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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
The Beijing Hour
Evening Edition
Thursday July 18th, 2013.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on our program this evening,
Nelson Mandela celebrates his 95th birthday with celebrations held around the world.
Indian school meal deaths could have been deliberate poisoning,
Flooded construction site in South Korea to be investigated.
Business, Home prices on the rise again here in China.
Sports, FIFA insists it will move the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar to winter.
Entertainments, Britney Spears signs up for a residency performing in Las Vegas.
Plus Special reports takes a look at Chinese movies as they outperform exported movies.
Weather
Beijing will have thundershowers tonight with a low of 22 degrees Celsius. Tomorrow cloudy with a high temperature of 30.
Meanwhile Shanghai will be clear tonight, with a low of 28, cloudy tomorrow, with a high of 35.
Lhasa will have light rain tonight, 13 degrees the low, overcast tomorrow with a high of 24.
Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia
Islamabad, sunny, with a high of 37.
Kabul, sunny, 36.
Over in Australia
Sydney, rainy, highs of 21.
Canberra, rainy, 13.
Brisbane, overcast, 23.
And finally, Perth will be sunny with a high of 17.
Top News
China hails Nelson Mandela's contributions as "historical" to the establishment of China-South Africa diplomatic ties
China hails Nelson Mandela's contributions as "historical" to the establishment of China-South Africa diplomatic ties.
The comments come from the Chinese Foreign Ministry as the former South African President celebrates his birthday today.
His daughter Zindzi Mandela and some other government workers celebrated his birthday in a Pretoria hospital.
"I'd like to assure each and every one of you though I may not be a medical doctor that Tata is making this remarkable progress and we look forward to having him back home soon. "
Mandela is being treated for a serious lung infection.
Mandela, most known SA name in China
Celebrations are taking place around the world for International Nelson Mandela Day as he celebrates his 95th birthday.
In China, people are also voicing their concern about the physical condition of the former President.
Mandela remains the most famous South African figure among Chinese people.
CRI's Zhang Wan has more.
Reporter:
A song named Glorious Years was written for former South African president Nelson Mandela by a popular Hong Kong band called Beyond in the 1980s.
As one of the band's trademark songs, Glorious Years became popular very quickly after being released among Chinese youth, especially those born in the 1970s and 1980s.
Many Chinese say it is hard to tell exactly why they like the song so much, however, it always reminds them Nelson Mandela as well as his inspiring spirit.
Wang Tonghua, regards Mandela as an icon.
"I first heard of the former South African president during my childhood. For me he is the person who has both won the Nobel Peace Price, and been in prison. However, nothing could every change his faith. I admire men like him, who are able to stick to their faith for many, many years. I regard him as the incarnation of peace. He has been fighting for anti-apartheid and improved living conditions in South Africa."
The name Mandela is believed the most well-known South African name in China.
He is known to have made a great contribution to the establishment of relations between China and South Africa in 1998, and also one who cherished friendship with China.
Lu Miaogeng, former deputy director of the Chinese research center in South Africa still remembers clearly the situation when he met Mandela 1993.
"When Mandela was speaking, he sounded strong and powerful. He said China has been supporting the South African people in their fight against apartheid since the 1950s, you have provided us all the aid that you can. Such friendship between South Africa and China is what we will continue to cherish."
Many young people in China say they have been greatly influenced by Mandela's personality and spirit.
He is more than a politician, he is a great man.
Indian food poisoning update
A local Indian official has come out and said that the deaths of the schoolchildren in a food poisoning case in Bihar could be a deliberate poisoning.
Local TV channel Times Now says at least 27 children are believed to have been killed due to tainted school meals in the state of Bihar, rather than 22 as officially confirmed.
State education minister Prashant Kumar Shahi says traces of organic phosphorous, a lethal poison, was found in the food served to the children.
"In spite of the cook's complaint over the smell of cooking oil used for the food, the headmistress insisted on its use and the cook made the food. The children had also complained about the food to the cook."
