SPORTPERSONS

Nicolas Anelka and Frank Ribery Travel to Hajj

2011-03-23T23:36:00.000+07:00

SPORTPERSON

2010-12-17T16:43:00.000+07:00

Thuram Masuk Islam Saat Usia 16 Tahun

KESEBELASAN sepakbola di Eropa mulai berlaga di lapangan untuk memperebutkan Piala Eropa dalam ajang Euro 2008 yang dimulai Sabtu (7/6). Yang menarik dalam kompetisi ini adalah pemain-pemain Muslim yang ikut memperkuat tim-tim sepakbola Eropa yang dipekirakan akan menjadi bintang-bintang lapangan.

Tim Perancis yang juga disebut tim Les Bleus akan menurunkan sembilan pemain Muslim dalam timnya, antara lain Franck Ribery-pemain Bayern Munich. Ribery yang masih berusia 25 itu, dikenal sebagai pemain yang selalu terlihat memanjatkan doa sebelum pertandingan dimulai.

"Islam adalah sumber kekuatan saya di dalam dan di luar lapangan sepakbola. Saya mengalami kehidupan yang cukup keras dan saya haris menemukan sesuatu yang membawa saya pada keselamatan dan saya menemukan Islam," kata Ribery seperti yang diberitakan eramuslim.com.

Pemain sepakbola bermata biru yang memperkuat tim Prancis itu memulai karir sepakbolanya dengan bergabung dengan tim Boulogne di tanah kelahirannya, kemudian ia pindah ke tim Alès, Brest and FC Metz. Kepindahannya ke Olympique Marseille membawanya ke posisi pertama bintang sepakbola Perancis paling populer pada bulan Agustus, Oktober dan November 2005. Ribery terpilih untuk memperkuat tim Perancis pada Piala Dunia FIFA tahun 2006 yang digelar di Jerman.

Pada tahun 2006 itulah, jati diri Ribery yang telah menjadi muallaf dan memeluk agama Islam terkuak dan menjadi pemberitaan di tengah pertandingan pembukaan antara tim Perancis melawan tim Swiss Piala Dunia 2006.

Muslim lainnya yang namanya populer sebagai bintang lapangan hijau tim Perancis adalah Eric Abidal. Eric yang masuk Islam lima tahun yang lalu dan memakai nama Islam "Bilal" ini mengatakan, agama Islam yang dipeluknya telah mendorongnya untuk bekerja keras memperkuat timnya.

"Saya memeluk Islam dengan keyakinan penuh," kata Abidal, 29, pada majalah Match yang terbit di Paris. Abidal menikah dengan seorang perempuan asal Aljazair dan kini dikaruniai dua orang anak.

Thierey Henry, adalah bintang lapangan hijau lainnya yang akan berlaga di Euro 2008, memperkuat tim Perancis. Henry yang pernah dua kali dinominasikan sebagai pemain terbaik versi FIFA ini kerap mendorong agar setiap orang membaca al-Quran dan membaca lebih banyak lagi tentang agama Islam agar lebih mengenal agama itu.

Pemain Muslim yang menjadi bintang tim sepakbola Perancis adalah Lilian Thuram yang menjadi muallaf pada tahun 1991 ketika masih berusia 16 tahun. Selain Thuram, ada pemain tengah Lassana Diarra (Portsmouth), penyerang Karim Benzema (Lyon), pemain tengah Samir Nasri (Marseille) dan Hatem Ben Arfa (Lyon).

Perancis menggelar pertandingan pertama, berhadapan dengan Romania pada Senin (9/6) tadi malam dalam ajang Euro 2008 yang melibatkan 16 tim sepakbola Eropa. Pemenang Euro 2008 akan mewakili Eropa pada Piala Konfederasi FIFA 2009 yang akan digelar di Afrika Selatan. ***

KOLO HABIB TOURE THE AFRICAN SOCCER SUPER STAR FROM IVORY COAST

2010-12-16T16:14:00.002+07:00

Kolo Habib Touré (born 19 March 1981) is an Ivorian professional footballer who is currently playing his club football for Premier League club Manchester City and is the current club captain, and also plays internationally for the Ivorian national football team. Touré is a central defender. He is the older brother of FC Barcelona midfielder Yaya Touré and Al-Ittihad's Ibrahim Touré.

Touré has played for Côte d'Ivoire since 2000. His debut was in April 2000 against Rwanda. He played in all five games for the Côte d'Ivoire as they finished runners up to the hosts in the African Cup of Nations in Egypt in January 2006.

He was named in the 23-man squad taken by coach Henri Michel to the 2006 FIFA World Cup and made his first appearance in a FIFA World Cup on 11 June 2006 in Côte d'Ivoire's 2–1 loss to Argentina. He has scored two goals for the Ivory Coast in his 76 caps to date, both headers against Gabon (H) and Tajikistan (A) respectively.

Touré, a practicing Muslim, lives with wife Awo, daughter Sania and son Yiassin . He is the older brother of FC Barcelona midfielder Yaya Touré and Al-Ittihad striker Ibrahim Touré.

Mohamed Lamine Sissoko Gillan

2010-12-16T16:07:00.000+07:00

Mohamed Lamine Sissoko Gillan (born 22 January 1985 in Mont-Saint-Aignan, France) is a French-born Malian footballer who is currently playing for Serie A Juventus and the Malian national team. Although he could have elected to play for France internationally, he chose to play for the country of his descent, Mali. Sissoko is a tough tackling defensive midfielder.^[1]

Club career

AJ Auxerre

Sissoko began his playing career in the youth system of French club AJ Auxerre, although he never managed to appear with the club's first team prior to his 2003 sale to Spanish La Liga club, Valencia CF, coached by Rafael Benítez. Up until this move, Sissoko had always played as a striker for AJ Auxerre, but began adapting to his new role under his new manager.

Valencia

Following his transfer to La Liga, Sissoko remained with Valencia between 2003 and 2005. At the time, the manager of Valencia was Rafael Benítez, who eyed the Malian player as a talented youngster with obvious potential to turn into a top-notch defensive midfielder. The 2003–2004 season was a very successful year for Valencia and moderately so for the Malian player. Los Che were crowned La Liga and UEFA Cup champions, while Sissoko totaled nine matches and one goal in a friendly fixture for his new club. The following year, Benítez left to manage Liverpool and was replaced by Claudio Ranieri, which gave Sissoko the chance to firmly establish himself in the starting line-up, as the Italian manager quickly became quite fond of the newly-formed defensive midfielder. In his second season at the Estadio Mestalla, Sissoko played 21 matches in the Spanish League, and made himself known to the world by his performances in La Liga and the UEFA Champions League. In the summer of 2005, Sissoko was signed by Premier League club Liverpool. In two seasons with Valencia, Sissoko totaled 63 appearances.

Liverpool

Sissoko moved from Valencia to Liverpool F.C. in the summer of 2005 for a fee reported at £5.3 million. Fans of Valencia were devastated when the player they affectionately refer to as "Black Gold" decided to move on. He had been expected to sign for Liverpool's rivals Everton F.C. but ultimately plumped for the opportunity to work again with former Valencia boss, Rafael Benítez. Liverpool manager Benítez showered praise upon him when he said Sissoko possessed "incredible ability for his age" and similar qualities to Frenchman Patrick Vieira.^[1] His early career, like Vieira's, was marked with disciplinary problems as he tends to pick up yellow cards for late or reckless tackles. However, his fierce competitiveness was effective for Liverpool, and he soon became something of a fan's favourite as shown in the tribute by Liverpool fans in the form of a large Mali flag with the Scouse phrase "Momo is Boss" adorning it. There were fears for Sissoko's eyesight in his right eye after his retina was severely damaged after he was accidentally kicked in the head by S.L. Benfica's Beto in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League knockout round tie in February 2006. Sissoko, however, made a recovery and returned in the 6th round of the FA Cup against Birmingham City wearing a pair of goggles, where Liverpool won the game 7–0. He was awarded the MMOTY award in May 2006. He went on to play the full match as Liverpool won the 2006 FA Cup Final on penalties over West Ham. The 2006–2007 season got off to a flying start for Sissoko with victory for Liverpool in the FA Community Shield and Sissoko taking the man of the match award. Sissoko's season had been put on hold due to an arm injury he suffered at Birmingham City in the Carling Cup in early November. On 29 January 2007, it was announced that Sissoko would be fully fit for Liverpool's local derby match against Everton on 3 February 2007.^[2] However, he made his comeback from injury by playing against Newcastle United in a game which Liverpool lost 2–1. Sissoko's first real test after coming back from injury was in the UEFA Champions League against FC Barcelona, the current title-holders at the time. Sissoko was awarded the man of the match award by UEFA. However, for the remainder of the season, he would compete for the holding position in the centre of Liverpool's midfield with newly arrived Argentine, Javier Mascherano. He would be largely unsuccessful, and Mascherano started in the 2007 UEFA Champions League Final ahead of Sissoko. This led to people questioning whether he would leave Liverpool, with notable clubs such as Juventus F.C. and FC Barcelona reportedly interested. However, on June 28, Sissoko signed a contract to extend his Liverpool career a further four years, keeping him at Liverpool until 2011. It was later revealed that Sissoko had indeed received an offer from Juventus, but he turned them down to remain at Liverpool.^[3]. On 25 August 2007, in a match against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, Sissoko started in place of the injured Steven Gerrard in Liverpool's central midfield. In the match, Sissoko finally scored his first ever competitive goal in his club career, a long-range first-time effort from 25 yards out, assisted by Andriy Voronin.^[4] It was Sissoko's first domestic league goal in his career, in his 75th appearance for the club. The goal also marked Liverpool's 7000th goal in league football. He remained at Liverpool for the first portion of the 2007–2008 season, however in January 2008, Sissoko transferred to Italian giants, Juventus FC where he would team up with former coach Claudio Ranieri, who at the time was at the helm of Juventus. With the English side, Sissoko made 80 official appearances.

Juventus

On 29 January 2008, Liverpool confirmed the sale of Sissoko to Juventus for a fee of €11 million. He made his first appearance for the club on 3 February 2008, coming in as a 67th minute substitution for Tiago in a Serie A fixture versus Cagliari Calcio. Sissoko scored his first goal for Juventus on 2 March 2008, the equalizer against bitter rivals Fiorentina. During the first half of the 2008–09 season, he formed a partnership with youngster Claudio Marchisio in centre midfield in Claudio Ranieri's 4–4–2 formation and had a good run of results until injury broke up their partnership. He has since been a regular in defensive midfield for the Turin side.

International career

Mohamed Sissoko, born in Mont-Saint-Aignan, France was eligible to play for the French national football team, however, Momo opted to play international football with his native country, Mali. Sissoko obtained his first international call-up in 2004, and has appeared for his country in all of the African Cup of Nations, since then. He has also featured in FIFA World Cup qualifiers for both 2006 and 2010. Sissoko has formed a very solid midfield for his country along with Real Madrid hardman Mahamadou Diarra, and Barcelona ace, Seydou Keita. Sissoko has made 26 official appearances for Mali, and has scored 2 goals.

Personal life

Sissoko is the nephew of former African Footballer of the Year Salif Keïta^[5], who, like Sissoko, played for Mali and Valencia CF. Salif Keita is also the uncle of FC Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita. Both Sissoko and Seydou Keita play similar roles as hard-tackling central defensive midfielders. Sissoko is sometimes referred to as "the Black Ninja" for his tenacious tackling and work rate.^[6]. He is of no relation to football player Moussa Sissoko who plays for Toulouse Football Club.

Career statistics

As of 2010 1212

Club performance			League		Cup		League Cup		Continental		Total
Season	Club	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
France			League		Coupe de France		Coupe de la Ligue		Europe		Total
2002–03	Auxerre	Ligue 1
Spain			League		Copa del Rey		Copa de la Liga		Europe		Total
2003–04	Valencia	La Liga	21	0	4	0			9	1	34	1
2004–05	Valencia	La Liga	24	0	0	0			5	0	29	0
Total	Spain		45	0	4	0			14	1	63	1
England			League		FA Cup		League Cup		Europe		Total
2005–06	Liverpool	Premier League	26	0	6	0	0	0	13	0	45	0
2006–07			16	0	0	0	2	0	10	0	28	0
2007–08			9	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	10	1
Total	England		51	1	6	0	2	0	24	0	83	1
Italy			League		Coppa Italia		League Cup		Europe		Total
2007–08	Juventus	Serie A	15	1	0	0			0	0	15	1
2008–09			21	2	3	0			8	0	32	2
2009–10			17	0	1	0			6	0	24	0
2010–11			11	0	0	0			9	0	20	0
Total	Italy		64	3	4	0			23	0	72	3
Career total			160	4	14	0	2	0	61	1	229	5

Honours

Valencia

Liverpool

Juventus

2008–2009 Serie A runner-up

Arouna Koné

2010-12-16T16:01:00.000+07:00

Arouna Koné (born 11 November 1983, in Ányama, Côte d'Ivoire) is an Ivorian football (soccer) striker who currently plays for Sevilla FC of the Spain La Liga and the Côte d'Ivoire national football team.

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Arouna Koné league career stats

Season

Club

Games

Goals

Yellow Cards

Red Cards

2006/07	PSV Eindhoven	31	10	0
2005/06	Roda JC	2	2	0
2005/06	PSV Eindhoven	20	11	2
2004/05	Roda JC	32	14	3
2003/04	Roda JC	25	11	0
2002/03	Lierse	27	11	0

Arouna Koné biography

The early years

Koné was born in Ányama, a suburb of the Côte d'Ivoire capital Abidjan, to a family of ten brothers and five sisters. Like many other youths, Arouna Koné learned football on the streets, having the desire to play professionally, although Arouna Koné father reportedly wanted Arouna Koné to concentrate on Arouna Koné schooling. Arouna's father died when Arouna Koné was nine, and Arouna Koné mother gave her assent to Arouna Koné footballing aspirations, with Arouna Koné joining the youth ranks of local club Rio Sport d'Ányama. This is in contrast to many successful Ivorian footballers, who, including Arouna Koné brother Bakari Koné, were products of the youth system at capital city club ASEC Abidjan. With Koné proving a success at Rio Sport, Arouna Koné stopped Arouna Koné schooling at the age of 16 to concentrate on Arouna Koné football development, and Arouna Koné contribution to the team helped gain promotion and relegation to the leagues top division, having been added to the first team squad at the age of 17. France club RC Lens invited Arouna Koné for a trial in 2002, but Arouna Koné experienced personal difficulties with the management, and instead transferred to Belgium club Lierse S.K a month later, following a trial match. Arouna settled in well at Lierse, becoming good friends with team-mate and fellow Ivorian Adolphe Tohoua, who had also come to Belgium from Rio Sport. In an impressive debut season, Arouna Koné scored 11 times in 32 games, and in 2003, after only one season in the Belgian league, Arouna Koné was snapped up by Dutch outfit Roda JC. Koné became an instant hit with Arouna Koné impressive goal tally for Roda, and in 2005 more impressive performances for Arouna Koné club earned Arouna Koné a €9.5m transfer to Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven where Arouna Koné was given the coveted Number 10 shirt.
During Arouna Koné time at Roda it was reported that Arouna Koné recommended fellow Ivorian striker Sekou Cissé to join the Eredivisie side.

Breakthrough to national team

Arouna played for the Mama Ouattara run Côte d'Ivoire youth team in the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship, sporting the Number 8 shirt, where Arouna Koné starred alongside Lierse team mate Tohoua and the much talked about Antonin Koutouan. The team finished the group stage in second place, ahead of mexico national football team and Saudi Arabia national football team. They progressed to the knockout phase along with the Republic of Ireland national football team, where they were beaten by the United States men's national soccer team 2-0. Arouna scored three goals in the tournament, once in the 2-1 victory against Mexico, and twice in the 2-2 draw against the Republic of Ireland, and the official FIFA website declared Arouna to be a "crucial pivot for the attacking thrust" of the Ivorian team.

Arouna made Arouna Koné Côte d'Ivoire senior international debut in March 2004 against tunisia national football team, where the Elephants were 2-0 victors. Arouna Koné wears the Number 9 shirt for Arouna Koné country, playing in the 2006 African Cup of Nations tournament, scoring once, where the Elephants were runners up to hosts Egypt national football team.

World Cup 2006

Arouna was selected to represent Arouna Koné nation in the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany. Arouna Koné made appearances in all three group games for the Elephants, but did not score as the team were sent packing at the group stage. This was despite impressing with their attacking brand of football that saw them defeat Serbia and Montenegro national football team and give both argentina national football team and the netherlands national football team a real run for their money.

Arouna was left on the bench for the first game against Argentina in Hamburg as Cote d'Ivoire adopted a more defensive approach against one of the tournament favourites. However, goals from Hernán Crespo and Javier Saviola quickly saw them playing catch up. Arouna replaced Abdul Kader Keïta on 77 minutes and five minutes later Didier Drogba fired them back into the game. Alas it was not enough as Argentina ran out 2-1 winners.

Cote d'Ivoire's second game brought a clear sense of déjà vu as they again quickly found themselves two goals down, this time against the Netherlands in Stuttgart. Robin Van Persie's free-kick and Ruud van Nistelrooy's sharp finish left them reeling but a brilliant individual goal from Arouna's brother Bakari soon fired them back into it. Arouna started up front alongside Drogba and twice came close to scoring. Early on Arouna Koné shrugged off the challenge of Giovanni van Bronckhorst only to fire wide and in the second half Arouna Koné blazed over after a smart team move that Arouna Koné had instigated. Arouna was replaced by Kanga Akalé 17 minutes from time. Alas, Arouna Koné team mates couldn't find an equaliser and their FIFA World Cup dream was effectively over.

Despite the intense disappointment of being knocked out after two games Cote d'Ivoire picked themselves up for their final Group C game against Serbia and Montenegro in Munich. The Serbs were also out and so an open game was expected. Astonishingly Cote d'Ivoire quickly fell 2-0 down, poor defending allowing Nikola Žigić and Saša Ilić (midfielder) to score. Just before half time a blatant hand ball in the area allowed Aruna Dindane to get Arouna Koné side back in the game. At the start of the second half Serbia were reduced to 10 men when Albert Nađ was dismissed for two bookings. A man up, Cote d'Ivoire took the game by the scruff of the neck in the second half and further strikes from Dindane, with a header, and a late penalty from Paris Saint-Germain striker Bonaventure Kalou after another hand ball saw them to a first ever win in the FIFA World Cup finals. Arouna started again, although Arouna Koné wasn't at Arouna Koné best, playing the full 90 minutes. The dream was over but Cote d'Ivoire had announced themselves on the world stage.

