AIFF GBM to amend constitution in line with Sports Code
New Delhi: All India Football Federation will amend its constitution to bring the age and tenure rule in line with the Sports Code in a Special General Body Meeting here on Friday. The AIFF had followed the age and tenure rule as per the Sports Code of the government during its elections in 2012, though it has not made a formal amendment to its constitution. The SGM will amend the constitution tomorrow as the Sports Ministry has set the December 31 deadline for the National Sports Federations to bring the age and tenure rule in line with the Code. “We have been following the age and tenure rule of the Sports Code. But now we have to do it by putting it down in the constitution itself. We are doing that in the SGM tomorrow,” a top AIFF official said. An Annual General Body Meeting will also be held after the SGM, which is expected to be of a routine affair, mainly to ratify the minutes of several meetings, giving approval of various financial transactions and drawing of a tentative calendar for next year. (PTI)
Saina slips to world number 8
New Delhi: The failure to reach the semifinals of BWF Superseries Finals took a toll on her ranking as Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal slipped two places down the rungs to settle for the eight position in the latest World badminton ranking here on Thursday. The 23-year-old Indian had reached the semifinals in the last edition of Superseries Finals but this year, she could win just one match in her group stage and failed to enter the knockout stage at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Olympic bronze medallist now has 60830 points in her kitty and if she goes on to skip the Korea Open early next year, it will further drop her down the ranking ladder. Saina endured a tough season as she could not win a single title. The girl from Hyderabad is currently recovering from fever and chest congestion and had pulled out of the ongoing Senior Nationals at the Siri Fort Stadium. She is likely to miss out of Korea Open as well because of fitness issues. (PTI)
Iniesta agrees three-year contract extension with Barca
MADRID: Barcelona’s Spain playmaker Andres Iniesta has agreed a three-year contract extension with the La Liga champions until 2018 when he turns 34, club president Sandro Rosell said on Thursday. The contract includes an option for further extensions on an annual basis depending on how often Iniesta plays, Rosell told a news conference. ‘We are very, very happy,’ Rosell said. ‘I think this is a great Christmas gift for all Barcelona fans.’ A product of Barca’s academy, Iniesta joined the club in September 1996 at the age of 12, made his first-team debut in a Champions League game in October 2002 and has gone on to help the Catalans win 21 trophies. One of the greatest moments of his club career came in the Champions League semi-finals in 2009 when he scored a dramatic late goal at Chelsea that sent Barca through to the final. He is a hero to Spaniards after netting the extra-time winner against Netherlands in South Africa in 2010 that secured the Iberian nation’s first World Cup. (Reuters)