Shahi is describing the case as a criminal act.
The school principal has reportedly fled.
The cook, who also fell ill after eating the food, says it looked as if there was a layer of residue at the bottom of the oil jar.
Meantime, Tuesday's incident with the Mid-Day Meal program has sparked violent protests in Bihar.
Protesters pelted a police station with stones, set ablaze buses and other vehicles.
The government is offering families of victims 35-hundred dollars.
Charges brought against crew of ship held after discovery of weapons parts
Panama has charged the crew of a North Korean ship detained in the country after it was found to be carrying weapons.
Prosecutor Javier Caraballo accused the 35 crew members of endangering public security by illegally transporting war material.
"Well, today we formulated charges against sailors, the vast majority of them availed themselves of their right not to testify. It was a difficult task due to fact that they don't speak Spanish. We had help from some translators, some who spoke English, others who spoke Korean. But still, some made use of their right not to testify."
The charges come just hours after North Korea urged Panama to release the ship and its crew without delay.
Panama police found the weapons under cargos of sugar yesterday.
Cuba said it had sent the weapon for repairs to North Korea to maintain the island's defensive capacity.
Panama meantime has asked the UN to investigate whether there has been a breach of sanctions against North Korea.
The UN sanctions prohibit the supply of arms to Pyongyang in the dispute over its controversial nuclear program.
Park-Won Soon : To investigate construction site flooding accident thoroughly
Seoul Mayor Park-Won Soon says authorities are to investigate a flooding accident in the city, where seven workers, including three Chinese were killed.
The tragedy happened Monday when the workers were swept away in an underground construction site.
"First I want to express my deep condolences to you. We will investigate the accident thoroughly and find out the cause. We promise to deal with the person's responsibility strictly. Meanwhile, we will modify and revise relative regulations to prevent such kind of accident. "
All the bodies of the victims were found.
Earlier media reports said continuous downpours in the region caused a nearby river to swallow into the underground site.
Protesters gather outside parliament ahead of vote on job cuts and transfers
The Greek government has narrowly approved an austerity bill that will see thousands of public sector job cuts.
The bill is tied to the country's fresh 6.8 billion euro of bailout loans needed to keep Greece afloat.
153 voted in favour while 140 voted against.
Thousands of disappointing protesters gathered on the streets outside the Greek Parliament .
"We feel very disappointed, our dignity has received a great blow. The technical colleges which are the backbone of education in all other European countries have been destroyed."
"This government must be overturned, because it has only brought suffering to this country.
It must stop, the bailout program have destroyed the land."
The bill would put over 25 thousand state employees into redundancy.
Reforming the public sector and sliming it down is one of the conditions attached to the financial bailout Greece is receiving from the EU and the IMF.
The 13-month-old coalition government, led by conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras , claims it has already made progress in stabilising the crisis-hit economy.
The vote is the first major political test for Samaras since a left-wing party abandoned his coalition government last month, leaving it with a reduced majority.
Navalny sentenced for five years after court finds him guilty of embezzlement
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been convicted of embezzlement and sentenced to 5 years in prison.
Navalny is denying the charge, he's insisting he was brought to trial because of his opposition to President Vladimir Putin.
Navalny has been convicted of embezzling millions of roubles from a local state-owned timber company.
But he has always maintained the charges were politically motivated.
Navalny blogged about Russia's corruption, and his investigations have targeted a wide circle of people loyal to President Vladimir Putin.
He also spearheaded the wave of massive protest rallies in late 2011.
His supporters are already planning a rally just outside the Kremlin walls later on this Thursday evening, despite the fact authorities refused to give the green light for a protest.
Kevin Rudd's Final Hurdle
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has revealed his approach to tackle the flow of asylum seeker boats, including possible changes to the Refugee Convention.
At a Community Cabinet meeting in Rockhampton, Queensland, he said that he's working on a solution and his targets are people smugglers.
