Category: 2018

Keeping up with the Berejiklians

Kanayan Tamar
Stellar, Australia
Sunday
Keeping up with the Berejiklians
 
Interview NAOMI CHRISOULAKIS
 
 
Three sisters crowd the kitchen, joking and jostling for space as their mother instructs them on the correct preparation of classic Armenian dishes. But this scene isn't unfolding for the benefit of a lurking reality-TV camera crew; instead, we're in an unassuming house on Sydney's North Shore, and the most famous sister – who is handing her mother lemons from her garden – isn't known for her social-media prowess, but for her politics.
 
"I have to admit I do watch [Keeping Up With The Kardashians]," Gladys Berejiklian, 48, says with a droll laugh, good-naturedly acknowledging the parallel between herself and Kim Kardashian's famous Armenian family.
 
"We're similar in that we're close to each other and we're involved in each other's lives." But reality-television drama? No, the New South Wales Premier insists, just the "normal" drama. "We're so comfortable with each other. We fight all the time – in a good way." Born in Sydney to Armenian immigrants Krikor and Arsha, Berejiklian and her two younger sisters Rita and Mary didn't speak English until they started school. It was a choice made by her parents in an attempt to preserve their heritage – both sets of grandparents had been orphaned in the 1915 Armenian genocide.
 
It worked: Berejiklian is still involved in the local Armenian community, despite holding one of the most demanding jobs in the country as NSW Premier. She's only the second woman to hold the position, and she'll be fighting to retain it at the upcoming state election in March of next year.
 
As she sits down in her study to talk to Stellar, Berejiklian admits she can only hope to have any time off over Christmas as she prepares to go to the polls, but insists she's used to it. "I don't get much down time. I count the amount of hours I get off in a week, as opposed to the other way round, but I accepted that as I took on this job. You don't know how long you've got the job for, and it's an incredible privilege so you make the most of it while you've got it. The only time I do get down time is when I come home; even if it's late, I need to wind down.
 
I read something or, more often than not, watch a TV program I've taped." There's not usually much time for cooking, but the family gathers every Saturday at Krikor and Arsha's – although Arsha never lets her daughters bring anything, and sends them home with leftovers. "Glad", as her family calls her, is usually last to arrive and first to leave.
 
"My dad's started to time it," she says. "You know, 'We're glad you turned up, but how long are you going to stay for today?' That's the first question I get asked." Her sisters keep her in line, too. "I get into trouble if I don't do something as much as they do. Growing up, I used to be the goody-two-shoes that did everything, and now it's shifted. They carry more of the load than I do, unfortunately." Today, though, they're full of praise for their big sister. "I don't know how she gets around to meeting everyone's needs," says Mary, the youngest of the clan. "As busy as she is, she will just drop everything if it means her helping me or my sister, or my mum or my dad. I haven't seen her for this week, which feels massive." As well as responsibility, she says there's lightness in her big sister, too. "People don't realise how funny she actually is. She has got the quirkiest sense of humour, but she keeps it to herself until you get to know her." She has needed it in recent months, as the federal Coalition faced leadership chaos and her Victorian counterparts got walloped at last month's state election. Whatever she worries about privately, publicly she maintains she's focused solely on her own challenges, not those of her Liberal Party colleagues in Victoria and Canberra. "I think you will always need to run your own race, and in New South Wales we've always stood on our own," she tells Stellar. "My attitude is: 'Keep focusing on what citizens want you to do on their behalf.' And that's always been my mantra, no matter what role I've had." She might not be worrying about the Victorian Liberals, but they're paying attention to her. Louise Asher, a former Member for Brighton who served as a minister and former Liberal Deputy Leader, first met Berejiklian when she was a "highly impressive" Young Liberal.
 
"She stood out from the crowd even then," Asher says. "The fact that Gladys is Premier of Australia's largest state tells female MPs in Victoria that the Liberal Party is prepared to vote for a woman as leader. She is an inspiration." Whether the voters of NSW will be prepared to back her in March is another question. But for her part, being a woman doesn't have much to do with it."I just focus on doing my job well, and I look forward to the day where women in leadership roles are not a novelty," Berejiklian says. "So my contribution to that effort is to do a good job regardless as a Premier, not a good 'female Premier'."

Lavrov’s New Plan: Azerbaijan Not Found There

Emma Jilavian
Lragir, Armenia
Dec 17 2018

Culture: Photographer, 104, survived genocide, watched Ruth and Gehrig, lived the American dream

Vardan Badalian
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Dec 17 2018


Meg Jones, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Published 6:00 a.m. CT Dec. 17, 2018 | Updated 11:05 a.m. CT Dec. 17, 2018

Photographer B. Artin Haig is known for his portraits of political leaders including Franklin Roosevelt. He turned 104 on Aug. 1, 2018. He's pictured here at St. Christopher's Episcopal Church in River Hills, Wisconsin on June 17, 2018.(Photo: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)Buy Photo

LINKEDINCOMMENTMORE

Not many people still walking the planet can say they watched Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig play in Yankee Stadium.

