All Sport Club

Southgate - working hard.
SOUTHGATE ACCEPTS SACK THREAT

Gareth Southgate accepts he is not immune from the sack after acknowledging Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson’s loyalty.

Boro are only outside the relegation zone on goal difference after a run of eight games without a Premier League win.

Southgate continues to receive Gibson’s backing at the Riverside, but the manager insists he does not take his job for granted.

“The chairman has been loyal, but then he has seen that we have done behind the scenes what has been asked of us,” said Southgate in The Guardian.

“I’m certainly not immune from dismissal and I don’t take my job for granted, but the one thing we all have here is a realism about things.

“He knows the different workings from last year and that we have been working hard to try to get results under different circumstances.

“Everybody at the club is aware of the situation, what we are doing and what needs to be done.

“We have to continue doing everything to the best of our ability and strive to reach new standards.”

Meanwhile, Southgate has played down suggestions of a feud between Boro and Manchester United following Monday’s meeting at Old Trafford.

Emanuel Pogatetz’s set-to with Cristiano Ronaldo was the latest in a string of contentious incidents between the clubs, but Southgate insists there is no bad feeling.

He added: “Suggestions that there’s a feud between the two clubs is nonsense and as far as I’m concerned there’s no way there’s any bad feeling at all.

“We have the greatest respect for United and everything they have achieved.”

More all-weather action planned at Kempton.
CHELTENHAM HOPEFUL AS FREEZE BITES

Cheltenham leads an air of optimism that 2009 will begin with jumps racing despite the current cold spell that continues to bite into the fixture list.

Cheltenham, Catterick and Exeter have all called precautionary checks at 8am on Thursday but all remain optimistic about their chances of racing on New Year’s Day. Fakenham will look at 7.30am.

Temperatures dropped as low as minus seven degrees overnight at Cheltenham but having covered the course on Sunday, the ground is holding up well and the frost is not expected to be as fierce overnight.

“Temperatures got up to minus one today, but having said that, we were looking round at 1.30pm and everything was fine,” said clerk of the course Simon Claisse.

“We pulled one of the covers to one side at 9.30am as that’s the time we need to be removing them tomorrow and by 3.30pm it had not gone white with the frost and the ground underneath had not frozen.

“That was encouraging and I walked the course this afternoon and everywhere under the covers was fine and one or two areas where we hadn’t laid covers, as we haven’t raced on it at all, were all fine as well.

“Bearing in mind last night’s experience with minus seven which didn’t seem to prevent us from being raceable this morning, tonight is minus four.

“We are forecast a dawn temperature of minus two which is three degrees warmer than this morning, so we can only be optimistic.”

Exeter were forced to call off the chases scheduled for the fixture on Tuesday but after covering the hurdles track, clerk Barry Johnson is hopeful about their prospects.

“We are forecast minus one tonight. If it doesn’t get any worse than that we’d be OK, so it’s fingers crossed.”

His Catterick counterpart Fiona Needham has taken similar encouragement from overnight events.

She said: “If we can maintain cloud cover we will be fine, but we are forecast to drop to between minus one and three tonight so we felt it prudent to take a look.”

Thursday’s meeting at Fakenham is subject to a further inspection at 7.30am.

An initial look at midday on Wednesday proved inconclusive but any further frost would place the meeting in some doubt.

“We wouldn’t be able to race today but we have no frost forecast and we should have some cloud cover. Any frost at all would put the kibosh on us,” said clerk of the course David Hunter.

However, racing on Friday and Saturday looks like being hit with several inspections already being called.

Prospects for Ayr’s two-day programme are bleak with tomorrow’s 9.30am inspection looking a mere formality.

The course has been frozen for the last three days and the forecast is for more cold weather.

“It’s very unlikely we are going to be racing based on the forecast,” said clerk of the course Katherine Self.

“The course has not been raceable for the last three days. It’s been minus four, then it was minus one last night and we are forecast minus five tonight.”

Jumps racing is also scheduled for Folkestone on Friday. Although the track is currently frozen in places, no inspection has yet been planned as temperatures are set to rise and could be as high as plus seven on Friday.

