Итак, Евро-2008 позади. «Что войдет в историю футбола?» – размышляя над этим, немецкая газета в понедельник на полполосы разместила фотографию Андрея Аршавина, который 180 минут был вынужден лишь смотреть футбол, а затем вывел россиян в полуфинал. «Двум его турнирным голам суждена вечность», – убеждены немецкие спортивные комментаторы.
Monday, June 30, 2008
What's Open And Closed On Tuesday?/Fireworks List
Monday June 30, 2008
When is a long weekend not a long weekend? When the holiday falls on a Tuesday.
So while it feels like a holiday on Monday, it really isn't, although some businesses have given their employees the day off. The rest of us have to work.
That means most of the usual places are open Monday and you'll be able to cash that cheque at your local bank, buy groceries for the July 1st backyard BBQ and even wait endlessly for service at a government office. Things change radically on Tuesday.
Open On Tuesday
Not much. It's a legal holiday and stores that open could face big fines. Only businesses in designated tourist areas will be allowed to take your money. That means the Yonge St. strip - including the Eaton Centre. Also getting the special pass: Vaughan Mills up north and the Pacific Mall on Steeles Ave., the only place in the eastern part of Canada that's also open on Christmas Day.
Closed
The usual suspects, including:
- Grocery stores and supermarkets (see note below)
- Malls,
- Banks,
- Government offices,
- Beer/Liquor stores,
- Libraries,
- No mail delivery,
- TTC and GO on holiday schedule.
Garbage collection is as normal in the city of Toronto, so if your regular day is Tuesday, put everything out. But it's not the same all over. The City of Vaughan, for instance, has advanced everything by a day. That means those with Friday service will have it on a rare Saturday instead.
Check your local city's website to see what its specific plans are.
Everything returns to normal on Wednesday and the rest of the week, although it may be hard to get a lot of work out of people on what essentially feels like an entire week off.
A few in select areas of cottage country will actually be open, but none in the GTA. The exception appears to be the Valu-Marts at 55 Bloor St. W. near Bay and the outlet at 2266 Queen St. E. in the Beach, which will both be up and running from 10am-5pm.
A number of selected chains will have their stores closed, but open their garden centres for those who want to test their green thumbs. Lowes, for example, has announced it will cater to the soil and dirt set, although its stores will be closed. Check your local outlet and company for details.
Road Closures
What would a holiday be without a few roadblocks? The Gay Pride festivities that tied up a large part of the downtown core this weekend are over, but there are a couple of Canada Day events that will stop traffic for a time.
HBC Run for Canada
The charity race will shut down Lake Shore Blvd. W from Ontario to Windermdere from 5am-10am
Canada Day at Queen's Park
The celebration of Canada's birthday will see Queen's Park Cres. off limits from College to Charles for 12 hours from about 7am-7pm. The free party is expected to attract some 10,000 people. See the schedule here.
Affected roads include:
Queen's Park Crescent East: College to Wellesley St. W.
Queen's Park Crescent West: College to Hoskin Ave.
Wellesley St. W.: Queen's Park Cr. E. to Queen's Park Cr. W.
Grosvenor St.: Queen's Park Cr. E. to Surrey Place
Canada Day Parade
Scarborough gets into the national spirit with a procession that will shut down Brimley from Lawrence to Progress Ave. from 4pm-8:30pm. Borough Dr. will also be closed from Town Centre Ct. to Omni Drive between 2pm-7pm.
Parade Route: (starts at 5pm)
Borough Drive
Westbound: Borough Drive,
Westbound: Omni Drive,
Southbound: Brimley Road,
Ends at Brimley Road, north of Lawrence Ave. E.
There may be some TTC delays, but transit vehicles will be allowed through.
See other Toronto Canada Day events here.
Free Jully Black Concert in Vaughan
Fireworks
It's probably the biggest day of the year in the GTA for fireworks. Here's where you can see the late light shows in your area.
Free Shows
Toronto
Downsview Park
Lots of other entertainment but the sky event gets underway at 10pm.
Mel Lastman Square
Fireworks will follow a Canada Day concert. The music starts at 7pm, with the light fantastic tripping at dusk. See the line-up here.
Ashbridge's Bay
The city's traditional place for free fireworks will be lit up again, starting at around 9:30pm.
Amesbury Park
The park promises musical entertainment and exhibits beginning at 10am. It wraps up with pyrotechnics as a finale. It's located at 1507 Lawrence Ave. W., between Keele and Culford Rd.
Centennial Park
Etobicoke gets into the spirit by holding its own bash at its most famous green space. The 6th annual Ribfest will bring music and food starting at noon, and the day will be capped by a fireworks display at dusk.
Milliken Park
Scarborough gets into the Canada Day spirit following its parade, with a fireworks display at Milliken Park. It starts at 10pm
Woodbine Beach
Sun, sand, surf and fireworks mean you'll never be bored as you walk along the Beach - although you could be 'boardwalk.' The show starts around 9:30pm and you're invited to bring your own beach chairs. Find more about the show here.
GTA
Mississauga
City Centre
A day of entertainment starts at 1pm and ends with fireworks at 10pm. Details here
Streetsville Memorial Park
Promises lots of entertainment before the sun goes down, and just as much after, starting with the singing of O Canada at 9:55pm and a late light show beginning at 10pm.
Brampton
Chinguacousy Park
You won't have to Guess Who's coming to this celebration - Burton Cummings headlines the show, which includes fireworks. Events run from 10am-10:30pm.
Milton
Milton Fair Grounds
Events start at 10am and continue until the fuse is lit on the big finale at 10pm
Oakville
Bronte Village gets lit up with a day of entertainment and a night of fireworks. It starts early with a pancake breakfast at 8am and continues until the grand finale at 10pm.
Pickering
Kinsmen Park holds a day of events beginning at noon. Fireworks get underway after sundown.
Whitby
Head to Pringle Creek Park at 90 Ribbesdale Drive for a show that begins at 7pm and brings the night to an end with fireworks at dusk.
Oshawa
The noon start to the Canada Day festivities at Lakeview Park includes live entertainment and carnival rides, along with a lot of night lights at dusk.
Pay Events
Richmond Hill
Richmond Green Park
There's a small admission fee (just a toonie for adults) for a day of events, which organizers promise will end with the "largest municipal fireworks display in Canada." They start at 10pm.
Ontario Place
The Festival of Fire actually started on June 28th, and continues on the 1st, 3rd and 5th. Yours to discover with admission at 10:30pm.
Canada's Wonderland
The sky explodes at the theme park around 10pm.
Finally, A Holiday Without Rain: Canada Day Weather Looks To Be Sunny And Warm
O.K. somebody goofed - you're about to get the near perfect Canada Day.
Tuesday may be the 1st of July, but you haven't exactly been given a lot of reasons to expect it would turn out so well. This has been one of the soggiest springs and summers in recent memory, seasons that have featured violent thunderstorms, drenching rain, forked lightning and even hail. It was just last Monday that the GTA battened down the hatches against a severe storm that included funnel clouds and ice pellets.
Some parts of the city got yet another washout weekend on Sunday, when more heavy weather moved through. Others were lucky to escape with just a few drops - or none at all.
And after a Victoria Day weekend that was cold, rainy and miserable, and a Monday forecast that includes a 40 per cent chance of rain, you might have expected the pattern to continue. But we lucked out for Tuesday. Forecasters are calling for a sunny day with temperatures of 26C - right at the norm for this time of year.
It will stay that way into the evening hours, perfect for the multiple fireworks shows across the GTA (see the full list here.) It will be a cool night, although the low of 14C is also what we'd expect to get on July 1st. But if your plans are to see one of the late light shows near the lake, you might want to take a light jacket just in case.
And you don't need to head to Canada's Wonderland to ride a roller coaster. Just step outside over the next few days. Temperatures will soar to 28C on Wednesday, with - what else? - a good chance of rain. Thursday will feature more rain but temperatures will deflate to a below normal 22C.
Still, it's not all bad news. If the forecast holds, we could finally be getting the all-clear this weekend. The long range outlook calls for solid sunshine and highs in the middle 20s, starting Friday.
Toronto Bursts With Pride
Toronto Bursts With Pride
Sunday June 29, 2008
After all the anticipation, preparation and a solid week of partying, Sunday finally brought the Pride Parade to Toronto, with this year's theme "Unified."
