India cueing up for medals
By N.D. Prashant
SOME of the bigwigs of Indian cue sports landed in Doha, yesterday.
The star-studded 17-member strong contingent was led out of the terminal by none other than seven-time world billiards champion Geet Sethi.
Other renowned cueists who arrived were defending snooker doubles champion Yasin Merchant, world champion Pankaj Advani and the ever improving Manan Chandra.
"We have been doing well in the last two Asian Games. We are a bit nervous because at times we are expected to do things way beyond our potential," said Advani, who will be leading India's challenge in the billiards individual event.
For Advani, more than the opponent, it was the tight format of the billards at these Games that was a bit worrying.
"It's a very tight format for billiards. You can compare it to a 10 or 15-over cricket match. Right from the start you have to be at your best. We have been training as per this format, so hopefully things should go well," said Advani.
In the last Asian Games in Busan, India was overshadowed by Chinese cueists in the team final. However, this time they have come up with a strong and better prepared team.
"In the last Asian Games, the Chinese played a better game but I think our chances are good now. We have got youngsters like Aditya Mehta, Rupesh Shah and of course Yasin is also there. The team looks very good but again it's a very short format so it should be testing," said Pankaj, who will have the support of Ashok Shandilya in the singles.
Merchant is confident of putting up a good show in the snooker singles.
"This time the competition is tougher because we have the top seed Ding Junhai from China and also Marco Fu from Hong Kong-China. They are both in the top 30 of the professional ranks. So it's a tough call," said Yasin, who is looking forward to defending the title, that he won at the 2002 Busan Asian Games partnering with Rafat Habib.
This time round, Merchant will not be teaming up with Habib but he is sure that the title can be retained if he gets some support from Chandra.
"In the doubles, I have a very good partner in Manan, who is the reigning national champion and has done really well claiming a bronze in the World Amateur Championship at Jordan," said Merchant,
"So I think we have a decent chance. We had a camp at Bangalore that was a good preparatory session for us. I hope we can build on that good form here as well."
Veteran Geet Sethi, who had pocketed gold in the doubles at the 1998 Games and a bronze at the last Games, will be seen in action with Shandilya.
"I feel privileged as there is no bigger platform than this," said Sethi, who also credited the youngsters for carrying forward his legacy.
"Now we have so many youngsters who are on cue to become world beaters. That's a very good sign. I will be partnering Ashok in the billiards doubles like in Bangkok and hopefully we will do well."
With a mixture of youth and experience in the squad, one gets a feeling that India is all set to make an impact in Doha.
India’s shooters protest against ‘rude’ officials
By Kuldip Lal
INDIA'S top shooters have lodged a protest with Asian Games organisers over what they said was "rude and unhelpful" behaviour of officials at the Lusail ranges here.
"Some of the officials have been very rude and unhelpful at our training sessions," a team spokesman told Indian reporters.
"We have brought it to the notice of the organisers." Double Trap specialist Rajyavardhan Rathore, an Indian army colonel who won the country's lone medal at the Athens Olympics, said his stay in Doha so far had been uninspiring.
"Such Games are meant to be enjoyed but this is no fun at all," the 36-year-old said. "We are here to perform and get away as soon as we can.
"Sad but true, these are not good Games at all." Rathore, a medal hopeful here after winning the bronze at the World Cup finals in Spain and a gold at the Asian championships in Singapore, said the lack of local Qatari involvement has ruined the build-up to the Games.
"The spirit of international events like these are made by the volunteers and the audience, but this is not the case here," he said.
"The volunteers here are all paid workers from other countries. Frankly, their attitude is not very cheerful."
Rathore, however, stressed that the lacklustre atmosphere at the Games will not stop him or his compatriots from gunning for gold.
"We are all very keen to win. The competition will be tough but we are ready for the challenge," he said.
India, who won 16 shooting gold medals in the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in March, managed just two silvers at the previous Asiad in Busan, South Korea four years ago.
China have been so dominant at the Asian level that rivals usually aim to prevent a clean sweep, and it is unlikely to be any different in the Qatari capital.
The Chinese went to Busan hoping to win 18 of the 42 gold medals on offer. They returned with 27 despite good opposition from the two Koreas, Thailand and Kazakhstan.
