The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English, 05-05-09

The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Hellenic Radio (ERA) <www.ert.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Boxing Housewife

By Vicky Keleri

Although it was the husband who was going for the Brazilian boxing title, eventually, his wife entered the ring to settle the score. Luciana Duarte was on edge, watching the bout between her husband Marcos Duarte and Emanuel Davi. When she realised that in the third round, the referee was going to stop the fight and declare the opponent as a winner, she took over. While the referee Norberto Polimeno was blowing the final whistle, she jumped in the ring and started hitting him, protesting against his decision. The police intervened immediately to save the referee, who has now filed a lawsuit against Mrs Duarte. And although Luciana may now have to face the consequences of the law, at the same time, she may have stumbled onto a new career, since everyone who witnessed the incident agrees that she would make a great professional boxer.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[02] 60 Anniversary Since the End of WWII Glorious Celebrations

By Vagelis Theodorou

The three-day celebrations marking the 60-year anniversary since the end of WWII concluded with a grand military parade at Moscows Red Square. 7,000 Russian soldiers and 2,500 Russian war veterans participated in the parade, which was watched by 60 world leaders. "The Cold War, or any other war, should never be repeated," stressed Russian President Putin in his opening speech, while he described the Russian-German reconciliation as one of the most significant achievements of post-war Europe. Draconian security measures were implemented all over the Russian capital, while Moscows authorities arrested dozens of left-wing members, including the leader of the group "Red Youth Avant-Garde", Sergei Udaltsov, as a precaution. Furthermore, on the sidelines of the official events, thousands of people celebrated the anniversary in front of the Belorusskaya Station, as the Red Square was closed to civilians.

World Homage

Men of the Russian police, Interior Ministry soldiers and special forces units were posted at the Red Square and the streets leading to the Kremlin, for the safety of foreign leaders and fearing an attack by Chechen rebels.

Some of the world leaders attending the celebrations included UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, US president George Bush, his French counterpart Jacques Chirac, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, Japanese PM Junichiro Koizumi and Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi, while British PM Tony Blair was represented by Minister John Prescott.

The President of the Hellenic Republic Karolos Papoulias represented Greece, while he was also honoured by Vladimir Putin for his contribution to the Greek resistance. Others present included Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos and Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The celebrations commenced with the arrival of the foreign leaders to the Kremlin and an opening speech by the Russian President. The Russian National Anthem was played after that, followed by the firing of canons.

The world leaders watched the military parade from special stands alongside the Kremlin and Lenins Mausoleum, while they saluted the war veterans, who were driven past in trucks, holding red carnations. The Russian servicemen paraded carrying Red Army banners, bearing the picture of Lenin, as well as the hammer sickle and star of the old Soviet flag.

The 75-minute commemoration was followed by the laying of wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, while a reception followed.

"Upon facing the threats of terrorism today, we have to remain true to the memories of our forefathers. We have to defend world order, based on security and justice." Stressed the Russian President addressing the selected crowd before the parade.

Furthermore, he referred to the significant role the Red Army played in the Allied victory, as well as the reforms being implemented in Russia today. He further pointed out that Moscow bases its policies on the ideals of freedom and democracy and aims at dialogue and international collaborations.

Striking Absences and Protests

However, the rage towards the Soviet post-war occupation of the Baltic countries has not settled down. The presidents of Lithuania and Estonia boycotted the celebrations, as a reminder that May 1945 does not signify the liberation of the whole of Europe.

Furthermore, the Financial Times printed an open letter by 71 European political figures, including the protagonist for the liberation of Lithuania, Vytautas Landsbergis, former Estonian PM Mart Laar, former Bulgarian PM Philip Dimitrov, as well as French intellectual Andre Glixman, in which the celebrations are described as a "parody".

"The fact that one of the least democratic regimes in Europe hosts the meeting of leaders to celebrate its liberation constitutes a paradox," is noted in the letter.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

Related News:

Sixty Years of Remembrance

[03] New Flooding in Bucharest

By Tina Valaoura

Sources: ANA - AFT

Heavy storms hit Romania, causing flooding for the second time in the space of two weeks. A woman was killed, while hundreds of homes were severely damaged. In Bucharest, traffic came to a halt on Saturday afternoon as roads and subways became waterlogged. The worst-hit areas appeared to be Buzau in the east and Covasna in the centre of the country, where dozens of families had to be evacuated from their homes

In the area Timis, which had flooded last month, the damages amount to 20 million euros, while the authorities have started an immunization campaign, fearing the spread of epidemics. It should be noted that the rains and floods recorded in April affected a total of 140 towns, while five communities in the western part of the country are still flooded by the rainfalls recorded last June.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[04] Suicide Attack in Baghdad

By Tina Valaoura

No end to the violence in Iraq. A new bombing attack was recorded this morning in Baghdad. A car bomb exploded at 8:00am (Greek time) in the Saidiya district, close to a police checkpoint. Four police officers were killed in the attack, while another six were injured, as well as two civilians. The blast was so powerful that it even caused damages to nearby buildings.