Around 2pm the massive march began with honking horns, blaring music and all the excitement that's made the annual event one of the world's biggest celebrations of gay and lesbian culture. More than 4,000 people participated in the parade proper, while roughly one million others took in the colourful action.
The parade route wound west on Bloor Street from Church to Yonge, then south to Gerrard and east back to Church where it finished off.
Of course the party was hardly confined to that small area, as crowds spilled out onto neighbouring streets where they promised to revel well into Monday.
As has become custom during the parade's 28-year run, visitors from all across Canada and the world were welcomed to Toronto's streets.
"I'm missing my Canada Day celebration just for Pride," boasted Newfoundlander Julie Follet.
"I'm a little overwhelmed," said Kelowna, B.C. native Kevin Anderson. "It's small where I'm from and it's so huge."
And of course local veterans like Frank Barlow, who's been to 24 editions, also made the scene. "It's grown considerably," he admitted.
Leading the 2008 parade was Grand Marshall Enza Supermodel (pictured).
Even the weather cooperated, for the most part. The skies turned from overcast to clear in the early afternoon and the temperature stayed comfortable, which certainly helped to bolster the estimated $100 million in revenue the event brings to the city.
"The numbers are up apparently," said super-soaked Mayor David Miller. "People from all over North America come because they recognize if you want to be welcomed, you come to Toronto."
Earlier Sunday, a mass was held near Church and Wellesley in the Gay Village where the likes of federal NDP leader Jack Layton, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair and Liberal MPP George Smitherman were on hand.
"A lot of leaders in our community have had to fight for the kind of equality that there's a risk you take for granted," Smitherman said. "It's always important to celebrate."
Saturday's Dyke March also went off without a hitch, and included a performance by Mel C (once known as Spice Girl member Sporty).
The event saw hundreds of walkers with rainbow flags, blaring music and dancing taking over Church in a rolling party. It's the 13th anniversary for that particular show of pride.
For those not taking part in the revelry, be aware that area streets will likely be slower than usual, or completely blocked from traffic. Church between Carlton and Wellesley will remain closed until Monday morning.
Pride History
For more sights and sounds from Pride 2008, click on the video link or check out the photo gallery below.
2008 Pride Parade
Vote for goal of the tournament
Spain's victory over Germany in the UEFA EURO 2008™ final marked the end of the tournament, bringing many of the euro2008.com Fanzone competitions to a close. Remember, however, that you can still vote for the goal of the tournament until 18.00CET on Monday, logging on to Carlsberg Goal of the Day to win great prizes.
Vote now
There are eight contenders for goal of the tournament:
• Germany forward Lukas Podolski's fine strike v Poland
• Sweden No10 Zlatan Ibrahimović's searing effort v Greece
• Portugal winger Cristiano Ronaldo's rocket v Czech Republic
• Netherlands midfielder Wesley Sneijder's perfect finish v France
• Turkey striker Nihat Kahveci's last-gasp goal v Czech Republic
• Russia forward Andrei Arshavin's sliding strike v Sweden
• Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger's near-post flick v Portugal
• Germany full-back Philipp Lahm's curling shot v Turkey
Click here to watch the videos and pick your favourite.
Contacted shortly
The winners of the other Fanzone competitions, including the McDonald's Fantasy Football game, JVC Predictor, Canon Fan Foto, Carlsberg Man of the Match and Continental Video Quiz, will be contacted shortly. They will be receiving a vast array of fantastic prizes, comprising cameras, team jerseys, footballs, watches and much, much more.
Spain victory rewarded
After an epic three-week battle, featuring more than 380,000 team managers, Finnish maestro Jukka Kuisma has finished top of the Fantasy Football rankings and will be receiving a state-of-the-art JVC Home Cinema system. With Spain winning UEFA EURO 2008™, it will come as no surprise that 13 of the top 20 managers are Spanish.
Predictor champion
The tournament's top JVC Predictor player is Vladimir Dovgolevsky from Israel, who got nine out of his 13 predictions for the final correct. He will be receiving a slim and stylish JVC Everio G HDD camcorder.
Explore Fan Foto
Log on to Canon Fan Foto to view the photographs uploaded by supporters across Europe and the world during the championship. Explore the site for a unique insight into the many ways of enjoying football and visit the winners' page for a look at the best and most popular images uploaded during the event.
Great prizes
Winners of the Carlsberg Man of the Match, Hyundai Stadium Cheer and Continental Video Quiz competitions will also be contacted shortly. Once again, there are superb prizes to win, including a full set of Continental tyres for the overall winner of Video Quiz.
Fan Challenge
Finally, a word of appreciation for Polish international forward Marek Saganowski who is Fan Challenge's top scorer, helping Poland to the top of the Fan Challenge rankings ahead of Turkey and Spain.
The A-Z of UEFA EURO 2008™
euro2008.com casts its mind back over the past month, devouring the feast of football from Arshavin to Zidane, with detours via kidney transplants, Turkish fightbacks and naked walks in the park.
Arshavin – Without him Russia were struggling; with him they became world-beaters. Suspended for the first two games the man known as 'Shava' burst into their third game like a terrier let off its leash. Unknown even to the likes of Xavi Hernández before the tournament, everybody knows him now.
Bob Marley – Not an obvious reggae aficionado, Leo Beenhakker summed up the mood in the Poland camp when he said: "When I worked with Trinidad and Tobago during the last World Cup I woke up every morning to the sound of Bob Marley but now I wake up every day suffering from a headache!"
Co-hosts – Austria and Switzerland may have bowed out after the group stage, but neither that nor the inclement weather could dampen the mood at the eight venues and beyond. Indeed, by the end of the tournament, some four million people had visited the UEFA EURO 2008™ Fan Zones.
Drama – Turkey were a watchword for late excitement throughout as they mounted comeback after comeback before Philipp Lahm's goal finally ended their challenge. But Fatih Terim's side did not have a monopoly on being fashionably late and of the 77 goals scored during the finals, 18 came in the final five minutes.
Efficiency – Germany had three shots on goal in their 3-2 semi-final win against Turkey and scored with all of them. Had their opponents done likewise, Terim's men would have run out 11-3 victors.
Feel the Rush – Enrique Iglesias's Can You Hear Me? may have been the official tournament song, but the mascots' music, Feel the Rush by Shaggy, perhaps induced the most fervent foot-tapping. Just.
Golden Generation – Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Romania. Most teams have had one period when an exceptionally gifted group of players came to the fore – but two? In the mid-1990s Portugal were bristling with talent and while the UEFA EURO 2000™ semi-finals was the best they could manage, a new generation spearheaded by Cristiano Ronaldo has raised Lusophiles' expectations once more.
Hat-trick – David Villa's treble against Russia in Spain's opening game made him only the seventh player in finals history to score three in a game. Villa was following in the footsteps of Patrick Kluivert, Sérgio Conceição, Marco van Basten, Michel Platini (twice), Klaus Allofs and Dieter Müller.
Injuries – Save for injuries to Franck Ribéry, Alexander Frei and half of the Turkey squad, there were thankfully few serious problems at the EURO. Before the finals was different. Daniel Pudil was ruled out when he broke his hand as he celebrated SK Slavia Praha's league triumph, while Romania's Ovidiu Petre was forced to withdraw after colliding with a cameraman while playing volleyball.
Juan Carlos – Having witnessed Spain's quarter-final victory against Italy, the king was asked if he felt his side were favourites for the semi-final. "Yes," he replied, "50-50."
Klasnić – Not many people are up and running within 15 months of undergoing two kidney transplants. Still less are playing football. None, before Ivan Klasnić have capped their recovery with a goal at a UEFA European Championship.
Lifeguard – Those who believed the only thing Semih Şentürk had in common with David Hasselhoff was his red shorts were forced to think again in Austria and Switzerland. Not content with the goal that revived Turkey's hopes in the group stage, Semih reprised his 'lifeguard' role with the 122nd-minute equaliser against Croatia. He almost did it again in the semi-finals only for Philipp Lahm to drown out Turkish celebrations.
Mascots – Four years ago a mascot called Kinas caught the eye with his halfway-line acrobatics. This time around there were two of them, they had bigger hair and their dance routines were rehearsed. Trix and Flix have laid down a sizeable gauntlet for the 2012 mascots.
Nihat Kahveci – With three minutes of their decisive group game against the Czech Republic left, Turkey were heading out. Then Nihat capitalised on Petr Čech's fumble to apparently set up extra time. Yet the No8 had other ideas and hit an unstoppable winner with a minute to go.