A football family

Arouna's older brother Bakari Koné also plays for the national side as a striker and plies Arouna Koné trade in the French Ligue 1 with Olympique de Marseille. The pair competed alongside one another in the World Cup, with Arouna providing the necessary run to clear space for Bakari's long range goal against the Netherlands in the 2-1 defeat on 16 June.

Another brother, Karamoko Koné, is part of the reserve team set up at Arouna's former club Roda JC.

Arouna Koné also sends a proportion of Arouna Koné wages to Arouna Koné mother and family in Côte d'Ivoire. Speaking of Arouna Koné success in football, and Arouna Koné support of Arouna Koné family Arouna Koné is quoted as saying: "In Africa the solidarity for your family is very large. My father died when I was nine years old. My mother and my family have spent many years with difficulty. I am glad that I am now able support them."

2006/07 Season

Arouna enjoyed a successful first half of the 2006/07 season; this led to Arouna Koné stock in world football rising considerably. The PSV number 10 hit nine goals in the Eredivisie at almost a goal every other game. The Eindhoven side look well on course for another Dutch title, lying 11 points clear of second place AFC Ajax. Koné dovetailed well with strike-partner Jefferson Farfan, the Peruvian just edged out Arouna as PSV's top scorer at the winter break.

Koné also made Arouna Koné mark at the top level, scoring twice as PSV cruised through to the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League including a vital winner in the 2-1 victory away to Galatasaray S.K..

Arouna was also shining at international level, bagging Arouna Koné first international hat-trick in an African Nations Cup qualifier against Gabon national football team in Abidjan. A game that saw the World Cup-finalists run riot in a 5-0 victory.

Arouna's successful 2006 finished on an appropriately high note as Arouna Koné was nominated as one of the Ivorian players of the year, an award eventually won by Arouna Koné international strike partner Didier Drogba.

During the January 2007 transfer window Arouna was linked with a number of moves away from PSV. Firstly English Premiership side Aston Villa F.C. were linked with a move for the forward, before Koné reportedly rejected a chance to move to Ukraine giants Shakhtar Donetsk.

In March, Arouna suffered a knee injury in training, which ruled Arouna Koné out of many crucial games for club and country. Following Arouna Koné absence, PSVs seemingly insurmountable lead in the Eredivisie has gradually been crumbled away. After drawing 0-0 against Excelsior Rotterdam, losing to arch rivals Ajax 5-1, and scraping a 1-1 draw at NAC Breda, the Eindhoven sides lead has been cut to just three points by the start of April. Koné, along with Brazilian central defender Alex Rodrigo Dias da Costa, has also been ruled out of PSVs crucial Champions League last-16 ties against English Premiership giants Liverpool FC. Arouna was one of a number of notable absentees through injury for Ivory Coast's African Cup of Nations qualifier against Madagascar national football team. Fortunately, the Elephants were strong enough to survive the game without drama, coming through as 3-0 victors, with goals from Borussia Mönchengladbach defender Steve Gohouri, the RC Lens striker Aruna Dindane and Paris Saint-Germain frontman Amara Diané.

In May 2007 Koné picked up Arouna Koné second Eredivisie winners medal in two years with PSV claiming the title on the final day of the season on goal difference from rivals Ajax.

In June Arouna made Arouna Koné international comeback from injury in the African Cup of Nations qualifier against Madagascar. The game was played in the Northern city of Bouake as part of a peace initiative in Côte d'Ivoire, rather than Abidjan. Koné started the game as part of a front three, alongside Chelsea strikers Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou. 18 minutes in Kalou opened the scoring for the Elephants, with Arouna adding another before half time. The second half kicked off with AS Monaco midfielder Yaya Touré getting in on the act to score a third, before Arouna added Arouna Koné second - the Elephants fourth of the game. Drogba finished off the Madagascar defense with a fifth, and winning goal three minutes from the end. All in all, Arouna's international comeback was a complete success, and Arouna Koné impressive brace helped maintain the Elephants 100% record in the African Cup of Nations qualifiers.

2007/08 Season

Arouna endured a difficult start to PSVs new season in summer 2007. Due to a date mix-up Arouna Koné returned late to pre-season training following a holiday in Arouna Koné native Cote d'Ivoire thus missing out on valuable time to prepare for the new Eredivisie campaign. Added to this, Koné was struck down with the tropical disease Malaria at the end of July 2007, causing Arouna Koné to miss Arouna Koné clubs pre-season tournament - the Russian Railways Cup in Moscow. Minus their talented Number 10, PSV still managed to prosper, beating newly crowned UEFA Champions League holders AC Milan in the semi final and defeating Spanish La Liga champions Real Madrid 2-1 to lift the trophy.
In August 2007 it was announced that Arouna had returned to training following Arouna Koné health scare, and was expected to be fit in time for the teams first Eredivisie game against Heracles Almelo on 19 August.

On 17 August Arouna was named in the Cote d'Ivoire squad to face African Cup of Nations Champions Egypt in Paris on 22 August following Arouna Koné return from illness.

Arouna played the full 90 minutes in PSVs season opener against Heracles, with the Championship winning side running out 2-0 winners. Koné didn't score but reports surfaced on 20 August that scouts from English Premiership side Middlesbrough F.C. were in the stands, with the Ivorian the subject of their attention, and a £6m bid for Arouna Koné services in the pipeline. The following day news surfaced that Spanish La Liga outfit and UEFA Cup holders Sevilla F.C. were locked in talks with PSV to secure the forwards services, with negotiations apparently at an "advanced" stage.

On 28 August it was reported that Koné was due to complete Arouna Koné move to the La Liga side within the week, adding firepower and experience to a side who will be competing in the UEFA Champions League for the first time.

On 30 August Sevilla F.C confirmed on its official website the signing of the Côte d'Ivoire international player for the next five years. The Spanish club reportedly paid €12 million in order to acquire Arouna's services.

On 12 September Koné was finally presented to the media as a Sevilla player having been assigned the number 22 shirt. The delay from Arouna Koné signing to Arouna Koné unveiling led to rumours that there were problems with the Ivorian's health - in particular Arouna Koné heart. However, Koné was quick to dispel such talk, with the real reason being due to the death of Sevilla wingback Antonio Puerta a few days previously. Arouna spoke about Arouna Koné ambitions for Arouna Koné latest move stating: "I know the team and I know that they have won many things in recent years, but I hope to be able to help them to win even more."
At Arouna Koné unveiling Sevilla president Jose Maria del Nido commented that Arouna was 'one of the best attackers in the world' and with the Ivorian in their ranks, the Spanish side had their strongest side in their history.

Arouna Koné made Arouna Koné La Liga debut as a second half substitute for Mali national football team international Frédéric Kanouté in Sevilla's 4-1 victory over Recreativo Huelva on 16 September 2007. Arouna Koné won a penalty for the team, but strike partner Aleksandr Kerzhakov failed to convert. Following the game Koné commented that Arouna Koné felt fellow African Kanouté was one of the "best forwards in the world" and looked forward to striking up an attacking partnership with him.

On 25 September 2007 Arouna opened Arouna Koné scoring account for Sevilla in Arouna Koné second game for the club. The Seville side came from two goals down against rivals Espanyol to make it 2-2 following a Daniel Jarque own-goal and Arouna's spectacular header into the top corner from a Diego Capel cross. Espanyol eventually ran out 3-2 winners but the Ivorian striker had made Arouna Koné presence felt at Arouna Koné new team.

On 2 October 2007 Arouna opened Arouna Koné European account for Sevilla. The Ivorian was a second half substitute for the Spanish side in the group game against Czech Republic outfit Slavia Prague and scored within 10 minutes of Arouna Koné arrival, helping Sevilla to a 4-2 victory.

Koné was named in the Ivorian squad for the 2008 African Cup of Nations in Ghana. Arouna Koné kept Arouna Koné number nine shirt but for the first two games sat on the bench alongside Arouna Koné brother Bakari having fallen behind Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou and Aruna Dindane in the Ivorian's impressive strike force. With the Ivorian side having qualified for the quarter finals with a game to spare however Arouna was reinstated in the Cote d'Ivoire line-up for the final group match against Mali national football team.

In April 2008 it was reported that Koné was to be shown the door at Sevilla in the summer of 2008, after a disappointing first season in La Liga. The forward, by 20 April, had only started six league games, and made substitute appearances in another 11. Arouna Koné lack of playing time, partly down to the form of fellow strikers Luis Fabiano and Fredi Kanouté, and a bust up on the training ground with a member of the Sevilla training staff that was caught on Spanish television, made for some intense speculation about the Ivorian's future. Additionally, a trip to Rome to supposedly visit a brother, fueled reports that Koné would be making the switch to Serie A when the 2008 summer transfer window re-opened.

Arouna Koné has been linked with a summer move to Liverpool FC. It is highly speculated that Álvaro Arbeloa could be used as part of a swap deal. However, Tottenham Hotspur F.C. are also interested in the striker. On Wednesday 23 July 2008 it was reported in English national newspaper 'The Times' that Koné had been offered to Middlesbrough F.C. by Sevilla.

2008-09 Season

At the start of the 2008/09 season, Koné was given the number nine shirt for Arouna Koné club side following the departure of Aleksandr Kerzhakov to FC Dynamo Moscow, and was also called up to the Ivorian squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Guinea national football team on 20 August, 2008. Unfortunately, Arouna suffered a serious knee injury during the match, and it was expected that Arouna Koné would miss much of the upcoming La Liga season.

A scan showed that Arouna had suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury in Arouna Koné left leg, and the striker underwent surgery to repair the damage the following week, commenting that Arouna Koné was sure of playing football again that season..

On 4 February 2009 it was reported that Arouna was back in training with Sevilla, and would be expected to return to first-team action in a matter of weeks, following Arouna Koné serious knee injury..

Arouna Koné made Arouna Koné first-team return in March 2009, after seven months on the sidelines.

Life outside professional football

Away from playing for Sevilla and the Côte d'Ivoire national team, Koné is a practising Muslim. Arouna Koné prays five times a day, and also wears the traditional West African Islamic dress, the Boubou (clothing), on holidays and on Fridays - the Islamic day of public worship.
Koné was also reportedly setting up Arouna Koné own footballing academy, which was due to be completed in December 2005. It was to have the capacity to take up to 50 children when operational.

On 21 August 2007 Arouna became a proud father after Arouna Koné wife gave birth to the couple's first child - a boy named Amidou. The Ivorian stated that both mother and child were doing well and that Arouna Koné was absolutely delighted.

Frédéric Kanouté

2010-12-16T15:49:00.000+07:00

FREDERIC KANOUTE SELAMATKAN MASJID SPANYOL

Bintang sepak bola Frederic Kanoute telah menghabiskan lebih dari US$700,000 untuk membeli sebuah Masjid di Spanyol. Masjid itu terletak di kota Seville, tempat dimana dia bermain untuk klub nya, Sevilla. Masjid pribadi yang sebelumnya dimiliki oleh masyarakat muslim lokal itu kontraknya telah habis, Kanoute pun langsung segera membelinya.

Finalis dari BBC African Footballer of the Year award tahun 2007 yang berumur 30 tahun itu belum mengeluarkan komentar resmi akan hal ini. Diperkirakan Kanoute menghabiskan gaji setahun-nya demi menyelamatkan Masjid ini. Kanoute merupakan seorang muslim sejati yang telah menjadi muallaf semenjak 10 tahun yang lalu.

Pada seri terakhir, dia melakukan hal yang cukup kontroversial, yaitu me-lakban logo sponsor pada kaos klub bola nya, yaitu 888.com – “Agama-ku melarang mempromosikan judi”, Ujarnya. (wahyulive.wordpress.com)

THIERRY HENRY

2010-12-15T23:40:00.000+07:00

Did anyone know that Thierry Henry and Robin Van Persie are both muslim!...so is kolo toure(app he prays 5 times a day)..

I know this may not be a big issue to some of you, and to a certain degree so what. Which is fair enough, but i thought i would mention it, without trying to be controversial, as some of you may not have knew.

Apparently Thierry Henry and Zinedine Zidane are both muslim, and plan to travel to Haj at the end of the year. Will Arsenal let this happen?..as we have a busy schedule towards the end of the year.

Does anyone know what happens to muslim arsenal players in the holy month of Ramandan?..Because as some of you may know, one has to fast from when sun rises till when sun sets. This year Ramandan is going to be in september i think, so it will be quite hard for the players, as the Sun is out for longer. Does players like Toure, fast on match days?.That would be impossible surely, as they would have no energy to run during the match, unless its a night game..

Anyway finding out Van persie was muslim was very interesting, as apparently his rape case has been dropped, but he admited that he did have full on sex with this woman, but did not rape her. This is a double no no, as he is married, and muslim.

Finally, i read somewhere, that Kolo Toure was extremely worried after the London bombings that muslims would receive immense backlash in the capital. He hoped to be a role model for young muslims in Britan, who are increasingly out of touch with society. Toure wants to show, that one can be a successful, muslim, and live in Britain peacefully at the same time. I think he was really pasionate about this cause as well.

Im affraid i have no sources for any of the above information, but i beleive to be fairly accurate regarding these claims.Some interesting points for you guys to look at..

Mike Tyson: Aku Hanya Membela Diriku Dalam perkelahian dengan seorang paparazzi ( Penulis : Noel Monique )

2010-12-15T14:58:00.000+07:00

Mike Tyson mengaku bahwa peristiwa pemukulan yang dia lakukan terhadap seorang fotografer adalah bentuk pembelaan dirinya karena dia merasa dalam bahaya.

Antonio Echevarria, sang paparazzi, menuntut Tyson sebesar US$25 juta atas aksi pemukulan yang dilakukan sang petinju padanya di sebuah bandara tahun lalu.

Menurut situs Digital Spy, Tyson pun membela diri dengan mengatakan dia terpancing oleh Echevarria dan terpaksa mengeluarkan pukulannya untuk melindungi dirinya. Meski sempat ditahan polisi atas insiden ini, Tyson dibebaskan karena kurangnya bukti yang mendukung Tyson menjadi tersangka.

Dalam sebuah video yang merekam perkelahian itu terlihat Tyson berlari menuju Echevarria dan berkata "aku akan membunuhmu."

Profil Irfan Bachdim

2010-12-15T14:50:00.000+07:00

Profil Irfan Bachdim ini untuk sekedar memberikan informasi kepada anda para penggemar sepak bola nasional, yang sedang terpesona dengan kemampuan teknis irfan yang sedang menjadi bahan pembicaraan orang seputar kentribusi apiknya kepada timnas setelah berhasil mengalahkan Malaysia pada laga piala aff 2010, dengan persembahan satu golnya, selain itu, irfan bachdin juga disebut-sebut sebagai man of the macth pada pertandingan tersebut

Bagi para kaum hawa pastinya merasa gregetan melihat tampang gantengnya dan kemampuan olah bola yang termasuk diatas rata-rata pemain Indonesia lainya merupakan daya tarik tersendiri buat sosok Irfan Bachdim, dan berikut ini sedikit Profil Irfan Bachdim bagi anda yang belum mengetahuinya

Nama : Irfan Haarys Bachdim
Tempat Tanggal lahir : Amsterdam, Belanda 11 Agustus 1988 (umur 22)
Tinggi : 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)
Posisi : Gelandang, Striker
Klub : Persema Malang
Nomor : 10
Klub Junior
Tahun Klub Tampil (Gol)
1999-2001 Ajax Amsterdam
2002 SV Argon
2003-2007 FC Utrecht
Klub Senior
2008-2009 FC Utrecht 1 (0)
2009 HFC Haarlem 0 (0)
2010Persema Malang 6 (3)
Tim nasional
2010- Flag of Indonesia.svg Indonesia 3 (1)

Memang wajah rupawan Irfan membuat banyak cewek yang tertarik padanya sayang irfan sudah mempunyai pacar, hee, semoga irfan bisa membantu timnas indonesia untuk memenangi piala aff 2010 ini, untuk melihat aksinya silahkan lihat video indonesia vs malaysia dimana irfan mempersembahkan 1 gol, serta jadwal piala aff 2010 untuk pertandingan selanjutnya

SPORTPERSON

2010-12-09T20:45:00.000+07:00

CHRISTIAN GONZALES

Christian Gérard Alvaro González atau yang lebih dikenal dengan nama Christian Gonzalez, adalah seorang pesepakbola asal Montevideo, Uruguay, yang dapat berposisi sebagai Penyerang Tunggal dan Penyerang Tengah. Sekarang ia memperkuat tim Indonesia Super League, Persib Bandung. Pada tanggal 1 November 2010 Christian Gonzales resmi menjadi Warga Negara Indonesia dan pada tanggal 21 november melakukan debut perdananya bersama timnas sepakbola indonesia.

Profil

Ia adalah salah satu Penyerang yang paling mematikan sepanjang sejarah kompetisi sepakbola Indonesia. Kemampuannya dalam menendang, mencetak gol, penempatan posisi, visi permainan, dan sundulan adalah andalannya. Disamping kemampuannya, ia juga terkenal memiliki fisik yang prima.

Pada saat bermain di Uruguay, ia ditugaskan sebagai Gelandang Serang. Produktivitasnya kurang baik sampai akhirnya ia hijrah ke Indonesia untuk bergabung dengan PSM Makassar dengan status Free Transfer, dan di plot sebagai Penyerang. Dari sinilah ia membuktikan kualitasnya sebagai seorang penyerang handal.

Pada musim 2006, ia adalah pemain termahal di Liga Indonesia menurut data Badan Liga Indonesia dengan bayaran Rp 1,2 milyar^[1]

Setelah menikah, ia memiliki paspor Indonesia, istrinya adalah wanita Indonesia bernama Eva Nurida Siregar. Dari pernikahannya, ia memperoleh dua orang anak (Fernando dan Florencia). Ia juga telah mempunyai dua anak hasil pernikahan sebelumnya (Amanda dan Michael).

