Daily Headlines: April 15, 2013

* Cuba: In op-ed piece published in the New York Times, Guantanamo inmate Samir Naji al-Hasan Moqbel claimed that he has been detained without trial since 2001 and described his participation in a hunger strike at the U.S.-run military prison. 

* Mexico: Europol warned last week that Mexican drug gangs are allegedly trying to become “key players in the European drugs market.”

* Argentina: Golfer Angel Cabrera fell short of winning his second Masters tournament and ended as runner-up to Adam Scott of Australia.

* Latin America: Guatemala filed a dispute at the World Trade Organization against Peru regarding import duties on several foods.

Video Source – YouTube via euronews
 
Online Sources- The Atlantic, Bloomberg, ESPN, LAHT

Lorena Ochoa calls it quits

One of the greatest female golfers and Mexican athletes of all time has surprisingly decided to retire from the game.

"Lorena Ochoa has confirmed her retirement from LPGA... more details will be released on Friday at a press conference," according to the golf star’s management group. The shocking announcement comes as the 28-year-old as at the peak of the women’s golf game having won 27 tournaments and earned $14 million. Though the communiqué did not explain why Ochoa is to quit she has previously expressed departing from professional golf in order to raise a family. (She admitted last year that the “things that I do outside the golf course” served as her “main focus.”)

Though Ochoa never reached the star power of Annika Sorenstam (who retired for personal reasons in 2008) her departure will leave a big void in the economically struggling LPGA Tour. Much like Ana Guevara in track and field, Ochoa was a superstar in Mexico on a level comparable to the country’s elite soccer players. Her legacy will hopefully continue via her numerous charitable efforts:

Earlier this month, Ochoa disclosed plans to open a golf academy in Mira Loma, California, targeting the area’s Latino population. Ochoa’s foundation also runs a similar school in Mexico and has plans to open academies in the U.S. and other countries.

Image- USA TODAY
Online Sources- AP, Reuters, New York Times, Bloomberg

Another Green Jacket for 'El Pato'?

The Masters kicks off this week at Augusta National Golf Club with one story dominating all others: Tiger Woods.

At the end of day 1, a series of great subplots have developed: 50-year-old Fred Couples leading the field, 60-year-old Tom Watson one shot back and 16-year-old Italian Matteo Manassero shooting a round of one under par.

Lost in the shuffle is the story of the fantastic Latin American golfers who also hope to contend. Last year, Cordoba, Argentina native Angel "El Pato" Cabrera showed he's one of the greatest pressure players in the world when he knocked off Kenny Perry in a playoff. Also ready to contend on golf's greatest stage is Colombian Camilo "El Hombre Araña" Villegas (so know for his Spiderman-esque flexibility and style in reading greens).

The Latin American golfers are a ways back after day one, but with three more days of Tiger-dominated golf ahead, there's still plenty of time for El Pato or Camilo to steal the headlines.

Online Sources: ESPN, Guardian, Daily Telegraph

Image Source: Guardian

Is Chavez’ golf rant a hole-in-one or a bogey?

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has received extra attention recently with his rant against the sport of golf. "Golf is a bourgeois sport" said Chavez on Sunday after officials have moved ahead to close two of Venezuela’s top golf courses. His comments were criticized by a State Department spokesman and ridiculed by some in the press.

Despite the seemingly silly nature of Chavez’ disdain for golf, the government’s shutdown of the Maracay and Caraballeda courses has a vital political purpose:

A housing shortage has also pushed the government’s hand, Mr. Chávez said last month, when he questioned why Maracay had so many slums while the golf course and the grounds of the state-owned Hotel Maracay, a decaying modernist gem built in the 1950s, stretch over about 74 acres of coveted real estate…

In Maracay, officials are considering building low-income homes on the golf course or turning it into a campus of Mr. Chávez’s Bolivarian University. In Caraballeda, plans are advancing to turn the course into a park for children.

