Japanese Olympic Committee President Tsunekazu Takeda plans to ask outspoken Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara to make a presentation in Lausanne, Switzerland, in June for the Japanese capital’s bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. ‘‘We need Governor Ishihara, who is also the bid committee chief, to make an appeal,’’ Takeda said Monday, referring to the occasion when the four finalist cities will be granted the opportunity to speak before International Olympic Committee members.

The IOC will name the host city of the 2016 Olympics from among Tokyo, Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro at its general assembly meeting in Copenhagen in October 2009. ‘‘I believe the governor knows he is the one. He is a charismatic person known even to the media overseas,’’ said Mitsuru Arakawa, a senior official of the 2016 Tokyo Olympics campaign.
Tokyo is bidding for the 2016 Olympic Games but Japan should look at basic Human Rights Issues and only then after international events!

Amnesty International argues that the Japanese justice system tends to place great reliance on confessions and it has been claimed that these may be obtained under duress. According to a 2005 Amnesty International report:

“Most have been sentenced to death on the basis of confessions extracted under duress. The potential for miscarriages of justice is built into the system: confessions are typically extracted while suspects are held in daiyo kangoku, or “substitute prisons”, for interrogation before they are charged. In practice these are police cells, where detainees can be held for up to 23 days after arrest, with no state-funded legal representation. They are typically interrogated for 12 hours a day: no lawyers can be present, no recordings are made, and they are put under constant pressure to confess. Once convicted, it is very difficult to obtain a re-trial and prisoners can remain under sentence of death for many years.”

Amnesty International also reports of allegations of abuse of suspects during these interrogations. There are reports of physical abuse, sleep deprivation and denial of food, water and use of a toilet. It also criticises the fact that inmates usually remain for years, sometimes decades, on death row, knowing that executions come with little warning and each day may potentially be their last. According to Amnesty International, the intense and prolonged stress means many inmates on death row have poor mental health, suffering from the so called Death row phenomenon. The failure to give advanced notice of executions has been stated by the United Nations Human Rights Committee to be incompatible with articles 2, 7, 10 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Link to this post if you are against Death Penalty

Former world number one Ana Ivanovic kicked off her 2009 season ahead of the Australian Open with victory over Petra Kvitova at the Brisbane International.
Serbian Ivanovic, 21, who reached the Australian Open final last season, overcame the Czech 6-4 6-2 to set up a second-round match with Roberta Vinci.
Another former world number one Amelie Mauresmo also opened with a win in the ATP-WTA Australian Open tune-up event.
The Frenchwoman edged past Australia’s Jelena Dokic 7-6 (11-9) 7-6 (7-5).
The victory will provide a welcome boost for Mauresmo, whose ranking has slipped to 24 from a high of number one in 2006 when she won two Grand Slam titles.
She has been working with new coach Hugo Lecoq since failing to finish in the top 20 last year - the first time in a decade.
But she had to fend off two first-set points before overcoming Dokic, who herself has slumped in the rankings to 177th from a career high of number four.
“It was a tough first match - she was playing some good tennis and gave me a bit of trouble,” Mauresmo said. “But there were good things. Physically I felt good on the court. That’s a key point for me.”
It was a lot more comfortable for Ivanovic, who ended last season at five in the rankings following an injury-hampered mid-season.
“The end of last season was a bit of a disappointment for me so I was looking forward to a good start,” she said.
Three seeded players suffered an early exit, though, with fourth seed Daniel Hantuchova of Slovakia beaten 6-7 (1-7) 6-4 6-0 by Italy’s Sara Errani.
Italy’s number eight seed Francesca Schiavone also fell, ousted 7-5 6-2 by Olga Govortsova of Belarus, and Ai Sugiyama of Japan, seeded ninth, was defeated 6-2 6-3 by home favourite Samantha Stosur.
Italy’s Vinci beat Germany’s Anna-Lena Groenefeld 0-6 6-3 6-1 to earn her place in the second round.

