Celtic shock Barcelona to stoke Champions League ambitions

November 8, 2012

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Glasgow, November 8: Celtic sent shockwaves around Europe as they produced a stunning 2-1 Group G win over Barcelona at Parkhead on Wednesday to end the Catalan giants' 100 per cent record in this season's competition.

Just as they had done in the Nou Camp two weeks ago Celtic took the lead against the run of play when Victor Wanyama headed them ahead in the 21st minute.

Barcelona, who have made a record breaking start to their domestic campaign and hadn't previously lost in the group stages for over three years, dominated possession but lacked a cutting edge in front of goal with Lionel Messi hitting the crossbar and Alexis Sanchez heading against the post in the first half.

Fraser Forster produced heroics in the Celtic goal to deny Barcelona with the keeper superbly stopping further efforts from Alexis and Messi after the break.

Celtic's chances were few and far between but they increased their lead in the 83rd minute when teenager Tony Watt, on as a substitute, scored a breakaway goal just 11 minutes into his Champions League debut.

Messi gave Barca hope in stoppage time when he pulled one back but the Hoops held on for a famous win the day after the club celebrated its 125th birthday.

Neil Lennon's side, who gained revenge for their stoppage time 2-1 defeat in the Nou Camp, now sit second in Group G on seven points just two behind the Catalan giants and could qualify with a game to spare if they get a score draw or better against Benfica in two weeks time.

With several first team players already missing Celtic had been dealt another blow before kick-off when skipper Scott Brown was ruled out with a virus and Gary Hooper failed to recover from injury.

Barcelona had their own injury problems to deal with in defence but Gerard Pique found a place on the bench for the first time since September.

The Catalan giants had dominated possession at the Nou Camp and started in a similar fashion in Glasgow.

However, after earning their first corner of the match Charlie Mulgrew fizzed his delivery to the back post where Wanyama rose above Marc Bartra to thump a header past Victor Valdes.

Following that it was all one-traffic towards the Celtic goal with Messi coming within inches of equalising when he collected a pass from Andres Iniesta in the box before cracking a half-volley off the bar.

Alexis then sent an angled header into the turf and cannoning off the base of the post after getting on the end of a Dani Alves cross in another let-off for Celtic.

The Hoops continued to frustrate Spain's league leaders after the break.

Forster was keeping Celtic in the match and he showed his worth moments later when he got down smartly to stop a drilled strike from Alexis and then made a second save with his legs to deny the Chilean forward.

There were more heroics from Forster in the 70th minute when he produced a superb one-handed save to stop Messi's strike from 10 yards.

Unbelievably, Celtic then increased their lead in the 83rd minute. Forster saved a Messi free-kick and his long kick out was then missed by Xavi to allow substitute Watt to get behind Javier Mascherano and drill a shot beyond Valdes.

Messi pulled one back in stoppage time after Forster had done well to keep out sub Cesc Fabregas' shot as the Argentine reacted quickest to lift the ball into the net from five yards.

