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Guidomedia
AllFlying |
News archive, December
2005-January 2006 Click
to return to our archives Anderson
for NZ (Jan 31)
 From
Netball Australia: Sydney TAB Swifts vice captain and Australian international
netballer Megan Anderson has today announced that she has withdrawn from the 2006
TAB Swifts squad and will play in the upcoming National Bank Cup competition in
New Zealand for the Fujifilm Force. Anderson, a long-time member of the Sydney
TAB Swifts and Australian Open squad, received confirmation of her place in the
2006 Force squad this morning after the team held their final selection trials
on Saturday in North Harbour, New Zealand.
The National Bank Cup season gets
underway on April 28 this year, with Anderson planning a move to North Harbour
at the end of March. The Force, who boast current SilverFerns' Temepara George
and Leana de Bruin, first approached the talented Swifts' shooter in 2004, but
it was not until October last year that a switch to the New Zealand domestic league
became a realistic possibility for Anderson.
“Playing in New Zealand
is something I have always wanted to experience and the timing of the approach
at the end of last season was ideal,” commented Anderson, who married her
long-time partner, Greg on New Year's Eve last year.
Pic: Netball
Association Aus
hope steels for Turin (Jan 30)
 Michelle
Steele will go from beach babe to winter Olympian when she makes history next
month as Australia's first Olympic competitor in the skeleton event at the 2006
Winter Olympics at Turin, Italy.
Michelle, 19, is a former beach sprinting
champion from Bundaberg who has abandoned athletics to train for an event which
sees her guide a sled down an icy track at speeds of more than 120km/hr.
Less
than two years ago, Michelle was combining an occupational therapy degree at the
University of Queensland with the surf life saving circuit. After the collapse
of the national series, she looked for a new sporting challenge and was fast-tracked
into the Australian Winter Olympic Institute ice-sliding program.
Skeleton
is a relatively unknown event but it is similar to luge. However, contestants
travel on their stomachs, head first. It is a terrifying ride down an icy track.
Michelle says "It mightn't look like it but you're steering the whole way
and if you miss a steer it's possible you'll crash," says Michelle. "You've
got to be a bit crazy."
Michelle is considered a medal hope after achieving
an admirable fourth in the World Cup Season and a string of top-ten finishes.
Her coaches believe she could use her phenomenal speed over 30m to turn herself
into a world champion at the sport.
The women's skeleton event premiered at
the last Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
By Jessica Craven
Source:
Monash University 
Happy
Gilmore dominates Roxy Pro (Jan 30)
From Surfing Australia: Australia's
teenage surfing sensation, two-time ISA World amateur champion Stephanie Gilmore,
couldn't have asked for a better birthday present, the Gold Coaster celebrating
her 18th today with a resounding win over fellow world title holder, ASP Pro Junior
Champion Jessi Miley-Dyer (Bronte, NSW) in the blue ribbon WQS division of the
Roxy Womens Surf Festival held at Woolamai Beach, Phillip Island.
In clean
and highly contestable 1-1.5m waves, Gilmore easily outpointed Miley-Dyer 17.67
points to 9.00 in the 30 minute final, showing the free-flowing class and maturity
that first rocketed her to international surf stardom one year ago when she claimed
the Roxy Pro World Championship Tour (WCT) event on the Gold Coast as a wildcard.
The
5-star triumph is Gilmore's first WQS win from just two starts and earns her valuable
ratings points in her bid to officially qualify for the 2007 ASP Womens World
Tour. Along with the appearance this week by reigning ASP Womens no. 1, Chelsea
Georgeson, the performance of Australia's young stars further showcases the current
supremacy of Australian womens surfing.
“I'm just blown away!” said
Gilmore. “After working so hard all week and with so many girls from around
the world in the comp, to come out on top is just amazing! From the start I wasn't
expecting a win, that's for sure. I've been watching Chelsea and Jessi and all
the other girls ripping and was thinking maybe I'd make the quarters, or the semis,
then far out … everything just fell into place. It's just blown me away.
I couldn't ask for a better birthday present that's for sure!”
Surfing
Australia report Mauresmo
wins -- Henin-Hardenne steals limelight (Jan 28)
In what can only
be called an anti-climatic final, Amelie Mauresmo has won the 2006 Kia Australian
Open by default. Her opponent, Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne was forced out of
the match with a stomach ailment and heat exhaustion.
Leading 6-1, 2-0 and
15-love, Henin-Hardenne could not continue, and called the match over after 53
minutes.
The roof was closed for the final, and the muggy conditions did not
help neither player, nor the fans, who had come out to see a competitive end to
such a tough women's draw, which included eight Former World Number Ones and 12
Grand Slam winners.
Mauresmo conquered Henin-Hardenne in the first set, only
letting the 2004 Champion to win five points in the opening four games. It took
until the fifth game for Henin-Hardenne to get her act together, and it was her
trademark stroke - a backhand down-the-line that set her alight.
But it was
to no avail as the Frenchwoman took out the first set 6-1 in 33 minutes.
