Olympian Anju Bobby George accuses Kerala Sports Miniter of insulting her

June 9, 2016

Thiruvananthapuram, Jun 9: Kerala Sports Minister E P Jayarajan today courted controversy again after Olympian and Arjuna awardee Anju Bobby George accused him of insulting her with "corruption" charges.

AnjuAnju, President of Kerala Sports Council, has also complained to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan regarding the issue.

The athlete, who made history after she won a medal in the World Championships in Athletics in 2003, said she had gone to meet the Sports Minister along with the Council Vice President on June 7 after the new government came to power.

Anju was appointed as the Council President by the previous UDF government.

"We thought he will ask us about the status of sports in Kerala. In the first meeting itself, the minister said 'you all are elected members by the previous ministry. So you all are other party members... All transfers and appointments you are doing are illegal'," Anju said quoting the minister.

The athlete said the minister also objected to the flight tickets availed by her from Bengaluru, where she is based, to Thiruvananthapuram for attending the Council meetings.

She said the minister had told her, "This is all against rules. I can stop all this."

The veteran long jumper said she had given a representation to the previous government for permitting her to avail airfare and the same had been accepted.

"The minister said 'this is all corruption'," Anju said.

Anju said that besides her, Preeja Sreedharan, Indian Hockey captain P R Sreejesh and Kerala Cricket Association President, T C Mathew, are other members of the Council.

"The minister said that all of us are involved in corruption. We are not acting for any political party. Sports is our party. I am not a member of Congress, Communist or BJP. We are doing our duty. If the government is not ready to accept that, they can ask us to leave. But instead, calling all of us as corrupt was not acceptable," she said.

Asked if she planned to quit her post, Anju said she had not taken a decision yet.

"We are sportspersons. I have a duty to inform the Chief Minister about the minister's behaviour," she said.

Jayarajan, however, denied the charge and said Anju had parted "very happily" after meeting him.

Asked about her charge, the state Sports Minister said he had not behaved rudely.

"No, never," he told reporters. He said he was not aware that the athlete had complained to the Chief Minister.

The minister had kicked up a row after he described legendary boxing champion Mohammed Ali as a sportsman from Kerala during his obituary reference.

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News Network
June 25,2020

New Delhi, Jun 25: India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin on Thursday called the 1983 World Cup win as the 'landscape' changing moment for the game of cricket in the country.

Today, India is celebrating the completion of the 37 years of the maiden World Cup triumph under the leadership of Kapil Dev.

"Today 37 years ago, changed the cricketing landscape in India. Thank you @therealkapildev and team for making the game a career for many of us today. Deeply indebted," Ashwin tweeted.

In 1983, in the finals between India and West Indies, the latter won the toss and opted to bowl first.

The Kapil Dev-led side managed to score just 183 runs as Andy Roberts took three wickets while Malcolm Marshall, Michael Holding, and Larry Gomes picked up two wickets each.

Defending 183, India did a good job of keeping a check on the Windies run flow, reducing the side to 57/3.

Soon after, the team from the Caribbean was reduced to 76/6 and India was the favourites from there on to win the title.

Mohinder Amarnath took the final wicket of Michael Holding to give India their first-ever World Cup title win.

In the finals, West Indies was bowled out for 140, and as a result, India won the match by 43 runs.

Kapil Dev lifting the trophy at the balcony of Lord's Cricket Ground still remains an image to savour for all the Indian fans.

In the finals, Mohinder Amarnath was chosen as the Man of the Match as he scored 26 runs with the bat and also picked up three wickets with the ball.

India has been the regular participant in the World Cup from its beginning to the latest edition. The first edition was held in 1975 and from there on, it has taken place after a span of every four years.

West Indies won the first two World Cup titles (1975, 1979) and was the runner-up in 1983. India has won the title two times, in 1983 and in 2011.

MS Dhoni captained the 2011 team to win their second title after 28 years. Australia has won the tournament five times (1987, 1999, 2003, 2007, and 2015).

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May 14,2020

May 14: Veteran South Africa batsman Faf du Plessis has proposed a two-week isolation period for players before and after the T20 World Cup as a way to stage the event as per schedule later this year.

Like other sports, cricketing action too has come to a complete halt due to the coronavirus pandemic. The fate of the T20 World Cup to be held in Australia in October-November is shrouded in uncertainty.

Talking to Bangladesh ODI captain Tamim Iqbal, du Plessis said travel was going to be an issue despite Australia being less affected by the deadly contagion.

"I am not sure... reading that travelling is going to be an issue for lot of countries and they are talking about December or January. Even if Australia is not affected like other countries, to get people from Bangladesh, South Africa or India where there is more danger, obviously it's a health risk to them," du Plessis said.

"But you can go in before the tournament (for) two weeks isolation and then play the tournament and afterwards two weeks isolation," said the former captain.

Several countries across the globe, including South Africa, Australia and India, have travel restrictions in place and the veteran Proteas batsman joked travelling by boat is not an option.

"But I don't know when South Africa will open their travel ban because we can't go there like old days on boats," du Plessis said.

In March, South Africa's ODI series against India was called off after the first match in view of the pandemic.

The coronavirus outbreak, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has infected more than 44 lakh people worldwide while causing close to 3 lakh deaths.

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February 4,2020

Feb 4: India captain Virat Kohli on Tuesday said the death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant in a helicopter crash has impacted his outlook towards life, which he feels, is sometimes taken for granted in pursuit of control over the future.

Bryant, a two-time Olympic gold-medallist and one of the most decorated basketball players of all time, died in a helicopter crash last month along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, who was also a budding hoopster.

"Firstly, it was a shock to everyone. I grew up watching those NBA games in the morning and watching what he did on court. But when someone that you have looked up to in some ways, passes away like that, it does put things in perspective," Kohli said on the eve of the first ODI against New Zealand here.

"...at the end of the day, life can be so fickle. It's so unpredictable. I think a lot of the times we get too caught up in the pressures of what we have to do tomorrow...we really forget living life and enjoying life and just appreciating and being grateful for the life we have," he added.

Kohli said a tragedy like this makes one realise that nothing can be more important than enjoying every moment of existence.

"...it did put things in perspective for me massively. It just makes you feel like not wanting to have control of things in front of you all the time, and just embracing life and appreciating it.

"You start looking at things from a different point of view suddenly and you want to enjoy every moment you're going through. You realise that what you're doing at the end of the day is not the most important thing. The most important thing is life itself," Kohli signed off.

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