Fewer people can say they snapped portraits of Franklin Roosevelt in the White House.

Though B. Artin Haig's hearing isn't what it used to be, once he gets going the memories start to flood back. And, wow, what memories.

"I used to go to baseball games and I used to sit on the third base side because I liked to see them steal home," Haig said in an interview at St. John's on the Lake, where he lives.

"Babe Ruth was my favorite player and Lou Gehrig second. Babe Ruth was not only friendly, he was outgoing," said Haig. "Lou Gehrig was a very good player. He was actually a better player than Babe Ruth though Babe Ruth had a few more home runs."

That's true — Babe Ruth hit 714 homers and Gehrig, whose career was cut short by the illness that now carries his name, hit 493.

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK: Get the latest Journal Sentinel news in your feed

Haig celebrated his 104th birthday in August. In 2014, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported there were 72,197 American centenarians, a 44 percent increase since 2000.

Born Haig Artin Kojababian in Armenia in 1914, less than a week after the start of World War I, he was orphaned at the age of 4 or 5. He saw his mother dragged away by Turkish soldiers; his father, a math professor, disappeared. His family was wealthy and among the ruling class in their Armenian village of Hadjin. 

He fled Armenia and lived with an uncle in Constantinople, then moved to Marseilles, France, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, before immigrating to New York when he was around 10 years old. There, a distant cousin owned a photography studio at West 46th Street and Broadway — Times Square. Haig wanted to photograph pretty girls and he asked his cousin, who took pictures for theater producer Flo Ziegfeld, what he needed to do to become a professional photographer.

B. Artin Haig has been a photographer for years. Haig was photographed in his studio in 1982. (Photo: Journal Sentinel files)

"I learned photography from him. He made me study chemistry so I knew how to mix chemicals. I would add chemicals for more contrast," said Haig.

While he was in high school, the always nattily dressed Haig worked at a grocery store for an uncle who operated a large Oriental rug business and as a messenger on Wall Street. He remembers the 1929 Wall Street crash, which led to the Great Depression. "But it didn't affect me. We still worked, but tips were not as good."

His skills as a photographer improved and eventually photography would become his life's work.

B. Artin Haig shot photos of President Franklin Roosevelt in the White House. (Photo: B. Artin Haig)

Haig moved to Washington, D.C., and worked for Underwood & Underwood, a news photography company that had studios at hotels where brides would come to get their photos taken. At that time, Haig recalled, brides would arrange for photos to be taken by two or three photographers free of charge before choosing their favorite to hire.

He also found his own bride at Underwood & Underwood — his wife, Mabel, who was known as Caroline, was a receptionist at the firm. They were married for more than four decades before she died in 1977 of lung cancer.

Though he became known for his bridal photography, Haig was also Underwood & Underwood's White House photographer, and he snapped photos of the most famous Washington resident.

Haig and two assistants always traveled to the White House early to set up lights and cameras before President Franklin Roosevelt arrived. Haig got only seven to eight minutes to take as many pictures as he could — usually around a dozen shots — before the busy Roosevelt needed to be somewhere else.

"I would talk to him and when I got a good _expression_ I snapped the picture," said Haig. 

One time, Roosevelt's French cuffs were scrunched up and Haig helped the president smooth them out.

"The next time I saw him he didn't remember my name but he said, 'Are you going to fix my cuffs?' I said, 'Yes sir, Mr. President,' " Haig said. "I was never shy to speak freely. I would say 'Mr. President, when I'm taking the pictures, I'm the boss.'"

He enjoyed taking pictures of politicians, famous actors and other prominent people. Haig can't remember their names now and no longer has their autographs because he would throw them away after a few days or weeks. Now he regrets tossing the valuable autographs.

"If he didn't like what the person was wearing, he would make them change," said his daughter, Dolores Mishelow. "He thought if it wasn't flattering, they wouldn't like it. They never complained."

He moved from Washington, D.C., to Dallas to work for Gittings, a prominent portrait studio at a time when portrait photography was big. Haig moved to Milwaukee in 1954 and bought a photography studio next to Chapman's Department Store across from the Pfister Hotel on Wisconsin Avenue.

B. Artin Haig and his wife, Mabel, on their wedding day. (Photo: Courtesy Artin Haig)

He later opened up B. Artin Haig Photography studios elsewhere in the Milwaukee area.

Haig's nickname is "Honey" because years ago one of his granddaughters heard her grandmother only call him by that name. So it stuck.

At the age of 93 he traveled back to his homeland with his daughters, but his village had been destroyed by the Turks during the Armenian genocide.

"There wasn't much that he recognized," said Mishelow. "He had never been back since he escaped at night with the help of the Kurdish people. I'm sure it was very emotional for him. I think it was exciting for him to see."