"I don't believe we can just assume that all of our policy settings over the last several years cannot be changed. They will need to be changed as we encounter changes in our circumstances. And I've recently been in discussions with the President of Indonesia, [and] the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea. Here are people literally trading on human misery and misleading people and also regrettably through their actions causing so many sinkings and drownings at sea."
Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese echoed the government's asylum policy needs an upgrade in order to deal with the changing situation, including possible changes to the existing Refugee Convention.
Once Mr. Rudd announces his suite of asylum policy changes in the days ahead, it is thought he will then switch his focus to an election date.
Housing maintenance fund
Anchor:
Here in China the housing maintenance fund is also known as the pension for apartments.
Apparently, the fund is to be used for the maintenance and repair of property.
However, applying to use the money is an extremely difficulty process.
Li Dong has the details.
Reporter:
Water leakages, aging equipment, malfunctioning elevators and other common problems like these have been causing headaches for property owners in recent years.
Repair and maintenance work within a community need to be covered by a compulsory fund which property owners contribute towards.
The housing maintenance fund is made up of deposits from property owners with a community.
Owners can only gain access to such funds after submitting an application which then needs to be approved by relevant authorities.
The procedure starts with lodging an application to the municipal housing fund management center.
Then the repair work is assessed by professional organizations.
After that, the housing fund management center will file the approved assessment report to the local real estate bureau.
The bureau then informs the bank where the maintenance fund is located to transfer the money to the property owner committee.
Zhang Daxian is the director of the property owner's committee of a residential area in Beijing.
He says getting access to the money is even more difficult because his community changed its name three times.
"Our community has used three names. Some of the property owners put money in the account which was established under the previous name of the community. So the money in the account under the previous community name can't be used because the community now has a new account, even though the money was deposited by the property owners in our community. I asked the authorities. They said the current policies don't support our application to use the money."
Zhao Yanling, is a member of a property owner's committee for a community in south Beijing, it began lodging an application in 2010.
"They refused our application. One of the excuses they gave is that many property owners didn't pay their share of the fund. The authorities want us to collect the money. But we are the property owner committee; we don't have the authority and capability to collect unpaid fees. That's why we can't use the fund."
Shu Kexin, is an expert on the protection of property owner's rights, he says the maintenance fund should be returned to property owners.
"The money in the maintenance fund belongs to the property owners. Property owners have the right to decide how to use it. The Property Law and related property management regulations entitle property owners to do so. The government department is right to prevent the money from being misused. However, they should have no excuse to refuse giving the money to property owners."
Guan Zhenhua, director of a property owner's committee in Beijing says their maintenance fund can be better managed if the money were to be transferred to them.
"The maintenance work in the community can be carried out using the interest earned from the huge fund. Plus, if the fund is put in the bank, the money won't lose its value. But if we can use the money, we can increase the fund by using financing methods."
According to a report by the China Youth Daily, housing maintenance funds nationwide amount to hundreds of billions of yuan.
Gaining access to the money is already a complicated procedure.
And the way such a huge amount of money is managed still remains unclear.
For CRI, I am Li Dong.
IMF annual report on China's economy
An annual report released by the International Monetary Fund expects China's economy to grow at 7.75 percent in 2013.
With an average economic growth rate at 7.6 percent in the first half of this year, this prediction indicates China's economy will grow at over 7.8 percent in the second half.
Resident Representative of IMF China, Murtaza Syed, explains:
"We're expecting pick-up activity basically because of two factors: The first factor is the global economy, and particularly China's major trading partners (such as) the US and Europe, according to our forecast, (they) should begin to do it better in the second half of this year. The second factor is that we have seen very rapid credit growth in the first quarter of this year. And that, with some lag, will begin to affect activity."
But he also warns about three major risks against China's economic growth in the second half of this year.
This includes lower exports, overestimation of the impact of credit growth in the first quarter as well as a disappointing domestic economic reform.
Biz Reports
Asian Stock
Chinese shares closed lower today, led by slumps in financial and property stocks.
