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Friday 30 March 2012
Legendary line-up for Monaco festival
Music legends Duran Duran, Enrique Iglesias and Tony Bennett are among the headline performers at this year’s Monte Carlo Summer Sporting Festival. Organisers say there’s something for everyone in 2012, with LMFAO also making an appearance.
Enrique Iglesias will be opening this year's Monte Carlo Summer Sporting Festival
It is the music festival that always draws the biggest names to the Riviera – and this year is certainly no exception. From 6th July to 18th August, legends of the music world will grace the stage of the Monte Carlo Sporting for a series of intimate concerts that this venue is so famous for. The details of which were revealed to the media this week.
Kicking off the summer festival is Enrique Iglesias for a two-night performance on 6th to 7th. Then comes the likes of Johnny Hallyday, George Benson, Duran Duran, Tony Bennett, and Earth, Wind & Fire – Kool & the Gang, to name but a few. And that’s just July.
In August, there’s the original heavy-metal man himself – Alice Cooper. He’ll be followed by German rock band the Scorpions and Boy George on the 3rd, who’ll both be performing for the Red Cross Gala evening (tickets to which will set you back a princely sum of 1,000 euros).
To mix things up, organisers are throwing in a very unexpected addition this year - American electro pop duo LMFAO. For those who don’t know, that stands for "Laughing My F*#king Ass Off". These guys are also playing ahead of Madonna at Nikaia this year.
But it’s more than just singing at the Summer Sporting in 2012. Artistic Director Jean-René Palacio was also happy to announce that the highly energetic and unique show – Rock the Ballet – will be making an appearance, as will Australian Pink Floyd – a music and light show dedicated to and endorsed by the band itself.
From rock to ballet, electro pop to symphony, the schedule at the sporting this year is certainly exciting and varied. Tickets average 60 to 120 euros for a drink and show, and between around 160 and 220 euros for dinner and show.
More details at http://www.sportingmontecarlo.com/
Cassandra Tanti
Monday 26 March 2012
Local news by Riviera Radio dot mc
Islamic ring smashed - Police say they have smashed an Islamist network in Nice. A former armed robber had reportedly recruited 30 young men to form a radical group. He was apparently organizing for his young followers to travel to Afghanistan for training. The alleged leader, a 37-year-old Senegalese, has apparently been under surveillance for over a year. They are now investigating if he had any links with the Toulouse mass-murderer Mohhamed Merah.
Jewish graves damaged - Police are investigating the desecration of a number of Jewish graves in Nice. On the nights of 22 and 23 March, 37 graves in a Jewish cemetery in the east of Nice were damaged. Some headstones were toppled, others daubed with the Star of David.
Coast casino robbery - A gang of three men yesterday morning robbed the La Siesta casino, on the coast road between Antibes and the Marina Baie des Anges. It is believed the gang, which struck around 7.15 in the morning, escaped with around €10-thousand. The masked intruders threatened six employees with two handguns and a teargas canister, forcing them to open the safe. It is believed one of the bandits may have been injured in the raid. There could also be a fourth accomplice who drove the get-away car, a four-wheel drive vehicle.
Another earth tremor - A new earth tremor shook the south-east yesterday morning. The quake, measuring 3.4 on the Richter scale, struck around 10 yesterday morning. Its epicentre was near Barcelonette, where a strong quake struck late February.
Monaco’s recycling boom - Residents of Monaco are taking to recycling with relish. In 2011, some 225 tonnes of trash was collected to be reprocessed. This is 100-tonnes more than was collected in 2008. Officials in the Principality have also registered an increase in the amount of bottles and paper being collected as well as the household recycling.
National News
Gunman’s brother charged - The brother of Tolouse gunman, Mohammed Merah, has been charged with complicity in the killing of seven people, including three school children. 29-year-old Abdelkader Merah, who has been in custody since last Wednesday, denies any role in the three shootings that also claimed the lives of three soldiers. Mohammed Merah was killed last Thursday while trying to shoot his way out of his apartment, following a 32 hour siege.
Business News
The Australian airline Qantas and China East Airlines have announced that they’re to launch a new budget carrier for the Chinese market. The new airline which is called Jetstar Hong Kong will be the first low cost carrier based in Hong Kong. It already operates some budget airline services in other parts of Asia. Operations are expected to start next year using 3 Airbus A320s which will be increased to a fleet of 18 by 2015. Qantas and China Eastern will be equal partners in the venture.