By planning to use the golf courses to ostensibly help the common people, Chavez is strengthening his support among some of his most loyal backers: Venezuela’s poor. With support for Chavez wavering over increased crime and the faltering economy, closing the golf course for the public good could help him. In short, despite the media’s snickering of Chavez’ golf comments he may ultimately have the last laugh.

Any thoughts?

Image- CBS News
Online Sources- AP, The Telegraph, Scripps News, NPR, New York Times

Daily Headlines: July 17, 2009

* Mexico: Authorities sent over 1000 federal police to the state of Michoacan after a spike in drug gang-related violence including twelve killed policemen whose bodies were placed along a highway.

* U.S.: In a positive sign for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, several Senate Republicans said that they would not filibuster her bid for the top tribunal.

* Brazil: Locals are peeved at finding over 1400 tons of toxic waste from Britain that was illegally dumped in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul.

* Europe: Spanish golfer Miguel Angel Jimenez leads after the first round of the British Open while Colombia’s Camilo Villegas is in a five-way tie for fourth.

Image- AP (“Packages containing marijuana are displayed to the media in Tijuana, Mexico, Wednesday, July 15, 2009. About 2920 kilograms of marijuana were sized during an operation at the Tijuana-Mexicali highway. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)”.)
Online Sources- CNN, Reuters, BBC News, Bloomberg

Angel Cabrera wins Masters thriller

It took 74 holes but in the end Argentine golfer Angel Cabrera was the man wearing the iconic Green Jacket at Augusta.

Cabrera won his second major golf tournament with a thrilling Masters victory on Sunday. The Argentine became the first Latin American to win the fabled major after beating beat Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell in a play-off.

The 2007 U.S. Open champ was co-leader with Perry after three rounds yet had an inconsistent Sunday. Perry bogeyed the final two regulation holes, however, and Cabrera hung on to force the playoff. Despite nearly being eliminated in the first extra hole, Cabrera played the second impeccably and became the lowest-ranked Masters champion since the world rankings began in 1986.

Cabrera received plenty of inspiration from fellow Argentine Roberto DeVicenzo who was achingly close to Masters glory in 1968:

"This moment, and also Oakmont in 2007, are the happiest moments of my life," he said before being helped into his Green Jacket by 2008 champion Trevor Immelman of South Africa.

"When I won the U.S. Open (compatriot) Roberto De Vicenzo gave me a nice picture and there was a green jacket in it, making me go for it," added Cabrera through an interpreter…

De Vicenzo came close to Masters glory in 1968 only to submit an incorrect scorecard, giving American Bob Goalby a one-shot victory instead of sending the year's first major to a playoff.

Image- AP (“Defending Masters' champion Trevor Immelman of South Africa helps 2009 Masters golf champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina with his Masters' green jacket at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Ga., Sunday, April 12, 2009.”)
Online Sources- Guardian UK, UPI, The Latin Americanist, Reuters, BBC Sport, Times Online

Today’s Video: Golf, “cholita” style

On the surface, the video below is reminiscent of this one on Bolivia’s cholita wrestlers. In this case it focuses on four women in their traditional indigenous garb playing golf at one of the country’s premier golf courses. Yet the story loses its luster in that these cholitas are paid to do back-breakingmanual labor at the golf club and are given free privileges to play. With an $8000 membership fee and a $75 monthly rate, entry into “the world’s highest golf course” is a distant luxury for most of the hard-working blue-collar cholitas in Bolivia.

(Video link):

Sources- The Latin Americanist, Reuters

LPGA tour mandates English-language rule

The world’s’ premier women’s golf tour will impose an English proficiency requirement by next year. According to an article from Golfweek magazine and as reported on several news outlets, the new rule would obligate LPGA golfers with two years experience to learn English or else face suspension.

LPGA brass allegedly told players that the measure is needed since they want players to interact with corporate sponsors; coincidentally (or not), the LPGA has been suffering from decreased sponsorships which have included the cancellation of a few tournaments.

There are 121 international players from 26 countries on the LPGA Tour, including Lorena Ochoa (Mexico), Julieta Granada (Paraguay), Nicole Perrot (Chile) and Marisa Baena (Colombia).