He continued taking photos into his 90s, by then using Hasselblad cameras. As his eyesight weakened, he used an assistant and had someone carry his camera equipment. He tried digital photography, but Haig never warmed up to it. To Haig, film remained the best medium.

"Photography to me is as creative as any painting can be. I feel we can make a better picture than any painter can make it," said Haig.

Travel: The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2019

Tania Jagharian
Travel + Leisure
Dec 12 2018
The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2019
Travel + Leisure Staff

December 12, 2018

Ask the Travel + Leisure staff where we want to travel in 2019, and most of us will answer, honestly, where don’t we?

When it comes to compiling our annual year-end list of the places we’re most excited about in the coming months, narrowing down the field is easier said than done. We pore over press releases, tourism statistics, and our overflowing spreadsheets of hotel openings, restaurant debuts, and new flight routes. We consider the anecdotal evidence: Where are our friends and families going? What destinations are we seeing on Instagram? Which places seem to be part of today’s travel zeitgeist? And, as always, we turn to our network of travel experts — trusted writers, hospitality professionals, the travel advisors that make up T+L’s A-List — to see where people are actually going, and which places are the ones to watch in the coming year.

This year’s list spans the globe, from exciting southern hemisphere cities like Santiago, Chile, and Brisbane, Australia, to harder-to-reach regions like Langkawi, Malaysia and the Danish Riviera. There are the new capitals of culture — Nairobi, Kenya, home to a emergent design scene, or Panama City, with a deluge of forward-thinking restaurants and bars — and the tourism destinations that are back in fighting form after natural disasters or human conflict, including Puerto Rico, the Turquoise Coast of Turkey, Egypt, and Montecito, California. And, of course, there are the destinations that we haven’t heard much about, but certainly will soon — places like India’s remote Andaman Islands, or the art and history-filled emirate of Sharjah, in the U.A.E., or the under-the-radar wine scene in Etyek, Hungary.

After all, isn’t dreaming about places totally new to us — and seeing old favorites in a new light — why we travel in the first place?

Here are Travel + Leisure’s 50 best places to travel in 2019. If you already know where you're going in the year ahead, share your travel destination picks with us on social media with #TLBestPlaces.

…

Armenia

This past spring Armenians voted in a new, more liberal government. The resulting energy has made the country all the more inviting to travelers. The Alexander, part of Marriott’s Luxury Collection, recently opened in Yerevan, giving the capital its first world-class hotel. And a number of new restaurants in the city, including Sherep, are breathing new life into Armenia’s ancient cuisine. Armenia has a famously beautiful countryside landscape, and there’s no better way to see it than on foot. The Transcaucasian Trail passes the spa town of Dilijan, the bucolic Dilijan National Park, and a pair of 10th-century Christian monasteries. —Peter Terzian


Armenian News note: the 49 other places can be read at the link: https://www.travelandleisure.com/trip-ideas/best-places-to-travel-in-2019?utm_campaign=travelandleisure_travelandleisure&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_term=69570608-FFBA-11E8-AEA7-8CBAC28169F1&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR26wLzEEho2b7jJvHeD10xX3ZBmDXZcpib2_NFDDXrfg#uttarakhand-india

Sports: "Football legend" to arrive in Armenia to train local coaches

Anna Tamamian
PanArmenian, Armenia
Dec 17 2018
– 12:57 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – One of the legends of the world of football has agreed to arrive in Armenia to train local coaches, President of the Football Federation of Armenia Artur Vanetsyan has revealed.

“After serious negotiations, we have managed to invite a legendary football expert whose name I can’t reveal by January 6,” Vanetsyan was quoted as saying by the RFE/RL Armenian Service.

“[That person] is a legend who has agreed to settle in Armenia, train our coaches and create a program for the development of the Armenian football.”

Vanetsyan, who also heads the National Security Service, said that 700 small stadium will be built across the country to help promote the popularity of youth football.

Sports: How the Guardian ranked the 100 best male footballers in the world 2018

Emil Lazarian
The Guardian, UK
Dec 17 2018
How the Guardian ranked the 100 best male footballers in the world 2018

Mario Kempes, Zico and Nuno Gomes were part of a 225-strong voting panel as we compiled our list of the best male footballers on the planet

Stephen McMillan and Marcus Christenson

Mon 17 Dec 2018 17.02 GMT Last modified on Mon 17 Dec 2018 17.21 GMT

From left to right: Zico, Nuno Gomes and Mario Kempes Photograph: The Guardian

For our seventh male top 100 list we have assembled a voting panel of 225 judges from 69 countries, led by legendary players such as Zico, Mario Kempes and Nuno Gomes.

They are backed up by a global selection of coaches, broadcasters, reporters, correspondents and editors, as well as other former players such as Javier Zanetti, Tugay Kerimoglu and Eyal Berkovic.

