LA CHORRERA, Panama – Miliciades Molina scored in second-half stoppage time to give host Panama a 1-1 draw with nine-man Jamaica on Saturday in the Group A opener for each at the 2013 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship. The late equalizer thrilled the capacity crowd at the Estadio Agustin “Muquita” Sanchez, but disappointed the young Reggae Boyz, who nearly held on for victory despite ending the encounter two players short. In front of its home supporters, Panama attacked from the opening whistle. Within 59 seconds, Luis Zuñiga attempted a bold bicycle kick that did not land far from its intended target. In the 25th minute, a Zuñiga strike from 30-yards out fell to the feet of an unmarked Ismael Diaz inside the Jamaican box. The 15-year-old turned and shot. His effort from 12 yards, however, was well saved by goalkeeper Nicholas Nelson. The Canaleros would regret that miss 15 minutes later, as Junior Flemmings netted from the penalty spot to give the visitors a 1-0 lead, after Micahel Seaton was taken down by Felix General. Panama showed no signs of letdown, starting the second half robustly. After breaking into the Jamaican box alone, Ismael Diaz would have equalized in the 54th […]
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Double Olympic sprint champion Usain Bolt has passed on his congratulations to Bayern Munich on winning the Bundesliga title in record time. Bolt, who defended his 100m and 200m Olympic titles at London 2012, is occasionally in Munich to see renown sports doctor Hans-Wilhelm Mueller-Wohlfahrt, who also works with the Bayern team and the Germany side. The 26-year-old specifically thanked Dr Mueller-Wohlfahrt after his 100m victory in London having been treated by the German doctor in the build-up to the Olympics and says the pair speak by telephone “from time-to-time”. He is also friends with some of Bayern’s players. Bayern won the Bundesliga title for the 22nd time in the competition’s 50 year history on Saturday with a 1-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt, thanks to Bastian Schweinsteiger’s second-half goal, and Bolt offered his congratulations. “It’s impressive what Bayern have done this season,” Bolt told German daily Bild on Sunday after Bayern won the title with six games left, a new Bundesliga record, and hold a 20-point lead. “To be champions with such a lead and so early in such a strong league, is extraordinary. “First of all, I want to congratulate Basti (Schweinsteiger) and the team, who, just like […]
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NEW YORK — Veronica Campbell-Brown, the queen of Jamaican sprinting, announced tonight on Irie Jam Radio that she will return to the adidas Grand Prix in NYC on May 25 to run her specialty, the 200 meters. With seven Olympic and 11 World Championship medals, Campbell-Brown, 30, is one of the most-decorated sprinters in history. Her collection includes back-to-back Olympic gold medals at 200 meters in the Olympic Games in 2004 and 2008, and she is the reigning 200-meter World Champion. In her most recent trip to the adidas Grand Prix, in 2010, Campbell-Brown scorched to victory over Allyson Felix in their first-ever meeting at 200 meters in the United States. Her winning time of 21.98 not only stands as the meet record, but it was also the fastest time in the world that year and the fastest 200 run on U.S. soil in almost a decade. This will be the popular Campbell-Brown’s sixth appearance at the NYC meet, at which she has won four times. In addition to her 200-meter triumph, she has won at 100 meters three times—including a meet record time of 10.91 in 2008—and she finished third at that distance once, albeit in a wind-aided […]
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With less than three weeks remaining for her April 20 world title fight in Panama against Chantall Martinez for her World Boxing Council super bantamweight title, Alicia ‘Slick’ Ashley has left her New York base to train in Argentina. The fight will take place at the Roberto Duran Arena in Panama City. There are two reasons for this change. The first is that her lead trainer Hector Roca has to be in Argentina to be with one of his fighters, Carlos Abrega, who has a fight there on April 15. The second is that Argentina is warmer than New York at this time of the year and this is what Ashley says that she wants at this time. She arrived in Argentina last Saturday and resumed her training schedule immediately. She told The Gleaner that she is enjoying the warmer weather in Argentina, and is pleased that she has two good male sparring partners who can really push her. She concedes that Martinez will be a good opponent, but is going into the ring very confident that she will retain her title. “I am not about to give up my title to anyone, and whoever challenges me will have a […]
