Cricket's future in doubt at Asiad

Guangzhou: With India's no show making cricket's debut in the Asian Games a tame affair, the sport's future in the event seems in doubt and desperate efforts were on to save it from being left out of the 2014 edition in Incheon, South Korea.

The Indian Cricket Board's refusal to send teams for the 16th Asian Games, where the sport would make its debut in the Twenty20 format, has now created doubts over whether it would be a part of the 2014 roster.

The doubts over cricket's axing have grown after 2014 hosts Incheon kept cricket out of the list of events they proposed on Thursday.

Sources said the Asian Cricket Council is making last-ditch efforts to retain the sport on the Asian Games schedule.

The BCCI had cited prior international commitments as the reason for not sending the team here for the Games starting on Saturday.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) had last year stated that a maximum of 35 sports -- 28 Olympic and seven others -- would be part of the Asian Games roster.

Incheon wants to include baseball, bowling, kabaddi, sepaktakraw, softball, squash and wushu apart from the 28 from the 2016 Olympics roster.

Cricket's last appearance at a multi-sport event was at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur.

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China's Asian Games opens

Fireworks, dancing and pageantry were all in evidence tonight as Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao officially opened the Asian Games in Guangzhou.

The colourful celebrations are taking place along the Pearl River in tribute to the southern Chinese region's seafaring heritage.

The event featured more than 6,000 performers in a ship-like stadium with a stage covered in water, that was specially built for the opening night on the tiny Haixinsha island, just off the mainland.

In keeping with the nautical theme, athletes arrived at the venue after a cruise down the river in 45 boats decorated with LED lights.

Performers set sail during the opening ceremony of the 16th Asian Games on Haixinsha Island along the Pearl River in Guangzhou city

Entertainers dressed in red and carrying drums circle a gold structure

Japanese athletes stand on a boat floating down the Pearl River

Women in wide hats carry red lanterns during the opening celebrations

The scale of the celebrations is clear to see here with performers waiting to greet the 'ship'

Dancers draped in green lights create a spooky, underwater feel

A firework display lights up the sky above the Pearl River

Be-frocked dancers surround a maypole structure during the extravaganza

Jet ski riders zip through the surf, caught in an other-worldly pink glow

Athletes from North Korea cheer on as the celebrations unfold

The Iranian team march as cheerleaders rattle tambourines

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Deepika and Siddharth Mallya are not hiding it anymore

Deepika Padukone and Siddharth Mallya appear to (quite literally) be going to town with their relationship!

Guess they don't want to be discreet anymore and are more than happy to pose for photogs when together. Miss Malini got her hands on these candid pics of B-Town's newest couple at a private function in Goa.

Instead of being coy and hiding their faces, the lovebirds preferred giving their best profiles to the person clicking!

PS: Notice Deepika's hand on Mallya Jr's thigh putting him at ease!

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Tintu Luka Indian Athlete

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Tintu Luka, Leader in womens 800 metre

Kenya's Winny Chebbet (C) crashes as New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin (L) and India's Tintu Luka compete during the 800m women final of the Track and Field competition of the XIXCommonwealth Games on October 11, 2010 in New Delhi. enya's Nancy Langat added the 800m gold medal to the 1,500m title she had already won when she crossed in 2:00.01 at the Commonwealth Games, New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin took silver and Canada's Diane Cumminswon the bronze.

800m final during theCommonwealth Games at theJawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi, India, Monday, Oct. 11, 2010.

DELHI, INDIA - OCTOBER 10: Tintu Luka of India (1432) crosses the line to win her Women's 800 Metres semi final at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium during day seven of the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Gameson October 10, 2010 in Delhi, India.

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Its a Jumbo Team India for Asian Games

NEW DELHI: All the Commonwealth Games medallists, except for woman discus thrower Seema Antil, were named in India's 69-strong athletics squad for the Asian Games starting in Guangzhou, China from November 12.

The Athletics Federation of India decided to send a big squad, the largest among 36 disciplines India will take part in the Asian Games, following the unprecedented success in the Commonwealth Games last month.

India had won 12 medals (two gold, three silver and seven bronze) in the Commonwealth Games, the best ever performance by the country in the history of CWG.

The squad also has shot putter Saurabh Vij who had tested positive for banned stimulant methylhexaneamine and whose case is pending before a National Anti-Doping panel.

National record holder Antil, who had won a bronze in the CWG, missed out on the Asian Games bus as a country can name only two athletes in an event.

Krishna Poonia and Harwant Kaur, who had won gold and silver respectively in a clean sweep in the women's discus throw event in the CWG, were in the China-bound squad.

"In the CWG, we were allowed to field three athletes in an event but in the Asian Games there is a restriction of two athletes in an event. So, Antil missed out," AFI secretary Ravinder Chaudhry said.

"Indian athletics team is ready to continue the CWG good show in the Asian Games. We are sending our best 69 athletes including all the medal winners of Commonwealth Games. We had a good season at the national athletics front this year and now the focus has turned towards the Asian Games," he said.

All the 69 athletes named for the Asian Games were in the CWG squad.

Besides Poonia, the only Indian woman athlete to win an individual gold in the Commonwealth Games, and Kaur, the women's 4X400m quartet of Sini Jose, AC Ashwini, Manjeet Kaur and Mandeep Kaur, who won gold in the CWG, are also in the Asian Games squad.

The China-bound squad has the CWG-bronze winning women's 4x100m relay team of Geetha Satti, Srabani Nanda, P K Priya and H M Jyothi. It also has CWG bronze-winning men's 4X100m relay quartet of Rahamatulla Molla, Krishnakumar Rane, Shammer Mon and Mohd Abdul Qureshi.