India have set their sights on three shooting golds through rifle marksman Gagan Narang, world champion trap shooter Manavjit Sandhu and Rathore.
Narang hopes to make up for the absence of world number one team-mate Abhinav Bindra due to a back injury by adding an Asiad gold medal to his Commonwealth Games and World Cup titles.
The Double Trap event promises to be a thriller with world number two Hu Binyuan of China clashing against the third-ranked Rathore.
India's Samaresh Jung, who was voted the athlete of the Commonwealth Games after a haul of five golds, a silver and a bronze, will be delighted to finish on the podium in the pistol events.
Jung did not even qualify for the World Cup in Spain in October where Tan Zonghang of China finished fifth, team-mate Wei Pang eighth and Jakkrit Panichpatikum of Thailand 10th in the 10m Air Pistol event. (AFP)
Murofushi pulls out
DOHA: Olympic hammer champion Koji Murofushi of Japan pulled out of the Asian Games yesterday with a calf muscle injury, dealing another blow to the track and field competition.
“Murofushi has suffered a partial tear of a calf muscle and will not defend the Asian Games titles he won in 1998 in Bangkok and four years later in Busan,” the Japan Association of Athletics Federations (JAAF) said.
On Thursday, two-time 3000 metres steeplechase world champion Saif Saaeed Shaheen pulled out of the Games with an Achilles injury, depriving the event of one of its biggest stars.
JAAF revealed that Murofushi had been trying to recover from the injury for some time without success.
“He felt a strange sensation in his right calf in the Super Track and Field event on September 24,” said the JAAF.
“However, he continued training in the United States at his own discretion but the symptom has not got better.
“When he came back to Japan on November 24 he went to see a doctor and according to the diagnosis he has partially torn right calf muscles and required three weeks of treatment.” Keiske Sawaki, the Japanese athletic team leader, said that Murofushi had wanted to compete.
“Murofushi explained the situation on November 24 as a man of responsibility as he seems he is.
“He appears to have thought of going out of his way to compete. However he trusted the athletics federation as to whether he would compete but they have decided to pull him out.” Murofushi, whose father Shigenobu won the Asian title five times and was called the ‘Iron Man of Asia’, was awarded the Olympic title despite finishing second behind Adrian Annus in Athens.
The Hungarian was later disqualified for rejecting a second dope test.
It was the first world-class gold in a trophy cabinet already containing world championship medals - the 2001 silver and the 2003 bronze - along with his two Asian Games golds.
The family has athletics in the blood. His daughter with his ex-wife, herself a Romanian Olympic javelin thrower, will compete in Doha. (AFP)
Blatter defends decision to allow Iran to play at Games
THE president of football's world controlling body FIFA Sepp Blatter yesterday defended his organisation's decision to allow Iran to participate in the Asian Games even though the Iranian football federation is suspended from FIFA.
"We are not the police, but if we are informed by the federation we have to do something. That is why we tried to find a solution.
"We did not want to penalise the players, who were already on their way to play in this competition," he said at a press conference in Doha, where he attended the opening ceremony of the 15th Asian Games.
"We gave them a roadmap how to reach the situation that they are no longer suspended from the organisation and it is up to them to follow this. They have a few days to do so. We do not want them not to play football.
"They have already started implementing this roadmap that we gave them, so we said that the suspension would be temporarily lifted to allow them to play."
Asked if Iran could still be thrown out of the competition if they failed to implement the changes agreed with FIFA, Blatter said that would not happen. "They are currently with us in Zurich and working things out. I am sure that everything will be in place, so Iran can play at these Games."
Blatter confirmed that he would be standing for re-election as FIFA president next year. "I told the FIFA congress earlier this year that if they wanted me to, I would like to continue my work.
"My work is not yet finished. Next year we want to introduce a programme of football's social responsibility. In that, we will be working closely with other organisations like the UN and their agencies, like UNICEF and UNESCO."
He said that it was too early to say how many World Cup places Asia would have at the next finals.
"We have to be fair, but we also have to take other matters into consideration. "The World Cup pays for all the football development that goes on and we need to defend the quality of this competition to make sure that we can continue with football development." Blatter also told the conference that he was confident that the Gulf region could host the World Cup.
