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Friday, August 15, 2008 Volume: 6, Issue: 33
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| Sports News |
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Abhinav Bindra: India's Goldfinger |
BEIJING: The final shot from Abhinav Bindra's rifle may not have been heard outside the packed hall in the Beijing Shooting Range Complex. But its bang was loud enough to lift the spirit of a billion-plus Indians back home. No individual gold has mattered so much to so many people in the history of Olympics. It was a medal for Abhinav; it was redemption for India. Never again will anyone be able to point a smug, sardonic finger and say: "No Indian is good enough to win an individual Olympic gold." Hockey's eight gold medals notwithstanding, the last coming 28 years ago, this is the first time that an Indian has won an individual gold since modern Olympics started in 1896. There is no greater joy than listening to the sound of the national anthem on the world's biggest stage. The global media looked bemused as grown-up Indians danced like little children, shedding tears of joy. How can they understand? The joy was also spurred by the improbable nature of the triumph. The script of the men's 10m air rifle final might have been penned by Alfred Hitchcock himself. Bindra, who qualified for the final in the morning with the fourth-best score of 596, looked calm and assured when the call for the first shot came.
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Capello says England can be as good as Euro kings Spain |
LONDON: Euro 2008 absentees England can be as strong as tournament winners Spain and will qualify for the 2010 World Cup, coach Fabio Capello said. "Technically the players are as good Spain's but with a different style and mentality. We have to be very confident (in ourselves)," Capello said at Wembley Stadium. "We have a very good team ... it's important to focus on ourselves. We can qualify for the World Cup, we will be in South Africa, I'm sure." Spain landed their first major title in 44 years when they beat Germany 1-0 in the final in Vienna in June. England are without a trophy since winning the 1966 World Cup. "The level at the Euros was good, we have that same level or better," added Capello. "I must transmit the spirit (of those teams) to the players to play with confidence. In our four games (so far), step by step we have been getting better. "I'm convinced in the next match they will play with lots of confidence," said the Italian at the McDonald's National Festival for Children.
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Italian rider Sella confesses to doping |
ROME: Italian rider Emanuele Sella admitted to doping after failing an out-of-competition drugs test last month. "I've taken a weight off myself," Sella told reporters after appearing before the Italian Olympic Committee's anti-doping prosecutor. "I'm aware of what has happened and that's why I decided to cooperate." The Italian cycling federation said that Sella had failed a test carried out by the International Cycling Union (UCI) but did not identify the banned substance, which Italian media reported was the blood-booster EPO. The 27-year-old, who won three stages of this year's Giro d'Italia, is hoping to receive a discount on the usual two-year ban for positive tests by confessing, according to media.
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