Category: Sports

Two Filipino Figure Skaters to Compete in Slovenia

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Olympian Michael Christian Martinez and 17-year old Samantha Cabiles are set to compete in the Triglav Trophy International Figure Skating Competition in Jesenice, Slovenia from April 2 to 6, 2014. The Philippine Skating Union (PhSU), which is a member of the International Skating Union (ISU) is sending Martinez to the Senior Men’s category and Cabiles to the Junior Ladies’ category.

Every year since 1992, the Triglav Trophy gathers over 100 of the best young figure skaters from all over the world. The competition is hosted in Jesenice ice hall Podmežakla and has its roots in 1992. Olympic medalists like Shizuka Arakawa, Stephane Lambiel, Yuna Kim, and Evan Lysacek have competed at the Jesenice ice ring.

Martinez took up figure skating when he was eight, inspired by skaters spinning and jumping while shopping with his mother at SM Southmall. He began training in 2010 in the United States and since then his lifelong dream has been to win an Olympic medal. Martinez has garnered over 190 medals and trophies from various international and local competitions.

Cabiles, who was born in Hawaii and is now based in Michigan started skating since she was 11. Of Filipino decent, Cabiles also competes in the Philippine Nationals and recently ranked second in the 2013 Philippine National Figure Skating Championships held at SM Mall of Asia every year.

Cabiles also placed 10th in the Junior category of the recent Dragon Trophy competition in Ljubjana, Slovenia in February 2014. She trains in Toronto, Canada. Due to her high and powerful jumps, she earned the moniker, “The Skating Gazelle”.

SM has been the primary supporter of the PhSU since the latter was established in 2005. SM also provides a venue for the events of PhSU for the promotion of ice skating in the Philippines. PhSU received accreditation from the ISU in 2006, coinciding with the opening of the SM Mall of Asia skating rink that year. In turn, PhSU, as the sole governing body for Figure and Speed Skating provides SM and its ice skating rinks with marketing tools such as local and international skating events and its network of skating athletes.

Through the years, SM and the PhSU have conducted several figure skating competitions that have given birth to international champions such as Martinez. The PhSU is the governing body in the country for figure skating and speed skating. A member of the ISU, it is the exclusive international sports federation recognized by the International Olympic Committee that administers figure skating and speed skating throughout the world. The ISU is composed of a number of national associations called ISU members who administer ISU sports at the national level and recognize that all international matters are under the sole jurisdiction and control of the ISU.

The excellence demonstrated by skaters especially during competitions is a mark of quality that the SM Skating Rink can provide with its world-class venue and facilities. Property conglomerate SM Prime Holdings, Inc. operates skating rinks through SM Lifestyle Entertainment, Inc. at the SM Mega Fashion Hall in Mandaluyong, SM Mall of Asia in Pasay, and SM Southmall in Las Pinas.

LOOK GREAT. Love Swimming with SPEEDO SCULPTURE

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Speedo believes that all women should be able to look and feel great in and out of the water. That’s why we’ve created Speedo Sculpture, a swimwear collection made to give women confidence by smoothing and shaping the body to enhance and control feminine curves.

We spoke to 1,200 women globally to develop our Sculpture collection. The in depth research revealed that 52% of women didn’t feel their best in their current swimwear. A further 76% said they would like to be able to find swimwear that flatters their body shape, while 63% said that feeling more confident in their swimsuit would encourage them to swim more often.

Speedo knows that women want flattering swimwear that is also functional. By analysing the body scans of 5,400 women, we were able to see how swimwear could complement and enhance women’s bodies both in and out of the water as well as being practical for comfortable swimming.

The Speedo Sculpture swimwear collection focuses on all-over body shaping, tummy control and bust support as well as visual shaping and flattering styling to help create a flattering ‘hourglass’ silhouette.

The new collection also features secure adjustable straps for a great fit so you always feel that your swimwear is as comfortable as a second skin, giving you ultimate freedom of movement in the water.