The
second set seemed to follow the first, with Mauresmo applying pressure on the
Belgian serve, and breaking it in the opening game of the second set.
Henin-Hardenne
called for the trainer at Deuce, in the second game of the second set, complaining
of a stomach ailment and heat exhaustion. She attempted to continue, but only
lasted one point, and ended the match only minutes later.
The 26-year-old
Frenchwoman did not know how to react after winning her first Grand Slam in such
dramatic fashion, but after only minutes, was consoling her opponent about what
had just occurred. She was lost for words, and emotions, on how to react to the
situation
“It's disappointing for everybody for it to end this way,”
Mauresmo said after the match, “I still don't know what to say.”
“I
(hope) that you will get better and recover quickly”.
Touted as the greatest
player never to win a Grand Slam after Kim Clijsters' victory at the US Open last
September, the 26-year-old Frenchwoman is now relieved to have earnt her first
Grand Slam victory, and is able to enjoy a 1937 wine that she has put away in
a wine cellar in Geneva, to enjoy once she won her first Grand Slam.
This has
been the third walkover that Mauresmo has gone through on her way to winning the
title, after Kim Clijsters rolled her ankle in their semi-final clash on Thursday,
and Michaella Krajicek in the fourth round defaulted of heat exhaustion.
Mauresmo
has won the tour-ending WTATour Championships in Los Angeles, which is considered
the unofficial fifth Grand Slam on the tour, but the 1999 Australian Open runner-up
has now got a Grand Slam to her name.
By Rick D'Andrea
Aus
Open Netball
vs Basketball in Sydney (Jan 27)
Sydney Swift netballers are taking
on the Sydney Uni Flames Women's National Basketball League team in a never-before-seen
battle of the codes at 5:45pm in the Sydney SuperDome tonight.
The school holiday
promotion match precedes the men's basketball West Sydney Razorbacks versus Sydney
Kings main event starting at 7:45pm.
The first half of the ladies match will
be netball, followed by basketball in the second half.
“The girls and
I are really excited about the match,” said Swifts coach Julie Fitzgerald.
“A lot of our girls have played basketball at a pretty high level, so
we are quietly confident of coming out on top.”
International and Swifts
vice captain, Megan Anderson, is looking forward to the contest and says she can't
wait to match up against Opals captain, Trish Fallon.
“I follow the Flames
throughout the year and know a lot of the girls, so I think the match should be
fun,” she said.
“But I think it's going to be interesting to see
two of the most popular women's sports up against each other.”
By Katrina
Putker 'Count
me in' this celebration (Jan 27)
On February 1, thousands of Americans
in all 50 states will celebrate the twentieth annual National Girls and Women
in Sports Day (NGWSD) and its 2006 theme “count me in!”
The day is
meant to honor female athletic achievement and recognise the importance of sports
and fitness participation for all girls and women.
It was chartered by the
US Congress in 1986 and began in 1987 as a day to remember Olympic volleyball
player Flo Hyman her work to assure equality for women's sports.
Hyman died
of Marfan's Syndrome in 1986 while competing in a volleyball tournament in Japan.
Since
then, NGWSD has become day to remember the past and recognise current sports achievements
and the continuing struggle for equality and access for female athletes.
The
NGWSD is run by the National Girls and Women in Sport Coalition that combines
the experience and resources of seven premiere girls and women serving organisations
in the US.
Collectively, these organizations have a membership reach of more
than 5.5 million female Americans.
By
Katrina Putker Mauresmo
books a finals seat (Jan 27)
 From
the Aust Open web: France's Amelie Mauresmo will finally get the chance to shed
her tag as the best female player yet to win a major tournament after qualifying
for her first Grand Slam final in seven years.
Mauresmo, the No.3 seed, will
take on No.8 seed Justine Henin-Hardenne in the women's singles final at Australian
Open 2006 after taking advantage of an unfortunate injury to Belgium's Kim Clijsters
during their epic semi-final on Rod Laver Arena.
Mauresmo, whose only previous
appearance in a Grand Slam final came here in 1999 when she lost to Martina Hingis,
had just broken Clijsters to lead 3-2 in the deciding set when the No.2 seed was
forced to retire with an ankle injury.
Earlier Henin-Hardenne continued her
magnificent recent record in Australia by winning her 22nd consecutive match 'Down
Under' to book her place in the final by beating Russian No.4 seed Maria Sharapova
4-6 6-1 6-4 in two hours and 26 minutes of high quality tennis.
It was the
second successive year Sharapova, the 2004 Wimbledon champion, had blown a one-set
lead in the semi-finals at the Australian Open after last year squandering three
match points in the third set in losing to eventual champion Serena Williams.
Story
link
Clijsters withdraws (Jan 26)
From the
Aust Open web: Women's No.3 seed Amelie Mauresmo has been handed a passage into
the final of Australian Open 2006 after Kim Clijsters withdrew in the third set
of their semi-final clash on Day Eleven.
