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ESTORIL – Pembalap Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Colin Edwards bertekad membayar kesalahannya pada GP Spanyol empat pekan lalu. Edwards membidik posisi enam besar di Portugal.
 
Edwards nyaris finis di posisi tiga saat berlaga di Jerez beberapa waktu lalu. Sayang, di lap-lap akhir dia tergelincir dan gagal mendapat podium. Posisi ketiga pun harus rela diberikan kepada Nicky Hayden.
 
Akibat kegagalan itulah, Edwards berambisi kembali menunjukkan kemampuan terbaiknya di GP Portugal, Minggu (1/5/2011). Apalagi, Sirkuit Estoril cukup akrab dengan pembalap veteran ini.
 
Edwards pernah dua kali finis di posisi empat pada 2006 dan 2008 lalu. Dan dalam sembilan tahun berkarier di MotoGP pembalap asal Texas hanya sekali gagal finis di 10 besar.
 
"Beberapa tahun lalu saya pernah berjuang memperebutkan posisi pertama dan saya menyukai Estoril," demikian komentar Edwards.
 
"Saya selalu melakukannya dengan baik dan akan menyenangkan bisa kembali membalap setelah libur panjang. Trek di sana seperti cocok dengan gaya saya dan dengan performa ekstra bersama Yamaha, saya yakin kami akan mendapat hasil memuaskan," imbuhnya.
 
Optimisme Edwards bukan tanpa alasan. Selain catatan bagus yang dimiliki, Yamaha juga kerap menoreh hasil maksimal selama berlaga di Estoril.
 
"Yamaha selalu tampil bagus di Estoril dan memiliki keseimbangan yang baik. Jadi, tak ada alasan kenapa saya tak bisa datang ke sana dan mengincar setidaknya posisi enam besar," tutup pembalap 37 tahun, seperti dikutip Crash, Rabu (27/4/2011).

(wei)

ESTORIL– Masa rehat empat pekan tak membuat awak Ducati santai. Tim asal Italia justru terus berbenah. Selain untuk persiapan GP Portugal, Ducati juga terus melakukan pengembangan motor yang akan digunakan musim depan.

Ducati memang belum menunjukkan performa terbaiknya sepanjang musim ini. Pencapaian maksimal duet Valentino Rossi dan Nicky Hayden adalah di Spanyol, ketika masing-masing finis peringkat lima dan tiga.

Manajer Ducati Vito Guareschi menegaskan pengembangan motor Ducati untuk musim 2012, yang baru-baru ini dilakukan di Jerez akan dilanjutkan di Mugello. Sayang, Guareschi tak bersedia memberikan bocoran sejauh mana pengembangan motor yang akan digunakan untuk musim depan.

"Saya tak akan katakan catatan waktu yang kami lakukan di Jerez, tapi kami kembali ke rumah dengan sangat senang. Hal fundamental adalah terus memverifikasi mesin," tandas Guareschi, dilansir Autosport, Rabu (27/4/2011).

"Setingan kerangka motor lebih cepat dimodifikasi, lalu kemudian catatan waktu. Vale, Nicky, pembalap ujicoba Franco Battaini dan saya melakukan hingga lebih dari 600 mil tanpa masalah," tambahnya.

"Bagi saya, mesin 1000cc (sesuai dengan aturan tahun 2012) lebih menyenangkan, Anda merasakan lagi sensasi dari mesin lama 990cc. Meski banyak revolusi ketimbang motor 800 cc, anda memiliki banyak tenaga dan bisa mengurangi penggunaan elektronik," beber Guareschi mengenai perbedaan mesin 1000cc dengan mesin sebelumnya.

Lebih lanjut, Guareschi menegaskan timnya butuh waktu lebih banyak untuk menemukan performa terbaik Ducati musim depan.

"Kami selangkah di depan untuk proyek ini. Kami perlu melakukan enam ribu mil tes agar siap musim depan, tapi saya pikir delapan hari waktu pengetesan dengan para pembalap akan cukup," tutupnya.

(wei)

AKIBAT jadual Liga Super yang padat, jurulatih skuad Olimpik negara, Ong Kim Swee terpaksa melepaskan peluang terbaik menguji kemampuan anak buahnya sempena kunjungan skuad Olimpik Arab Saudi ke Kuala Lumpur, hari ini.