  

The 34 current and former professionals have won a combined total of 1,909 international caps.

Our 225 judges are drawn from around the world as follows: Africa 19, Asia 20, Europe 140, North and Central America 11, South America 35.

The countdown begins on Tuesday 18 December with Nos 100-71. On Wednesday we will reveal Nos 70-41, on Thursday Nos 40-11 before the top 10 on Friday completes this year’s list.

The Top 100 rules are explained beneath the list of judges. The judges are listed in alphabetical order by category.

Players
Márcio Amoroso Former Brazil international with 19 caps
Patrik Andersson Former Sweden international who won 96 caps and played at the 1994 and 2002 World Cups
Roman Berezovsky Former Armenia international who won 94 caps between 1996 and 2016
Eyal Berkovic Former Israel international with 78 caps
Rune Bratseth Former Norway international with 60 caps who captained his country at the 1994 World Cup
Júlio César Former Brazil international who won 87 caps and played at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups
Gilles De Bilde Former Belgium international with 25 caps
Erik Edman Former Sweden international with 57 caps who played at the 2006 World Cup
Jan Åge Fjørtoft Former Norway international with 71 caps who played at the 1994 World Cup
Quinton Fortune Former South Africa international with 46 caps
Stelios Giannakopoulos Former Greece international with 77 caps who was part of the team that won Euro 2004
Nuno Gomes Former Portugal international with 79 caps who played at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups
Senol Günes Former Turkey international who led the country to third at the 2002 World Cup as a manager
Nihat Kahveci Former Turkey international with 79 caps who was part of the team that finished third in 2002
Mario Kempes Former Argentina international who played at three World Cups, winning the tournament in 1978
Tugay Kerimoglu Former Turkey international with 94 caps who was part of the team that finished third in 2002
Sergey Kiryakov Former Russian international who won 38 caps for USSR, CIS and Russia and played at the 1992 and 1996 European Championships
Emily Lima Former Portugal international with 12 caps. Now Santos Women coach
Lubomir Moravcik Former Czechoslovakia international with 80 caps for Czechoslovakia and Slovakia who played at the 1990 World Cup
Youri Mulder Former Netherlands international with nine caps
Szilard Nemeth Former Slovakia international with 58 caps
Armen Petikyan Former Armenia international with five caps
Lutz Pfannenstiel Former goalkeeper and the first player to have played professionally in all six Fifa confederations
Mart Poom Former Estonia international with 120 caps
Brent Sancho Former Trinidad and Tobago international with 43 caps who played at the 2006 World Cup and is a former Minister of Sports of Trinidad and Tobago
Mark Schwarzer Former Australia international with 109 caps who played at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups
Aleksey Smertin Former Russia international with 55 caps who played at the 2002 World Cup
Kazuyuki Toda Former Japan international who played for Tottenham Hotspur during the 2002-03 season
Julio César Uribe Former Peru international with 39 caps
Stanislav Varga Former Slovakia international with 54 caps
Frédéric Waseige Won the Belgian Cup and League Cup with FC Liège and is now a TV pundit
Jonny Williams Crystal Palace midfielder with 17 caps for Wales
Javier Zanetti Former Argentina international who played at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups
Zico Former Brazil international with 71 caps who played at the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups

Steve Darby Laos General Manager, Asian football consultant
Mattar M’boge Assistant manager of Gambia
Alisher Nikimbaev Technical expert, competitions and players affairs, Qatar Football Association

