Daily Archives: March 9, 2021

The Asia and Oceania Olympic and Paralympic Continental Qualification Regatta is to proceed as planned in May after World Rowing received assurances that athletes will be allowed to enter Japan to take part.

The Japanese Government has told World Rowing and the Japan Rowing Association that foreign delegations will be permitted to enter the country come May - something that is not currently allowed.

Japan's border has been largely shut in response to the coronavirus pandemic, but authorities plan to allow athletes to visit in the coming months ahead of the Olympics and Paralympics.

Foreign athletes had previously been given special dispensation to visit Japan, but this was stopped when new variants of COVID-19 were detected in the country.

The assurances mean that the event meets World Rowing's "Return to Regattas" guidelines, and has therefore been given the green light by the organisation's Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee is also satisfied with organisers' COVID-19 prevention plan.

That will be communicated to national bodies in due course, but includes mandatory mask-wearing except for when eating, training or competing.

The event is due to run from May 5 to 7 at Tokyo's Sea Forest Waterway.

Sea Forest Waterway will also be the rowing venue for this year's Olympics and Paralympics.

The Americas rowing qualifier for Tokyo 2020 was completed last week in Rio de Janeiro, with some finals moved forward ahead of fresh coronavirus restrictions coming into force.

Varese in Italy is set to stage the European event from April 5 to 7, before a last-chance global qualification regatta is held in Lucerne in Switzerland, from May 21 to 23.

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Olympic rowing qualifier in Tokyo given green light, border restrictions to ease - Insidethegames.biz

This content was published on March 9, 2021 - 16:57March 9, 2021 - 16:57

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters) - Nearly one in three women worldwide is subjected to physical or sexual violence during her lifetime, pervasive criminal behaviour that has increased during the pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.

The U.N. agency urged governments to prevent violence, improve services for victims and tackle economic inequalities that often leave women and girls trapped in abusive relationships.

Boys should be taught in school about the need for mutual respect in relationships and mutual consent in sex, WHO officials said.

Violence against women is endemic in every country and culture, causing harm to millions of women and their families, and has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

Some 31% of women aged 15-49, or up to 852 million women, have experienced physical or sexual violence, the WHO said in what it called the largest-eversuch study, encompassing national data and surveys from 2000-2018.

A husband or intimate partner is the most common perpetrator and a disproportionate number of victims are in the poorest countries, https://tmsnrt.rs/3t5OO78 it said. True figures are likely far higher due to under-reporting of sexual abuse, a heavily-stigmatised crime.

"These numbers are very shocking and really are sort of a wake-up call for governments to be doing much more to prevent this violence," report author Claudia Garcia-Moreno said.

In some regions, more than half of women face violence at some point, she told Reuters, citing Oceania, sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia.

Countries with the highest prevalence include Kiribati, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Afghanistan, WHO data show.

The lowest rates are in Europe, up to 23%, over a lifetime.

Violence starts at an "alarmingly young" age, the WHO said.

One in four adolescent girls aged 15-19 who have had a relationship have been subjected to either physical or sexual violence, Garcia-Moreno said.

"This is a very important and formative time in life. And we know that the impacts of this violence can be long-lasting and can affect physical and mental health and lead to unwanted pregnancies and other complications," she said.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; editing by Philippa Fletcher)

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One in three women endure physical or sexual violence - WHO - swissinfo.ch

Located in the extremes of the north-eastern region of India bordering Myanmar and Bangladesh, Mizoram is a remote state in rugged, hilly terrain that is geographically unfamiliar to many from mainland India.

However, due to its recent exploits in the game, this diminutive state has been firmly put on the map in India. Despite numerous successes, the Mizoram Football Association - affiliated to the All India Football Federation - was yet to have a proper infrastructure under its authority.

The Mizoram State Sports Council had granted control of the local ground at Sairang Dinthar to the MFA in 2013. In 2016, the All India Football Federation President Mr Praful Patel stated at the AIFF General Body Meeting that Mizoram will be recognised for its hard work and dedication in football by being granted an artificial turf pitch using FIFA funds. In August of the same year, excavation work for the site began.

In March 2019, FIFA Consultant Prof. Eric Harrison arrived on site for an inspection, with a view towards the installation of the artificial turf. The extensive preparatory site at the site, before Edel Grass - the contractor chosen by FIFA did the rest of the work - fell into the sole hands of the Mizoram FA who then approached the state government for funds to aid the excavation work.

As the location of the site is rocky by nature, progress became laboured. Heavy monsoon rains received practically all-year round and the unexpected COVID-19 pandemic also resulted in an extended delay during the final stages of the project; but ultimately, with astute planning and considerable cooperation and execution, the MFA Ground at Sairang Dinthar was finally completed. Initially a FIFA Challenger project converted into a FIFA Forward 1.0 Special Project, the infrastructure was finally handed over on 12 February 2021.