"The next World Cup is in South Africa, the one after that will be in South America. The bidding for the next one after that has not yet started, but I believe that the region can quite easily stage the World Cup."
Blatter also ruled out a China bid to host the 2014 World Cup, saying the Chinese should look at least four years down the road to 2018.
Blatter said the 2014 World Cup would go to South America under the current system of rotating the competition between continents.
"The 2002 tournament was in Asia, followed by Europe in 2006 and South Africa will be in 2010," Blatter told a news conference here.
"So 2014 will go to South America and the big contender there, although it has not yet been decided, is naturally Brazil."
Chinese state media said yesterday that Beijing, hosting the Olympics in 2008, wanted to attract other world tournaments including the World Cup in 2014. "Following the 2008 Beijing Olympics, our plan is to apply to host the 2011 World Swimming Championships and the 2014 World Cup," the Beijing Times quoted Sun Kanglin, head of the Beijing Sports Bureau as saying. The host country for 2014 will be announced at the FIFA Congress in 2008.
"For 2018, under the system of rotation of the World Cup, we can say that the bid is open and a bid by China would be welcome," said Blatter.
China took part in the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea for the first time, but faired poorly and then failed to qualify for the 2006 edition in Germany. (Agencies)
Australians could join Asian Games: Blatter
AUSTRALIA’S Socceroos, voted Asian team of the year this week, could be admitted to the Asian Games in the future along with other Austalian sports federations, FIFA President Sepp Blatter said yesterday.
For the time being Australian competitors are excluded from the Asiad because their country’s national Olympic committee is outside the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).
Australia’s national Olympic committee is part of Oceania.
The OCA, grouping 45 Asian Olympic committees, oversees the Asian Games.
However, individual Asian sports federations actually organise events at the Games for their member nations and the Australian football federation is now a member of the Asian Football Confederaton (AFC), which is in charge of Asiad football.
Australia broke ranks earlier this year with Oceania to join the AFC. About half a dozen other Australian sports governing bodies have also split with Oceania and have joined pan-Asian federations.
Blatter said they could all be part of the Asian Games if an open door policy is adopted in future.
“I think (the OCA) will open it in the future to all members of associations ... then I am sure (Australia) will be admitted to all the sports,” Blatter told a news conference here on the opening day of the December 1-15 Doha Asian Games.
The Socceroos were voted Asian team of the year after upstaging the rest of Asia by making the knockouts of the World Cup in Germany.
They also successfully negotiated the Asian Cup qualifying rounds, becoming the first country to make the finals co-hosted by Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam in July next year. (AFP)
India unfazed by Rasquinha’s shocking ouster
 By Kuldip Lal
FORMER champions India begin their Asian Games field hockey campaign on Monday amid a growing row over the controversial last-minute sacking of star midfielder Viren Rasquinha.
Indian hockey selectors removed the 26-year-old from the 16-man squad a day before the team's departure for Doha, citing fitness concerns despite the player showing no visible injury.
Rasquinha, who enjoyed the support of coach Vasudevan Bhaskaran, lashed out at the selectors for leaving him out in the cold, saying he "had lost all respect for them."
"Both the coach and some officials told me I deserved to be in the team but they could not give me any reason why I had been dropped after being picked," Rasquinha informed by e-mail from Mumbai.
"I want to know why I was dropped. There were no fitness worries. In fact I was one of the fittest players in the team as the records will show.
"The selectors are all former Olympians, distinguished and respected, but I am sorry to say that I have lost all respect for them," said the veteran of 200 internationals.
Bhaskaran, faced with the task of mounting a strong challenge at the Asiad with a young team, conceded it was "unfortunate" that Rasquinha had been left at home.
"But only 16 players can be picked and the selectors must have felt he was not fit," said Bhaskaran, who was captain when India won the last of its eight Olympic titles at the western-boycotted Moscow Games in 1980.
The coach, however, was confident India would perform creditably in Doha.
"We have good players in the side who can step in and perform well," he said.
"There are a lot of expectations from us at home and we won't let our fans down.
"The target is to make the final so that we can a direct entry into the Beijing Olympics," said Bhaskaran.