Oranje – The Netherlands won a place in Bernese hearts during the tournament, but then they did not really have a choice. Over 100,000 Oranje fans descended on the Swiss federal capital to watch the Netherlands-France game and help double Berne's population.
Portuguese arrival – When Luiz Felipe Scolari's squad arrived on 1 June they received a memorable welcome. A motorcade of 600 Portuguese living in Switzerland followed the team bus to their training base, while others lined the streets waving flags. Another 10,000 fans were waiting to greet the players in Neuchatel.
Quarter-finals – Spain's first competitive win against Italy in 88 years; Germany prevailing in a five-goal thriller; Arshavin helping Russia stun the Netherlands; and that Croatia-Turkey game. Astonishing.
Reina Snr – Pepe's dad Manuel certainly won the award for the finals' best automotive metaphor as he ran the rule over Luis Aragonés. "The human condition requires you to be greedy – always hungry to better yourself and achieve more," he said. "That's what Luis is and it's the perfect petrol for the engine of a football coach. He'll never say, 'This success is enough' or 'I've lost my drive'."
Schweinsteiginho – Germany's Bastian Schweinsteiger scored, made an assist and picked up yellow and red cards at UEFA EURO 2008™. The only other player to have achieved this feat at a EURO is Denmark's Klaus Berggreen in 1984. Schweinsteiger ended the tournament strongly, however. Why? Because Angela Merkel told him to. "If the chancellor asks you to do something, you have to obey," he explained.
Thunder – June was the wettest month many could remember in Austria and Switzerland, forcing organisers to relay the St. Jakob-Park pitch in Basel ahead of the quarter-finals. It was arguably worse in Vienna, however, and the game between Spain and Russia was played to a background more akin to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein than a football match.
Underachievers – At UEFA EURO 2004™ a hotly-tipped France side meekly bowed out with a 1-0 quarter-final defeat by Greece. This year an ageing squad failed to get out of the group stage, registering a solitary point as they finished at the foot of their section.
Vastic – At 38 years and 257 days, Ivica Vastic became the oldest player to score in a UEFA European Championship when he converted a late penalty against Poland. The 35-year-old pair of Jan Koller and Christian Panucci also struck to go second and third on the list.
Walk in the park – Beenhakker again, this time on the eve of Poland's opener against Germany, saying: "We won't be doing different things just because we are at the EUROs now. It's not like we will walk around the park naked or something. We have our normal programme – and then we will go [singing] tra-la-la to the stadium. We will play 'tra-la-la' but I don't know if we will be still 'tra-la-la' after the game."
X-factor – That something, lamented Croatia coach Slaven Bilić, which Turkey possessed in spades.
Yellow or mustard? – The great debate about the colour of Spain's away jersey was decided, once and for all, by Aragonés. "I don't like this new colour, personally," he said. "But so long as I don't have to wear it, the players can. Anyway, it's not yellow, it's mustard."
Zidane – UEFA EURO 2008™ was the first major tournament since 1994 without modern-day legend Zinédine Zidane. Yet there were individual performances which lit up the finals in his absence – Arshavin for starters...
Team of the Tournament UEFA EURO 2008™
The UEFA Technical Team has named its UEFA EURO 2008™ Team of the Tournament, with no fewer than nine Spanish players being picked in the final 23.
Team breakdown
The nine-strong group of experienced football technicians who have followed every game at the tournament decided the selection – and the success of Luis Aragonés's side was underlined by the fact nine Spain players made the cut, with the remainder of the squad comprising three players from runners-up Germany, four from Russia, two each from the Netherlands and Portugal and a single player representing Turkey, Croatia and Italy.
'Not about reputations'
UEFA technical director Andy Roxburgh said: "The Team of the Tournament is something we put into our technical report for our coaching colleagues. We give them pointers on the players that our technical experts have appreciated during this event. This team is very much self-contained in terms of the tournament – this is not about reputations. In fact there are only four players in here who were in our UEFA Champions League team of the competition. It's all very much about the performances in this competition. We haven't included anybody who was knocked out in the group phase."
UEFA EURO 2008™ Team of the Tournament
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Iker Casillas (Spain), Edwin van der Sar (Netherlands).
Defenders: Bosingwa (Portugal), Philipp Lahm (Germany), Carlos Marchena (Spain), Pepe (Portugal), Carles Puyol (Spain), Yuri Zhirkov (Russia).
Midfielders: Hamit Altıntop (Turkey), Luka Modrić (Croatia), Marcos Senna (Spain), Xavi Hernández (Spain), Konstantin Zyryanov (Russia), Michael Ballack (Germany), Cesc Fàbregas (Spain), Andrés Iniesta (Spain), Lukas Podolski (Germany), Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands).
Forwards: Andrei Arshavin (Russia), Roman Pavlyuchenko (Russia), Fernando Torres (Spain), David Villa (Spain).
Sunday, June 29, 2008
EURO 2008 FINAL: Torres ends Spain's long wait for glory
GERMANY-SPAIN
0-1
Spain became European champions for the second time after Fernando Torres's first-half goal in Vienna proved enough to defeat Germany in the final of UEFA EURO 2008™.
History an inspiration
Spain had won their only previous piece of silverware in this competition in 1964 and had not been beyond the quarter-finals of any tournament in 24 years, yet Luis Aragonés's men chose to use that history as an inspiration rather than a burden. After a strong start from Germany, seeking a fourth title themselves, Spain were the more dangerous side throughout an entertaining final at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion although it took just one goal – in the 33rd minute, courtesy of Torres's pace, perseverance and unerring finish – to end their long wait.
Ballack boost
Germany received a significant boost before kick-off with captain Michael Ballack included despite a much-publicised calf problem, and, perhaps buoyed by that news, Joachim Löw's team settled quickly. Much had been made of the contrast in style between the sides yet in the opening exchanges it was Germany whose passing looked crisper, Miroslav Klose and Thomas Hitzlsperger failing to make the most of glimpses of goal. Meanwhile Spain, shorn of four-goal leading scorer David Villa due to a thigh injury, struggled to find their feet in a new 4-5-1 formation in which Cesc Fàbregas was rewarded for a fine semi-final display with a starting place.
Instinctive stop
As an indicator of the pattern of the match, however, Germany's bright beginning proved misleading. Spain soon worked their way into the contest, with Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann – becoming, at 38, the oldest player to appear in a UEFA European Championship final – forced into action for the first time in the 14th minute. Although his instinctive save came when his own defender, Christoph Metzelder, inadvertently deflected Andrés Iniesta's cross towards his own goal, Xavi Hernández's fine through pass had unpicked the Germany defence and showed the Spanish were finding their feet.
Torres on target
Right-back Sergio Ramos was then allowed to cut inside and deliver a deep cross, Torres peeling away from Per Mertesacker to create space for the header only for the right-hand post to come to Lehmann's rescue. The warning signs were there for Germany, yet they failed to heed them and duly fell behind three minutes past the half-hour. Again Xavi was the architect, playing a pass in behind the Germany back line towards Torres, who outmuscled a hesitant Philipp Lahm and clipped the ball over the diving Lehmann and just inside the far post. David Silva then volleyed over Iniesta's cross when given time and space inside the area as Spain threatened to increase their lead.
Spain openings
Spain had more openings in the early stages of the second half, Lehmann getting the merest of touches to Xavi's low shot before Ramos nearly guided in Silva's drive from the resulting corner. Yet a hint of the threat Germany still posed arrived on the hour, substitute Marcell Jansen and Bastian Schweinsteiger combining for Ballack to shoot centimetres wide. Klose then deflected a Schweinsteiger effort past the post and, in response to Germany's renewed menace, Spain coach Aragonés promptly introduced Xabi Alonso and Santi Cazorla in place of Fàbregas and Silva. The switches reinvigorated Spain instantly, Lehmann making smart stops from Ramos and Iniesta while Torsten Frings blocked another Iniesta effort on the line.
Celebrations
As the final moved into the last 20 minutes, Spain had had seven shots on goal to Germany's one, but with the Mannschaft having turned virtually one in two of their attempts on target into goals en route to the final, that would have been scant consolation to Aragonés and his side. In the event, however, it was Spain who continued to carve out chances as the match reached its conclusion, Marcos Senna narrowly failing to apply the finishing touch to an unselfish header from substitute Daniel Güiza – but the celebrations would not be delayed much longer.