The formal inauguration of the newly laid turf was held at the site on 8 March 2021 by Mr. Robert R. Royte, Honble Minister for Sports & Youth Services, Government of Mizoram in presence of the Mizoram FA officials and staff, ex-players and current footballers and the community. FIFA Regional Office Development Manager South Asia, Mr Prince Rufus was also present. Speaking on this occasion, the Honble Minister for Sports & Youth Services commented that as a football enthusiast and as a Minister of Mizoram, he conveyed his deep gratitude to FIFA, and he promised that the state government would construct a considerable number of artificial pitches in the near future.

Mr. Sanjeevan Balasingam, FIFA Director Member Associations, Asia & Oceania in his message commented, On the inauguration of the FIFA Forward 1.0 Special Project 'Sairang Dinthar Artificial Turf, Mizoram', I would like to congratulate All India Football Federation and Mizoram Football Association. I am sure that this new infrastructure will help develop and promote football in the region more than ever before. FIFA is pleased to bring joy and football to the local community through this newly laid turf. I am aware that Mizoram Football Association has plans for the future focused around this turf and I wish all success for your ensuing endeavour."

Mr. Praful Patel, President, All India Football Federation in his message said: All India Football Federation is delighted to be part of the development process in helping out the Mizoram Football Federation with the artificial turf under the FIFA Forward Programme. The AIFF is committed to the growth of the sport in every corner of the country and is aware of the passion for the Beautiful Game in the state. AIFF appreciates and is thankful to FIFA for all their help and look forward to the support and cooperation all throughout."

Now that MFA has exclusive control of this ground, the planning for Tribal Girls Hostel has also begun and the association can now focus on dedicated long-term grassroots and youth development programmes, as well as activities for the wider community.

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The hills of Mizoram are alive with the sound of football - FIFA.com

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Investors are expecting higher inflation, which is weighing on the sharemarket.

The sharemarket reversed an earlier gain to end the day lower as expectations of higher inflation pushed up bond yields, denting the appeal of some stocks.

The benchmark S&P/NZX 50 Index closed down 0.8 per cent, or 95.067 points, to 12,085.18 on Monday.

The 10-year government bond yield lifted 7 basis points to 1.913 per cent late Monday afternoon, from 1.84 per cent around midday.

We have seen a pretty significant reversal in the market as interest rates spike up further, said Brad Gordon, an investment adviser at Hobson Wealth Partners.

READ MORE:* Sharemarket weakens as investors eye recovery, ditch utility stocks* Sharemarket slips as Contact, Meridian fall out of favour

Its inflationary driven, he said. Inflation feeds directly through to interest rates and interest rates feed into stock market valuations. From a valuation perspective, rising interest rates are not good for stocks.

Gordon said the rise in bond yields hurt stocks with a high price-to-earnings ratio, such as Fisher & Paykel Healthcare and The a2 Milk Company, two of the biggest companies on the benchmark, which reversed their early gains to finish lower.

Fisher & Paykel fell 4.2 per cent to $27.34, its lowest value this year. A2 Milk dropped 2.1 per cent to $9.92.

KIRK HARGREAVES/Stuff

Changes to global energy indexes are expected to prompt selling of Meridian and Contact shares.

Electricity generators Meridian Energy and Contact Energy also lost their shine after a Forsyth Barr report said changes to S&Ps Global Clean Energy Index would reduce the weightings of the two companies and require exchange-traded funds that track the index to sell the companies shares.

Forsyth Barr estimates the changes would result in the sale of about 9 per cent of Contacts shares and about 8 per cent of Meridians shares. Contact shares offered great value, while Meridian looked expensive, the analysts said.

Contact slid 0.5 per cent to $6.68, while Meridian slipped 3 per cent to $5.15.

The main news of the day was the announcement by Oceania Healthcare that its chief executive Earl Gasparich had resigned while at the same time Metlifecare announced that it was employing Gasparich as its new chief executive to implement its growth strategy.

Its a bit of a surprise, said Gordon. We dont actually see CEOs move like that, poached directly by competitors, very often.

Oceania dropped 1.4 per cent to $1.43.

Meanwhile, the newest listing on the sharemarket, meat kit company My Food Bag, fell for a second day, down 2.3 per cent to $1.70. The shares, which were sold to investors at $1.85 each, closed down 5.9 per cent at $1.74 on their first day of trading on Friday.

Gordon described the shares as very soggy and said investors were probably a little bit disappointed.

He noted the initial offer was at a relatively full price, and the shares had declined along with the rest of the market, as higher interest rates impacted valuations.

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Sharemarket falls as bond yields spike higher, reducing appeal of equities - Stuff.co.nz