The bloody bombing attacks are an everyday occurrence in the Iraqi capital. More than 300 Iraqis have been killed in various attacks and clashes since the beginning of the month.

Furthermore, a total of eight American soldiers were killed and one was injured in three separate incidents over the weekend. Four of them were killed in Haditha, 280km northwest of Baghdad, while the other four well killed in bombing attacks close to Haldiya and Samarra.

On the other hand, American forces killed six rebels and arrested another 54 close the Syrian borders, while Iraqi security forces announced that they arrested Amar al-Zubaidi, a close associate of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of the countrys al-Qaeda. Zubaidi, also known as Abu Abbas, allegedly participated in planning the attacks against Abu Ghraib prison, as well as numerous car bomb attacks throughout the Iraqi capital.

In the meantime, a top official of the Iraqi Transport Ministry, Zobaa Yassin, was shot dead in his car, along with his driver.

At the same time, the thriller with Australian hostage Douglas Wood is continuing. The leader of Australian Muslims made a plea to the abductors to set Wood free. On the other hand, the Australian Government announced once again that it will not back down to a new ultimatum by the Iraqi abductors, who are demanding that Canberra withdraws its forces from Iraq.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[05] Euro Constitution: The Great Challenge Europe Day

By Vivian Papastefanou

This years celebrations for Europe Day are quite unique and symbolic, since the countries of the European Union are called upon to ratify the Constitutional Treaty. In Athens, the celebrations will take place at Zappeio, with a pupils arts competition in the morning, having Europe as a theme, and a reception in the evening, hosted by the Foreign Ministry. In their public addresses, both PM Kostas Karamanlis and PASOK President George Papandreou pointed out the challenge presented to the nations of Europe.

"Challenges Never Stop"

In his address to the Greek people, PM Kostas Karamanlis stressed that this anniversary "Makes us proud for the achievements of the European nations up until today, while at the same time it forces us to consider everything that is left to be done, since challenges never stop."

Moreover, he underlined that the day reminds everyone that Europe has left conflicts and wars behind and is now a continent of peace, democracy, stability and prosperity. Mr Karamanlis also noted that this year, the EU is called upon to decide on yet another challenge, the ratification of the European Constitution, "a document that demonstrates the merits and values forming the foundations of Europe, while at the same time defining its powers, operation and jurisdiction."

He further mentioned that Greece is actively participating in the unified European future, since "Our vision is for a competitive Europe within the international environment, which will respect the identity, language and beliefs of each separate nation and which unites through this diversity. Our vision is for a more democratic, more powerful, safer and more unified Europe," concluded Mr Karamanlis.

In his public address, the president of PASOK George Papandreou pointed out the major significance of ratifying the European Constitution, since it will determine the extent to which Europe will be able to effectively and reliably fulfil the expectations of the European citizens and the needs of the Member-States in the context of a global system, and international political and economic developments. He also added, "The wager of the creators of unified Europe is resurfacing, while winning it entails the great political responsibility of all the political powers in Europe. A responsibility towards our people and the younger generations."

Mr Papandreou further noted that as far as Greece is concerned, the EU constitutes a natural strategic sector, in which it defends its national interests and actively contributes towards shaping the common policies that affect the everyday life of citizens. Furthermore, he referred to PASOKs determinative contribution towards the Greeces economic growth and social coherence to Europe.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[06] Everything Turned Upside Down

By Dimitris Alexopoulos

The curtain call for Greek footballs Division one is not recommended for the faint hearted. Following the end of the 28th round and with just two more rounds to go, Panathinaikos and Olympiacos are expected to battle it out for the title. Next weeks crucial match between the Greens and AEK will more than likely decide this years champion and Champions League contenders. Furthermore, next Sunday will prove crucial for the teams aiming at a place in the UEFA Cup, since depending on Olympiacos place in the rankings and the winner of the Egaleo-Iraklis match, they can hope for a place in the second most important European football event.

Anyones Game

But lets take it from the top.

Today, Panathinaikos did not play as well as planned in Toumba. During a tough game, both teams demonstrated amazing performances in the offence, but the match ended in a 1-1 draw, which seems fair when looking at the big picture.