[sunting] Kontroversi

Christian Gonzalez dikenal dengan sikapnya yang temparamental. Sejak pertama kali merumput di Indonesia tahun 2003, dia sudah mendapat hukuman dari Komisi Disiplin PSSI sebanyak lima kali karena perilaku kekerasan terhadap lawan dan pelecehan terhadap wasit, akan tetapi hukumannya hampir tidak pernah dilaksanakan secara efektif karena ketua umum PSSI, Nurdin Halid, yang terkesan melindunginya. Bahkan untuk kasusnya yang ke-5, Badan Liga Indonesia mengaku tidak bisa berbuat apa-apa ketika hukuman larangan bermain yang seharusnya 12 bulan dibatalkan oleh Nurdin Halid ketika hukuman baru berjalan 3 bulan. ^[2]^[3] Hal ini dipertanyakan beberapa pihak, termasuk PSMS Medan yang menyatakan bahwa PSSI telah menghilangkan unsur pembelajaran dan Nurdin Halid sangat pilih kasih dalam memberi ampunan.^[4]^[5]

Berikut daftar kasus Christian Gonzalez :^[2]^[3]

Terlibat perkelahian dengan sesama rekan timnya di Sud America, pada tahun 2000. Ia kemudian dikeluarkan manajemen klubnya dengan status Free Transfer.
Terlibat perkelahian dengan sesama rekan timnya di Deportivo Maldonado, pada tahun 2002. Ia kemudian dikeluarkan manajemen klubnya dengan status Free Transfer.
Pada putaran kedua Liga Indonesia 2004, Christian Gonzalez memukul pengurus Persita Tangerang di Stadion Benteng. Dia dihukum setahun oleh Komisi Disiplin PSSI, namun bisa merumput kembali ketika hukuman baru berjalan 6 bulan.
Pada putaran final Liga Indonesia 2006, Christian Gonzalez menanduk penyerang PSIS Semarang, Emanuel de Porras. Dia dihukum sebanyak tiga pertandingan untuk itu, namun tidak pernah dijalankannya.
Pada tahun 2007, dia meludahi wasit Hidayat ketika Persik Kediri dijamu Pelita Jaya. Dia dihukum sebanyak tiga pertandingan untuk itu, namun tidak pernah dijalankannya.
Di babak delapan besar Liga Indonesia 2007, dia berkelahi dengan bek Persija Jakarta, Herman Abanda. Namun lagi-lagi hukuman tiga pertandingan yang didapatkannya tidak pernah dilaksanakan.
Pada bulan November 2008, Komisi Disiplin PSSI menjatuhkan hukuman larangan bermain 1 tahun kepadanya karena memukul bek PSMS Medan, Erwinsyah Hasibuan. Dia mengajukkan banding ke Komisi Banding PSSI, namun bandingnya ditolak, dan Komisi Banding ikut menguatkan sanksi yang diberikan oleh Komisi Disiplin. Akan tetapi pada Februari 2009 dia dinyatakan boleh bermain untuk Persib Bandung setelah Ketua Umum PSSI Nurdin Halid memberikannya pengampunan.

[sunting] Karier Klub

[sunting] Sud America

Bergabung dengan Sud America, sebuah klub di Uruguay, Montevidio, pada tahun 1995. Dalam periode 28 bulan, ia hanya tampil sekali dan tidak mencetak gol.

[sunting] Huracan Ctes

Sud America meminjamkannya ke Huracan Ctes dengan status pinjaman. Ia tampil sebanyak 3 kali dan tidak mencetak gol.

[sunting] Sud America

Kembali kepada Sud America setelah masa pinjaman yang cukup lama, ia akhirnya beberapa kali dipercaya sebagai starter. Ia tampil sebanyak 12 kali dan mencetak 1 gol.

[sunting] Deportivo Maldonado

Pada tahun 2000, dengan status Free Transfer, ia berlabuh ke klub barunya, Deportivo Maldonado. Disini ia tampil sebanyak 22 kali dan mencetak 1 gol.

[sunting] PSM Makassar

Pada tahun 2003, ia bergabung dengan PSM Makassar dengan status Free Transfer. Pada musim tersebut ia mencetak 27 gol dan PSM Makassar menjadi juara kedua Liga Indonesia. Tahun berikutnya ia dikenai skorsing oleh PSSI selama semusim dan didenda Rp 20 juta karena memukul salah seorang petugas Persita Tangerang saat bertanding.

[sunting] Persik Kediri

Bebas dari skorsing, ia bergabung dengan Persik Kediri dan menjadi juara Liga Indonesia pada tahun 2006. Pada tahun 2008 ia dijatuhi skorsing dari Komdis setelah melakukan tindakan yang tidak sportif. Krisis finansial yang dialami Persik Kediri membuat manajemen Persik harus melakukan rasionalisasi gaji. Gonzalez merupakan salah satu dari beberapa pemain Persik yang tidak setuju atas keputusan tersebut.

[sunting] Persib Bandung (pinjaman)

Pada 30 Januari 2009, manajemen Persib Bandung mengumumkan bahwa mereka telah merekrut Christian yang mendapat remisi dari Ketua Umum PSSI, Nurdin Halid. Christian dikontrak dalam status sebagai pemain pinjaman dari Persik Kediri dan akan digaji 60 juta rupiah per bulan oleh Persib Bandung.

Ia memulai debut sebagai starter di Liga Super Indonesia ketika Persib menjamu Persipura di pertandingan yang berakhir 1-1 berkat gol yang juga dicetak olehnya. Ia bermain sebanyak 16 kali di Liga dan mencetak 14 gol, menjadikan Gonzalez sebagai pencetak gol terbanyak di Liga Super bersama Boaz Solossa dengan 28 gol.

[sunting] Persib Bandung

Setelah masa pinjamannya di Persib Bandung dan kontraknya di Persik Kediri habis, Ia langsung dikontrak oleh Persib Bandung sebagai pemain tetap. Di pra musim 2009-10, Ia mencetak gol untuk Persib di Piala Gubernur Jatim.

[sunting] Statistik Karier Profesional

Negara	Klub	Musim	Liga		Piala		Keseluruhan
Negara	Klub	Musim	Tampil	Gol	Tampil	Gol	Tampil	Gol
Uruguay
	Sud America	1995–1996	0	0	0	0	0	0
		1996-1997	0	0	0	0	0	0
		1997-1998	1	0	0	0	1	0
	Huracan Ctes	1997-1998	1	0	0	0	1	0
	Huracan Ctes	1998-1999	2	0	0	0	2	0
	Sud America	1999-2000	12	1	0	0	12	1
	Deportivo Maldonado	2000-2001	0	0	0	0	0	0
		2001-2002	12	0	0	0	12	0
		2002-2003	10	1	0	0	10	1
Jumlah Keseluruhan			38	2	0	0	38	2

Negara	Klub	Musim	Liga		Piala Indonesia		Inter Island Cup		Lainnya		Keseluruhan
Negara	Klub	Musim	Tampil	Gol	Tampil	Gol	Tampil	Gol	Tampil	Gol	Tampil	Gol
Indonesia
	PSM Makassar	2003-2004	26	27	0	0	0	0	0	0	26	27
	PSM Makassar	2004-2005	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Persik Kediri	2005-2006	28	30	8	10	0	0	0	0	36	40
		2006-2007	25	32	8	8	0	0	0	0	33	40
		2007-2008	30	26	4	5	0	0	0	0	34	31
		2008-2009	12	14	0	0	0	0	0	0	12	14
	Persib Bandung	2008-2009	16	14	5	7	0	0	0	0	21	21
		2009-2010	22	18	8	10	0	0	1	1	31	29
		2010-2011	0	0	0	0	2	2	0	0	2	2
Jumlah Keseluruhan			159	161	33	40	2	2	1	1	195	204

Negara
Negara	Tampil	Gol
Uruguay
Uruguay	38	2
Indonesia
Indonesia	195	204
Jumlah Keseluruhan	233	206

[sunting] Prestasi

[sunting] Klub

Juara Liga Indonesia 2006-2007

[sunting] Individu

Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Liga Indonesia 2003-2004 dengan 27 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Liga Indonesia 2005-2006 dengan 30 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Liga Indonesia 2006-2007 dengan 32 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Liga Indonesia 2007-2008 dengan 26 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Indonesia Super League 2008-2009 dengan 28 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Kedua Indonesia Super League 2009-2010 dengan 18 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Kedua Piala Indonesia 2005-2006 dengan 10 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Kedua Piala Indonesia 2006-2007 dengan 8 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Kedua Piala Indonesia 2007-2008 dengan 5 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Kedua Piala Indonesia 2008-2009 dengan 7 gol
Pencetak Gol Terbanyak Piala Indonesia 2009-2010 dengan 10 gol

[sunting] Gol di timnas senior

#	Tanggal	Tempat	Lawan	Skor (Mencetak Gol)	Hasil	Kompetisi
1.	21 November 2010	Palembang, Indonesia	Timor Leste	6-0 (2 gol)	Menang	Persahabatan
2.	24 November 2010	Palembang, Indonesia	Taiwan	2-0 (1 gol)	Menang	Persahabatan
3.	1 Desember 2010	Jakarta, Indonesia	Malaysia	5-1 (1 gol)	Menang	AFF Suzuki Cup 2010

[sunting] Referensi

^[6] ^[7] ^[8]

^ BOLA Edisi 1652, 2006. Pada tanggal 21 november 2010 Chritian Gonzales memulai debut nya sebagai anggota timnas sepakbola indonesia melawan timor leste dan langsung mencetak 2 gol di debut pertama nya dan christian gonzales resmi masuk ke dalam squad inti timnas indonesia pada kejuaraan AAF Cup 2010
^ ^a ^b Christian Gonzales Diizinkan Bela Persib di Kompas.com
^ ^a ^b BLI Izinkan Gonzales Bela Persib di goal.com
^ PSMS Pertanyakan Kebijakan Nurdin di goal.com
^ Sihar: PSSI Beri Contoh Tak Baik di biangbola.com
^ http://sepakbola.showbiznotes.net/christian-gonzales-el-locco-top-skor-piala-indonesia-2010/
^ http://simamaung.com/2010/08/31/gonzales-saya-masih-bisa-menjadi-top-skor-lsi/
^ http://www.detiksport.com/sepakbola/index.php/detik.topscore/idkanal/76

SPORTPERSON

2010-12-09T20:30:00.002+07:00

IRFAN BACHDIM

Irfan Bachdim – Ingin mengetahui secara lengkap Foto dan Profil Irfan Bachdim terbaru, bisa membaca pada review singkat tentang Irfan Bachdim dari sahabat sejati. Irfan Bachdim (pria kelahiran Amsterdam, pada tanggal 11 Agustus 1988; umur 22 tahun) merupakan seorang pemain sepak bola Indonesia keturunan Belanda lo, Irfan adalah pemain hasil naturalisasi yg telah dilakukan oleh PSSI bersama dengan Christian Gonzalez agar dapat memperkuat Tim Nasional Indonesia. Saat ini Irfan Bachdim masih memperkuat Persema Malang di Liga Super Indonesia. Irfan Bachdim direkrut Coach Persema Timo Scheunemann bersama Kim Jefri Kurniawan.

Coach Persema Malang itu tertarik ketika Irfan dan pemain muda berbakat Indonesia lainnya bermain di laga amal untuk tokoh sepakbola Lucky Acub Zaenal di Stadion Gajayana, Malang. Irfan sempat hampir membela tim sepak bola U-23Indonesia di Asian Games 2006 – Qatar. Sayang Irfan Bachdim harus absen dari turnamen tersebut disebabkan menderita cedera. Pada Bulan Juli 2009 Irfan Bachdim ditransfer tanpa biaya ke klub HFC Haarlem. Dalam bermain Irfan Bachdim bisa menempati berbagai posisi, Irfan Bachdim dapat menempati posisi striker, gelandang maupun sayap.

Irfan mengikuti jejak ayahnya, Noval Bachdim yg sebagai pemain Persema Malang di era 80-an. Keluarga besar dari ayahnya kini masih tinggal di Lawang, Kabupaten Malang. Irfan saat ini tergabung dalam Tim NasionalIndonesia asuhan Alfred Riedl untuk Piala AFF 2010. Debut pertama bersama Tim Nasional Indonesia Irfan Bachdim awali ketika Tim Nasional menang 6-0 di laga persahabatan melawan Timor Leste, di Palembang pada 21 November 2010. Penampilan pertamanya bersama Tim Nasional dalam turnamen resmi terjadi pada 1 Desember 2010, saat Indonesia mengalahkan Malaysia 5-1 di Gelora Bung Karno pada ajang AFF 2010. Irfan sendiri mencetak 1 gol dalam pertandingan tersebut.

Berikut Info tentang:
Alamat : Facebook Irfan Bachdim
Alamat : Twitter Irfan Bachdim

MARKUS HORIZON

2010-12-08T23:49:00.000+07:00

Bagi penggemar sepak bola dalam negeri, nama Markus Horison pastilah sudah tidak asing lagi. Sejak dipercaya menjadi penjaga gawang Tim Merah Putih pada babak penyisihan grup Piala Asia 2007 lalu, menggantikan Jendri Pitoy, nama Markus mulai banyak dikenal di jagad sepak bola Indonesia. Meskipun waktu itu Indonesia kalah 1-0 dari Korea Selatan, dan tersingkir dari gelaran kompetisi, tapi justru sejak itu, Markus kerap dipercaya berada di bawah mistar gawang Tim Nasional Indonesia.

Markus kecil lahir di Pangkalan Brandan, Medan, 14 Maret 1981. Hobinya bermain bola membawa ia bercita-cita untuk menjadi penjaga gawang Tim Nasional Merah Putih ketika ia menjalani karir profesionalnya suatu hari nanti. Perawakannyanya yang memang lebih tinggi dari rekan-rekan sebayanya, membuat anak bungsu dari empat bersaudara ini kerap dipercaya menjadi penjaga gawang setiap kali ia bermain bola dengan kawan-kawannya.

Menekuni hobinya bermain bola dimulai saat Markus berusia 13 tahun dengan masuk ke sekolah sepak bola, Brandan Putra. Tahun 2000, Markus yang juga memiliki hobi berenang ini memulai karir profesionalnya sebagai seorang pemain bola pada Divisi II PSKB Binjai. Setahun kemudian, karirnya merambat naik dengan mulai bermain bersama klub yang berada di Divisi I, Persiraja Banda Aceh. Dua tahun kemudian, tepatnya pada 2003, Markus bergabung dengan klub asal tanah kelahirannya, PSMS Medan.

Bersama klub yang dijuluki ‘Ayam Kinantan’ ini, Markus sempat berpeluang menjadi kampiun pada Liga Indonesia 2007-2008, sebelum akhirnya dikalahkan oleh klub satu pulaunya, Sriwijaya FC. Seiring dengan permasalahan internal yang terjadi dalam tubuh PSMS Medan, menjelang masa dimulainya Liga Super Indonesia 2008-2009, Markus bersama dengan rekan-rekannya di PSMS seperti Mahyadi Panggabean, memutuskan untuk hijrah ke kesebelasan Persik Kediri.

Waktu ternyata mempertemukan kembali Markus dengan klub lama yang sempat lama dibelanya, PSMS Medan. Terjadinya krisis dalam tubuh Persik Kediri pada pertengahan musim Liga Super, membawa Markus kembali menjadi penjaga gawang PSMS selama putaran kedua kompetisi tertinggi sepak bola di Indonesia. Tidak seperti kepindahannya yang disertai oleh beberapa rekan-rekannya, kepulangan Markus ke PSMS kali ini hanya seorang diri.

Sejak menekuni kariernya sebagai pesepakbola profesional, sejumlah prestasi telah ditorehkannya, baik untuk level klub maupun pribadi. Bersama klubnya kala itu, PSMS Medan, Markus menjuarai turnamen ‘Piala Emas Bang Yos’ selama tiga tahun berturut-turut (2004, 2005, 2006). Bahkan pada akhir turnamen pada 2006, Markus memperoleh gelar sebagai ‘Pemain Terbaik’.

Mendapat Hidayah

Dibesarkan di keluarga yang semua anggotanya beragama Kristen, Markus yang merupakan anak dari pasangan Julius Ririhina, dan Yenny Rosmawati, banyak memperoleh gambaran mengenai agama Islam dari keluarga pihak ibu. ”Ibu saya awalnya Islam. Sejak menikah dengan ayah, Ibu berganti kepercayaan mengikuti kepercayaan ayah,” tutur pemilik nama lengkap Markus Horison Ririhina ini.

Menurut Markus, kedekatan, dan keakraban yang ia miliki dengan kerabat dari pihak ibu, membuat Markus sejak kecil sudah tidak asing lagi dengan hal-hal yang berbau Islam, seperti shalat, puasa, dan mengaji. ”Sejak duduk di sekolah dasar, saya sering menghabiskan liburan sekolah dengan berkunjung ke rumah saudara dari pihak ibu yang tinggal di Aceh. Dari situ, saya sering ikut mereka ke masjid. Tidak benar-benar masuk sih, tapi yah saya banyak memperoleh gambaran tentang Islam, dan shalat dari situ,” cerita ‘Penjaga Gawang Terbaik’ versi gelaran Liga Indonesia musim 2007-2008 yang lalu ini.

Pada tahun 2004, ketika ia berusia 25 tahun, Markus mendapatkan hidayah dari Allah SWT, dan akhirnya memutuskan untuk memeluk agama Islam. ”Saya memutuskan untuk masuk Islam, tanpa ada paksaan dari siapapun. Jadi, ini benar-benar keinginan saya sendiri,” tuturnya. Semenjak menjadi muallaf, Markus memiliki nama lain yang lebih bernafaskan Islam, yaitu Muhammad Haris. Namun, ia lebih sering menggunakan nama aslinya, karena memang ia telah lebih dulu dikenal dengan nama Markus Horison.

Keputusan Markus untuk menjadi muallaf bukannya tanpa rintangan. Di masa-masa awal perjalanannya memeluk Islam, ayah beserta ketiga kakaknya menentang keputusan tersebut. ”Awalnya tentu mereka semua merasa keberatan. Hal tersebut wajar, dan saya sangat bisa mengerti. Tapi, pada akhirnya mereka menyadari bahwa saya sudah cukup dewasa dan bisa menentukkan jalan hidup yang saya rasa terbaik untuk saya sendiri,” ujar Markus yang setia dengan model rambut bergaya plontos ini.

Sebagai satu-satunya muslim di keluarga, membuat Markus terbiasa beribadah sendirian. Di kala bulan Ramadhan tiba, Markus biasa sahur, berbuka, menjalankan tarawih, dan merayakan lebaran Idul Fitri dan Idul Adha sendirian. ”Awalnya memang berat, tapi hal tersebut harus saya jalani,” kata Markus. Meskipun begitu, atlet yang ikut memperkuat tim Sumatera Utara pada pagelaran PON XVI di Palembang pada 2004 lalu ini, mengaku tetap senang, dan bahagia menjalaninya.