Earlier, only the Asian Games winners made it directly to the Olympics but the new qualification rules introduced this year has given an additional place to the silver-medallists.
India's unhindered supremacy in world hockey till the 1960s is all but forgotten in the wake of crushing setbacks at the international level — the 1998 Asian Games title being an exception to the otherwise dismal scenario.
India finished 11th out of 12 at this year's World Cup in Monchengladbach, Germany, prompting a disgusted Bhaskaran to plead for a psychologist to help his players out of their defeatist mindset.
The players never made it to the shrink's couch but the selectors dropped seasoned striker Gagan Ajit Singh and midfielders Vikram Pillay and Ignace Tirkey for the Asian Games before showing Rasquinha the door.
India, who finished second behind South Korea in the Busan Asiad four years ago, are placed in Group B with the Koreans, China, Bangladesh and Oman.
Group A comprises Pakistan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan with the top two teams in each group advancing to the semi-finals.
With the Koreans expected to top their group, India must defeat a fast-improving Chinese team under their Korean coach Kim Sang-Ryul to keep their hopes alive.
"There will be no easy matches but we are ready for any team," said Bhaskaran.
"This is a very important tournament for us."
India take on Bangladesh in their first match on Monday. (AFP)
Japan aiming to restore judo pride
JAPAN'S elite of judo are hoping to use the Asian Games for patching up their pride after their shock defeat at the recent world team championships.
But their Asian rivals, particularly from South Korea and China, have all the credentials to give them a hard time as a curtain-raiser to the Beijing Olympics two years from now.
Japan, who have usually won most titles at major judo events, failed to defend their world team titles in Paris last September, dealing a blow to their Olympic preparations after hauling a record eight gold medals at Athens 2004.
"Silver and bronze don't mean anything. We all have trained ourselves to snatch gold medals," Japanese men's coach Hitoshi Saito said during an open workout here.
Nobutoshi Hikage, the women's head coach, said his squad would aim to "medal in all categories." Satoshi Ishii, who became the youngest to win the men's all-weight national title last April at the age of 19 years, said: "I will fight to win however clumsy I may look." He will fight in the under-100kg light heavyweight.
Yasuyuki Muneta, the 2003 over-100kg heavyweight champion, will defend his Asian Games title as he leads the Japanese men's squad which also includes 2005 world 90kg middleweight champion Hiroshi Izumi.
"I won last time on spur of the moment. Now I feel like winning if I stick to my way of judo," Muneta said here.
Izumi is braced for a possible showdown with South Korean rival Hwang Hee-Tae, the 2003 world champion who won the prestigious Paris tournament this year. They drew at the world team championships.
"Both Hwang and myself are proud and resolved to win. I must not be crushed by the pressure," the 24-year-old Izumi said before coming to Doha.
In Paris, the men's team bowed to hosts France 2-4 in the second round and finished fifth after narrowly losing to South Korea in the consolation round. Georgia beat Russia in the men's final.
Kazuro Yoshimura, head of competitive development at the All-Japan Judo Federation, expected "tough battles" ahead because of South Korea as well as Central Asia.
"If we lose in Asia, we can hardly beat the world," he said.
Since joining the Asian Games family in 1994, Central Asian nations have risen in judo with Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan each picking up one silver and three bronzes in Busan.
South Korean judo chiefs are going for three gold medals in Doha when the competition starts today.
The South Korean men also include Olympic lightweight (73kg) champion Lee Won-Hee and Olympic light-heavyweight (under-100kg) silver medallist Jang Sung-Ho.
Iran's Arash Miresmaeli, who won the 2001 and 2003 world featherweight (66kg) titles and boycotted the Athens Olympics to avoid fighting an Israeli, tests the tatami after settling for bronze at the 2005 worlds.
Japan have dominated men's Asian Games judo after finishing second to South Korea in 1986 when the sport made its Asiad debut. They grabbed five golds in Busan against two for South Korea and one for Iran.
In the women's game, China, Japan, South Korea have battled for supremacy on Asiad tatamis. China won three golds in Busan against two each for South Korea and Japan. (AFP)
India likely to rule in chess
INDIA is expected to dominate in chess, which forms part of the Asian Games for the first time.
