Two armed, masked men burst into a town hall north of Paris, taking 13 municipal councillors hostage and demanding tickets for Wednesday’s Champions League football final, officials said on Tuesday. ”As grotesque as it may seem, it appears that these people came with the intention of getting hold of places for the Champions League,” the police department said.
The JSE was off its worst levels by midday on Tuesday as some bargain hunting emerged after the all-share index fell over 800 points, or 3,7%, on Monday. The gold-mining index, which was off 4% earlier, had come back and by midday was 2,87% lower. By 11.53am, the all-share index had shed 0,92%, with the platinum-mining index down 3,58% and resources off 1,95%.
England captain Andrew Flintoff insisted there was ”no doom and gloom” in the camp after nine dropped catches helped Sri Lanka achieve one of cricket’s great escapes in the first Test. The tourists, following-on, finished on 537-9 after being bowled out for just 192 in reply to England’s first-innings 551-6 declared at Lord’s.
General Motors plans to begin exporting South African-made Hummers to countries in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and South America by the end of the year, a company official said on Monday. The Struandale plant in the Eastern Cape is slated to export 33 countries, a spokesperson said.
Australia’s new national coach on Tuesday brushed aside suggestions that an under-strength England team named for next month’s two-Test rugby tour Down Under will be a pushover for the Wallabies. John Connolly, who coached two English sides before taking over the Wallabies from Eddie Jones at the end of last season, said England’s depth was ”phenomenal” and not to be underrated.
The Bolivian government pushed ahead with its moves to re-nationalise its energy industry, ordering foreign financial companies to surrender control over shares they administer for a public pension fund. The Bolivian government on Monday gave Spanish Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, and Futuro SA of Swiss Zurich Financial Services three days to hand over the assets they administer for a fund used to pay pensions.
The Western Cape African National Congress is pushing for a greater say in the provincial government in a direct challenge to Premier Ebrahim Rasool. This could rekindle chronic party tensions. According to a resolution adopted at its general council, the party is to build ”closer links” between party and government to ensure ”greater accountability”.
Teamgeist (team spirit) is the unusual name of the adidas match ball that will be used in the upcoming World Cup. For the ball colours, however, the designers stuck with traditional black and white — except for the final in Berlin. The teams fighting for the championship title on July 9 will be kicking a gold-and-white ball.
Ronaldinho will know where to celebrate if Barcelona wins the European Champions League title. There are not many nightclubs in Paris he hasn’t patronised. Ronaldinho spent a drama-packed two years in the French capital before leaving Paris Saint-Germain to join Barcelona for â,¬25-million after the 2002-2003 season.
They sacrifice their holiday time but they don’t get a single cent. They come from all social classes and corners of the world, but the 15 000 volunteers have one thing in common — their enthusiasm for the World Cup spectacle. ”The volunteers will be the smiling faces of the World Cup,” says Theo Zwanziger, president of the World Cup organising committee.