuesday said.
While this was an increase of over 6 per cent compared to 2007, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry warned that the final months of last year saw...
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Malaga, Spain - A storm with winds blowing at up to 180 kilometres an hour injured 25 people overnight in the southern Spanish city of Malaga, the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) said Monday.
The storm, which was accompanied by rain and which Aemet described as a tornado, uprooted trees, knocked over advertising billboards, tore...
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Madrid - Spain is backtracking on plans to nationalize tens of thousands of seaside residences in an attempt to protect the coastline from pollution, the daily El Pais reported Monday.
The Environment Ministry had intended to step up the application of a 1988 law prohibiting the construction of housing near the water line.
The...
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Madrid - The militant Basque separatist group ETA on Friday pledged to continue its violent campaign against the Spanish state as it marked its foundation 50 years ago.
ETA would continue "fighting with all forces and in all ways" as long as Spain and France did not recognize what the group regards as the rights of the...
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Madrid - Heavy rains sparked flooding Tuesday in northern Spain, while another death increased the number of fatalities claimed by storms to 16, officials and hospital sources said.
A 53-year-old man died at a Tarragona hospital on Monday after a wind gust pulled him down from his balcony on Saturday, hospital sources said.
The...
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Berlin - Germany welcomed Friday the decision by the new US administration to close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp within the next 12 months.
The camp closure would end a "difficult chapter in transatlantic relations," government speaker Ulrich Wilhelm said.
Germany has not yet made a decision about hosting released...
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A Greek-flagged vessel carrying humanitarian aid for the embattled Gaza Strip was forced to turn back to a Cyprus port on Thursday after Israeli warships threatened to open fire, reports said.
The Arion, whose passengers included peace activists from the US- based "Free Gaza" group, doctors, aid workers and European...
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A debate was rolling in Spain on Thursday on whether an unprecedented strike planned by the country's judges was legal.
Such a way for judges to press their demands was "inadequate" and "disturbing," the prosecutors' association UPF said, while the association Judges for Democracy stressed that the law did not...
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A vessel carrying peace activists, doctors and medical supplies for the embattled Gaza Strip set sail from Cyprus on Wednesday after a two-day delay due to mechanical problems.
The Greek-flagged Arion, whose passengers also included parliamentarians from Greece, Spain and Belgium, was forced to return to Larnaca port shortly after...
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A baby girl delivered by British doctors two days after her mother was declared clinically dead from a brain haemorrhage has been named Aya, which means miracle in Arabic, her father told a British newspaper Tuesday.
Doctors at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford kept the heart of 41-year-old Jayne Soliman beating for two days after...
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Rafael Nadal of Spain continues to top the men's ATP tennis rankings, with the leading five unchanged.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga exchanges places six and seven with compatriot Gilles Simon in the only change in the top 10.
ATP top 10 as of January 12 (previous ranking in parenthesis): "#"
1. (1) Rafael Nadal, Spain, 13,160...
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Heavy snowfall hampered traffic in several parts of Spain on Friday, forcing Madrid's Barajas airport to suspend flights temporarily and creating kilometres-long traffic jams in the capital.
Airport operating company AENA said flights would be resumed as soon as possible at the airport, which has also been affected by an alleged...
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Outgoing flights were resumed at Madrid's Barajas airport Friday afternoon after more than five hours of suspending operations owing to snowfall, the airport operator AENA said.
The airport was also about to resume landings after more than 50 flights were diverted to other airports.
Only 268 of the 1,205 scheduled flights had...
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Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez slammed Sir Alex Ferguson on Friday, accusing the Manchester United manager of being the only one who can criticise referees without punishment.
The Spaniard, whose side sit three points clear at the top of the table, said Ferguson was wrong to criticise the fixture list, which, he said, actually...
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The cold wave affecting Spain claimed a possible victim on Friday, when police found the body of a homeless woman near a Barcelona railway station.
Police said she appeared to have frozen to death.
Heavy snowfall meanwhile hampered traffic in several parts of the country, forcing Madrid's Barajas airport to suspend flights...
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Four more European Union countries Thursday opened up their labour markets to workers from Bulgaria and Romania, but rich nations such as Britain, France, Germany and Italy continue to maintain restrictions.
