IOC look into London ticket claims (From York Press) - The Press in York
IOC look into London ticket claims
11:00pm Saturday 16th June 2012 in National Sport News © Press Association 2011
The International Olympic Committee are facing a London 2012 ticket scandal after allegations surfaced that Olympic officials and agents controlling tickets for 54 countries breached regulations on sales.
The IOC have held an emergency meeting of their ruling executive board via conference call after undercover investigations by the Sunday Times newspaper.
The allegations are now to be investigated by the IOC's ethics commission, a senior IOC source has confirmed. The IOC will also consider a complete shake-up of how Olympic tickets are distributed among member countries.
The Sunday Times, posing as envoys of a Middle Eastern ticket tout, say they found 27 officials and agents representing 54 countries who were willing to breach rules on selling tickets.
One, from Serbia, offered 1,500 tickets for £80,000 in cash, said the newspaper, while they allege China's official ticket agency agreed to sell the best seats in the stadiums for up to £6,000 each.
Spyros Capralos, the president of Greece's Olympic committee, is also alleged to have breached regulations, says the Sunday Times.
An IOC statement read: "The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has moved quickly to deal with allegations that some National Olympic Committees (NOC) and Authorised Ticket Resellers (ATR) have broken rules relating to the sale of Olympic tickets.
"After claims that several NOCs and ATRs were reportedly willing to break the rules by offering to buy or sell tickets outside their territory, sell tickets at inflated prices, or sell tickets to unauthorised resellers, the IOC has ordered an immediate inquiry and referred the allegations to its independent ethics commission.
"On being informed of the allegations, the IOC immediately convened an extraordinary meeting of its executive board and determined a number of actions - the convening of the ethics commission and asking for any evidence of wrongdoing to be provided to the commission without delay.
"The IOC takes these allegations very seriously and has immediately taken the first steps to investigate. Should any irregularities be proven, the organisation will deal with those involved in an appropriate manner."
Comfortable England beat Exiles (From York Press) - The Press in York
Comfortable England beat Exiles
8:54pm Saturday 16th June 2012 in National Sport News © Press Association 2011
England drew first blood in the opening game of this year's international Origin series with a comfortable 18-10 victory over a patched-up Exiles team.
England dominated from the kick-off to avenge last year's defeat in the inaugural game but the Exiles will have their chance to level the two-match programme when the teams meet again at Huddersfield on July 4.
However, the overseas team look likely to be without their captain Thomas Leuluai, who was carried off on a stretcher with suspected ankle ligament damage on the hour.
The Exiles had earlier been hit by the late withdrawal of four front-line players which undoubtedly reduced their effectiveness and made England's task that much easier.
The big plus for coach Steve McNamara was the performance of second rower Gareth Hock, who marked the end of his three-year exile from the England scene with an impressive display as well as the game's opening try.
There were also encouraging efforts from England regulars James Roby and Sean O'Loughlin while Danny Tickle justified his call-up with an industrious display. But was hardly a classic and, in conditions made hazardous by torrential rain, it was no surprise that all England's three tries stemmed from kicks.
In a scrappy opening handling errors from Saints duo Tony Puletua and Sia Soliola put the Exiles under early pressure but knock-ons from Sam Tomkins let them off the hook. Another fumble gave England the position to score through Hock, who regathered possession after Exiles half-back Scott Dureau got a hand to Rangi Chase's grubber.
And it was a towering kick from Chase that created a try for Tickle, with Carl Ablett palming the ball back for Kevin Sinfield to provide the final pass. Sinfield converted both tries to make it 12-0 but the Exiles pulled a try back on 31 minutes when half-backs Leuluai and Dureau worked the ball out wide for St Helens winger Francis Meli to cross at the corner.
Conditions eased in the second half but Australian winger Joel Monaghan fumbled the ball from Sinfield's "bomb" and Tomkins was on hand to gather and scoot over for his side's third try, to which Sinfield added a touchline conversion.
A disallowed England try was a let-off for the Exiles and, although they lost their captain in the process, they recovered from the blow to register a second try. A sustained spell of pressure on the England line eventually paid dividends when centre Daryl Millard raced onto Dureau's pinpoint grubber kick and Dureau kicked his first goal.
At U.S. housing projects, fathers drawn into the fold - Reuters
NEW YORK |
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Thousands of absentee fathers are expected to join Father's Day celebrations this month at public housing projects, where single-mother households are the majority, in a nationwide push to help dads bond with their children.
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the 3-year-old program is designed to help the one in three children across America, or more than 24 million children, living in homes without fathers.
At one such event on Saturday, 7-year-old Myles Marshall played among the inflatable bounce houses, food stands and music at the Van Dyke Community Center in Brooklyn. He was joined by his father, Robert Smith, whom he typically sees only on the weekends.
"I am just having fun spending time with my dad," Myles said.