Ed Aarons Deputy news editor, the Guardian
Ahmed Adala Journalist at Radio IFM Tunisie and Coaching Foot in Tunisia
Aanu Adeoye Journalist working for CNN Africa bureau in Lagos, Nigeria
Omar Al Raisi Founder of Dantani, Inc. and Editor-in-Chief of The Sports Journal in the UAE
Tobias Altschäffl Chief footballer reporter at Sport-Bild in Germany
Nick Ames Football writer, the Guardian
David Amoyal Writer for the Athletic and host of the Calcioland podcast
Juan Arango TV commentator/Contributor Aficion Central (Ecuador), Sportsmax (Caribbean) and Al-Jazeera
Philippe Auclair Senior writer, France Football
Gregg Bakowski Football writer, the Guardian
Paolo Bandini Italian football correspondent, the Guardian
Marcelo Barreto Sports journalist and Presenter at Sportv in Brazil
John Bennett Broadcaster, BBC World Service & BBC 5 Live
Mina Finstad Berg Pundit and football expert at TV 2 in Norway
William Bi Football writer based in China
Christoph Biermann Football writer for 11Freunde in Germany
Andreas Böni Head of football at Blick in Switzerland
Anne-Laure Bonnet Journalist and presenter beIN Sports
Mareike Boysen Reporter at Ballesterer magazine in Austria
Andy Brassell European football writer/broadcaster
Costas Bratsos Football writer at Sport24.gr in Greece
Rodrigo Bueno Football journalist and FOX commentator in Brazil
Gevorg Burnuchyan Editor-in-chief of football365.am in Armenia
Mariana Cabral Football writer for Expresso and Sporting U-19 women’s team coach
Pedro Canelo Journalist at El Comercio in Peru
Lédio Carmona Football journalist and SporTV commentator in Brazil
Antonio Casale Host of En La Jugada at RCN Radio and presents a TV show on Winsports in Colombia
Khachik Chakhoyan Uefa Media representer in Armenia
Martin Charquero Uruguayan football journalist on Tenfield, Teledoce and Radio Sport890
Ivaylo Chilev Football journalist and Champions League broadcast producer at bTV Media Group in Bulgaria
Marcus Christenson Football editor, the Guardian
Solace Chukwu Football Writer for the Africa Desk of goal.com
Paulo Vinicius Coelho Football writer and Fox commentator in Brazil
Junior Coimbra CEO of Jogo das Estrelas, Host of Rap77 Podcast and Ambassador of the Adventure of Humanity Project in Brazil
James Corbett Sports writer and principal of deCoubertin Books
Joe Crann Soccer Laduma journalist in South Africa. Part-time TV and Radio analyst
James Dart Sports editor, theguardian.com
Kirill Dementyev Channel One commentator in Russia
Salif Diallo Journalist at Agence de Presse Sénégelaise
Paul Doyle Football writer, the Guardian
John Duerden Asian Football Correspondent for the Guardian
Vincent Duluc Senior reporter at L’Equipe
Magnús Már Einarsson Editor of fotbolti.net in Iceland
Claudia Ekai Kwese Sports Correspondent in Kenya
Mohamed Amine Elamri Sports journalist at Le Matin in Morocco
Kasper Elissaar Editor-in-chief at Soccernet in Estonia
Muhannad El Shennawy Online journalist at Sky News Arabia in the UAE
Rodrigo Errasti Sports editor in chief of the Agencia Colpisa-Vocento in Spain
Alejandro Etcheverry Journalist working for Espn Deportes Radio in Egypt
Amr Fahmy Journalist working for beIN Sports in Egypt
Christian Falk Head of football at Sport-Bild in Germany
Eric Faria Football journalist at TV Globo in Brazil
Mohammed Fayad Editor of www.ahdaaf.me, based in Australia
Dominic Fifield Football writer, the Guardian
Ben Fisher Football writer, the Guardian
Solomon Fowowe Football journalist at the Guardian in Nigeria
Johanna Frändén European football correspondent for Swedish paper Aftonbladet
Jesús Garrido Spanish football journalist
Jonas Giaever Norwegian football journalist
Barry Glendenning Football writer and Guardian Football Weekly regular
Mélisande Gomez Football reporter at L’Equipe
Cristian Grosso Sports editor of La Nación in Argentina
Andreas Hagenauer Football journalist at Der Standard
Thomas Lund Hansen Football writer at Jyllands-Posten in Denmark
Pavel Hartman Czech football writer at Sport daily
Gudmundur Hilmarsson Sport journalist at Morgunbladid and mbl.is in Iceland
Johannes Hofer Presenter at Sky Sport Austria
Andy Hunter Football writer, the Guardian
David Hytner Football writer, the Guardian
Sasa Ibrulj Bosnian football writer
Wael Jabir Editor Ahdaaf.me, Dubai
Jamie Jackson Football writer, the Guardian
Behnam Jafarzadeh Deputy editor at Varzesh3.com, Iran
Paulius Jakelis Lithuania’s most well-known TV football commentator
Stuart James Football writer, the Guardian
Ott Järvela Football journalist and chairman of Estonian Sports Press Association
Nicholas John Snr Asst Vice President, Sports Production , Astro Sports, Malaysia
Kristján Jónsson Sport journalist for Morgunblaðið/mbl.is in Iceland
Boris Jovanovic Editor in Chief Sportske.net
Eduard Kalantaryan Head of Armenia TV sport
Ugur Karakullukcu A Spor pundit and Sabah journalist in Turkey
Celestine Karoney Kenyan sports journalist
Hideki Kasuya Japanese football journalist, commentator and broadcaster
Ali Khaled Editor of FourFourTwo Arabia
Shinya Kizaki Japanese football journalist, broadcaster and commentator
Pavle Knezevic Reporter at Sportske.net
Freddhy Koula Football writer at TDA/Canal+Afrique
Charbel Krayem Presenter at the Golden Ball football show, commentator on MTV Lebanon and head of sport Al Akhbar newspaper
Ermal Kuka Sports journalist at vipsport.al in Albania
Cecilia Lagos Sports journalist. Columnist at Medios Regionales El Mercurio and cecilialagos.com
Steven Lavon Sports journalist and editor-in-chief of africatopsports.com in Lomé, Togo
Amy Lawrence Football writer, the Guardian
Sergio Levinsky Journalist working for Infobae and Jornada in Argentina as well as Kicker in Germany
Gianluca Lia Sports journalist at Times of Malta
Pablo Londinsky Uruguayan football journalist at Tenfield
Sid Lowe Spanish football correspondent for the Guardian
Olof Lundh Swedish football writer for Fotbollskanalen and Dagens Industri, pundit for TV4 and C More and author
Ben Lyttleton Football author and consultant
Ben Mabley Japan-based television commentator for J Sports, SkyPerfecTV, and DAZN
Jaime F. Macias Football analyst at BeIN Sports USA
Paul MacInnes Sports writer, the Guardian
Hatem Maher Senior Sports Editor at Ahram Online in Egypt
Carlos Eduardo Mansur Football writer for O Globo in Brazil
Luca Marchetti Chief Editor of Sky Sport Italia
Milos Markovic Football writer, Sportske.net
Gergely Marosi Freelance sports journalist and football writer in Hungary
Everaldo Marques Football journalist and ESPN broadcaster in Brazil
Tom Marshall Football writer based in Mexico
Ana Thaís Matos Brazilian journalist and SporTV commentator
Martin Mazur Argentinian football journalist for El Gráfico, FourFourTwo and La Gazzetta dello Sport
Ugur Meleke Football columnist at Hürriyet Daily. Also a pundit for CNN Turk and Radyospor
Renata Mendonça Journalist and UOL columnist in Brazil
Maher Mezahi Freelance journalist covering North African football
Janusz Michallik Former US international and ESPN football analyst
Nick Miller Football writer, the Guardian
Luo Ming Sports Editor, Titan Sports, China
Adriana Monsalve Broadcaster and journalist for Univision Deportes in Venezuela
Tomasz Mortimer Hungarian football writer
Elena Mpountou Football writer at sdna.gr
Hassanin Mubarak Football writer
Hirofumi Nakano Journalist and radio show host in Japan
Sachin Nakrani Football writer, the Guardian
Christian Nourry Editor-in-chief, Get French Football News
Vladimir Novak Freelance journalist and producer based in Belgrade, Serbia working for various international media such as World Soccer and World Soccer Digest
Hernan O’Donnell Journalist working for Universo Deportivo who has previously written for El Gráfico and La Nación
Antonis Oikonomidis Greek freelance football writer
Oluwashina Okeleji Reporter for BBC Sport, World Soccer and Al Jazeera online
Collins Okinyo African football journalist and managing editor of soka25east.com
Rafael Oliveira Football journalist and ESPN commentator in Brazil
Ichiro Ozawa Japanese football journalist, commentator, and broadcaster
Fernando Palomo ESPN commentator and the voice of FIFA 17 in Latin America
Juan Carlos Pasman Argentinian journalist who presents his own shows on DirecTV Sports and Radio La Red
Mauro Cezar Pereira Football journalist and ESPN commentator in Brazil
Artur Petrosyan Russian football journalist and uefa.com reporter
Thiago Rabelo Brazilian football journalist at Sagres 730 and Guardian contributor
Andrey Raychtock Sports reporter at Rede Globo in Brazil
Melissa Reddy Senior football correspondent at FootballJOE
Aysha Ridzuan Social Media Manager SEA at Dugout Limited, Singapore
Roberto Rivera Sports commentator and producer with his own company, Gol Dreams Films. Also presenter of a show on WAO (radio) and Gol Magazine (TV) in Panama
Jorge Luiz Rodrigues Football journalist and SporTV Head of production in Brazil
José Armando Rodríguez Editor-in-chief, Deporte Total USA
Fabrizio Romano Sky Sport Italy journalist and Guardian contributor
Barney Ronay Senior sports writer, the Guardian
Gonzalo Ronchi Journalist at Radio Sport890
Emanuel Rosu Romanian football writer at Sport.ro
Stephan Roth Reporter at Swiss daily Blick
Guillermo Rubio “Gumi” Freelance sports journalist working for, among others, FOX Sports Argentina and Onda Cero in Spain