When the market closed, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index shed 1.1 percent.
The Shenzhen Component Index lost nearly 2 percent.
Sectorwise, the financial sector dropped 1.9 percent while the The property sector slumped 1.3 percent.
Shares of China Vanke, the country's biggest listed property developer, sank 2.6 percent to a little over 10 yuan per share.
In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng decreased 0.1 percent.
Elsewhere in Asia,
Japan's Nikkei rose 1.3 percent to a new 8-week high as the yen weakens after Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke's comment that the FED will be flexible when it comes to winding down its stimulus.
Meanwhile, South Korea's KOSPI lost 0.6 percent.
Singapore's Straits Times index picked up 0.2 percent.
and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 also up 0.2 percent.
Bernanke tells Congress Fed flexible on bond buying
US Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke says the FED is going to be flexible on its bond purchasing program.
Bernanke made the statements at his bi-annual congressional testimony.
"With unemployment still high and declining only gradually, and with inflation running below the Committee's longer-run objective, a highly accommodative monetary policy will remain appropriate for the foreseeable future."
But the FED chair has also told lawmakers that plans are still in place to conditionally scale back its bond purchasing program.
"If the incoming data were to be broadly consistent with these projections, we anticipated that it would be appropriate to begin to moderate the monthly pace of purchases later this year."
Major stock indices turned only slightly positive following the Fed chief's speech as investors remained cautious while they were reading between the lines.
Home prices continue to rise in June
Housing prices for both new and existing property continued to rise in most Chinese cities in June.
Out of 70-cities, 63 saw monthly home price rises.
That was down from 65 cities that reported price surge in May.
In first-tier cities, home prices all witnessed sharp rises last month both on a monthly and yearly basis.
Compared to May, only five cities, including Guiyang and Urumqi, saw new home price declines last month.
However, the National Bureau of Statistics data does show that the amount of increases was tempered.
Around half the cities saw less increase in new home prices compared to that in May.
China launches crackdown on pharmaceutical sector
China's food and drug watchdog has formally ushered in a nationwide crackdown on the sale of illegal medicine.
It comes just days after police detained four senior executives from GlaxoSmithKline's Chinese operations.
The four executives are being held on charges of bribing officials and doctors to try to boost sales and raise the price of medications here in China.
The State Food and Drug Administration said the six-month campaign will target illegal online drug sales and the sale of fake traditional Chinese medicine.
At the same time, the National Development and Reform Commission is now examining the prices charged by 60 local and international drug makers.
For more on this latest crackdown, Beijinghour's Paul James earlier spoke to our regular financial commentator, Cao Can.
…
Back anchor: That was Paul James speaking to Cao Can, CRI's financial commentator
China launches cargo train to Germany
China has launched a cargo train which will run from Central China's Zhengzhou to Hamburg in Germany.
The train will travel 10,200 km for 16 to 18 days, passing through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland before reaching Germany.
Chinese railway authorities say the service could shorten the length of time needed for cargo between the two cities via sea by about 15 days.
The first train will carry 1.5 million US dollars worth of goods to Germany.
There will be six such trains to Hamburg this year, which are expected to be worth more than 100-million-US-dollars worth of exports and imports.
Computing giants Intel and IBM see big fall in profit
Tech titans, IBM and Intel, have reported big drops in net income.
Intel reported a second-quarter profit of two-billion-US-dollars, down 29% from a year ago.
While IBM saw earnings for the same period fall 17% to 3.23 billion US dollars.
Revenue for both companies slipped as well, with IBM's falling by 3% and Intel's down 5%.
Chipmaker Intel suffered as consumers and businesses switched away from traditional computers.
While IBM's revenues and profit fell short of analysts' forecasts for the first time in eight years last quarter.
According to market research firm Gartner, global PC shipments fell 10.9% to 76 million in the second quarter, continuing their longest decline in history.
