London 2012 Chairman sees enthusiasm of athletes on forthcoming Games - Xinhua News Agency
FRANKFURT, May 31 (Xinhua) -- The London 2012 Chairman Thursday said the levels of efforts and enthusiasm among elite athletes to compete at the London 2012 Olympic Games were among the highest he had seen.
He made the remarks at a news conference here with Thomas Bach, German National Olympic Committee President and International Olympic Committe vice president. Bach announced the selection of the first athletes to represent Germany at the London 2012 Games.
Coe said the interest and desire to participate at the London Olympic Games was sky high. The triathletes in Tokyo, runners in rabat, swimmers in Los Angeles and gymnasts in Beijing have an unprecedented appetite among elite level competitors around the world to get to London, he said.
Bach expects an exciting and inspiring atmosphere and brilliant games in London. "On the sport side they will be the stage for the toughest Olympic competition ever," he said.
China and the U.S. will compete for the first place in the medal tally in London Olympics, probably followed by Russia in the third place, Bach predicted. He also added that the U.K., which is the host country of the Games, will probably take the fourth place in the medal tally.
There will be fierce competition for the fifth place, he said.
The news conference was attended by a popular German Olympic gold medalist fencer, Britta Heidemann who told Xinhua that she will try to secure a medal in London, pointing to strong competition from her Chinese and French competitors.
Coe said the Torch Relay is building momentum and excitement is continuing to increase in the countdown to the Games.
"We are on track to provide a memorable welcome that will inspire the athlete and the world," he added.
The England team welcomed fans to the Vauxhall BBQ on Wednesday - FA.com
The England team welcomed fans to the Vauxhall BBQ on Wednesday
On Wednesday evening, following their afternoon on the golf course with journalists and members of the media, the Three Lions ended a relaxing day at the team hotel in Hertfordshire at the Vauxhall England BBQ.
The informal event organised by The FA and Vauxhall, a week before the team departs for Euro 2012, brought together coaching staff and players, along with sponsors, fans, competition winners and selected members of the media, as they prepared for the meeting with Belgium.
"We've talked about The FA and England being a more inclusive, more confident organisation, good tourists and so on," said FA Chairman David Bernstein at the BBQ.
"Today epitomises that. It has been fantastic to see everyone together, the media, the sponsors and others with the players. It's been relaxed. A fabulous day."
Duncan Aldred, Managing Director of England Team Sponsor Vauxhall added: "Best wishes to the whole team. We're all fans, so come on Engalnd and let's have a great tournament."
Check out the video above for a behind the scenes look at the BBQ...
England take on Belgium on Saturday in front of a sell-out crowd at Wembley Stadium giving them a perfect send-off to Euro 2012. For fans not able to be at the game, you can watch it live on ITV1 or follow our updates right here on TheFA.com or via @thefadotcom on Twitter.
RFU Championship final: London Welsh 29-20 Cornish Pirates - BBC News
London Welsh sealed the Championship title and a chance of securing a Premiership place after beating Cornish Pirates 66-41 over two legs.
Welsh are now expected to take legal action over the Rugby Football Union's ruling that they are not eligible for promotion to the top flight.
Matt Evans went over for Pirates but Alex Davies' fifth penalty put Welsh ahead before Hudson Tonga'uiha's try.
Ryan Storer reduced the deficit but Jack Moates rounded off Welsh's win.
An RFU report said the Exiles had not achieved the minimum standards criteria to go up but the Richmond-based side are expeted to explore "all possible avenues" to gain promotion after seeing off Pirates in the final.
Having proposed to play their matches next season at Oxford United's Kassam Stadium, where the second leg of the final was played, an RFU statement said that not having primacy of tenure at their chosen ground was one of "various failures" in Welsh's promotion bid.
Three Premiership sides share grounds with football clubs; London Irish with Reading, London Wasps with Wycombe and Saracens with Watford, while Sale will share with Super League side Salford City Reds next season.
On Wednesday club president John Dawes said chairman Bleddyn Phillips would take the "ultimate" action to ensure Welsh do go up .
Having won at Pirates 37-21 last week , Welsh fought back from a seven-point deficit which threatened their first-leg advantage, to secure the Championship title having finished the regular season in fourth place.