Saturday’s meeting at Sandown, featuring the Grade One Blue Square Tolworth Hurdle, is under severe threat due to frost.

Clerk of the course Andrew Cooper has called an inspection for noon tomorrow to assess the situation as early as possible.

He said: “We’ve called an inspection for tomorrow as that is the earliest we are allowed to look and we’ll just take stock.

“We are some way off racing at the moment, parts of the course are frozen solid but I wouldn’t say it is a lost cause just yet.”

Officials at Wincanton rate their chances of racing on Saturday as 50-50.

An inspection has been called for 8am on Friday with the going described as good to soft, frozen in places.

“It’s going to be 50-50. If the forecast is right there is going to be a bit of a thaw on Friday,” said clerk of the course Barry Johnson.

“If the temperature gets up to four degrees we would have a sporting chance. Friday morning is the key.”

There was no jumps racing on the final day of 2008 with the meetings at Uttoxeter and Warwick being lost while an additional all-weather fixture has been arranged at Kempton on Saturday.

Denny Morrison and Christine Nesbitt strike Gold at Richmond Olympic Oval

(Richmond, BC, December 29, 2008) – After three days of competitions at the Canadian Single Distance Championships in Richmond, Denny Morrison (Fort St. John, BC) won his third medal in a row. Morrison went all the way for gold by winning the men’s 1000m with a time of 1:10.72. Clocking in at 1:17.25, Christine Nesbitt (London, ON) was awarded the Canadian Champion Title on the women’s side in the same distance.

Shannon Rempel (Winnipeg, MB) finished second to Nesbitt, winning her second medal this week at the Richmond Olympic Oval, while Brittany Schussler (Winnipeg, MB) raced to third place with a time of 1:18.31. Kerry Dankers (Melville, SK) was fourth in 1:20.10, and Tamara Oudenaarden (St. Albert, AB) took fifth place, finishing only 0.07 seconds behind Dankers.

“I’m very happy with the results. The 1000m is my favourite race and I had fun racing it today,” said Kerry Danker when asked how she felt about her race. “Since an injury I had two years ago, I haven’t been able to get back to the top of my shape for the 1000m. I told my coach I wanted to train and improve my 1000m during the fall. Although I raced the 500m at the World Cups this year, it’s really the 1000m that I want to race.” With today’s results Kerry Dankers got what she wanted for Christmas; she will be back racing in the 1000m at the World Cups this winter.

The men’s 1000m contest was a fierce battle and the skaters were very close. Kyle Parrott (St-Albert, AB) finished second to Morrison with a time of 1:10.99. Right behind Parrott was François-Olivier Roberge (St-Nicolas, QC) who came in third, completing the distance in 1:11.01. Jamie Gregg (Edmonton, AB) finished in fourth place, while veteran Steven Elm (Red Deer, AB) ended in fifth place with a time of 1:11.36.

“It was quite a race. I had a very good opener but my first run didn’t go as well as I wanted. Nonetheless, my race was good on the technical side,” said François-Olivier Roberge. “Looking at the results after the race, I was very surprised at how close we all were. I mean, I was only 0.02 from second place. Now I am looking forward to racing the 1500m tomorrow. I will be working on making my exits after each turn stronger. Just like today, I want to be in the top five.”

Tomorrow, spectators at Richmond Olympic Oval will see both women and men skate in the 1500m.

Mylene Croteau
Speed Skating Canada
mcroteau@speedskating.ca

HOCKEY CANADA FOUNDATION TO LAUNCH TEAM CANADA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

What:
Hockey Canada will hold a press conference to announce the details of the Team Canada Alumni Association, a group launched by the Hockey Canada Foundation for all past Team Canada players, coaches and support staff

When:
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
12:30 p.m. ET

Where:
SBP Arena
* Coliseum Room (2009 IIHF World Junior Championship Press Conference Room)
1000 Palladium Dr.
Kanata, ON
* media should enter via Gate 2 (valet parking entrance)

NOTE – World Junior Championship accreditation is required to attend this press conference. Media without accreditation should contact Chris Jurewicz (cjurewicz@hockeycanada.ca) for a day pass.

