04/04/2007 April
Rugby in France
Coming up, on the near horizon for France, is one of the planet’s
biggest sporting events: the 2007 Rugby World Cup.
From time to time France has proved itself on the world stage as a nation
able not only of hosting gigantic sports events, but of making great successes
of them. The hosting of the 1998 FIFA World Cup still lives in the minds
of the French. The 1998 FIFA World Cup was well supported by the public,
as France became the first host country to win the tournament since Argentina
did it in 1978.
France was announced as host of the 2007 Rugby World Cup in 2003. The decision
meant the Mediterranean country would host the Rugby’s showpiece event
for the first time.
Rugby is a widely played sport in France, with 1720 clubs and over 200,000
registered players in the country. Rugby is intensely followed, and the
quality of the domestic game keeps improving - as demonstrated by the
fact that France twice reached the final of the Rugby world cup.
France's most important club Rugby league came into being in 1892 with
the Racing Club, winning the title. The current title is owned by Biarritz
Olympique.
Alongside the league fixtures, Clubs also compete in the European knock-out
competition, the Heineken Cup. 04/04/2007
US Journalist jailed for record time freed
A reporter in California walked out of federal prison after serving
226 days - the longest jail time served in US history for failing to hand
over information. 04/04/2007
White House Unhappy About Pelosi's Visit To Syria
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is set for talks with Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad as she continues a visit to Syria that has angered US
President the George W Bush. 04/04/2007
Deadly shooting at CNN Atlanta HQ
A woman has died and the suspected gunman is critically injured after
a shooting at the CNN Centre in Atlanta. 04/04/2007
Sports Headlines
Florida Gators win basketball title
Florida won their second-straight US college basketball title by beating
Ohio State 84-75 in Atlanta.
Roddick expects to play for U.S. in Davis Cup
Andy Roddick plans to play for the United States in the Davis Cup quarterfinal
against Spain this week. 04/04/2007
Business Headlines
Chrysler sell-off talks confirmed
German car giant DaimlerChrysler has confirmed for the first time that
it is in talks to sell its struggling US Chrysler unit.
Boeing takes 500th Dreamliner order
US aerospace giant Boeing has said orders for its 787 Dreamliner passenger
jet have topped the 500 mark, more than a year ahead of the plane's launch.
04/04/2007
Entertainment Headlines
Stradivari violin fetches $2.73m
A Stradivari violin dating from 1729 has been auctioned for $2.73m at
Christie's in New York, about twice its presale estimated worth.
Mendes and Spacey unite for theatre
Filmmaker Sam Mendes is reuniting with actor Kevin Spacey, with whom
he made Oscar-winning film American Beauty, to set up a transatlantic
theatre company. 04/04/2007
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