Menurutnya, dalam menjalani agama yang ia anut sebelumnya, dengan yang ia anut kini, Markus tidak menemukan adanya sebuah perbedaan yang teramat besar. ”Buat saya sebenarnya semua agama tidak terlalu berbeda. Semuanya mengajarkan kita untuk selalu ingat kepada Tuhan. Hal terpenting sebenarnya hanyalah bagaimana kita menjalankan kewajiban kita sebagai umat beragama,” lanjutnya.

Kebersamaan, dan dukungan sejak awal ia menjadi muallaf, justru diperoleh Markus dari rekan-rekannya di kesebelasan PSMS Medan yang kebanyakan beragama Islam. ”Saya sering shalat, belajar, dan bertanya hal-hal seputar Islam kepada mereka,” cerita Markus. Ramadhan pertama yang harus ia lalui pun bersamaan dengan kewajiban Markus menjalani latihan bersama dengan rekan-rekan satu klubnya. ”Haus bukan halangan, karena puasa itu kan kewajiban,” tegas Markus yang mengidolakan Rasullulah SAW ini.

Pengalamannya berpuasa pada Ramadhan pertamanya juga merupakan salah satu pengalaman paling berkesan yang ia rasakan semenjak menjadi muallaf. Pada tahun pertamanya berpuasa, ternyata ia mampu menjalankan ibadah puasa, tanpa ada bolong satu haripun.

”Rasanya saya tidak percaya bahwa saya bisa, karena pada hari-hari biasa saya termasuk orang yang paling tidak tahan lapar. Ternyata saya memang bisa, dan bahagianya saya ketika akhirnya berhasil mencapai Hari Kemenangan,” kenang Markus.

Kini, sebagai seorang muslim, membuat Markus kian rajin mempelajari seluk beluk dunia Islam. Ia kerap membaca, dan mempelajari sendiri buku mengenai Islam yang ia beli untuk memperluas pengetahuan keislamannya. Buku-buku panduan shalat, dan berbagai buku bacaan doa pun sering ia beli untuk menyempurnakan ibadahnya. ”Saya biasanya membaca tulisan latinnya saja, karena memang bacaan arab saya masih kurang lancar,” akunya.

Sedikit-sedikit Markus pun belajar untuk menjalankan berbagai ibadah Sunnah seperti belajar berpuasa Senin-Kamis. Seperti juga kebanyakan umat muslim lainnya, memiliki harapan untuk dapat menginjakkan kaki di rumah Allah (menunaikan ibadah haji) hari nanti. ”Pastilah sebagai muslim saya ingin sekali bisa menjalankan ibadah umroh, ataupun haji. Selain itu, masih begitu banyak hal yang harus saya lakukan untuk menyempurnakan keislaman saya, seperti memperlancar belajar mengaji,” ujarnya.

Biodata
Nama lengkap : Markus Horison Ririhina
Nama Muslim : Muhammad Haris/ Markus Haris Maulana
Tempat, Tanggal lahir : Pangkalan Brandan, Medan, 14 Maret 1981
Orang Tua : Ayah = Julius Ririhina
Ibu = Yenny Rosmawati (Almh)
Anak ke : 4 (bungsu) dari empat bersaudara
Tinggi Badan : 186 cm
Berat Badan : 75 Kg
Posisi : Penjaga Gawang
Klub Sekarang : Persib Bandung
Klub remaja : Diklat PPLP Sumatra Selatan (1998-2000)

Klub profesional :

- (2000-2001) : PSL Langkat
- (2001-2002) : Persiraja Banda Aceh
- (2002-2003) : PSKB Binjai
- (2003-2008) : PSMS Medan
- (2008) : Persik Kediri
- (2008) : PSMS Medan

- (2009) : AREMA Indonesia

- (2010) : Persib bandung

Karier di Timnas: (2007-Sekarang)
Debut Timnas : Indonesia vs Korea Selatan di Piala Asia di Jakarta (0-1)

Prestasi :
- 2004 : Juara Turnamen Piala Emas Bang Yos Bersama PSMS Medan
- 2005 : Juara Turnamen Piala Emas Bang Yos Bersama PSMS Medan
- 2006 : Juara Turnamen Piala Emas Bang Yos Bersama PSMS Medan
- 2006 : Pemain Terbaik Piala Emas Bang Yos
- 2007-2008 : Penjaga Gawang Terbaik versi Liga Indonesia
- 2007-2008 : Runner Up Liga Indonesia (PSMS Medan)
- 2008 : Juara Piala Kemerdekaan 2008 melawan Libya (3-1, Libya WO)
- 2008 : Runner Up Grand Royal Challenge 2008 di Myanmar (3-1).

Rujukan: http://islamdigest.net

2010-01-01T11:36:00.000+07:00

Aravane Rezai

Aravane Rezai (Persian: ارغوان رضائی, Latin alphabet: Aravane Rezaï, born March 14, 1987) is an Iranian-French tennis player born in St. Etienne, France to Iranian parents. Rezaï took up tennis after a childhood stint as her older brother's ball girl. Her career high rank was #25, achieved on December 14, 2009.

Career

2001 and 2005: Women's Islamic Games

She competed for Iran at the Women's Islamic Games winning Gold in 2001 and 2005.

2006: U.S. Open & ITF Success

For the second year in a row, Rezai lost in the qualifying rounds of the Australian Open. However, her French Open run was more successful. She struggled through to the third round of the tournament, defeating Ai Sugiyama of Japan along the way. She fell to Nicole Vaidisova, in a hard fought three-setter. Her Wimbledon dreams were also put on hold as she fell in the first round of qualifying. At the 2006 U.S. Open, she reached the fourth round, her career best Grand Slam singles result. She had a fantastic run, even beating Russian beauty Maria Kirilenko in straight sets.

She also competed on the ITF circuit throughout the year. She reached the final of two ITF tournaments, as well as winning one in the later part of the year on the hardcourts of France.

2007

Her year started poorly, reaching the second round only twice in her first thirteen tournaments on tour, including a first round loss at the Australian Open. At the international clay tournament of Istanbul (Turkey) Rezaï reached the final by beating American World No. 29 Venus Williams in the 2nd round (6–4, 6–4) and Russian World No. 2 Maria Sharapova in the semi-final (6–2, 6–4). In the final she lost to Russian Elena Dementieva due to retiring, trailing 6–7(5) 0–3.

In spite of her good performance in the international clay tournament, she lost the week after 6–2, 6–4 to countrywoman Marion Bartoli in the first round of the 2007 French Open.In her first appearance in Wimbledon she defeated Shenay Perry from the U.S. in the first round 6–2 7–6 and Francesca Schiavone from Italy the 29 seed in the second round, 6–4 2–6 6–4. However, in the third round she was defeated by Ana Ivanović from Serbia by 6–3, 6–2. At the 2007 US Open she once again lost to Ana Ivanovic in the second round.

She ended an appalling year with yet another ITF Circuit title Deauville France. She won the title, losing only one set en route.

2008

She reached the final of the 2008 ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand, despite being unseeded. She lost to American, Lindsay Davenport, 6–2, 6–2. Her year was stagnated with early losses in the first and second rounds of tournaments. Her only other grand success of the year came on the clay of Morocco through late April to early May. She reached the semi-finals. However, she lost to Gisela Dulko.

At the Australian Open, Rezai reached the third round, beating thirteenth seed Tatiana Golovin in the second round 6–3, 3–6, 6–3 before losing to Hsieh Su-Wei 6–2, 6–7, 6–4. Her Grand Slam results for the rest of the year was disappointing. At the French Open, she fell to Nadia Petrova in the first round. At Wimbledon, she faced Gisela Dulko of Argentina. She pushed Dulko to three sets, but eventually fell 6-1 0-6 2-6. The US Open started well as she defeated American Asia Muhammed 6-2 6-4. However, she fell in the second round to Bammer 1-6, 5-7.

2009

She won the first WTA Tour title of her career in Strasbourg, beating Lucie Hradecká 7–6(2), 6–1 in the final. Despite a first round loss at the Australian Open, she flew to the 4th round of French Open after defeating Michelle Larcher de Brito by 7-6(3), 6-2, but lost to World No.1 Dinara Safina 6-1, 6-0, effectively putting an end to her participation in Roland-Garros. At the 2009 Wimbledon Championships, she beat Ayumi Morita 6-2 6-2 but then lost to number #4 Elena Dementieva 6-1 6-3 in the second round.

In the first round of Rogers Cup 2009, she defeated Alize Cornet by 6-4 7-5. In the second round, she made the biggest upset of the tournament by defeating world number 1 Dinara Safina 3-6, 6-2, 6-4. In the third round, she was defeated by Alisa Kleybanova in two sets 3-6, 4-6. Aravane Rezai then lost at the US Open to Sabine Lisicki in the first round, her earliest loss ever at the US Open.

At the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, Rezai won her opening match in straight sets, defeating Sara Errani 6-2, 6-2. In the second round she lost to Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli 6-4, 6-2.

Seeded tenth at the 2009 Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions Rezai won her first round robin match against fourth seed Sabine Lisicki 6–1, 3–6, 4–6 and then beat Melinda Czink in her second round robin match, 6-3, 7-5 to make her the first player to advance to the semifinals of the inaugural event. She then went on to the semifinals where she beat María José Martínez Sánchez 6-2 6-3. In the final she faced Marion Bartoli and won the first set 7-5 before Bartoli retired. Because of her performance Rezai reached a new career high of world number 26.

Singles titles

Wins (2)

Legend: Before 2009	Legend: Starting in 2009
Grand Slam tournaments (0)
Year-End Championships (1)
Tier I (0)	Premier Mandatory (0)
Tier II (0)	Premier 5 (0)
Tier III (0)	Premier (0)
Tier IV & V (0)	International (1)

Titles by Surface
Hard (1)
Clay (1)
Grass (0)
Carpet (0)

No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
1.	May 18, 2009	Strasbourg, France	Clay	Lucie Hradecká	7–6(2), 6–1
2.	November 8, 2009	Tournament of Champions, Bali, Indonesia	Hard (i)	Marion Bartoli	7–5, retired

[edit] Runners-up (2)

Legend: Before 2009	Legend: Starting in 2009
Grand Slam tournaments (0)
WTA Championships (0)
Tier I (0)	Premier Mandatory (0)
Tier II (0)	Premier 5 (0)
Tier III (1)	Premier (0)
Tier IV & V (1)	International (0)

Titles by Surface
Hard (1)
Clay (1)
Grass (0)
Carpet (0)

No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
1.	May 26, 2007	Istanbul, Turkey	Clay	Elena Dementieva	7–6(5), 3–0, ret.
2.	January 5, 2008	Auckland, New Zealand	Hard	Lindsay Davenport	6–2, 6–2

Performance timeline

To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. To help interpret the performance table, the legend below explains what each abbreviation and color coded box represents in the performance timeline.

Terms to know
SR	the ratio of the number of singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played	W-L	player's Win-Loss record
Performance Table Legend
NH	tournament not held in that calendar year	A	did not participate in the tournament
LQ	lost in qualifying draw	#R	lost in the early rounds of the tournament (RR = round robin)
QF	advanced to but not past the quarterfinals	SF	advanced to but not past the semifinals
F	advanced to the final, tournament runner-up	W	won the tournament

Tournament	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	Career SR	Career Win-Loss
Australian Open	A	A	1R	3R	1R	0 / 3	2–3
French Open	2R	3R	1R	1R	4R	0 / 5	6–5
Wimbledon	A	A	3R	1R	2R	0 / 3	2–3
US Open	A	4R	2R	2R	1R	0 / 4	5–4
SR	0 / 1	0 / 2	0 / 4	0 / 4	0 / 4	0 / 15	N/A
Win-Loss	1–1	5–2	3–4	3–4	4–4	N/A	16–15
Year-End Championships
Tournament of Champions	Not Held				W	1 / 1	4–0
WTA Premier Mandatory Tournaments
Indian Wells	A	A	1R	2R	LQ	0 / 2	1–2
Miami	A	A	1R	1R	1R	0 / 3	0–3
Madrid	Not Held				2R	0 / 1	1–1
Beijing	Not Tier I				1R	0 / 1	0–1
WTA Premier 5 Tournaments
Dubai	Not Tier I				A	0 / 0	0–0
Rome	A	A	1R	A	2R	0 / 2	1–2
Cincinnati	Not Tier I				1R	0 / 1	0–1
Montreal / Toronto	A	A	1R	1R	3R	0 / 3	2–3
Tokyo	A	A	A	1R	2R	0 / 2	1–2
Former WTA Tier I Tournaments (currently neither Premier Mandatory nor Premier 5 events)
Charleston	A	A	2R	2R	NM5	0 / 2	2–2
Moscow	A	A	A	LQ	NM5	0 / 0	0–0
Berlin	A	A	1R	1R	Not Held	0 / 2	0–2
Zürich	A	A	A	LQ	Not Held	0 / 0	0–0
Career Statistics
Finals reached	0	0	1	1	2	N/A	4
WTA Tournaments Won	0	0	0	0	2	N/A	2
Year End Ranking	189	49	80	74	26	N/A	N/A

2009-12-25T00:05:00.001+07:00

Anthony Mundine Boxer

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Personal information

Nickname Choc; The Man (The Mouth); The Black Superman

Born 21 May 1975 (1975-05-21) (age 34)

Sydney, Australia

Playing information

Height 180 cm (5 ft 11 in)

Weight 73 kg (11 st 7 lb)

Position Five-eighth

Source: Rugby League Project

Anthony Mundine (born 21 May 1975) is an Indigenous Australian boxer[1] and former rugby league footballer. He is a former two-time WBA Super Middleweight champion boxer and current IBO Middleweight champion and New South Wales State of Origin representative footballer. He is also the son of legendary boxer, Tony Mundine.

Mundine has had a stormy relationship with the media.[2] His conversion to Islam in 1999, self-promotion and outspoken opinions have created a love-hate relationship with the Australian public.[3] He was named the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Person of the Year in 2000. He has also won The Deadlys Award as Male Sportsperson of the Year in 2003, 2006 and 2007 amongst others.

Rugby league

Born in Newtown, in the inner west of Sydney in 1975, Mundine played junior rugby league for Hurstville United, and while attending Kingsgrove High School, he played for the Australian Schoolboys team in 1993[4]. That year Mundine signed with the St. George Dragons as an eighteen year-old[5]. He then went on to play in the 1993 Grand Final, which the Dragons lost to his future team, the Brisbane Broncos.

In 1994, he represented the Junior Kangaroos, the team that beat Great Britain's under-19s in the curtain-raiser to the Australia v. France Test at Parramatta Stadium.

In 1996, he played in another losing Grand Final, this time against the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. At the end of that season he announced that he was signing with the Brisbane Broncos in the Super League competition.

In 1997 he played 18 games for the Broncos, scoring three tries.[6] He also played in his first winning Grand Final team, beating the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.

In 1998, after turning his back on the Broncos, he returned to the Dragons.

Mundine was selected to play for New South Wales in each of the three matches of the 1999 State of Origin series, scoring a try in Game I. That year he also assisted the Dragons' run to the Grand Final, with a hat-trick against the Sharks in the Major Semi-Final. The following week the Dragons lost to the Melbourne Storm in the Grand Final. Ironically he missed a try that would have won the Dragons the title.

Mundine was disappointed that further representative honours did not follow, and believed that his representative opportunities did not reflect his abilities and achievements at club level. He raised the issue of racism as a possible explanation for this.

Anthony Mundine left rugby league half way through the 2000 season, after being persuaded to take on the world of boxing by a good friend of his father's, known only by his ring name 'AK', a heavyweight champion in Tripoli, Lebanon in the 1960s.

Boxing career

Mundine was trained by his father, Tony Mundine, who was a middleweight contender during the 1970s. His mother is Lyn Mundine.

Mundine fought his first professional boxing match in July 2000, at the age of 25. After a limited amateur career (he had 4 amateur fights when he was 17), his first professional fight was against New Zealander Gerrard Zohs. Only 10 professional bouts later Mundine fought for his first world title against long reigning IBF supermiddleweight champion Sven Ottke in January 2001. The fight ended suddenly after 10 competitive rounds when Ottke landed a blow to Mundine's temple that left the latter unconscious on the canvas. Despite this dramatic loss, he returned to the ring, promising to fight again for a world title.

Since the WBA and IBF super middleweight titles had been unified by Sven Ottke, Ottke was upgraded to 'super' champion status by the WBA and the WBA super middleweight title was declared vacant (see championship unification). Mundine went on to claim the vacant WBA Super Middleweight title with a unanimous points decision over Antwun Echols on 3 September 2003, in front of his home crowd at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. He successfully defended his title once, before losing it in a hesitant performance and split points decision against Manny Siaca.

Mundine failed in his attempt to re-gain the WBA super middleweight title after losing by decision to Mikkel Kessler on 6 August 2005 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.

Mundine's rivalry with Danny Green

Mundine's biggest Australian rivalry is with Perth-based Danny Green. In 2001, Mundine called Danny Green "a bum", and stated that Danny would be a "no hoper" against him.{cite} Danny Green, usually reserved and modest responded saying he would let his boxing do the talking. Green's manager, Bywong Drevikovsky from Northbridge, NSW agreed and suggested to Mundine he should not be as vocally confident as Green's preparation had been "nothing short of ideal".{cite}

The two boxers finally, after much anticipation, fought on 17 May 2006, at Aussie Stadium, Sydney. The bout was one of the most anticipated in Australian boxing history, and was thought to eclipse the attendance record of 37,000 when Jeff Fenech fought Azumah Nelson in their rematch in 1992.{fact} Green became the slight favourite about 2 hours before the bout. Mundine won a twelve-round decision by the following scores: Judge Michael Lee 116-113, Judge Pinij Prayadsub 118-111, Judge Derek Milham 118-112.

After Green

Mundine's next fight was against Argentine boxer Ruben Eduardo Acosta on 15 November 2006 at the Entertainment Centre in Newcastle. Mundine went on to win the fight with Acosta, beating him by TKO in the 4th.