The news comes after Spain’s Iberia launched a new low budget airline over the weekend. Iberia Express started operating on Sunday with prices starting at 25 euros for a one way ticket. The airline covers Spanish cities including Madrid and islands including Ibiza and Lanzarote. It has 500 staff and a fleet of 4 Airbus A320’s. It’s looking to expand out of Spain and fly to destinations including the Rebublic of Ireland, Italy, Greece and the Netherlands.
The Irish Prime Minister has said that the Republic and China have a surprisingly similar business culture. Enda Kenny is on a 4 day trade mission to China and said that both countries’ economies were centred on enterprise and innovation. The Taoiseach is meeting Chinese business leaders in Shanghai and Beijing and hopes to increase Chinese investment in Ireland. The visit comes a month after the Chinese vice premier made a three day trip to Ireland.
Sports News
Golf - Tiger Woods has won his first PGA Tour victory since September 2009 with victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. Woods who’s won 14 majors held off a challenge from Graeme McDowell in the final round to clinch victory by 5 strokes. Afterwards he said that it had been tough but it felt good.
Football - There was one game in the English Premier League on Sunday. West Brom lost 3-1 at home to Newcastle. Tonight, Manchester United host Fulham.
In the English Championship on Sunday Birmingham and Cardiff shared a 1 all draw.
And in Scotland, Rangers won the old firm derby against Celtic 3-2 to prevent their rivals winning the SPL title on their own ground.
Formula One - Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari won an exciting, rain affected Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday holding off the challenge of Sergio Perez in the Sauber with Lewis Hamilton in the McLaren finishing third. Hamilton who started on pole was affected by a bad pit stop while last week’s winner Jenson Button had a bad race and finished out of the points. Alonso, who was fifth when the race was stopped because of rain, emerged in second place after the restart when all the drivers came in for intermediate tyres. He then passed Perez and built a 7 second lead and managed to hold the Sauber off right to the chequered flag. Alonso now leads the driver’s championship. The next race is in China in three weeks.
Cricket - It’s day 1 of the 1st Test between Sri Lanka and England in Galle. The home side have won the toss and decided to bat but the tourists have made a great start taking three quick wickets, to put the homeside on the backfoot.
And Australia salvaged a one day series draw against West Indies with victory in the 5th match in St Lucia on Sunday. The Aussies won by 30 runs to square the series 2 all.
Rugby Union - The Wales coach Warren Gatland has been offered the position of leading the British and Irish Lions on their tour of Australia next summer. It’s reported that Gatland was interviewed for the job last Wednesday and offered the position. The appointment is expected to be finalised in the next month.
There was one game in the Aviva Premiership on Sunday. 26 Points from Toby Flood helped Leicester to a 41-32 win at London Irish.
Weather
Fine and sunny with light south-easterly winds for Monaco, the Alpes-Maritimes and Var. Temperatures: 19 – 24°. Overnight: clear, 6 – 12°.
And Finally
Talk about a memorable day: on Saturday mountaineer Nelson Dellis won the USA Memory Championship for the second year in a row. The Florida man and mountaineering enthusiast outlasted seven other finalists, known in contest circles as mental athletes, at a packed event in New York. Contestants' hyper-fit brains performed serious gymnastics, including remembering 99 names and faces, a 50-line poem, and the order of a shuffled deck of cards. 27-year-old Dellis turned in an unforgettable performance, even smashing his own record in the random numbers category, in which he managed to memorize an amazing 303 figures in five minutes.
Jewish graves damaged - Police are investigating the desecration of a number of Jewish graves in Nice. On the nights of 22 and 23 March, 37 graves in a Jewish cemetery in the east of Nice were damaged. Some headstones were toppled, others daubed with the Star of David.
Coast casino robbery - A gang of three men yesterday morning robbed the La Siesta casino, on the coast road between Antibes and the Marina Baie des Anges. It is believed the gang, which struck around 7.15 in the morning, escaped with around €10-thousand. The masked intruders threatened six employees with two handguns and a teargas canister, forcing them to open the safe. It is believed one of the bandits may have been injured in the raid. There could also be a fourth accomplice who drove the get-away car, a four-wheel drive vehicle.