Skuad Olimpik negara yang sebilangan besar pemainnya beraksi bersama skuad Harimau Muda A tidak dapat mengadakan perlawanan persahabatan dengan pasukan itu yang memilih Malaysia sebagai lokasi latihan pusat bagi persediaan mengharungi pusingan kedua kelayakan Olimpik 2012 London, Jun ini.

Sepanjang lapan hari pasukan Arab Saudi berada di negara ini, Harimau Muda A terikat dengan perlawanan Liga Super menentang Perlis (30 April), dan Felda United (6 Mei).

Azman Eusoff yang membantu menguruskan kedatangan Arab Saudi ke Kuala Lumpur berkata, sebagai pengganti, pasukan dari negara Teluk itu terpaksa memanggil skuad Olimpik Korea Utara bagi mengadakan dua perlawanan persahabatan di Stadium Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya, Kelana Jaya, pada Ahad dan 4 Mei ini.

"Pada mulanya Arab Saudi meminta mengadakan perlawanan persahabatan dengan skuad Olimpik negara tapi akibat jadual liga yang padat, jurulatih Ong Kim Swee tidak dapat memenuhinya.

"Arab Saudi kemudian sanggup membiayai perbelanjaan Korea Utara ke Kuala Lumpur sebagai pengganti skuad negara," kata Azman, bekas penolong jurulatih Harimau Muda A yang kini membimbing skuad Universiti Utara Malaysia.

Kuala Lumpur menjadi lokasi terbaik Arab Saudi untuk melakukan persiapan sebelum menentang Vietnam pada pusingan kelayakan Olimpik. Sewajarnya kesempatan itu digunakan sepenuhnya skuad Olimpik negara yang bakal berdepan lawan yang memiliki corak permainan yang sama, Lubnan di Beirut pada 19 Jun ini.

Kim Swee yang diminta mengulas mengenai perkara itu berkata, beliau terpaksa akur dengan situasi di mana Harimau Muda A yang menjadi teras skuad Olimpik negara terpaksa menumpukan kepada saingan liga.

"Harimau Muda A terikat dengan jadual Liga Super, kalau tidak ada komitmen, tidak menjadi masalah. Pada ketika ini, saya juga tidak dapat mengumpul pemain dari pasukan lain untuk bersama skuad Olimpik jika mahu mengadakan perlawanan dengan Arab Saudi.

"Apa yang saya boleh lakukan selepas ini adalah berusaha mengatur perlawanan lain untuk skuad Olimpik pada 7 Jun sebelum mengadakan latihan pusat di Qatar. Mungkin perlawanan itu akan membabitkan pasukan negara jiran seperti Singapura dan Thailand," katanya.

Skuad Olimpik negara mara ke pusingan kedua kelayakan Olimpik selepas menumpaskan Pakistan pada pusingan pertama menerusi agregat 2-0 dan memburu tiket ke temasya sukan terbesar itu selepas kali terakhir layak beraksi di Sukan Olimpik Moscow 1980.

DATUK Seri Shahidan Kassim masih berteka-teki sama ada mahu merebut jawatan Presiden Majlis Olimpik Malaysia (MOM) dipertandingkan bagi penggal baru 2011-2013 pada 18 Jun ini yang dijalankan serentak sempena Mesyuarat Agung Tahunan (AGM) majlis itu.

Presiden Kesatuan Olahraga Amatur Malaysia (KOAM) dan Persatuan Renang Amatur Malaysia (Asum) itu menjelaskan masih terlalu awal untuk menyatakan pendiriannya dan membuat keputusan berhubung perkara itu.

"Borang pencalonanpun belum diedarkan. Pendirian saya akan diketahui apabila tiba masanya nanti," katanya kepada pemberita pada satu sidang media kelmarin.

Menurutnya, dunia yang kini terbuka memerlukan perubahan termasuk juga dalam bidang sukan namun jika tiada pertukaran dari segi kepimpinan mungkin sesetengah sikap yang perlu diubah.

Sekiranya berhasrat untuk bertanding kali ini, bekas Menteri Besar Perlis itu bakal berdepan Tan Sri Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja'afar yang sudah mengesahkan untuk mempertahankan jawatan disandangnya sejak 1999 selepas menewaskan penyandang pada ketika itu, Tan Sri Hamzah Abu Samah.

Shahidan sebelum ini sudah dua kali menarik diri untuk mencabar Tan Sri Tunku Imran di mana pada penggal 2009-2011, tindakan itu diambil sehari sebelum berlangsungnya AGM dengan alasan ingin menjaga perpaduan di kalangan ahli gabungan.