The top seeds in both men’s and women’s sections are from India and that despite World No. 2 Viswanathan Anand not coming for the Games. Krishnan Sasikiran and Pentyala Harikrishna with 2,675 and 2,674 elo points are the top stars, with former FIDE World champion Rustam Kasimdhzanov of Uzbekistan the next in line.
Among women, Koneru Humpy, the world’s No. 1 girl (under 20) is also the women’s world No. 2 and will start as favourite for women’s gold, where her main rival could be Zhu Chen, a former Chinese World Cup winner, who now plays for Qatar, having married Qatari grandmaster Mohammed Al-Modiakhi.
The chess competition will have three gold medals, with one each in men’s and women’s rapid events to be fought over nine rounds and a mixed team event where teams will have two men and one woman. Sasikiran has good memories of Doha because he won the individual Asian chess championship here in 2003, while Harikrishna, who has won two international tournaments this year, is the 2004 world junior champion and considered a great talent.
Uzbek grandmaster Rustam Kasimdzhanov this year stunned all by beating World No. 2 Anand in the final of the Corsica Masters. China’s stars will be Bu Xiangzhi, once the world’s youngest Grandmaster, and the 19-year-old Yue Wang who was the driving force behind the Chinese success at the 2006 Chess Olympiad.
Chess makes its first appearance at the Asian Games. In rapid chess events players start their games with 25 minutes each on the clock and then they receive 10 additional seconds for every move they make. In the team event, it will be classical chess with two hours for first 40 moves for each player and then one hour to complete the rest of the game. (IANS)
Daegu pledges big to athletes
THE flagging sport of athletics would receive another welcome shot in the arm should the South Korean city of Daegu be named as host of the 2011 world championships, bid organisers said yesterday.
Daegu is bidding against the Australian city of Brisbane, Moscow, Valencia in Spain, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates and the United States to host the biannual nine-day athletics extravaganza.
And Yoo Chong-Ha, the president of the Daegu bid committee, believes athletics’ governing body, the IAAF, could only profit from handing the city the chance to host the worlds, which attracts more than 3,000 top-class athletes competing in 46 disciplines.
“World championships have until now always been held in Europe except from once in Tokyo and once in Edmonton, Canada,” Yoo told AFP on the sidelines of the Asian Games here.
“For world athletics to grow, the IAAF must look outside Europe. The sport is waning and it has reached the point where it must expand outside traditional borders.
“The 2007 worlds will be in Osaka, and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. If Daegu were to host the 2011 worlds, it would be a good one-two-three punch for igniting the flame of sport in Asia, a region which makes up two-thirds of the world population.
“The future of the IAAF lies in children. For that reason and for athletics not only to survive but to prosper, the IAAF must take the seed out of Europe and plant it in Asia.” Daegu in September successfully hosted an international invitational athletics meeting, boosting its chances of winning what is considered a close-run bidding process between the Korean city, Brisbane and Moscow.
IAAF vice president Amadeo Francis said at the time the organisation also owed a debt of gratitude to South Korean member Rocky Park for dropping a bid for the 2007 championships to help ensure the meeting went to Osaka.
The IAAF’s international technical officer Cesar Moreno Bravo, also speaking in September, said Daegu’s experience and facilities made them favourite to win the vote.
“The two strongest bids are Daegu and Brisbane and Daegu’s chances are very good,” Bravo said at the time.
“Its stadium is not just impressive but very modern and it has the best facilities for the athletes. It is building a village for the athletes close to the stadium and that is a huge advantage.
“Daegu is bidding for the championships for the first time and for this city to host them will benefit not just Daegu or even Korea but the whole of Asia.” South Korea hosted the Asian Games in Seoul in 1986 and the summer Olympics in 1988 and co-hosted the football World Cup in 2002. Its alpine resort of Pyeongchang is bidding to host the 2014 winter Olympics.
Daegu purpose built a 65,000-seater stadium for the World Cup and successfully staged two matches in it. “We already have the infrastructure. We have plans to build a new 9,000-room village for athletes and media,” said Yoo, a former foreign minister and UN ambassador.
The host city of the 2011 championships will be decided by 28 IAAF council members meeting in Mombasa, Kenya in March 27, 2007. The IAAF will also name the host city for the 2013 world championships at the Mombasa meeting.
