IT'S OFFICIAL, TOKYO WILL HOST 2020 SUMMER OLYMPICS

 

Around 100 members of the International Olympic Committee took part in the vote to select a city today in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with candidate cities Istanbul and Tokyo making it through to the final round of voting. The Japanese city won the vote 60-36.

 

Tokyo had been the favourite to win, and won the first round of voting, despite recent controversy surrounding a recent radioactive leak at the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant. Bid leader and IOC member Tsunekazu Takeda had told those voting that the city would be a "safe pair of hands and more," with a budget of $4.9 billion — far lower than Istanbul's $19.8 billion budget.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, shows the name of the city of Tokyo elected to host the 2020 Summer Olympics.



In total, three cities went to the Argentinian capital earlier today to make short presentations explaining why they should be host. Madrid went out in the first round of voting, and another round was held as no candidate had secured the required majority. The Spanish capital had touted the fact that 80% of its venues were already ready and only $1.9 billion was needed for construction, but concerns about the Spanish economy may well have hampered its bid.

 

Istanbul was considered a wild card choice by many, not just because of its large budget but also because of violent anti-government protests in the city earlier this year and a doping scandal among Turkish athletes.

 

It will be the third time Tokyo has hosted the games, having previously hosted in 1940 and 1964. Neither Istanbul nor Madrid have hosted before.

The 2012 Summer Games were held in London, U.K., while the 2016 Summer Games are due to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

 

 

 

Members of the Tokyo 2020 delegation celebrate after Tokyo was awarded the 2020 Olympic Games during the 125th IOC session in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013

History Of World Record Transfer Fees In Soccer.

It's official the worst best kept secret in the football world is out. Gareth Bale with his move from Spurs To Real Madrid is now the most expensive footballer in the world at £85M. he will earn a reported £300,000 per week.(mind boggling innit?)   

 

Here's a brief history of the world record transfer fees...

From Alf Common, the first £1,000 player, to Johan Cruyff's £922,000 deal to sign for Barcelona, to Bale's £85.3m move to Spain, huge figures have been spent by clubs looking to land the world's best players.

Common's move from Sunderland to Middlesbrough in February 1905 was the first time a player had ever been transferred for a £1,000 fee. The forward went on to help Middlesbrough stave off relegation to Division Two that season.

Liverpool's Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez has been a big talking point of this summer's transfer window but it was his Spanish namesake who was making headlines in 1961. The midfielder moved from Barcelona to Inter Milan for a fee of £152,000 and helped the Italian side to three league titles and two European Cups.

Barcelona were involved in a record-breaking fee again in 1973, but this time they were the ones doing the spending. The Spanish giants spent £922,000 to bring in Cruyff from Ajax and the Dutch forward spent five years at the Nou Camp - winning one La Liga title and the Copa del Rey.

Two years after Cruyff's move to Barcelona, the record was broken again as football saw its first £1m player when Italian Giuseppe Savoldi moved from Bologna to Napoli for £1.2m.

Only one player has broken the transfer record twice and that honour belongs to Maradona, who in 1982 moved from Boca Juniors to Barcelona for £3m. The Argentina legend's time at the Nou Camp was short-lived, however, as two years later Napoli paid £5m to bring him to Italy.

An Italian team was behind another record in 1992 when Jean-Pierre Papin moved from Marseille to AC Milan. The France striker helped the Serie A side to two league titles before leaving for Bayern Munich in 1994.

Alan Shearer's move from Blackburn Rovers to Newcastle United in 1996 caused a stir with the much-coveted striker choosing to return to his hometown club in a £15m deal instead of joining Manchester United. No English club has broken a world transfer record since.

Portuguese star Luis Figo stunned football when he left Barcelona to join Real Madrid in 2000. Real had to pay their bitter rivals £37m to land Figo, who helped them to two La Liga titles and the European Cup in 2002 - the last time the Spanish giants won the competition. The move was also the first of five world transfer records broken by Real.

They would beat their own record a year later by signing France midfielder Zinedine Zidane for £45.6m from Juventus. The World Cup winner ended his career in Spain after adding a La Liga title and European Cup to his honours list.