Ten of the best star turns
Before the UEFA Technical Team unveils the Castrol Player of Tournament and Team of the Tournament on Monday morning, euro2008.com takes its pick of ten of the players who most caught the eye at UEFA EURO 2008™. Have your say below.
Hamit Altıntop (Turkey)
Nihat Kahveci took the plaudits for his superb finish against the Czech Republic but it was Hamit's clever pass that gave him the chance. Tireless, versatile and selfless, his coach Fatih Terim summed up his contribution best: "When you have footballers like this, you don't lose."
Andrei Arshavin (Russia)
After inspiring FC Zenit St. Petersburg to victory in the UEFA Cup final in May, Arshavin rose to the occasion again here, returning from suspension to make the difference against both Sweden and the Netherlands. Quick, clever and very, very good.
Michael Ballack (Germany)
Just when Germany looked on the ropes after losing to Croatia, Ballack got them back on their feet with the thunderous drive that defeated Austria. His performance in a more advanced role against Portugal helped wrest the initiative for Germany before he headed in the decisive third.
Iker Casillas (Spain)
With so much attacking talent on display goalkeepers have had it tough and Gianluigi Buffon, Artur Boruc, Igor Akinfeev and Stipe Pletikosa all impressed. Iker Casillas has had fewer saves to make than many, but has produced when it matters most, brilliantly saving from Mauro Camoranesi and Roman Pavlyuchenko in the knockout rounds, as well as getting the better of Buffon in the shoot-out.
Luka Modrić (Croatia)
Much was expected of the man dubbed the Croatian Cruyff and he did not disappoint, firing his side ahead from the penalty spot after only four minutes of their opening game against Austria. He created enough chances for Croatia to have beaten Turkey in the quarter-final and deserved better than to bow out after missing a penalty in the shoot-out.
Carles Puyol (Spain)
Question marks were raised over the Spain defence coming into the tournament but Puyol's central defensive partnership with Carlos Marchena has passed the test in a tournament that strikers have dominated. Increasingly assured with every game, Puyol was a tower of strength against Russia.
Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany)
Bounced back from his sending off against Croatia with a match-winning display against Portugal in the quarter-finals, scoring one and setting up two more. Also equalised against the run of play in the semi-final when Turkey were threatening to run away with the game.
Marcos Senna (Spain)
Senna provided the security in the centre that allowed Spain's talented, attack-minded midfielders to push forward. No-frills but very disciplined. The cornerstone of Spain's success.
Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands)
Sneijder epitomised the vibrancy with which the Netherlands opened the tournament, hooking in a terrific goal against Italy then trumping that with a tremendous strike against France.
David Villa (Spain)
Villa's hat-trick in Spain's opening win against Russia set the standard for much of what was to follow from Luis Aragonés's side. The Valencia CF striker came into the tournament bursting with confidence and it rubbed off on his team-mates. A shame injury ruled him out of the final.
The UEFA Technical Team will unveil the Castrol Player of Tournament and Team of the Tournament on Monday at 11.00CET.
'A summer dream come true'
The presidents of the two host national associations of UEFA EURO 2008™ – Austria's Friedrich Stickler and Switzerland's Ralph Zloczower – have expressed their pride at the success of the tournament.
Superb festival
Five and a half years have passed since the two men were united in joy at having been awarded the final round of European football's blue-riband national-team competition. As Austria and Switzerland bid farewell with tonight's final between Germany and Spain in Vienna, the presidents enthused about what has been a superb football festival. "Today is a special day. On 12 December 2002, Austria and Switzerland were awarded the European Championship," said Stickler. "And now we've come full circle. Looking back it's been totally positive. It's the biggest event which has ever taken place in Austria and has been well received. A dream has come true for the two associations. Over the past few weeks, we've shown that we're extremely able to manage such an event. Co-operation with the Swiss FA has been impeccable."
'High-quality final'
Zloczower added: "I'd like to fully return Friedrich Stickler's compliments, because I too feel our co-operation could not have been better. I'm confident that we're going to have an interesting and high-quality final this evening and it's with a bit of sadness that by midnight tonight it will all be over, and UEFA EURO 2008™ in Austria and Switzerland will be a part of history." Both presidents spoke of the excellent atmosphere that has surrounded the tournament on and off the pitch. "More than four million people have been to the Fan Zones, so this was a peaceful mass movement without any significant incidents," said Stickler. "Football has rightly been the centre of attention; we've seen excellent matches played in a wonderful atmosphere – it's been a summer dream come true for Austria and Switzerland."
'Expect Emotions'
"In the Fan Zones the Expect Emotions slogan was a great success - it became a reality and the atmosphere couldn't have been better, particularly in my home town of Berne," added Zloczower. "The images of the Dutch fans is something I will never forget. I would like to thank the public authorities for the help we've received. All the efforts have been worthwhile and we can be totally satisfied with what we've achieved."
TV figures excellent
TV viewing figures for the tournament were welcomed by the FA presidents – hundreds of millions of viewers throughout the world have been enthralled by the action on offer so far. "Today is also special because the whole world will be watching the match tonight," said Stickler, who added of the global viewing figures for the 2004 showpiece: "At the last final in Portugal, the figure was [more than] 270 million TV viewers and it will be more tonight, possibly even reaching the 300 million mark. The TV figures so far are quite impressive. In Austria, there has been an increase of 40 per cent from the last EURO, and others have had even higher market shares of 60, 70, even 80 per cent, so we've set new standards."
Pitch decision right
Zloczower stressed that the decision to change the pitch in Basel had been the correct one, following the torrential rain that affected the playing surface at the Switzerland-Turkey group match. "Crisis management was needed once, in Basel because of the pitch," he explained. "We coped with the challenge and it was worth the effort of replacing the pitch. We always had that as a Plan B, and the quarter-finals and semi-final were played under excellent conditions." Looking ahead to the final, Stickler said he hoped for a "happy end" to UEFA EURO 2008™, while Zloczower said he wanted goals for a special reason. "In terms of sport, we've seen attacking football of the kind we love," he said. "We've seen 76 goals – there were 77 in Portugal, so we're missing two tonight so we can beat that mark."
Football the focus of closing ceremony
Football and the 16 teams that have provided such rich entertainment and excitement over the past three weeks will be the focal point of the ten-minute closing ceremony before the UEFA EURO 2008™ final between Germany and Spain at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion in Vienna.
Official song
The official tournament song – Can you hear me? – will be performed live by Spanish star Enrique Iglesias, and 400 artists, many from the Vienna musical comedy school and the Austrian gymnastics federation, will get fans involved as they look back on the tournament. Both the opening and closing ceremonies were put together by French event agency Auditoire, whose artistic director, Martin Arnaud, staged the opening ceremony for the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France as well as the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2004 Paralympics in Athens.
Ceremony elements
Field of play: A printed plastic pitch cover will be laid over the Ernst-Happel turf. There will be eight circles on it, each symbolising one of the fields of play where matches in the tournament took place.
Waltzing puppets: Each participating team will be represented by a 2.5m-high puppet. The puppets will be decorated with balloons in the colours of the corresponding team. Like players during the tournament, the puppets will move together, recreating the matches each team has played.
Competition: The puppets will dance together in the order the teams played their matches: from the group phase to the quarter-finals and semi-finals. At the end of each match, the puppets who did not make it to the next round will release their balloons.
Supporters: 320 supporters will take part in the ceremony. They will initially be divided into 16 groups of 20, with each group supporting a different team. They will follow the matches and their outfits will evolve as the ceremony progresses, to end up with two groups of 160, representing the supporters of the two finalists.
Referees: Like during a real competition, there will be referees in the show to ensure fair play on the dance floor.
Lackeys: These distinguished characters on the pitch will make sure the guests are welcomed and shown to their dancing positions.
The closing ceremony will conclude with Spaniard Enrique Iglesias performing the official UEFA EURO 2008™song, Can you hear me?
Props
The 16 puppets are 2.5 metre-high steel constructions mounted on wheels. Each is manned by a technician hidden under the costume. Approximately 5,000 helium balloons were needed to decorate these structures. In addition, 16 balloons measuring two metres across, representing the flags of each team, will lead the supporters onto the pitch.
