Retain wrestling in 2020: Ministry to IOC
New Delhi: The Sports Ministry has requested full membership of the International Olympic Committee to take up the matter of wrestling at the 125th session of IOC at Buenos Aires, Argentina and retain the game in the category of core sports in Olympic Games. In a letter written to all the IOC members, Sports Secretary P K Deb has said that wrestling, which combines Freestyle (men and women) and Greco-Roman events, goes back to the inaugural modern Olympics held in Athens in 1886 and has been a core sport from the first Olympics onwards. “It was a part of the ancient Olympics too. The exclusion of the discipline from the core sports of Olympics is against tradition, which is so much a part of Olympics,” Deb wrote in the letter.
CAB to host night four-day game
New Delhi: In a first of its kind in India, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) will be organising the four-day final of pre-season S K Acharya Memorial Trophy (Ranji Pre-season tourney) where pink balls will be used and the match will be played under floodlights. The final match of four-team tournament will be played at the Eden Gardens from October 1-4. Bengal A, Bengal B, Odisha and Jharkhand are the four participating teams in the tournament that begins on September 15.
India play Nepal in SAFF C’ships
Kathmandu: listless so far in the tournament, defending champions India take on hosts Nepal in their last group match with a semifinal berth at stake in the SAFF Football Championships here on Wednesday. India need a draw from Wednesday’s Group A match at the Dasarath Stadium to qualify for semifinals. But with the lacklustre performance they have dished out so far, it would not be easy for Wim Koevermans men to achieve that against a team which will have overwhelming crowd support.
BCCI’s one time benefit scheme part 2
Mumbai: The Cricket Board’s one-time benefit for players who had turned out for a specific number of domestic and international games before 2003-04 and retired is likely to be extended to a few more players who had played beyond the cut-off date, sources said on Wednesday. “The one-time benefit was limited to only those who had played a specific number of domestic or international matches by 2003-04 and retired. But it was announced and given away only in 2012. It was suggested at the working committee that it could be extended so that a few more players who had not retired by the cut-off date could also benefit from the scheme,” BCCI sources said.
Nice if lorgat apologises: Dalmiya
Kolkata: BCCI interim chief Jagmohan Dalmiya on Wednesday said it would be nice if Cricket South Africa's new CEO Haroon lorgat apologises to the Indian Board to iron out differences between the two Boards. The BCCI, which had clashed with lorgat on a number of issues during the latter's tenure as ICC Chief Executive, was apparently not keen on a full South Africa tour by its team after lorgat took over the reins in CSA. "lorgat is a nice gentleman but it would be nice of him if he apologises," Dalmiya said, reacting to reports that lorgat would not mind apologising if need be to sort out issues with the BCCI. Dalmiya, however, said that there was no speculation of Indian team's tour of South Africa later in the year, as was reiterated by the Board's president-in-exile N Srinivasan, after the working committee meeting here on September 1.
Messi Supports Spain’s bid for 2020 Oly
Buenos Aires: The battle for the right to host the 2020 Summer Olympics entered its final stages on Wednesday with the Istanbul bid saying in Buenos Aires that of the three candidates they would need to spend the least on ‘dedicated Olympic projects’. Their claim will surprise many as one of their rivals Madrid’s strongest selling points was that the economic crisis in Spain would not affect their bid because their budget was a modest one 2.37 billion euros ($3.12 billion) as most of the venues and the infrastructure are already in place. The Istanbul bid, which is also up against the third candidate Tokyo, may have hoped to take a bit of the wind out of the sails of Madrid, but the Spaniards had their own moment of triumph on Wednesday when they secured the support of four-time world footballer of the year lionel Messi. PNS/Agencies