Another earth tremor - A new earth tremor shook the south-east yesterday morning. The quake, measuring 3.4 on the Richter scale, struck around 10 yesterday morning. Its epicentre was near Barcelonette, where a strong quake struck late February.
Monaco’s recycling boom - Residents of Monaco are taking to recycling with relish. In 2011, some 225 tonnes of trash was collected to be reprocessed. This is 100-tonnes more than was collected in 2008. Officials in the Principality have also registered an increase in the amount of bottles and paper being collected as well as the household recycling.
National News
Gunman’s brother charged - The brother of Tolouse gunman, Mohammed Merah, has been charged with complicity in the killing of seven people, including three school children. 29-year-old Abdelkader Merah, who has been in custody since last Wednesday, denies any role in the three shootings that also claimed the lives of three soldiers. Mohammed Merah was killed last Thursday while trying to shoot his way out of his apartment, following a 32 hour siege.
Business News
The Australian airline Qantas and China East Airlines have announced that they’re to launch a new budget carrier for the Chinese market. The new airline which is called Jetstar Hong Kong will be the first low cost carrier based in Hong Kong. It already operates some budget airline services in other parts of Asia. Operations are expected to start next year using 3 Airbus A320s which will be increased to a fleet of 18 by 2015. Qantas and China Eastern will be equal partners in the venture.
The news comes after Spain’s Iberia launched a new low budget airline over the weekend. Iberia Express started operating on Sunday with prices starting at 25 euros for a one way ticket. The airline covers Spanish cities including Madrid and islands including Ibiza and Lanzarote. It has 500 staff and a fleet of 4 Airbus A320’s. It’s looking to expand out of Spain and fly to destinations including the Rebublic of Ireland, Italy, Greece and the Netherlands.
The Irish Prime Minister has said that the Republic and China have a surprisingly similar business culture. Enda Kenny is on a 4 day trade mission to China and said that both countries’ economies were centred on enterprise and innovation. The Taoiseach is meeting Chinese business leaders in Shanghai and Beijing and hopes to increase Chinese investment in Ireland. The visit comes a month after the Chinese vice premier made a three day trip to Ireland.
Sports News
Golf - Tiger Woods has won his first PGA Tour victory since September 2009 with victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. Woods who’s won 14 majors held off a challenge from Graeme McDowell in the final round to clinch victory by 5 strokes. Afterwards he said that it had been tough but it felt good.
Football - There was one game in the English Premier League on Sunday. West Brom lost 3-1 at home to Newcastle. Tonight, Manchester United host Fulham.
In the English Championship on Sunday Birmingham and Cardiff shared a 1 all draw.
And in Scotland, Rangers won the old firm derby against Celtic 3-2 to prevent their rivals winning the SPL title on their own ground.
Formula One - Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari won an exciting, rain affected Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday holding off the challenge of Sergio Perez in the Sauber with Lewis Hamilton in the McLaren finishing third. Hamilton who started on pole was affected by a bad pit stop while last week’s winner Jenson Button had a bad race and finished out of the points. Alonso, who was fifth when the race was stopped because of rain, emerged in second place after the restart when all the drivers came in for intermediate tyres. He then passed Perez and built a 7 second lead and managed to hold the Sauber off right to the chequered flag. Alonso now leads the driver’s championship. The next race is in China in three weeks.
Cricket - It’s day 1 of the 1st Test between Sri Lanka and England in Galle. The home side have won the toss and decided to bat but the tourists have made a great start taking three quick wickets, to put the homeside on the backfoot.
And Australia salvaged a one day series draw against West Indies with victory in the 5th match in St Lucia on Sunday. The Aussies won by 30 runs to square the series 2 all.
Rugby Union - The Wales coach Warren Gatland has been offered the position of leading the British and Irish Lions on their tour of Australia next summer. It’s reported that Gatland was interviewed for the job last Wednesday and offered the position. The appointment is expected to be finalised in the next month.
There was one game in the Aviva Premiership on Sunday. 26 Points from Toby Flood helped Leicester to a 41-32 win at London Irish.