In attendance:
Bob Nicholson, president/CEO, Hockey Canada
Delparte, CFO, Hockey Canada
David Andrews, president/CEO, American Hockey League, Team Canada alumnus
Denis Potvin, Team Canada alumnus
Members of Canada’s 1988 National Junior Team, which won gold at the 1988 World Junior Championship

For more information, please contact Chris Jurewicz, Hockey Canada’s coordinator of media relations. Chris will be on site for the press conference and can be reached at (403) 880-5819 or cjurewicz@hockeycanada.ca.

-30-

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

André Brin
Sr. Manager, Media Relations/Broadcast
Hockey Canada
(403) 777-4557/ (403) 540-8444
abrin@hockeycanada.ca

Chris Jurewicz
Coord., Media Relations
Hockey Canada
(403) 777-4552
cjurewicz@hockeycanada.ca

Jason La Rose
Coord., Communications/Content Development
Hockey Canada
(403) 777-4553
jlarose@hockeycanada.ca

Nesbitt and Morrison strike gold again at Canadian Championships

(Richmond, BC, December 30, 2008) – British Colombia native Denny Morrison ((Fort St. John, BC) earned his fourth medal today at the Canadian Single Distance Championships by claiming the gold in the men’s 1500m. Christine Nesbitt (London, ON) also continued her golden streak at the Richmond Olympic Oval, winning the women’s race.

Repeating yesterday’s performance, Nesbitt climbed onto the highest step of the podium, thanks to a time of 2:00.10 in the women’s 1500m. Shannon Rempel (Winnipeg, MB) took silver with a time of 2:01.07 and third place was awarded to Brittany Schussler (Winnipeg, MB) who clocked in 0.41 seconds behind Rempel. Clara Hughes (Winnipeg, MB) took fourth place with a time of 2:03.43 while nineteen year old Justine L’Heureux (St-Tite, QC) finished fifth, skating the 1500m in 2:04.63.

L’Heureux, who is on the long track National Development Team, missed the chance to qualify for the World Cup women’s 1500m race by only a second. “It was a very good race. I skated with Christine Nesbitt, and it was motivating and exciting to race beside one of the world’s best” said Justine L’Heureux when asked how she felt about her race today. “I used to be better in the 3000m, but for the last year or so, I have done pretty well in the 1000m and 1500m. I keep improving and learning with every race”.

Finishing second in the men’s 1500m was Lucas Makowsky (Regina, SK) who completed the distance in 1:48.70, followed by Steven Elm (Red Deer, AB) in 1:49.63. François-Olivier Roberge (St-Nicolas, QC) took fourth place while former short track skater Mathieu Giroux (Montreal, QC) finished fifth and qualified to race the distance at the World Cups.

“It was an excellent race and I am happy with my results,” said Giroux at the end of the day. “There are a lot more skaters in the 1500m than in the 5000m, so it’s great that I qualified for the World Cups. Skating at the World Cups is going to be quite the learning experience in preparation for the Olympics. My coaches and I will be working hard on volume, long distance and intensity trainings in prevision of the 2010 Games.”

Tomorrow is the last day of the Canadian Single Distance Championships. The men will skate the 10000m while the women will race in the 5000m.

Young and Agbonlahor - relief at late winner.
BROWN FUMES OVER KEY DECISIONS

Hull boss Phil Brown claimed to be bemused after being awarded then denied a late penalty in Tuesday night’s defeat by Aston Villa.

Hull were beaten 1-0 after a drab Barclays Premier League encounter at the KC Stadium burst into life in the final two minutes.

Villa snatched what turned out to be the winner in the 88th minute when Kamil Zayatte turned Ashley Young’s cross into his own net.

But there was still time for more drama as referee Steve Bennett pointed to the spot after ruling that Young had handled on his own line in injury-time.

Villa protested and Bennett changed his mind after consulting with his assistant, who correctly had seen the ball hit the bar and not Young’s hand.

Brown conceded the “harsh reality” was that the final decision was correct but he was unhappy at the about-turn.

“People will end up talking about the penalty decision which wasn’t,” said Brown, who got into an argument over the matter with a journalist in his post-match press conference.

“It’s beyond me whether it was a penalty or it wasn’t - he’s given it.