source: bbc.co.uk

TWO martial arts starlets have received the perfect present for Christmas – being named the Bushido Academy of Judo’s Judoka of the Year.
Tom Dugdale, 12 and a pupil at St Thomas More School in North Shields, and 10-year-old David Beck, who attends St Peter’s School in Wallsend, were honoured at the Bushido’s Christmas party at Seghill Social Club.
Dugdale, who joined the club in 2001, took the award for the club’s Tuesday practice sessions and Bell, whose father was also a successful junior member and who joined the club last year, for the Friday session.
Club spokesman Chris Dawson said: “The awards are made to two of our pupils who have demonstrated the ability to regularly win the monthly club trophy.
“They must also, over the last 12 months of regular training, have shown excellent technique and fighting spirit as well as showing consideration to our younger members.”
Meanwhile, the Wallsend-based club entered nine junior members in the Northumberland Clubs for Young People Open Championships at Newcastle’s Westgate Centre for Sport.
Nine-year-old Ryan Evans started his run for gold with a spectacular ko-uchi-gake (minor inner hook) for ippon in the boys’ under-30kg section and continued his winning streak until the end of this event.
Team-mate Kieran Alpin, eight, took silver, only losing out to Evans in the same group.
Ben Kelly, 14, took the silver medal in the boys’ under-55kg event.
He lost only one fight and turned in an excellent performance in the remainder of his contests, including a perfect okuri-ashi-barai (foot sweep).
Fifteen year old Laurie Cairns gave a solid display in the girls’ open category by winning silver.
She scored ippon in all her contests except the last, where she lost only on a referee’s decision.
Ten-year-old David Beck started well in the boys’ under-35kg event, finishing up with bronze.
Melissa Carney, 11, was in a tough pool in the girls’ under-50kg event but still managed a bronze medal.
Runners-up medals were awarded to seven-year-olds Nathan McDonald and Jessica Cairns and 13-year-old Darren May.

source: chroniclelive.co.uk

Defending Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova has withdrawn from a Hong Kong exhibition tournament because she is still recovering from a shoulder injury just weeks ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year.

The three-time Grand Slam winner started playing tennis again just over two weeks ago and isn’t in proper condition, organizers of the Jan. 7-10 Hong Kong event said in a statement on their Web site Wednesday.

“I’m just not ready to play against the top-class competition in Hong Kong, although I remain hopeful for Australia where I’m the defending champion,” Sharapova said in a statement.

The Australian Open is Jan. 19 to Feb. 1.

“Maria needs to get ‘tennis fit’ now and she’s working hard,” Sharapova’s agent, Max Eisenbud, said.

Sharapova has not played competitively since pulling out of the Rogers Cup at Montreal in late July after beating Poland’s Marta Domachowska in a nearly three-hour match in which she double-faulted 17 times.

The Russian was examined by a trainer midway through the three-set victory and withdrew from the event before her next match.

Medical tests later found a torn rotator cuff tendon in the 21-year-old’s right shoulder.

Sharapova missed the rest of the just-concluded season, including the Beijing Olympics and the U.S. Open, ending her streak of 23 consecutive major tournaments.

She hadn’t missed a major since her Grand Slam debut at the 2003 Australian Open. Sharapova also won the singles titles at Wimbledon in 2004 and the U.S. Open in 2006.

While she briefly held the No. 1 spot this year, her time off the court led her to slide down before ending the season at No. 9.

Sharapova went 32-4 with three titles in 2008, earning nearly $2 million in tour prize money.

Organizers in Hong Kong have replaced Sharapova with fellow Russian Anna Chakvetadze.

The field at the team-format event also includes top-ranked Jelena Jankovic of Serbia, American Venus Williams, Russia’s Vera Zvonareva, Zheng Jie of China and India’s Sania Mirza.

source: sports.yahoo.com

Toshiaki Nishioka of Japan beat Genaro Garcia of Mexico on a technical knockout in the 12th round Saturday to retain his WBC super bantamweight interim champion title.
It was Nishioka’s first successful defense of the belt he won against Napapol Kiatisakchokchai of Thailand last September.
With his sharp left hand, Nishioka was a comfortable winner over the tenacious 31-year-old Mexican, who withstood a barrage of punches in the final round.
“I really wanted to beat him,” Nishioka said. “My boxing still needs a lot of improvement, but I am glad that I beat him in the end.”
The 32-year-old Nishioka improved to 33 wins with 20 KOs, while Garcia dropped to 38-7.
Also Saturday, Paulus Moses of Namibia beat Yusuke Kobori of Japan on points to win the WBA lightweight champion title. Kobori, who slipped to 23-3, had taken the title in May 2008. Moses improved to 24-0 with 17 KOs.

source: sports.yahoo.com

news dal giappone

PGA Tour spokesman Ty Votaw declined comment, even after seeing Daly’s remarks, citing the tour’s longtime policy of not discussing fines or suspensions.
This is the second time the tour has suspended Daly, along with at least two other times when he agreed to sit out the final few months of a season to get his life in order.
He has not played on the PGA Tour since he missed the cut Oct. 17 in Las Vegas. Ten days later, police in Winston-Salem, N.C., said he appeared intoxicated outside a Hooters restaurant, and Daly was taken to jail to sleep it off. That led to his photo in the orange jail suit, which became an Internet sensation.