Weather
Fine and sunny with light south-easterly winds for Monaco, the Alpes-Maritimes and Var. Temperatures: 19 – 24°. Overnight: clear, 6 – 12°.
And Finally
Talk about a memorable day: on Saturday mountaineer Nelson Dellis won the USA Memory Championship for the second year in a row. The Florida man and mountaineering enthusiast outlasted seven other finalists, known in contest circles as mental athletes, at a packed event in New York. Contestants' hyper-fit brains performed serious gymnastics, including remembering 99 names and faces, a 50-line poem, and the order of a shuffled deck of cards. 27-year-old Dellis turned in an unforgettable performance, even smashing his own record in the random numbers category, in which he managed to memorize an amazing 303 figures in five minutes.
Friday 9 March 2012
Wednesday 7 March 2012
Her is the local news from Riviera Radio dot mc
Founder of PIP jailed - The founder of the Var breast implant company at the heart of a global health scare has been jailed after failing to pay his bail. 72-year-old Jean-Claude Mas is being imprisoned at Marseille's Baumette prison. His lawyer could not be contacted for confirmation late yesterday. In January he was charged with causing "involuntary injuries" but released on a 100,000-euro bail. Mas is the founder of local firm, Poly Implant Prothese, which shut down in 2010 after it was revealed to have been using substandard, industrial-grade silicone gel.
Special police force in Nice - Nice’s mayor, Christian Estrosi, dispatched a special team of police officers yesterday in attempt to bring a sense of safety and security to the locals. The Brigade Mobile d’Intervention pour la Tranquilite Publique will be able to intervene in any event they see to constitute anti-social behavior. It’s been reported that approximately half the complaints currently being made to Nice’s town hall are related to disruptive and intimidating behavior. A total of 12 officers from the special force will be on the beat for 10 hours a day in a bid to target the problem and better the circumstances for local residents. They will be operating a zero tolerance policy on shops selling alcohol after 10 pm, noise pollution and on people seen to be disturbing the peace.
Sarkozy visit to Nice postponed - Officials are saying that Nicolas Sarkozy’s arrival in Nice is likely to be postponed from March to April. The president was due to host campaign meetings late this month at the Palais Nikaia. The president of the General Council of the Alpes-Maritimes, Eric Ciotti, was scheduled to welcome the UMP candidate to the city and has commented that there is currently no decision on a fixed date as plans are constantly being altered.
Venet sculpture relocated - In Nice the 30-metre-high, nine-line statue constructed by sculptor, Bernar Venet, has been moved onto the central reservation of the quai des Etats-Unis, to make way for the construction of the Sulzer car park.
National News
Sarkozy on foreigners debate - President Nicolas Sarkozy has said there are too many foreigners in France and the system for integrating them is working less and less well. In a TV debate, Mr Sarkozy defended his plan to cut the number of new arrivals by half if he is re-elected next month. Mr Sarkozy is trailing in the opinion polls behind the Socialist candidate, Francois Hollande. He is also competing for Conservative voters with the Far-Right National Front Party, led by Marine Le Pen. Mr Sarkozy, whose father was a Hungarian immigrant, also said he wanted to restrict some benefit payments to immigrants who had been in the country for 10 years.
Air France emergency landing - Passengers on an Air France plane forced to make an emergency landing have spoken of people ''crying and screaming'' as they feared it would crash. The AF422 flight from Paris to the Colombian capital, Bogota, made a sudden descent and had to land on the island of Terceira in the Azores on Monday. Reports say there was panic amongst both passengers and cabin crew.
Fillon sparks religious debate - Muslim and Jewish groups have reacted with dismay after Francois Fillon suggested the religious slaughter of animals was out of date. The row began when a TV documentary said last month that all abattoirs in the Paris region were producing halal meat. With the election next month, the prime minister has said that religions should re-think their traditions. Although officials have made it clear that most of the meat consumed in the greater Paris is slaughtered outside the Paris area, the issue has not gone away. President Sarkozy addressed the issue at the weekend, pronouncing himself in favour of the "labelling of meat according to the method of killing".
Business News
The US has dragged India to the World Trade Organization, challenging its ban on imports of American poultry. India has banned shipments of US farm products, including poultry meat and chicken eggs, since 2007 to prevent the spread of avian flu. US authorities said India had imposed the ban to protect local industry and that it violates global trade rules. The move comes just days after the US created a new panel to crack down on unfair trade practices by its partners.