Costumes
The Lackeys will be wearing 18th century-inspired period costumes with comical details relating to the football world. The referees will wear a distinguished orchestra conductor's tail coat. The costumes of the supporters on the pitch will represent the teams' shirts. A funny and ingenious technique involving sandwich boards allows the supporters to change their shirts throughout the ceremony. For the soundtrack of the show sounds of supporters cheering have been mixed into Vienna waltz pieces to create an original and imaginative atmosphere.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Pride Guide 2008
June 20 - June 29, 2008
Pride Toronto - Unified
This year Pride festivities take over the streets in celebration of Toronto’s Queer communities. toronto.com editors bring you the inside track on this year’s hot spots, must-have tickets and the best places to grab some shade and a cold brew. We also have survival tips from seasoned Pride Week veterans to help you make the most of this year’s events.
Pride Events
Pride Toronto offers up 10 days of arts and cultural events like parades, theatre productions and street festivals. Highlights this year include a performance by comedienne Sandra Bernhard and Fight for Pride, an international all-lesbian pro-boxing match. more
Veterans share Pride Week tips: where to watch the parades, what the hot parties are, when to hit the Village, when to escape and what the most over-played song will be this year.
Part 1: The Parades
Part 2: Beyond the Parades
Friday, June 27, 2008
Spice Girl Mel C to perform at Pride
Sat., June 28, 6:00 PM
Melanie C from the Spice Girls is performing on the TD Trust Canada Trust, Wellesley Stage, on the Saturday of Pride Week!
Presented by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, the iconic Spice Girl will hit the stage again. Beginning her career in 1996 with one of the most successful girl groups of all time, Melanie moved on when the girls disbanded and is considered to be the most successful now. She has released four solo albums and shows no intentions of stopping!
Head on down to the Wellesley Stage and see Mel C - the British pop diva puts on a great showAnti-racist film a big success
Take one American film director, a German film company and European actors from across the continent. Throw in one of the world's biggest sporting events for good measure and the result is a piece of film that encapsulates just how football, and UEFA EURO 2008™ , can be a force for good.
Huge impact
Different Languages – One Goal: No to Racism is currently making a huge impact on this summer's festival of football in the stadiums of Switzerland and Austria. The work of John Buché and the Embassy of Dreams production house in Munich, the film is being played before, during and after each fixture as part of the FARE (Football Against Racism in Europe) Unite Against Racism campaign. Buché, a Washington DC-born football fan, was chosen by FARE to produce the film after the group picked up on his first foray into documenting the sport, Sold Out. Made in 2001, it was a hard-hitting exposé on the murky world of human trafficking in football.
Involved
Buché, a European resident for almost 15 years, said: "Living in Vienna, I was aware of FARE's Austrian members, Fairplay, not to mention the unavoidable excitement already generating around the tournament. I jumped at the opportunity to be involved." And so in October 2007, work began on Different languages – One goal: No to Racism, a 30-second film that was to become an integral part of FARE's tournament-long campaign.
Unique aspect
"The aim of the film was to encapsulate the inclusive, multi-cultural nature of the EURO in a bite-sized format," continued Buché. "It's one of the few sporting events that brings together so many people together in one place, at one time. It was this unique aspect that we wanted the film to celebrate." The casting process was swift but ensured a true 'mix' of people, both trained actors and raw hopefuls were used and a range of backgrounds represented. Buché explained: "Everything in the film is symbolic. Romanian actors represented eastern Europe, we used Dutch actors as a reference to colonial times, and Turkish actors were involved to signify their omnipresence throughout many parts of Europe at this point in time."
Fans' emotions
The film, which captures the emotions of different fans moments before a goal is scored, was shot over two days primarily in Munich's Allianz Arena stadium and an authentic Romanian restaurant in the city centre, and in the studio. "The film culminates with wild celebrations and shows the word 'goal' to be truly universal." And when the curtain comes down on the competition at the end of June, the film begins another journey. After being adopted by UEFA, ‘Different languages – One goal: No to Racism will now be screened at every UEFA Champions League match throughout the course of next season. "UEFA, along with the European Commission, helped to finance the film, " Buché said. "Without this backing, it may not have been possible. Now that the initial response has been immense, we hope the goodwill will carry on throughout the course of next season too."
Unite Against Racism
The Unite Against Racism campaign at UEFA EURO 2008™ is carried out by the Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) network in partnership with UEFA, and with support of the international players union FIFPro.
Full details in English, German, French and Italian are available on www.farenet.org.
Giant boots give fans kicks in Vienna
The 16 gigantic football boots erected in the Vienna Museum Quarter have proven to be a massive hit with football-supporting photographers. By now, the word of the popular photo opportunities has begun to spread among fan circles.
Giant ball
"There are hundreds of fans pouring in here daily, even more on match days, to have their photo taken with the boots," stated Georg Kovacic from adidas. For every participating nation at UEFA EURO 2008™, a boot was designed by adidas in the country's national colours. Unsurprisingly, the most popular have been the boots from the individual fans' home countries. On match days, the two boots representing the countries playing are placed next to the giant EUROPASS ball, which has also proven a very popular attraction among the fans from around the world.
Football development
The EUROPASS, which is the name of the official UEFA EURO 2008™ match ball, is the result of over 40 years' research by adidas in the field of football development. The ball is faster, more precise and smoother than all of its predecessors. The adidas employees at the museum complex have enjoyed informing interested fans about the story behind the UEFA European Championship ball. The first adidas ball to be used at the competition was the Telstar back in 1972.
Special edition
Thereafter, the development moved forward rapidly with designs called Tango (1980), Tango Mundial (1984), Tango Europa (1988), Etrusco Unico (1992), Questra Europa (1996), Terrestra Silverstream (2000), Roteiro (2004) and finally EUROPASS. "The very unique surface lends both players and goalkeepers more control over the ball and makes the flight of the ball more predictable, even in the worst weather conditions," commented adidas corporate affairs spokesman Günter Pfau, before explaining that a special edition called EUROPASS Gloria will be used in the final.
Ten of the best goals so far
The goals have been flying in at just over two-and-a-half per game at UEFA EURO 2008™. There have been 76 already in 30 games, the same number as at this stage four years ago, with the quality matching the quantity. euro2008.com takes its pick of ten of the best so far. Do you agree with our selection? Have your say below.
Philipp Lahm
Germany 3-2 Turkey, Semi-final, 25 June
Semih Şentürk's 86th-minute equaliser might have floored a lesser side, but not Germany. They quickly regrouped and within four minutes had won with a goal that will live long in the memory. Thomas Hitzlsperger's pass split the Turkey defence and Lahm smashed the ball over the advancing Rüştü Reçber to send Germany to their sixth final.
Roman Pavlyuchenko
Netherlands 1-3 Russia, Quarter-final, 21 June
Pavlyuchenko had made the most of the chance afforded to him by Pavel Pogrebnyak's injury and he made no mistake when Sergei Semak found him with a cross eleven minutes into the second half in Basel. The FC Spartak Moskva striker thumped a first-time volley beyond Edwin van der Sar.
Bastian Schweinsteiger
Portugal 2-3 Germany, Quarter-final, 19 June
Schweinsteiger had been told by his coach Joachim Löw that he had a "debt" to his team-mates after being sent off against Croatia. The midfielder went a long way to repaying it at St. Jakob-Park when he slid in at the near post to touch in Lukas Podolski's low cross to round off a blistering break down the left.
Michael Ballack
Austria 0-1 Germany, Group B, 16 June
After losing to Croatia the pressure was on Germany and though they never totally convinced against the co-hosts one moment of magic from their inspirational captain was all they needed. It came four minutes after the break, Ballack drilling a rising shot from a free-kick high past Jürgen Macho in the Austrian goal.
Nihat Kahveci
Turkey 3-2 Czech Republic, Group A, 15 June
Turkey scored a succession of stunning late goals but this was the pick of the bunch. Released by Hamit Altıntop's precise pass Nihat looked up before sending a curling shot around Petr Čech and in off the underside of the crossbar, completing a remarkable recovery and sending Turkey through to the quarter-finals.
Wesley Sneijder
Netherlands 4-1 France, Group C, 13 June
Arjen Robben's third goal for the Netherlands deserves special mention but better still was their fourth. Sneijder picked up the ball on the edge of the area, waltzed round Jérémy Toulalan then shot high over Grégory Coupet and in off the crossbar.
Robin van Persie
Netherlands 4-1 France, Group C, 13 June
Another Dutch counterattacking masterpiece started with a superb piece of skill from Ruud van Nistelrooy on the halfway line which sent Robben haring down the left. He crossed for Van Persie who volleyed in first time. Coupet got a hand to the ball but it was just too powerful.