Jeff Rueter Football writer for The Athletic
Max Rushden Presenter of the Guardian Football Weekly and The Warm-up Show on Talksport
Arlind Sadiku Sports journalist and commentator at Digitalb/Supersport Kosova
Marwan Saeed Operations manager of KingFut.com
José Luis Sánchez Journalist for La Sexta TV in Spain
Emre Sarigul Editor and founder of turkishfootball.com
Santiago Segurola Football writer for El País/AS
Hyungwook Seo MBC Football pundit, Footballist Editor
Cagdas Sevinc Journalist at Futbol Arena in Turkey
Metodi Shumanov Bulgarian football writer
Vidir Sigurdsson Sports editor of Morgunbladid and mbl.is and author of the Icelandic Football Yearbook
Mojmir Stasko Football writer for Dennik Sport in Slovakia
Jacob Steinberg Football writer, the Guardian
Vladimir Stognienko Russian football expert and VGTRK commentator
Julia Stuart TV presenter at SuperSport in South Africa
Saku-Pekka Sundelin Football journalist at Ilta-Sanomat
Aet Süvari Estonian football reporter
Agris Suveizda Reporter for Sportacentrs.com in Latvia
Sindri Sverrisson Sports journalist at Morgunbladid and mbl.is in Iceland
Nuno Travassos Portuguese football writer at Maisfutebol
Duc Truong Tran Chief football reporter, Ving.vn, Saigon, Vietnam
Mihalis Tsohos Gazzetta.gr director, commentator on Cosmote TV and host of a radio show on sport-fm.gr
Vaios Tsoutsikas Director at sport-fm.gr with his own daily show on the radio station
Darren Tulett Presenter at beIN Sports in France
Will Unwin Football writer, the Guardian
Patrick Urbini Football writer for France Football
Andres Vaher Football writer for Postimees in Estonia
Lari Vesander Journalist at Urheilulehti in Finland
Bart Vlietstra Dutch football journalist working for de Volkskrant and SANTOS magazine
Lukas Vrablik Slovakian freelance football writer
Ville Väänänen Finnish football reporter at Ilta-Sanomat
Ola Wenström TV presenter at Viasat in Sweden
Greg Wilcox Sports Editor Arab News
Tomasz Wlodarczyk Chief football writer, Przeglad Sportowy
Carl Worswick Football writer based in Colombia
Michael Yokhin European football writer
Ahmad Yousef Egyptian football journalist and editor at KingFut.com in London
Víctor Zaferson Football scout & consultant, Diario de un Scout magazine in Peru
Federico Zanon Italian football journalist working for Sky Sport and Eurosport
Tim Zinoviev Chief Editor of Football.by in Belarus
Volodymyr Zverov Ukrainian TV presenter with his own football show

