title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: "Body Snatchers" is the third film adaptation of Finney's novel, the first being "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" in 1956, followed by a second adaptation of the same name in 1978. The plot is centered around the discovery that people working at a military base in Alabama are being replaced by perfect physical imitations grown from plantlike pods. The duplicates are indistinguishable from normal people except for their utter lack of emotion.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Body Snatchers was released on May 15, 1993, and received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the likeliness, realism, and special effects, though it was criticized for its plot.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Steve Malone, an agent from the Environmental Protection Agency, is sent to a military base in Alabama to test possible effects on the surrounding ecological system caused by military actions. With him is his teenage daughter from his first marriage, Marti, his second wife Carol, and Marti's half brother Andy. On their way to the base, they stop at a gas station. In the restroom, Marti is threatened by an MP member with a knife. When he notices her fear, he lets go of her, satisfied that she shows an emotional response. Before she leaves the room, he warns her, "they get you when you sleep".


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Steve and his family move into their new home on the base, and Marti makes friends with the base commander's daughter Jenn. On his first day in day care, Andy runs away because he is recognized as an outsider among the other somehow conformist children. He is picked up and brought home by helicopter pilot Tim. Marti and Tim quickly feel attracted to each other. Meanwhile, while examining soil samples, Steve is approached by medical officer Major Collins, who asks him about psychological effects, particularly narcophobia (the fear of sleep), and their possible relation to toxication of the environment. Steve believes that a physiological reaction would be more likely.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: In the evening, Marti and Jenn go to the bar attended by the station's military personnel, where they meet not only Tim but also the MP who threatened Marti at the gas station. He denies that they ever met before. That night, a group of soldiers can be seen picking giant pods from the river running by the base. When Andy wakes up and enters his mother's room, Carol's body crumbles to dust, while a naked soulless double emerges from the closet. Nobody believes Andy's story that his real mother is dead and the person pretending to be Carol is only an impostor.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: The following night, Marti and her father are nearly "taken over" too by duplicates emerging from the giant pods. Carol attempts to convince Steve that the takeover is a good thing, claiming that it ends confusion and anger. She also claims that there's no place to go, as the events at the base are not an isolated incident. Steve is almost shocked and saddened into compliance, but Marti and Andy drag him out the door. Carol emits a shrill and mechanical scream that alerts other "pod people" to the presence of a human being. Now the majority in numbers, they swarm over the base chasing the remaining humans.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: After hiding Marti and Andy in a warehouse, Steve enters Major Collins' office. The hysterical Major tries to call for help, but the line is blocked. While swallowing sleep-prevention pills Collins announces that it is too late to run; all they can do is fight. Their conversation is interrupted by the arrival of a group of pod people, led by base commander General Platt. While Steve hides, the pod people try to convince the Major that the individual is not important, and that only conformity can solve the world's problems. The Major shoots himself rather than live in such a world.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Steve returns to his children and tells them to follow him, claiming to have found a way out. They drive aimlessly through the military base, as loudspeakers shout out instructions for spreading the invasion by carrying out pods in trucks. Realizing that her father was replicated while he was away, Marti swerves the car to the side and tries to escape with her brother. Tim, who escaped his former comrades who tried to turn him into one of them, suddenly appears and Marti takes his gun and shoots the Steve duplicate. Pod Steve's body shrinks into a mass of seething, bloody goo.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Tim manages to get hold of a helicopter gunship, but Marti and Andy are taken away by the pod people. They sedate both of them and take them to the base infirmary where the remaining human beings are being systematically duplicated by pods. Tim is able to rescue Marti, despite her naked pod duplicate trying to seduce him. Incomplete, it dies when he pulls its connecting tendrils off Marti.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Marti and Tim leave the building, pretending to be pod people so they can get to Tim's helicopter to escape. However, they are spotted by Jenn, now a pod duplicate, who gets suspicious and tells Marti she saw Andy looking for her. When Marti reacts by displaying emotion, Jenn responds by giving out a pod scream to alert the other pod people. Tim and Marti manage to get in the helicopter and are joined at the last minute by Andy who runs up to them. But right after taking off, Andy, who is actually a pod duplicate, attacks both and tries to bring down the helicopter. After a short scuffle, a heartbroken Marti is forced to throw Pod-Andy out of the helicopter and he gives out a pod scream while falling to his death.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: The ending of the film is an ambiguous one. Tim destroys the trucks filled with pods with the helicopter's rockets, while Marti confesses her profound hatred in a voice-over narration, thereby hinting at a loss of humanitarian quality. While they land on another base, the words of Marti's replaced stepmother earlier in the film can be heard, suggesting that the phenomenon may have already spread beyond the army base: "Where you gonna go, where you gonna run, where you gonna hide? Nowhere... 'cause there's no one like you left."