Zlatan Ibrahimović
Greece 0-2 Sweden, Group D, 10 June
The game looked to be heading for a goalless draw until a moment of brilliance from Ibrahimović. After exchanging passes with Henrik Larsson on the edge of the area the FC Internazionale striker fired a thumping drive into the top right corner of Antonis Nikopolidis's net.
David Villa
Spain 4-1 Russia, Group D, 10 June
David Silva retrieved a loose ball on the edge of his own area and set in motion a lightning-quick counter that saw Joan Capdevila and Andrés Iniesta combine brilliantly before the latter released Villa who sprinted into the box then shot low beyond Igor Akinfeev.
Wesley Sneijder
Netherlands 3-0 Italy, Group A, 9 June
Giovanni van Bronkhorst started the move by clearing off his own goalline from an Italy corner. He then raced upfield before hitting a crossfield pass to Dirk Kuyt who cushioned the ball perfectly for Sneijder to hook past Gianluigi Buffon.
Vote for your favourite goal in the Carslberg Goal of the Day competition by clicking here.
Russia: heads held high
The Russia players slumped when the final whistle signalled the end of their campaign on Thursday, but when the dust settles they can savour plenty of reasons to be cheerful.
Attacking football
This has, after all, been the most successful campaign at a major tournament by a Russian side since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Never before have Russia got out of their group, let alone reached the semi-finals. Never before have they played such attacking, fast and attractive football as the kind introduced by Guus Hiddink. "There is only one winner playing this kind of football, even though you don't always win titles," the Dutch coach said before his side's 3-0 semi-final defeat against Spain on Thursday.
Achievement
Russia's achievement in reaching the last four was all the more remarkable given that key striker Pavel Pogrebnyak was forced out of the squad on the eve of the tournament through injury. That coupled with star-man Andrei Arshavin's two-match suspension left Russia fans fearing the worst. The mood in the camp darkened further after kicking off with a comprehensive defeat by Spain in Group D. "Our thoughts were catastrophic," goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev admitted. "We lost the first game 4-1, what could we do? Psychology is key at a time like that." Russia had the youngest squad at the tournament, but it was a pair of old hands that steadied the ship in their next match against Greece, 32-year-old captain Sergei Semak setting up 30-year-old Konstantin Zyryanov for the only goal of the game.
Arshavin praise
The results of a hard three-week training camp in the build-up to the tournament were beginning to pay off, but even then you could not have predicted what was to follow. It was the return of Arshavin from suspension that really brought Russia to life. He scored one and Roman Pavlyuchenko the other as they beat Sweden 2-0 in their final Group D game, the charismatic, lightning-quick striker stealing the show with a scintillating performance. "The surprise for me was that I'd never seen him before, and from the first seconds of the match when I started to watch him [against Sweden], I was full of admiration. He's a great player," Spain midfielder Xavi Hernández said, summing up the views of many.
Attacking drive
Russia exceeded expectations by getting out of their group, and few backed them to then beat the in-form Netherlands. Hiddink's side, though, rose to the occasion. Arshavin, Pavlyuchenko and energetic full-back Yuri Zhirkov all shone as Russia's lively, relentless attacking style paid dividends. Pavlyuchenko opened the scoring on 56 minutes and though the Netherlands forced extra time, Russia's attacking drive prevailed, Dmitri Torbinski then Arshavin scoring to crown a startling 3-1 win. Instead of celebrating after scoring Russia's third, Arshavin looked at the camera, opened his arms and shrugged as if to say: "We're just as surprised as you are". Back home Russia's football fans celebrated like they had never done before.
'Outplayed'
Having scaled the heights, Russia came crashing down against Spain. "The bronze medals we were given in the locker room were the limit for us," said 22-year-old goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev, one of the stars of the tournament. "Today we could not have hoped for more. We were outplayed." He then looked straight into the camera lens and smiled. Just as the Russian fans cheered their team off the pitch at the end, Akinfeev was making it clear that regardless of the result at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion, UEFA EURO 2008™ had been an unforgettable journey for Russia. Guus Hiddink and his side have every reason to smile as they head home.
How Seven Self-Made Titans Financed Their Success
Oprah Winfrey
Age: 54
Net Worth: $2.5 billion
Industry: Media/Entertainment
The accidental daughter of two Mississippi teenagers, Winfrey faced poverty and physical abuse from an early age. A stellar student, she won oratory and beauty contests and eventually earned a scholarship to Tennessee State University, later becoming the first black female news anchor at Nashville's WLAC-TV. At 29, she hosted a Chicago morning television show called AM Chicago, later re-named The Oprah Winfrey Show. A millionaire by age 32, Winfrey branched out on her own in 1998 by founding Harpo Studios, producer of films and television shows including the Dr. Phil show and the Rachel Ray show. Other Oprah ventures include the cable television network Oxygen (purchased in 2007 by NBC for $925 million) and publications O, The Oprah Magazine and O at Home.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
1/2 FINALS: Clinical Spain set up Germany final date
RUSSIA-SPAIN
0-3
Second-half goals from Xavi Hernández, Daniel Güiza and David Silva sent Spain through to a UEFA EURO 2008™ final meeting with Germany as Luis Aragonés's men proved too strong for Russia in Vienna.
Spain fluent
Russia looked the team to beat as they scythed through the Netherlands in the last eight. But with thunderstorms lighting the sky above the Ernst-Happel-Stadion they struggled to get to grips with the occasion, and never looked like recovering after Xavi broke the deadlock five minutes after half-time, steering Andrés Iniesta's fine left-wing cross past Igor Akinfeev. Güiza added another with 17 minutes remaining before Silva completed a morale-boosting win for Spain ahead of Sunday's final, their first since 1984.
Russian torpor
After their 4-1 defeat by Spain in the group stage 16 days ago, Russia coach Guus Hiddink had complained that he would have to "wake some players up". He seemed to have succeeded in breathtaking fashion, yet despite the driving rain and spectacular lightning that greeted the start of this semi-final, his charges looked to have slipped back into a torpor. It was not something that was troubling Sergio Ramos, though. Stung by criticism of his campaign to date in some quarters the Spain right-back started like a man possessed. He snapped into tackles, scampered down the wing and just failed to get on the end of Xavi's fifth-minute cross.
Akinfeev busy
Ramos's team-mates soon took his lead, and as much as Aragonés does not like what he terms Spain's "mustard" away jerseys, he would have been glad his team were not in red. Disjointed at the back and sluggish in midfield, Russia were struggling to find their feet. It took a well-timed tackle from Vasili Berezutski – playing instead of the suspended Denis Kolodin – to deny Fernando Torres a run on goal though the striker soon tested Akinfeev with a shot on the turn. The Russia goalkeeper was in action again to deny David Villa as he fired in at the near post as Aragonés' ploy of using Iniesta to double up on the left wing caused confusion.
Pavlyuchenko chances
Russia were looking for Andrei Arshavin to lift them out of the mire but refuge instead came from the right boot of Roman Pavlyuchenko. The 26-year-old gave warning with a free-kick and it then took a stunning stop from Iker Casillas to deny him, diverting a blistering strike away from the top corner. It soon got better for Russia as the instigator of that group stage loss, hat-trick hero Villa, limped off and almost immediately Pavlyuchenko poked wide with the goal at his mercy. The profligacy was underlined five minutes after half-time when Spain's midfield Argus Marcos Senna turned over possession and fed Xavi. A smart exchange of passes later and La Furia Roja were ahead.
Güiza strikes
In the crowd, Spain's Crown Princess Letizia bore a shocked expression but in truth it had been coming, and her side were soon on the hunt for more. Having found his range with the goal, Iniesta released Villa's replacement Cesc Fàbregas, and though the substitute ran out of space, Aragonés's decision to switch to a five-man midfield was proving profitable. It took an excellent challenge from Yuri Zhirkov to deny Torres before Fàbregas and Xabi Alonso had efforts tipped over. Alonso had been introduced moments earlier alongside Güiza, and the latter soon sealed victory, lobbing Akinfeev after being put through by Fàbregas' perfectly-weighted dink over the defence. The No10 was the provider again moments later as his low cross was fired in by Silva. Next up, Germany.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
1/2 FINALS: Germany strike late to seal final place
GERMANY-TURKEY
3-2
A 90th-minute strike from Philipp Lahm sent Germany into the UEFA EURO 2008™ final and ended the march of a brave Turkey side who were unable to summon one last dramatic equaliser.
