[+] Enlarge The all-important draw for Euro 2012 is Friday (noon ET on ESPNEWS and ESPN3 — you can watch it here), as the 16 teams learn their opponents for the 14th European Championship, which begins June 8 in Poland and Ukraine. Here are five notes to get you prepared for the festivities in Kiev: [...]
Tag: champion
December 4, 2011
December 4, 2011
Evgeni Plushenko leaves politics to train for 2014 Sochi Olympics
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — Evgeni Plushenko, a former Olympic champion figure skater, has reportedly left politics in St. Petersburg to train for the 2014 Sochi Olympics. The Itar Tass news agency quoted Plushenko as saying Friday that he is leaving politics because “it is impossible to prepare for the competition while engaging in politics.” The [...]
December 4, 2011
Euro 2012 draw: Spain to open against Italy; England to face France
ESPNsoccernet Press Pass: 3 December 2011 VIDEO PLAYLIST ESPNsoccernet Press Pass: 3 December 2011 ESPNsoccernet Press Pass: 3 December 2011 UEFA Euro 2012 Draw UEFA Euro 2012 Draw Moving on Moving on College Cup Finals College Cup Finals KIEV, Ukraine — Defending champion Spain will avoid its biggest challengers in the first round of the [...]
December 4, 2011
Russia, Poland pick up London volleyball berths
TOKYO — Russia and Poland earned men’s volleyball berths in the London Olympics on Saturday by reaching the title match in the round-robin World Cup tournament. The third and last qualifying spot from the tournament will be determined on Sunday between Brazil and Japan. Russia (9-1) beat Iran 31-29, 25-21, 25-18. The Russians can win [...]
December 4, 2011
Povetkin knocks Boswell out to defend WBA belt
WBA heavyweight champion Aleksandr Povetkin has successfully defended his title after knocking out US challenger Cedric Boswell. Povetkin was never in danger during the bout in the Finnish capital, Helsinki. The Russian was the more active man in the ring, increasing his pressure on Boswell with every round. The American tried to counter-attack, but was [...]
November 26, 2011
Vasily Alexeyev the Super Heavy Weight Soviet Lifter has Died…
I was saddened today when I heard that Vasily Alexeyev has died. He was one of my heroes in the early 70′s. I remember the rumors that we passed around about him and his huge belly. We would all say that we heard that his belly could stop a Colt 45 at point blank range [...]
November 26, 2011
Legendary Soviet weightlifter Alexeyev dies aged 69
Soviet weightlifting champion Vasily Alexeyev, who set 80 world records in his day, died in a German clinic on Friday at the age of 69. Alexeyev, who won two Olympic and eight world super heavyweight titles in the 1970s, had long been suffering heart problems. He was sent to the clinic in Germany earlier this [...]
November 21, 2011
Putin attends mixed fight championship
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin arrived to Olimpiisky Sports Complex in Moscow to support the Russian athlete, many-time world mixed martial arts champion Fedor Emelianenko, who faces American Jeff Monson on Sunday. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, Russian female super middleweight world champion boxer Natalya Ragozina and two-time Grand Slam tennis winner Marat Safin also came [...]
November 20, 2011
Russians claim two skating golds in Paris
Rising Russian star Elizaveta Tuktamisheva has sealed her senior debut with a second ISU Grand Prix figure skating gold as she impressed the fans in Paris with a red hot latin dance. While two Russian pairs built on the progress. The 14-year-old wunderkind took the Trophee Eric Bompard title ahead of two skaters 10 years [...]
November 13, 2011
November 11, 2011
Chechnya may host Van Damme kickboxing match vs Thai champ
Jean-Claude Van Damme says his much-awaited kickboxing showdown with Thai former Olympic champion Somrack Kamsing could go ahead in Russia’s Chechnya. The Belgian actor and martial arts proponent, 51, is a friend of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and said that the main aim of his three-day visit to the restive southern region is to persuade [...]
November 8, 2011
November 5, 2011
Khasikov ready to humble another K-1 legend
There is a big welterweight title fight in Moscow tonight. K-1 Russian champion Batu Khasikov is hoping to take the W5 crown from legend Mike Zambidis. The Greek, nicknamed “Iron Mike”, is a well-established force in the sport, boasting a record of 85 knockout wins, while Khasikov is only taking his first steps in K-1, [...]
November 5, 2011
Valuev ‘unaware’ of Klitschko’s plans to box vs. him in Kiev
Russia’s former WBA champion Nikolai Valuev denied receiving any proposals from Ukraine’s Klitschko brothers to hold a boxing match with WBC champion Vitali Klitschko in Kiev next year. The head of the Klitschko brothers’ promoters K2 Promotions in Kiev said earlier that Vitali Klitschko, 40, might have a boxing match at the Olimpiisky arena in [...]