Greece, Spain, Hungary and Portugal all agreed to welcome Bulgarian and Romanian workers, European Commission officials said,...
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The trial of the prime minister of Spain's semi-autonomous Basque region began Thursday on charges of having met with the illegal Batasuna party which is regarded as the political wing of the militant separatist group ETA.
Juan Jose Ibarretxe was the first Basque prime minister to be tried on criminal charges.
Ibarretxe arrived in...
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The ambassadors of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, Qatar and Syria to Spain on Wednesday said they had "no words" to describe the "deliberate catastrophe" of Israeli military action in the Gaza Strip.
The situation in Gaza was "apocalyptic," the diplomats said in a document they presented to Foreign...
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A Spanish court has ordered a school to pay 30,000 euros (40,500 dollars) in damages to the family of a pupil who was bullied by his fellows, the highest such damages ever awarded in Spain, the victim's father and lawyers said Wednesday.
Part of the evidence was based on a video showing pupils mocking and hitting their 10-year-old...
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The death toll of traffic accidents has fallen to the lowest level in 44 years in Spain, Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said Monday.
In 2008, at total of 2,181 people were killed in traffic accidents, 20 per cent down from the previous year.
The death toll has gone down despite the number of cars on the streets and roads...
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Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero on Monday warned Israel that its actions in its conflict with the Palestinians were not the way to peace and security.
Spain rejected "irresponsible and provocative" ruptures of the ceasefire, as well as "disproportionate" reactions which violated international...
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Twelve African immigrants living in precarious conditions in Spain have posed nude for a calendar the sales of which will help them survive for a while, the daily El Pais reported Monday.
The men from Mali, Togo, Senegal and Mauritania appear in discreet pictures taken by Valencia photographer Adolfo Lopez in the calendar...
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Atheist groups in Barcelona will follow the example of a bus advertising campaign under way in London, placing ads denying the existence of God on two buses running in Spain's second-largest city, local transport authorities said Monday.
The ads reading "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life" will...
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Collated results on Monday at the 785,000-dollar Brisbane International (x indicates new result):
Women, first round
Ana Ivanovic, 1, Serbia, def. Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-2
Amelie Mauresmo, 5, France, def. Jelena Dokic, Australia, 7-6 (11-9), 7-6 (7-5)
Sara Errani, Italy, def. Daniela Hantuchova, 4,...
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New Real Madrid coach Juande Ramos will have to choose between new signings Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Lassana Diarra for the Champions League knockout stage.
Real recently signed Huntelaar from Ajax and Diarra from Portsmouth under the assumption that both would be able to play in the Champions League, since neither player had taken...
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The French Foreign Ministry called Friday for a common European Union policy on how to deal with prisoners currently held in the US prison in Guantanamo Bay on Cuba after the camp is closed as planned by president-elect Barack Obama in 2009.
The ministry in Paris said in a statement that the French government welcomed Obama's plan to...
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New Real Madrid coach Juande Ramos will have to choose between new signings Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Lassana Diarra for the Champions League knockout stage.
Real recently signed Huntelaar from Ajax and Diarra from Portsmouth under the assumption that both would be able to play in the Champions League, since neither player had taken...
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Angel Maria Villar, president of the Spanish football federation, said early on Tuesday that Spain should prepare a joint bid to stage the 2018 World Cup along with neighbours like Portugal.
Villar made this suggestion shortly after midnight, at the end of the federation's traditional Christmas dinner with journalists in...
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Angel Maria Villar, president of the Spanish football federation, said early on Tuesday that Spain should prepare a joint bid to stage the 2018 World Cup along with neighbours like Portugal.
Villar made this suggestion shortly after midnight, at the end of the federation's traditional Christmas dinner with journalists in Madrid.
In...
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Germany may host the world athletics championships in 2009 but apart from the Berlin event the situation in the nation's sports is as bleak as the economic forecasts.
The former sports power lacks stars in major sports ranging from football to athletics and swimming. In addition, there is an almost frightening disappearance of events...
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The Catalan media have gone into overdrive on Monday in their praise for record-breaking Barcelona.
Barca's 2-1 win away to Villarreal on Sunday, which has broken several records, is front-page news in every Catalan paper on Monday morning.
