Maradona to play charity soccer match inCroatia
 

Associated Press

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) - Diego Maradona will play in a charity soccer match in Croatia on June 17 with several other retired soccer stars, Croatian newspapers reported Wednesday.

Maradona, who captained Argentina to the 1986 World Cup, agreed to play in the northern coastal city of Novi Vinodolski to raise money for a local orphanage.

Others involved are former Croatia internationals Davor Suker and Zvonimir Boban.

"I'm happy to come again to Croatia," Maradona was quoted as saying by two leading Croatian dailies. "It makes me even more happy to do a good deed. Humanitarian matches have become the meaning of my life."

The match is planned to accompany an ATP Senior Tour event in Novi Vinodolski on June 15-18, which will gather retired tennis stars such as Goran Ivanisevic, Boris Becker, and John McEnroe.

Organizers also hope to arrange a tennis match between Maradona and McEnroe.

The soccer match would be one of the few times Maradona, rated one of the greatest players ever, has been seen on a field since his retirement in 1997.

Maradona became obese under the weight of cocaine addiction and, on March 5, successfully underwent gastric bypass surgery to help try and reduce his weight by 50 kilograms (110 pounds) within a year.

Before the operation, the 1.68-meter (5-foot-6) Argentine weighed 121 kilograms (266 pounds).


http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/3655786

Basketball Legend Croatian - American, George Mikan Dies

George Mikan, who was born of Croatian immigrant parents in Joliet, Illinois, died yesterday, June 2, 2005. There have been countless tributes concerning him in the American press and television yesterday and this morning (though, unfortunately, I haven't seen any which mention his Croatian heritage).

Mikan was one of the greatest NBA basketball players of all time and was the first person elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Below is an obituary which appeared in today's New York Times.

John Kraljic
****************************************************

June 3, 2005

George Mikan, 80, Dominant Basketball Center, Dies

By FRANK LITSKY

George Mikan, the Minneapolis Lakers center who was the first superstar in modern professional basketball and a player so big and so dominant that college and pro rules were changed in an effort to handcuff him, died Wednesday at a rehabilitation center in Scottsdale, Ariz. He was 80.

His death was announced by his family, The Associated Press said. He had been treated for diabetes and kidney failure for several years.

At 6 feet 10 inches and 245 pounds, Mikan was never as naturally smooth as latter-day basketball superstars like Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson. He grew up self-conscious and self-doubting and he wore eyeglasses on the court, but through relentless hard work he became the pro game's paramount inside player from 1946 to 1956. He led his teams to seven league championships in nine years, including five National Basketball Association titles with the Lakers, teaming up with fellow Hall of Famers Jim Pollard and Vern Mikkelsen and guard Slater Martin.

Mikan's trademark was a sweeping hook shot with either hand. He was the N.B.A.'s scoring leader three times and finished with 11,764 career points during his two seasons in the National Basketball League and seven with the N.B.A. He averaged 22.6 points a game in an era of less-refined shooting and lower scores, and he was a rebounding power.

The Associated Press named Mikan the best basketball player of the first half of the 20th century. He was named to the N.B.A.'s 50th anniversary 50-man all-time team and the National Invitation Tournament's all-time team, for taking DePaul University of Chicago to the 1945 championship.

"He literally carried the league," Bob Cousy, the Boston Celtics' Hall of Famer and the N.B.A.'s pre-eminent guard in its early years, told The Associated Press yesterday. "He gave us recognition and acceptance when we were at the bottom of the totem pole in professional sports."

In 1959, Mikan became a member of the first group inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass.

Mikan sustained various injuries during his career including fractures of both legs, his left arch, right foot, nose, right wrist, thumb and three fingers, plus 166 stitches.

Through it all, he prevailed, even when rules were introduced to limit his effectiveness. At DePaul, he once recalled: "We would set up a zone defense with four men around the key and I guarded the basket. When the other team took a shot, I'd just tap it out."

To negate that, the National Collegiate Athletic Association banned goaltending in 1944.

In the N.B.A., when his team had the ball, Mikan set up one step from the basket. The league countered during the 1951-52 season by widening the lane under the basket, where an offensive player could stay for only three seconds at a time, to 12 feet from 6 feet. But Mikan scored 61 points in a game that season against the Rochester Royals.