Semua 12 jawatan utama MOM seperti presiden, timbalan presiden, naib presiden dan setiausaha kehormat dipertandingkan bagi menggantikan mereka yang dipilih untuk penggal 2009-2011 yang berakhir Jun ini dengan kertas pencalonan akan dikeluarkan bulan depan.

Menurut perlembagaan MOM, 35 persatuan sukan kebangsaan yang menjadi anggota gabungan akan mencalonkan tiga wakil bagi mengundi pada pemilihan itu, menjadikan bilangan maksimum yang layak mengundi ialah 105 orang namun penyandang jawatan tidak mempunyai hak untuk mengundi.

Selain Tan Sri Tunku Imran, Setiausaha Kehormat MOM, Datuk Sieh Kok Chi juga menyatakan hasrat mempertahankan jawatan disandangnya sejak 1992 manakala Tan Sri Dr M Jegathesan memutuskan tidak mahu mempertahankan jawatan timbalan presiden.

Sukan

MADRID: Dua kelab terkaya dunia - Real Madrid dan Barcelona sudah bertembung sesama mereka dua kali dalam tempoh lima hari iaitu dalam saingan La Liga danfinal Piala Raja Sepanyol.

Barca menguatkan impian memburu gelaran la Liga selepas seri 1-1 dengan Real di San Bernabeu pada 16 April tetapi Real menang 1-0 dalam final piala pada 20 April lalu.

Siapa akan melonjak ceria, hari ini? Walaupun Real memenangi pertemuan terakhir ke atas musuh tradisi mereka dari Catalan itu namun dari segi rekod anak didik Pep Guardiola berada di hadapan sejak beberapa musim lalu mengatasi barisan pimpinan Jose Mourinho. - Agensi

Sukan

Penjelasan daripada Ketua Pengarah Majlis Sukan Negara (MSN), Datuk Zolkples Embong, semalam secara terang menolak cadangan Presiden KOAM, Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim untuk memegang tanggungjawab membayar elaun atlitnya seperti diamalkan sebelum Sukan Komanwel 1998.

Kredibiliti KOAM dalam pengurusan wang yang diamanahkan itu boleh dipersoalkan apabila KOAM yang sepatutnya menggunakan peruntukan itu untuk membekalkan peralatan kepada pusat latihan negeri di bawah program Sukan Teras, tidak memberi penjelasan mengenai penggunaan wang itu.

"Pada masa itu, kita sudah bantu hingga mendapatkan sebut harga bagi mereka bekalkan peralatan yang sepatutnya kepada negeri namun barang itu sampai sekarang tidak pernah dibeli atau wang itu dipulangkan kepada MSN sehingga hari ini," katanya.

Zolkples bagaimanapun tidak pasti sama ada presiden KOAM itu sudah dimaklumkan mengenai 'sejarah' pengurusan wang badan induk itu sebelum ini atau tidak.
Kelmarin, Shahidan meminta tanggungjawab menguruskan pembayaran elaun atlit diserahkan semula kepada badan induk itu apa lagi selepas kegagalan MSN yang dikatakan gagal membayar elaun atlit dan jurulatih mengikut jadual sehingga tertunggak beberapa bulan.

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID,JAKARTA - Menteri Pemuda dan Olahraga, Andi Mallarangeng, kembali menyatakan bahwa pemerintah tidak akan mendukung kongres PSSI tandingan.

"Jangan ada kongres tandingan. Pemerintah tidak akan mendukung kongres tandingan oleh siapapun itu," kata Andi di kompleks Istana Negara, Jakarta, Rabu (27/4).

Andi mengimbau agar kongres PSSI tetap harus berjalan sesuai dengan mekanisme Komite Normalisasi sebagai komite pemilihan. "Silahkan, lakukan tugasnya dan kemudian menyelenggarakan kongres sesuai yang dijadwalkan pada 20 Mei," ujarnya.

Saat ditanya mengenai sikap sejumlah orang yang tetap ngotot mendukung calon tertentu, Menpora menolak berkomentar. "Saya tidak ingin memasuki wilayah proses komite pemilihan. Biar komite pemilihan dan komite banding menjalankan tugasnya," katanya.

Ketua Komite Normalisasi (KN), Agum Gumelar, tidak gentar dengan ancaman kelompok 78 pemilik suara PSSI yang akan ngotot menggelar kongres tandingan. Sekalipun demikian, dua berharap hal itu tidak terjadi.