Aaron Penberthy's drop goal had put Pirates ahead, Alex Davies then levelled for Welsh before Rob Cook's penalty and a second from Davies made it 6-6.
Evans gave Pirates a clear lead with the opening try of the match, picking up on a loose ball after Cook's punt forward bounced into open space deep in the Exiles' half.
Cook then added the extras before Davies failed with a penalty attempt on the stroke of half-time.
The Exiles fly-half was successful with his next two attempts with the boot after the break, closing the gap to one point and putting the hosts nine points ahead on aggregate.
Davies added a fifth penalty before Tonga'uiha, who had scored in the first leg, broke through the Pirates defence to touch down and Davies then added his first of two conversions.
Pirates responded with a consolation try as replacement prop Ryan Storer forced his way over after a scramble on the line before Cook added the extras.
But Welsh were not yet done as a fine move saw Ed Jackson feed the ball to Jack Moates, who crossed over to add the gloss to their victory.
LINE-UPS
London Welsh: A. Davies, Ajuwa, J. Lewis, Tonga'uiha, Scott, Ross, R. Lewis, Lahiff, George, Tideswell, Mills, Corker, Beach, Denbee, Jackson.
Replacements: Ma'asi, Moss, Bateman, Purdy, Russell, Moates, Jewell.
Cornish Pirates: Cook, Evans, Pointer, Locke, D. Doherty, Penberthy, Cattle, Rimmer, Ward, Paver, McGolone, Nimmo, D. Ewers, Burgess, Maidment.
Replacements: Storer, Elloway, Myerscough, Marriott, Kebsel, Cooper, McAtee.
Referee: David Rose (RFU)
GM's Vauxhall announces new Astra at UK plant - Yahoo Finance
LONDON (AP) -- General Motors' Vauxhall plant in northern England will build the company's top-selling Astra vehicles, the automaker said Thursday — a relief for U.K. politicians who had lobbied its American owner to keep the plant open.
The announcement comes after workers at the Ellesmere Port plant, near Liverpool, overwhelmingly backed a job deal which turned the factory into a 24-hour-a-day operation, a key cost-cutting measure pursued by parent company GM Europe.
GM Europe lost $700 million in 2011 and has been struggling to turn around its Opel and Vauxhall brands. It had been feared the company would close the Ellesmere Port facility in favor of consolidating production elsewhere — such as its headquarters in Ruesselsheim in Germany or Gliwice in Poland.
In a separate announcement, Opel said that the Ruesselsheim plant would switch to producing other models.
GM's announcement — which comes with a 125 million pound (nearly $200 million) investment and 700 extra jobs — is a break for leaders such as British Business Secretary Vince Cable, who fought to keep the British plant open.
Prime Minister David Cameron, speaking from the northern city of Manchester, called the decision "a fantastic vote of confidence."
"The U.K. government gave this its full backing. The unions supported the necessary changes. The workforce has responded magnificently. It is a British success story," he said.
Cable, who at one point traveled to the U.S. to plead the plant's case, told BBC television that no financial inducements were offered to General Motors Corp. to keep the U.K. facility open, saying the move underlined that Britain is "a good business environment for the motor industry."
Production of the new car is due to begin in 2015, with at least 160,000 vehicles scheduled to be produced every year.
Hammersmith Apollo in London sold by HMV to Stage C - BBC News
Entertainment venue Hammersmith Apollo which has held concerts by bands from The Beatles to Queen, has been sold by its owner HMV.
HMV agreed to sell the west London art deco venue to American-German joint venture Stage C for £32m.
The 9,000-capacity venue was taken over by entertainment retailer HMV in 2010.
HMV chief Simon Fox said: "The Hammersmith Apollo is an iconic London venue and it has been a privilege to own it over the last three years."
The venue opened in 1932 as the Gaumont Palace cinema, as part of a wider turnaround.
It has played host to many famous performances, including David Bowie's last concert as alter-ego Ziggy Stardust in 1973.
It is also the eponymous venue in the BBC stand-up comedy series Live at the Apollo.
Stage C is jointly owned by London's indigO2 operator Ansco Music Club, a subsidiary of US company Anschutz Entertainment, and a subsidiary of Munich-based CTS Eventim.
The sale is conditional on banking approvals, shareholder approval and Stage C securing regulatory approvals.