In a November 1950 game, the Fort Wayne Pistons decided the only way they could beat Mikan and the Lakers was to hold onto the ball. They won, 19-18, the lowest-scoring game in N.B.A. history. In 1954, the N.B.A. introduced the present rule that required a team to shoot within 24 seconds of getting the ball.

George Lawrence Mikan was born June 18, 1924, in Joliet, Ill. At his high school graduation he was 6 foot 8. He used to stoop to make himself look shorter.

"I became round-shouldered, ungainly and so filled with bitterness that my height nearly wrecked my life," he once said. "Later, I found that a tall man didn't have to accept clumsiness."

While in high school, Mikan wanted to be a priest and for a time he studied in a Chicago seminary, leaving no time to play basketball. He did play during the summers on playgrounds and he wanted to go to Notre Dame, but the coach, George Keogan, rejected him for being clumsy.

Mikan found a home at DePaul, where Coach Ray Meyer tried to rectify his clumsiness with an intensive training regimen. He skipped rope, shadowboxed and ran. The routine helped, and he became an All-American three times and the college player of the year twice.

His first pro team was the 1946-47 Chicago American Gears of the N.B.L. After one season, he moved to the N.B.L.'s Lakers. One season after that, the Lakers and three other N.B.L. teams joined the new Basketball Association of America, which a year later became the N.B.A.


Mikan so captured the public's imagination that the N.B.A. often sent him on the road a day before a game to drum up publicity for his next game.

He was still in his prime when he retired at age 29 after the 1953-54 season, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family.

Two seasons later, he returned, but was only a shadow of himself. He then retired as a player for good. He became the Lakers' coach in 1957, started the season, then quit with a 9-30 record.

After basketball, he worked in Minneapolis as a corporate and real-estate lawyer. He bought and renovated buildings, owned a travel agency and ran for Congress as a Republican, losing in a close race.

He was the first commissioner of the American Basketball Association, from 1967 to 1969. He lived in the Minneapolis suburb of Edina, Minn., and in Scottsdale.

Mikan is survived by his wife, Patricia; his sons Larry, Terry, Patrick and Michael; and his daughters Trisha and Maureen, The Associated Press reported. His brother, Ed, who also played for DePaul and later in the N.B.A., died in 1999.

Of all the tributes paid to Mikan during his career, perhaps the grandest came from the marquee outside the old Madison Square Garden. It read:
 

Seminar on Bio-Fuel  in Zagreb, June 4-5.
 

Kruno Jost

31 May 2005

The Green Network of Activist Groups (original acronym ZMAG) association, in cooperation with Bio-Power UK cooperative, will organize a seminar in production of bio-fuels. The seminar will take place at the facilities of Zelena Akcija in Zagreb, June 4-5.


The seminar will introduce the “do-it-yourselfâ€? systems designed to turn potential waste into valuable fuel, save money, protect the environment and reduce the use of oil in transportation.

John Nicholson, the founder of Bio-Power UK cooperative, will talk about the technology of production of bio-fuel in the two days of the seminar.

The first day will be dedicated to theory and basics of bio-fuels, their capacities and meaning they could have in the context of climate changes and wars for oil. The second day of the seminar will bring an introduction to various methods of production of bio-fuel. Bio-fuels and fuels extracted from oleaceous plants (sunflower, beet-roots, palm oil...) are commonly known as “bio-dieselâ€? in Croatia.

The seminar will be given in English language, without translation, but there will be opportunity to make a break and give more details on the discussion. Due to the restricted number of participants the seminar can take, the applications are obligatory on zmag@zmag.hr or by phone at 091/535-1643 (ask for Drazen Simlesa, ZMAG coordinator).

Saturday, June 4, and Sunday, June 5, at 10:00 hours, at the facilities of Zelena akcija, Frankopanska 1, 10000 Zagreb
http://www.zmag.hr/portal/html/index.php
http://www.zelena-akcija.hr/

http://see.oneworld.net/article/view/112324/1/3260
 

Is a car essential, or is public transportation adequate?

Travel Q & A
Posted on Sun, May. 29, 2005
Q. We're traveling to Slovenia and Croatia to see Ljubljana, the Julian Alps area and the Dalmatian Coast. Is a car essential, or is public transportation adequate?

Jim Luini, Orinda

A. Although there's a convenience factor when you leave the driving to someone else, you're probably better off visiting both countries by rental car.

