Spot-fixing storm hits B’desh

 

A leading player revealed he had received a spot-fixing proposition.

 

Former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza said he had been approached by an unnamed player regarding potential spot-fixing when he turns out as skipper of the Dhaka Gladiators in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

 

“I have told my team management about the approach and I m sure they will do the right thing,” Mortaza told the Cricinfo website. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) confirmed the report.

 

Dhaka newspapers reported that Mortaza said he would step down from the team captaincy if he suspected any irregularities once the tournament — styled along the lines of the successful Indian Premier League (IPL) — got going.

 

Mortaza was asked to provide information on whether he would play certain matches and even whether he would be wearing his sunglasses or a cap when he takes the field.

 

In exchange, he was told, he would be paid 15-20 percent of the earnings from the spot-betting.

 

BCB officials said Mortaza has been asked to reveal the name of the player who made the approach.

 

“This is a very serious offence,” BCB spokesman Jalal Yunus told AFP. “We have zero tolerance towards these things and will do whatever is needed to nail it down quickly.

 

“Mortaza has to disclose the name of the player. It needs to be addressed very seriously.”

 

Mortaza will be speaking to officials of the International Cricket Council s Anti-Corruption Security Unit before the matches get under way on Friday, Yunus said.

 

Thursday is the opening ceremony for an event where West Indians Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard are the leading players. The six-team league is to be played in Dhaka and Chittagong, with the final on February 29.

 

Pakistan s Shahid Afridi, the most expensive foreign player at last month s auction after being sold to the Dhaka Gladiators franchise for $700,000, is not taking part due to international commitments.

 

Pakistan begin a one-day series against England in the United Arab Emirates this week.– AFP

 

Hitler painting fetches 32,000 euros in Slovak auction

 

A 1913 painting by Nazi Germany s dictator Adolf Hitler sold for 32,000 euros ($42,300) in a Slovak internet auction on Sunday, the Darte auction house said.

 

The starting price for the painting titled Maritime Nocturno was set at 10,000 euros, while an expert put its value at 25,000 euros, said Darte, which sold the painting in a closed VIP auction.

 

The mixed-media painting depicts a full moon over a glittering seascape.

 

“The painting has been offered for sale by an unnamed family of a Slovak painter who probably met Hitler personally when he was struggling to become an artist in Vienna during the early 20th century,” Darte owner Jaroslav Krajnak said earlier.

 

“I look at him as an artist — in 1913, when Hitler painted this picture, he didn t know what would become of him in the decades to come,” he added.

 

The auctioning house already sold a painting by Hitler from the same family collection last year for 10,200 euros.

 

Sunday s auction also offered a painting by Pablo Picasso for 15 million euros.
 

Amy Winehouse dress fetches $68,000 at auction

A printed chiffon dress worn by the late singer Amy Winehouse for the cover of her chart-topping album “Back to Black” has sold for 43,200 pounds ($68,000) at auction. The hammer price, minus buyer s premium, was 36,000 pounds, still well above pre-sale estimates of 10-20,000 pounds, said a spokeswoman for Kerry Taylor Auctions which specializes in high-end vintage fashion.

Thieves stole fake rhino horns from museum

A team of bungling thieves who thought they d successfully stolen £240,000 of rhino horns from a museum actually made off with worthless replicas.

The gang had smashed their way into the Natural History Museum in Hertfordshire before using hammers to remove horns from two stuffed animals, an Indian rhino and a white rhino.

They probably thought they d swiped valuable ivory horns in the break-in, during which nothing else was taken, but police have now revealed all they got away with were fakes.

Faux rhino horns made out of resin and with no commercial value had been fitted to the stuffed animals after a series of rhino horn raids on auction rooms, galleries and private collections.

Real rhino horns, sought after because of a belief it can cure cancer, are worth more than diamonds, gold and cocaine, fake ones, not so much.

doGOODERS of the week: the cast of GLEE

You may love Fox’s hit show GLEE for it’s feel-good, musically-inspired fun, but we’re loving GLEE’s cast for their commitment to so many awesome causes. The cast of GLEE has catapulted to stardom this year, and they’re using their newfound fame to raise funds and awareness for nonprofits in some philanthropic-forward ways. From teaming up with American Express to “change the world” to putting their smiling faces on the auction block at charitybuzz, we love how GLEE is inspiring Gleeks all over the world to join in to do good.

Throughout 2010, GLEE has tackled important issues on screen, from equality to body image, and the show was nominated for a GLAAD award for their outstanding portrayal of the LGBT community. This week, GLEE added 5 Golden Globe nominations to their list of accolades. Off screen, the show has had an equally impressive impact. Last month, the cast raised $100,000 for Education Through Music by partnering with American Express and even spent a day making musical instruments with children from a disadvantaged local elementary school. They also took to the internet to encourage people around the world to give back with a laugh-out-loud funny social media campaign pitting “Mr. Shue” against “Sue.” Musical education has become a pet cause for the show, with tickets to several exclusive parties for GLEE’s premiere earlier this year sold to benefit the Grammy Foundation’s Grammy in the Schools education program.

Road auction in Lahore – Trend Pk VIDEO

Naeem Ashraf Butt reports on the auction of Lahore’s roads. (November 25, 2010)

Road auction in Lahore – Trend Pk VIDEO

Naeem Ashraf Butt reports on the auction of Lahore’s roads. (November 25, 2010)

Road auction in Lahore – Trend Pk VIDEO

Naeem Ashraf Butt reports on the auction of Lahore’s roads. (November 25, 2010)

Road auction in Lahore – Trend Pk VIDEO

Naeem Ashraf Butt reports on the auction of Lahore’s roads. (November 25, 2010)

Road auction in Lahore – Trend Pk VIDEO

Naeem Ashraf Butt reports on the auction of Lahore’s roads. (November 25, 2010)

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