At the same time, the home team managed to silence those who kept saying that PAOK will go down without a fight.

It played well both for its prestige, as well as his fans, and could have even finished the game with a victory, provided it converted some of its opportunities. However, the same applies for Panathinaikos, which also missed some golden opportunities.

The final score, though, was a draw and the Athenian team was very lucky to remain at the top of the rankings, especially when AEK was losing to Ionikos by 1-0 inside its home ground, the Olympic Stadium.

AEK on the other hand, has been abandoned by luck, strength and players (Katsouranis is injured, Lymberopoulos has the flu and Alves is penalized) just three weeks before the end. As a result, it sustained its first loss inside its home pitch this year.

Now the only thing remaining for AEK is to await the results of the next two weeks and see which place it will end up in the rankings.

If it defeats Panathinaikos, it will move over and above its opponent in the rankings, hope for a place in the Champions League and may even be eyeing the championship title. At the same time, it will be hoping that Olympiacos takes the fall in one of its two upcoming matches, either against Panionios in Piraeus, or against Iraklis in Thessaloniki. Who knows, miracles sometimes do happen.

What is definite, though, is that it lost a lot of valuable ground today and is stuck with its back against the wall, praying for a victory over Panathinaikos next week in order to keep its hopes alive.

On the other hand, Panathinaikos is also hoping for a victory, as a single point for draw would not be enough. And the main reason for this is that in case of a tie, the championship will be decided during the last round. Panathinakos will be playing in Crete and Olympiacos in Thessaloniki, but Dusan Bajevics team would have an advantage and, as they have demonstrated in the past, they know how to get a victory when they have their minds set on it.

So, as far as todays results go, the teams tried their best to please the squad from Piraeus. Olympiacos spent a carefree afternoon in Kerkyra, while Ionikos and PAOK worked in his favour, and put the team back in the race for the title.

However, the battle for the top also directly concerts Egaleo and Iraklis. If Olympiacos manages to win a spot in next seasons Champions League, irrespective of what happens in the Greek Cup final, then they will have a chance to play in UEFA Cup. If not, there is always next year!

On the other hand, Chalkidona lost all hope of playing in UEFA Cup, after being defeated by Apollo Kalamaria today. The latter, along with Panionios, OFI and Aris will have to put up a strong fight in the next two rounds to stay in Division one.

Apollo is playing against PAOK in Kalamaria and against AEK in the Olympic Stadium. Panionios will battle it out with Olympiacos in Karaiskakis Stadium and Ergotelis in Nea Smyrni. Finally, Aris will face Iraklis in Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium and Kallithea in Athens.

So, bring out the calculators and do the math, although things are not always that clear in football.

Results Scorers Next Rounds

Results

PAOK-Panathinaikos 1-1 25´ Salpiggidis / 23´ Papadopoulos

OFI-Xanthi 1-0 22 (P) Deyanov

Iraklis-Kallithea 5-1 45´ Fortuzi, 64´, 88´ Papapostolou, 73´ Epalle, 81´ (OG) Karatzas / 75´ Tsigas

AEK-Ionikos 0-1 86´ Natsouras

Panionios-Aris 1-1 69´ Breska/ 38´ Sanhurho

Kerkyra-Olympiacos 1-3 25´ Castillo, 43´ Georgatos, 68´ Okkas / 44´ Gebro

Chalkidona-Apollo Kalamaria 2-3 2´ Korakakis, 20´(P) Zacharopoulos / 12´, 35´(P), 72´ Cleyton

Egaleo-Ergotelis 2-0 44´ Agritis, 48´ Barkoglou

Scorers

17 goals: Gekas (Panathinaikos/Kallithea) 15 goals: Luciano (Xanthi) 14 goals: Konstantinou (Panathinaikos), Salpiggidis (PAOK) 12 goals: Machlas (OFI) 11 goals: Soares (AEK), Barkoglou (Egaleo), Ogunsoto (Ergotelis), Rivaldo (Olympiacos) 10 goals: Katsouranis (AEK), Giovanni (Olympiacos)

29th Round (22/5/2005)

Xanthi-Kallithea Ionikos-OFI Aris-Iraklis Panathinaikos-AEK Olympiacos-Panionios Apollo Kalamaria-PAOK Ergotelis-Kerkyra Egaleo-Chalkidona

30th Round

Ionikos-Xanthi Kallithea-Aris OFI-Panathinaikos Iraklis-Olympiacos AEK-Apollo Kalamaria Panionios-Ergotelis PAOK-Egaleo Kerkyra-Chalkidona

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[07] Salvation Samba

By Dimitris Alexopoulos

Kalamaria took a decisive step towards staying in A National today. Kokotovic's team and Clayton who performed a hat-trick and was thus proclaimed star of the day, prevailed in Neapoli with 2-3 against Chalkidona, thus confirming that they are better when playing in away matches than on home grounds.

