After a slight delay due to shifting wind conditions, the 25-strong fleet of the 2004 Lipton Challenge Cup Regatta got under way in Durban at 12.36pm on Monday. The predicted rain did not come through, but the shifting wind conditions caused frequent position changes throughout the race.
The CEO of the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCB), Gerald Majola, was on Monday cleared of any misconduct by a commission of enquiry. The hearing arose out of the alleged misappropriation of UCB funds by the then general manager of finance and administration, Diteko Modise.
Booing spectators halted the Olympic horizontal bar final for nearly 10 minutes on Monday, expressing their frustration at what turned into the latest of several gymnastics judging controversies. In a surreal scene unlike anything gymnastics veterans had ever encountered, jeers and whistles of disgust cascaded upon judges.
Morocco’s Hicham El Guerrouj will try to erase the memory of past Olympic nightmares on Tuesday as Iraq’s footballers bid to continue their dream run in the semifinals at the Athens Games. In another drug bust, Hungarian discus champion Robert Fazekas will be stripped of the gold medal he won on Monday.
The excitement of acquiring highly touted Zimbabwean coach Sunday Marimo fell flat for Bush Buck fans after the club finally gave up on his services on Tuesday. Marimo was unveiled at the beginning of the month as the new man to take over the coaching reins of the newly promoted East London outfit.
Osama bin Laden’s Yemeni driver will on Tuesday become the first Guantánamo Bay prisoner to stand before a United States military commission to face war crimes charges, in proceedings that have been denounced as unfair by human rights groups and American military lawyers.
Finnish police said on Monday they were investigating a large-scale art fraud in which dozens of high-quality photocopies of works by artists such as Salvador Dalí were passed off as originals and sold for up to 10 000 euros each. Helsinki police said their prime suspect was the organiser of an exhibition in the Finnish capital that claimed to display original works by Dalí and such other famous artists as Chagall, Rembrandt, Picasso and Andy Warhol.
South African tennis veteran Wayne Ferreira, due to retire from the sport next month, scrambled to a 6-2, 6-3 win over Spaniard David Sanchez on Monday to reach the second round of the 000 ATP Long Island event. The South African will wrap up his career after the US Open and a final Davis Cup appearance.
International athletics newcomer Jeremy Wariner succeeded United States great Michael Johnson as Olympic 400m champion on Monday as the US became the first nation since 1992 to sweep the medals in an athletics event. In gymnastics, fans’ frustration with judging sparked a shout-fest that briefly brought the proceedings to a halt.
Special Report: Olympics 2004
Athletics South Africa (ASA) on Monday appealed to athletes not to participate in the Spoornet Great Train Race in Port Elizabeth on Saturday as the event is not sanctioned by the organisation. ”We sincerely hope that all law-abiding and disciplined athletes will act responsibly and respond positively to this appeal,” ASA said.