Mauresmo was up a break in the third
set after the pair had split the opening two sets 5-7 6-2 when Clijsters was forced
to withdraw after rolling her right ankle when facing a break-point against the
Frenchwoman.
It was a disappointing end for Clijsters, while Mauresmo reached
her first Grand Slam final in seven years, where she will play No.8 seed Justine
Henin-Hardenne on Rod Laver Arena on Saturday.
Story
link
Plus…
Samantha Stosur's
dream fortnight at Melbourne Park has continued with Australia's top female player
through to the mixed doubles semi-finals as well as the women's doubles final.
Stosur, who reached the fourth round in singles at Australian Open 2006 before
bowing out to former world No.1 Martina Hingis in a career-best performance in
singles at a Grand Slam, can now go one better than last year when she claimed
the mixed doubles trophy with fellow Australian Scott Draper.
After reaching
the women's final late in the evening session on Day 10 with American partner
Lisa Raymond - with whom she won last year's US Open - Stosur is now in the mixed
doubles semis with new partner, Australian Paul Hanley.
Sweden
takes world golf (Jan 25)
 Despite
the Scots starring in the final round of the second women's World Cup Golf, the
Swedes came away as very deserving winners of the 2006 title.
Sunday wasn't
the Swedes best effort in comparison with their stellar performance the previous
day in Saturday's foursomes. However, it was good enough to overcome a serious
challenge by the Korean team which shared the first round with the Swedes. It
was also good enough to stay out of reach of the most serious contenders, Scotland,
whose Catriona Matthews posted a 69 which drove her to the top of the individual
leader board.
World number one Annika Sorenstam played an important role in
the Swedes win. Despite admitting to being 'rusty' in the early rounds of Friday's
fourballs, Sorenstam seemed to be able to save the day with a vital shot or putt
every time Sweden was on the verge of losing the lead. She shot a spectacular
eagle from eight feet at the long No.14 when the title seemed to be slipping away
and this seemed to help team mate Liselotte Niewmann shrug off three bogeys to
increase Sweden's edge.
"It is a great way to start the year," said
Sorenstam. "This was my first visit to South Africa, and I have loved every
minute."
Niewmann, a former US and British Open Champion told reporters
"It's wonderful when you have the world number one as your partner but I
thought I played really well over the first two days, though, and then Annika
came into her own today."
Wales finished third after Sweden and Scotland
with USA and Korea bringing up fourth and fifth place respectively.
By
Jessica Craven
LGPA Green
& gold to star at Roxy Pro (Jan 24)
Australia is set to cement
its number one position in women’s surfing at the fifth Roxy Pro Classic
at Phillip Island this week.
Three Australian world champions are part of
an international line up which will ensure some phenomenal competition. World
No.1 Chelsea Georgeson, 22, from the Gold Coast, leads the Australian hunt for
the title. Georgeson won the Roxy Classic in 2003 and 2004 and recently won the
ASP women’s world title in Hawaii.
Quiksilver ISA world amateur champion
Stephanie Gilmore and ASP world junior champion Jessi Miley-Dyer are also genuine
contenders for the title. Gilmore surprised many when she took out the professionally
rated Roxy Pro last year, and she also holds U/18 girls Quiksilver ISA World Junior
Surfing Championship title. Milly-Dyer is the final member of this exciting trio,
having won the U/21 World Pro Junior Championships at Narrabeen, Sydney just a
fortnight ago.
This is the first time Australia has had such talent at this
elite level, and the competition looks to be just the beginning of Australia’s
exciting future in women’s surfing. "It's amazing for Australia to see
three girls at the top. We are like the young crew coming up and we all won world
titles last year. It's inspiring for younger girls from Australia too, they'll
all be psyched about seeing what is possible," said Georgeson.
Phillip
Island is renowned for its exceptional breaks. Contestants must be prepared to
surf nearly 20 different breaks, depending on the conditions, and be ready for
a combination of beach, reef and pointbreaks.
World No. 3 and defending event
champion Melanie Redman- Carr said "I feel comfortable in those types of
powerful waves. It's unusual to see beachbreaks handle big swell so well. It’s
unlike anywhere in the world.”
The Roxy Pro Classic runs from the 24-
29 January.
By Jessica Craven Henin-Hardenne
stakes her claim (Jan 24)
From the Australian Open: Tiny Belgian
Justine Henin-Hardenne looms ominously as the woman to beat at Australia Open
2006 after fighting back from a set down to conquer world No.1 Lindsay Davenport
in their quarter-final stoush on Rod Laver Arena. The uncompromising power-hitter
will play Russian glam Maria Sharapova, who booked her semi-final date earlier
against countrywoman Nadia Petrova.
Aust
Open story
Plus
Australian junior
tennis player Bridget Healy got a taste of the pressure that comes with playing
in front of a home crowd at your national championships on Day Eight at Australian
Open 2006.
Aust
Open story Sorenstam
rules out bid for men’s Open (Jan 24)
 World
number 1 Annika Sorenstam yesterday ruled out attempting to qualify for the 2006
men’s British golf open despite women being allowed to pre-qualify for the
first time this year.
