All eyes on Phaneuf

EDMONTON -- Even the Edmonton Oilers are Dion Phaneuf watchers, but for an entirely different reason.

While fans and media are glued to Phaneuf’s return to Alberta (first, to his hometown of Edmonton then to Calgary where he played for the Flames), the Oilers have a far more rooted interest in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ captain.

On Dec. 2, the Oilers played in Toronto and shellacked the Leafs 5-0. Phaneuf wasn’t in the lineup because of a leg gash he suffered the month before against Ottawa. Tuesday night at Rexall Place, the two teams meet again and this team Phaneuf

Wife urges release of detained husband

THE wife of a British man held without charge in Iraq for a year is calling on the UK government to step up its efforts to secure the release of her husband.
Ramze Shihab Ahmed, a 68-year-old dual Iraqi-UK national who has lived in the UK since 2002, was arrested by security officials in a relative’s house in the city of Mosul on 7 December 2009.
Mr Ahmed, who had travelled to Iraq to try to secure the release of his detained son ‘Omar, was first held in total secrecy for nearly four months before being able to phone his wife in London. He has told his wife of how he was tortured - including with electric shocks to his genitals and suffocation by plastic bags.
Amnesty International has launched a

Audi Unveils Audi R18

Audi Unveils Audi R18 Share

Audi introduced its latest sports car Audi R18 at the Audi Sportpark in Ingolstadt, Germany, Friday.

Audi's latest sports-prototype features a brand new 3.7-liter V6 TDI turbocharged diesel engine and marks the first time a closed cockpit sports car has been put into race by the factory Audi Sport Team Joest outfit.

Dr. Wolfgang Ulrich, head of Audi, said that Audi R18 was designed for progressive electrification which the company is planning forward step by step. He said that efficiency is always a crucial factor for Audi. Moreover, Ulrich said that aerodynamic efficiency will be even

Henin beaten on return

Justine Henin's first match in six months saw her edged out by fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters.

The former world number one, who missed the second half of the WTA Tour season due to an elbow injury, was beaten 6-1 3-6 10-5 by her compatriot at the GDF SUEZ Diamond Games exhibition event in Antwerp.

US Open champion Clijsters started like a train but Henin hit back to force the contest, watched by a crowd of around 14,000, into a super tie-break.

Henin's previous match had also ended in defeat to Clijsters - at Wimbledon in June.

The Belgians, who before

Patrick Chan in medal contention at Grand Prix final

Toronto's Patrick Chan skated his best short program of the season Friday to finish second and keep himself in gold medal contention at the ISU Grand Prix Final.

Nobunari Oda of Japan took the lead earning 86.59 points while Chan is only a point behind after a season-best 85.59. World champion Daisuke Takahashi of Japan stands third at 82.57.

“I'm very happy to be in first place while landing my quad,” Oda said. “I decided to incorporate the quad into my short program because I had been landing it during practice.”

Chan and Oda were 1-2 respectively earlier this season at Skate Canada.

“I'm really pleased because I haven't had the greatest short programs this season,” said Chan, the world championship silver medallist. “There's been some self-doubt because it

Uruguay, Mexico and Chile have the most numerous middle-class in Latam

Angel Gurria, OECD Secretary General Zoom Image

The report estimated that 49.14% of the Chilean population belongs to the middle class. Only Uruguay (55.51%) and Mexico (52.88%) have higher percentages of middle-class citizens. Countries with the lowest proportion are Bolivia and Colombia.

“The middle class in Latin America doesn’t correspond to the typical stereotype notions of what the middle-class should be,” explained Jeff Dayton-Johnson, Head of America’s Desk at OECD.

“Many have jobs in the informal sector, don’t

Katrina Kaif, totally devoted to ‘Tees Maar Khan’

BOLLYWOOD beauty, Katrina Kaif, has worked her fingers to the bone for upcoming blockbuster release, ‘Tees Maar Khan.’

The former model took her role in the film very seriously from the very beginning says director Farah Khan.

One of Katrina’s biggest efforts was filming ‘Sheela Ki Jawani’, which is fast becoming one of the Bollywood anthems of 2010.

“Katrina spent entire days and nights rehearsing for this song. I had to shout at her and insist she take some rest. I hardly ever saw her chilling on the sets,” said Farah.

In preparation for the filming, Katrina visited the gym on a daily basis, as well as following a healthy diet and abstaining from pleasures such as sweets