On 7 March 2007 Mundine secured the WBA super middleweight title with a ninth round TKO win over Sam Soliman. Again, the title was the "normal" title that had been vacated when Mikkel Kessler was upgraded to super champion status by unifying the WBA and WBC titles. Mundine dominated throughout the entire match, knocking Soliman down once in round 2 and three times in the ninth round. Mundine defended his belt with a points decision on 27 June against Pablo Daniel Zamora Nievas (17-1-1) of Argentina on the Gold Coast. Mundine hurt his right biceps in the 2nd round of the fight.

In early-August 2007, Mundine was hospitalised with an eye infection caused by a dirty contact lens,[8] which he had earlier tried to clean with his mouth.[9] The infection blinded him in his left eye, and was told that he was unlikely to regain full vision.[10] He was released from hospital on 15 August, 2007, stating that vision in his left eye is still blurry.[11]

After Mundine recovered from the injured biceps and eye infection, he went on to retain his WBA Super Middleweight title with a 4th round TKO over Argentine Jose Alberto Clavero. On the 27th of February, Mundine had his third title defence against fellow Australian Nader Hamdan and won a 12 round unanimous decision to retain his WBA Super Middleweight World title. The scores were 117-111, 120-108, and 119-109. Again Mundine defended his WBA world title against Sam Soliman, scores being 116-112, 116-112, 117-112.

Mundine relinquished his WBA Super Middle-weight title to avoid fighting his mandatory challenger Mikkel Kessler in May 2008. On July 7, 2008, Mundine fought Japanese boxer Crazy Kim, The fight was fought at middleweight, with Crazy Kim dropping Mundine in the 3 round, Mundine won by unanimous decision with scores of 98-92, 98-91, 99-91. On November 12, 2008, Mundine fought Uruguay boxer Rafael Sosa Pintos at a catchweight of 73.3kgs. Mundine won a unanimous decision, with judges scoring the fight 100-91, 99-91, 100-88. On Feb 11, 2009, Mundine won a unanimous decision over Shannon Taylor for the vacant WBA International middleweight title.

Mundine vs. Geale

May 27, 2009, Mundine faced International Boxing Organization middleweight champion Daniel Geale (21-0-13). Mundine won a split decision with two judges scoring 116-113 and 114-113 in favour of Mundine, and the other judge scoring 115-113 for Geale.

Music career

After appearing as himself in the music video "Like a Dog" by the Australian rock group Powderfinger and featuring in beatboxer Joel Turner's single "Knock U Out", Mundine has released his own debut single, "Platinum Ryder".[12] The film clip created controversy for the burning of the Union Jack and a photo of then Prime Minister of Australia John Howard [13]. His album, entitled Dreams is yet to be released.

Other media

Mundine is featured as part of the roster on the Fight Night Round 4 video game.

Public controversy

In an interview in October 2001, Mundine said of the September 11 terrorist attacks, “They call it an act of terrorism, but if you can understand religion, and our way of life, it’s not about terrorism. It’s about fighting for God’s law, and America’s brought it upon themselves”.

Boxing Record

Professional record breakdown
39 matches	36 wins	3 losses
By knockout	23	1
By decision	11	2

Date	Result	Opponent	Method	Round	Time	Location	Notes
05/27/2009	Win	Daniel Geale	Decision (Split)	12		Entertainment Centre, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia	Won IBO Middleweight Title
02/11/2009	Win	Shannon Taylor	Decision (Unanimous)	12		Wollongong, NSW, Australia	Won Vacant WBA International Middleweight Title
12/11/08	Win	Rafael Sosa Pintos	Decision (Unanimous	10		Sydney, NSW, Australia
7/30/2008	Win	Crazy Kim	Decision (Unanimous)	10		Newcastle, NSW, Australia	-
5/28/2008	Win	Sam Soliman	Decision (Unanimous)	12		Melbourne, VIC, Australia	Defended WBA Super Middleweight Championship
2/27/2008	Win	Nader Hamdan	Decision (Unanimous)	12		Sydney, NSW, Australia	Defended WBA Super Middleweight Championship
12/10/2007	Win	Jose Alberto Clavero	Knockout	4	2:14	Sydney, NSW, Australia	Defended WBA Super Middleweight Championship
6/27/2007	Win	Pablo Daniel Zamora Nievas	Decision (Unanimous)	12	3:00	Broad Beach, QLD, Australia	Defended WBA Super Middleweight Championship
3/7/2007	Win	Sam Soliman	Knockout	9	2:26	Sydney, NSW, Australia	Won vacant WBA Super Middleweight Championship
11/15/2006	Win	Ruben Eduardo Acosta	Knockout	4	1:41	Sydney, NSW, Australia
5/17/2006	Win	Danny Green	decision (unanimous)	12	3:00	Sydney, NSW, Australia	WBA Super Middleweight Championship Eliminator
12/11/2005	Win	Rico Chong Nee	Technical Knockout	3	3:00	Perth, WA, Australia
9/7/2005	Win	Rashid Matumla	Technical Knockout	6	0:36	Canberra, ACT, Australia
6/8/2005	Loss	Mikkel Kessler	Unanimous Decision	12	3:00	Entertainment Centre, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia	For WBA super middleweight title
2/2/2005	Win	Darmel Castillo	Technical Knockout	4	2:31	Broadbeach, QLD, Australia
10/13/2004	Win	Juarne Dowling	Technical Knockout	3	2:19	Carrara, QLD, Australia
9/8/2004	Win	Sean Sullivan	Technical Knockout	10	0:47	Liverpool, NSW, Australia
5/5/2004	Loss	Manny Siaca	Decision (Split)	12	3:00	Sydney, NSW, Australia	Lost WBA Super Middleweight Championship
1/19/2004	Win	Yoshinori Nishizawa	Technical Knockout	5	0:43	Wollongong, NSW, Australia	Defended WBA Super Middleweight Championship
9/3/2003	Win	Antwun Echols	Decision (Unanimous)	12	3:00	Sydney, NSW, Australia	Won vacant WBA Super Middleweight Championship
3/17/2003	Win	Rogerio Cacciatore	Technical Knockout	1	?	Carrara, QLD, Australia
2/1/2003	Win	Sean Sullivan	Decision (Unanimous)	12	3:00	Auckland, New Zealand	Defended WBA Fedelatin Super Middleweight Title, Defended WBA Pan African Super Middleweight Title, Defended PABA Super Middleweight Title
11/2/2002	Win	Rick Thornberry	Technical Knockout	11	?	Carrara, QLD, Australia	Won WBA Fedelatin Super Middleweight Title, Defended WBA Pan African Super Middleweight Title, Defended PABA Super Middleweight Title
9/2/2002	Win	Soon Botes	Knockout	3	?	Liverpool, NSW, Australia	Won WBA Pan African Super Middleweight Championship, Defended PABA Super Middleweight Championship
7/15/2002	Win	Lester Ellis	Technical Knockout	3	2:04	Melbourne, VIC, Australia
6/3/2002	Win	Darren Obah	Technical Knockout	6	?	Liverpool, NSW, Australia	Defended PABA Super Middleweight Championship
4/1/2002	Win	Roland Francis	Technical Knockout	8	?	Carrara, QLD, Australia	Won PABA Super Middleweight Championship
3/4/2002	Win	Brad Mayo	Decision (Unanimous)	10	3:00	Townsville, QLD, Australia
12/1/2001	Loss	Sven Ottke	Knockout	10	?	Arena Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany	Lost IBF Pan Pacific Super Middleweight Championship, For IBF super middleweight title
10/20/2001	Win	Guy Waters	Knockout	2	?	Sydney, NSW, Australia	Defended IBF Pan Pacific Super Middleweight Championship
9/3/2001	Win	Sam Soliman	Decision (Split)	12	3:00	Wollongong, NSW, Australia	Won IBF Pan Pacific Super Middleweight Championship
7/10/2001	Win	Kevin Pompey	Technical Knockout	3	0:57	Montreal, Quebec, Canada
6/18/2001	Win	Mike Makata	Technical Knockout	5	?	Liverpool, NSW, Australia	Defended PABA Super Middleweight Championship
4/16/2001	Win	Timo Masua	Knockout	3	?	Carrara, QLD, Australia	Won PABA Super Middleweight Championship
2/19/2001	Win	Marc Bargero	Technical Knockout	6	?	Gosford, NSW, Australia	Won Australian Super Middleweight Championship
12/11/2000	Win	Ian McLeod	Technical Knockout	9	?	Wollongong, NSW, Australia	Fight Stopped On Cut
10/30/2000	Win	Heath Stenton	Decision (Unanimous)	8	3:00	Melbourne, VIC, Australia
9/4/2000	Win	Nik Taumafai	Technical Knockout	6	?	Sydney, NSW, Australia
7/3/2000	Win	Gerrard Zohs	Knockout	4	?	Sydney, NSW, Australia	Professional Boxing Debut

Club

Years Team Pld T G FG P

1993–96 St. George Dragons 60 30 3 1 127

1997 Brisbane Broncos 11 3 0 0 12

1998 St. George Dragons 23 7 0 1 29

1999–00 St. George Illawarra 33 19 0 0 76

Total 127 59 3 2 244

Representative

Years Team Pld T G FG P

1999 New South Wales 3 1 0 0 4

2009-12-18T16:29:00.002+07:00

Rami Shaaban

Rami Shaaban (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈrɑːmɪ ˈʃaːban]; Arabic: رامي شعبان‎; born 30 June 1975 in Fisksätra, Stockholm) is a Swedish professional football player. He currently plays as a goalkeeper for Hammarby IF. He is son of an Egyptian father and a Finnish mother.^[1] He has played for a number of teams in England, including Arsenal and also in Sweden. He is a Swedish National Team member.

Club career

[edit] Early career

Shaaban started his senior career at local club Saltsjöbadens IF, before moving to Cairo to play for Zamalek and Ittihad Osman, while also studying at the university. After a couple of years, Shaaban returned to his hometown and joined Nacka FF, a club based very close to where he grew up. After a string of impressive performances, he was asked to joined Swedish first division outfit Djurgården and, in August 2002 earned a move to Arsenal.

[edit] Arsenal

In August 2002, Shaaban joined Arsenal as a possible replacement for David Seaman. When Seaman was injured, he played in two matches in the UEFA Champions League at home against PSV Eindhoven^[2] and away against AS Roma as well three matches in the Premier League. Unfortunately, Shaaban broke his leg during training on Christmas Eve 2002 ultimately sidelining himself for the rest of the season.^[3] Due to the severity of his injury, Shaaban feared he wouldn't be able to play again. However, after rigorous physical therapy Shaaban was able to bounce back.^[4] When Seaman left Arsenal in the summer of 2003, Arsene Wenger signed Jens Lehmann who played every match that season as Arsenal went undefeated for the entire 2003-2004 English Premier League season. Shaaban was plagued by injuries and failed to become Arsenal first goal keeper. As a result, Shaaban was loaned out to West Ham United and consequently ending his Arsenal career.

[edit] Other clubs

In January 2004 Shaaban was loaned to West Ham United for a month, but did not make any appearances for the Hammers' first team. In February 2004, he signed for Brighton & Hove Albion on non-contract terms, making his debut in a 2-1 victory over Sunderland, and signed a short-term contract lasting until the end of the season just days later. After his contract expired at Brighton, he was released on a free transfer and had a trial at Dundee United, playing his only match as United beat Sheffield Wednesday to win the City of Discovery Cup; however, Shaaban could not agree terms and was snapped up by Fredrikstad F.K..

On 12 February 2008, Shaaban signed a five-year contract with Swedish team Hammarby IF.^[5]

[edit] International career

Shabaan was called up to the Sweden squad for the 2006 World Cup, although he did not have an international cap to his name. He made his debut in the warm up game with Finland as a substitute, coming on for 45 minutes and keeping a clean sheet in a 0-0 draw. On June 10, 2006, he played in the 2006 World Cup contest against Trinidad and Tobago. He also played four games in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, in which he kept a vital clean sheet against Spain national football team, and was also a member of the nation's final stage squad. Shaaban had a possibility to choose Finland as his national side, but decided to represent Sweden because at that time Finland had many strong national team goalkeepers.

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

Djurgårdens IF:

Allsvenskan:

Champion: 2002

Svenska Cupen:

Champion: 2002

Arsenal FC:

Premier League:

Champion: 2001-02, 2003-04
Runners-up: 2002-03

FA Cup:

Champion: 2003-04

Fredrikstad FK:

Norwegian Football Cup:

Champion: 2006

[edit] Individual

Swedish goalkeeper of the year: 2006, 2007

[edit] Personal life

Shaaban grew up in Solna, Stockholm with a Finnish mother and an Egyptian father. As a result, he has both Swedish and Egyptian citizenship. He was raised as a Muslim and consequently doesn't drink alcohol. In his late teens to early twenties, Shaaban lived in Cairo where he played football and attended university. Prior to joining Arsenal F.C. in 2002, he also worked as a mountains explosives specialist.^{[citation needed]}

Shaaban has one son named Gabriel born circa 2002 with his ex-wife.^{[citation needed]} Several years after his divorce, he began dating a makeup artist named Frida.^[6] Although they aren't married, the two have a son Noah born in the August of 2008.^[7]

Shaaban made a move to Hammarby partly to be close to his son Gabriel. He currently lives in a large lake house with his son and partner.^[7]

Reporters often credit Shaaban for remaining down-to-earth.^{[citation needed]} Shaaban claims he has friends who are sheet metal workers to famous football players, one such football player is Fredrik Ljungberg.^{[citation needed]} Ljungberg and Shaaban remain close after becoming friends whilst at Arsenal. The two are often seen drinking coffee at outdoor cafes.^{[citation needed]}

Shaaban is known for his love of coffee. He is often seen with a cup of coffee in his hand. He once said, "I dare not keep count of how many cups I drink per day. But mom is actually even worse."^[6]

2007-11-18T02:14:00.000+07:00

MIDO

Ahmed Hossam Hussein Abdelhamid (Arabic: احمد حسام حسين عبد الحميد) , also known as Mido (born February 23, 1983 in Cairo, Egypt)[1] is an Egyptian footballer, who is currently playing for Premier League club Middlesbrough as a striker.Mido started his career with El-Zamalek in Egypt in 1999. He left the club for K.A.A. Gent of Belgium in 2000, where he won the Belgian Ebony Shoe. This led to a move to Dutch side Ajax Amsterdam in 2001, where he joined Celta Vigo on loan in 2003. His next destination was Olympique de Marseille in France and left them for Italian side A.S. Roma in 2004. He joined English side Tottenham Hotspur on an 18-month loan in 2005 and eventually joined the club permanently in 2006. He left the club in 2007 to join his current club Middlesbrough.

Mido is an Egypt international, for who he has amassed 44 caps and scored 18 goals. However, his career with Egypt has been struck by controversy, having twice been banned by the national set-up.

El-Zamalek and K.A.A. Gent
Mido started his career with Egyptian club El-Zamalek in 1999.[2] He scored three goals in four appearances for Zamalek, which lead to Belgian club K.A.A. Gent signing him in 2000.[2] He won the Belgian Ebony Shoe in 2001 during his only season with the club.

2007-05-31T16:10:00.000+07:00

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr. on April 16, 1947 in New York City, New York, United States) is a former American professional basketball player and current assistant coach. Typically referred to as Lew Alcindor in his younger days, he changed his name when he converted to Islam.

Considered one of the greatest players of all time, the 7ft-2in (2.18 m) Abdul-Jabbar played center for UCLA from 1965–69. Later, he played professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks (1969–75) and the Los Angeles Lakers (1975–89), accumulating 38,387 points, the NBA's highest career total. He was famous for his "Skyhook" shot which defenders found virtually impossible to block. His on-court success was unprecedented; he won a record six Most Valuable Player Awards, played on six championship teams as a professional, and played on three NCAA championship teams under coach John Wooden as a collegian. His high school team won 72 consecutive games and his UCLA teams were an unmatched 88-2. After a then-record 20 professional seasons in the NBA, Abdul-Jabbar retired from the game in 1989. Following his success as a professional athlete, Abdul-Jabbar has become known as a successful basketball coach, author, and part-time actor.

Contents

1 Early years
1.1 College
1.1.1 Game of the Century
1.1.2 School records
2 Professional athletics
2.1 Milwaukee Bucks
2.2 Los Angeles Lakers
2.3 Post-NBA career
3 Film career
4 Player profile
5 Sky hook
6 Professional basketball career and statistics
6.1 Teams and years
6.2 Statistics
7 Athletic honors
8 Books authored
9 Personal life
10 Appearances in the media
11 In popular culture
12 Trivia
13 See also
14 References
15 External links

Early years

He was born to Cora and Ferdinand Lewis "Al" Alcindor as an only child in Harlem, New York City, in 1947, and at birth weighed 12 pounds, 10 ounces (5730 gm), and was twenty-four and a half inches (69 cm) long. [1] He was raised as a Roman Catholic. From an early age he began his record-breaking basketball accomplishments. In high school, he led Power Memorial High School to three straight New York City Catholic championships, a 72-game winning streak, and a 96–6 overall record. He scored 2067 points in his high school career.

College

Heavily sought by collegiate basketball programs, he played for the UCLA Bruins from 1966 to 1969 under coach John Wooden, contributing to the team's three-year record of 88 wins and only two losses (at the time freshmen were not eligible for varsity athletics). During his college career he was twice named Player of the Year (1967, 1969), was a three-time First Team All-American (1967-69), played on three NCAA Basketball champion teams (1967, 1968, 1969), was honored as the Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA Tournament (1967, 1968, 1969), and became the first-ever Naismith College Player of the Year in 1969. In 1967, 1968 he also won USBWA College Player of the Year which later became Oscar Robertson Trophy.

The dunk was disallowed from college basketball after the 1967 season, primarily because of Alcindor's dominance of the sport. [2]

While playing for UCLA, he suffered a scratched left cornea on January 12, 1968 at the Cal game. He would miss the next two games against Stanford and Portland. This happened right before the momentous game against Houston. His cornea later would be scratched again during his pro career and he would then wear goggles for protection.

Game of the Century

Main article: Game of the Century (college basketball)
On January 20, 1968, Alcindor and the UCLA Bruins faced the Houston Cougars in the first-ever nationally televised regular season college basketball game. In front of a record 52,693 fans at the Houston Astrodome, Elvin Hayes scored 39 points and had 15 rebounds--while limiting Alcindor to just 15 points--as Houston beat UCLA 71-69. The Bruins 47-game winning streak ended in what has been called the "Game of the Century". Hayes and Alcindor would have a rematch in the 1968 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament where UCLA would defeat Houston in the semi-finals 101-69.