Speedo know women want swimwear to last, which is why the Speedo Sculpture collection is made using Xtra Life LYCRA, a high stretch and high power fibre that lasts up to 10 times longer than conventional swimwear fabrics, for swimwear that fits and shapes like new for longer. Each new style is trialled in the pool for up to 40 hours guaranteeing the correct shaping, fit and freedom of movement for comfort and confidence.

We know that all women are different shapes and sizes and that confidence in and out of the water comes from great fitting swimwear which is why every style in the Speedo Sculpture collection has been fitted on real women.

Don’t just take our word for it, Lola, a UK customer shares her opinion on the Speedo Sculpture range: “The best costume I have ever bought. This costume is beautifully designed. It is extremely flattering, giving an hour glass shape to my figure and at the same time is very comfortable to swim in.”

Yahoo Signs Jose Mourinho as Global Football Ambassador

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Jose Mourinho 

Yahoo is excited to unveil world-renowned coach, Jose Mourinho as their global football ambassador for 2014. For the billions of football fans who make football their daily habit, Mourinho will be an exclusive analyst for Yahoo’s worldwide football coverage including the FIFA World Cup 2014 and he will also provide exclusive behind the scenes content from his world on his own Tumblr, so don’t forget to follow.

This is the first time Jose Mourinho has partnered with a media or technology company to offer his insight and expert commentary or to have a personal social presence. Renowned for his confident style and no stranger to a little controversy, Mourinho’s opinion will bring his passionate perspective to sports fans around the world on Yahoo and Tumblr.

“Having worked with some of the league’s best players, I’m excited to share some analysis and perspective about the game with the most passionate fans in the world. Teaming up with a global leader like Yahoo allows me to reach football fans from Brazil all the way to Philippines – whether they’re in front of their computers or on their mobile or tablets,” said Mourinho. “There are many people around the world who like to comment on the game and I look forward to bringing my opinion exclusively to Yahoo starting today on my own Tumblr.”

Widely regarded as one of the best coaches in the game, the 51-year-old Mourinho has enjoyed outstanding success throughout his career, winning the title of every top-flight league in England, Italy, Portugal and Spain that he has managed in, as well as numerous other European honours. In ten seasons of club management, Mourinho has led his club to the UEFA Champions League twice, won its domestic league seven times, and the UEFA Cup once.

World Tennis Day a global hit

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The second annual World Tennis Day proved a huge success on Monday 3 March as 90 nations got fully behind the ITF’s bid to promote tennis and increase participation among players around the globe.

While centred around three high-profile showdown events in Hong Kong, London and New York, produced by StarGames and featuring current and former professionals, it was the work and support of many of the ITF’s National Associations that truly highlighted the worth and growing importance of the day.

With 90 nations in full support of World Tennis Day, 79 countries organised specific activities and events to raise the profile and increase participation in tennis in their respective areas – a significant increase on the 58 nations involved in the inaugural World Tennis Day in 2013.

Hong Kong hosted the first of the three high-profile events on the day, with Australians securing a double triumph as Sam Stosur overcame Li Na 64 63 before Lleyton Hewitt rounded out an entertaining 64 75 triumph over world No. 5 Tomas Berdych.

In London, 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash defeated old nemesis Ivan Lendl 86, before Andre Agassi bettered Pete Sampras 63 76(1) in a renewal of their intriguing rivalry. The event, hosted at Earls Court Two, also saw wheelchair world No. 3 Gordon Reid and world No. 12 Marc McCarroll play out a 10 point match tie-break in front of 5,000 spectators.

In New York, Madison Square Garden played host to a doubles encounter between Bob and Mike Bryan and John and Patrick McEnroe, with the Bryans winning an extended set 83, before world No. 2 Novak Djokovic defeated Andy Murray 63 76(2) in the showcase singles match.

The showdown came the day after Murray’s mother and Great Britain’s Fed Cup captain Judy had played her part in setting the GUINNESS WORLD RECORD for the “Largest Tennis Lesson” in celebration of World Tennis Day. The historic occasion took place at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Centre in Flushing Meadows, with 406 children from local youth organisations in the New York area involved.