Honda plans to make Acura in China by 2016
Japan's Honda Motor has partnered with Guangzhou Automobile to produce its premium Acura cars in China starting 2016.
The Japanese car-maker didn't specify the anticipated size of production capacity or which models it plans to manufacture.
Beijing-based Honda spokeswoman says a likely model could be the Acura SUV-X, which it show cased at the Shanghai auto show in April.
Honda's move comes as a slew of global premium auto brands pile into China.
Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW all produce models in China with local partners.
Earlier this year, General Motors began producing Cadillac cars in China.
Among Japanese automakers, Nissan Motor is building a factory in the eastern city of Dalian to produce some models for its upscale Infiniti brand.
Market analysts say China's premium car demand is likely to reach 2.7 million cars a year by 2020.
Headline News
China hails Nelson Mandela's contributions as "historical" to the establishment of China-South Africa diplomatic ties
China has hailed Nelson Mandela's contributions as "historical" to the establishment of China-South Africa diplomatic ties, on the 95th birthday of the former South African President.
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China cares about the health of Mandela and sincerely wishes him a triumph over illness and an early recovery.
One of Nelson Mandela's daughters said earlier today that her father is making "remarkable progress."
Mandela has been in a Pretoria hospital since last month battling a serious lung infection.
Home prices continue to rise in June
Housing prices for both new and existing property continued to rise in most Chinese cities in June.
Out of 70-cities, 63 saw monthly home price rises.
That was down from 65 cities that reported price surge in May.
In first-tier cities, home prices all witnessed sharp rises last month both on a monthly and yearly basis.
Compared to May, only five cities, including Guiyang and Urumqi, saw new home price declines last month.
However, the National Bureau of Statistics data does show that the amount of increases was tempered.
Around half the cities saw less increase in new home prices compared to that in May.
Primary school food poisoning could be act of crime: Indian official
A local Indian official has come out and said that the deaths of the schoolchildren in a food poisoning case in Bihar could be a deliberate poisoning.
Local TV channel Times Now says at least 27 children are believed to have been killed due to tainted school meals in the state of Bihar, rather than 22 as officially confirmed.
State education minister Prashant Kumar Shahi says traces of organic phosphorous, a lethal poison, was found in the food served to the children.
He is describing the case as a criminal act.
The school principal has reportedly fled.
Charges brought against crew of ship held after discovery of weapons parts
Panama has charged the crew of a North Korean ship detained in the country after it was found to be carrying weapons.
The charges come just hours after North Korea urged Panama to release the ship and its crew without delay.
Panama police found the weapons under stacks of sugar.
Cuba claims it had sent the weapon to North Korea for repairs to maintain the island's defensive capability.
Meanwhile, Panama has asked the UN to investigate whether there has been a breach of sanctions against North Korea.
The UN sanctions prohibit the supply of arms to Pyongyang in the dispute over its controversial nuclear program.
Newspaper Picks
Beijing News
"Street barbecues cause PM 2.5 levels to surge"
Beijing Times reports the PM 2.5 levels around street barbecues in Beijing is about one thousand times higher than the readings taken before the charcoal starts to burn.
At 7 p.m. on July 4, PM 2.5 levels at five monitoring sites along Chaoyang street in Beijing stood at less than 10 micrograms per cubic meter.
15 minutes after barbecue owners started burning charcoal, the PM 2.5 levels at the site one meter away from a barbecue raised to over 300 micrograms per cubic meter.
One hour later, the reading of this site surged to 4400 micrograms per cubic meter when most street barbecues were full of customers.
The investigation lasted several days and the data for each day was almost identical to results found on July 4th.
Experts say barbeques produce not only pollution; but also poisonous gas.
Shanghai Daily
"Beijing restricts group housing rentals"
Today, BEIJING'S housing watchdog announced tougher house rental rules.
It mandates each room in an apartment should accommodate no more than two tenants in an effort to crack down on rampant group rentals.
The new rules specify tenants should have a minimum per-capita living space of at least five square meters.