• Our judges were sent a longlist of more than 500 footballers drawn from leagues on every continent and asked one simple question: who have been the best male players in the world in 2018?

• We asked our judges to choose 40 names each, and rank their selection in order from 1-40, No1 being their choice of the best male player in the world this year.

• The No 1 choice of each judge was awarded 40pts, No 2 given 39pts, down to 1pt for their No 40 choice. All the votes were added together to give a raw score.

• To minimise the influence of outliers in the list, the highest score awarded to a player was then deducted to give a final score.

• A player needed to receive votes from at least five judges to qualify for the list.

• If players are level on points in the scoring, the number of individual votes cast is used as a tie-breaker.

• The individual voting breakdown will be published when the full list has been revealed.

• We are very grateful to our judges for taking part, and none have been paid for participating in this project.

• To allow our judges the freedom to express their opinions without fear or favour, individual voting records will be anonymised in the full breakdown of scores.

• Voters are identified only by their category and a number chosen at random. The judges’ numbers bear no relation whatsoever to the alphabetical list of judges’ names presented above.

Acting Minister of Justice: For the first time in the history of Armenia, a life prisoner was released

Albert Nalbandian
Arminfo, Armenia
Dec 17 2018

ArmInfo. To implement the  reforms, we use new approaches and innovative methods, including the  use of digital tools. About this December 17 at a press conference,  said Acting Minister of Justice Artak Zeynalyan.

He noted that an administrative amnesty was carried out, which spread  to more than 108,000 citizens, and more than 1 million 260 thousand  enterprises were discontinued. A criminal amnesty was also carried  out, as a result of which more than 550 prisoners were released. As  for the probation field, she touched over 1,000 citizens. In Yerevan,  Gyumri, Goris in prisons, special departments will be opened for the  treatment of prisoners, which will provide an opportunity with less  funding to get more effect.

More than 240 people were parole, this is more than a third of the  submitted petitions. At the same time in the history of Armenia, a  life prisoner was released for the first time.

A video link system was also introduced. Henceforth, prisoners during  the month of 20 minutes are entitled to a video link with the family.  In the event that they have exhausted the limit, then on the  instructions of the minister the prisoners will have an additional  opportunity. Long visit times for life-long prisoners and prisoners  for especially serious crimes have been extended. The practice of  unjustified ban on dating was discontinued. Prisoners also received  the right to receive a document certifying their identity.

According to Zeinalyan, about 270 million drams were allocated to  restore the sewage system at the Nubarashen, Vardashen and Sevan  penitentiaries, of which more than 100 million were saved and the  money would be returned to the budget. In 200 cases, a petition for  clemency was made, which were presented to the Prime Minister. Also  acting the minister noted that the capabilities of the electronic  notary were expanded.

Already developed and will soon be presented a new strategy to combat  corruption. Soon a new program of actions in this area will be  presented to the public.