Fellow Grand Slam nation Australia was also particularly active throughout the course of World Tennis Day, with Tennis Australia encouraging all their affiliated clubs and centres to organise open days and activities. On 3 March, Melbourne Park was opened to the public with participants invited to hit free of charge on its famous blue courts just weeks after playing host to the world’s best players for the Australian Open.

The British LTA were heavily involved on social media throughout World Tennis Day, while their day’s activities kicked off with an Educational Festival of tennis at London’s National Tennis Centre. In the afternoon a Parliamentary Stakeholder Reception took place at The Speaker’s Apartment hosted by the British Parliamentary speaker John Bercow and in the presence of HRH Duchess of Gloucester and ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti.

As well as providing opportunities for children and adults to play tennis in line with the ITF’s Tennis10s and TennisExpress programmes, many of the ITF’s National Associations came up with inventive ways to promote the sport and encourage people to pick up a racquet.

In Iran, Tennis10s demonstrations took place in 10 major cities across the country, including a demonstration at the Milad Tower (the sixth highest tower in the world), in Tehran. One of the more remarkable images from World Tennis Day was taken underwater, where two scuba divers posed with a racket, a net and ball (and a passing exotic fish).

In New Zealand, the first country to celebrate World Tennis Day in 2014, demonstrations were held at several iconic Auckland spots including the city’s Sky Tower and Harbour Bridge. The Americas Cup Yacht Team also played tennis over a mini-net on their yacht.

There was plenty of activity in spite of extreme weather in some regions, with the Swiss Tennis Federation organising a ‘snow’ Beach Tennis demonstration in the spectacular mountain setting on Wengen, while those at the Manitoba provincial tennis association in Canada took to a tennis court in freezing temperatures and played in two feet of snow.

In Kenya, 100 school children and 11 wheelchair athletes from Kenya, Morocco and Nigeria joined together to play Tennis10s on the smaller Red courts, introducing many of the children to tennis for the first time.

There were numerous examples of further school-based activity in the likes of Argentina, which arranged Tennis10s activities for 300 children on the Avenida 9 de Julio (one of the largest roads in the world), Brazil, Cambodia, Ecuador, Guyana, Poland and Yemen, with many other nations heavily engaging in the spirit of the day.

“We were delighted with the success of the second annual World Tennis Day,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti. “We were especially happy to see even more nations involved this year and we look forward to working in partnership with StarGames to make the 2015 World Tennis Day an even bigger event.”

BOOST SUCCESS – One Year Into The Future Of Running

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One year ago, the world was watching as adidas revealed a new global innovation: Boost. This running shoe with its revolutionary sole promised to change the running industry forever – a bold claim indeed, given that innovation is never an end in itself.

An innovation can only become relevant and useful if it manages to generate enthusiasm amongst people. But this often takes time; time for the target group to get to grips with the new development, recognise its value and accept it.

So one year after Boost was first introduced, we find ourselves asking this question: has the innovation found its way into runners’ hearts?

Innovation has always been an essential element at adidas, the engine that has driven the company through all these decades. But no matter how strongly developers believe in an invention, it is no guarantee that the product will be a success.

Take, for example, the adidas_1. It was the most technologically advanced shoe in 2005, one of the first to feature an integrated computer. Nobody can doubt that this was an innovative idea; however, the shoe failed to capture the hearts of the running community. Even after more time had passed, runners were still not convinced. It could not raise their enthusiasm.Sometimes, the road to success is not always straight when it comes to innovations.

The creators of Boost really believed in the quality of their innovation, even more so thank back in the adidas_1 days. Boost had already won over the developers long before it had even taken on the shape of a running shoe. To begin with, the new innovation consisted purely of a couple of small blown-up capsules of TPU resembling – at first glance – Tic Tacs. Senior Innovation Director Gerd Manz was one of the first to be caught under the spell of this innovation.