Most Charitable Athletes 2015: Big Names Headline List Of Most Generous Sports Figures

 Cristiano Ronaldo has won the inaugural “Athletes Gone Good” award by DoSomething.org for his charitable work while Neymar Jr. is the only other footballer to make it to the top 20 list.

 DoSomething.org honours the most charitable celebrities of the year in the “Celebs Gone Good” list and has introduced a similar list for athletes known as “Athletes Gone Good”.

 Ronaldo and Neymar Jr. are the only footballers to make the list.

Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has always been praised for his philanthropic work. The 30 year-old donated in excess of $165,000 to fund a cancer center in Portugal while making another donation in the region of $83,000 for the brain surgery of a 10-year-old.

 Ronaldo has also used his image and fame to raise awareness for a number of causes including child hunger, obesity, biodiversity, HIV and drug addiction. The superstar also participated in FIFA’s “11 against Ebola” campaign to raise awareness for the disease.

 FC Barcelona star Neymar Jr. is the only other footballer to feature on the list, featuring on the 5th position. Neymar was included for his participation in the “11 against Ebola” campaign, partnering for clean water in Brazil and for founding the Neymar Jr. Institute Project, the latter being an educational and sports complex located in the city of Praia Grande.

The list features athletes from many disciplines including Wrestling, Cricket, Tennis, Basketball, Skating and Badminton.

The ranking of the Athletes Gone Good list is done through a three-part methodology which involves:

    Votes and nominations from the public
    Athlete’s influence on social media
    Advice from Athletes Gone Good Advisory Committee

I Iate Okocha – Oliseh

 Super Eagles coach Sunday Oliseh has finally laid to rest rumours that he does not see eye-to-eye with his former assistant in the Eagles Austin Jay-Jay Okocha when he said; ‘’yes, I hate Jay-Jay’’.

A reporter had asked him to clear the air on rumours that he does not see or stay in the same room with the former playmaker of the Super Eagles. The hall was like a graveyard when he made the pronouncement. He looked round and explained further. “I hate Okocha because anytime we play Tennis, he beats me.

We played  at the weekend at Sheraton Hotel and he defeated me’’. He made light of the rumour that started after he was appointed coach of the senior national team. Many still believe that Okocha stabbed Oliseh in the back when he accepted the captaincy of the Eagles to the 2002 World Cup.

‘’We’re the best of friends and we played Tennis at the weekend’’, he emphasised. Okocha is currently the Chairman of Delta State Football Association and Chairman of NFF’s Study Group.

Speaking on the Eagles, Oliseh said that he was going to make the Eagles to play team football combined with individual talents. ‘’If you remember our victories in 1994 and 1996, it was based on individual talents. But we do not have such individual talents again. What we need to do is to play collectively. That is what obtains in Germany and Spain. It’s a lot of hardwork. We’re here to do our best’’, he added.

Jonathan keeps mum as he visits Kenya Games Reserve

 Barely three months after he handed-over power to President Muhammadu Buhari, ex-President Goodluck Jonathan has continued to keep mum on public matters.

Jonathan who, Weekend, visited Kenya’s Maasai Mara Games Reserve on a chartered plane with his wife, Patience and two children was reported by the Kenyan media to have refused to speak to journalists on arriving the Games Reserve.

He is at the reserve for a three-day tour to witness the wildebeest migration. Jonathan was booked at the new Angama Mara Lodge at the Oloololo conservancy.

The ex-president was received by Narok Governor Samuel Tunai. Tunai, who is also the Council of  Governors tourism committee chairman, said more than 500,000 tourists from all over the world are expected to witness the spectacular crossing of wildebeest across the crocodile-infested Mara River.

According to Kenya media, Jonathan is the second dignitary to visit the reserve in less than a fortnight after the King of Swasiland, Mswati III. The king was booked in the same lodge six days ago.

The owner of the hotel, Nicky Fitzgerald, said this tourism peak season is different from the past as prominent personalities from across the world have been calling for bookings.

“We have received Mr Jonathan, King Mswati III, a Chinese prominent family and we are expecting other royalties,” said Ms Fitzgerald.

Ms Fitzgerald said United States (U.S.) President Barrack Obama’s visit last month was a boost for tourism in Kenya.

The trooping in of world leaders to Kenya is expected to boost the tourism sector, which is recovering from travel advisories.

Britain has withdrawn travel advisories against Kenya and America is expected to follow suit.

“Starting of direct flights between Kenya and the U.S. as Obama promised would really promote trade and tourism,” said Ms Fitzgerald.



Source: vanguardngr.

Boko Haram Leader Denies He’s Been Replaced

The leader of Nigerian-based militant group Boko Haram has denied a claim by the president of Chad that he has been replaced.

“It is a blatant lie that I have been replaced,” Abubakar Shekau said in an audio recording released on Sunday.

“I am alive and in charge, I will only die at the time Allah has assigned for me,” he added.

“It is indeed all over the global media of infidels that I am dead or that I am sick and incapacitated and have lost influence in the affairs of religion.