Also, landlords are prohibited from subdividing apartments into smaller rooms and renting them out in order to earn more rental income.
The kitchen, bathroom, balcony and basement can't be leased for living purposes.
-landlords who severely violate the new rules will be fined between 5-thousand and 30-thousand yuan
AP
"New surgical knife can instantly detect cancer"
An experimental surgical knife can help surgeons make sure they've removed all the cancerous tissue.
Surgeons typically use knives that heat tissue as they cut, producing a sharp-smelling smoke.
The new knife analyzes the smoke and can instantly signal whether the tissue is cancerous or healthy.
Other current techniques - which include sending removed tissue to a pathology lab for analysis - take about 20-30 minutes.
The study says tests in 91 human patients have shown the "tool's diagnoses were extremely accurate," and may be "reliable enough to begin widespread use in operating rooms."
The Australian
"Australian researchers launch world's first anti-shark wetsuit' "
An Australian research firm has launched what is being touted as the world's first anti-shark wetsuit, using new discoveries about the predators' eyesight to stave off or evade an attack.
Researchers say the blue-and-white "Elude" range, designed for divers and snorkellers, uses research about sharks' perceptions of light and color blindness to essentially "hide you in the water column".
The "Diverter" -- mainly for surfers -- is based on what sharks perceive as danger signs in nature, with a bold black and white banding pattern to imitate an "unpalatable food item".
It is the culmination of a two-year research project funded by the Western Australia government following an unprecedented spate of shark attacks in the state which claimed five lives in the year to July 2012.
Special Reports
China movies outperform exported movies in the first half of this year
China's box office figures have continued to surge this year, reaching 10-billion yuan in the first half of 2013.
Local movies have grabbed more than 60-percent of the market share.
Some experts say only innovation can make domestic movies go further.
CRI's Xie Zhao has more.
A number of movie-goers interviewed about their favourite films this year say they are voting for domestic productions.
"I have watched many movies. The most impressive movie is "American dreams in China". When the movie was released, I just graduated. The movie depicts a story about the college students being self-employed after graduation. The movie has a big influence on me. "
"The most impressive movie for is "So Young". Many plots are happening around us. I was touched deeply."
Of the five highest-grossing films in the first half of this year, there are four domestic movies whose revenues each surpassed 500 million yuan.
"Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" took the top slot, earning 1.25 billion yuan.
Yin Hong, director at the Centre for Film and Television Studies at Tsinghua University, says local Chinese movies have outperformed imported films because of three key factors.
"Firstly, imported movies in the first half of this year are not competitive. Secondly, in recent a new batch of young directors and filmmakers have become main force for Chinese movies. Their movies are close to reality, grass-root life and down-to-earth. Thirdly, the pattern of the movie market has changed."
Yin says a rising number of multiplexes have been expanded in the second and third-tierd cities.
He believes this has led to an increasing number of viewers going to the cinema.
Zhao Yuning, professor at the Communication University of China, says China's movie market has doubled with screens totaling about 15 thousand.
Meanwhile, China's movies have capitalised amid the weakening influence of Hollywood movies.
"The influence of the Hollywood movies is becoming weaker. They are afraid of taking risks but merely repetition. In China's market, Hollywood takes up defensive facing the fast development of China's movie. Therefore, China's movie should seize the moment, consolidate the current market share and continue to boost the quality. "
Yin Hong adds only innovation can make domestic movies go further.
"China's movie should explore more subject matters and styles. At the same time, the overall movie technology and movie sector need further development. Generally speaking, Chinese movie can only compete with Hollywood movie with a more integrated industry and product chain."
China is now the world's second-largest movie market behind the U.S.
Many forecasts say it will nab the No. 1 spot within the next five years or so.
For CRI, I'm Xie Zhao.
Sports
Sun Yang Training ahead of Barcelona Swimming Championships
The World Swimming Championships is set to open tomorrow in Barcelona, Spain.
Olympic gold medalist Sun Yang has arrived in Beijing to join the training camp ahead of the event.