KN tetap akan menjalankan amanat FIFA dan menyerahkan apa pun hasilnya kepada asosiasi tertinggi sepakbola dunia itu. KN akan menjalankan tugasnya dengan berusaha mengkomunikasikan persoalan dengan semua pihak.

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Petinju kawakan Indonesia Muhammad Rachman menyampaikan unek-uneknya ke presiden saat di terima di halaman tengah Istana Kepresidenan Rabu (27/4) . Rachman merasa kurang mendapatkan perhatian saat hendak bertanding melawan petinju Thailan Kwanthai Sithmorseng, di negeri Gajah Putih itu.

Rachman menuturkan ketika berangkat dari Blitar dia hanya berdua dengan rekan kerjanya. Kemudian ada tim tambahan dari Jakarta dua orang.  "Jadi kita cuma empat orang di sana," katanya pada Presiden.

Walaupun begitu, karena motivasinya yang cukup tinggi dia tetap bertarung dengan semangat. Hingga pada akhirnya dia berhasil menjadi juara dunia kelas terbang mini setelah menaklukan lawannya itu dengan KO pada ronde sembilan.

Sebagaimana diketahui Petinju veteran, M Rahman membuat kejutan dengan  menjadi juara dunia kelas terbang mini di usianya yang menjelang 40 tahun.

Petinju kelahiran Merauke Papua merebut sabuk juara dunia versi World Boxing Association (WBA) pada usia 39 tahun dari tangan petinju Thailand Kwanthai Sithmorseng di Thailand, Selasa (19/4) dengan menang KO di ronde sembilan.  

Gelar ini merupakan yang kedua kalinya direbut. Pada tahun 2004-2007, pria yang saat ini menetap di Blitar Jawa Timur itu merebut juara dunia kelas terbang mini versi IBF setelah mengalahkan petinju asal Kolombia, Daniel Reyes. 

Lunas dendam di Bernabeu

penentuan siapa lebih hebat di antara jurulatih Real Madrid Jose Mourinho (kanan) dan rakan sejawatnya di Barcelona, Pep Guardiola akan terjawab hari ini apabila kedua-dua pasukan berentap pada perlawanan separuh akhir pertama Liga Juara-Juara di Stadium Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid. - REUTERS

MADRID - Memori pahit terlepas trofi Piala Raja Sepanyol minggu lalu masih segar dalam ingatan. Ini membuatkan Barcelona semakin membara untuk menebus kekalahan ke atas Real Madrid pada pertemuan separuh akhir pertama Liga Juara-Juara di Santiago Bernabeu, hari ini.

Ia merupakan pertemuan kali ketiga kelab gergasi Sepanyol itu selepas harapan Barcelona untuk mengekalkan rekod cemerlang di Bernabeu dileburkan Real dengan keputusan 0-1 pada perlawanan akhir Piala Raja Sepanyol, lima hari lalu.

Kemenangan Real ke atas Barcelona minggu lalu juga adalah kejuaraan pertama yang diperoleh Jose Mourinho sejak bergelar pengurus pasukan tersebut.

"Kami boleh mengatasi mereka lebih daripada dua perlawanan dan kami telah pun melakukannya.

"Tidak ada sebab kami tidak boleh menewaskan mereka dalam saingan Liga Juara-Juara kerana kami baru sahaja menewaskan mereka,'' kata Mourinho.

Sejarah di Madrid menunjukkan kelebihan memihak kepada Real berbanding Barcelona dalam dua pertemuan separuh akhir iaitu pada Piala Eropah 1960 dan Liga Juara-Juara 2002, yang menyaksikan Real dinobat sebagai juara.

Barcelona telah melalui saingan separuh akhir Liga Juara-Juara sebanyak empat kali dengan cemerlang sejak di bawah bimbingan jurulatih Pep Guardiola dan kini pasukan tersebut berharap mampu untuk meneruskan kejayaan pada perlawanan hari ini.

Dalam saingan La Liga Sabtu lalu, Barcelona mengekalkan kelebihan lapan mata daripada Real selepas menewaskan Osasuna 2-0.

"Kami mahu ke Madrid dengan semangat membara dan kami percaya sepenuhnya dengan keupayaan sendiri.

"Kami akui Madrid akan menjadi pilihan dan kami akan memanfaatkan kelebihan beraksi di Bernabeu untuk melakukan lebih banyak serangan, menjaringkan gol dan berusaha untuk mendapatkan kemenangan,'' kata Guardiola.