The new records established by Josep Guardiola's slick side are as follows:
- seven...
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The northern Spanish city of Santander on Thursday began removing a statue of General Francisco Franco, the last remaining one of the 1939-75 dictator on horseback which remained in a public place.
Under the 2007 Law of Historic Memory seeking to restore the honour of Franco's victims, tributes to the dictatorship have to be...
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Albert Costa was on Thursday named as the new captain of Spain's Davis Cup team, replacing Emilo Sanchez Vicario who resigned after leading his country to the 2008 title 3-1 over Argentina last month in Mar del Plata.
Costa was favourite to take over the post and receives a one-year contract. Spain begin the defence of their Davis...
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A last-ditch effort by Ukraine to pay part of a massive debt to Russia may be insufficient to prevent a natural gas supply crisis affecting Europe, according to a Thursday announcement by the Russian energy giant Gazprom.
Ukraine's government late Monday evening transferred 800 million dollars to the Russian natural gas monopolist on...
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The 2009 Vuelta will start outside of Spain for the first time in 12 years and for only the second time in its history, race organizers confirmed Wednesday in Madrid.
Next year's Tour of Spain will begin on August 29 with an individual time trial on the Dutch motorcycle racing circuit of Assen, followed by three further stages in the...
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A former Spanish senior official Wednesday admitted that the former conservative government allowed US flights transporting terrorist suspects to make stopovers in Spain, but denied that stopovers actually took place, judicial sources said.
National Court judge Ismael Moreno questioned Miguel Aguirre de Carcer in the framework of his...
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Some 34 million counterfeit pills have been seized by European Union customs officials over the past two months alone, officials in Brussels said Tuesday.
Faked versions of the male anti-impotence drug Viagra were among the most frequently-seized items, along with painkillers, antibiotics, anti-cancer, anti-malaria and...
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Spanish police Tuesday detained four suspected members of the militant Basque separatist group ETA, police sources said.
The two men and two women were held in their homes in San Sebastian, Pasaia and Intxaurrondo in the Basque region.
They were suspected of supplying ETA with information about people who could be targeted by...
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A late 1-0 defeat away to fellow strugglers Recreativo Huelva on Sunday leaves hapless Osasuna four points adrift at the bottom in Spain.
The Pamplona side have won just one match since former Spain manager Jose Antonio Camacho took charge in October, and they now have just nine points from 15 games, three points less than...
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Sunday turned out to be a good day for Sevilla and Atletico Madrid, who moved up to joint second and fifth place respectively in the Spanish Liga, with home wins over Villarreal and Betis.
Sevilla beat Villarreal 1-0, Atletico downed Betis 2-0.
These results leave Sevilla level on 30 points with Valencia, who beat lowly Espanyol...
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The euro is set to mark the 10th anniversary of its launch in January with Europe's common currency enjoying a new-found appeal as a result of the financial firestorm that swept through world markets this year.
From solid Sweden to ailing ex-communist Hungary, the euro is suddenly seen as potential protection in a time of...
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A Cypriot-flagged freighter caught fire off north-western Spain early Monday, rescuers said.
Twenty-two of the 23 crew were rescued unharmed after going on life rafts, while one crewman remained missing. The captain was Greek while the rest of the crew were Filipino nationals.
The accident occurred off A Pobra several days after...
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Greek riot police fired tear gas into crowds of protesting students and teachers, who pelted them with rocks and chunks of marble in front of parliament in the seventh day of civil unrest Friday.
Waving black and red anarchist flags, hundreds of students, made their way up the steps to parliament to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier...
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The Spanish government Friday approved a large-scale plan to tackle the forcing of migrant women into prostitution by criminal gangs.
The initiative forming part of a 172-point Human Rights Plan allows the authorities to seize the property of human traffickers and to channel it into a fund fighting such activities, as is done with...
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 |
| Currency |
USD |
EUR |
GBP |
YEN |
| USD |
------ |
0.757 |
0.701 |
97.307 |
| EUR |
1.320 |
------ |
0.926 |
128.479 |
| GBP |
1.426 |
1.080 |
------ |
138.794 |
| YEN |
0.010 |
0.008 |
0.007 |
------ |
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