Brand It like Beckham

Here’s a tale for our times. Last week Ali Abbas, the 13-year-old Iraqi boy who lost his arms during an air raid on Baghdad, continued his recuperation in a hospital in Kuwait, wearing a T shirt emblazoned with a picture of his hero, an English soccer star who was about to start a promotional tour of Japan after having just been traded to a Spanish club in a deal–vital to the fortunes of a German shoe company–that merited an editorial in the New York Times and that was brokered by a sports agency owned by a company from San Antonio, Texas.

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Official: Afghan elders, Taliban discuss truce

Elders and religious leaders in southern Afghanistan are in talks with local Taliban leaders in an effort to reach a truce ahead of next week’s election, a top Afghan official told CNN on Friday. Yet the Fastnet tragedy of 1979 in which 15 people were killed and ex-British leader Edward Heath went missing helped to usher in a new era of improved safety in the sport

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The Fastnet tragedy 30 years on

It is still remembered as one of the worst days in the history of modern sailing. Yet the Fastnet tragedy of 1979 in which 15 people were killed and ex-British leader Edward Heath went missing helped to usher in a new era of improved safety in the sport. It was 30 years ago today that a freak storm struck over 300 vessels competing in the 600-mile yacht race between England and Ireland

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Carlos Sastre: ‘I don’t care about Astana dispute’

Defending Tour de France champion Carlos Sastre has exclusively told CNN that he does not care what happens in the alleged dispute between rivals Lance Armstrong and Alberto Contador at Astana — and is only concentrating on retaining his title. On Sunday night, seven-times Tour champion Armstrong told French TV that there was tension between himself and 2007 winner Contador, the latest in a series of comments made by the American that has raised doubts about the Astana team’s togetherness during the three-week race.

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F1 future ‘in jeopardy’ after FOTA walkout

FOTA has blamed world motorsport’s governing body the FIA after the teams’ representatives walked out of a meeting, claiming the future of Formula One was once again "in jeopardy." The Formula One Teams Association, which represents eight racing outfits, issued a statement explaining its new grievance with the FIA. It said its team managers attended the Sporting Working Group at the Nurburgring in Germany on Wednesday, having resolved its differences with the FIA over the future of the world’s premier motorsport at crunch talks in Paris last month.

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Mosley says deal close in F1 breakaway row

Max Mosley claims a deal is "very close" to end the damaging row which could see a breakaway Formula One series next season. FIA president Mosley spent Sunday at the British Grand Prix locked in talks with members of the teams who have rebelled against plans by world motorsport’s governing body to impose a budget cap and other rule changes. Eight teams from the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) claimed late on Thursday that they would set up the rival series

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Formula One teams announce rival championship

Eight Formula One teams said Thursday they would create a breakaway series championship following a financial dispute with the world governing body over a proposed budget cap for next season. All eight teams are members of the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA), which made the announcement in a press release. The current wrangles stem from controversial plans by the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile to impose a budget cap of $60M for competing teams and technical limitations on teams in 2010 in a bid to make the grid more balanced and easier for the smaller teams to compete successfully

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