She will not be taking advantage of a rule change by
the Royal and Ancient, allowing women to qualify for the world’s oldest golf
tournament. Sorenstam is in South Africa competing at the Women’s World Cup
of Golf. She told reporters "I had my chance to play the men, not at the
British Open but at the Colonial a couple of years back, so I've tried it.
"I know what it's like and I enjoyed it, but I don't want to go back."
Sorenstam was unsuccessful in her bid at the 2003 Colonial, carding 71 and 75.
By Jessica Craven (Pic: Oakley.com) Stosur
bows out to the Swiss Miss (Jan 23)
The Australian Open dream run
of Australian Samantha Stosur has come to an end at the hands of the 1997 to 1999
women's singles winner, Martina Hingis 6-1, 7-6 in 92 minutes.
The Swiss Miss
dominated the Australian from the get-go, breaking Stosur's serve in the fourth
game of the first set, and rushed quickly through to take the set 6-1 in only
23 minutes.
Hingis was getting 82 percent of first serves in, compared to Stosur's
63, not allowing the 21-year-old Aussie to get into any returning rhythm. Not
only did Stosur have to contend with the Hingis serve, but also her ability not
to make mistakes and give away free points, with only six unforced errors by the
former champion made in the first set compared to Stosur's 15.
The second set
proved to be more entertaining for the Centre Court crowd, with Stosur putting
more of a spirited performance that in the first. After holding their opening
serve, both Hingis and Stosur went on to break each other's serve for four consecutive
games. It took the 25-year-old Hingis until the seventh game to hold her serve.
The
Australian put pressure on the Former World Number One and made Hingis serve out
for the match and a quarter-final appearance against Belgian Kim Clijsters, but
was unable to do so. Stosur rallied, and showed the same determination that she
displayed in the second round against Ana Ivanovic when she won six straight games,
but this time, the result was different with Hingis prevailing 10-8 in the second
set tie-breaker in 69 minutes.
Speaking to Channel Seven immediately after
the match, Hingis admitted that the Australian could one day be at the top of
the women's game.
“I think she has a great future ahead of her,”
Hingis said, “She's still young…a great fighter…and this amazing
kick serve, and I tried to be prepared for it.”
“I knew that I couldn't
give (Samantha) any momentum.”
By Rick D'Andrea Slutskaya
takes record 7th skate world title (Jan 23)
Russia’s Irina
Slutskaya, 26, has made figure skating history by winning her seventh title at
the 2006 European Championships, breaking the record she held with Katarina Witt
and Sonja Henie.
Slutskaya won her first European Championship ten years ago
as a sixteen-year-old. The reigning world champion secured her place in the history
books with a flamenco themed routine with an extremely difficult triple Lutz-double
loop combination, followed by a triple Salchow-double loop-double toe loop and
a flying camel spin with change of edge and change of position that was graded
a level four.
She made only one mistake during the routine, earning 126.81
points for her performance and winning the event with 193.24 points. She won the
free skate easily, finishing more than 15 points in front of fellow Russian Yelena
Sokolova.
By Jessica Craven
International
Skating Union story Mauresmo
hits her way to quarter-finals (Jan 23)
From the Australian Open
website: Women's number three seed Amelie Mauresmo is through to the final eight
at Australian Open 2006 with an authoritative 6-1 6-1 win over Czech teenager
Nicole Vaidisova on Rod Laver Arena on day eight.
The Frenchwoman was in devastating
form, recording her second win in as many matches against Vaidisova in just 52
minutes, and continuing her imposing record of just dropping one set so far for
the tournament.
Aus
Open story Stosur
to face Hingis (Jan 22)
 From
the Australian Open web: Samantha Stosur is through to her first Grand Slam round
of 16, is playing in her home tournament as the lone Australian - male or female
- left in the draw and is the subject of intense media scrutiny, but she feels
no pressure.
Oh, and her next opponent is winner of five Grand Slam titles,
Martina Hingis.
It might seem like a lot to have on your plate, but the 21-year-old
Queenslander takes a different view.
"I don't think there's really any
pressure on me now, it's just exciting," she says.
"Obviously I've
never been to this stage in a Grand Slam before and to be doing it here, it's
just a great feeling. So every time I get another opportunity to go out on centre
court, I'm just going to enjoy it as much as I can and really just go for it and
give it my best shot.
"I really don't feel any pressure to win out there.
I've just got to enjoy it."
Aus Open link
Sam
the survivor (Jan 21)
From the Australian Open web: Samantha Stosur's
Australian Open 2006 dream is alive and well, Martina Hingis's comeback continues
to gain momentum and most of the seeds fared well on a scorching Day Six at Melbourne
Park.
Stosur faced up to Sybille Bammer on Rod Laver Arena in the Twilight
Session and managed to overcome a shaky serving performance to see off the Austrian
7-5 4-6 6-3.
The opening set saw an amazing nine breaks of serve from the
two players, with Stosur able to hold hers twice to Bammer's once to take out
the set.