“A referee gives a penalty and then a linesman tells you it’s not.

“Some days you get bad days at the office because of referees, other days you get bad days at the office because of players.

“Today was a good day at the office from the players and not so good from the ref.”

Brown was at least pleased with the performance of his players after their 5-1 thrashing at Manchester City on Boxing Day.

Brown, who made five changes following their Eastlands humiliation, said: “What is relevant is that is a great performance from Hull City and one I am quite proud of.

“I’m quite pleased with the mentality, quite pleased with the response.”

FROST CLAIMS WARWICK CARD

Officials at Warwick have been forced to abandon Wednesday’s meeting due to a frozen track.

The venue experienced a hard overnight frost and with temperatures not set to rise much above freezing, clerk of the course Andrew Morris was left with no choice but to abandon.

He said: “We went down to minus five and a half degrees last night and it is still only minus three now.

“There is frost in the ground and the daytime temperature is forecast to be zero to plus one so there is no chance of it coming out of the ground.”

The new Canadian Sport Dispute Resolution Code takes effect on January 1, 2009

Montréal (Québec) – The Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada (SDRCC) is pleased to announce that the new Canadian Sport Dispute Resolution Code (“Code”), posted on its website at http://www.crdsc-sdrcc.ca/eng/dispute-resolution-code.cfm, will come into effect on January 1, 2009. The publication of this Code follows a public consultation during which the entire sport community was invited to provide input, comments, and suggestions on a draft version.

Notable changes include:
- improved definitions of parties, affected parties and intervenors;
- new timelines for filing a request and for rendering cost or doping decisions;
- new provisions pertaining to the language of the proceedings;
- clarification of the resolution facilitation services;
- amendment to the rule on the onus of proof in team selection disputes; and
- several other changes mandated by the new Canadian Anti-Doping Program 2009.

We sincerely thank all individuals from the legal and sport communities who took the time to consider the proposed revisions and provide helpful feedback. We are confident that this new Code will enable the delivery of better services to the members of the sport community.

About SDRCC

The SDRCC is a not-for-profit corporation created by federal legislation and funded by Sport Canada. The mission of the SDRCC is to provide the sport community with a national alternative dispute resolution service and strengthen the culture of fairness in Canadian sport by resolving disputes quickly and efficiently and to provide expertise and assistance regarding alternative dispute resolution.

For more information, please contact:

Marie-Claude Asselin
Executive Director and CEO
Tel: 1-866-733-7767
Fax: 1-877-733-1246
Mobile: (514) 465-7339
mcasselin@crdsc-sdrcc.ca

Agger - hoping to stay.
AGGER HOPES FOR ANFIELD STAY

Defender Daniel Agger hopes a new deal for him to stay at Liverpool can be ironed out.

The Dane is in talks over a new contract with his current deal having 18 months left to run.

Reports emanating from Italy claim AC Milan are waiting in the wings to sign Agger if contract talks with Liverpool continue to stall.

But the 24-year-old, who is now back in the side after a lengthy injury lay-off, insists he would like to remain at Liverpool and hopes agreement is reached.

Asked if he will stay at Liverpool, Agger told the Daily Post: “I hope so. I don’t know what the hold-up is. I let the club do the talking and I will try and do mine on the pitch.

“I am trying to improve. I feel it is getting better and better in every game. I am feeling more comfortable and trying to improve in every game.

“Of course I want to stay if it is possible.

“As I say, the club is dealing with my contract talks and we will take it from there.”

McDermott - new role with the Rhinos.
McDERMOTT LANDS LEEDS ROLE

Leeds have named club legend Barrie McDermott as their new head of youth development.

The former Great Britain prop, a Super League and Challenge Cup winner with the Rhinos, will take up the position on January 1.

McDermott, 36, made 283 appearances in a 10-year career at Headingley before retiring after a single season with Widnes in 2006.

Since then he has done community work with the Rhinos and developed a high-profile media career.

McDermott said: “I am excited by the opportunity to perform this role at a club which I believe is the best in the world at developing and promoting young talent.”

McDermott’s association with Leeds stretches back to 1995 when he joined the club from Wigan. He began his playing career with hometown Oldham.