Sports News
Football - It was a bridge too far for Arsenal in the European Champions’ League last night, despite a heroic 3-nil victory over AC Milan at the Emirates. Trailing the Italians 4-nil following the first leg, the Gunners were 3-nil up at half time but couldn’t score the vital goal that would have taken the tie into extra time. AC Milan go through to the quarter finals. Tonight in the Champions’ League, Apoel Nicosea play Lyon of France trailing 1-nil from the first leg and Barcelona host Bayer Leverkusen leading 3-1 from the first leg.
Several players at crisis Scottish club Rangers have refused to take pay cuts as part of efforts to reduce costs. Seven or eight of the first-team squad are reported to have failed to agree a deal which would see senior players have their wages slashed by up to 75 percent. Talks are due to resume today.
There was a full programme in the English Championship last night, with the leaders, Southampton, only managing a 1-all draw at home to Ipswich. Second-placed West Ham don’t play until tonight and Reading took advantage of that to close the gap on them to a single point following a 1-nil win over Portsmouth. In last night’s other games, Bristol City beat Leicester 3-2, Coventry and Crystal Palace drew 1-all, Derby beat Blackpool 2-1, Hull and Leeds drew 0-0, Middlesbrough beat Barnsley 2-nil, Doncaster were 2-1 winners at Nottingham Forest and Millwall won 3-nil at Peterborough.
Rugby Union - The former England captain, Lewis Moody, has announced his immediate retirement from the sport because of a shoulder injury. The 33-year-old won 71 caps for England and retired from international rugby at the end of the disastrous World Cup campaign. As a club player, he won seven Premiership titles and lifted the Heineken European Cup twice for Leicester before joining Bath in 2010.
Wales will be without skipper, Sam Warburton, for Saturday’s Six Nations clash against Italy in Cardiff. Warburton has a knee injury and will be replaced by Justin Tipuric. Nick de Luca will start for Scotland in their match against Ireland in Dublin on Saturday. The centre is the only change to the side made by coach, Andy Robinson, as Scotland seek their first win in this year’s Championship; and Toby Flood has been sent back to his club by England coach, Stuart Lancaster, ahead of the eagerly-awaited clash against France in Paris on Sunday. Owen Farrell looks set to retain the number 10 jersey after a good performance against Wales. Charlie Hodgson looks set to return to the bench after recovering from a finger injury.
Cricket - Sri Lanka have leveled the Triangular Series final against Australia with an eight-wicket victory in match two in Adelaide yesterday. Sri Lanka batted magnificently to reach their target of 272 set by Australia with more than five overs to spare.
It’s been New Zealand’s day on the first day of the first Test against South Africa in Dunedin. New Zealand won the toss and decided to field and it’s looking like the right decision.
Horseracing - Kauto Star will have a racecourse gallop after Friday’s meeting at Wincanton as he strives to be fit for Cheltenham. The double Gold Cup winner took a serious fall over the gallops at his yard in Somerset 12 days ago and was rated as only 50-50 for Cheltenham by trainer, Paul Nicholls; but the horse is now said to have almost fully recovered from the trauma. A final decision on whether he’ll run or not will be taken on Monday. The Gold Cup is on 16 March.
Weather
It’s a sunny day today in Les Alpes Maritimes with lows of 5°C and highs of 15°C. In the Var there are south-westerly winds of up to 10 km per hour. Tomorrow in Les Alpes Maritimes there will be sunny spells with light rain. However, temperatures will remain much the same with lows of 5°C and highs of 15°C. In the Var there will be strong, easterly winds of up to 30 km per hour. It’s bright and sunny on Friday in preparation for the weekend. The Var has highs of 15°C and lows of 1°C and there will be 10 km-per- hour winds coming from the north in the Alpes-Maritimes.
