January 31, 2007
[Currently only low quality pictures available]
The Hockenheimring is a motor racing circuit situated near the town of Hockenheim in Germany. Amongst other motor racing events, it holds the annual Formula One German Grand Prix.
Hockenheimring was originally built as a test track for Mercedes-Benz in 1936. The original circuit was almost eight kilometres long and consisted of two long straights with long corners joining them together. After World War II a new Hockenheim circuit was built. This used to be quite large, with a very long, fast section going through forests essentially consisting of four straights of roughly 1.3km, separated by a chicane sequence, followed by a more tight and twisty “stadium” section (so called because of all the grandstands situated there) named Motodrom. This made setting racing cars up difficult, as a choice had to be made - whether to run low downforce to optimise speed through the straights and compromise grip in the stadium section, or vice-versa. It was here that Jim Clark was killed in a racing accident.
The circuit is completely flat, without any changes in elevation.
For the 2002 German Grand Prix, however, the circuit had been redesigned by Hermann Tilke, due to safety concerns regarding the proximity of the woods to such fast portions of track. The stadium section remained intact. However, the circuit was dramatically shortened, with the long, sweeping forest section chopped off in favour of more tight corners. As always happens when a circuit is redesigned, this has led to grumbles that the track is not as good as it used to be, although the tight hairpin following the very long back straight offers an overtaking possibility. The circuit has a capacity of 120,000.
[Source: Wikipedia]
January 30, 2007
Great American Ball Park is the home of Major League Baseball’s Cincinnati Reds franchise. The park opened on March 28, 2003 with an exhibition game with the Cleveland Indians. The first regular season game, on March 31, 2003, saw the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates defeat the Reds 10-7. The ceremonial first pitch was thrown by former President George H. W. Bush, who replaced his son, current president George W. Bush, who was scheduled, but unable to attend. The younger Bush eventually did get the opportunity to throw out the first pitch before the Reds’ April 4, 2006 opening day game versus the Chicago Cubs. However, the Reds lost 16-7.
Contrary to popular belief, the park’s name is not a patriotic reference. Adhering to the norm in American professional sports, Great American Ball Park is named after a business sponsor, the Great American Insurance Group. Great American is the insurance division of American Financial Group, Inc., the principal shareholder of which is former Cincinnati Reds majority owner Carl Lindner, Jr..
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Skymark Stadium (スカイマークスタジアム) is a stadium in Kobe Sports Park, Kobe, Japan. It is primarily used for baseball, and is the home field of the Orix Buffaloes. Kobe Sports Park Baseball Stadium (神戸総合運動公園野球場, Kobe Sogo-undo-koen-yakyujo, in Japanese) opened in 1988 and holds 35,000 people.
[Source: Wikipedia]
Estadio Panamericano is a multi-use stadium in Havana, Cuba. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium is able to hold 34,000 people.
January 28, 2007
Aintree Racecourse is a British horse racing venue in Aintree, near Liverpool, on Merseyside. The course is home to the world-renowned Grand National steeplechase. It is regarded as one of the most difficult of all courses to successfully complete, with 30 steeplechase fences including The Chair, Canal Turn and Becher’s Brook; these being so infamous that even the names of these fences strike fear into even the most professional of jockeys. The Grand National is run over four and a half miles, often on soft ground, which makes the race all the more demanding on stamina and jumping. There are usually 40 horses taking part in the race but fewer than 10 may in fact complete the course. The record for the most victories in the Grand National is held by Red Rum, who won three times in the 1970s.
Aintree has also been used as a venue for motor racing. The British Grand Prix was staged there on five occasions, in 1955, 1957, 1959, 1961 and 1962. Aintree was the location for the famous race in 1955 in which Stirling Moss won his first British Grand Prix, driving a Mercedes. Two years later, he became the first British driver to win a British Grand Prix whilst driving a British car, a Vanwall. The full Grand Prix circuit was last raced on in 1964, but part of it (the 1.64-mile Club Circuit) is still open and was used for racing until the early 1980s. A limited amount of motor sport continues today in the form of car sprints, track days and motorcycle racing. A Festival of Historic Motorsport was held in November 2004 but building work on the Grand Prix side of the circuit has made future events unlikely. Liverpool Motor club continue to use the circuit for Sprints and Track Days
Michael Jackson performed in concert to 125,000 fans on September 11, 1988, as part of his Bad World Tour.
On 8 April 2006 security officials began investigating a reported security breach at the Aintree Racecourse, a day before the Grand National. According to initial reports, a newspaper journalist gained access to the horse box belonging to Hedgehunter, a former winner of the Grand National, and posed for a photograph.
[Source: Wikipedia]
The Estadio Monumental Antonio V. Liberti, better known as El Monumental or River Plate Stadium, is a stadium in the Nuñez district of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is the home venue of Club Atlético River Plate and is named after former club president Antonio Vespucio Liberti.
[Source: Wikipedia]
Valeriy Lobanovskyi stadium in Kiew
January 27, 2007
Reser Stadium is a sports facility in Corvallis, Oregon owned and operated by Oregon State University. Its original name was Parker Stadium, in honor of Portland businessman Charles T. Parker, who played a significant role in the initial fundraising. The Parker name is still honored at Parker Plaza, located between Reser and Gill Coliseum, the site of many pregame activities. Its current name comes from one of the school’s major athletic donors, the Reser family, owners of Reser’s Fine Foods.
It was built in 1953 to become the permanent home for Oregon State football, and has been their home field ever since. Intramural and club sports also use the facility occasionally, most notably the field hockey and soccer programs. The stadium is located on the southwest corner of the campus, at the intersection of 26th Street and Western Boulevard in Corvallis. Prior to the 2005-06 seasons, the official capacity of the stadium stood at 35,362. However, the Raising Reser campaign, begun in 2004, has seen the current capacity increase to 43,300 and seeks to further boost seating to 55,000 through three phases of renovation.
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Estádio Governador José Fragelli, usually known as Verdão, is a multi-use stadium in Cuiabá, Brazil. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 47,000. The stadium was built in 1976.
The Verdão is owned by the government of Mato Grosso state. The stadium is named after José Fragelli, who was the state’s governor during the stadium construction. Verdão means Big Green in Portuguese language.
In 1976, the works on Verdão were completed. The inaugural match was played on April 8 of that year, when Mixto beat Dom Bosco 2-0. The first goal of the stadium was scored by Mixto’s Pastoril. The stadium’s attendance record currently stands at 44,021, set in the inaugural match.
On August 9, 1980, the stadium’s largest score was set, when Mixto beat Humaitá 14-0. Mixto’s striker Elmo scored eight goals in that match.
[Source: Wikipedia]