“Brisbane and Moscow are our main rivals but the stakes are two,” said Yoo.The 2009 world championships will be in Berlin. (AFP)
Struggling women battle to avoid being top flops
HAPLESS Jordan, Thailand and Vietnam conceded 25 goals between them in their Asian Games women’s football openers and now face a three-way battle to avoid the unwanted title of top of the flops.
Jordan, with a batch of players who wear white headscarfs and long white socks, are favourites to take the mantle after shipping 13 goals against Japan.
It could have been worse.
Japan had three goals disallowed while two shots came off the woodwork.
Had those attempts been successful, Jordan would have suffered the heaviest defeat in the history of the Asian Games.
As it was, the record remains the 16-0 winning margin of China over India in 1998.
“Let’s be realistic,” said Jordan coach Issa al-Turk. “It was like a child competing against a big man.” Jordan’s women are new to the international scene.
The only Arab team in the competition here, Jordan won the West Asian title and finished third in the Asian Indoor Championships last year before becoming the first Arab team to qualify for the Asian U-19 Women’s Championship finals earlier this year.
But all that counted for nothing here with Mizuho Sakaguchi, with four goals, and Homare Sawa, with a hat-trick, being particularly severe. “We are determined to get better. There are only seven women’s teams in Jordan and we only have a national team, not a national under-19 team or under-16 team,” added al Turk.
“A lot of the players were born after 1989. We didn’t have a lot of time to select players.” Asian champions China and defending Asian Games gold medallists North Korea were also in ruthless mood.
China crushed Thailand 7-0 with North Korea seeing off Vietnam 5-0.
The Thais are looking on the bright side.
“We gained more than we lost,” said Thai skipper Suphaphon Kaeobaen.
“If a world class team like China can score only four goals from open play then we can be happy.” Coach Chana Yodprang also found crumbs of comfort.
“We know we are no match for China,” said Chana. “So seven goals is acceptable.” Despite the imbalance in ability and talent in Asia, there is plenty of material to work on.
The tournament features two 15-year-olds, Jordan’s Shanaza Jebreen and South Korea’s Ji So Yun who is feeling a little homesick.
“I miss being with my friends back home and I wish I was with them,” said Ji. “But I also love to play football.” (AFP)
Filipinos hope for maiden swimming gold
Swimmer Miguel Molina hopes to give the Philippines its first medal when action kicks off in the 15th Asian Games today.
Fourteen gold medals will be at stake in five disciplines, including six in swimming where five other Filipino bets are entered.
Twenty-nine other athletes go to battle in nine fronts, including judo and shooting which stake four gold medals. The Filipinos are actually in the hunt for only seven golds, five in swimming and one each in judo and shooting.
Judoka Tomohiko Hishani opens his bid in the +100-kilogram category when he takes on Makhmadamin Khonov of Tajikistan.
A victory would advance Hishani to the quarterfinal where he will face Yeldos Ikhsanagaliyev of Kazakhstan.
The women's trap team, composed of Gay Corral, Veneranda Garcia and Anna Maria Gana, will vie for the other gold outside of swimming.
The men's trap squad, made up of Asiad bronze medallist Jethro Dionisio, Jaime Recio and Eric Ang, will also see action in the qualifying phase at the Luisail shooting complex.
All eyes, however, would be on Molina who will compete in the 400-meter individual medley at the Hamad Aquatic Center.
Winner of three gold medals in the last Southeast Asian Games, Molina submitted the third fastest qualifying time behind two Japanese swimmers.
"I'll do my best to win a medal," said Molina, conscious of the high-caliber competition.
Molina, who trains in Berkley, California, is expected to top the first heat and advance into the evening final, but would be hard-pressed to threaten Japanese Shinya Taniguchi and Hidemasa Sano who are nearly 10 seconds faster.
Curiously, Ratapong Sirisanont of Thailand, the guy who edged Molina for the gold in the SEA Games, is not around.
Also absent in the starting list are the vaunted Chinese, particularly Asian champion Tao Zhao.
The rest of the swimming squad are given little chance against world-class rivals.
Erica Totten, a Fil-American living in Florida, sees action in the women's 100-meter butterfly and 200-meter freestyle.