Penyerang Barcelona, Lionel Messi menjaringkan gol ke-50 musim ini sekali gus berupaya menyaingi rekod rekod terbaik iaitu 49 gol semusim yang dilakar legenda Real Madrid, Ferenc Puskas.

Jaringan Messi dan David Villa sewaktu menentang Osasuna menunjukkan prestasi kedua penyerang tersebut berada pada tahap yang terbaik untuk menghadapi perlawanan hari ini.

Bagaimanapun, kecederaan Adriano, yang masih belum pulih membuatkan Guardiola terpaksa mencari pemain yang sesuai untuk mengawasi posisi pertahanan dan pemain yang diramal akan mengalas tugas tersebut ialah Carles Puyol dan Eric Abidal yang baru pulih daripada kecederaan.

Dalam pada itu, Real mempunyai kelebihan apabila penyerang Argentina, Gonzalo Higuain dan pemain perancang Kaka kembali beraksi selepas berehat panjang.

"Dia (Kaka) adalah pemain yang sungguh mengagumkan dan corak permainannya juga sungguh hebat,'' kata Mourinho. - AFP

NEW DELHI, April 27 — An Indian court ordered the former chief organiser of the Delhi Commonwealth Games into police custody yesterday, as police stepped up a crackdown on businesses and government officials in a string of corruption cases to hit the emerging global giant.

Federal police on Monday arrested Suresh Kalmadi, a senior lawmaker who has been suspended from the ruling Congress party, charged with cheating in tenders for timing equipment worth millions of dollars in the October sporting event. Police will hold him for eight days from yesterday.

The case is one of several high-profile corruption scandals to strain the Congress party-led government and spark protests in the Indian capital against what is seen as a culture of near impunity for the country's elite.

In a separate case, a court deferred a decision on whether to grant bail to five executives charged with manipulating the sale of telecoms licences in collusion with senior officials in the ruling coalition.

New Delhi may have been deprived up to US$39 billion (RM116.82 billion) in lost revenue due to the flawed awarding of second-generation mobile telecom licences, a state auditor has said.

Kalmadi, who has become a pantomime villain in the Indian media, had a sandal thrown at him as he made his way to a court yesterday. He has denied any wrongdoing and his lawyer called the arrest "illegal".

"The accused person entered into a criminal conspiracy to cheat the government of India in the manner of awarding contracts for timings, scoring and results system to be acquired for the CWG, Delhi 2010," V.K. Sharma, a federal police lawyer for the prosecution, told the court on Tuesday.

The US$6 billion event was billed as India's answer to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but descended into rows over leaking stadiums, filthy athletes' rooms and corruption scandals.

Kalmadi's aides formed a tight phalanx around the lawmaker from the western city of Pune as he walked out of the court and the judge sat down to write the order. A female aide shouted to him: "God is with us". Rows of police armed with batons roped a path for Kalmadi to come in and out of the courtroom.

Months of relentless headlines about corruption scandals and a vocal political opposition have roiled the government, rattled investors and put the brakes on ambitious economic reforms in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's second term.

The Congress party suspended Suresh Kalmadi on Monday after he was charged with favouring a Swiss firm to provide 1.4 billion rupees (RM93.26 million) worth of timing equipment to the Games.

Kalmadi, who was booed at the Games' opening ceremony in front of a global TV audience in October, had his constituency office in Pune vandalised by a gang of angry youths on Monday night.

On Tuesday, onlookers shouted a mix of support and abuse as Kalmadi emerged from the court.

TELECOMS CASE

In an adjacent courtroom, former Telecoms Minister Andimuthu Raja was seen slumped over a table as a case over the sale of telecoms licences and spectrum continued on Tuesday.

Raja, along with executives from telecoms firms and the daughter of the leader of a regional party that is a key government ally, have been charged in the telecoms licence case.

In another courtroom, a Delhi high court judge deferred a hearing on the bail applications of senior officials from Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (ADA) Group and the Indian joint ventures of Norway's Telenor and the UAE's Etisalat until Friday at the earliest.

Their bail plea was rejected by a lower court last week after federal police said the executives could abscond or try to influence witnesses. They will be held in jail pending the trial or until they are granted bail. All those on trial in the telecoms case deny wrongdoing.

Federal police on Monday added more names to their charge sheet in the telecoms case, including the lawmaker daughter of the chief minister of Tamil Nadu state. She was accused of taking bribes routed via a TV channel owned by her family.