"One of the good things was that I was able to really try and
stay as patient as I could out there, I mean, she really didn't give me anything,"
Stosur said.
"I really had to work hard for every single point. She just
didn't really give an inch, and I wasn't getting any free points off my serve
like I usually do. She just made everything really tough for me."
Stosur's
progression has caused a welcome dilemma for Australian tennis followers as she
is slated to take on firm crowd favourite and three-time champion Hingis in the
fourth-round.
Hingis faced a determined challenged from unseeded Czech Iveta
Benesova, who had dispatched French No.5 seed Mary Pierce in the second-round,
and was down 1-3 early in the match.
But the former world No.1 remained composed
- while the hot conditions took their toll on Benesova - to win nine of the next
11 games and wrap up the match 6-4 6-1.
"Towards the end of the second
set you could feel the heat, but thank God she felt it more than I did,"
Hingis said.
The Swiss Miss is yet to drop a set and has only conceded ten
games in three rounds so far, but she denies she is one of the hot favourites
for this year's title…
Aus Open link
Serena’s luck runs out (Jan 20)
 From
the Australian Open web: Defending champion Serena Williams was sent packing,
world number one Lindsay Davenport advanced and the Russian dominance continued
on Day Five of Australian Open 2006 with Maria Sharapova, Nadia Petrova, Elena
Vesnina and Svetlana Kuznetsova all winning through to the fourth-round.
It
wasn't just the tennis that was hot on a sizzling Friday in Melbourne. The temperature
reached 37 degrees Celsius late in the afternoon, resulting in the implementation
of the tournament's Extreme Heat Policy (EHP).
Aus Open link
Justine
no longer hamstrung (Jan 20)
From the Australian Open web: Twelve
months ago a knee injury ended Justine Henin-Hardenne's campaign for a second
successive Australian Open title, before it even began, and the Belgian has admitted
she almost had to forgo the trip for the second year in a row.
The number
8 seed at Australian Open 2006 confirmed she only made a last-minute decision
to travel to Australia as she was still struggling with a right hamstring strain
that had forced her out of the game since October.
"Still a few weeks
ago I didn't know if I was going to be able to come here in Australia with my
hamstring problem. Now it's feeling great," Henin-Hardenne said after recording
a 6-4 6-1 win over Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano to advance to the fourth round.
Aus Open link
Stosur
impresses against Ivanovic (Jan 19)
 Australia's
best and last hope of capturing the 2006 Kia Australian Open title still looked
good after beating rising teenage sensation Ana Ivanovic 6-3, 7-5 in 86 minutes.
Samantha Stosur captured the first set in only 37 minutes from the Serbian 6-3,
and looked impressive. But the 18-year-old teen from Belgrade came back in the
second set, and broke the Australian in both the fourth and sixth games to take
a commanding 5-1 lead.
Ivanovic was broken back immediately to force the score
to 5-2, but the Australian did not give up, and won the next five games, which
included breaking the Ivanovic serve in both the ninth and 11th games to win the
second set 7-5 in 49 minutes.
“I just love playing here. I love playing
in Australia,” Stosur said after her post-match interview, “I really
like it when there's a lot of people around and they're all cheering for me. It
really just picks me up. I'd certainly rather be playing in front of them than
not.”
“(Down) 5 1 I just thought, just swing at a couple of balls
and get a little bit of tension out that I had. Maybe go for a couple winners
and see what happens.”
The Australian will now meet Austrian Sybille
Bammer in the next round of the tournament, after the Austrian defeated Zi Yan
of China, 6-3, 6-4.
By
Rick D'Andrea
WTA
Stosur bio
Krajicek
too good for Mirza (Jan 19)
Dutch tennis player Michaella Krajicek
has advanced through to the third round of the Kia Australian Open after she defeated
rising Indian tennis star Sania Mirza 6-3, 7-5.
In hot and humid conditions
for both players and spectators, Krajicek was able to break the Indian's serve
and maintain control of the points in the first set, which the Dutchwoman eventually
took 6-3... (See our tennis page) Mauresmo
sees off Loit (Jan 19)
 From
the Australian Open: French No.3 seed Amelie Mauresmo has overcome countrywoman
Emilie Loit in straight sets to book her spot in the third-round at Australian
Open 2006.
The opening set was closely contested and went down to the wire
but Mauresmo got on top in the tie-break, eventually triumphing 7-6 (7/1) 6-2.
In a match where Mauresmo was able to clinch the crucial points, the most telling
statistic was the unforced errors, as Loit (38) made too may mistakes compared
to Mauresmo (24).
Significantly, there wasn't a great disparity with the total
number of points won (Mauresmo's 86 to Loit's 71).
In the second set, the
higher-ranked Mauresmo had several break-point chances, but still only converted
two of nine as she cruised to victory. Mauresmo now meets emerging Dutchwoman
Michaella Krajicek in the round of 32.
Plus…
As relative unknowns in the tennis world 12 months ago, Sania Mirza and Michaella
Krajicek both made big strides forward in 2005, and their clash in the second-round
on Day Four of Australian Open 2006 provided an interesting contrast in the way
players are introduced to the game.