School records

As of the 2006-2007 season, Abdul-Jabbar still holds a number of individual records at UCLA--remarkable, in part, because at the time freshman were ineligible for varsity basketball:

Highest career Scoring Average: 26.4
Most career Field Goals: 943
Most season Points: 870 (1967)
Highest season Scoring Average: 29.0 (1967)
Most season Field Goals: 346 (1967)
Most season Free Throw Attempts: 274 (1967)
Most single game Points: 61 and Most single game field goals: 26 (vs. Washington State, 2/25/67)

Professional athletics

Milwaukee Bucks

The Harlem Globetrotters offered him $1 million to play for them, but he declined, and he was picked first in the 1969 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, only in their second season, who won the coin-toss for first pick over the Phoenix Suns.

Lew Alcindor's entry into the NBA was timely, as center Bill Russell had just left the Boston Celtics, and Wilt Chamberlain, though still effective, was aging, at 33 years old. Alcindor's presence enabled the 1969-70 Bucks to claim second place in the NBA's Eastern Division with a 56-26 record (up from 27-55 the previous year), and he was an instant star, ranking second in the league in scoring (28.8 ppg) and third in rebounding (14.5 rpg), for which he was awarded the title of NBA Rookie of the Year.

With the addition of Oscar Robertson, Milwaukee went on to record a league-best 66 victories in 1970-71, including a then-record of 20 straight wins. Alcindor was awarded his first of six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, along with his first scoring title (31.7 ppg). In the playoffs, the Bucks went 12-2 (including a four-game sweep of the Baltimore Bulletts in the NBA Finals) and Alcindor was named Finals MVP. On May 1, 1971, the day after the Bucks won the NBA championship, he adopted the Arabic name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, meaning "noble, servant of the powerful one [i.e. of Allah]."

Abdul-Jabbar remained a dominant force for Milwaukee, repeating as scoring champion (34.8 ppg) and NBA Most Valuable Player the following year, and helping the Bucks to repeat as division leaders for four straight years. In 1973, Abdul-Jabbar won his third MVP Award in five years and was among the top five NBA players in scoring (27.0 ppg, third), rebounding (14.5 rpg, fourth), blocked shots (283, second), and field goal percentage (.539, second).

While remaining relatively injury-free throughout his NBA career, Abdul-Jabbar twice broke his hand. The first time was during a pre-season game in 1974, when he was bumped hard and got his eye scratched, which angered him enough to punch the basket support stanchion. When he returned, after missing the first 16 games of the season, he started to wear protective goggles. The second time he broke his hand was in the opening game of the 1977-78 season. Two minutes into the game, Abdul-Jabbar punched Milwaukee's Kent Benson in retaliation for an overly aggressive elbow. He was out for two months.

Although Abdul-Jabbar always spoke well of Milwaukee and its fans, after a few seasons he said that being in the Midwest did not fit his cultural needs and requested a trade to either New York or Los Angeles.

Los Angeles Lakers

While Milwaukee was slowly improving, the Los Angeles Lakers were winning their own way. During the 1971-1972 season, the L.A. Lakers, led by Gail Goodrich, Wilt Chamberlain, and Jerry West, won an NBA record 33 consecutive games on their way to their first championship in Los Angeles. In 1975, the Lakers acquired Abdul-Jabbar and reserve center Walt Wesley from the Bucks for center Elmore Smith, guard Brian Winters, and rookie "blue chippers" Dave Meyers and Junior Bridgeman. And in 1979, they would acquire 1st overall draft pick Earvin "Magic" Johnson , who would average 19.5 points and 11.2 assists in his 14 years in the NBA, with 3 MVP awards and 10,141 assists. The trade and draft paved the way for a second Abdul-Jabbar dynasty as the Lakers went on to become the most dominant team of the 1980s, appearing in the finals eight times and winning five NBA championships.

While in L.A., Abdul-Jabbar started doing yoga in 1976 to improve his flexibility, and was notable for his physical fitness regimen. [3] He was also a pupil of the martial arts master Bruce Lee, and studied Lee's Jeet Kune Do style. [4]

In 1983, Abdul-Jabbar's house burnt down, incinerating among his belongings his beloved collection of jazz albums. Many Lakers fans started bringing him albums and other items to replace his losses, which Abdul-Jabbar found uplifting [5].

On June 28, 1989, after a record-setting twenty professional seasons, Abdul-Jabbar announced his retirement. On his "retirement tour" he received standing ovations at all the games, home and away. In his biography My Life, Magic Johnson recalls that in his farewell game, many Lakers and Celtics legends participated. Every player wore Abdul-Jabbar's trademark goggles and had to try a sky hook at least once, which led to comic results. The Lakers made the NBA Finals in each of Abdul-Jabbar's final three seasons, defeating Boston in 1987, and Detroit in 1988. The Lakers lost, however, to the Pistons in a four game sweep in his final season.

Post-NBA career

Since 2005, Abdul-Jabbar has served as special assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Abdul-Jabbar had been interested in coaching since his retirement, and given the influence he has had on the league, he had presumed that opportunities in that realm would come easily. However, during his playing years, Abdul-Jabbar had developed a reputation of being introverted and sullen, often refusing to speak to the press, leading to the impression that he had nothing to say. In his biography My Life, Magic Johnson recalls instances when Abdul-Jabbar brushed him off when Magic (as a ballboy) asked for his autograph, Abdul-Jabbar froze out reporters who gave him a too enthusiastic handshake or even hugged him, or refused to stop reading the newspaper while giving an interview.

It is widely believed, including by Abdul-Jabbar himself, though he acknowledges his own culpability in creating that impression, that this reputation has contributed greatly to the lack of coaching opportunities that have thus far been presented to him. In his words, he said he had a mindset he could not overcome, and went through his career unable to realize how much impact he had on and off the court. Abdul-Jabbar said: "I didn't understand that I also had affected people that way and that's what it was all about. I always saw it like they were trying to pry. I was way too suspicious and I paid a price for it.".[1] Since he began lobbying for a coaching position in 1995, he has managed to obtain only low-level assistant and scouting jobs in the NBA, and a head coaching position only in a minor professional league.

Abdul-Jabbar has worked as an assistant for the Los Angeles Clippers and the Seattle SuperSonics, helping mentor their young centers, Michael Olowokandi and Jerome James, respectively. Abdul-Jabbar was the head coach in 2002 of the Oklahoma Storm of the United States Basketball League (winning that league's championship that season), but he failed to land the head coaching position at Columbia University a year later. He then worked as a scout for the New York Knicks. Finally, on September 2, 2005, he returned to the Lakers as a special assistant to Phil Jackson to help develop the team's young center Andrew Bynum. Abdul-Jabbar has also served as a volunteer coach at Alchesay High School on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation in Whiteriver, Arizona since 1998.

Film career

Playing in Los Angeles facilitated Abdul-Jabbar's trying his hand at acting. Abdul-Jabbar made his movie debut in Bruce Lee's 1978 film Game of Death, in which his character Hakim fought Billy Lo (played by Lee). His character was the last and most dangerous guardian that Bruce Lee's character had to face. In the extended footage of the final fight scenes of the film, which last about half an hour, Abdul-Jabbar and Lee fight on the highest level of a pagoda which Lee's character had to fight his way up. From Lee's viewpoint, the highest level on the pagoda is where Jeet Kune Do, represented by Abdul-Jabbar himself, is found. Through the entire fight, both men not only fight with an ease hard to obtain, but they both make it known neither of them fear death.

In 1980, he played co-pilot Roger Murdock in David Zucker's comedy, Airplane! In this famous movie, Abdul-Jabbar has a memorable scene in which a little boy looks at him and remarks that he is in fact Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Staying in character, Abdul-Jabbar states that he is merely Roger Murdock, an airline co-pilot, but the boy continues to insist that he is "the greatest", but that, according to his father, he doesn't "work hard on defense" and "never really tries, except during the playoffs". This causes Abdul-Jabbar's character to blow a fuse, grab the boy and snarl he has heard "that crap since UCLA", he "busts his buns every night" and the boy should tell his old man to "drag Bill Walton and Bob Lanier up and down the court for 48 minutes". When Murdock passes out later in the film, he is carried out wearing Abdul-Jabbar's goggles and yellow Lakers' shorts.

He has had numerous other TV and film appearances, often playing himself, including appearances in the hit Chevy Chase movie Fletch, the ABC sitcom Full House, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Scrubs. He also appeared in the telemovie version of Stephen King's The Stand, played himself in Slam Dunk Ernest starring Jim Varney, The Mighty Ducks II with Emilio Estevez and made a brief non-speaking cameo appearance in another David Zucker comedy, 1998's BASEketball. In addition, Kareem was the co-executive producer of the 1994 TV movie, The Vernon Johns Story.

Player profile

His list of personal and team accomplishments is perhaps the most awesome in league history.
— introductory line of Abdul-Jabbar's nba.com/history biography[2]
Abdul-Jabbar played the center position and is regarded as one of the best players of all time. He is the all-time leading NBA scorer with 38,387 points, having collected six titles, six regular season MVP and two Finals MVP awards, fifteen NBA First or Second Teams, a record nineteen NBA All-Star callups and averaging 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 blocks per game. He is also the third all-time in registered blocks (3,189), which is even more impressive because this stat had not been recorded until the fourth year of his career (1974).

On offense, Abdul-Jabbar was an unstoppable low-post threat. In contrast to other low-post dominators like Wilt Chamberlain, Artis Gilmore or Shaquille O'Neal, Abdul-Jabbar was a relatively slender player, standing 7-2 but "only" weighing 225 lbs. However, he made up for his relative lack of bulk by showing textbook finesse and was famous for his ambidextrous skyhook shot (see below), which defenders found impossible to block. It contributed to his high .559 field goal accuracy, making him the eighth most accurate scorer of all time [6] and a feared clutch shooter. Abdul-Jabbar was also quick enough to run the "Showtime" fast break led by Magic Johnson and was well-conditioned, standing on the hardwood an average 36.8 minutes. In contrast to other big men, Abdul-Jabbar also could reasonably hit his free throws, finishing with a career 72% average.

On defense, Abdul-Jabbar maintained a dominant presence. He was selected to the NBA All-Defensive Team eleven times. He frustrated opponents with his superior shot-blocking ability, denying an average 2.6 shots a game.

As a teammate, Abdul-Jabbar exuded natural leadership and was affectionately called "Cap" or "Captain" by his colleagues. He was also known for his strict fitness regime, which made him one of the most durable players of all time. In the NBA, his 20 seasons and 1,560 games are performances surpassed only by fellow legend Robert Parish.

Abdul-Jabbar made the NBA's 35th and 50th Anniversary Teams and in 1996 was named one of the 50 Greatest Players of All Time.

Sky hook

Abdul-Jabbar was well known for his trademark "sky hook", a hook shot in which he bent his body like a straw in one fluid motion to raise the ball (rather just than moving the arm) and let the ball go at the highest point of his arm's arcing motion. As he stood 7 feet 2 inches tall, the sky hook was nearly impossible for a defender to block without goaltending. Only a few have blocked his legendary skyhook, one of them being Wilt Chamberlain. It was a reliable and feared offensive weapon and contributed to his high lifetime field goal percentage of .559. As a twist, he was adept at shooting the skyhook with either hand, which made him even more difficult to defend. According to Abdul-Jabbar, he learned the move in fifth grade and soon learned to value it, as it was "the only shot I could use that didn't get smashed back in my face".[3]

Professional basketball career and statistics

Teams and years

1969-75 Milwaukee Bucks
1975-89 Los Angeles Lakers

Statistics
Jersey number - 33
Games played - 1560 (2nd most in NBA history)
Field goal % - 55.9 (8th highest in NBA history)
Free throw % - 72.1
Three-point % - .056
Rebounds - 17,440 (3rd most in NBA history)
Rebounds per game - 11.2 (tied for 24th highest in NBA history)
Assists - 5,660 (31st in NBA history)
Assist per game - 3.6
Steals - 1,160
Steals per game - 0.74
Blocks - 3,189 (3rd most in NBA history) (Note: blocks were not officially tabulated until the 1973-74 season)
Blocks per game - 2.57
Points per game - 24.6 (12th highest)
Holds NBA career record for:

Most points in NBA history - 38,387

Most minutes played (57,446)

Most field goals made (15,837)

Most field goals attempted (28,307)

Most All-Star selections (19)

Most All-Star games played (18)

Most playoff games played (237)

[edit] Athletic honors
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (May 15, 1995)
College:
Player of the Year (1967, 1969)
Three-time First Team All-American (1967-69)
Three-time NCAA champion (1967, 1968, 1969)
Most Outstanding Player in NCAA Tournament (1967, 1968, 1969)
Naismith College Player of the Year (1969)
National Basketball Association:
Rookie of the Year (1970)
Six-time NBA champion (1971, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988)
Most Valuable Player (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980)
Sporting News NBA MVP (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980)
Finals Most Valuable Player (1971, 1985)
Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsman of the Year" (1985)
One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996)
First player in NBA history to play 20 seasons
#7 in SLAM Magazine's Top 75 NBA Players of all time in 2003.

Books authored

Abdul-Jabbar is also a bestselling author, the latest of his books being Brothers In Arms: The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, WWII's Forgotten Heroes (Publisher: Broadway 2004, ISBN 0-385-50338-5), co-written with Anthony Walton. It is the history of the 761st Battalion, an all-black armored unit that served in Europe in World War Two.

Other books:

Giant Steps, with Peter Knobler (1987) ISBN 0-553-05044-3 (The book's title is an homage to jazz great John Coltrane.)
Kareem (1990) ISBN 0-394-55927-4
Selected from Giant Steps (Writers' Voices) (1999) ISBN 0-7857-9912-5
Black Profiles in Courage: A Legacy of African-American Achievement, with Alan Steinberg (1996) ISBN 0-688-13097-6
A Season on the Reservation: My Sojourn with the White Mountain Apaches, with Stephen Singular (2000) ISBN 0-688-17077-3

Personal life

Abdul-Jabbar was married to Habiba Abdul-Jabbar (nee Janice Brown), and together they had three children: daughters Habiba and Sultana and son Kareem. They were divorced in 1978. He has another son Amir with Cheryl Pistono. His last child was his son Adam, who made an appearance on the tv show "Full House" with his father. He has also previously dated Pam Grier.[4][5]

Abdul-Jabbar was known as Lew Alcindor early in his life, before he converted to Islam. He explained in an interview with Playboy magazine that he was "latching on to something that was part of my heritage, because many of the slaves who were brought here were Muslims. My family was brought to America by a French planter named Alcindor, who came here from Trinidad in the 18th Century. My people were Yoruba, and their culture survived slavery (...) My father found out about that when I was a kid, and it gave me all I needed to know that, hey, I was somebody, even if nobody else knew about it. When I was a kid, no one would believe anything positive that you could say about black people. And that's a terrible burden on black people, because they don't have an accurate idea of their history, which has been either suppressed or distorted.".[6]

Abdul-Jabbar was successful in suing Miami Dolphins running back Karim Abdul-Jabbar (born Sharmon Shah) because he felt Karim was sponging off the name he made famous by having the Abdul-Jabbar moniker and number 33 on Dolphins jerseys. As a result the younger Abdul-Jabbar had to change his jersey nameplate to simply 'Abdul' while playing for the Dolphins[7]. The football player had also been an athlete at UCLA.

In 1998, Abdul-Jabbar was fined by Toronto authorities for possessing marijuana. On Tuesday, July 18, 2000, he was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of marijuana after failing a field sobriety test. Abdul-Jabbar has a prescription to smoke marijuana in the state of California, the result of nausea-inducing migraine headaches [8].

Kareem Abdul Jabbar Jr. made an appearance as a "stranger" on the TV game show Identity.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was one of Bruce Lee's students alongside Steve McQueen and James Coburn.

Appearances in the media

Abdul-Jabbar has twice appeared on Celebrity Jeopardy!, coasting to dominant victories each time. His first appearance was against Larry King and Alexandra Paul in 1994; his second was against Martina Navratilova and Reggie Jackson in a special "athletes" edition in 1998.
[edit] In popular culture
In The Simpsons episode The Way We Weren't, Homer Simpson, as a child growing up and in an attempt to become more popular, says his name is "Elvis Jagger Abdul-Jabbar" when asked what his name is; a reference to Abdul-Jabbar's status as a cultural icon in the 1970s.
The rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers honor him in their instrumental "Salute to Kareem" and anoint him an "all-time great super super star" in their song "Magic Johnson".
Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam wrote a song about Abdul-Jabbar based on the urban myth that he lost all of his money investing in hotels for tall people. The song, entitled "Sweet Lew", appears on the band's album of B-sides, Lost Dogs. The liner notes explain that Ament was inspired to write the song after being brushed off by his boyhood idol after meeting him at a celebrity basketball game.
Appeared in an episode of the TV show Diff'rent Strokes
Appeared in an episode of the TV show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
Appeared in an episode of the TV Show Everybody Loves Raymond.
Appeared in an episode of the TV show Scrubs.
Appeared in an episode of Full House.
Appeared on The Colbert Report.
Appeared in Sugar Ray's video for "When It's Over"
In the Cowboy Bebop episode Stray Dog Strut, the bounty Abdul Hakim is quite obviously modeled on Abdul-Jabbar's character 'Hakim' from "Game of Death" both in appearance and fighting style.
He is briefly mentioned in an early episode of the Slam Dunk anime, when Haruko and Ayako are talking about Rukawa, and they compare him to Abdul-Jabbar (to which a Dr. T segment ensues with a short biography on him).
In EPMD's "Never Seen Before" he is name-checked: "You go ooh and aah when I jump in my car - people treat me like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar"
In a Celebrity Jeopardy sketch on Saturday Night Live, he is mentioned in a category named "Famous Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's"
The band Hollywood Undead mentions Abdul-Jabbar's name in their song, "Turn off the Lights"
He is mentioned in the song "Trudgin'" by underground Los Angeles emcee FLYNN of LA Symphony: "I've been nibbled on, scribbled on, scraped and scarred/ Building character taller than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar."