And Finally
An elderly American woman is too frightened to leave her home, after being stalked by an angry turkey called Godzilla for over two months. Edna Geisler now wakes up an extra hour early to avoid the wild bird on her daily trip to the post office, after becoming too frightened to leave her home. “I'm afraid to go out of my house,” revealed Geisler. “I have to go to the post office at 6 o'clock in the morning to avoid him.” Godzilla regularly attacks visitors to Ms Geisler's front yard, jumping out of bushes on unsuspecting members of the public. The 69-year-old told the Detroit Free Pass she is now so frightened of the bird that she has become a virtual hermit. Turkeys are known to be extremely aggressive when defending their territory, according to wildlife experts. It’s been stated that Godzilla patrols Ms Geisler's drive every day, launching flying attacks on anyone who approaches. He arrives on her property from a nearby wood at 7am every morning and leaves every evening at the same time without fail. Michigan currently has over 200,000 wild turkeys which roam the vast surrounding woodland territory of the Great Lakes.
Special police force in Nice - Nice’s mayor, Christian Estrosi, dispatched a special team of police officers yesterday in attempt to bring a sense of safety and security to the locals. The Brigade Mobile d’Intervention pour la Tranquilite Publique will be able to intervene in any event they see to constitute anti-social behavior. It’s been reported that approximately half the complaints currently being made to Nice’s town hall are related to disruptive and intimidating behavior. A total of 12 officers from the special force will be on the beat for 10 hours a day in a bid to target the problem and better the circumstances for local residents. They will be operating a zero tolerance policy on shops selling alcohol after 10 pm, noise pollution and on people seen to be disturbing the peace.
Sarkozy visit to Nice postponed - Officials are saying that Nicolas Sarkozy’s arrival in Nice is likely to be postponed from March to April. The president was due to host campaign meetings late this month at the Palais Nikaia. The president of the General Council of the Alpes-Maritimes, Eric Ciotti, was scheduled to welcome the UMP candidate to the city and has commented that there is currently no decision on a fixed date as plans are constantly being altered.
Venet sculpture relocated - In Nice the 30-metre-high, nine-line statue constructed by sculptor, Bernar Venet, has been moved onto the central reservation of the quai des Etats-Unis, to make way for the construction of the Sulzer car park.
National News
Sarkozy on foreigners debate - President Nicolas Sarkozy has said there are too many foreigners in France and the system for integrating them is working less and less well. In a TV debate, Mr Sarkozy defended his plan to cut the number of new arrivals by half if he is re-elected next month. Mr Sarkozy is trailing in the opinion polls behind the Socialist candidate, Francois Hollande. He is also competing for Conservative voters with the Far-Right National Front Party, led by Marine Le Pen. Mr Sarkozy, whose father was a Hungarian immigrant, also said he wanted to restrict some benefit payments to immigrants who had been in the country for 10 years.
Air France emergency landing - Passengers on an Air France plane forced to make an emergency landing have spoken of people ''crying and screaming'' as they feared it would crash. The AF422 flight from Paris to the Colombian capital, Bogota, made a sudden descent and had to land on the island of Terceira in the Azores on Monday. Reports say there was panic amongst both passengers and cabin crew.
Fillon sparks religious debate - Muslim and Jewish groups have reacted with dismay after Francois Fillon suggested the religious slaughter of animals was out of date. The row began when a TV documentary said last month that all abattoirs in the Paris region were producing halal meat. With the election next month, the prime minister has said that religions should re-think their traditions. Although officials have made it clear that most of the meat consumed in the greater Paris is slaughtered outside the Paris area, the issue has not gone away. President Sarkozy addressed the issue at the weekend, pronouncing himself in favour of the "labelling of meat according to the method of killing".
Business News
The US has dragged India to the World Trade Organization, challenging its ban on imports of American poultry. India has banned shipments of US farm products, including poultry meat and chicken eggs, since 2007 to prevent the spread of avian flu. US authorities said India had imposed the ban to protect local industry and that it violates global trade rules. The move comes just days after the US created a new panel to crack down on unfair trade practices by its partners.
Sports News
Football - It was a bridge too far for Arsenal in the European Champions’ League last night, despite a heroic 3-nil victory over AC Milan at the Emirates. Trailing the Italians 4-nil following the first leg, the Gunners were 3-nil up at half time but couldn’t score the vital goal that would have taken the tie into extra time. AC Milan go through to the quarter finals. Tonight in the Champions’ League, Apoel Nicosea play Lyon of France trailing 1-nil from the first leg and Barcelona host Bayer Leverkusen leading 3-1 from the first leg.