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Warner Brothers released "Body Snatchers" to only a few dozen theaters, and consequently its domestic gross was a mere $428,868.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: The film marked director Ferrara's first venture into the science fiction genre. Producer Robert H. Solo had already produced its 1978 predecessor "Invasion of the Body Snatchers".


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: "Body Snatchers" was shown in competition at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival, receiving very positive reviews from some critics. Roger Ebert considered it superior to the previous adaptations of Finney's famous novel and in his review (February 25, 1994) gave it four stars out of four, praising it for psychological realism and social criticism. Ebert stated "as sheer moviemaking, it is skilled and knowing, and deserves the highest praise you can give a horror film: It works". Nick Shager of the horror film review site "Lessons of Darkness" said in his 2006 review of the film, "this economical horror show still offers a few stunning moments of paranoia-laced terror". Blake Davis of "KFOR Channel 4 News" said of the film: "One of the creepiest and most overlooked horror movies made in the past decade, featuring a strong, scary turn by Meg Tilly".


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: However, some critics panned the film — Richard Harrington of "The Washington Post"" (February 18, 1994) called it "a soulless replica of Don Siegel's 1956 model and Philip Kaufman's 1978 update". Owen Gleiberman noted in "Entertainment Weekly" (February 11, 1994), "[the] notion of a military base as a symbol of mindless conformity isn't exactly revelatory, and the characters remain sketchy and underdeveloped."


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Based on 30 reviews, the film holds a 70% on Rotten Tomatoes with an average rating of 6.2 out of 10. The site's critics' consensus states: ""Body Snatchers" may not topple previous adaptions, but it boasts an effective sense of dread and strong characterizations."


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: The largest difference in this version of the story is that it takes place on an Army base in Alabama, unlike a small California town in the original novel and the first adaptation filmed in 1956, or in San Francisco like in the 1978 remake. While the first two films portrayed the tightly organized, conformist "pod society" invading a free civil society, Ferrara's film, according to "Chicago Sun-Times" film critic Roger Ebert, made a connection between "the Army's code of rigid conformity, and the behavior of the pod people, who seem like a logical extension of the same code".