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News Network
March 30,2020

Lausanne, Mar 30: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Monday announced that the Tokyo Olympics 2020 will be 'celebrated' from July 23 to August 8 next year while the Paralympics Games will be held from August 24 to September 5, 2021.
"The International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Paralympics Committee (IPC), the Tokyo 2020 organising Committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Government of Japan today agreed on new dates for the games of the XXXII Olympiad, in 2021. The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 will be celebrated from 23 July to 8 August 2021. They also agreed on new dates for the Paralympic Games, which will be celebrated from 24 August until 5 September 2021," the IOC said in a statement.
Earlier, the Tokyo Olympic Games were slated to be held from July 24 to August 9, while the Paralympic Games were scheduled to be held from August 25 to September 6. However, the coronavirus pandemic forced the postponement of the event.
IOC said the new dates are 'exactly one year' after those originally planned, giving the health authorities and all involved in the organisation of the games maximum time to deal with the constantly changing landscape caused by the coronavirus.
"These new dates give the health authorities and all involved in the organisation of the Games the maximum time to deal with the constantly changing landscape and the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic," the statement read.
"The new dates, exactly one year after those originally planned for 2020 (Olympic Games: 24 July to 9 August 2020 and Paralympic Games: 25 August to 6 September 2020), also have the added benefit that any disruption that the postponement will cause to the international sports calendar can be kept to a minimum, in the interests of the athletes and the IFs. Additionally, they will provide sufficient time to finish the qualification process. The same heat mitigation measures as planned for 2020 will be implemented," it added.
The IOC president Thomas Bach thanked all the International Federations (IF) for their support.
"I want to thank the International Federations for their unanimous support and the Continental Associations of National Olympic Committees for the great partnership and their support in the consultation process over the last few days. I would also like to thank the IOC Athletes' Commission, with whom we have been in constant contact," Bach said in a statement.
"With this announcement, I am confident that, working together with the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Japanese Government, and all our stakeholders, we can master this unprecedented challenge. Humankind currently finds itself in a dark tunnel. These Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 can be a light at the end of this tunnel," he added.
IPC president Andrew Parsons said the new dates will provide certainty to the athletes.
"It is fantastic news that we could find new dates so quickly for the Tokyo 2020 Games. The new dates provide certainty for the athletes, reassurance for the stakeholders and something to look forward to for the whole world. When the Paralympic Games do take place in Tokyo next year, they will be an extra-special display of humanity uniting as one, a global celebration of human resilience and a sensational showcase of sport," Parsons said.
"With the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games 512 days away, the priority for all those involved in the Paralympic Movement must be to focus on staying safe with their friends and family during this unprecedented and difficult time," he added.

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News Network
April 27,2020

Mumbai, Apr 27: The pressure to replace iconic Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the stumps was "immense" due to high expectations from fans says K L Rahul, who has been doing the wicket-keeping duty for India in the limited overs format for some time now.

Dhoni quit Test cricket in 2014 and has not played for India in the limited overs format since last year's ODI World Cup in England.

Rahul kept the wickets in the limited overs series against Australia in January this year and also during the team's tour to New Zealand.

"I was nervous when I was doing it for India because of the crowd pressure. If you fumble, people feel that you cannot replace MS Dhoni. The pressure of replacing a legendary wicket-keeper like MSD was immense as it involved people accepting someone else behind the stumps," Rahul told Star Sports on its show 'Cricket Connected'.

Rahul, who has played 32 ODIs and 42 T20Is, said keeping the wickets is not alien to him since he dons the gloves during the Indian Premier League (IPL) and also when he plays for his Ranji side Karnataka.

"People who follow cricket know that I haven't been away from wicket-keeping for too long as I donned the gloves in the IPL and every time I played for Karnataka," the 28-year-old said.

"I am always in touch with wicket-keeping but am also somebody who is more than willing to take up the role if the team needs me to," he stressed.

Dhoni's career is a matter of intense speculation. Many former players feel that it won't be easy for Dhoni to make it to the national squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in Australia. 

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Agencies
April 12,2020

London, Apr 12: Former Formula 1 legendary driver Stirling Moss died at the age of 90 on Sunday.

"All at F1 send our heartfelt condolences to Lady Susie and Sir Stirling's family and friends," Formula 1 said in a statement.

Often referred to as the greatest driver never to win the world championship, Moss contested 66 Grands Prix from 1951 to 1961, driving for the likes of Vanwall, Maserati and Mercedes, where he famously formed a contented and ruthlessly effective partnership with lead driver Juan Manuel Fangio.

In his 10-year-long stint at the tracks, Moss took 16 wins, some of which rank among the truly iconic drives in the sport's history - his 1961 victories in Monaco and Germany in particular often held up as all-time classics.

Moss won the 1955 Mille Miglia on public roads for Mercedes at an average speed of close to 100mph, while he also competed in rallies and land-speed attempts.

Following an enforced retirement from racing (barring a brief comeback in saloon cars in the 1980s) after a major crash at Goodwood in 1962, Moss maintained a presence in Formula 1 as both a sports correspondent and an interested observer, before retiring from public life in January of 2018.

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