The younger sister of 1996 Wimbledon men's
singles champion Richard, 17-year-old Krajicek first picked up a racquet at the
age of three under the guidance of father Petr - who is her coach - and mother
Paulina.
And with Richard already 21 years of age and on the professional
circuit by that stage, it is easy to see where the world No.43 - who began 2005
ranked 429th - drew a lot of her inspiration and aspirations for a similar career
as she grew up.
But Mirza's is a different story. The 19-year-old who hails
from Mumbai having taken up the game as a six-year-old with encouragement from
her father Imran, who is a builder, and mother Naseema, who works at a printing
company.
Mirza created Indian tennis history last year when, as a wildcard,
she reached the third-round at Melbourne Park. Nirupama Vidyanathan was the only
Indian woman before her to have even competed at a Grand Slam tournament.
She went on to become the first Indian women to win a singles title, at Hyderabad,
lost in the final in Forest Hills and climbed into the world's top 50, earning
herself the No.32 seeding at Australian Open 2006 in the process.
Australian
Open Davenport
wins through to Third Round (Jan 18)
World number one and number
one Seed Lindsay Davenport has won through to the trhird round of the Australian
Open by defeating Croatian Karolina Sprem 7-6, 6-3 in 85 minutes.
The American
was made to work hard for the win, and had to fight back after being broken in
only the third game of the first set. Davenport trailed 3-1 in the tie-breaker,
but was able to win six of the next seven points to take the first set.
“I
knew she definitely had the ability to play really well and be dangerous, and
that was the best that she's played against me,” Davenport said to the WTATour
Website, “I felt like I was hitting the ball well, just not quite hitting
my spots. So a really tough match to pull out. But I was able to play well when
I needed to and get through a tough opponent early on.”
The 2000 Australian
Open champion will meet Russian Number 25 Seed Maria Kirilenko on Friday, after
she defeated fellow Russian Galina Voskoboeva 7-6, 6-4.
By Rick D’Andrea Sharapova
eases through (Jan 18)
Maria Sharapova has won through to the next
round of the Kia Australian Open by overpowering American qualifier Ashley Harkleroad
6-1, 7-5 in 74 minutes...(See our tennis
page) No
struggle this time for Serena (Jan 18)
It was a different Serena
Williams that came out to play against Camille Pin of France compared to Monday
night, when the American struggled to overcome Chinese Na Li....(See
our tennis page) Henin-Hardenne
does it easy (Jan 18)
Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne easily overcame
Czech Hana Sromova 7-6, 6-1 in sweltering conditions on Rod Laver Arena...(See
our tennis page) Australian
Open First Round Wrap (Jan 17)
Starting back up at any profession
after the Christmas/New Year break can be a tough ask for many people – but
imagine if your first week back consisted of attempting to win one of the four
major tennis titles on offer.
A daunting task, but that is what the cream
of men’s and women’s tennis have to face, as they attempt to get their
season off to a good start.
The campaign is already over for high-profile
players such as Former World Number One Venus Williams, Russian superstars Elena
Dementieva and Vera Zvonareva and Australian Jelena Dokic...(See
our tennis page) See
our tennis page for more Australian
Open coverage from Rick D'Andrea. SA
Govt steps in for basketball (Jan 18)
 The
South Australian Government has appointed an administrator to straighten out the
dire circumstances of that state's basketball league, BASA, which is heavily in
debt and showing no sign of recovering.
One of the more dubious decisions
appears to be that of naming the comparatively well-known Lightning women's team
“Fellas” (?!) after sponsor Fellas Gifts. We can only guess at the bizarre
thought processes behind that one.
BASA has struggled to pay off bills and
an audit suggested it would suffer a $1.2 million operating loss in 2005-2006.
The BASA website says: Basketball SA and the SA Government have jointly agreed
to engage Mr Bruce Carter of Ferrier Hodgson as Interim Controller of Basketball
SA and related associations, whilst Mr Peter Macks of PPB undertakes a detailed
assessment of the financial and operational performance of the state's peak basketball
body.
The result of these appointments will provide control over the organisation
whilst a raft of financial and operational restructuring strategies designed to
improve the performance of Basketball SA are considered. Mr Carter and Mr Macks,
together with the assistance of new CEO, Mr Mike Daws, will oversee the review
and implementation of the above strategies.
BASA
Seeds
hang in at Open (Jan 18)
From the Australian Open: Day Two has been
a good one for the seeds and a returning favourite in the women's draw at Australian
Open 2006, with Kim Clijsters, Amelie Mauresmo, Mary Pierce, Patty Schnyder, Anastasia
Myskina and Martina Hingis all advancing to the second-round.
Hingis -- a three-time
Australian Open winner -- received a warm reception from the crowd as she walked
onto a Grand Slam court for the first time since she announced her retirement
from the game in 2002.