2007-01-31T20:00:00.000+07:00

Gabriel Batistuta

Gabriel Omar Batistuta (born 1 February 1969), nicknamed Batigol, is a former professional footballer. The prolific Argentine striker played most of his club football at ACF Fiorentina in Italy, and he is the eighth top scorer of all time in the Italian Serie A league, with 184 goals in 318 matches between 1991 and 2003. On the international level, he is the all-time highest scorer for Argentina's national team, with 56 goals in 78 national team matches, and he represented his country at three FIFA World Cups. In 2004, he was named in the FIFA 100 list of the "125 Greatest Living Footballers".
When his club Fiorentina was relegated to Serie B in 1993, Batistuta stayed with the club and helped it return to the top-flight league two years later. A hero in Florence, the Fiorentina fans erected a life-size bronze statue of him in 1996, in recognition of his performances for Fiorentina. He never won the Italian league with Fiorentina, but when he moved to AS Roma in 2000, he finally won the Serie A championship to crown his career in Italy. He played his last in season in Qatar with Al-Arabi before he retired in 2005.
Currently he works as a commentator having worked for Televisa Deportes during the 2006 FIFA World Cup and for the show "La jugada".

Personal life
Batistuta was born on 1 February 1969, to slaughterhouse worker Omar Batistuta and school secretary Gloria Batistuta, in the town of Avellaneda, province of Santa Fe, Argentina, but grew up in the near city of Reconquista. He has three younger sisters, named Elisa, Alejandra, and Gabriela.
At age 16, he met Irina Fernández, his future wife, on her quinceañera, a rite of passage on her 15th birthday. She is reported to have ignored him But five years later, on December 28, 1990, they were married at Saint Roque Church. The couple moved to Florence, Italy, in 1991, and a year later their first son, Thiago, was born. Thanks to good performances in the Italian championship and with the Argentine national team, Batistuta gained fame and respect. He filmed several commercials and was invited onto numerous TV shows, but in spite of this, Batistuta always remained a low-profile family man.
In 1996, during Fiorentina's 2-1 victory at A.C. Milan, he celebrated scoring the match's decisive goal by saying Te amo, Irina ('I love you, Irina', to his wife) for the cameras. The mix of sex appeal and faithfulness cemented Batistuta's heart-throb reputation among Argentine and Italian women. In 1997, Batistuta's second son, Lucas, was born, and a third son, Joaquín, followed in 1999. In 2000, the Batistuta family moved to Rome and two years later to Milan, following Batistuta's changes of team. In 2002, after more than 10 years in Italy, the family moved to Qatar where Batistuta had accepted a lucrative celebrity playing contract with a local team, Al-Arabi.
Batistuta ended his career at Al-Arabi, retiring in March 2005, after a series of injuries that prevented him from playing. Soon afterwards he moved to Perth, Australia. In April 2006, the city's established A-league franchise, Perth Glory was put up for sale and it was reported that Batistuta was among the bidders.[1]

The player
Beginnings
As a child Batistuta preferred other sports to football. Thanks to his height he played basketball, but after Argentina's victory in the 1978 FIFA World Cup, in which he was particularly impressed by the skills of Mario Kempes, he devoted himself to football. After playing with friends on the streets and in the small Grupo Alegria club, he joined the local Platense junior team. While with Platense he was selected for the Reconquista team that won the provincial championship by beating Newell's Old Boys from Rosario. His 2 goals drew the attention of the opposition team, and he signed for them in 1988.

Professional
Batistuta signed professional forms with Newell's Old Boys Club, whose coach was Marcelo Bielsa, who would later become Batistuta's coach with the Argentine national team. Things did not come easily for Batistuta during his first year with the club. He was away from home, his family, and his girlfriend Irina, sleeping in a room at the stadium, and had a weight problem that slowed him down. At the end of that year he was loaned to a smaller team, Deportivo Italiano, of Buenos Aires, with whom he participated in the Carnevale Cup in Italy, ending as top scorer with 3 goals.
In mid-1989, Batistuta made the leap to one of Argentina's biggest clubs, River Plate, where he scored 17 goals. However, all did not run smoothly. He had numerous run-ins with coach Daniel Passarella (with whom he had later confrontations on the national squad) and he was dropped from the squad in the middle of the season.
In 1990, Batistuta signed for River's arch-rivals, Boca Juniors. Having gone so long without playing, he inititally found it hard to find his best form. However, at the beginning of 1991 Oscar Tabárez became Boca's coach, and he gave Batistuta the support and confidence to become the league's top scorer that season as Boca won the championship.
International
In 1991, Batistuta was selected to play for Argentina in the Copa América held in Chile, where he finished the tournament as top scorer with 6 goals as Argentina romped to victory. During the Copa América competition, the vice-president of Fiorentina was impressed by Batistuta's skills and signed him for the Italian club. However, the following season Fiorentina were relegated to the Serie B division, despite Batistuta's 13 season goals. The club returned to Serie A two years later, with the contribution of 16 Batistuta goals and managed by Claudio Ranieri.
In 1993, Batistuta played in his second Copa América, this time held in Ecuador, which Argentina again won. The 1994 FIFA World Cup, held in USA, was a disappointment: after a promising start Argentina were beaten by Romania in the last 16. The morale of the team was seriously affected by Diego Maradona's doping suspension. Despite the disappointing Argentine exit, Batistuta scored 4 goals in as many games.
On his return to Fiorentina, Batistuta found his best form. He was the top scorer of the 1994-95 season with 26 goals, and he broke Ezio Pascutti's 30-year-old record by scoring in all of the first 11 matches of the season. In the 1995-96 season Fiorentina won the Italian Cup and Super Coppa.
During the qualification matches for the 1998 FIFA World Cup (with former River Plate manager Passarella now coaching the Argentinean national team) Batistuta was left out of the majority of the games after falling out with the coach. Playing in the World Cup finals themselves, he scored 5 goals in that competition, before Argentina lost 2-1 to the Netherlands in the quarter-finals. In the game against Jamaica, he recorded the second hat trick of his World Cup career, becoming the 4th player to achieve this (the others were Sándor Kocsis, Just Fontaine, and Gerd Müller) and the first to score a hat trick in 2 World Cups.
After failure to win the Italian championship with Fiorentina, Batistuta started considering a transfer to a bigger team. In an effort to keep Batistuta, Fiorentina hired Giovanni Trapattoni as coach and promised to do everything to win the Scudetto. After an excellent start to the season, Batistuta suffered an injury that kept him out of action for more than a month. Losing momentum, Fiorentina lost the lead and finished the season in third place, which gave them the chance to participate in the Champions League in the following season.

Good-bye to Fiorentina
Batistuta stayed at Fiorentina for the 1999-00 season, tempted by the chance of winning both the Scudetto and the Champions League. After a promising start in both competitions, the team only reached seventh in the league and were eliminated in the second round group phase. The following season, he was transferred to A.S. Roma in a deal worth 35 million US dollars. Although a knee injury restricted his number of appearances, he scored 20 goals for A.S. Roma in his first season. He finally realized his dream of winning a major trophy as Roma clinched the Scudetto for the first time since 1983. The following season with A.S. Roma he changed his shirt number to "20" in reference to the number of goals he had scored during the Scudetto winning campaign. He also wore his age on the back of his Roma jersey in 2002, #33.
After a good series of performances by Argentina in the qualification matches for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, hopes were high that the South Americans - now managed by Marcelo Bielsa - could win the trophy, and Batistuta announced that he planned to quit the national team at the end of the tournament, which Argentina aimed to win. But Argentina's "group of death" saw the team fall at the first hurdle, as poor results against Nigeria, England, and Sweden meant that the team was knocked out in the opening round for the first time since 1962.
Back in Italy, Batistuta failed to find form with Roma and was loaned out to Internazionale; however, he failed to make an impression and departed for Qatar. In Qatar, he broke the recored of most goals scored that was held by Qatari Legend Mansour Mouftah with an amazing 24 goals. He was awarded for being the top scorer in all Arab leagues in 2004 with a Golden Boot.[citation needed]
He has also been linked to the Argentina national football team job with Diego Maradona

2007-01-20T21:28:00.000+07:00

Mike Tyson

Michael Gerard Tyson, born on June 30, 1966, in Brooklyn, New York, (USA) is a semi-retired professional boxer and former World Heavyweight Champion. The youngest man to win a heavyweight title belt, he was rated in 1999 by Ring magazine as the fourteenth greatest heavyweight of all time. He was nicknamed "Iron" Mike Tyson, Kid Dynamite, and The Baddest Man on the Planet. Tyson unified the belts in the splintered heavyweight division in the mid-eighties and quickly disposed of all rival contenders.

During his prime Tyson was considered unbeatable, but his once-dominant career was undermined by personal problems, lack of preparation, and periods of imprisonment. After being released from his first prison sentence, Mike made a heavily anticipated comeback but failed to reclaim his previous dominance. Though eventually regaining a title belt, it was the period prior to 1990 when he primarily made his mark as a fighter. The second half of his career was largely overshadowed by controversy.

Early years

Tyson was raised in the notorious Brownsville section of Brooklyn to parents Lorna Smith Tyson and Jimmy Kirkpatrick. His early childhood was marked by strife and unhappiness and also cancer, his mother had to fend for the entire family following the departure of their father when Mike was only two years old. On the streets of Brownsville he was constantly picked on and abused by older children, later gaining a reputation as a youth who would savagely beat those who ridiculed his high-pitched, lisping voice. As a youth, he was constantly in trouble with the police over petty crime and thuggery, passed in and out of juvenile detention centers, and was expelled from junior high school for fighting. While in a juvenile detention center in New York, Tyson was discovered by a guard named Bobby Stewart, who noted his raw boxing ability and awesome potential for the ring. Tyson was an outstanding physical specimen, Stewart trained him for a few months, then introduced him to the legendary Cus D'Amato.

Rise to stardom

Mike Tyson made his professional debut on March 6, 1985, in Albany, New York, a match which he won by a first round knockout over Hector Mercedes. He fought frequently in his first two years as a professional, staying undefeated and winning his first 19 fights by knockout, 14 of which came in the first round. His quality of opposition gradually increased to journeyman fighters and borderline contenders, and his win streak attracted much media attention, leading to his being billed as the next great heavyweight champion.

Tyson's first nationally televised bout took place on February 16, 1986 at Houston Field House in Troy, NY against journeyman heavyweight Jesse Ferguson. Tyson knocked down Ferguson with an uppercut in the fifth round that reportedly broke Ferguson's nose. (Life Magazine) During the sixth round, Ferguson began to hold and clinch Tyson in an apparent attempt to prolong the fight. After admonishing Ferguson several times to obey his commands to break the clinches and box, the referee eventually stopped the fight near the middle of the sixth round and Tyson was declared the winner by TKO.

On November 22, 1986, Tyson was given his first title shot, fighting Trevor Berbick for the WBC heavyweight title. Tyson won the title by second round technical knockout, and at the age of 20 years and 4 months became the youngest heavyweight champion ever. Floyd Patterson still holds the record as the youngest lineal champ.

Tyson aged 20 was around 222 lb (101 kg) with approximately 5.5 percent body fat, and was stocky for his height of 5'10" (1.78 m). Feared for his brute strength, many fighters were too scared to hit him and this was backed up by his incredible hand speed, accuracy, coordination, and extremely powerful hits and timing. Perhaps what was most overlooked was Tyson's defensive abilities. Holding his hands high in the Peek-a-Boo style taught by his mentor Cus D'Amato, he would slip and weave out of the way of the opponent's punches while closing the distance to deliver his own devastating attacks.

Expectations for the young champion were extremely high, and he embarked on an ambitious campaign to fight all the top heavyweights in the world. In 1987, Tyson defended his title against James 'Bonecrusher' Smith on March 7 in Las Vegas, Nevada. He won by unanimous decision and added Smith's WBA title to his existing belt. 'Tyson mania' in the media was becoming rampant. He beat Pinklon Thomas in May with a knockout in the sixth round. On August 1 he took the IBF title from Tony Tucker. He became the first heavyweight to own all three major belts (WBA, WBC, IBF) at the same time. His only other fight in 1987 was in October against the 1984 Olympic champion Tyrell Biggs, a great performance from Tyson which ended with a victory by knockout in the seventh round.

Tyson had three fights in 1988. He faced an aged but still game Larry Holmes on January 22, and defeated the legendary former champion by fourth round knockout. This would be the only knockout loss Holmes would suffer in 75 professional bouts. Tyson then fought contender Tony Tubbs in Tokyo in March, fitting in an easy two-round victory amid promotional and marketing work.

On June 27, 1988, Tyson met Michael Spinks. Spinks, who had taken the heavyweight championship away from Larry Holmes via a fifteen round decision in 1985, had never lost his title in the ring. The IBF title which he had won from Holmes had been stripped from him, but many (including Ring magazine) considered him to have a legitimate claim to being the true heavyweight champion. Tyson cleared up all confusion by brutally knocking him out at 1:31 of the first round. This fight is often regarded as the pinnacle of Tyson's career.

Controversy

During this time period, Tyson's problems outside boxing were also starting to gain prominence. His marriage to Robin Givens was heading for divorce, and his future contract was being fought over by Don King and Bill Cayton. In late 1988, Tyson fired longtime trainer Kevin Rooney, the man many credit for honing Tyson's craft after the death of D'Amato in November 1985. Without Rooney, Tyson's skills slowly deteriorated and he became more prone to looking for the one-punch knockout, rather than utilizing the fierce combinations that brought him to stardom. He also began to headhunt, neglecting to attack the opponent's body first. In addition, he lost his fabulous defensive skills and began to barrel straight in toward the opponent, neglecting to jab and slip his way in. In 1989, Tyson had only two fights amid personal turmoil. He faced the popular British boxer Frank Bruno in February in a below-par fight, and managed a one round knockout of Carl Williams in July.

In 1989 Tyson was granted an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters from Central State University in Ohio. Many in the academic community expressed displeasure at this (as well as at the practice of giving honorary doctorates to celebrities in general), claiming that it cheapened the value of such awards, particularly for those who had worked years in their fields to earn them [1].

By 1990 Tyson seemed to have lost direction, and his personal life and training habits were in disarray. In a fight on February 11 he lost his championship to James "Buster" Douglas in Tokyo. On paper it looked like an easy victory for Tyson, but Douglas was at an emotional peak after losing his mother to a stroke three weeks prior to the fight, and fought the fight of his life. Tyson failed to find a way past Douglas's lightning fast jab that had a thirteen-inch reach advantage over his own. Tyson did send Douglas to the floor in the eighth round, catching him with an uppercut, but Douglas recovered sufficiently to hand Tyson a heavy beating in the later rounds. After the fight Tyson and his corner complained that Douglas had received longer than ten to get to his feet. Thirty-five seconds within the start of the 10th round, Douglas unleashed a combination of blows that sent Tyson to the canvas for the first time in his career. He was counted out by referee Octavio Meyran. The sight of the then 37-0 undefeated champion rolling around on the floor trying to put his mouthpiece back in was an image that contrasted deeply with many boxing fans' perceptions of Tyson up to that point.

In 1991 Tyson fought Donovan "Razor" Ruddock twice, once in March and again in June. These fights were notable because of Tyson's bizarre "jailhouse" talk towards his opponent. He told Ruddock, "Everyone knows you're a transvestite and you love me. I'm gonna make you my girlfriend. I can't wait to get my hands on a pretty thing like you." There was some controversy over the first fight which Tyson won in the seventh round; many believe the referee, Richard Steele, stopped the fight prematurely. Tyson won the rematch comprehensively in a unanimous points decision. Ruddock would suffer a broken jaw in the process.

Rape conviction, prison, and aftermath

In 1992, Tyson went on trial in Indiana after being arrested there in 1991 for the rape of Miss Black Rhode Island, Desiree Washington, in an Indianapolis hotel room. Tyson was convicted on the charge of rape on February 10, 1992, despite bookmakers' 5-to-1 odds that he would be acquitted [2].

He was given a sentence of six years and was released in May 1995 after serving three years. Under Indiana law, a defendant convicted of a felony must begin serving his prison sentence immediately after the sentence is imposed. While in prison, Tyson converted to Islam and changed his name to Mike "Abdul Azez" Tyson.

Tyson did not fight again until 1995. After two comeback bouts against Peter McNeeley and Buster Mathis Jr., he regained one belt by easily winning the WBC title from Frank Bruno in March 1996 in three rounds. In September 1996 Tyson won back the WBA title in 93 seconds from Bruce Seldon, having paid Lennox Lewis $4 million to "step aside". Seldon was subjected to much ridicule for his first round loss to Tyson because he seemed to go down and out from a light punch. Rapper Tupac Shakur was murdered after this fight.

The Holyfield Fight

On June 28, 1997, Tyson fought Evander Holyfield with Mills Lane as the referee, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It was dubbed "The Sound and the Fury," the $100-million rematch between these titans, since Holyfield had knocked Tyson out 8 months earlier in his second loss ever, and the rematch was drawing more attention than the first bout, with Tyson getting $30 million, Holyfield $35 million, and pay per view fees set at $49.95. Problems started when a clash of heads in the second round opened a three-inch cut over Tyson's right eye. Tyson had repeatedly complained about head butting in the first bout between the two. A time-out was called briefly, but since there was no indication that Holyfield had intentionally fouled Tyson, no point deduction was taken from Holyfield. Tyson continued the second round with blood trickling into his eye. As the third round was about to begin, Tyson came out of his corner without his mouthpiece, but Lane noticed this and ordered Tyson back to his corner to get his mouthpiece. The two got back into position and the fight resumed. Tyson rushed hard at Holyfield, catching him with a solid right and then a combination. Suddenly, with 40 seconds left in the 3rd round, the fight took an unexpected turn. Holyfield got Tyson in a clinch, and Tyson rolled his head above Holyfield's shoulder. He then bit Holyfield's right ear, severing it. Holyfield pushed Tyson away and started hopping up and down in pain, spinning around in a circle holding his ear.

Lane abruptly called for a time-out, Holyfield turned to walk to his corner, and Tyson ran up to Holyfield and pushed his back, startling both the crowd and Holyfield who fell into the ropes. Lane quickly moved Tyson and directed Holyfield back to his corner as Tyson walked calmly back to his. The fight was delayed for several minutes as Lane told Tyson he was penalizing him with a two-point deduction. A physician examined Holyfield's ear and determined he could continue to fight.