The case could potentially threaten Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's ruling coalition and provoke a popular backlash in ongoing state elections, including in Tamil Nadu, where Congress is allied to the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party.

The DMK threatened to pull ministers from the coalition if members of the chief minister's family were charged, according to media reports.

The DMK will meet in the state capital, Chennai, on Wednesday to discuss their coalition with the Congress party, a spokesman for the party told the NDTV news channel.

The DMK had also threatened to withdraw from the government in March in a row over seat-sharing arrangements in the Tamil Nadu election, for which results are out on May 13.

However, analysts question whether the DMK would act on such a threat, given that it needs Congress's clout in the state as much as Congress needs the DMK's 18 seats to maintain its federal majority. Congress could also look to other smaller parties to prop up its coalition. — Reuters 

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID,NEW YORK - Salah satu nama paling dihormati di tenis Amerika Serikat, Patrick McEnroe, mendapat sumpah serapah dari seorang petenis muda AS. McEnroe mendesak sang petenis muda, Donald Young, untuk segera meminta maaf.

Lewat jejaring sosial Twitter, Young mulai melontarkan sumpah serapahnya seusai dirinya kalah dalam partai final untuk memperebutkan tiket wild card Prancis Terbuka. Dia menyerang McEnroe dengan bersumpah serapah lewat twitter. ''USTA sialan. Mereka penuh dengan kebohongan. Mereka telah mengacaukan diriku selama bertahun-tahun. Cukup,'' tulis Young.

Sumpah serapah Young jelas ditujukan kepada McEnroe yang menjabat kepala program pengembangan pemain USTA. Sehari setelah 'serangan' Young tersebut, McEnroe menggelar jumpa pers untuk mendesak Young meminta maaf.

''Saya tersinggung atas nama orang-orang dalam timku yang sudah bekerja keras,'' kata McEnroe. ''Saya pikir Donald harus meminta maaf atas apa yang telah dikatakannya.''

Lewat jejaring sosial, Young secara pribadi sudah mengakui kesalahannya. ''Tweet itu bukan karakterku sesungguhnya. Saya tidak pernah seperti itu sebelumnya. Tapi, saya lelah. Aku minta maaf atas kata-kata kasarku,'' tulis Young yang kini telah menutup akun Twitter-nya.

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID,ESTORIL - Robin Soderling, dua kali finalis Prancis Terbuka, memiliki keyakinan tinggi bahwa dirinya mampu mengalahkan Rafael Nadal lagi. Soderling bertekad menumbangkan Nadal di turnamen tanah liat Prancis Terbuka yang menjadi turnamen favorit Nadal.

''Dia pemain hebat terutama saat bermain di lapangan tanah liat,'' kata petenis nomor lima dunia asal Swedia tersebut. ''Tapi, apalah itu? Nadal memang terbaik di tanah liat, tapi saya dapat mengalahkannya. Anda hanya perlu menampilkan permainan terbaikmu sambil berharap sejumlah keberuntungan.''

Soderling mulai terkenal sejak mengalahkan Nadal di putaran keempat Prancis Terbuka 2009. Bahkan, dia saat itu berhasil melenggang hingga ke partai puncak. Tapi sayang, Soderling akhirnya harus menyerah dari Roger Federer.

Sejak kemenangan atas Nadal tersebut, Soderling selalu masuk jajaran petenis lima besar dunia. Dia tahun lalu kembali bertemu Nadal di partai final Prancis Terbuka. Tapi, Soderling kembali gagal meraih juara.

Soderling mengawali debut tanah liatnya musim ini dengan tampil di turnamen Barcelona pada pekan lalu. Namun sayang, Soderling terhenti di putaran kedua setelah kalah dari Ivan Dodig (Croatia) yang berhasil melaju hingga babak empat besar.

Meskipun demikian, Soderling masih punya waktu untuk mempersiapkan diri menyambut Prancis Terbuka pada 22 Mei mendatang. Dia berharap kondisinya sudah benar-benar pulih sehingga bisa mewujudkan ambisinya menumbangkan raja tanah liat, Rafael Nadal, untuk kedua kalinya.

OLE! Ramos demonstrates his skills with a bullfighter's cape after Real won the Copa del Rey

Real go into the clash in buoyant mood after beating Barca 1-0 in the Copa del Rey final last week before a much-changed side enjoyed a 6-3 thrashing of Valencia in the Primera Division on Saturday.

