Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso, the Spanish Formula 1 pilot, has announced that he has decided to renew his contract with Renault for the next two seasons.

Flavio Briatore, the owner of the French company, has declared that Alonso will compete for Renault two years more, but his contract does allow the pilot to change his mind at the end of this year.

Alonso is currently very satisfied with his collaboration with Renault, but experts think he will probably go to Ferrari in 2010, when they will have an opening.

The Spanish champion did not have much of a choice, considering that Kubica and Heidfeld have renewed with BMW and Massa and Raikkonen with Ferrari.

For the next season, Briatore counts on Alonso and also on Nelson, to obtain the best results, and he expresses his admiration towards the two pilots.

Apart from the financial and technical reasons, Alonso says that one of the elements which helped him decide was also the team he works with at Renault. He says they are very united, they are very competitive but at the same time, they are relaxed, welcoming and open minded, which is exactly what he wants in his team.

Seve Ballesteros

Last Monday, Spanish golfer Severiano Ballesteros was admitted to a Madrid hospital after suffering from a collapse. The golfing champion, aged 51, obtained five major titles last year, after which he decided to retire from his sports career.

Ever since last Monday he has remained in La Paz Hospital, in Madrid, undergoing treatment and being subjected to several types of analyses, including that of brain tumour.

Unfortunately, the result came back positive and the doctors were already scheduling a biopsy to determine the most appropriate way to proceed. In his press release, the golf champion said he is more than determined to overcome this surgery and to be the best in this life challenge.

Doctors did not reveal the nature of the tumour but they did say Ballesteros had suffered a fit of epileptic resemblance and that, following treatment, all was going well.

In his battle for life, Ballesteros has his family and friends to support him, as well as fellow golf players like the Spanish Jose Maria Olazabal and Miguel Angel Jimenez and also Tony Jacklin, former winner of the European Ryder Cup.

Eurocup 2012

The President of the FIFA, Joseph Blatter, has confirmed the annulment of the sanction applied to Poland and it will be allowed to organize and host the 2012 Euro Cup along with Ukraine. Also, the Polish national team will be allowed to participate in the qualifiers of the South Africa World Cup.

The Polish government and the Football Federation have sent an official letter to the FIFA president by which they committed to ensure that no conflict bursts out between the country’s sports organisations. Blatter considered it to be reliable enough to annul the sanction, action which also had Michel Platini’s approval.

FIFA had given Poland an ultimatum regarding the political conflicts between members of the Polish Football Federation (PZPN) which meant that by not solving them they would be eliminated from the selection for the 2012 Euro Cup.

FIFA representatives have declared that they will keep on eye on the activity of the Polish Federation, especially around the time of the elections for the new Federation President and will issue another official report on the 23-24th of October.

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2009

The Canadian Formula 1 Grand Prix will be replaced by the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2009, according to a decision made by the World Motor Sport Council. The Emirate authorities have issued a proposal according to which the race should take place on an urban circuit during the night, but the Council has not yet decide upon that.

The celebration of the Grand Prix will take place on the 15th of November 2009 and it will be the last of a season which will start in Australia on the 29th of March and which comprises 18 races. The only race on the American continent will be the one organised in Brazil.

The Grand Prix of Spain is scheduled for the 10th of May, the one of Europe -once more celebrated on the urban circuit of Valencia- on the 23rd of August and the one in Brazil on the 1st of November.

The FIA will be the one in charge of the organization of all the above mentioned events and they are seriously thinking about applying a strategy of cost reduction starting 2010.

Gisela Pulido

Gisela Pulido was born in Premia de Mar, Barcelona, over 14 years ago and is now living in Tarifa, Cadiz.

Ever since she was a child, Gisela has shown a great attraction towards water sports and she obtained her first medals in swimming competitions. She first came in contact with kitesurfing in 2002 and she won the Junior European Championship in 2003, at only 9 years of age.

At 14, she is now 5th time Kitesurf World Championship winner in Freestyle Kitesurf.
She declared this championship has been the hardest she has ever participated in until now due to the strong competition coming from the Brazilian Bruna Kajiya.

The Chile competition was the last of the ten comprised in the circuit, and she has come first in six of the ten rounds, and second in the remaining four.

With joy and satisfaction in her heart, she goes back to being a teenager and she can only think of school and friends and spending more time with them.

OJ Simpson

13 years ago, in a murder trial that shocked America he managed to get away with the murder of his ex-wife and of one of her friends. He was found not-guilty and had to pay $33.5m to the victim’s family.

But this time he did not get off that easily. Former Buffalo Bills star, OJ Simpson, has been found guilty on all 12 charges of armed robbery, assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to kidnap will have to remain imprisoned until his sentence is issued in December.

Simpson, aged 61, kidnapped two sports dealers in Las Vegas, last year, and held them captive and tried to regain possession of some objects he still claimed as his property.

The Las Vegas jury found him and his accomplice, Clarence Steward, guilty as charged and the judge decided not to grant him bail until December.

On his way to the courthouse he seemed to be coping quite well with the whole situation and with the possibility of him spending many years behind bars.