Tennis semi-finals this year look like this: A Rodick vs N Davydenko and Berdych vs Nadal
No one from the last year get in semifinals : Canas, Ljubicic, Muray or Djokovic.
This two tennis semi-finals find palyers from two generations : Rodick (1982) vs Davydenko (1981) and Berdych (1985) vs Nadal(1986) . We have Andy from USA and 3 players from europ: Russia, Czech Republic and Spain
MCLEAN, Va., March 31 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — A special edition of USA TODAY Sports Weekly devoted to the 2008 NFL draft hits newsstands today. The Sports Weekly NFL Draft Preview ‘08 is one-stop shopping for the football fan gearing up for the NFL’s premiere off-season event, the draft. Featured in this 48-page special issue: — A Top 100 ranking of players– A cover report looking at a Top 6 who all are worthy of a no. 1 pick: Glenn Dorsey, LSU; Sedrick Ellis, USC; Chris Long, Virginia; Jake Long, Michigan; Darren McFadden, Arkansas; Matt Ryan, Boston College — Capsules of the Top 200 players with analysis, broken down by position — Additional listing of players going 500 deep — A mock draft by USA TODAY Sports experts– Analysis of all 32 teams’ needs, free agency action and past draft historyThe Sports Weekly NFL Draft Preview ‘08 will be on sale at newsstands through May 12, 2008 at a cover price of $4.95. The preview issue can be ordered by calling 1-800-USA-1415 or by visiting . Sports Weekly publishes special editions throughout the year covering special events in the world of sports.USA TODAY Sports Weekly covers baseball and football with detailed analysis and in-depth cover stories on the players and issues that shape two of the most popular sports in America. There is no off-season for Sports Weekly - readers will find complete coverage in all 52 issues throughout the year. USA TODAY Sports Weekly is published by Gannett Co., Inc. . USA TODAY
FAIRFIELD, Conn., March 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — As this year’s Major League Baseball season-opener approaches, a new national poll indicates that Americans are keeping a close eye on steroid use among professional athletes.On average, Americans polled said that they believed 34.33% of all professional sports players nationwide were using performance enhancement drugs, according to the national poll by the Sacred Heart University Polling Institute.Three-fifths of Americans, 60.4%, reported they were following the issue of performance enhancement drugs in sports very or somewhat closely.Still, 69.4% agreed that Congress was wasting time and taxpayer dollars investigating performance enhancement drugs in baseball and other sports.”We found surprisingly high numbers of Americans agreeing that testing for performance enhancing drugs should occur for professional, college and even high school athletes - 68.0%, 68.1% and 59.9% respectively,” according to Jerry C. Lindsley, director of the Sacred Heart University Polling Institute.Lindsley added, “After all the hearings and all the news about steroids in baseball, we still found that 67.6% see most professional athletes as strong role models for America’s youth.”In other survey results, 60.1% believed professional athletes guilty of performance enhancement drug use, should be stripped of awards and statistics during times of use.Over half of Americans surveyed, 51.8%, believed sports betting be illegal while 29.1% believed sports betting should be legalized nationwide.According to Beau Greer, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Human Movement and Sports Science department at SHU, “The use of performance enhancing drugs, such as anabolic steroids, may result in vast cardiovascular, hormonal and metabolic disorders. Although a slight majority of Americans think testing high school athletes is appropriate, it will not be financially feasible on a large scale in the near future. Additionally, accurate tests for performance enhancing drugs are often years behind when the illegal use begins, making it difficult to detect which athletes are cheating.” EXPERTS AVAILABLE FOR COMMENT — Jerry Lindsley, director, Sacred Heart University Polling Institute– Beau Greer, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Human Movement and Sports Science department at SHU.To speak with these experts, please contact Funda Alp at 203-396-8241 or .How the Poll Was ConductedThe Sacred Heart University Polling Institute completed 800 interviews with residents nationwide between March 3-15, 2008. The sample was generated proportional to population contribution in all 50 states. Statistically, a sample of 800 completed telephone interviews represents a margin for error of /-3.5% at a 95% confidence level.About Sacred Heart UniversitySacred Heart University, the second-largest Catholic university in New England, offers more than 40 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs on its main campus in Fairfield, Connecticut, and satellites in Connecticut, Luxembourg and Ireland. Approximately 5,800 students attend the University’s four colleges: Arts & Sciences; Education & Health Professions; University College; and the AACSB-accredited John F. (Jack) Welch College of Business. The Princeton Review includes SHU in its “Best 366 Colleges: 2008,” U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges 2008″ ranks SHU among the best master’s universities in the North, and Intel rates it #11 among the nation’s most “unwired” campuses. SHU fields 32 division I athletic teams, and has an award-winning program of community service. For additional Sacred Heart University news, please visit . Sacred Heart University
PHOENIX, March 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — In a city famous for its sunsets, a pair of NCAA Tournament underdogs are hoping the sun doesn’t set on their respective seasons.(Logo: )The men’s NCAA Tournament West Regional Semifinals get underway Thursday in downtown Phoenix, where No. 7 seed West Virginia will face No. 3 seed Xavier at 4:10 p.m. (MST), and No. 12 Western Kentucky will take on No. 1 UCLA at approximately 6:40 p.m.The stage for these West Regional showdowns is US Airways Center, which is home to the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury. The arena is located in the heart of downtown Phoenix, within walking distance of hotels, restaurants and nightlife.US Airways Center also will be the site of the NBA All-Star Game in February 2009, which will mark a coming-out party of sorts for downtown Phoenix. By then, the nation’s fifth-largest city will have debuted three major additions to its urban core:– a $1.3 billion light-rail network that will link downtown to the neighboring cities of Tempe and Mesa, and provide a link to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport– a $600 million expansion of the Phoenix Convention Center, which will make it capable of hosting more than 80 percent of the conventions in the U.S.– a $350 million Sheraton hotel, which will contain a conference center and 1,000 rooms, making it the biggest hotel in ArizonaThis week, however, it is college basketball that’s making headlines in the heart of America’s sunniest metropolis. The winners of Thursday night’s games (both of which are sold out) will square off in the West Regional Finals on Saturday at US Airways Center. The winner of Saturday’s showdown will advance to the NCAA Final Four.Basketball fans visiting Phoenix this week can expect weather typical of the Sonoran Desert in springtime: lots of sunshine with highs in the mid 80s and evening temperatures in the 70s. Such weather provides the perfect backdrop for dining on open-air patios, shopping at garden-park fashion centers, golfing on desert-style courses, visiting a resort spa, hiking in a mountain park, or simply lounging by the hotel pool.For more information about accommodations, restaurants and attractions in Greater Phoenix, log on to . Greater Phoenix Convention & Visitors Bureau
HOUSTON, March 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The 2008 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo celebrated another great year of agriculture, education, entertainment and Western heritage.The 76th annual Show featured several new attractions, including the Vintners Corral wine garden, where visitors could taste award-winning wines from the Show’s International Wine Competition; the Sky Ride, which took carnival-goers 65 feet above Reliant Park; two new miniature cattle shows; and a public speaking contest for students.RODEOHOUSTON(TM) Super Series– The top 50 cowboys and cowgirls in each of seven events were invited to participate in the second year of the RODEOHOUSTON Super Series, competing for a share of more than $1.3 million in prize money, the richest purse in regular-season PRCA rodeo. Each event champion walked away from Reliant Stadium with at least $50,000, a RODEOHOUSTON trophy saddle and a champion buckle. — RODEOHOUSTON Champions are: - tie-down roping: Josh Peek - Pueblo, Colo., $58,250; - bareback riding: Steven Dent - Mullen, Neb., $53,500;- team roping: Chad Masters - Stephenville, Texas, and Jade Corkill - Fallon, Nev., $66,150; - saddle bronc riding: Billy Etbauer - Edmond, Okla., $55,000; - steer wrestling: Wade Sumpter - Fowler, Colo., $54,000; - barrel racing: Lindsay Sears - Ropesville, Texas, $61,500; - bull riding: B.J. Schumacher - Hillsboro, Wis., $55,000.– The High Flyin’ Award, a year’s worth of Continental Airline travel, presented to the contestant with the highest flights, hardest spills, roughest crashes and toughest luck, went to Fred Boettcher from Rice Lake, Wis.– Xtreme Bulls returned to RODEOHOUSTON on March 18. Forty cowboys competed for a total purse of $75,000. The 2008 winner was Mike Moore, from Kanakee, Ill. He walked away with $29,642.