China earlier unveiled a 48-swimmer squad for the Barcelona Worlds, with Olympic and world champions Sun Yang and Ye Shiwen spearheading their assault.
Sun, who grabbed two golds at the London Olympics, ranked first in both men's 400m and 1,500m freestyle, while Jiao Liuyang, winner of the women's 200m butterfly at the London Games, had the world fastest time for her specialty.
Sun will take part in the 400m, 800m and 1,500m freestyle as well as the men's 4x200m freestyle relay at the Worlds.
Meanwhile, 200m and 400m freestyle record holder Paul Biedermann of Germany has withdrawn from the event due to sickness. This is expected to increase Sun Yang's chance of winning the category.
China has set a target of four gold medals at the Barcelona Championships.
The Chinese swimming team will leave for Barcelona on July 23.
FIFA Insists Moving 2022 World Cup Finals in Qatar to Winter
FIFA president Sepp Blatter has insisted on moving the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar to the Winter.
Blatter says he will convince FIFA's exceutive committee to consider doing so in order to avoid the searing summer heat in the country.
Blatter was speaking during a two-day conference on sports, media and economy in Austria.
"That after having realised that in summer time it is so hot, that it is practically not possible, or I would say, not possible to play. And after having received a second report of our medical committee, then I have now taken the decision that I will convince FIFA's executive committee, that the FIFA 2022 World Cup shall be played in winter."
The two-day event, called "Camp Beckenbauer", is set up by German football great Franz Beckenbauer, who is hosting some 150 high profile international guests from sports, media and economy a hotel in the Austrian Alps.
Roger Federer and Tommy Haas through at German Open
At the German Tennis Championships,
The top two seeds Roger Federer and Tommy Haas have both advanced to the third round after wins at Hamburg.
Roger Federer dropped the first set to Germany's Daniel Brands, but bounced back to win the next two.
The Swiss champ is looking for his fifth title win at Hamburg and a chance to get some of his mojo back.
After being upset at Wimbledon by Sergiy Stakhovsky, Federer dropped to number five in rankings.
That's the lowest he's been in a decade.
Elsewhere, last year's runner-up Tommy Haas has outlasted Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 to advance to the third round.
The 35-year-old is the oldest player in the top 100. He is looking for his second title at home this season after winning in Munich.
Also through to the next round is defending champion Juan Monaco of Argentina, who dispatched France's Gael Monfils in two sets.
Reactions from golf fans over Muirfield's men-only membership
As world-class golfers tee off at this year's British Open, golf fans have reacted to accusations of sexism at the world's most prestigious tournament.
The Open Championship is being held at a club in Muirfield, Scotland, with a men-only policy.
Fans remain divided about the issue.
"In this day and age it does seem a bit old-fashioned, but as I say it's a private members club and the country rules are that they can do what they choose."
"It's about golf and playing golf and it should be equal for everybody. So I don't see any reason why they have special rules for women."
"I'm sure people will see sense. And maybe, just maybe, the pressure put on the club may change their mind, but only time will tell on that one."
The head of golf's governing body, Peter Dawson, has denied the accusations.
He says the body is planning to look at the issue of male-only clubs after the British Open.
Lebron James Wins Three Trophies at US ESPY Awards
NBA star LeBron James has been named male athlete of the year at the ESPY Awards in the US.
James received three trophies at the Awards, including male athlete of the year for helping the Miami Heat win a second straight NBA championship.
He beat out Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson and Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps for male athlete honors.
Peterson and Phelps also won two awards each.
Phelps has also been awarded best male Olympian.
Meanwhile, Grand Slam champion Serena Williams has female athlete of the year award.
The winners in most categories were determined by fan voting.
China's Jiangsu beats Thailand 3-1 to reach semifinals at women's volleyball tournament in Vietnam
Team Jiangsu from China has reached the semifinals at the 10th international women's volleyball tournament in Vietnam's northern province of Ninh Binh.