The fight resumed with 30 seconds left in the round. The two fought into another clinch. Tyson craned his neck around again and bit Holyfield's left ear with 22 seconds left. Holyfield threw his hands around to get out of the clinch and jumped back as Tyson waved his arms in a "come on" motion. Lane did not stop the fight this time, so the two men continued fighting until time expired. The men walked back to their respective corners when the fight was then stopped. After the fight was stopped, Tyson tried to get at Holyfield and Holyfield's trainer Brooks while they were still in their corner. Tyson took swings at anyone who got in his way, including a police officer, until he was finally held back into his corner. Announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. read the unprecedented decision: "Referee Mills Lane has disqualified Mike Tyson for biting Evander Holyfield on both of his ears."

Later, Tyson was walking back to his locker room when a fan tossed a full bottle of water in Tyson's direction. Tyson climbed over a temporary railing and up into the stands, made obscene gestures to the crowd, and made his way up the side of a stairway before he was dragged to his locker room. Tyson was suspended and his license withheld.

Tyson justified his behavior when he later told reporters that he was forced to retaliate because Holyfield was not penalized for intentionally butting him several times.

“ Holyfield butted me in the first round and then he butted me again in the second round. As soon as he butted me I watched him. He looked right at me and came right at me. He kept on going down and coming up, then charged into me, and no one warned him. No one took any point from him. What am I supposed to do? This is my career; I can't continue getting butted like that. I've got children to raise and he keeps butting me, tryna get me, stopped on cuts I gotta retaliate. Listen, Holyfield's not the tough warrior everyone says he is. He got a little nick on his ear and he quit. I got one eye, he's got ears, he's not impaired. I got one eye, big deal, if he take one, I got another one. He didn't wanna fight; I'm ready to fight him right now... He didn't want to fight, regardless on what I did...he been buttin me for two fights (Tyson points to his eye) Look at me, man, look at me. I gotta go home and my kids are gonna be scared of me now, look at me!" ”

Decline

In January 1999 Tyson returned to the ring to fight the South African Francois Botha and while Botha initially controlled the fight, Tyson attempted to break Botha's arms during a tie-up. Nonetheless, Tyson landed a straight right-hand in the fifth round that knocked Botha out.

On February 5 Tyson was sentenced to a year's imprisonment, fined $5,000, and ordered to serve 2 years probation and perform 200 hours of community service for assaulting two people after a car accident on August 31, 1998. He served nine months of that sentence. After his release he fought Orlin Norris on October 23, 1999. Tyson knocked Norris down with a left hook he threw after the bell sounded ending the first round. Norris injured his knee when he went down and said he was unable to continue the fight. The bout was ruled a no contest.

In 2000 Tyson had three fights. The first was staged at the MEN Arena, Manchester, England against Julius Francis. Following controversy as to whether Tyson should be allowed into the country, he knocked out Francis in the second round. He also fought Lou Savarese in June 2000 in Glasgow, winning in the first round. The entire fight only lasted 38 seconds. Tyson continued punching after the referee had stopped the fight, knocking him to the floor as he tried to separate the boxers. In October Tyson fought the similarly controversial Andrew Golota, winning in round three after Golota refused to carry on, the result was later changed to no contest after Tyson tested positive for marijuana. Tyson fought only once in 2001, beating Brian Nielsen in Copenhagen with a seventh round TKO.

Tyson sought to fight Lennox Lewis in 2002 in Nevada, but the Nevada boxing commission refused him a license to box as he was facing possible sexual assault charges. Tyson made inflammatory remarks to Lewis prior to the eventual bout stating, "I want your heart, I wanna eat his children, praise be to Allah". A mass brawl on January 22, 2002 at a press conference in New York to publicize the planned event finally removed any chance of a Nevada fight. The fight actually occurred on June 8 in Memphis, Tennessee. Lewis dominated the fight and knocked out Tyson in the eighth round. Tyson stated that the loss was due to not being allowed enough warm up fights leading up to the fight, due to Lewis insisting on the date.

On February 22, 2003, Tyson beat fringe contender Clifford Etienne 49 seconds into round one, once again in Memphis. The pre-fight was marred by rumors of Tyson's lack of fitness and that he took time out from training to party in Las Vegas and get a new facial tattoo. This would be Tyson's final professional victory in the ring.

In August 2003, after years of financial struggles, Tyson finally filed for bankruptcy. His bank balance was said to have been only $5,000. In 2003, amid all his economic troubles, he was named by Ring Magazine at number 16, right behind Sonny Liston, among the 100 greatest punchers of all time.

On July 31, 2004, Tyson faced the unregarded Englishman Danny Williams in another comeback fight staged in Louisville, Kentucky. Tyson dominated the opening two rounds. The third round was more even, with Williams getting in some clean blows and also a few illegal ones, for which he was penalized. In the fourth round Tyson was surprisingly knocked out. It transpired that Tyson was trying to fight on one leg, having torn a ligament in his other knee in the first round. This was Tyson's fifth career defeat. He underwent surgery for the ligament four days after the fight. His manager Shelly Finkel claimed that Tyson was unable to throw meaningful right-hand punches after the knee injury.

On June 11, 2005, Tyson stunned the boxing world by quitting before the start of the seventh round in a close bout against journeyman Kevin McBride. After losing the third of his last four fights, Tyson said he would quit boxing because he hasn't "got the fighting guts or the heart anymore." (BBC Sport).

After professional boxing

Tyson has stayed in the limelight by promoting various websites and companies. In April 2005, he joined a group of strippers on the roof of a strip club in New York to promote skill gaming site FortuneFun.com. Tyson has also endorsed online gaming site Casino Fortune. In June 2004, sportswriter Max Kellerman suggested that Tyson should move out of boxing and into product endorsement, as this had worked well for former boxer George Foreman. In the past Tyson had shunned endorsements, accusing other athletes of putting on a false front to obtain them.

On the front page of USA Today on June 3, 2005, Tyson was quoted as saying: "My whole life has been a waste - I've been a failure." He continued: "I just want to escape. I'm really embarrassed with myself and my life. I want to be a missionary. I think I could do that while keeping my dignity without letting people know they chased me out of the country. I want to get this part of my life over as soon as possible. In this country nothing good is going to come of me. People put me so high; I wanted to tear that image down."

Tyson now spends much of his time tending to his coop of around 350 pigeons in Phoenix, Arizona [3]. He shares his house with his pug, Meatball.

Japanese mixed martial arts organization PRIDE Fighting Championships signed Tyson on August 23, 2006. He is slated to make appearances at PRIDE fight cards and promotional events. [4] In a press conference held on December 30, 2006, however, Nobuyuki Sakakibara--CEO of Pride FC's parent company Dream Stage Entertainment--released a statement which called Tyson's relationship with Pride FC and Dreamstage Entertainment into serious doubt following Tyson's latest arrest. Stating that Dreamstage representatives had been "speaking with Tyson's management ... since Tyson has admitted that he was in possession of cocaine," Sakakibara called into question as to "whether he [Tyson] can honor our contract with him and whether we should continue the contract at all" [5]

On September 28, 2006 Tyson announced "The Mike Tyson World Tour" in which he would fight in a series of four round exhibition matches in the US, Europe and Asia. The first of these matches was held in Ohio on October 20, 2006, against Corey Sanders in Youngstown, Ohio. The explicit purpose of the tour is to help ease Mike Tyson's spiraling debts.[6]

On December 29, 2006, Tyson was arrested in Scottsdale, Arizona on suspicion of DUI and felony drug possession after he nearly crashed into a police SUV shortly after leaving a night club. In a police probable cause statement filed in Maricopa County Superior Court, "He (Tyson) admitted to using (drugs) today and stated he is an addict and has a problem". Tyson was released from jail without bond and is scheduled to appear before a preliminary hearing on January 16, 2007. [7]

Marriage and children

Tyson has 7 children: Gena, D'Amato, Mikey, Rayna, Amir, Miguel, and Exodus.

First marriage was to actress Robin Givens from February 7, 1988 - February 14, 1989.

Rayna (born February 14, 1996) and Amir (August 5, 1997) are from his second marriage to Monica Turner. Monica Turner is a pediatric resident at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington DC. She is also the sister of Michael Steele, the lieutenant governor of Maryland and former Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate.

Tyson admits paternity of a girl born in July 1990 to Kimberly Scarborough of New York .

Trivia

In 1989 Tyson was awarded the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award.
Tyson was good friends with rapper Tupac Shakur, and often came out for a fight with a Tupac rap as his ringwalk music (most common song "Ambitionz Az A Ridah"). Shakur had been in attendance at a Tyson fight on the night he was fatally shot in a drive-by shooting.
Ottawa Senators goaltender Ray Emery had a picture of Tyson on his goalie mask, before he was told by Senators management that this was unacceptable due to Tyson's reputation.
Tyson's well hyped and short bout with Peter McNeeley served as obvious inspiration for the parody film of that phase of Tyson's career, The Great White Hype, with a caricature of Tyson played by Damon Wayans and a caricature of Don King played by Samuel L. Jackson.
Tyson has a hobby of collecting pigeons, he has cared for pigeons throughout his life.[8]
In 2005, Tyson briefly dated UK Big Brother 7 Housemate Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace.
Rap artist 50 Cent purchased Mike Tyson's 48,000-square-foot mansion in Farmington, Connecticut for $4.1 million on September 21, 2003 [9].
ESPN.com Page 2 columnist Bill Simmons makes frequent references to "The Tyson Zone" (named after Tyson), which is a status an athlete or celebrity reaches when their behavior becomes so outrageous that one would believe most any story or anecdote about the person, no matter how seemingly bizarre. [10]
During a game in the 2003 World Series at Yankee Stadium, Tyson held up a sign that said, "Free Kobe!", showing his support for LA Lakers star Kobe Bryant in his impending rape trial.

Cameos and parodies

Special enforcer Tyson, standing beside Stone Cold Steve Austin, after helping him to win the WWE ChampionshipIn the 2006 movie Rocky Balboa, Mike Tyson, who was rumored to be in negotiations to fight Tarver, was used to verbally assault Dixon outside the ring before the match.
Mike Tyson was the special enforcer for a World Wrestling Entertainment match at WrestleMania XIV on March 29, 1998, in which he pretended to be a member of D-Generation X and ended up punching out Shawn Michaels after making the 3 count for Stone Cold Steve Austin to win the WWE Championship from Michaels.
In Scary Movie 4, during a flashback scene (A boxing match not so subtly disguised as a Million Dollar Baby spoof) involving lead character Cindy (Anna Faris), her opponent is a buff female boxer who resembles Tyson; at the conclusion of the fight, proceeds to bite off the ears of every spectator and official within the boxing stadium. This is clearly a reference to the incident involving Tyson and Holyfield.
In The Simpsons, boxer (and convicted felon) Drederick Tatum is clearly modelled on Mike Tyson.
Tyson made a cameo appearance on 1980's TV sitcom Who's The Boss at one point, during a scene when Tony Danza is impersonating Tyson's infamous voice. Tyson rings the doorbell as a neighbour and asks who the person who's been making fun of him.
In 1987, Nintendo released Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, an NES game based on the arcade game Punch-Out!!, although there was later a version released in 1990 that replaced Mike Tyson with a fictional character, "Mr. Dream", after Nintendo's license with Tyson expired. Defeating Tyson (through mini-boxer Lil' Mac) is extremely difficult, as he can knock Mac down with a single "lightning punch", modeled after the real-life Tyson's devastating right upper-cut.
In 1992 a second Nintendo game featuring Mike Tyson entitled "Mike Tyson's Intergalactic Power Punch" was to be released as a sequel to Mike Tysons's Punch-Out!!. However, due to the Desiree Washington case the project was scrapped and the game was eventually released as Power Punch II with Mike Tyson in the game being replaced with a character named Mark Tyler.
In 1989, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince scored a #23 R&B/#58 Pop hit with "I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson", in which the Fresh Prince envisages himself taking on the heavyweight champion (and taking a beating in the process). Tyson appears as himself in the song's music video.
In the Japanese version of Capcom's Street Fighter II series, Balrog is called Mike Bison, as a parody of Mike Tyson, possibly with the full name of "Michael Gerard Bison". Capcom USA switched the names of the Shadaloo Grandmasters around for the American versions in order to avoid a potential lawsuit from Mike Tyson. In Street Fighter Alpha 3 one of Balrog's victory phrases is "If you fight me like that again I'll have to bite your ear off!"
Tyson made a special cameo appearance in Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, where he played an extremely peaceful man meditating in a park.
In 1998 Tyson featured on an underground rap hit, "Second Round K.O" by Canibus. Tyson gives the rapper advice over how to defeat his lyrical opponent (rapper LL Cool J).
In 1999 he made another movie cameo appearance, playing himself in James Toback's Black and White, a serious look at race, sex and hip hop music in Manhattan. Tyson appears in When Will I Be Loved, another film by Black and White's director James Issa Toback, in 2004.
Tyson collaborates with R&B artist Ginuwine in his 2003 album "The Senior" in which Tyson gives Ginuwine his "stamp of approval" in the introduction of the album.
In a Snickers commercial from the early 2000s, an unnamed boxer is seen sitting in his locker room, seemingly afraid to go out for the fight. He sits with his gloves next to his face and after some prodding by his coach, he pulls his gloves away to reveal a large set of ears and proclaims "I'm not going out there!" This commercial parodies the infamous "Holyfield Fight" where Tyson bit his opponent's ears.

2007-01-17T11:52:00.000+07:00

Laila Ali

Statistics

Real name Laila Ali

Nickname She bee Stingin

Weight Super Middleweight

Nationality American

Birth date December 30, 1977

Birth place Miami Beach, Florida, USA

Style Orthodox

Boxing record

Total fights 22

Wins 22

Wins by KO 19

Losses 0

Draws 0

No contests 0

Laila Ali (born in Miami Beach, December 30, 1977), is the daughter of the boxer Muhammad Ali and Veronica Porsche Ali.

Laila, who is a personal trainer in Los Angeles, surprised the boxing world in 1999 by announcing she would try her hand at women's boxing.

Biography

To much fanfare, she made her debut on October 8 of that year, knocking out April Fowler in the first round. She rallied off 8 wins in a row, and many among boxing's fans started talking about wanting to see her and George Foreman's daughter, Freeda Foreman, or Joe Frazier's daughter, Jackie Frazier-Lyde square off in a boxing ring. On the evening of June 8, 2001, Ali and Frazier finally met, in a fight that became the first time a women's boxing fight was the main event of a Pay Per View event in history, a fight which was also nicknamed Ali/Frazier IV in allusion to their fathers' famous fight trilogy, and fight which was part of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame induction weekend's activities. Ali won by judge's decision.

Ali won by an eight-round majority decision, and then took off almost one year, returning 364 days later, to beat Shirvelle Williams by a six-round decision. She won the IBA title with a two-round knockout of Suzzette Taylor, on August 17 at Las Vegas, and on November 9, she retained that title and added the WIBA and IWBF belts, by unifying the crown with an eight-round knockout win over her division's other world champion, Valerie Mahfood in Las Vegas, Nevada.

On June 21, 2003, Ali retained the title in a rematch with Mahfood, knocking her out in six rounds. It was announced, on June 30, that she would fight Christy Martin on August 23. She beat Martin by a knockout in four rounds.

Laila Ali would have begun 2004 by fighting Gwendolyn O'Neil of Guyana, at Abuja, Nigeria. The fight was cancelled, however, when Ali's camp learned no airline had flights scheduled to Nigeria on the date she wanted to arrive there.

On July 17 of that year, she retained her world title, knocking out Nikki Eplion after four rounds. Ali dropped Eplion four times before the fight was stopped.

Thirteen days later, she stopped Monica Nunez in nine rounds, as part of the undercard where Mike Tyson was surprisingly knocked out by fringe contender Danny Williams, at her father's native city of Louisville, Kentucky.

On September 24, 2004, she added the IWBF Light Heavyweight title to her resume by beating O'Neal, the fighter against whom she had had to cancel a fight previously, by a knockout in three rounds, at Atlanta, Georgia.

Returning to Atlanta on February 11, 2005, Laila Ali scored a commanding and decisive eighth round technical knockout over Cassandra Geigger, in a scheduled 10-round fight.

On June 11, 2005, as the undercard in the Tyson-Kevin McBride fight, Laila Ali pounded Erin Toughill into submission in round three to remain undefeated, and became the second woman to win a World Boxing Council title (Jackie Nava was the first), in addition to defending her WIBA crown. Erin was outclassed in 1:59 of the third round. Toughill, her face bleeding profusely, took approximately 20 consecutive punches in her corner, before referee Joseph Cooper stepped in to end the fight.

On December 17, 2005, in Berlin, Germany, Laila fought and defeated Åsa Sandell by TKO in the fifth round, marking her 22nd win.

While a guest on Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith on June 7, 2006, Ali announced that she would be making a world tour, and said that she would be looking forward to fight Ann Wolfe on an October 2006 date. The fight with Ann Wolfe never materialized and instead on November 11, 2006 Laila fought and defeated Shelley Burton by TKO in the fourth round.

Career

IWBF World Super middleweight 2nd champion
WIBA World Super middleweight 2nd champion
WBC Female World Super middleweight 1st champion
Laila Ali was supposed to fight Gwendolyn O’Neil in Cape Town, South Africa, on August 5, 2006, but she pulled out amidst allegations of fraud. In addition, the local promoter couldn't raise the final $325,000 installment of her $525,000 purse. The SA government is investigating the fraud allegations, according to an exposé in the Sunday Times newspaper.

Trivia

Laila Ali is currently dating former professional football player Curtis Conway.

She stands 5' 10 with a reach of 70.5”.

2006-12-26T06:47:00.000+07:00

Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza (born November 15, 1986) is an Indian tennis player. She was born in Mumbai and now resides in Hyderabad. Coached by her father Imran Mirza, she began playing tennis at the age of six, turning professional in 2003. She was the highest ranked female tennis player ever from India, with career high rankings of number 31 in singles and 26 in doubles. She is now ranked 66th as of November 27th 2006.She became the first Indian woman to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament at the 2005 US Open, defeating Mashona Washington, Maria Elena Camerin and Marion Bartoli. In 2004, she finished runner up at the Asian Tennis Championship .In 2005 Mirza reached the third round of Australian Open, losing to eventual champion Serena Williams.On February 12, 2005, she became the first Indian woman to win a WTA singles title defeating Alyona Bondarenko of Ukraine in the Hyderabad Open Finals. As of September 2006, Sania has notched up three top 10 wins against Svetlana Kuznetsova, Nadia Petrova and Martina Hingis.Sania won the Wimbledon Championships Girls' Doubles title in 2003, teaming up with Alisa Kleybanova of Russia.