Several players at crisis Scottish club Rangers have refused to take pay cuts as part of efforts to reduce costs. Seven or eight of the first-team squad are reported to have failed to agree a deal which would see senior players have their wages slashed by up to 75 percent. Talks are due to resume today.
There was a full programme in the English Championship last night, with the leaders, Southampton, only managing a 1-all draw at home to Ipswich. Second-placed West Ham don’t play until tonight and Reading took advantage of that to close the gap on them to a single point following a 1-nil win over Portsmouth. In last night’s other games, Bristol City beat Leicester 3-2, Coventry and Crystal Palace drew 1-all, Derby beat Blackpool 2-1, Hull and Leeds drew 0-0, Middlesbrough beat Barnsley 2-nil, Doncaster were 2-1 winners at Nottingham Forest and Millwall won 3-nil at Peterborough.
Rugby Union - The former England captain, Lewis Moody, has announced his immediate retirement from the sport because of a shoulder injury. The 33-year-old won 71 caps for England and retired from international rugby at the end of the disastrous World Cup campaign. As a club player, he won seven Premiership titles and lifted the Heineken European Cup twice for Leicester before joining Bath in 2010.
Wales will be without skipper, Sam Warburton, for Saturday’s Six Nations clash against Italy in Cardiff. Warburton has a knee injury and will be replaced by Justin Tipuric. Nick de Luca will start for Scotland in their match against Ireland in Dublin on Saturday. The centre is the only change to the side made by coach, Andy Robinson, as Scotland seek their first win in this year’s Championship; and Toby Flood has been sent back to his club by England coach, Stuart Lancaster, ahead of the eagerly-awaited clash against France in Paris on Sunday. Owen Farrell looks set to retain the number 10 jersey after a good performance against Wales. Charlie Hodgson looks set to return to the bench after recovering from a finger injury.
Cricket - Sri Lanka have leveled the Triangular Series final against Australia with an eight-wicket victory in match two in Adelaide yesterday. Sri Lanka batted magnificently to reach their target of 272 set by Australia with more than five overs to spare.
It’s been New Zealand’s day on the first day of the first Test against South Africa in Dunedin. New Zealand won the toss and decided to field and it’s looking like the right decision.
Horseracing - Kauto Star will have a racecourse gallop after Friday’s meeting at Wincanton as he strives to be fit for Cheltenham. The double Gold Cup winner took a serious fall over the gallops at his yard in Somerset 12 days ago and was rated as only 50-50 for Cheltenham by trainer, Paul Nicholls; but the horse is now said to have almost fully recovered from the trauma. A final decision on whether he’ll run or not will be taken on Monday. The Gold Cup is on 16 March.
Weather
It’s a sunny day today in Les Alpes Maritimes with lows of 5°C and highs of 15°C. In the Var there are south-westerly winds of up to 10 km per hour. Tomorrow in Les Alpes Maritimes there will be sunny spells with light rain. However, temperatures will remain much the same with lows of 5°C and highs of 15°C. In the Var there will be strong, easterly winds of up to 30 km per hour. It’s bright and sunny on Friday in preparation for the weekend. The Var has highs of 15°C and lows of 1°C and there will be 10 km-per- hour winds coming from the north in the Alpes-Maritimes.
And Finally
An elderly American woman is too frightened to leave her home, after being stalked by an angry turkey called Godzilla for over two months. Edna Geisler now wakes up an extra hour early to avoid the wild bird on her daily trip to the post office, after becoming too frightened to leave her home. “I'm afraid to go out of my house,” revealed Geisler. “I have to go to the post office at 6 o'clock in the morning to avoid him.” Godzilla regularly attacks visitors to Ms Geisler's front yard, jumping out of bushes on unsuspecting members of the public. The 69-year-old told the Detroit Free Pass she is now so frightened of the bird that she has become a virtual hermit. Turkeys are known to be extremely aggressive when defending their territory, according to wildlife experts. It’s been stated that Godzilla patrols Ms Geisler's drive every day, launching flying attacks on anyone who approaches. He arrives on her property from a nearby wood at 7am every morning and leaves every evening at the same time without fail. Michigan currently has over 200,000 wild turkeys which roam the vast surrounding woodland territory of the Great Lakes.
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