Still trying to recover from various injuries, Daly made only five cuts in 17 starts on the tour, finishing 232nd on the money list. His world ranking has plunged to No. 736.
Daly isn’t even sure when the suspension began, but he hopes it ends in May. He said PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem sent a letter to his agent, Bud Martin of SFX Sports, who passed along the news.
“Tim and his staff have to do what they do,” Daly said. “Truly and honestly, I wish Tim would get to know the facts better before he makes a decision. I would love to sit down and have a nice talk with him, tell him what really happened. But perception is reality in the world, and sometimes they have to do what they have to do.”
Martin would only say the suspension was to end in the spring, adding “it remains confidential with the PGA Tour.” He said Daly wants to use 2009 to turn his career around.
“This is the last negative thing that’s been gnawing at him,” Martin said. “We didn’t make any requests for exemptions, and John wanted to be clear with them. He wanted to play in their tournaments, but he can’t. He didn’t want to let his fans down. He wanted them to know the truth.”
Daly said he hopes to play well enough to earn sponsor exemptions on the PGA Tour when the suspension is lifted.
“John’s New Year’s resolution is do everything he can to make positive things happen on the golf course,” Martin said. “I hope he can walk the walk. The talk sounds great. But it’s going to be him working hard and staying out of trouble, and having success on the golf course.”
Daly became an overnight sensation when he won the 1991 PGA Championship at Crooked Stick as the ninth alternate, introducing his powerful “grip it and rip it” style to golf. Four years later, he won the British Open at St. Andrews. But his career has been dragged down by two trips to alcohol rehab, four marriages, gambling losses and other off-course episodes that have made him a sideshow to some and a cult figure to others.
Asked why he was suspended, Daly pointed to four incidents during the year.
After a rain delay at Innisbrook during the Florida swing, he emerged from a hospitality tent with Gruden as his caddie for the final seven holes of the round, prompting a split with swing coach Butch Harmon.
“My whole goal for him was he’s got to show me golf is the most important thing in his life,” Harmon said in March. “And the most important thing in his life is getting drunk.”
While promoting a golf course in Missouri, Daly did a regional television interview wearing only blue jeans—no shirt, no shoes—while showing how to play one of the holes. Then at the Buick Open, during a pro-am that featured Kid Rock in overalls, Daly revved up the fans by hitting one drive off the top of a beer can.
He drew the most attention from the night in jail. Daly told the AP that his friends called police when they feared he had passed out, claiming they were unaware he sleeps with his eyes open when he’s had too much to drink. Daly was put in jail under a state law called “Assistance to Intoxicated Persons.”
“The picture didn’t help,” Daly said. “People think I got arrested when I didn’t get arrested. It is what it is. I’ve got to deal with it and go on. Whatever reason the tour has, maybe a positive will come out of this.”
CBS Sports analyst David Feherty, a recovering alcoholic, said after the North Carolina arrest he hoped Daly would get help.
“He’s one of the most generous and one of the kindest souls,” Feherty said. “The stories of his generosity to the people are legendary. The only person he has ever been unkind to is himself.”
Daly has played four times overseas since the PGA Tour suspended him, tying for 17th in the Hong Kong Open and missing the cut at all three tournaments he played in Australia. In the Australian Open, he lost his patience with a fan who put a camera in his face during the round, smashing the camera against a tree.
“This is the lowest I’ve ever been,” Daly said. “There’s always light with me. Right now, my home tour is probably Europe. And I love the European tour. I always have. But my home is the United States. That’s where I would rather play.”
Daly said the publicity cost him his endorsements. His only deals are with Focus Golf Systems, which signed a 15-year agreement in 2006 to sell his golf clubs and apparel in Wal-Mart stores; and Fly Emirates, part of a deal that will pay his travel expenses when he plays the Abu Dhabi Championship, Qatar Masters and Dubai Desert Classic in January.
“This has been the worst year,” he said in the New Year’s Eve interview. “One day left.”