And she didn't disappoint the legion of adoring fans
that had filed into Rod Laver Arena to watch her comeback match, putting on a
clinical display to oust number 30 seed Vera Zvonareva 6-1 6-2 in just over an
hour.
"This so far was the best match I've played since I came back,"
Hingis said.
French veteran Pierce continued her sparkling form resurgence
of the past 12 months with an impressive straight-sets win over local Nicole Pratt.
Plus…
Newspaper
reports say the latter joked to Pierce that she would bet on the Frenchwoman taking
out the tournament.
Meanwhile there is some debate over the form of Belgian
star Kim Clijsters. The Australian Open website says she is in good form, showing
no sign of injury, though this is at odds with a report in The Australian
newspaper, where she is quoted discussing how her hip injury is hobbling her usual
game.
Australian Open Open
disappoints high-profile players (Jan 17)
 It
seems the Herald Tribune may have spoken too soon (see yesterday’s
tennis story). Two of the top attractions in the women’s competition at the
Australian Open – Venus Williams and Jelena Dokic – have already crashed
out.
According to the Open website: Playing her first-ever Grand Slam match,
18-year-old Bulgarian Tszvetana Pironkova has caused the first boilover of Australian
Open 2006, with a brilliant 6-2 0-6 9-7 win over No. 10 seed American Venus Williams.
The world No.94 took 148 minutes to send five-time Grand Slam winner Williams
to the earliest exit of her seven appearances at Melbourne Park.
Williams
made an amazing 65 unforced errors, but fought her way back midway through the
deciding set when Pironkova was serving for the match. Williams had all the momentum
at that stage, but was clearly also fatigued after her preparation for the championship,
which could best be described as limited. Late in the final set, she was finally
overpowered by the Bulgarian's heavy groundstrokes and surprised by her nerves
of steel.
Meanwhile Dokic got a warm reception for her return to playing under
an Australian flag. She faced Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano in a contest witnessed
by a packed 6000-seat stadium, but was defeated after two hours of play. Dokic
expressed said, “I would have to say that was one of the most disappointing
losses in my career.”
Plus...
More from the Australian Open website: Unfortunately for Australians Casey Dellacqua,
Sophie Ferguson and Lauren Breadmore, their stay was briefer than they would have
preferred.
Each was provided with an example of how hard they'll have to work
in order to improve their respective games.
By any reckoning, the challenges
presented to the Australian trio seemed enormous - Dellacqua, the world No.180
took on No.1 seed and three-time Grand Slam winner Lindsay Davenport, Ferguson
was pitted against No.6 seed Nadia Petrova and Breadmore faced 2004 US Open winner
Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Australian
Open 
Oz
surfers head Pro line-up (Jan 17)
From Surfing Australia: Australia’s
supremacy of women’s world surfing will be unveiled at next week’s Roxy
Pro Women’s Surf Festival at Phillip Island in Victoria (Jan 24-29) with
an historic three Australian world champions included in the elite international
line-up. World no.1 Chelsea Georgeson (Gold Coast -- pictured above), Quiksilver
ISA world amateur champion Stephanie Gilmore (Kingscliff) and ASP world junior
champion Jessi Miley-Dyer (Bronte) will compete against each other for the first
time as reigning Queens of the surf.
Georgeson, 22, is a two-time winner of
the Festival (2003 & 2004) and fulfilled a childhood dream by winning the
ASP women’s world title in Hawaii last month when she narrowly defeated close
friend, Sofia Mulanovich (Peru).
Eighteen year-old Gilmore stunned the surfing
world by winning the professionally-rated Roxy Pro at Snapper Rocks last year
and is the current holder of the U/18 girls Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing
Championship crown.
While 20 year-old Miley-Dyer is still tasting success
after claiming victory in the U/21 World Pro Junior Championships at Narrabeen,
Sydney just a fortnight ago.
It’s a first for Australian surfing, three
girls flying the green and gold simultaneously at the highest levels of the sport.
A remarkable achievement considering the incredible talent that has emerged globally
thanks to the recent boom in women’s surfing.
In its fifth year, the
annual tournament which boasts seven divisions including the highly rated 5-star
World Qualifying Series (WQS) is renowned for attracting the cream of women’s
surfing to Phillip Island’s world class surf breaks each January.
“It’s
amazing for Australia to see three girls at the top. We are like the young crew
coming up and we all won world titles last year. It’s inspiring for younger
girls from Australia too, they’ll all be psyched about seeing what is possible,”
said Georgeson preparing for her first competitive outing for the year.
Georgeson
will be using the event as a warm-up for the upcoming World Championship Tour
(WCT) event on the Gold Coast which will run from Feb 27 to March 12 in her backyard
at Snapper Rocks. But despite the added attention of her new-found fame, she won’t
be putting too many expectations on herself.
Surfing
Australia Women
the highlight for tennis opener (Jan 16)
The International Herald
Tribune points out today that women are the highlight in a somewhat patchy
line-up for the first tennis grand-slam of the year -- The Australian Open.
