”As preparations for the grand prix season get under way, allegations that Bernie Ecclestone treats formula one like his personal Scalextric set are confirmed when he forgets to pack away all the drivers and his mother hoovers up Juan Pablo Montoya.” Harry Pearson gazes into his crystal ball and decides what won’t happen in sport this year.
Premiership managers are fending off agents as the amount of business done during the current transfer window struggles to match the speculation. It feels quite like old times. The papers suddenly look more like themselves, and the court circular of King Lear, as they muse on who is in and who is out.
The number of people killed in the Indian Ocean quake and tsunamis coastlines on December 26 shot up past 165 000 on Friday as Indonesia confirmed nearly 20 000 more deaths. The number of South Africans unaccounted for following the tsunami has dropped to 474.
Defending champion Stephane Peterhansel, driving a Mitsubishi, won the seventh stage of the Dakar Rally on Thursday to storm to the top of the overall standings. The Frenchman clocked 8 hours, 21 minutes and 57 seconds over the 660km stage from Zouerat to Tichit to clinch his second stage win this year, having also been victorious on Wednesday.
Roger Federer continued his spectacular run of success as he clinched his 19th victory in a row, and his 44th in 46 matches, with an easy 6-1, 6-2 win against Feliciano Lopez that carried him to the semifinals of the Qatar Open on Thursday. Federer’s success against the most successful left-hander on the tour was improbably quick.
Almost 90% of all heroin will come from Afghanistan this year, according to a United Nations report. The ,8-billion trade accounts for 40% of the country’s economy, employs 10% of the population, and has fuelled the rise of drug lords who threaten to upend the fragile democratic transition. But tackling the trade is a priority for the newly inaugurated president, Hamid Karzai.
Deutsche Börse’s attempt to take over the London Stock Exchange (LSE) faced fresh difficulties on Thursday when German politicians and bankers demanded a Frankfurt head office for the combined entity. It emerged that the German government has raised objections about any offer to move the head office to London.
Less than a month after taking office, Guinea’s new Prime Minister has begun to woo western donors and opposition parties at home by pledging more transparency in government and the lifting of a ban on private radio stations. A fast depreciating Guinean franc has meant importing rice, now selling for per 50kg bag — more than many Guineans earn in a month.
She survived the tsunami, only to suffer the inhumanity of her rescuer. The young woman was accompanying her family on a pilgrimage when the tunami hit. The journey was to seek protection. Instead, she nearly drowned, and was then raped. ”He told me to grab his hand, that he will save me,” said the 18-year-old girl, who asked not to be named for fear of being ostracised by her village.
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