Mbulaeni Mulaudzi and Hezekiel Sepeng were whip-cracking sharp in their opening 800m rounds of the Athens Olympics at the Olympic Stadium on Wednesday night. Not so happy were pole-vaulter Okkert Brits, 110m hurdler Shaun Bownes and javelin-thrower Sunette Viljoen, who all failed to go through to their following rounds.
Special Report: Olympics 2004
Thierry Henry ensured Arsenal’s place in history when they broke Nottingham Forest’s 26-year-old record of 42 English league matches unbeaten by defeating Blackburn Rovers 3-0 at Highbury on Wednesday. Henry poked in Dennis Bergkamp’s 50th-minute cross and took the corner which Cesc Fabregas tucked in eight minutes later.
The world sighed with relief when the Greeks kept their promise to deliver some of the world’s finest sport venues in time for the Athens Olympics. But with the Games nearing their end, it is not clear what the future holds in store. ”Large sums have been spent on the venues’ construction, but no economic viability studies were drawn up for them,” said Greece’s Deputy Culture Minister Fanny Palli-Petralia.
Life after President Robert Mugabe is a thought that has been avoided for more than two decades, but the old man will not be seeking re-election in 2008. Meanwhile, three camps have emerged within Zanu-PF in the run-up to the party’s congress in December where Mugabe’s successor will be decided.
About 4 000 taxi operators will march to the Gauteng premier’s office on Thursday morning to highlight grievances — especially over violence and intimidation — that they want transport authorities to address. The Gauteng Taxi Council drivers will park their vehicles in Johannesburg’s Newtown, then march up to Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa’s offices in Simmonds street and hand over a memorandum outlining their concerns, said Gataco spokesperson ThuThu Molefe.
Manchester United is set to step up their bid to prise Wayne Rooney away from Everton after booking their place in the Champions League proper. A 3-0 win over Dynamo Bucharest in Manchester on Wednesday put Alex Ferguson’s side into the money-spinning group stage of the tournament, guaranteeing a £15-million windfall.
Injuries to a number of Bafana Bafana players for their 2006 World Cup and African Nations Cup qualifier against the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has almost turned head coach Stuart Baxter into an ambulance man. ”I was running around nursing injuries,” said Baxter on Thursday before announcing his 17-member squad.
Roland Schoeman, the most decorated Olympian in South African history, cleared the air regarding the controversy that has rocked South African swimming after he and his teammates won the gold medal in the 4x100m freestyle relay. Schoeman, Ryk Neethling and Lyndon Ferns addressed a media conference on Thursday.
Swimmers ‘must leave if they want to’
Tiny Stephanie Sandler is the baby in the South African Olympic team. On Thursday she performed her heart out in rhythmic gymnastics to finish 23rd in the hoops and ball disciplines and ended with a flurry of confidence that bodes well for when she competes in the baton and ribbon events on Friday.
Special Report: Olympics 2004
South African canoeist Alan van Coller bowed out of the Athens Olympics 500m K1 in a titanic semifinal in which he finished fourth. The 36-year-old from Bryanston, who is a hero and role model to thousands of paddlers, drove himself to his physical limits in the effort to secure a top-three finish and a place in the final.
Special Report: Olympics 2004