– RODEOHOUSTON produced four live pay-per-view telecasts, including the Super Series Championship on Saturday, March 22.Attendance– The 2008 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo entertained 1,802,158 visitors for general attendance (for all activities on the grounds). This is the third highest general attendance in the Show’s history. The general attendance record was set in 2004 with a total of 1,890,174 visitors.– Rodeo paid attendance totaled 1,206,551 people enjoying action-packed rodeo and superstars in concert. This is the second highest paid rodeo attendance in the Show’s history. The paid Rodeo attendance record was set in 2003 with a total of 1,215,913 RODEOHOUSTON fans.– The RODEOHOUSTON performance on March 9, 2008, featuring rodeo action and a concert by Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus, broke the Show’s all-time Rodeo attendance record with a paid attendance of 73,459. This broke the previous record of 73,291, set in 2007 at RODEOHOUSTON with a performance by Miley Cyrus as Hannah Montana/Cheetah Girls. Six 2008 RODEOHOUSTON performances ended up in the top 20 all-time paid attendance records.– The RODEOHOUSTON performance on March 16, 2008, featuring rodeo action, concerts by Duelo and Los Horoscopos de Durango, and the mariachi finals, set the Show’s all-time Rodeo attendance record for Go Tejano Day, with a paid attendance of 71,165. This broke the previous record of 70,481, set in 2006 at RODEOHOUSTON with performances by Ramon Ayala and Jay Perez.– A record 209,313 people visited the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest to help kick off the Show, topping last year’s attendance record of 190,913.– More than 240,000 visitors rode the Rodeo Express shuttle buses from five locations. The METRORail to Reliant Park was a popular mode of transportation, as approximately 145,000 people caught a ride to the Show. — The Show hosted 2,078 international guests from 84 countries. AGRICULTURAL EXHIBITS– This year’s livestock competitions and horse shows boasted 30,258 entries.– Each of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo junior auctions brought in $1.1 million or more. Six of the junior auction Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion records were broken. The prices for the top winners were (*new world’s records):*Grand Champion Work of Art, $185,000; and *Reserve Grand Champion Work of Art, $150,000*Grand Champion Barrow, $162,000; and *Reserve Grand Champion Barrow, $112,000Grand Champion Pen of Broilers, $160,000; and Reserve Grand Champion Pen of Broilers, $100,000 *Grand Champion Goat, $115,000; and Reserve Grand Champion Goat, $106,000 *Grand Champion Lamb, $185,000; and Reserve Grand Champion Lamb, $115,000 Grand Champion Steer, $300,000; and Reserve Grand Champion Steer, $180,000Grand Champion Turkey, $130,000; and Reserve Grand Champion Turkey, $50,000– The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Champion Wine Auction brought in $1,120,900, including a record $201,000 for the Grand Champion Best of Show and a record $126,000 for the Reserve Grand Champion Best of Show.– Total auction sales (including Champion Wine Auction, Ranching and Wildlife Auction and cattle sales) tallied $11,262,278. Of this amount, junior auction sales totaled $8,297,750.– The junior auction totals* included: market steers ($2,521,300), lamb and goat ($1,603,950), barrows ($1,325,250), poultry ($1,196,050), and school art ($1,651,200) (*unaudited preliminary totals that do not include cash contributions and some purchase commitment amounts).Heritage Partners for the 2008 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo were Reliant Energy, Coca-Cola, Ford and Miller Lite.For complete results and highlights, visit the Show’s Web site at .The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable event that benefits youth, supports education, and facilitates better agricultural practices through exhibitions and presentation. Since the Show’s beginning in 1932, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo has contributed more than $220 million to scholarships, research, endowments, calf scramble participants, junior show exhibitors, the Rodeo Institute for Teacher Excellence(TM), School Art participants, and other educational and youth programs. Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo
Following Monday’s launch at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-23, made its track debut at the Circuito de Jerez in southern Spain today.
The team had two of its 2008 cars in action. Driving duties fell to Heikki Kovalainen and Pedro de la Rosa who were at the wheel of chassis 2 and chassis 1 respectively. Pedro took to the track for the first time at 09:05, with Heikki leaving the garage in his MP4-23 at 14:19.
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