With 252 stores in the UK, HMV said the sale allowed it to focus on its core retail business, while the proceeds from the disposal would be used to reduce the group's outstanding debt.
The sale follows a decision to place its HMV Live division, which runs 13 venues and a number of festivals including Lovebox in London and Global Gathering near Stratford-upon-Avon, under review.
The entertainment retailer recently surprised the City by forecasting a return to profit in 2013 despite estimated losses of about £19m for the past financial year.
London students demonstrate in solidarity with Quebec protests - Socialist Worker
Issue: 2305 dated: 2 June 2012
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posted: 5.41pm Thu 31 May 2012
This article should be read after: Half a million march to defy Quebec's Bill 78 anti-protest laws
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A banner tied to the entrance to the Canadian Embassy (Pic: Nina Power)
As huge student protests continued to rage in Quebec, over 100 people demonstrated in solidarity outside Canadian government buildings in London last night (Wednesday).
The solidarity event, organised by Defend the Right to Protest (DTRTP), began at Canada House in Trafalgar Square with a noisy demonstration. It then wove its way through central London to the Quebec Government Office off Regents Street and the Canadian Embassy in Grosvenor Square.
Over 300,000 students in Quebec have been on strike for three months now against increases in tuition fees. The Quebec authorities have responded with draconian restrictions on the right to protest.
Rachel Harger, a DTRTP activist, told Socialist Worker that students who had protested against tuition fees in Britain understood the experiences of police intimidation and violence.
“People wanted to show support for the thousands arrested on the Quebec protests and those who have suffered injuries from the police,” she said. “Students in Britain received solidarity from around the world when we took to the streets. So it comes naturally for students here to do the same.”
The following should be read alongside this article:
Half a million march to defy Quebec's Bill 78 anti-protest laws
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Quick-up truck: Vauxhall's Aussie-inspired Maloo hits UK shores - Daily Mirror
YOU’VE got to love this car for its name alone: Maloo. Or to give it its full name, the Vauxhall VXR Maloo.
The Maloo is what Australians call a ute or utility vehicle, and it is the most splendidly over-the-top vehicle that I’ve driven for years.
In Oz it’s badged as a Holden but Vauxhall, in a glorious burst of humour, has decided to import the vehicle into the UK and sell it through half a dozen specialist dealers.
Under the bonnet of the Maloo sits the same 6.2-litre V8 motor that you’ll find under the bonnet of a Corvette, Camaro and Vauxhall’s own VXR8 saloon (which is also a Holden).
The motor kicks out 425bhp which is enough to propel your garden clippings to the local recycling centre at 155mph.
Or accelerate them from rest to 60mph in 5.3sec.
The cabin is just like a car’s or, to be more accurate, like the VXR8’s.
Leather bucket seats, lots of comfort and plenty of equipment.
In the 1960s Chevrolet in America made a half pick-up half car called the El Camino and Ford made a rival called the Ranchero.
Both, like the Maloo, came with seriously powerful V8 engines.
You don’t use a £51,500 pick-up truck for hauling building materials.
Besides, with fuel consumption ranging from single figures to high twenties at best, you’ll soon bankrupt your business using a Maloo for everyday work.
It’s for posing or taking a few surfboards down to the beach (it doesn’t matter if you don’t surf, of course).
The Maloo could do with some slightly louder exhausts, which I’m sure would be possible to add later.
With the standard exhaust the V8 sounds a bit neutered, with more open, fatter pipes the Maloo would make a proper roar.
The Maloo feels remarkably civilised, the six-speed gearbox needs a positive shove of the hand and the clutch a strong left leg but it all works nice and smoothly.
The steering is remarkably accurate and the handling not at all like a pick-up.
You could take a Maloo on a track day and have a lot of fun with it.
You can fit 1,208 litres of stuff into the load bay at the back of the Maloo which isn’t an awful lot for a pick-up truck.
The bay is covered by a gigantic lid that also serves a purpose as a mobile gym because it weighs a ton.
Presumably you can remove it if you want to carry a jet ski or something equally suitable for the Maloo image.
I can’t imagine that Vauxhall will sell many Maloos here.
But I’m glad that in among the electric cars and hybrids being fired at us there’s still a daft, pointless and truly outrageous motor that comes along once in a while.
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