Royal rider saddles up for Britain Zara Phillips, a granddaughter of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, has been selected for the country’s Olympic equestrian team and will compete in eventing at the Beijing Olympics.
Phillips, 26, will be riding Toytown, with whom she won the individual European and World Championship eventing titles.
Phillips, 12 th in line to the throne, is the daughter of Princess Anne, who took part in the eventing competition at the 1976 Montreal Games. Zara’s father, Mark Phillips, won a gold medal at the 1972 Munich (Germany ) Games in the same event and is the coach of the U. S. eventing team.
“It is nice to be selected, but we still have a long way to go,” Zara Phillips said. “I am lucky in that Toytown has been to championship events before, so he knows about big occasions and has been consistent, but an Olympic Games really is special. “ I am delighted for Toytown as he really deserves it.” Phillips missed the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, after Toytown was injured.
Giant promo The Great Khali, a 7-3, 420-pound Indian-born World Wrestling Entertainment star, is used to promoting his matches.
Now he’s earned a promotion at his day job, as a member of Punjab’s police force.
The Great Khali, whose real name is Dilip Singh Rana, kept his day job as a police officer in the northern state of Punjab when he moved to the United States to wrestle. Police officials granted him extended sick leave in 2006 and were happy he became a star. “He has brought the force international fame and has made us all very proud with his many achievements as a wrestler,” senior police official Rajan Gupta said. “It was the Punjab Police that first nurtured and promoted The Great Khali as a bodybuilder and wrestler.” Rana made his wrestling debut in April 2006. He took the name of the Hindu goddess of destruction who wears a necklace of human heads.
Perfection A 78-year-old legally blind man has bowled a perfect game. Dale Davis of Alta, Iowa, made 12 consecutive strikes for a 300 during league play. Davis has limited peripheral vision but can’t see straight ahead. Century Lanes owner Clem Ledoux said that Davis’ game didn’t draw much attention until he reached 10 strikes. That’s when folks poured out of the bar to watch his final two shots. Ledoux said Davis threw a “Brooklyn,” where a right-hander strikes the left side of the head pin, for his final strike. The feat brought wild cheers from Davis’ fellow bowlers and onlookers.
Oh, say... Atlanta singer and vocal coach “Mama Jan” Smith, who has worked with top-flight artists, gave The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the five biggest mistakes people make when singing the national anthem. 1. Generally, people don’t prepare to do the anthem and think they can wing it because they’ve heard it most of their lives. 2. Generally, people start in a key that’s too high for them. 3. Generally, people start in a key that’s too low for them. 4. Generally, people don’t stay in the key in which they started. 5. Specifically, more people think they can sing than really can.
Quote of the day “It was the kind of day where you could shoot a big number in a hurry.” Kenny Perry after taking the second-round lead on a day with wind gusts up to 35 mph at The Players Championship
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
