Brazilian soccer match delayed due to swarm of bees

According to a source that I can no longer locate-- "The 2-2 draw in the Campeonato Goiano was held up for 20 minutes in the first half whilst the fire department killed off the swarm of bees with diesel oil and fire extinguishers."

Also, there apparently was a brawl at the end of the match involving players from both sides and then later a shooting which left one unfortunate fan dead.

More official announcements from Milan

Regarding the UEFA Champions League draw, in which Milan grouped with Real Madrid, Ajax, and AJ Auxerre:

ALLEGRI: ‘Group of death’

8/26/2010

MILAN – Milan coach Massimo Allegri’s comments about the Champions League draw: ‘Our group and that of Inter is certainly the most difficult one. Both of us will face tough and well-prepared teams. Obviously, playing against Real Madrid is exciting, it’s a fascinating match-up. The San Siro and the Santiago Bernabeu will be sold-out as a spectacle is guaranteed. Ajax and Auxerre advanced through the preliminaries making a great impression, they are opponents to be feared. We have to play all these games always maintaining high concentration and full fitness. It’s a group of death, but we’ll play like Milan.’

Regarding the possible transfer of Zlatan Ibrahimovic:

GALLIANI: ‘We postpone everything until tomorrow’

8/26/2010

MILAN – Milan CEO Adriano Galliani’scomments after the meeting held in Barcelona with blaugrana president Sandro Rosell: “We have been chatted and discussed the terms. We know Barcelona’s position and now we’ll consider it. We postpone things until tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, after all the transfer window is open until Tuesday. I’ll stay here, I won’t go to Monte Carlo and I think I won’t come to the San Siro for the match on Sunday evening, either. Our position and that of Barcelona is very clear. We’ll go to the bitter ends for Ibrahimovic. I’d say now we have a 50% chance of getting him. In the meantime the eventual alternative would be Robinho I’d like to point out that Borriello will stay at Milan, while as for Huntelaar, we are in negotiations with another team. We’ll see. Now I’ll talk to Ibrahimovic, as I was authorised by president Rosell’.

2010 Winter Olympics Update #1

The Vancouver Winter Olympics are not yet to the halfway point, and already lots of people are complaining about what a disaster they are turning out to be. Whether it is the warm weather, the death of a Georgian luger, Zamboni problems, or the confused starts to several biathlon events, it is easy to find things that are going wrong. And don't forget the ridiculously uncompetitive scores coming out of the women's hockey tournament.

What I have been reading lately #44

Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans - A.J. Baime

In the early 1960s, the Ford Motor Company decided they wanted to get into racing and spent a lot of money to start winning quickly. Ford especially wanted to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a race which Ferrari had dominated for years. This book is about the 1966 race and the events leading up to it.

This book is one of the saddest books I have read in years. Not only does the wrong team win, but the wrong driver as well. Plus, a lot of people keep dying. I cannot say more than that without spoiling the ending.

Below: Henry Ford II with soon-to-be Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara

Below: Enzo Ferrari

Jerry Reed RIP

Word has just reached Ape Canyon News Service about the passing of legendary American musician/actor Jerry Reed. While much of the coverage of his life has focused on his fine singing, guitar playing, and acting in the Smokey and the Bandit movies, we would just like to take the time to point out some of his other outstanding work, specifically the great job he did in the movie Survivors with Walter Matthau (and Robin Williams). We would also like to highlight his excellent cover of Bob Dylan's greatest song, "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right," and, for those cartoon fans, his work on Scooby Doo. RIP, Jerry.

A Sad Death Goes Practically Unnoticed

Last month, St. Louis Steamers' superstar goalie Slobo Ilijevski died while playing in a men's over 55 soccer tournament in Bellingham, WA, an hour north of Seattle. Slobo was playing in the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) Veteran's Cup for the Kutis team, which represented Missouri in the tournament. Slobo began to suffer pain after making a save and doctors discovered he had ruptured the wall of his aorta. He died several hours later.

I have many fond memories of the Steamers, St. Louis' franchise in the MISL (Major Indoor Soccer League), as do many, many people from St. Louis. With Slobo as goalie, the Steamers reached the MISL finals three times ('81, '82, and '84) and were consistent fan favorites. I am sure Slobo will be sorely missed by his numerous family members, friends, and fans.

One disturbing aspect of this sad event, however, is that it received absolutely no mention outside of the St. Louis media (for an article from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, click here : http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/othersports/story/1D15C6881E34DEB38625748700558F82?OpenDocument.) Neither of the daily Seattle newspapers (the Times and the Post-Intelligencer) nor the Bellingham Herald mentioned the event, and, perhaps most bizarrely of all, the official website of the United States Adult Soccer Association made no mention at all of the fact that a player in one of their tournaments (who was also an MISL superstar!) had died while playing in a match.

Even if many choose not to acknowledge the untimely death of this outstanding goalie, we here at Ape Canyon News Service would like to take a moment to recognize the passing of a St. Louis sports legend.