“Although a final-hour withdrawal is never out of the question in 21st-century
tennis, it appears that, for the first time in the history of this Grand Slam
tournament, every member of the top 20 will play. So will Martina Hingis, who
is making her return to Melbourne after a three-year break from the tour she once
dominated.” It says.
IHT home;
Story
Meanwhile…
 The
Australian Open site reports: She may well be hovering three places outside the
top 10 and trailing older sister Venus in the rankings, however, Australian Open
defending champion Serena Williams looked every part a world No.1 on the eve of
this year's event.
Despite her first non-top 10 finish in seven years, the
24-year-old declared herself fully fit and prepared for her seventh Australian
Open appearance.
Wearing a bright green T-shirt, two sparkling fuschia pendants
and lip gloss from her fashion-line, Williams looked, acted and exuded the confidence
of the woman who held aloft the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup 12 months ago.
"I've had more time to prepare this year. I've had more time to prepare mentally
and much more physically," she said at a media conference at Melbourne Park
on Saturday.
"My preparation has been pretty cool … I've been here
almost a week.
"As long as I don't beat myself, I'll be okay."
Australian Open story
link
Plus…
Two experienced
players on the women's circuit have qualified for Australian Open 2006 after comprehensive
victories in the final stage of qualifying on Saturday.
Thailand's Tamarine
Tanasugarn and Zimbabwean Cara Black both enjoyed the luxury of straight sets
wins and failed to lose a set during the three rounds of qualifying at Melbourne
Park.
It was also a straightforward progression for American No.2 qualifying
seed Ashley Harkleroad, who thrashed countrywoman Vania King 6-3 6-1 to breeze
through to the main draw. Harkleroad now clashes with 26-year-old German Sandra
Kloesel in the first-round.
Twelve players have filled the final positions
in the women's singles draw of 128 players after surviving the qualifying tournament.
They are German Kathryn Woerle, China's Ting Li and Meng Yuan, Austrian Yvonne
Meusburger, Slovakian Jarmila Gajdosova, Anastasiya Yakimova and Victoria Azarenka
of Belarus, Ukranian Olga Savchuk, Israeli Tzipora Obziler, Tanasugarn, Black
and Harkleroad.
Australian Open story
link Sydney
sled hurtles into race (Jan 16)
From Fox Sport: She started out
pushing a billy-cart around Eastwood Oval. On January 14, University of Sydney
student Astrid Loch-Wilkinson, with brake-woman Kylie Reed, hurtled into Winter
Olympics history as the pilot of the first Australia women's bobsleigh team to
qualify for the Olympic Games.
Fox Sport home;
Story
Plus…
From
the University of Sydney website: Astrid, 23, is in her final year of a veterinary
science degree at the University of Sydney, having completed four years studying
on both Camperdown and Camden campuses.
In November 2005, Astrid and Kylie
shared second prize in bobsleigh at the Europa Cup meeting in Austria…A former
track and field athlete, Astrid only took up bobsleigh racing in 2003. Her sporting
achievements include winning a University Blue in soccer in 2004. She held Sydney
University Sports Scholarships in 2003, 2004 and 2005.
Story
link
Is
sport ladylike? (Jan 16)
From the Sydney Morning Herald:
It's difficult for women to compete at the top level in sport and still remain
ladylike, writes Jane Willcox.
SMH home;
Story
Aymar
& Goderie scoop hockey awards (Dec 4)
 From
World Hockey.org: Argentine superstar Luciana Aymar collected her record third
World Hockey Women's Player of the Year award in Canberra this afternoon.
This
was the eighth time the International Hockey Federation has presented the World
Hockey Player of the Year awards, with Aymar the runaway winner for the second
consecutive year.
Maartje Goderie of the Netherlands was named the World Hockey
Women's Young Player of the Year. The award is presented to the outstanding player
under the age of 23.
Story
link
Dutch
claim hockey trophy (Dec 4)
From World Hockey.org: Netherlands claimed
the women's Samsung Hockey Champions Trophy crown with a heart-stopping penalty
stroke victory over Australia in the final this afternoon.
The Dutch have assumed
control of international women's hockey with their second successive Champions
Trophy title and have confirmed their world number one ranking ahead of Germany
and Australia.
Story
link
Matildas
& China draw (Dec 3)
From Football
Australia: The Qantas Matildas have concluded their series against China with
a scoreless draw at Aussie Stadium in Sydney tonight. The Australians however
dominated large parts of the second half, striking the frame of the goal on three
occasions, but they were unable to make the breakthrough. The first half was largely
uneventful with neither side able to take control however Jo Peters struck the
outside of the post with a chipped shot mid-way through the half.
See this
link Dokic
restarts career in NZ (Dec 1)
 Former
world number four tennis player Jelena Dokic has moved back to the southern hemisphere,
away from her notoriously excitable father Damir, to restart her career as an
Australian player.
Now ranked below 300, the 22-year-old has picked up a wildcard
entry in the New Zealand ASB tournament in January. The Serbian-born and Australian
raised player is still looking for a new coach, a role formerly filled by her
father. See our
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