The summer of 2009 saw Real shock world football not once, but twice. Not happy with landing Kaka from AC Milan for £56m, the Spaniards also brought in Cristiano Ronaldo for £80m from Manchester United. Ronaldo has gone on to be regarded as second only to Lionel Messi as the world's best player.

PICTURES: SEE IGP ABUBAKAR AND HIS BRIDE TO BE

Culled from timmynaija the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Dikko Abubakar is set to wed his 35 year old hearthrob, Safiya. The wedding is set to hold on the 14th of September, 2013. Cute couple... they look so into each other. Really romantic.  Congrats!!!

SHOCKER!!! SCIENTISTS GROW BRAIN - LIKE TISSUE IN PETRI DISH

Petri dishes have hosted all sorts of experiments, such as cultivating mold or breeding amoeba. But now, truly futuristic events are happening in these circular glass plates -- most notably, growing brains.

That's right, scientists are now raising brains in petri dishes.

According to a study in the science journal Nature, biologists at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology in Vienna have grown a human brain using stem cells. This brain isn't full-grown; instead, it is small 3D sections of tissue that apparently resemble the brain of a 9-week-old fetus. It is about 3 to 4 millimeters in size.

Despite not being fully developed, this brain model still has distinct regions of the brain, like the dorsal cortex, ventral forebrain, and an immature retina.

"The parts are correctly organized, but not put together," said study coordinator Juergen Knoblich, according to Popular Science. Knoblich describes it as "a car where you have an engine, you have the wheels -- but the engine is on the roof... that car would never drive, but you could still take that car and analyze how an engine works."

The goal of these scientists is to be able to use lab-grown brains to study illnesses, like schizophrenia and autism. Apparently, animal brains are too dissimilar from human brains for conclusive studies on many types of neurological diseases.

Scientists have created other body parts, like livers and heart tissue, but these organs are nowhere near as intricate as a brain. According to Popular Science, the 3D brain model created by the Viennese researchers is the most complex in vitro creation of tissue to date.Read more

JOSH AND FERGIE DUHAMEL WELCOMES BABY BOY "AXL JACK"

Actor Josh Duhamel, 40, and Black Eyed Peas frontwoman Fergie, 38, welcomed their first child on Thursday, Aug. 29.

Son Axl Jack Duhamel, who was delivered from his mother through a ceaserian Section, weighed in at 7 lbs., 10 oz.

After announcing the pregnancy on Twitter, the reality of a baby on the way set in when Duhamel witnessed his wife’s first ultrasound.

Though their son's name "Axl" sounds wierd and uncommon it is believed that the name is of a Scandinavian origin and quite common in that region. Josh , hbay's ather is from minot North Dakota which has a huge scandinavian presence.

Congratulations are in order... Read more

DANIELLE AND KEVIN JONAS, EXPECTING BABY GIRL

Danielle and Kevin announced on Aug. 29 the gender of their first child — it’s a girl!! Fans are thrilled with the news and so happy they’ve decided to include them in the exciting process!
Kevin Jonas and Danielle Jonas have another thing to celebrate, the gender of their baby! The happy couple used the new Jonas Brothers iTunes app on Aug. 29, to let fans in on their exciting news — it’s a girl!

According to Hollywoodlife.com the Married To Jonas stars made the big announcement using the free smartphone app and it was so much fun! The couple’s expecting a baby girl! They teased the news earlier in the day with this tweet, that led to a pic of them on Instagram of them with the words “Pink or Blue” above them:

“@daniellejonas & I have news to share this Thur. Dwnld @jonasbrothers app 2 find out!!”

The proud soon-to-be parents just announced that they were having a baby in July, so this summer has been full of great news for them. Congrats!!!

SOME LAWS TOURISTS SHOULD NOTE WHEN TRAVELING ABROAD

Here are some ways tourists can fall foul of police abroad (crimes punishable with a fine unless otherwise stated):

1. Chewing gum: Strictly prohibited on the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system in Singapore.

2. Feeding pigeons: Against the law in Venice.

3. Wearing swimming trunks: As well as wearing a bikini or going bare-chested, in Barcelona this is illegal if you're not in the beach front area.