James Walsh of Pensacola, Florida and Ernest Lorenzo Dee of Naga City compete in the first heat of the men's 200-metre butterfly.
Giorgina Gandionco, a SEAG bronze medallist, hopes to land a berth in the final of the women's 200-meter freestyle while Denjylie Cordero swims the women's 50-metre breastroke.
The swimming heats will be held at 10 a.m. with the finals set 6 p.m. on the same day.
The swimmers, handled by former star Akiko Thomson, skipped the First Friday mass to resume its training.
A brief shower, a rare occurrence here, sent athletes scampering for cover at the village, but 80 Filipino athletes and officials converged at the Recreation Center to hear mass officiated by Fr. Tom Veneracion.
"You have to seek the intercession of the Good Lord not really to bring us medals but to perform well and make the country proud," said Fr. Veneracion in his homily.
Among those who attended were members of the seven-man boxing team that will also see action today.
The boxing draw will be held at 10 a.m., four hours before the actual competition.
Despite the feast prepared at the 24-hour dining area, the boxers kept their weights in check by regularly reporting at the medical unit.
Over at Al-Dana Chess Club, site of the chess competition, International Masters Ronald Dableo and Darwin Laylo and Jedara Docena swing into action at the start of the individual rapid event.
Dableo and Laylo are eyeing to complete their grandmaster norms.
Roel Ramirez, the country's lone entry in gymnastics, tries to qualify at the Aspire indoor hall while Ernesto Ebuen takes on Brunei's Bu Hijji Hamas of Brunei in table tennis at the Al Arabi Sports Club.
Also seeing action are members of the beach volleyball and soft tennis teams.
Malaysia’s king-to-be pulls out
MALAYSIA'S Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin pulled out of the equestrian event of the Asian Games as he will ascend the throne on Dec 13.
"He was supposed to come but had to withdraw because he will be coronated on Dec 13," Abdullah Sani Karim, chef-de-mission of the delegation, told Xinhua.
Abidin, 44, was set to show up for the endurance event, but the royal ceremony requesting his presence forced him to give a go-by to the quadrennial games.
Thus, four other riders —Datuk Abdullah Taib, Muhammed Izry Razaly, Norlaily Buniyamin and Che Muhammed Apandi Muhammad — who were selected to represent Malaysia for the team event, would also give it a miss, said Datuk Jamaludin Jarjis, president of the Equestrian Association of Malaysia.
They needed to concentrate on the Sultan's Cup, as it would be used as the yardstick to enable Malaysia to host the World Show Jumping Championships in 2008, said Jarjis.
India left nameless at Games
India's field hockey men will be short of team shirts at the Asian Games after an initial batch of uniforms lost their colour at the laundry in the athletes village.
When the blue shirts were returned to the squad by the cleaners, not only had the colour dimmed but the players' names and numbers were barely visible.
Bemused team officials blamed the suppliers, a leading US sportswear giant, and immediately asked for replacement shirts to be sent from home.
"I can't say if the cleaners at the village here are very enthusiastic or we were given inferior clothing," a team spokesman said.
"But the boys are left with just one playing shirt which usually gets soaked in sweat within the first 15 minutes. Hopefully we will get a new batch soon." India take on Bangladesh in their first match on Monday. (AFP)
Big cash incentives for Chinese swimmers
CHINESE swimmers are being tempted with cash bonuses of up to $25,000 to perform well at the Asian Games, as the country's sports rulers nurture talent ahead of the Beijing Olympics.
"I hope all the swimmers can create their best results here," said Zhang Yadong, head coach of the Chinese swimming team.
"If they achieve good results, they will get a bonus, which is a new incentive policy of the swimming team."
The Xinhua news agency said setting a new world record would be rewarded with 200,000 yuan ($25,000), a personal best will get 100,000 yuan while a podium finish is worth at least 10,000. It is big money for a Chinese citizen.
According to China's National Bureau of Statistics, the highest average monthly income in the country is only 1,878 yuan — in booming Beijing, the capital.
"We did not set a goal for the Asian Games but still, we would like to urge our athletes, both new and experienced to have great results," Zhang was quoted as saying. "So if they only have podium finish without a best result, they will not get good return." |