That's not to say you can't get around on buses and trains. For instance, the driving distance between between Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, and Lake Bled at the foot of the Julian Alps, is less than an hour. Many visitors choose to stay in the Lake Bled area and catch a tourist bus, available at most hotels, for a day trip to Ljubljana.

In Croatia, a visit to the Dalmatian Coast would also include a stop at Plitvice Lakes, a UNESCO World Heritage site. But there's no direct bus or train from Slovenia, so a car is necessary. However, you could take a bus from Slovenia to the Croatian capital of Zagreb, then take a bus to Plitvice Lakes. You can find links to bus stations, plus other traveling options, atwww.croatiatraveller.com/transport.htm .

Driving in Slovenia and Croatia is relatively easy, and the new highway to the Dalmatian Coast that opened last year has cut travel time significantly.

Q. I may be traveling for an extended amount of time and expect that my passport will expire while I'm gone. What should I do?

A. You're better off renewing your passport before you depart. Although it's possible to renew it at the U.S. embassy of the country you'll be visiting, lines can sometimes be very long and embassy locations might not be convenient.

Also, if your passport expires in the next several months, you may have to renew it anyway before traveling. That's because some countries, including Costa Rica, China, Norway and Japan, won't accept a passport that expires within three to six months of your visit. Check with the U.S. embassy in the country you're visiting to see if it has this requirement.

To renew your passport, go to http://travel.state.gov/passport and download the appropriate application form.

Have a question? E-mail Michael Martinez atTravelQA@mercurynews.com .

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/travel/11768155.htm

Gilmour said. "The people of Croatia are great."

Gilmour overhauls Baird for tour lead in Croatia
The Australian’s fifth ACI H1 Match Race Cup is also his seventh career Tour victory

Saturday 28 May 2005
Info Swedish Match Tour

Peter Gilmour (AUS), of Pizza-La Sailing Team, today became the new leader of the Swedish Match Tour leaderboard and the career victories list when he won the ACI H1 Match Race Cup.

Gilmour and crew Rod Dawson, Mike Mottl, Kazuhiko Sofuku and Yasuhiro Yaji defeated Philippe Presti (FRA) 3-2 in a tightly fought series. Presti’s crew included Thierry Fouchier, Fred Guilmin, Pascal Rambeau and Mathieu Renault.

Gilmour, with 112 points, overtook Ed Baird (USA), of Team Alinghi, for the lead of the 2004-’05 season. And Gilmour’s seven career victories are tops on that list.

Bertrand Pacé (FRA), of BMW Oracle Racing, placed third, while Baird finished fourth. Pacé beat Baird 2-0 in the Petit Final.

"We’ve just been looking to improve on last year’s performance,â€? said Gilmour, 45 years old. "We weren’t very happy with how we sailed the second half of last year. Now we’ve got two wins and a second in the last three events.â€?

Those finishes have put Gilmour in position to become the first repeat champion of the Swedish Match Tour. He leads Baird by 10 points (after trailing by 23 points at the beginning of May) with one event to sail, the Swedish Match Cup (July 4-10).

"Him finishing fourth and us first is a surprise,� said Gilmour. "We just hoped to finish one place ahead of him.�

Gilmour’s victory was his fifth championship at the ACI Cup, which is also tops on that list. "That’s a real pleasure,â€? Gilmour said. "The people of Croatia are great.â€?

In the final Gilmour opened a 2-0 lead. He won the first match when Presti was penalized twice at the leeward mark, and the second when he completed a 270-degree penalty turn on the finish line.

Presti, who upped his level of aggression in the semifinals and final, rallied to make it 2-2. He won the third flight when Gilmour received a pre-start penalty and the fourth when he completed a penalty turn on the finish line.

That set up a winner-take-all final match, but it was anticlimactic compared to the first four flights, which were marked by close racing and many leebow tacks.

With the west/southwesterly seabreeze blowing around 8 knots, down from its high of 10 knots earlier in the day, Gilmour started the final match to the left and Presti to the right.

"The right had been favored all day,� said Presti, 39 years old. "We thought it was still favored in the last race. We saw a big puff on the left, but thought the wind would drop and swing right.�

Presti, by his own admission, guessed wrong. When Presti tacked to starboard and towards the left side, Gilmour was crossing in a 10-knot puff about three boatlengths ahead. He led by 30 seconds at the windward mark, and was never threatened the rest of the way.

"I guess it was bad eyes,� said Presti, laughing off the loss.

