1. Liverpool vs Manchester United
Liverpool get their title campaign back on track with a win against their most bitter of rivals in a dramatic 2-0 victory at Anfield. Goals from Fernando Torres and David Ngog seal the win for the Reds.
2. The NFL in London
The NFL returned to Wembley Stadium for the third time in three years as the New England Patriots destroyed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 35-7 in front of nearly 90,000 fans.
3. Jensen Button – World Formula One Champion
Jensen Button sealed his first Formula One World Championship in Brazil after leading the Drivers Championship since the beginning of the year. The Brawn driver made it two wins in two years for British drivers after Lewis Hamilton’s win in 2008.
4. Valentino Rossi – World MotoGP Champion
Valentino Rossi won his seventh MotoGP World Championship in Malaysia with one race to spare. The Italian, who many consider the best to ever race motorbikes, finished the race in third place for the Yamaha team.
5. Barcelona lose to Rubin Kazan in Champions League
This week saw one of the biggest shocks ever to take place in the UEFA Champions League as European Champions Barcelona went down 2-1 at home to Rubin Kazan. The Russian Champions are taking place in their first ever Champions League and were virtual unknowns outside of Russia before this season.
Thank you to Karen Doubilet from PPI for this report:
From October 15th through 17th, approximately 45 PeacePlayers International – Middle East Palestinian and Israeli participants and coaches traveled to the northern Israeli kibbutz of Kfar Blum for two days of intensive training workshops. The weekend marked a key step in their own development as peer-mentors and local leaders, but it also marked a milestone for PeacePlayers International as a whole – the first full-scale implementation of the new PPI – Arbinger Peacebuilding Curriculum and Toolkit, developed in partnership with the Arbinger Institute and the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.
The PPI – Arbinger Curriculum teaches conflict resolution through basketball by integrating a ‘conflict transformation” philosophy developed by the Arbinger Institute with a unique set of on-the-court lessons and drills. The philosophy revolves around the concept of “the Box,” a term for a state of being which prevents individuals from seeing others as people with feelings and needs equal to their own. “In the box,” an individual can feel angry and resentful, perpetuating cycles of blame and anger. “Out of the box,” an individual can see other perspectives and new solutions, leaving them capable of approaching conflicts proactively– be they personal, religious or political.
A newly formed cricket team Seenigama Ladies have turned women’s cricket on its head within just four months of their existence.The Seenigama Ladies havemade it to the final of the B division championship by beating three teams, Shakthi Ladies (Colombo), Kandy Ladies and Cambridge Ladies from Anuradhapura.
They have been formed under the care of the Foundation of Goodness, a humanitarian organisation headed by former Sri Lanka Cricket secretary Kushil Gunasekera and backed by Australia Sports Outreach Programme and Surrey County Cricket Club with support from the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.
The project aims to involve both girls and boys, aged from 6 to 20, in ongoing sports competitions at village level. An estimated 800 participants can take part in the project through various inter-village sports leagues, with matches and training sessions taking place once a week. Sport is used as the means to tackle a wide range of social issues generating a positive impact on the region as a whole by building leadership and teamwork skills, introducing stability and a sense of enjoyment, increasing confidence and participation of females in community planning, increasing collaboration and information sharing amongst the villages involved and enabling the post-Tsunami healing process to continue.
