BEIJING: The Olympics were struck by tragedy and controversy on Saturday as the brutal murder of an American tourist and angry threats by Georgia to quit the Games overshadowed the first full day of action. China’’s capture of two gold medals rapidly lost some of its significance as the huge American squad mourned the father-in-law of men’’s volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon who was stabbed to death while out sightseeing. Todd Bachman was attacked as he visited the Drum Tower, a popular tourist site in the centre of the city. The assailant, a 47-year-old man from eastern China, then jumped to his death off the second storey of the monument. Lang Ping, the coach of the US women’’s volleyball team, said players were stunned when they heard of the death just before their opening win over Japan. “We were shocked,” said the coach. “Most of the players called their parents. I told them to be strong.” The bloody turmoil unfolding in the troubled, breakaway region of South Ossetia, meanwhile, came perilously close to sparking a walkout from the Games by Georgia’’s 35-strong squad in protest at Russia’’s role in the fighting. Crisis was only averted when Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili told the squad to stay where they were and take out their anger and frustration in the sporting arenas of the Chinese capital instead. “President Saakashvili decided that the Georgian Olympic delegation would remain in Beijing,” press spokesman Guiorgui Tchanishvili told media. “We are going to continue the competition with more passion and determination.” Russia and Georgia will come to face-to-face at the Olympics on Wednesday when they clash in a women’’s beach volleyball match. “We are going to play this match,” added Tchanishvili. “We are going to play with more passion against all countries including Russia.”
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Pakistan News
COLOMBO: Kumar Sangakkara cracked a solid unbeaten 107 to help Sri Lanka gain a slender advantage over injury-hit India in the crucial third and final Test here on Saturday.The left-hander was involved in two valuable partnerships as the hosts reached 251-6 in their first innings at stumps on the second day in reply to India’’s 249. Prasanna Jayawardene was unbeaten on one.Sangakkara put on 95 for the third wicket with nightwatchman Chaminda Vaas (47) and 60 for the fifth with Thilan Samaraweera (35) on an absorbing day of cricket.Sangakkara rarely erred in shot selection during his long innings, driving, cutting and pulling remarkably well on the way to his 17th hundred in 76 Tests. He has so far struck 11 fours in his 226-ball knock.India struck twice in the final session just when it looked as though Sri Lanka were on course for a big lead, with left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan having Samaraweera caught behind and Anil Kumble trapping Tillakaratne Dilshan (23) leg-before.The series is tied at 1-1, with Sri Lanka winning the opening Test by an innings and 239 runs and India clinching a 170-run victory in the second match.India were a paceman short in the last session as Ishant Sharma walked off the field after falling on his follow-through. India’’s physio Nitin Patel said the fast bowler felt pain after the fall and the picture would be clearer on Sunday morning. Venkatsai Laxman was off the field throughout the day after twisting his ankle during practice before the day’’s play and Sachin Tendulkar injured his left elbow while attempting a catch in the afternoon.India had another injury scare when wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel was hit on the face while collecting a delivery from leg-spinner Kumble. He, however, continued to keep wicket.The tourists, who grabbed just one wicket in the morning, bounced back in the second session when off-spinner Harbhajan Singh removed a well set Vaas and in-form captain Mahela Jayawardene in successive overs. Vaas frustrated India for more than a session with a fighting knock, hitting nine fours before uppishly driving Harbhajan straight to Virender Sehwag in the covers.Vaas missed a rare double of 3,000 runs and 300 wickets in Test cricket by just two runs. He now has 2,998 runs and 347 wickets in 107 matches. He had survived twice on 47 before falling on the same score.
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Peshawar, Aug 9 (DPA) Fourteen security personnel were killed Saturday in two separate pro-Taliban militant attacks in northwest Pakistan, officials said.
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ISLAMABAD: At a time of acute wheat and flour shortages in the country, thousands of wheat bags seized by law enforcement authorities are lying open i
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ISLAMABAD: President Pervez Musharraf on Saturday said that he would decide whether to face impeachment or not after reviewing the details of the char
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IslamabadThe third stage of the Hand Hygiene Project (HHP) will be launched at the MCH Training Centre of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sc
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Internal war of words is raging the floors of Military establishment of Pakistan. 20% of Pakistan’s Military is allied to former ISI chief and current Pakistan’s army chief General Ashfaq Kiyani. Another 15% is ardent followers Musharraf. The rest 65% are sort of neutral.
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Pakistan News
LONDON: The ICC has denied that England is being sounded out as an alternative venue for the Champions Trophy if Pakistan is deemed unsafe for the tournament. It was reported that at least one Test ground had been approached as a potential venue, but an ICC spokesman told media that was not the case. “England is not being lined up,” he said. “Pakistan is the confirmed venue and our preparations are moving ahead on that basis. “Members of the task team will head there this week to see for themselves the measures in place and we look forward to a great tournament with 15 matches involving the world’’s top eight teams in cricket’’s second major.” An ICC task force is set to arrive in Pakistan on Sunday (August 10) for a three-day visit, and Sri Lanka is understood to be the first stand-by venue if the tournament is moved, while South Africa is another possibility. However, officials at Edgbaston have been asked by the ECB if they”d be interested in staging matches. “We were asked by Giles [Clarke, the ECB chairman] if we would be interested in hosting Champions Trophy games,” Warwickshire chief executive, Colin Povey, told the foreign newspaper. “All we”ve said is that we would, in principle, be keen to do so. I understand a number of other Test match grounds have also been approached.
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KARACHI: Businessmen criticised the government for unceremonious retirement of former Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Abdullah Yousaf when he
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ISLAMABAD - Pakistan has decided to import 300,000 tonnes of urea from Saudi Arabia and provide maximum subsidy on fertiliser for maintaining prices at the current level aimed at avoiding the impact of fertiliser shortage on agricultural output.
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