The Melbourne Cup is the horse race that stops a nation. This year's race will attract even more interest than usual because of one of the horse owners: Chechnyan President Ramzan Kadyrov. Kadyrov has been compared with "Stalin" because of his treatment of political opponents. A person making this comparison, courageous human rights journalist Anna Politkovskaya, was coincidentally shot dead a few weeks later in Moscow. (She risked her life offending powerful interests in Russia). Allegations against him have been filed at the European Court of Human Rights. But he has not been found guilty of any crime. Chechnya is... Full article »

Tags: Asia, conflict, sociology, sport

                    There is no higher calling than saving test cricket from being short-changed by 20 Twenty. While some are confident floodlit tests are the answer, wiser heads believe it lies in responding to the desperate plight of the cricket fan. Fans arriving at the Sydney Cricket Ground on the first day of a test match are brimming with excitement until their grog is confiscated upon entry. The mid-strength grog available inside the ground doesn't contain enough of the good stuff to sustain excitement over a five day stay at the ground;... Full article »

Tags: Australasia, entertainment, Europe, sport

                    In rugby league circles a sobering thought has been gaining momentum. Players are getting suspended, fined and fired for consuming the products of on-air TV sponsors which they are supposed to promote. In a non-descript bar in inner Sydney the audacity of hope has once again come to the rescue. One of the game's leading thinkers was forced to pause mid-schooner as he reeled from the shockwaves of not one but two flashes of pure genius. Rugby league and grog he realised were inseparable and what's more if it's ok... Full article »

Posted by: Roger Pugh at 10:23 AM Comment

Tags: entertainment, health, sociology, sport