Gripping contest
Semih Şentürk had already brought Turkey to the brink of extra time with an 86th-minute strike, yet Lahm's super finish from Thomas Hitzlsperger's pass finally flattened Fatih Terim's team. For once, they had led first, through Uğur Boral's 22nd-minute opener, only for Bastian Schweinsteiger to quickly equalise before Miroslav Klose wrested the initiative eleven minutes from time in an exciting semi-final in Basel.
Blistering start
Christoph Metzelder's early slice from Uğur's cross set the tone. Kazım Kazım broke confidently before Lahm's sloppiness allowed his FC Bayern München team-mate Hamit Altıntop – one of two German-born Turkey starters along with Hakan Balta – a half-chance he scuffed at Jens Lehmann. Terim's men were playing as if they had nothing to lose. From Ayhan Akman's cutback, Kazım smashed against the crossbar. Semih nearly turned in a cross, then a telescopic leg from Per Mertesacker denied Ayhan.
Uğur opener
After 17 minutes Germany woke up. Michael Ballack passed to Lahm, met the resulting cross with his head and sparked confusion in the opposition area. The Turkish thoroughbred had already bolted, though, and the first goal went their way after 22 minutes. Sabri Sarıoğlu threw the ball to Ayhan who chested it back, and from Sabri's cross Kazım's imperfect strike looped on to the crossbar – happily for the Crescent Stars an even untidier finish from Uğur burrowed under Lehmann's body.
Schweinsteiger reply
Semih and Mehmet Aurélio might have doubled the advantage, only for Germany to equalise against the run of play. Lukas Podolski, the left prong in the trident behind Klose, delivered the centre which Schweinsteiger turned in from close range. A Klose call at Turkey's end was then followed by Lehmann having to tip over a Hamit free-kick. In return, Hamit's mistake almost undid a vibrant Turkey when his misplaced pass resulted in Podolski sprinting through but rifling over. Uğur's free-kick, won by the willing Kazım, elicited another Lehmann save.
Key absentees
This was a tough contest for Joachim Löw's team, make no mistake. The forward runs of Kazım, Hamit, Ayhan and Uğur in support of Semih were causing no end of trouble. If green in places because of an absentee list including four injured, four suspended and one half-fit substitute, Turkey were also fresh, energetic and enthusiastic. Germany began to show the same qualities – Hitzlsperger found his range, Ballack did not after winning a free-kick. The Mannschaft had dominated both games when these sides met at the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland but you would not have guessed it was them, not Turkey, chasing a sixth final appearance and a fourth European title.
Thrilling finish
Full-back Sabri's right-wing surge went unrewarded, then Uğur warmed Lehmann's hands as Turkey continued to attack through clever use of the flanks. However, it was a long cross from a deeper position from Lahm that looked to have decided the match, goalkeeper Rüştü Reçber failing to reach a ball that Klose headed into the unguarded net. Turkey had redefined the term plucky underdog with last-gasp goals against Switzerland, Czech Republic and Croatia and duly came again. Sabri was the source, his cross being turned in at the near post by Semih. Extra time loomed, but that was discounting the one-two between Hitzlsperger and Lahm that provided the knockout punch.
Your Storm Pictures
Check out the images and videos of yet another violent storm in the GTA.
Taxi Fares Going Up In Toronto, As City Council Approves Hike
Wednesday June 25, 2008
The rising cost of gas may be prompting you to leave your car at home in the morning, but for those who drive for a living that's not an option.
Cab drivers across the city have been feeling the pain at the pumps more than most, often having to absorb the higher prices themselves. But they're about to feel some relief, after Toronto city council voted to increase their fares.
The initial pick-up fee will bump from $3 to $4.
The meter rate is also going up. It used to be $0.25 each 170 metres, now it's going to be a quarter for every 155 metres travelled.
What that means for passengers is that a five kilometre trip rises in price from about $10 to $11.75.
Those asked on city streets how it'd affect their decision to take a taxi were for the most part supportive of cab drivers' woes.
"They have to make a living," Marc Rougeot noted. "You can't keep assuming the cost without being able to live properly."
Jen Garden adds, "I think that (will) probably have an influence on how much I'll be tipping. I tend to recognize the gas cost money and I try to treat the drivers nicely. (But) if they increase the fare, I'll probably not tip quite as much."
Cab drivers, many of whom own their own vehicles and must pay to fuel and maintain them, say this fare bump is essential.
"It will help us because the gas prices are going very high day by day," taxi driver Ehsan Danish says. "It's very necessary."
The increases are expected to take effect in mid-July.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Severe weather whips Toronto, funnel clouds spotted in Markham
Monday, June 23, 2008 - 06:37 PM
By: 680News staff
Funnel clouds were spotted along Highway 401 and Sheppard Avenue, from Markham and eastward (Photo courtesy of: City News)
Toronto - Wild weather swept across the GTA and beyond, Monday.
There was heavy rain, thunder, lightning, hail and dark clouds.
More than a dozen callers to 680News said they even saw an ominous funnel cloud in the sky, like this one caller who was working in the Finch and Markham Road area where picnic tables and trees went flying. " Kinda scary to see - that's for sure - You don't expect to see it...don't wanna see another one."
680's Meteorologist Harold Hosein said people should seek shelter if they see severe weather coming their way. "If you hear the sound of something like a locomotive (a train engine), or the sound of a jet engine - then you know that that storm is approaching or has become a tornado."
Hosein added that funnel clouds can turn into tornados if they touch the ground, "The funnel cloud is the beginning of the tornado and it's the circulation within the cloud, which causes a vortex. Much like the vortex that you see in your sink or bathtub when the water is going down the drain."
It's best to stay in the basement or the smallest room of the house if you think a heavy storm is approaching, advised Hosein.
Meanwhile, in the York Mills and Leslie area, police said a 15-year-old girl was taken to hospital after a lightning strike near her knocked her to the ground.
A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for Toronto by Environment Canada at 1:40 p.m. Monday.
The warning also applied to:
- Vaughan - Richmond Hill - Markham
- Pickering - Oshawa - southern Durham Region
- Windsor - Leamington - Essex County
- Simcoe - Delhi - Norfolk
- Dunnville - Caledonia - Haldimand
- Woodstock - Tillsonburg - Oxford County
- Brantford - County of Brant.
Severe thunderstorm warnings and watches has since ended for all areas.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Fans flock to euro2008.com
One success story has already emerged from a memorable UEFA EURO 2008™ – the tournament's official website, euro2008.com, has registered record traffic of more than one billion page views since its launch in February 2008.
Participation
So far in June, more than 42 million visitors from over 200 countries have logged on to text, multimedia and video coverage of the action. Up to 4.3 million visitors logged on during a single day of the finals, and up to half a million visitors per hour follow live coverage on the web. Traffic numbers are already up by more than 250 per cent compared to euro2004.com. "We have had an extremely good response about everything from those surfing the internet," said Alexandre Fourtoy, CEO of UEFA Media Technologies SA which is UEFA's subsidiary in charge of site production. "We also see a lot of interaction between the fans and ourselves. As our website was made for the fans by the fans, it is really a pleasure to see everyone participating all day long."
Content variety
On euro2008.com football content is available whenever and however fans want it. For the first time, all content is being distributed from one centralised source, feeding into the overall euro2008.com offering and fulfilling the video, audio, text and photo content needs of the converging world. Around 800,000 visitors have already logged on to the free video magazine section, while over 1.2 million have been into the replay video section. In addition, more than 800,000 visitors have accessed the website through a wireless or mobile device. This is the first time the official EURO website has offered video coverage in three different ways: live match simulcast in collaboration with UEFA broadcasting partners, video on demand supplying individual matches, and highlights and free videos produced as vodcasts shown twice a day with news interviews and reports from around the event.
'Exceptional'
"This website is about football so [there is] all the information you want to find about the teams and the players," Alexandre Fourtoy added. "We have an exceptional set of statistics, and we have a great matchcentre which offers heat maps live for all the players during the game." If you are on your PC at work, or if you want to see a game you missed, the website has all bases covered. "If you want a little bit of fun, thanks to all UEFA's sponsor partners, we have a great set of sole and exclusives to play, to interact, to exchange, to publish photos."
Host broadcasting
How are the figures measured? "Page views are an old way of measuring the internet," Fourtoy explained. "Today it is the number of visits and visitors that counts. Depending on the sections, traffic is between 2.5 times and three times that of 2004, which is really much more than the average growth of the internet during this period." Livex is the key element of the converge approach adopted for this tournament. "We are in charge of the host broadcast operations. We have a lot of television stations [involved], 34 here in the IBC and another 100 throughout the world, and we wanted also to feed them with the additional features we're producing all around the tournament.