Changes were also made to the Civil Code. The procedure for paying  pensions to people abroad was forgiven. Now, you can certify the  existence of a citizen by means of a notary or a consul. Previously,  this required the personal presence of a pensioner.

Whitefish commercial reserve in Armenian Lake Seven is up 30 percent

Ani Kharatian
ARKA, Armenia
Dec 17 2018

YEREVAN, December 17, /ARKA/. The commercial population of whitefish in Armenia’s largest Lake  Sevan has increased by 30% in late October 2018 when compared to the same time span of 2017, Bardukh Gabrielyan, the director of Zoology and Hydroecology Research Center, an affiliation of the National Academy of Sciences, told a news conference today.

He said the commercial whitefish population increased from 540 tons to 740 tons. In his words, whitefish is the most important commercial fish in Armenia, and the recorded growth is very important. He said the total population of whitefish in Armenia is about 2.9 thousand tons, but it is not sufficient to allow unlimited fishing.

He said in a couple of days whitefish spawning season begins, and it is extremely important to prevent illegal fishing throughout that period. 

‘Unfortunately, the local market is already overfilled not only with whitefish, but also with whitefish caviar. The uncontrolled catch can seriously affect the population and result in a significant drop," said Gabrielyan.

Gabrielyan added also that the uncontrolled catching of fish and crayfish this year has already had a detrimental effect not only on the country's hydro resources, but also on the ecosystem. According to him, in 2017 the population of commercial trout was 17 tons, but as a result of uncontrolled catching this year it has dwindled to 1-2 tons.

He said the export of Sevan trout this year has been great and all the work the center did last year to increase the population of this species was in vain. He said also that in 2017, the crayfish population was 2,600 tons, but due to uncontrolled catching this year, it has decreased to 2,300 tons. In 2016, the commercial crayfish population was about 4,900 tons.  -0-

Artak Zeynalyan visited Nairi Hunanyan, convicted in case of terrorist attack on October 27, 1999

Maral Chavushian
Arminfo, Armenia
Dec 17 2018

ArmInfo. Aceing Minister of Justice of Armenia Artak Zeynalyan visited Nairi Hunanyan in the penitentiary institution, convicted in the case of the terrorist act  in the Armenian parliament on October 27, 1999. Zeynalyan told this  to the journalists on December 17th.

According to him, he was interested in the state of Hunanyan. "I do  not want to disclose details, but I can only say that I advised him  to go in for sports more," said Zeynalyan.

To note, on October 27, 1999, a group of persons led by Nairi  Hunanyan, burst into parliament, shot Prime Minister of Armenia  Vazgen Sargsyan, Speaker of the National Assembly Karen Demirchyan,  Deputy Speakers Yuri Bakhshyan and Ruben Miroyan, Minister of  Operational Affairs Leonard Petrosyan and MPs Armenak Armenakyan,  Mikael Kotanyan and Henrik Abrahamyan. The terrorist group included  former journalist Nairi Hunanyan, his brother Karen Hunanyan, their  uncle Vram Galstyan, as well as Derenik Bedzhanyan and Ashot  Knyazyan. Their trial began on February 15, 2001 and lasted for three  years.

Neither the preliminary investigation, nor the proceedings in court  allowed to give a final answer to the question of whether the  terrorists acted on their own, or someone was behind them. On  December 2, 2003, the Center-Nork-Marash Court of First Instance  sentenced the brothers Nairi and Karen Hunanyan, Edik Grigoryan, Vram  Galstian (in 2004, he died in prison, according to the official  version, committed suicide), Derenik Bedjanian and Ashot Khozyan had  to live by suicide; Hamlet Stepanyan was sentenced to 14 years in  prison (In May 2010, his body was found in his bed in the Nubarashen  penal institution). All seven were found guilty of treason and  terrorism. The Court of Cassation of Armenia upheld the sentence.

Sports: Harutyunyan brothers aim for bigger achievements in diving

Karlen Baghdasarian
MediaMax, Armenia
Dec  17 2018
 
 
 
Harutyunyan brothers aim for bigger achievements in diving
 
 
 
 
Armenian diver Vladimir Harutyunyan, who took the bronze with Lev Sargsyan for synchronized diving (platform) in the European Championship, has summed up 2018 as excellent.
 
“Naturally, we worked and hoped for this achievement for a long time. It made us very happy, but now we are aiming for more. We want to give our best every time and win more medals,” he said.
 
His brother Azat has had a difficult year due to an injury, but he has recovered well and is getting back into training step by step.
 
“These victories motivate athletes. I was so, so happy for my brother and friend. Nothing is coincidental – this is the result of the hard work they’ve done and the coach’s effort,” emphasized Azat.
 
Head coach of the Armenian diving team Hrachya Chandiryan says that Azat only performed on springboard this year. He finished 8th in the European Championship. In recent days the diver returned to the platform and could compete in platform exercises next year.