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: "Body Snatchers" is the film which departs the farthest from the original novel, compared to the 1956 and 1978 versions. While Steve Malone, like the doctors Bennell in the earlier films, also has a medical/scientific profession, the main character in this film is his daughter Marti. The character of Becky/Elizabeth (Bennell's love interest and his companion during his escape attempt from the invaders) is dropped completely, as are Bennell's acquaintances and later antagonists Dr. Kaufman/Kibner and the Belicecs. Re-invented, however, are two elements which had been dropped from the 1978 version: A young boy (named Jimmy Grimaldi in the 1956 version, here Marti's half brother Andy) claims that his mother is not his "real" mother. Also, the film features a voice-over narration by the main character. Two ideas invented by the 1978 version are picked up here again: The mortal remains of the "original" human beings are picked up by garbage trucks, and the duplicates utter an otherworldly scream when they discover a genuine human, thereby calling assistance from other pod people.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: The German scholar Christian Knöppler wrote that the 1993 version kept the same basic outline as the previous versions, but altered the story by making a rebellious teenage girl the protagonist while making the male doctor/scientist character who served as the protagonist in the previous versions a secondary character. The replacement of a male protagonist with a female one reflected a trend towards female protagonists in horror films in the 1980s-1990s, often known as the 'final girl' archetype. In many ways, the film tells an especially vicious coming-of-age narrative as Marti's family is destroyed and at the end all she has left is her boyfriend Tim. Knöppler noted that Marti's family was highly dysfunctional to begin with, and her killing the pod versions of her family members reflected a tendency towards rejecting her own family that was already present even before she encountered the "pod people". Knöppler noted that despite the strong female protagonist that there is "a noticeable undercurrent of monstrous femininity and sexuality" in the film as it is Carol and the other housewives at the Army base are replaced first and it is Carol who acts as the primary antagonist. The way that the pod version of Carol almost replaces Steve while trying to seduce him suggests a fear of women. Meg Tilly's performance as Carol evokes many of the stereotypes associated with malevolent femininity. Another example of a female antagonist is the short-lived pod version of Marti who appears nude before Tim, and notably he hesitates for a moment before killing her to save the real Marti, a scene that Knöppler sees as an expression of "male sexual insecurity" that reflects both a fear of and a desire for female bodies. Knöppler also noted that the 1993 version actually showed the replacement progress with a scene where a pod forces its tendrils into Marti's body as she struggles against them, a scene that powerfully evokes rape.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Knöppler argued that the film seemed to be a critique of modern American life as the pod people succeed in taking over the Army base because of the military culture of conformity and succeed in replacing families because families are conformist, suggesting it was internal weakness already present that allowed their triumph and the pod invasion only intensifies preexisting trends. Notably, the only characters who are not replaced are Tim and Marti, both of whom are non-conformists and rebels against conformist institutions, namely the military in the case of Tim and the family in the case of Marti. Knöppler noted that it is very telling that when Tim pretends to be a pod person, the only metaphor he can think of to describe the pod community is "one big happy family". Unlike other versions of "The Invasion of the Body Snatchers", the Malone family is portrayed as dysfunctional and fractured at the start of the film, which was very far from the idealized nuclear families presented in the 1956 version. Likewise, the only other family presented in the film, the Platt family, are just as dysfunctional with General Platt a stern martinet, Mrs. Platt an alcoholic and Jen a rebellious teenager who is openly contemptuous of her parents. Knöppler noted that one can trace the perceived decline of the American family over the three versions of "The Invasion of the Body Snatchers". In the 1956 version, more or less happy nuclear families were presented as the norm; early on in the 1978 version the character of Dr. Kibner declares that "the nuclear family is shot to hell"; and in the 1993 version broken and dysfunctional families were presented as the norm. The fact that Carol is replaced first literalizes the resentment felt by Marti towards her step-mother who has already "invaded" her family. Some critics see the character of Steve as the "beleaguered male" archetype popular in 1990s films trying to hold together his family which is fractured first by Marti's rebellion and then by Carol being replaced. However, the fact that Marti is the likeable protagonist while Steve notably fails in protecting his family undercuts this reading


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Knöppler also noted that the first film was set in an idealized small town in California while the second film was set in San Francisco, both of which were fairly general representations of American life while the third film chosen to focus on a subculture by moving the story to an U.S. Army base in the South. He argued that by this change in settling the film moved from a critique of American life in general to a critique of a subculture. The Army base is a closed community with a fixed hierarchy and a highly conformist culture, and the film seems to suggest that "...the military mentality makes it impossible to distinguish those who are professional soldiers from those who are pods". One critic sums up the film's attitude as: "It is perhaps an oversimplification to say "Body Snatchers" treats America's armed forces with the complete and total contempt they deserve, but to a large degree it is true". The only exceptions are Major Collins, the base's doctor and Tim, a slightly non-conformist helicopter pilot. Tim has killed people during the Gulf War of 1991, but he is portrayed as a sensitive type who is not entirely comfortable with what he has done. Throughout the film, the soldiers at the base appear both conformist and generally threatening, and their faces are usually obscured by dim lighting, limiting their individuality. Likewise, in the scene where the pod version of General Platt confronts Dr. Collins, the former promotes a version of the world without individuality as the best way to end conflict while the pod people say in chorus: "it's the race that's important, not the individual". The emphasis on the collective and "the race" subtly evokes fascism. The way that Collins shouts back "the individual is always important" before he shoots himself elevates the question of collectivism vs. individualism to an existential level.