ESPN.com’s Bob Harig believes that the new rule “goes overboard” yet a few golfers appear to be fine with the move:

Angela Park - born in Brazil of South Korean heritage and raised in the United States - said the policy is fair and good for the tour and its international players.

"A lot of Korean players think they are being targeted, but it's just because there are so many of them," Park said.

Seon-Hwa Lee, the only Asian with multiple victories this year, said she works with an English tutor in the winter. Her ability to answer questions without the help of a translator has improved in her short time on tour.

"The economy is bad, and we are losing sponsors," Lee said. "Everybody understands."

Image- esmas.com (Lorena Ochoa after winning the 2008 Morelia Championship)

Sources- Canadian Press, Golfweek, ESPN.com, LPGA.com, CBC, UPI, Sposrtsnet.ca

Daily Headlines: April 21, 2008

* Mexico: Can anyone stop Lorena Ochoa? The Mexican golfer became the first person in 45 years to win four LPGA tournaments in consecutive weeks.

* Honduras: Sixteen Cuban migrants are “in good health” after landing on the Honduran island of Guanaja last week.

* Peru: $450 million is the price tag placed by government officials for the reconstruction of areas devastated by earthquakes last August.

* Venezuela: Why was the Venezuelan government interested in being a minority shareholder of a firm that owns a pair of spy satellites?

Sources- BBC Sport, New York Times, Associated Press, The Latin Americanist, Miamiherald.com

Image- New York Times

Daily Headlines: August 27, 2007

* Headline: “Chavez offers billions in Latin America”. In other news, the Earth revolves around the Sun and there are twelve months in a year.

* Congrats to top-ranked Mexican golfer Lorena Ochoa who won her third consecutive LPGA tournament yesterday.

* The Brazilian city of Santos will build a museum in honor of soccer legend Pele.

* Puerto Rican governor Aníbal Acevedo Vila called for the return of National Guard troops from combat in Iraq.

* Over 150 British legislators have signed a motion calling for the end of arms sales to Colombia.

* Follow-up: Brazil’s justice Minster said that “visa irregularities” led to the deportation of two Cuban boxers that had gone missing during the Pan American Games.

Sources (English)- Yahoo! News, International Herald Tribune, Independent Online, ESPN, The Latin Americanist,

Source (Spanish)- El Diario/La Prensa

Image- MSNBC

Daily Headlines: August 7, 2007

* Congrats to Mexican golfer Lorena Ochoa (image) who won her first major title at the Women’s British Open.

* U.S. FDA busts BSing P.R. Drs. (Try saying that five times fast).

* Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez offered to negotiate with Colombian guerrilla leaders.

* Ecologists are worried over the deaths of hundreds of sharks off the Ecuadorian coast after the government lifted a ban on the sale of shark fins.

* A Washington State hiker died after falling off a Chilean cliff.

* Did Mexican television channel Televisa edit out the climactic scene of “Y Tú Mama, También”?

Sources- FOX Sports, AHN, Bloomberg, Forbes, Guardian UK, Guanabee

Image- CNN

Argie golfer Cabrera triumphs in U.S. Open

Earlier today we congratulated race car driver Lewis Hamilton, but surely the biggest sports story from the weekend involving Latin America was Argentine golfer Angel Cabrera’s victory in the U.S. Open. The 37-year-old became the first Argentine to win the prestigious tournament by one stroke over Jim Furyk and Tiger Woods.

What was Cabrera’s secret weapon for winning? Try tobacco:

“‘Some players have psychologists, sportologists. I smoke,’ Cabrera said. ‘I usually smoke 8 to 10 in a round. This round was not special in terms of number.’”

Cabrera’s win + Manu Ginobili playing for the NBA champs + Boca Juniors’ possible Copa Libertadores title = a very good week for Argentine sports

Sources (English)- The Latin Americanist, Voice of America, Bloomberg, Deadspin

Sources (Spanish)- Olé, La Nacion

Image- Canada.com