"Philippe started very well today,� said Gilmour. "He pushed us to the right all the time. By hook or by crook we were going to win the left in the last match, and we did.�

Gilmour advanced to the final by beating Baird 3-1 in one semifinal match. Presti got there by beating Pacé, also 3-1. Ironically, Gilmour and Presti just barely advanced to the semifinals. They had to win their final races in the round robin and count on others losing to advance.

Yesterday Presti said he enjoyed racing Pacé because of his aggressive nature. But it was Presti who turned up the aggression in the semifinal, taking the fight to Pacé and not backing down from his countryman.

"In the round robin we were happy to be here, happy to race,� said Presti. "But when we got to the semifinal we knew we had to pick it up and we did.�

Gilmour said he was surprised to beat Baird by such a lopsided score. "Ed is the quintessential smooth and consistent sailor. You have to be all that and more to beat him,� said Gilmour, who beat Baird in five of their six matches this week.

• Swedish Match Tour Standings (After 7 of 8 stages)

1. Peter Gilmour (AUS) 112 points
2. Ed Baird (USA) 102 points
3. Russell Coutts (NZL) 70 points
4. Jes Gram-Hansen (DEN) 45 points
5. Philippe Presti (FRA) 44 points
6. Staffan Lindberg (FIN) 38 points
7. James Spithill (AUS) 35 points
8. Bertrand Pacé (FRA) 34 points

• ACI H1 Match Race Cup Final

(3) Peter Gilmour (AUS) d. (4) Philippe Presti (FRA), 3-2

ACI H1 Match Race Cup Petit Final
(1) Bertrand Pacé (FRA) vs. (2) Ed Baird (USA), 2-0

• ACI H1 Match Race Cup Semifinals

(3) Peter Gilmour (AUS) d. (2) Ed Baird (USA), 3-1
(4) Philippe Presti (FRA) d. (1) Bertrand Pacé (FRA), 3-1

• ACI H1 Match Race Cup Final Standings • Prize Purse: $40,000

Skipper (Country) Team, Record, Prize Money

1. Peter Gilmour (AUS) Pizza-La Sailing Team, 18-11, $15,000
Crew: Rod Dawson, Mike Mottl, Kazuhiko Sofuku, Yasuhiro Yaji

2. Philippe Presti (FRA) le Défi, 17-12, $8,000
Crew: Thierry Fouchier, Fred Guilmin, Pascal Rambeau, Mathieu Renault

3. Bertrand Pacé (FRA) BMW Oracle Racing, 20-6, $6,000
Crew: Eric Doyle, Zach Hurst, Dirk de Ridder, Brad Webb

4. Ed Baird (USA) Team Alinghi, 15-11, $4,000
Crew: Jordi Calafat, Lorenzo Mazza, Dean Phipps, Piet Van Nieuwenhuyzen

5. Mathieu Richard (FRA), 11-9, $2,400
Crew: Greg Evrard, Olivier Herledant, Frederic Rivet, Yannick Simon

6. Staffan Lindberg (FIN), 11-9, $2,000
Crew: Nils Bjerkas, Johan Karlsson, Carl-Johan Uckelstam, Daniel Wallberg

7. Kelvin Harrap (NZL) Emirates Team New Zealand, 10-10, $1,600
Crew: Rod Davis, Andrew McLean, Richard Meacham, Rod Salthouse

8. Björn Hansen (SWE), 8-12, $1,000
Crew: Mathias Brendin, Fredrik Ekman, Anders Jonsson, Johan Tempelman

9. Flavio Favini (ITA) Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team, 6-14
Crew: Marco Constant, Flavio Grassi, Antar Vigna, Jon Ziskind

10. Dario Kliba (CRO), 5-15
Crew: Kosti? Hrvoje, Zvonko Jela?i?, Prlenda Nikola, Celi? Slaven

11. Ian Ainslie (RSA) Team Shosholoza, 4-16
Crew: Charles Nankin, David Rae, Mark Sadler, Ante Vanjak

http://www.seasailsurf.com/seasailsurf/actu/article.php3?id_article=3643
 

Peasants' Olympic Games in Radosic near Split, Croatia
 

Bulls fight during the Peasants' Olympic Games in Radosic near Split, Croatia May 28, 2005. During the year villagers train their bulls weighting from 800 to 1,200 kilograms (1764 to 2646 pounds) to participate on this event hoping to get the prestigious first prize. REUTERS/Matko Biljak