“It should be understood that this is false. This is indeed a lie. If it were true, my voice wouldn’t have been heard, now that I am speaking.”

In the clip he pledged allegiance to Islamic State, calling himself the governor of the “West African Islamic State Province”.

The clip lasts around eight minutes.

Chad’s leader Idriss Deby said last week that Shekau had been replaced as the group’s boss by Mahamat Daoud who wants to negotiate with the government of Nigeria.

Chad has been battling the militants alongside the Nigerian army.

Boko Haram was founded in 2002 to oppose Western-style education.

Shekau took over as leader after its founder Muhammad Yusuf died in July 2009.

The group’s actions have become more radical under his guidance – and recent violent acts include the abduction of more than 200 schoolgirls in April 2014.

Report – Apple To Start Testing Driverless Car

 Apple is building a driverless car and scouting for secure locations around San Francisco to test it, reports the Guardian, based on documents it requested under the public record act.

The long-rumoured Project Titan appears to be further advanced than expected. Members of Apple’s secretive special project group met in May with executives from former naval base GoMentum Station, which is being turned into a secure testing ground for self-driving vehicles.

Apple Engineer Frank Fearson wrote to GoMentum, “We would … like to get an understanding of timing and availability for the space, and how we would need to coordinate around other parties who would be using [it].”

Apple has hundred of engineers working on automotive technologies near its main campus.

Google, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Volkswagen and other carmakers have licences to test autonomous vehicles on California roads, but the process involved disclosing technical and commercial details, which notoriously secretive Apple may not want.

Randy Iwasaki, GoMentum owner Contra Costa Transportation Authority’s executive director told the Guardian, “We had to sign a non-disclosure agreement with Apple.

We can’t tell you anything other than they’ve come in and they’re intested.” Apple declined to comment.


Source: Telecom Paper

Intern Who Exposed Facebook Privacy Flaw Dumped

 A Harvard University student says he lost his internship at Facebook after launching an app that exploited privacy flaws on its message platform.

Aran Khanna’s mapping tool showed Facebook Messenger users how to pinpoint the exact locations of anyone in their conversation thread, even those they were not friends with.

The computer science and mathematics student posted the plugin, Marauder’s Map, from his Harvard dormitory room in May.



The Google Chrome extension, which made use of Facebook Messenger’s default geolocation sharing, was downloaded 85,000 times.

Mr Khanna said he posted a blog about the app on Reddit and Medium on 26 May.

He said Facebook called him in the following days asking him not to speak to the press and to delete the extension.

Mr Khanna said he duly complied with both requests.

Three days after posting the app, Mr Khanna says Facebook told him they were withdrawing his internship offer.

He said he received an email saying “my blog post did not reflect the ‘high ethical standards’ around user privacy expected of interns”.

Facebook released a Messenger app update a week later that it said addressed the privacy flaw.

Company spokesman Matt Steinfeld told Sky News the update had been in development for months.

He said Mr Khanna had scraped data from Facebook in a way that violated its user agreement terms.

Mr Steinfeld added: “We don’t dismiss employees for exposing privacy flaws, but we do take it seriously when someone misuses user data and puts people at risk.”

Mr Khanna wrote a case study this week for a Harvard publication about his experience.

He concluded: “What does this say about privacy protection?

“Can we reasonably expect Facebook or others with an interest in collecting and sharing personal data to be responsible guardians of privacy?” Facebook itself was launched from a Harvard dorm room in 2004.

Mourinho in line to be sacked

CHELSEA manager Jose Mourinho has seen his odds of becoming the next Premier League manager to be sacked slashed following his team’s 3-0 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday.

Odds released by Betfair Sportsbook on Monday show the Portuguese tactician is now 7/1 second favourite – previously 25/1 – to leave his post behind Sunderland coach Dick Advocaat.

Mourinho had to also deal with heavy criticism in the build-up to the clash on Sunday for demoting first-team doctor Eva Carneiro after she had attended to Eden Hazard in the dying minutes of the draw against Garry Monk’s side last Saturday.

Despite the Portuguese manager only signing a new four-year dealearlier this month, odds from Betfair suggest Mourinho could be on his way out of Stamford Bridge if Chelsea do not get their title defence back on track in the coming weeks.

Football Trader for Betfair, Michael Bowers, said: “Jose is struggling to get off on the right foot this season, after a poor game against Swansea and an even poorer game against the new title favourites

Manchester City, he has gone from 25/1 to 7/1 second favourite as the next manager to leave the market after heavy backing.

“The club will remain loyal to Mourinho for the time being, but if the blues don’t start picking up some points after four or five games, even The Special One could face the chop.”


Source: vanguardngr

George Soros, World Billionaire Sells Alibaba Shares

 The fund owned by the influential billionaire George Soros has sold most of its shares in the Chinese online retail firm Alibaba.

Soros Fund Management now holds just 60,000 shares worth $4.88m, according to a regulatory filing.