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Samsung, the South Korean electronics giant which has sponsored the series for three years since its inception in 2010, has opted not to renew its deal for the forthcoming season, leaving the world governing body with precious little time to find a replacement before action gets underway. The title sponsorship deal is believed to have been worth around £3 million a year to the IAAF, who have been forced to make financial cutbacks in recent years to weather the global economic crisis. However, the IAAF insisted yesterday that the series would not be affected by Samsung’s departure and that it would make up any shortfall in the budget from its own reserves until another commercial partner was found. Until then, the series will be known as the IAAF Diamond League. Samsung’s decision is a blow to the sport so soon after it enjoyed spectacular exposure at the London Olympics but an IAAF source the company had opted to “cut back on its exposure-driven activities”. It recently announced an individual endorsement deal with Usain Bolt and continues to sponsor the Olympic Games and Chelsea Football Club. [column3] [/column3] [column3] [/column3] [column3_last] [/column3_last]
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On the track and in the field, the Carifta Games was Jamaica’s business as usual. A total of 69 medals and a 28th straight year on top don’t lie. Off track, burning questions beg for good answers. As soon as young star Michael O’Hara was declared ill with a full-blown case of chicken pox, a red flag went up. Apparently, young O’Hara arrived in The Bahamas afflicted. It makes you worry for those with whom he travelled there and for his family, friends and colleagues at Calabar. If the virus was passed on to the Carifta team and those they came close to in The Bahamas, the consequences are dire. Presumably, the Carifta officials were convinced that the crisis was well handled by the Jamaican team. Otherwise, they would have had no choice but to send Jamaica home. HEALTH CONCERNS PERSIST That would have killed off the Carifta Games, but the health concern would have had top billing. As things stand, it’s critical to check how O’Hara became infected and to care for any others who may be in danger. I’m no public-health expert, but the first step seems to be an immediate check with his family […]
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Lack of funding will force Jamaica to kick off this weekend’s final round of CONCACAF Under-17 World Cup football qualifiers short on international match experience, raising caution flags about the players’ readiness for competition. The Young Reggae Boyz begin their bid for a return to the World Cup against Panama on Saturday without the benefit of any warm-up games against non-local competition in nine months because the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) could not afford the exposure for the players. Jamaica will also play Barbados on April 8 in their final Group A fixture. “The federation is strapped for cash just now,” said head coach Wendell Downswell, who guided the U-17s to the 2011 World Cup in Mexico. “So we’ve not been able to get any form of international games, apart from the games that we played (earlier) in the qualifying rounds.” Without that test, it’s difficult to predict how the Boyz will react in the qualifiers. “It hurts the team to an extent,” Downswell said. “International exposure … you use that as a measuring stick.” Jamaica reached Panama by winning Caribbean round games against Antigua and Barbuda (4-0) and Bermuda (5-0) last July. The squad has since been […]
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Tournament Schedule 12-team event will decide confederation’s representatives to U-17 World Cup PANAMA CITY, Panama — Defending U-17 World Cup champion Mexico will face Honduras and Cuba, while host Panama will meet Barbados and Jamaica in the first round of the 2013 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship. The tournament draw, which was held today and conducted by CONCACAF General Secretary Enrique Sanz at the Hotel Sheraton Panama, determined the first-round opponents for the April 6-19 event. Host Panama and Mexico, by virtue of its 2011 World Cup finish, were pre-seeded into Group A and Group D, respectively. “We are very excited about this tournament, which will showcase the next generation of our Confederation’s upcoming talent,’ said CONCACAF President, Jeffrey Webb, during his opening speech. “We wish the best of luck to all the qualified teams and hope one of the four teams representing our region at the World Cup will retain the title for this category. Team Jamaica The top two teams from each group will advance to the quarterfinals, the winners of which will qualify for the 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, October 17-November 8. It will be the first time Panama has […]
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