4. Using nasal spray: Some common products are illegal in Japan.

5. Taking photographs: In Saudi Arabia, taking a snap of a palace, government building or "military installation" can land you in jail.

6. Wearing camouflage: In Barbados it is an offence for anyone, including children, to dress in camouflage clothing.

7. Sunbathing topless: Prohibited in Fiji.

8. Carrying mineral water : It is illegal to take mineral water into Nigeria. Others include mosquito net, jewellry and fruits

9. Snacking while sightseeing: In Florence, it is an offence to eat and drink in the immediate vicinity of churches and public buildings.

10. Praying: In the Maldives, public observance of religions other than Islam is prohibited for visitors. Punishable by arrest and detention.

11. Kinder Surprise Eggs: U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized about 25,000 Kinder eggs in 1,700 separate incidents in 2010, and the agency reissued a longstanding warning against the import of the chocolate treat this year right before Easter.
You won't be laughing so hard if the authorities catch you. Kinder Surprise eggs are banned because they have “a non-nutritive object imbedded” in them, and thus pose a potential safety hazard to children below the age of three.

12. Marmite and Vegemite: The preferred yeast-extract spreads of Britons and Aussies were banned in Denmark on the basis that Marmite and Vegemite are products that contain “enhanced vitamins.”

13. Cordless telephones: Alongside the usual restrictions on bringing live animals and produce into the country, Indonesian authorities have also prohibited travelers from bringing in cordless phones without an approved license

14.  Electric pans, toasters and irons: Count household appliances among the don’ts for your packing list when you head into Cuba.

I BET YOU NEVER KNEW THIS: TOM CRUISE WAS BANNED FROM BEING AN HONOURARY CITIZEN OF PARIS BECAUSE OF HIS BELIEFS

The city of Paris most certainly doesn’t want (or need) a celebrity endorsement from Mr.Tom Cruise... You want to know why;

Here's the reason...

 Now, as some of you may know, Tom Cruise is a member of Scientology-a religious organization with a controversial body of beliefs and practices. Since 1995, France has classified the Church of Scientology as a cult, and thus generally opposes the organization.

In 2005, Tom Cruise was working to become an honorary citizen of the city of Paris. However, the municipal government of Paris blocked that move by passing an official resolution which prohibited Tom Cruise from becoming an honorary citizen because of his affiliation with Scientology.

The government of France is really serious about it's crackdown on cults. There French government agency by the title MIVILUDES (Mission interministérielle de vigilance et de lutte contre les dérives sectaires, I.e. "Interministerial Mission for Monitoring and Combatting Cultic Deviances") that is in charge of detecting and analyzing cult activities, coordinating an appropriate response, informing the public about potential risks, and providing victims with aid.

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NO HARD FEELINGS NIGERIA; HOW AFRICA VOTED

Some people are probably angry and lashing out on Social Media about how the show was probably rigged. Others have said it was faked and arranged and all but here's how Africa voted:

Angola: Dillish
Botswana: Cleo
Ghana: Elikem
Kenya: Dillish
Ethiopia: Beverly
Malawi: Cleo
Namibia: Dillish
Nigeria: Melvin
South Africa: Cleo
Sierra Leone: Elikem
Tanzania: Dillish
Uganda: Dillish
Zambia: Cleo
Zimbabwe: Elikem
Rest of Africa: Melvin

Total: Dillish = 5, Cleo = 4, Elikem = 3, Melvin = 2, Beverly = 1.

(Total: 15 Votes) Read more

BBA 8 FINALE: DILLISH TAKES IT ALL, WINS BBA THE CHASE

Wow! Its official!!

Beautiful Dillish Matthews of Namibia wins the 8th season of Big Brother Africa The Chase leaving Cleo of Zambia and Elikem of Ghana as the 1st and 2nd runner up respectively with Melvin and Berverly of Nigeria in the 4th and 5th positions too.

Though it was sad for Nigerians and most Africans who believed Melvin would emerge as winner, as we were all shocked to the bones... people were literally crying , no fireworks or champagne. No one really saw this coming.

Hmm, I guess beauty and self respect with unwavering principles about oneself matter alot then... Congrats again Dillish you deserve it.