Other CWG medal winners in the Asian Games squad are Kavita Raut (womens' 10,000m race), Harminder Singh (men's 20km race walk), Renjith Maheswary (men's triple jump), MA Prajusha (women's long jump), Kashinath Naik (men's javelin throw), Vikas Gowda (men's discus throw).

Asian leader in women's 800m race Tintu Luka is also in the squad.

The Squad:

Men: Abdul Najeeb Qureshi (100m & 4X100m); Rahamatullamolla (4X100m); Suresh Sathiya (200m & 4X100m); Shameer Mon (4X100m); Ritesh Anand (4X100m); Krishna Kumar Rane (100m); B G Nagaraj (4X100m); Dharambir (200m); Bibin Mathew (400m & 4X400m); Shake Mortaja (400m & 4X400m); J Premanand (4X400m); V B Bineesh (4X400m); Jithin Paul (4X400m); Kunhi Mohammed (4X400m); Fransis Sagyaraj (800m); Sajeesh Joseph (800m); Sandeep Karan Singh (1500m); Chatholi Hamza (1500m); Sunil Kumar (5000m & 10,000m); Suresh Kumar (10,000m); Elam Singh (3000m Steeple Chase); T Siddhant (110m Hurdle); Joseph Abraham (400m Hurdles); Ankit Sharma (Long Jump); Maha Singh (Long Jump); Renjith Maheswary (Triple Jump); Amarjeet Singh (Triple Jump); Hari Shankar Roy (High Jump); Nikhil Chitrasu (High Jump); Om Prakash (Shot Put); Saurabh Vij (Shot Put); Vikash Gowda (Discus Throw); Kashinath Naik (Javelin Throw); Rajinder Singh (Javelin Throw); Bhartinder Singh (Decathlon); P J Vinod (Decathlon); Harminder Singh (20km Walk); Baljinder Singh (20km Walk); Ram Singh Yadav (Marathon).

Women: H M Jyothi (100m & 4X100m); S Geetha (200m & 4X100m relay); Srabani Nanda (4X100m); P K Priya (4X100m); Arjina Khatun (4X100m); Rebbca Jose (4X100m); T Mary Thomas (200m); Manjit Kaur (400m & 4X400m); Mandeep Kaur (400m & 4X400m); Ashwini A C (400m Hurdles & 4X400m); Sini Jose (4X400m); Chitra K Soman (4X400m); Juana Murmu (400m Hurdles & 4X400m); Tintu Luka (800m); Sinimol Paulose (800m); Jhuma Khatun (1500m); O P Jaisha (1500m & 3000m Steeplechase); Kaavita Raut (5000m & 10,000m); Preeja Sreedharan (5000m & 10,000m); Sudha Singh (3000m Steeplechase) G Gayathry (100m Hurdle); M A Prajusha (Long Jump & Triple Jump); Mayookha Johny (Long Jump & Triple Jump); Sahana Kumari (High Jump); Krishna Poonia (Discus Throw); Harwant Kaur (Discus Throw); S Saraswathi (Javelin Throw); Hardeep Kaur (Hammer Throw); G G Promilla (Heptathlon); Sushmita Singha Roy (Heptathlon).

Read more: Poonia, Gowda, Prajusha in Asian Games athletics squad - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/events-tournaments/2010-asian-games/Poonia-Gowda-Prajusha-in-Asian-Games-athletics-squad/articleshow/6896433.cms#ixzz14sl4flG3

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China expects to top Asian Games medals tally

Senior Chinese sports officials don’t envisage much change to the status quo at the Asian Games amid initial moves to overhaul the state-run sports system that has propelled the country to the top.

Xiao Tian, vice president of the Chinese Olympic Committee, declined to give a specific medals goal for Guangzhou 2010 but said the delegation of nearly 1,000 athletes is targeting more medals than it won at Doha four years ago.

China was a long way clear in 2006, collecting 316 medals, including 166 gold. South Korea placed second with 58 gold.

That continued a run of table-topping finishes for Chinese teams that began at the 9th Asian Games at New Delhi in 1982. China only rejoined the continental games in 1974 at Tehran, where it finished third.

Xiao said changes are needed to the country’s Soviet-style sports system that developed rapidly in the 1980s, in which young children selected for their athletic potential and specific physical traits are funnelled into sports schools. The emphasis has been training those young athletes for years in the program with the singular goal of “winning glory for the country.”

China has traditionally focused on sports that awarded multiple medals and which authorities thought their athletes could quickly dominate - such as diving and gymnastics.

Meanwhile, sports such as basketball, volleyball and football have lagged behind foreign competition which has benefited from quicker development because of commercialization, Xiao said.

“Before, we had an all—state system that worked very well, but now professional sports and market economy are linked. These two systems have different operational mechanisms,” he said.”

“The development of the three ‘big ball’ sports (basketball, volleyball, football) as well as golf, tennis and sailing are areas where we need to reform and explore,” he told reporters.

Yao Ming’s All-Star status in the NBA has focussed international attention on Chinese basketball, while players such as Li Na have drawn attention to China’s potential in women’s tennis.

With growing possibilities for lucrative sponsorship and endorsement contracts, some high-profile Chinese athletes have started employing private or international coaches and managers rather than rely on the Chinese system.

And there’s scope for that to expand to other Olympic and non-Olympic sports as non-government funding flows in.

In the meantime, there’s few who doubt China’s ability to dominate the competition in Guangzhou. Its Asian Games delegation is young, with an average age of 24, but will be led by 34 Olympic champions from sports such as gymnastics, diving and table tennis.

“Ever since the Beijing Olympics we have added a lot of new athletes to the team,” Xiao said. “A lot of old athletes are going out and a lot of new blood coming in. It’s a test to the young athletes.”

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