But Ramos warned the Champions League tie would be another matter and urged Real fans to create a big atmosphere at the Bernabeu.

"It's the fans who have to score the first goal for us. Every visiting side at the Bernabeu have to be wary of the atmosphere. They must really be aware of what it means to play at a stadium like ours," he said.

Despite the massive win over Valencia, Real remain eight points behind Barca in the Primera Liga table and this means the Champions League is their more realistic chance of another trophy this season as manager Jose Mourinho bids to guide a third club to European football's biggest prize.

Ramos said the way the team performed in Valencia despite Mourinho making nine changes with Thursday's match in mind shows the unity in the squad as they focus on their goals.

"It is more united than ever. We are all extremely excited about the times we are living. The Champions League is a very important competition and it is at stake for us. Now is when we must show everyone how excited we are."

But Ramos is making no bold predictions of victory, admitting instead to a genuine excitement about the fixture.

"Both Barca and Real have great players and no one knows what will happen," he said.

"We all know of the responsibility we have and what it takes to defend these crests. We will have to give our all to win."

Meanwhile, midfielder Kaka believes Real have the most important resource of them all ahead of the clash with Barca — manager Mourinho.

Kaka hails the Portuguese and feels he could make all the difference on Thursday.

"I'm happy. I feel good. Mourinho has been 10 (out of 10), he has been very good to me. He has been helping me a lot. He is using me well and I am available to lend a hand," he told the Brazilian Press.

Kaka is no stranger to Champions League success having played in two finals with his former team AC Milan.

He lost in 2005 but two years later he won the competition with the Italian giants, and once again faces another important discourse in the battle for Europe.

"It was a big week. My birthday, two goals, the birth of my daughter. The season finale is still very good. We have won a title (Copa del Rey) and now we measure ourselves against Barca twice in the Champions League.

BARCELONA: Midfield ace Andres Iniesta is ready to take the offensive for Barcelona in their first-leg semifinal clash against bitter rivals Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday as he eyes taking a big step towards the Wembley final.

"I don't dream of scoring legendary goals, but I dream of being at Wembley," said Iniesta.

"I don't care about scoring goals or not being able to play, as long as we get to the final. Now our only thoughts are these. The team are not thinking of anything else."

The 26-year-old World Cup winner with Spain, believes his side have options and advantages which could mount to obtaining a coup against newly-crowned Copa del Rey winners.

"We'll win because we do not do anything else. We should not look at Real but only ourselves," he said.

"We have to counter their strengths. There are many circumstances and it will depend on how the game goes. We must remember that there are 180 minutes to play for.

"We will play with a positive mindset and with the knowledge that we are not far from the final."

Barca central defender Gerard Pique says the Copa del Rey loss to Real Madrid last week does not mark the end of a cycle for the Spanish champions.

"Losing the cup final against Real was very hard for us as we disappointed a lot of fans. However, losing is part of the game and you have to accept that these things happen," Pique told El Pais.

"This is by no means the end of a cycle though. We might have lost the Copa final, but we're still sitting in pole position to win Primera Liga. And we'll take on Real again in the semifinals of the Champions League. It's competitions like this that really mark a cycle.

"I really like playing at the Bernabeu. I can't explain why, but I really enjoy a hostile crowd. There are players out there who fail to cope with jeers from the crowd, but it only motivates me.

"Winning at Real is a unique feeling," he said.

MOSCOW (AP): Figure skating's top athletes take to the ice for the world championships a month later than they'd expected and in a different country.

The championships' hasty relocation to Moscow from Tokyo after Japan's catastrophic earthquake has been a challenge to every skater's training schedule. But for some, it's also brought an additional jolt of motivation.

"I feel like, OK, I can do it and I have to do something for the people who are living ... in Japan," says Miki Ando, a top contender for women's gold. "So many people can't have a normal life any more, and so many people died, or they don't know where they are still, so I feel like I couldn't be like normal. But after so many people were telling me and so many people were sending (messages) to me 'go forward' ... they push me to feel better to skate." After two days of qualification rounds, the championships open Wednesday at the Megasport Arena with the men's short program.

"I don't want to think about what happened in Japan. But to show everything I can do here is the best thing I can do for everybody," said defending men's champion Daisuke Takahashi of Japan. "I'd like to give joy and hope to the people with my skating."

The championships originally were to have started March 21 in Tokyo, and the ensuing uncertainty and rescheduling left most skaters wobbling with doubt and anxiety about how to train.

