FEBRUARY’S FAIRWAY TO HEAVEN!

IMG Media Archive's February Newsletter

FEBRUARY’S FAIRWAY TO HEAVEN!

Australian Open: Novak Djokovic ended the phenomenal run of unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Final of the 2008 Australian Open last month (4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-2). Djokovic became the first ever Serb to win a Grand Slam event, and incredibly is also the first man other than Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal to lift a Grand Slam trophy since Marat Safin’s 2005 win in the same tournament! Maria Sharapova picked up her third Grand Slam title in the Women’s Singles with a comfortable straight sets win over Ana Ivanovic (7-5, 6-3), following impressive victories over favourite Justine Henin in the Quarters and World No. 3 Jelena Jankovic in the Semis.

For coverage of every Australian Open since 1975 please visit the Australian Open Archive Collection at:

IMGMediaArchive.com/australianopen

Golf: LPGA

The 2008 LPGA season teed off with victory for the Philippines at the Women’s World Cup of Golf held at Sun City, South Africa. The Philippines’ Jennifer Rosales and Dorothy Delasin birdied the final 4 holes at The Gary Player Country Club to fend off their nearest rivals Korea to win by 2 strokes. The two countries had entered the final day tied for the lead, with Korea moving 2 strokes ahead before the Philippines made a late serge to claim victory at this 20 country event.

Footage from the LPGA Archive is NOW available at IMGMediaArchive.com

Visit the LPGA Archive Collection

Skating: ISU

The European Short Track Speed Skating Championship concluded in Ventspils, Latvia last month, with local favourite Haralds Silovs taking the Men’s 1,500 title & Arianna Fontana of Italy picking up gold in the Ladies’ race. Britain’s skaters also saw success with sprint specialist Jon Eley coming home first in the 500m race, and the Ladies 3,000m relay team closed the meeting in style with victory in the final event.

February sees Quebec and Salt Lake City playing host to the final two ISU Short Track World Cup 2007/08 meetings where the European teams will be looking to continue their strong form.

Visit the ISU Archive collection

FAST FACT

Breeding Bucking Bronco’s is big business. Most PBR bulls, (or ‘animal athletes’ to give them their proper title) are worth in excess of $10,000. In fact, the owners of award winning bull, Little Yellow Jacket, turned down a staggering $100,000 offer for their animal!

DID YOU KNOW

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) is responsible for an increasingly diverse range of sporting events. Last year the 6th Asian Winter Games were held in Changchun, China and in a notable Ice Hockey performance Kazakhstan enjoyed a monumental 38-0 win over the United Arab Emirates! 2008 will see the first ever Asian Beach Games, due to take place in Bali, where participants will compete in a range of beach sports including Dragon Boat racing!

UPCOMING EVENTS IN FEBRUARY

1	Cricket	International Twenty20, AUS v IND
1 - 8	Fashion	Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week, USA
1 - 3	Skating	ISU Short Track World Cup, Quebec City, CAN
2	Rugby League	Super League 2008, Start, ENG
2	Rugby League	Carnegie Challenge Cup 1st Round, ENG
2	Rugby Union	RBS 6 Nations, Start
2 - 3	Tennis	Fed Cup, World Group, 1st Round
3	Football	Super Bowl XLII, Phoenix, USA
3 - 4	Cricket	Commonwealth Bank Triangular Series, AUS, IND & SRI
4 - 10	Tennis	Sony Ericsson WTA Tour – Open Gaz de France, FRA
5 - 23	Cricket	New Zealand v England (2 T20s and 5 ODIs), NZL
7 - 10	Golf	PGA European Tour – MGF Indian Masters, IND
8 - 10	Tennis	Davis Cup, World Group, 1st Round
9 - 10	Skating	ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships, GER
10	Soccer	The 26th African Cup of Nations Final, GHA
11 - 17	Tennis	WTA Proximus Diamond Games, BEL
11 - 17	Skating	ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, KOR
14 - 17	Golf	Euro/Asia Jakarta Astro Indonesia Open, INA
14 - 18	Golf	PGA European Tour - Singapore Masters, SIN
18 - 24	Tennis	Sony Ericsson WTA Tour – Qatar Total Open, QAT
20 - 24	Golf	WGC - Accenture Match Play, Tuscon, Arizona, USA
22 - 24	Rodeo	PBR BFTS Enterprise Classic, USA
22 - 24	Skating	ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships, CHN
23 - 5	Surfing	ASP Quicksilver Pro, Gold Coast, AUS
23 - 6	Surfing	ASP Roxy Pro, Gold Coast, AUS
24	Soccer	Carling Cup Final, ENG
25 - 2	Tennis	Sony Ericsson WTA Dubai Women’s Open, UAE
25 - 2	Skating	ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships, BUL
28	Golf	PGA European Tour - Johnnie Walker Classic, IND