Jiangsu survived an early scare to beat Thailand 3-1
The victory has secured the first place for Jiangsu in the six-team round robin stage and a berth in the semifinals as well.
The Eximbank Cup 2013 will last until this Saturday.
Entertainment
Britney Spears Signs Contract for Las Vegas Residency Shows
Singer Britney Spears has signed a contract for a concert residency deal in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Though no official date has been announced her time performing in Las Vegas in expected to begin sometime around New Year's Eve.
Like singer Celine Dion, Spears will have her own longterm show in Las Vegas.
It is expected her contract will have her performing at the city's Planet Hollywood resort for the next 2 years.
Spears has stayed within the bounds of a conservatorship following her public meltdown in 2008.
In court Spears told Judge Reva Goetz she is excited and happy to perform in front of large crowds once again.
An official announcement will most likely be released next week.
Spears is also currently working on a new studio album and has a song featured in the upcoming animated Smurfs sequel.
Glee Actor's Father Devastated After Cremation
Deceased Glee actor Cory Manteith's father is said to be devastated after learning his son's body was cremated without his knowledge.
The 31-year-old actor passed away last week in a following an overdose of heroin and alcohol.
Manteith's family held a private viewing in Vancouver earlier this week with his mother, girlfriend and costar Lea Michele and his brother in attendance.
However, Manteith's father says he was not invited and claims his son's body was then cremated before he was able to see him.
The actor's body was discovered in a Vancouver hotel room last Saturday after he failed to check out on time.
Manteith has been battling substance abuse since he was a teenager and recently entered a month-long treatment program for his habit.
He portrayed Finn Hudson on the hit TV show Glee and reportedly struggled with his new life as a famous celebrity.
Fall Out Boy Records Tracks with Ryan Adams
US band Fall Out Boy have recorded eight songs with alt-country rocker Ryan Adams.
The Sugar, We're Going Down band spent two nights at Adams' Pax-Am studio in Los Angeles, California where Adams produced their sessions.
Fall Out Boy frontman Pete Wentz describes the music they performed as straight up punk rock and impossible to deny the spirit of.
The band's latest studio album Save Rock & Roll dropped in April.
No word on when the new Adams produced songs will be available to fans.
Adams is known as an eccentric artist who has dabbled in several styles of music including honkey-tonk, rock, country, punk, metal, and hiphop.
He recently wrote to the producers of the upcoming Star Wars film promising he will stop writing depressing music if they allow him to score the film.
Artist Russel Mills Designs Nine Inch Nails Album Cover
US industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails' new album Hesitation Marks will feature 4 unique album covers to correlate with its various release formats.
Artist Russel Mills the creator of the album cover for the band's 1994 release The Downward Spiral has designed all four covers.
He created a different cover to represent each format the album will be released in such as digital, standard CD, Deluxe CD, and vinyl.
Mills incorporated a wide variety of materials to create the pieces including acrylic and oil paints, copper wire, rusted linen, Polaroid frames, even blood.
The artist says he drew inspiration from long discussions he had with Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor.
The pair discussed the conceptual and sonic ideas for the new record including the intersection of the organic and natural with the industrial and man-made.
Mills also created 30 other works which will appear throughout the album's packaging.
Jerry O'Connell Joins 'Veronica Mars' Cast
US actor Jerry O'Connell is the latest name to be added to the cast of the new Veronica Mars movie.
The Burning Love star will take the role of Dan Lamb, brother of the deceased character Sheriff Lamb in the upcoming television series turned movie.
O'Connell's character is described as the long-lost brother of the late Sheriff who dies in the third and last season of Veronica Mars.
The show aired from 2004 to 2007 and will now be made into a movie after crowd-sourcing its production budget of almost 6-million US dollars in donations from fans.
Show creator Rob Thomas announced the news on the film's kickstarter.com page saying he hopes the new character is one fans will love to hate.
This suggests O'Connell may play somewhat of a villain in the upcoming film.
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