source: sports.yahoo.com

The Chargers (9-8) won the overtime toss. Indy’s Darrell Reid called heads, but referee Ron Winter’s flip came up tails. Sproles sent the Chargers into the second round of the playoffs, either at Tennessee or Pittsburgh, by finishing off the only series of overtime with his TD run around left end against an exhausted defense for the Colts (12-5).
San Diego’s winning drive was aided by two defensive holding calls, the second against Tim Jennings on third-and-8. On the next play, Colts linebacker Clint Session was whistled for grabbing Sproles’ facemask. Sproles scored on the next play, shedding a defender at the 5-yard line.
“You know, when your number is called, you have to be ready,” said Sproles, who earlier in the game fumbled into the end zone, with the Colts recovering.
“Right after that fumble, it was still kind of in my mind,” Sproles said. “I wanted that TD back to make up for the fumble.”
Sproles’ TD run sent Qualcomm Stadium into bedlam, and he ran off the field with the game ball. Manning hung his head in disappointment.
“We played hard till the end, but those guys played even harder all the way through the game,” Colts safety Bob Sanders said.
It was San Diego’s fifth straight win, and the Chargers needed the previous four victories to secure the AFC West title with an 8-8 record. San Diego was the ninth team to enter the playoffs with an 8-8 record and became just the third to win its opener. The Chargers had gone 0-5 against teams that made the playoffs, including a 23-20 loss to the Colts here on Nov. 23.
Last season, the Chargers pulled off a 28-24 upset at Indianapolis in the divisional round after Philip Rivers and Tomlinson both went out with knee injuries.
This was the fourth time the teams met in two seasons, and the sixth in five years. The Chargers have won four of the six.
San Diego got its only sack at a key time, when Tim Dobbins dropped Manning at the Colts 1 on third down with 2 minutes left, forcing a punt and giving the Chargers the ball at the Indy 38.
Nate Kaeding kicked a 26-yard field goal with 31 seconds left to force overtime.
It was the 25th overtime game in the postseason, including one game in the AFL. The last overtime game in the playoffs was last season’s NFC title game, won by the New York Giants and Manning’s little brother, Eli, against Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers.
Still, Manning caught the Chargers napping on a 72-yard touchdown play that for a while seemed as if it was going to stand as the winner.
Facing third-and-5 from the Colts 28, Manning quickly lined up and took an immediate snap that caught cornerback Antonio Cromartie so flat-footed he was looking at the Chargers’ bench when receiver Reggie Wayne went speeding past him and safety Paul Oliver. Wayne caught Manning’s pass at the Chargers 45 and was gone for a 17-14 lead.
The Colts came up with two turnovers in the end zone. Sproles was hit at the 2-yard line and fumbled into the end zone late in the third quarter, with Raheem Brock recovering.
Rivers kept San Diego’s next drive alive with a 13-yard scramble followed by a 1-yard sneak on fourth down, but then overthrew Chris Chambers in double coverage and was intercepted in the end zone by Antoine Bethea.
The teams traded TDs early, with Indy’s Joseph Addai scoring on a 1-yard run late in the first quarter and Tomlinson scoring on a 3-yard run early in the second quarter, his last play of the game. The Colts went ahead 10-7 on Adam Vinatieri’s 43-yard field goal midway through the second period before Sproles’ 9-yard run just before halftime put the Chargers ahead 14-10.
Manning was 25-of-42 for 310 yards. Rivers was 20-of-36 for 216 yards, with one interception.
Tomlinson was hurt a week earlier in a 52-21 rout of Denver.
“From the first run, it was evident that I just didn’t have the burst,” said Tomlinson, who gained 14 yards on the game’s first play from scrimmage. “I couldn’t put my foot on the ground and get through the hole the way I wanted to. I went as long as I could. After the TD run, it was at the point where I felt like I was making it worse.”
Scifres had punts of 51 yards to the 10, 58 yards to the 15, 50 yards to the 3, 67 to the 5, 38 to the 9 and the 52 to the 1 with 2:41 to play.
“I think that their punter is the MVP of the game,” Colts running back Dominic Rhodes said. “He did a real good job of putting us deep in our territory, and their defense did a good job of keeping us there.”

Notes
Kaeding injured his groin when he slipped on the kickoff following Tomlinson’s touchdown. … San Diego TE Antonio Gates, playing on a sprained ankle, had eight catches for 87 yards, including consecutive 11-yard receptions on the tying drive in the closing seconds of regulation.