title: Body Snatchers (1993 film)

text: Unlike the previous versions, intellectuals are portrayed more favorably with the scientist Steve and Dr. Collins sounding the alarm while the main spokesman for the pod people is General Platt. Knöppler suggests that both the film's intellectuals prove to be ineffectual reflects the film's general distrust of experts. In the 1978 version, Leonard Nimoy, an actor associated with "benevolent rationality" characters was cast as the main spokesman for the pod people while in the 1993 version, R. Lee Ermey, an actor associated with playing "abusive military authority" characters played the analogous role. In the first and second films, the main spokesmen for the pod people were men who previously been psychiatrists, suggesting a fear of psychiatry with its power to mold minds. Knöppler argued that the relatively more favorable picture of intellectuals was due to the fact in the previous versions it was the "pure rationality" of the pod people associated with science and intellectualism that was their main characteristic while in the 1993 version it was their conformity and collectivism that was their main characteristic. However, despite the film's anti-militarism, the conclusion of the film where Tim and Marti wage all-out war against the pod people which Marti justifies in her narration as being "only human" suggests a military response is the only rational one to the invasion of the pod people and appears to be imply that war is a natural part of the human condition.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: Dangerous Beauty is a 1998 American biographical drama film directed by Marshall Herskovitz and starring Catherine McCormack, Rufus Sewell, and Oliver Platt. Based on the non-fiction book "The Honest Courtesan" by Margaret Rosenthal, the film is about Veronica Franco, a courtesan in sixteenth-century Venice who becomes a hero to her city, but later becomes the target of an inquisition by the Church for witchcraft. The film features a supporting cast that includes Fred Ward, Naomi Watts, Moira Kelly and Jacqueline Bisset. The film was released as A Destiny of Her Own in some regions, and was retitled The Honest Courtesan for its UK video release.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: Veronica Franco is an adventurous, curious, slightly tomboyish young woman in Venice. Her lover Marco, who will be a Senator like his father, cannot marry her because her family is too poor; he marries a foreign noblewoman instead. Veronica's mother plans for her family's financial security, as she still requires dowries for her younger daughters and money for her son's commission. Rather than go to a convent, Veronica's mother suggests she become a courtesan, a highly paid, cultured prostitute like her mother and grandmother before her. At first Veronica is repelled by the idea, but once she discovers that courtesans are allowed access to libraries and education, she tentatively embraces the idea.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: Veronica quickly gains a reputation as a top courtesan, impressing the powerful men of Venice with her beauty, wit, and compassion. Marco finds it difficult to adjust to his new wife, who is nothing like Veronica, and becomes jealous as she takes his friends and relatives as lovers. After Marco's cousin Maffio, a poor bard who was once publicly upstaged by Veronica, attacks her, Marco rushes to her aid. They rekindle their romance, but Veronica refuses to stop seeing clients and accept his support. Nevertheless, she spends a great deal of time with Marco, neglecting her business and ignoring her mother's warnings that such a relationship is dangerous for her.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: The Fourth Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–73) breaks out, and the city appeals to France for aid. Veronica is encouraged to seduce the King of France and secures a military alliance. Marco accuses her of enjoying being a courtesan, implying she ought to have rejected the King despite the risk to Venice. Veronica points out that she sacrificed their love for the good of the city, while he only did it to protect his family's political standing, and Marco leaves for war angry. While the Venetians are fighting at sea, a plague hits the city. Religious zealots take the war and plague as punishment for the city's moral degradation, and Veronica's home is quarantined and almost ransacked by a mob.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: Veronica is summoned to appear before the Inquisition on charges of witchcraft and refuses to name her clients. When it appears that she will be executed, Marco publicly shames the Venetian ministers and senators into admitting their own adulteries and sins by standing up in the assembly. Bewildered by the extent of sin in the city, the Inquisitor drops the charges of witchcraft, and Marco and Veronica reconcile.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: The film opened in limited release on 20 February 1998 to mixed but mostly positive reviews, receiving a 69 percent freshness rating on the movie critics website Rotten Tomatoes. Roger Ebert of the "Chicago Sun-Times" gives it 3 1/2 stars and lauds the writers, noting that "few movies have been so deliberately told from a woman's point of view...Most movies are made by males and show women enthralled by men. This movie knows better." Jack Mathews of the "Los Angeles Times" described it as "both blessed and cursed with inspiration." In its initial release, "Dangerous Beauty" played in only 10 theatres, although it did well, earning $105,989 (a per theater average of $10,599 across ten theaters). "Dangerous Beauty" eventually opened across 313 theaters, but earned only $4.5 million in the United States.