'Internet platform'
"Livex is a kind of internet platform where you can browse and download additional programming thanks to the internet. It will be broadcast quality but it is using a dedicated internet network. It allows televisions very far away to have access to what we have been producing as if they were here. It is a mixture between television technology, IT technology, web technology so it's what we're all about." Amid this success, Fourtoy and his team refuse to rest on their laurels as there are other targets to chase. "EURO has always been a showcase where we test, use and develop for [the UEFA website] uefa.com," he said. "EURO will be over in a few days, we still have great games to wait for, but just afterwards our season starts again. On uefa.com, you will soon see everything we have been inventing."
Click here for the press release on the UEFA EURO 2008™ website's success.
1/4 FINALS: Casillas' saves put Spain in semis
SPAIN-ITALY
0-0
Spain (4-2) win on penalties
Iker Casillas was the penalty shoot-out hero as Spain held their collective nerve to throw out the record book and claim a UEFA EURO 2008™ semi-final against Russia.
Record
Before tonight Spain had lost three quarter-final penalty shoot-outs on 22 June but they stopped the rot at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion, prevailing 4-2 on spot-kicks after 120 minutes had failed to produce a goal. Although Gianluigi Buffon saved from Daniel Güiza, Casillas denied Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale, allowing Cesc Fàbregas to step up and send his side through. In truth, Luis Aragonés's team had enjoyed the better of the play on a humid night in Vienna, Marcos Senna coming closest when he was denied by the post in the closing stages of normal time. They continued to press in the additional half-hour, David Silva and Santi Cazorla both firing narrowly wide before Casillas's heroics saw them through to a rematch with a Russia side they defeated 4-1 in the group stage.
Omens
The Italy squad had arrived at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion some time after their Spanish counterparts, and for much of the first half Aragonés's men were similarly first to everything. With Xavi Hernández providing the pivot in midfield, Spain bossed the play, caressing the ball one way and then the other – all one-touch passing and quick bursts of activity as they picked at Italy's high defensive line, looking for a chink in the armour. The ploy of Andrés Iniesta switching flanks to create the overlap on the left was too obvious for the wizened Azzurri rearguard, although David Villa's cute back-heel almost forced an opening soon after and it took a timely block to deny Silva.
Duo missed
Italy were struggling to gain a foothold, unable to fill the sizeable void left by suspensions to their usual suppliers of industry and finesse, Gennaro Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo. It was a hole that Fernando Torres, in particular, was keen to exploit as he popped up all over the pitch, drawing Aragonés from his bench to tell him to calm down. Perhaps Aragonés was aware the omens were hardly stacked in his team's favour as they sought their first win against the Azzurri in a competitive fixture, Olympic Games excluded. Midway through the half Massimo Ambrosini gave Spain more to think about but Simone Perrotta was unable to make the most of his arcing cross before another centre just evaded Luca Toni.
Silva threat
With King Juan Carlos in the crowd, it was largely Spain who were rising to the occasion. Villa tested Buffon with a free-kick but it was the waspish Silva who was displaying the most menace. Seven minutes before half-time he fired a low effort past the post after a blocked Torres shot fell his way. He then profited from another fortuitous opening soon after the restart, when the ball cannoned into his path eight metres out. After a clever turn it took a timely intervention from the excellent Giorgio Chiellini to deny Silva. The Azzurri centre-back was immense, and slowly his team-mates began to respond. Just past the hour a long ball caused mayhem in the Spain defence, dropping favourably for substitute Mauro Camoranesi who forced a smothering save from Casillas.
Buffon escape
At the other end, with time ebbing away, Senna worked Buffon with a free-kick and then a low shot that bounced awkwardly in front of the goalkeeper, the ball evading his grasp and spinning on to the post before he fell on to it at the second attempt. It was a propitious bounce but there was no luck involved when the Italy No1 dived to keep out Güiza's effort with three minutes remaining, even if play was subsequently called back for handball. Such reactions would prove invaluable in the concluding penalty shoot-out, but, unfortunately for Roberto Donadoni's world champions, they came predominantly from Casillas.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Sarcasm Seen as Evolutionary Survival Skill
Meredith F. Small
LiveScience's Human Nature Columnist
LiveScience.comFri Jun 20, 9:45 AM ET
Humans are fundamentally social animals. Our social nature means that we interact with each other in positive, friendly ways, and it also means we know how to manipulate others in a very negative way.
Neurophysiologist Katherine Rankin at the University of California, San Francisco, has also recently discovered that sarcasm, which is both positively funny and negatively nasty, plays an important part in human social interaction.
So what?
I mean really, who cares? Oh for God's sake. Don't you have anything better to do that read this column?
According to Dr. Rankin, if you didn't get the sarcastic tone of the previous sentences you must have some damage to your parahippocampal gyrus which is located in the right brain. People with dementia, or head injuries in that area, often lose the ability to pick up on sarcasm, and so they don't respond in a socially appropriate ways.
Presumably, this is a pathology, which in turn suggests that sarcasm is part of human nature and probably an evolutionarily good thing.
How might something so, well, sarcastic as sarcasm, be part of the human social toolbox?
Evolutionary biologists claim that sociality is what has made humans such a successful species. We are masters at what anthropologists and others call "social intelligence." We recognize and keep track of hundreds of relationships, and we easily distinguish between enemies and friends.
More important, we run our lives by social calculation. A favor is mentally recorded and paid back, sometimes many years later. Likewise, insults are marked down on the mental score card in indelible ink. And we are constantly bickering and making up, even with people we love.
Sarcasm, then, is a verbal hammer that connects people in both a negative and positive way. We know that sense of humor is important to relationships; if someone doesn't get your jokes, they aren't likely to be your friend (or at least that's my bottom line about friendship). Sarcasm is simply humor's dark side, and it would be just as disconcerting if a friend didn't get your snide remarks.
It's also easy to imagine how sarcasm might be selected over time as evolutionarily crucial. Imagine two ancient humans running across the savannah with a hungry lion in pursuit. One guy says to the other, "Are we having fun yet?" and the other just looks blank and stops to figure out what in the world his pal meant by that remark. End of friendship, end of one guy's contribution to the future of the human gene pool.
Fast forward a few million years and the network of human relationships is wider and more complex, and just as important to survival. The corporate chairman throws out a sarcastic remark and those who "get" it laugh, smile, and gain favor. In the same way, if the chair never makes a remark, sarcastic people are making them behind his or her back, forming a clique by their mutually negative, but funny, comments. Either way, sarcasm plays a role in making and breaking alliances and friendship.
Thanks goodness, because life without out sarcasm would be a dull and way too nice place to be, if you ask me.
Сборную России озолотят за победу
Как стало известно LIFE.RU, в случае победы в четвертьфинале Евро-2008 над Голландией каждый из игроков российской сборной получит огромные премиальные. По нашей информации, каждый футболист, попавший в стартовый состав команды, получит по 120 тысяч евро. Тем же, кто останется на скамейке запасных, выдадут по 70 тысяч.
- Руководство российского футбола решило еще больше усилить мотивацию игроков нашей команды, - рассказал нам источник в сборной. - Ведь это нормальная практика - выдавать игрокам премиальные за победу. Во многих сборных других стран премиальные выше. Игроки нашей сборной уже доказали, что они играют не за деньги, а за честь родины. Поэтому их готовы щедро отблагодарить за то, что они доставляют радость всем россиянам.
Деньги
Напомним, что ранее боссы РФС за выход из группы подняли нашей сборной и без того немалую сумму премиальных - с двухсот пятидесяти до трехсот тысяч евро. Таким образом, выиграв у шведов и обеспечив себе выход в четвертьфинал, каждый из 23 футболистов команды получил на 50 тысяч больше, чем планировалось. А общая сумма премиальных составила почти семь миллионов евро!
Тренер
Наставник нашей национальной дружины Гус Хиддинк мог рассчитывать на премию до полумиллиона евро. А условия нового личного контракта 61-летнего специалиста предполагают еще и премию в размере миллиона евро за то, что сборная пробьется в финальную стадию чемпионата мира по футболу - 2010, который пройдет в Южной Африке. Кстати, за выход на Евро-2008 Гус уже положил в свой кошелек восемьсот тысяч евро.
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