The Hat-Trick Clayton Show

Both teams were eager to win, each for different reasons and went after victory with passion. Chalkidona were lucky enough to take the lead as early as in the 2' with Korakakis' close shot, but failed to take advantage of the total surprise they had just achieved. The Thessalonikan team answered back and tied to one all in the 12' with Clayton, who took advantage of Pappas' assist and successfully defeated Ebede.

In the 20' Chalkidona took the lead again, when Korakakis was awarded a free kick, which Zacharopoulos succefully sent to the opponents' nets. However, Kalamaria had the answer once again. They were also awarded a free kick in the 35' when Clayton took advantage of Dimos' wrong turn to Ebede and was overthrown by the goalkeeper. Clayotn himself performed the free kick and retied the match.

The second half was less spectacular bur one thing was obvious: Kalamaria were after the three points of victory and kept looking for a scoring opportunity. Pappas twice and Wellington once missed from favourable spots, but the night belonged to Clayton.

In the 72' the Brazilian made an impressive attempt and left Ebede behind thus sending the ball into the nets and giving Kalamaria three points that could mean their stay in A National.

Referee: Tsikinis (Kilkis)

CHALKIDONA: Ebede, Geladaris, Koutsis, Dimos (58' Al Jaher), Pappas (81' Moyo), Katemis, Sotirchos, Zacharopoulos, Simos, Korakakis, Iliopoulos

APOLLO KALAMARIA: Zafeiropoulos, Fytanidis, Pappas, N.C. Papadopoulos, Clayton, Wellington (90+ Nikolopoulos), Iliadis, Petkakis (89' Karaliopoulos), Hadji, Wella Junior (84' Kousas), N. A. Papadopoulos

Translated by Sofia Soulioti

[08] High Chances for UEFA

By Vasilis Kalpinos

Simply and easily Egaleo defeated relegated Ergotelis and are now enjoying sixth place alone. Ile Dumitrescu's team want to remain in that spot which will probably lead them to the UEFA cup next season. However, this defeat cost dearly to the Cretans as they are mathematically relegated to B National. It was a bad match and will be quickly forgotten by the fans who watched it. The home team had the advantage of playing on home grounds, but had problems creating scoring attempts before Ximerakis' post. Finally the match came down to two goals at crucial times: one at the end of the first half and one at the beginning of the second. In the 44', Anestis Agritis found himself in an advantageous position, made the shot, the ball hit on the post but in the comeback Egaleo's forward did not make the same mistake twice and opened the score. The final 2-0 was formed in the 48' with Barkoglou's strong kick inside Ergotelis' area. From then onwards, it was a done deal and the two teams simply waited from the final whistle blow.

Translated by Sofia Soulioti

[09] Breath for OFI

By Dimitris Alexopoulos

Deep breath for OFI today, as they defeated Xanthi with 1-0. Just two rounds before the end of the season, the Cretan team won a difficult fight and have distanced themselves by three points from the relegation zone. Surely the Cretans cannot celebrate their stay yet, but they can always be optimistic of remaining in A National.

Free Kick Was the Answer

The match had a one-sided interest, as the Cretans were this close to relegation, while Xanthi have already ensured a place in the UEFA cup next season. So the home team gained control of the match from the beginning and threatened in the 15' for the first time, when Pizanovski easily saved Dejanov's foul kick. In the 22' the Bulgarian player did it better, this time from the free kick point. OFI were given one more chance in the 33', when Nwafor sent the ball wide, although shooting before an empty post.

In the rerun, Xanthi reacted and imposed their own pace but failed to tie the match. Kazakis lost the best chance for the guests in the 62' when he sent the ball wide, and so the Cretans claimed precious victory which could mean their stay in A National. Referee: Kakos (Kerkyra)

OFI: Sifakis, Tomas, Arvanitis, Davidson, Kounenakis, Pitsos, Dejanov, Belevonis (11' Stavrakakis), Hadjiadrian, Machlas, Nwafor XANTHI: Pizanovski, Paviot, Sikov, Machratze, Papadimitriou, Vozambal, Kazakis, Baykara, Prittas, Lambriakos (46' Clebert), Lucciano (72' Garpozis)

Translated by Sofia Soulioti

The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article