The events are part of a broader push by the government, charities and advocacy groups to aid children raised in homes without fathers. Of those children, 42 percent are living in poverty, compared with 8 percent of children in married-couple families, according to the National Fatherhood Initiative, a non-profit group that is not affiliated with the HUD program.
It estimates that children in homes without a father are two times more likely to suffer abuse or neglect, drop out of school, commit crime and suffer poor health.
The Father's Day program was begun in 2010 by the New York Community Housing Authority in Brooklyn, and caught the attention of officials at HUD, who then took it national.
"I think it is really important to try and help these dads reconnect with their kids," said Eric Cumberbatch, acting deputy director of Brooklyn community operations, who helped start the first event.
"Often the dads feel like they are a burden on their families or financially they feel like they can't contribute."
About 300 housing authorities across America are planning fun days and dinners this month in honor of Father's Day, up from last year when 209 housing authorities took part, according to HUD.
"We get the housing authorities to put flyers up around the development because the guys are often around the place," said Ron Ashford, director of Public Housing Supportive Services for HUD.
ALL ARE WELCOME
"We are definitely not saying that single females can't raise kids well, they can and they do, but overall if two parents aren't there, then their child does worse."
He said anyone - including fathers who live with their children - was welcome to attend the events, even those who are not part of the housing development.
At the Van Dyke Community Center, tables were set up for the dozens of fathers who attended to get access to job support, health initiatives and learn about monthly activities they could participate in with their children.
Standing with his son Myles, Smith said it was a challenge to find time for all his children, including son Christopher Marshall, 23, Myles' twin sister, Naima, 9-year-old Nia Marshall and 4-year-old granddaughter Christasia Marshall.
"I have to go out and provide for my family, but I make time for them," Smith said. "There is no time you can create but there is always time you can make."
Another father, Joseph Perry, 28, said it was his wife Maggie's idea to bring their 6-year-old twin girls, Kiana and Kira, along.
"Days like this are important because every child needs a father," his wife said.
(Editing by Paul Thomasch and Peter Cooney)
Greece V Russia : UEFA Euro 2012 Match Report - Football
Published: 16 Jun 2012 - 22:01:24
Greece in Euro 2012 quarters after foiling Russia
Veteran Greece captain Giorgos Karagounis halted Russia's Euro 2012 campaign in its tracks here on Saturday, as the underdogs unexpectedly beat the Group A early pacesetters 1-0 to reach the last eight instead.
Seconds before the end of stoppage time in the first half, the 35-year-old midfielder latched onto a throw-in that Russian defender Sergei Ignashevich failed to deal with.
Dodging between the Russian rearguard, he fired a powerful low cross shot past goalkeeper Vyacheslav Malafeev.
The 4,000 Greek fans in Warsaw's stadium, who up to then had largely been outsung by 20,000 Russians, went wild as Karagounis hit home to put his side through on the head to head rule - both sides ending on four points behind group winners the Czech Republic.
Karagounis, who was in Greece's Euro 2004 winning squad, and his team-mates had gone into the Russia game gung-ho, knowing that only a win would keep them in the tournament.
They had also said they aimed to bring some cheer to their crisis-ravaged homeland.
Six minutes in, Karagounis fired a corner to Kostas Katsouranis, and Dimitris Salpingidis bundled goalwards, only for Malafeev to save.
Salpingidis had been Greece's hero of the night when, after coming on as a half-time substitute, he equalised against Poland for his side, earlier reduced to 10 men.
Three minutes later, Russian captain Andrey Arshavin crossed to rising star Alan Dzagoev but he was beaten by Greek goalkeeper Michalis Sifakis - brought in to replace Kostas Chalkias, injured in their defeat by the Czechs.
Dzagoev tried again a minute later, but fired over the bar, before Aleksandr Kerzhakov shot wide.
Russia continued to show their strength as the half progressed, underlining the Greeks' vulnerability to counter-attacks.
But while not ironclad, Greece's defence remained solid at the end.
Five minutes from half-time, Yuri Zhirkov took a superb short corner, only to shoot over the bar.
With two minutes added on, Karagounis's strike came just seconds before Swedish referee Jonas Eriksson's half-time whistle.
Returning from the dressing room, both sides continued to display fighting spirit.
Russia came within a whisker of equalising in the 56th minute, but Igor Denisov was off-target.
There was gloom for Karagounis when he received a yellow card for being harshly adjudged to have dived in the box, meaning he will miss their quarter-final as he was also booked against the Czechs.
Greece's Giorgos Tzavellas came close to putting them further ahead in the 69th minute, but hit the post.
Five minutes later, Sifakis saved a shot from Igor Denisov, while Russia were again foiled in the 83rd minute when Dzagoev latched onto an Arshavin cross but fired wide.
With Eriksson adding four minutes' stoppage time, a desperate Russia battled to save face, but Sifakis denied Denisov again on his line.
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