That is down from $370m worth of shares at the end of March.

Alibaba listed in New York last September. Its shares hit record highs in November but since then have fallen by 37%.



Last week, the company disappointed analysts on Wall Street with its latest quarterly results, reporting its slowest quarterly revenue growth in three years, up 28% to $3.2bn.

Mr Soros’s firm also sold shares in the Chinese online search engine Baidu, but bought shares in Time Warner and Facebook.

Mr Soros, an investor and philanthropist, came a joint second on Forbes’ list of highest-earning hedge fund managers this year – bringing in $1.2bn in 2014.

He is famous for speculating against the pound in 1992, contributing to its collapse and exit from the EU exchange rate mechanism (ERM), the forerunner of the euro.

Catholic priest assassinated in Imo

 Rampaging hoodlums in Imo State, weekend, murdered a Claretian priest of the Catholic Church in Owerri.

The priest, whose full identity could not be ascertained at press time, was an academic staff of Imo State Polytechnic, Umuagwo, in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of the state.

Confirming the incident yesterday in a telephone interview, Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Andrew Enwerem, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, said the priest was murdered by assassins on a bush path.

Enwerem said: “The police are suspecting that it was a clear case of assassination. The priest was gruesomely murdered along a very lonely bush path that would have led him into Port Harcourt Road.”

While noting that whatever happened to the priest might be connected with the bickering and happenings in Imo Polytechnic, Enwerem, however, wondered why the Catholic priest chose to use such a lonely bush path.

He said: “The police are suspecting that whatever happened to the priest cannot be far from the ceaseless bickering emanating from the polytechnic.

“Again, I wonder why the priest chose to use the lonely bush path on his Toyota SUV.”

He confirmed that although the police have recovered the vehicle, no arrests had been made in connection with the crime.

The PPRO said that police patrol teams were despatched to the area as soon as the information was passed on to them.

He said: “The youths of the community joined the police in combing the surrounding bushes. The hoodlums simply perfected and carried out their damnable act before vanishing into the thin air.”

Enwerem confirmed that the command had not only expanded its dragnet to all corners of the state, but were following all available leads.

Enwerem said: “There is the likelihood that the assassins carefully monitored the priest’s movement and laid ambush for him on his track. Honestly, it was a gruesome murder.”

No More 140-Character Limit For Direct Messages On Twitter

You know the situation. You want to send your mate a Direct Message on Twitter, but you’ve got a lot to say for yourself and you run out of…

…characters. So you have to do it in two or three chunks – well not any more.

The social network’s removing the 140-character limit on private messages to let users “express themselves” more freely.

The feature’s being rolled out for DMs around the world.

It’s the first time the site’s removed the limit on any of its features, but it says there’s no plan to do the same for public posts.

Twitter’s co-founder Jack Dorsey recently admitted the service wasn’t doing enough to make the site better for users and attract new interest.

It’s currently has 300 million global users, compared to Facebook’s 1.4 billion.

Sachin Agarwal, Twitter’s product manager for DMs, hopes it’ll make people more expressive on the site.

“I think in the past you might have felt constricted by 140 characters and so you had to cut out a word here or there, but now you end up with these longer messages where people are really able to get their point across and do it in a more funny way,” he says.

“They can add more emojis, more photos, things like that, which just let them be a little more richer in their expression.”

He says he wants it to feel like a more “casual chatting platform” to “compliment” the public side of the site.

Google Founder Will Become Chief Executive And President of Alphabet, While Sundar Pichai Will Head Up Google.

Google shares have risen by about 4.1% on Wall Street after investors welcomed news of its restructuring.

Under the change, which was announced on Monday, a new parent company will be created called Alphabet.

The restructuring will see the separation of Google from the group’s more speculative ventures.

Google co-founder Larry Page has said it will create a simpler structure for what had become a diverse group of businesses.

It is hoped this will allow investors to see how profitable the core business is.

Subsidiaries such as Google X, which develops projects such as contact lenses, self-driving cars, internet weather-balloons and Google Glass will report separately from the core Google business.

Some analysts predicted shares in the new holding company could rise from about $700 to well over $800.

Deutsche Bank put a target of $840 on the shares, with its head of internet and digital media equity research, Ross Sandler, saying: “There is significant upside from current levels”.

Ralph Schackart, an analyst at William Blair, said: “We applaud Google’s decision to increase transparency, a key investor concern.”

Larry Page and Sergey Brin, who founded Google 18 years ago as students at Stanford University, will become chief executive and president of Alphabet respectively, while Sundar Pichai will head up Google.

The new structure reflects the way many old economy corporations work, with a central unit acting as an umbrella to relatively independent business units focused on specific areas.

Ville Hellman, head of development at digital agency Rawnet, said: “Google has extended their operations to cover a lot of new fields for several years now, and some of the new fields it is entering are only very loosely related to their core business.

“Bearing this in mind, it makes sense for such a drastic restructure to ensure that the individual entities do not grow too large and sluggish to respond to the ever changing landscape.”