"When we knew about Tokyo and Russia I was very tired, and it was very difficult to come back on the ice again to get ready for the world championship," said Brian Joubert of France, a bronze medalist at the last two worlds.

But most appear to have adjusted. "I think we're all in the same boat, on the same playing field," said Canada's Patrick Chan, the reigning silver medalist. "It feels like a world championship, like it always does."

Japanese fans seeking consolation through the beauty and power of skating will have much to watch in this championships. Mao Asada is defending her title and Ando, the 2007 world champion, aims for another gold.

Ando recently has appeared to be resurgent, defeating Asada in the Four Continents and in the Japanese national championships.

Both, meanwhile, face the challenge of South Korea's Kim Yu-na, the Olympic gold medalist; the worlds is Kim's first competition of this season.

American Alissa Czisny, who won this season's Grand Prix Final, is also in the mix, along with countrywoman Rachel Flatt and three-time European champion Carolina Kostner.

Takahashi is joined by two other strong Japanese in the men's competition, Nobunari Oda and Takahiko Kozuka, who took silver and bronze respectively at the Grand Prix Final. The U.S. entries are national champion Ryan Bradley, Ross Miner and Richard Dornbush.

The pairs competition features defending champions Pang Qing and Tong Jian of China, challenged by world silver medalist Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany.

In ice dancing, Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White, the reigning silver medalists, are in strong position to take the country's first-ever world gold in the discipline. They face Olympic and world champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada, but Virtue has been troubled since surgery last fall and the couple withdrew in the Four Continents, their only competition of the season.

Russia, a longtime figure skating power, offers a comparatively underwhelming field for these championships. Its top medal contenders are Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov, the defending world bronze pair.

Home-country fans also will be closely watching several young skaters who hold promise for Russian glory when the country hosts the 2014 Olympics: Artur Gachinski, whose technique is often likened to Evgeni Plushenko's, and Ksenia Makarova and Alena Leonova.

But if Russia's medal prospects are a bit dim this year, the country effectively has already won a gold for its swift organization of the championships, putting it all together in 31 days.

"I think its unbelievable that any country, any federation in four weeks can turn everything around so quickly; have hotels available with volunteers, a beautiful stadium, it's really unbelievable," said Alan Seabrook, chairman of Britain's National Ice Skating Association.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP): Lee Westwood hopes to put on a show in the Ballantine's Championship this week as the first No. 1-ranked golfer to play in South Korea.

Westwood reclaimed the top ranking from Martin Kaymer when he won the Indonesian Masters by three strokes in Jakarta on Sunday, his 38th birthday. Fellow Englishman Luke Donald could have overtaken Westwood hours later at the Heritage, but lost the U.S. PGA Tour event in a playoff.

"It's nice to get back to No. 1. I played well last week and my confidence is high," Westwood said on Tuesday.

"I've great expectations of myself and I hope to do well and win this championship on Sunday afternoon. I'm very much looking forward to the tournament and hopefully I'll give the galleries plenty to cheer about in the coming days."

Westwood shot 68-66-66-69 on Royale Jakarta for his seventh win in Asia, and was keen to pull off consecutive wins.

"The world rankings are all about consistency and playing well week-in and week-out, which I tend to do," he said. "The secret to being world No. 1 is having the consistency, and all parts of your game have to be good to do that."

The Ballantine's, co-sanctioned by the Asian and European Tours and the Korean PGA, has moved from Jeju Island to Blackstone Golf Club in Icheon, outside Seoul but will feature its strongest field yet.

Local hopes for a first Korean winner are carried mainly by Y.E. Yang, the 2009 U.S. PGA champion.

"My message to my Korean fans is this: I don't play that often in Korea," said Yang, who hails from Jeju.

"I come maybe every six months, in spring and autumn, and I think the best way to reward them is a win. I always try to do my best whenever I compete and I'll do the same again this week."

Also entered are Ernie Els, Ian Poulter, Miguel Angel Jimenez, 2009 winner Thongchai Jaidee, and highly rated Korean Noh Seung-yul, 19, who finished fourth in 2010 and went on to become the youngest winner of the Asian Tour's Order of Merit.

Els has finished in the top 10 in the past two Ballantine's.

"They get a number of really good players, so if you can win, you've beaten a really good field," Els said. "I would love to win, especially on a new course."

The defending champion was Marcus Fraser of Australia.