title: Dangerous Beauty

text: A stage musical version of the film premiered on July 25, 2008 at Northwestern University's Ethel M. Barber Theatre. The musical features book and verse by Jeannine Dominy (the screenwriter of the film), lyrics by Amanda McBroom, and music by Michele Brourman under the direction of Sheryl Kaller. Another musical version of "Dangerous Beauty" premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse in February 2011, starring Jenny Powers as Veronica Franco and James Snyder (actor) as Marco Venier.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Sergey Nazarovych Bubka (; born 4 December 1963) is a Ukrainian former pole vaulter. He represented the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991. Bubka was twice named Athlete of the Year by "Track & Field News", and in 2012 was one of 24 athletes inducted as inaugural members of the International Association of Athletics Federations Hall of Fame.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka won six consecutive IAAF World Championships, an Olympic gold medal and broke the world record for men's pole vault 35 times. He was the first pole vaulter to clear 6.0 metres and 6.10 metres.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: He held the indoor world record of 6.15 metres, set on 21 February 1993 in Donetsk, Ukraine for almost 21 years until France's Renaud Lavillenie cleared 6.16 metres on 15 February 2014 at the same meet in the same arena. He held the outdoor world record at 6.14 metres between 31 July 1994, and 17 September 2020 when Sweden's Armand Duplantis cleared 6.15 metres, though since adopting rule 260.18a in 2000 the IAAF regards the indoor record as the official "world record".


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka is Senior Vice President of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), serving since 2007, and President of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, serving since 2005. He is also an Honorary Member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), having been involved since 1996. His older brother, Vasiliy Bubka, was also a medal-winning pole vaulter.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Born in Luhansk, Sergey Nazarovych Bubka was a track-and-field athlete in the 100-meter dash and the long jump, but became a world-class champion only when he turned to the pole vault. In 1983, virtually unknown internationally, he won the world championship in Helsinki, Finland, and the following year set his first world record, clearing 5.85m (19 ft 2 in). Until the dissolution of the USSR in late 1991, Bubka competed for Soviet teams. The Soviet sports system rewarded athletes for setting new world records, and he became noted for establishing new records by slim amounts, sometimes as little as a centimeter higher. This allowed him to collect frequent bonus payments and made Bubka an attraction at track-and-field meets. By 1992, he was no longer bound to the Soviet system, and signed a contract with Nike that rewarded each world record performance with special bonuses of $40,000.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Sergey Bubka started competing on the international athletics scene in 1981 when he participated in the European Junior Championship finishing seventh. But the 1983 World Championship held in Helsinki was his actual entry point to the world athletics, where a relatively unknown Bubka snatched the gold, clearing 5.70 metres (18 feet 8 inches). The years that followed witnessed the unparalleled dominance of Bubka, with him setting new records and standards in pole vaulting.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: He set his first world record of 5.85m on 26 May 1984 which he improved to 5.88m a week later, and then to 5.90m a month later. He cleared 6.00 metres (19 feet 8 inches) for the first time on 13 July 1985 in Paris. This height had long been considered unattainable. With virtually no opponents, Bubka improved his own record over the next 10 years until he reached his career best and the then world record of 6.14 m (20 feet 1 inches) in 1994. He primarily vaulted on UCS Spirit poles throughout his later career.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: He became the first athlete ever to jump over 6.10 metres, in San Sebastián, Spain in 1991. Until January 2014, no other athlete on earth had cleared 6.07, indoors or outdoors. In 1994, he achieved his personal record with a vault of 6.14 meters, long after many commentators assumed the great sportsman was retired. Bubka increased the world record by 21 centimetres (8 inches) in the period from 1984 to 1988, more than other pole vaulters had achieved in the previous 12 years. He cleared 6.00 meters or better on 45 occasions. As of June 2015, 6 meters had been cleared by all athletes worldwide exactly 100 times.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka officially retired from pole vault in 2001 during a ceremony at his Pole Vault Stars meeting in Donetsk.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Despite his dominance in pole vault, Bubka had a relatively poor record in the Olympic Games. The first Olympics after Bubka's introduction to the international athletics was held in 1984 and was boycotted by the USSR along with the majority of other Eastern Bloc countries. Two months before the Games he vaulted 12 cm higher than the eventual Olympic gold medal winner Pierre Quinon. In 1988 Bubka competed in the Seoul Olympics and won his only Olympic gold medal clearing 5.90 m. In 1992 he failed to clear in his first three attempts (5.70, 5.70, 5.75 m) and was out of the Barcelona Olympics. At the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 a heel injury caused him to withdraw from the competition without any attempts. In 2000 at the Sydney Olympics he was eliminated from the final after three unsuccessful attempts at 5.70 m.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka won the pole vault event in six consecutive IAAF World Championships in Athletics in the period from 1983 to 1997:


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka broke the world record for men's pole vault 35 times during his career. He broke the outdoor world record 17 times and the indoor world record 18 times. Bubka lost his outdoor world record only once in his illustrious career. After Thierry Vigneron, of France, broke his record on 31 August 1984 at the Golden Gala international track meet in Rome, Bubka subsequently reclaimed the record on his next attempt on the same runway, just minutes later.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka possessed great strength, speed and gymnastic abilities. He gripped the pole higher than most vaulters to get extra leverage, though Bubka himself played down the effect of grip alone.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: His development and mastery of the Petrov/Bubka technical model is also considered a key to his success. (A technical model is a sequence of positions and pressures which describe the method and style form of pole vaulting.) The Petrov/Bubka model is considered superior to many others today, because it allows the vaulter to continuously put energy into the pole while rising towards the bar. Most conventional models focus on creating maximum bend in the pole before leaving the ground, by planting the pole heavily in the pole vault box. The Petrov/Bubka model follows the technique used by Kjell Isaksson, which concentrates on driving the pole up, rather than bending it while planting it on the landing pad, combined with high running speed. While the traditional models depended on the recoil by bending the pole, the Petrov/Bubka model may exploit the recoil of the pole and exert more energy on the pole during the swinging action.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Today Bubka is a member of the 'Champions for Peace' club, a group of more than 90 famous elite created by Peace and Sport, a Monaco-based international organization placed under the High Patronage of H.S.H Prince Albert II. This group of top level champions, wish to make sport a tool for dialogue and social cohesion. http://www.peace-sport.org/our-champions-of-peace/


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Bubka has been involved with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) since 2001 and has served as a vice president since 2007.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: During this time, he remained on the Athletes' Commission (2001–2011) and is also a Council Member for ASOIF, the Association for Summer Olympic International Federations. Bubka commented: "I have been working at the IAAF for a long time and my work is not limited to one area. The good of athletics is something deep in my heart." Bubka has been IAAF Council Member (2001-), IAAF senior vice-president (2007–2011), vice-president (2011-), IAAF Development Commission deputy chairman (2007–2011), then chairman (2011-), IAAF Athletes Commission member (2001–2011) and IAAF Competition Commission member (2003-). He was also a Coordination Commission chairman of IAAF World Championships in Daegu 2011 and Moscow 2013.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: As President of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine since 2005, he has transformed the organisation into one of the most progressive in the world. It has staff based in all of the nation's 27 regions with each taking responsibility for delivering an array of programmes designed to bring youngsters into sport, realise the potential of the most able and promote the Olympic Movement and its values.


title: Sergey Bubka

text: A National Olympic Day, the Olympic Stork which provides Olympic-themed education to more than 250,000 school classes across the country, televised annual awards and an Olympic Academy have all been established under Bubka's reign. "NOCs must do more than select and send teams to Olympic Games", says Bubka. "They are at the forefront of efforts to educate young people and help them become involved in sport and adopt a healthy lifestyle. To do that we need to work together globally because if we don't we risk losing the younger generation."


title: Sergey Bubka

text: Sergey Bubka first got involved with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1996 when he was elected as a Member of the Athletes' Commission, providing input into the governance of sport from the perspective of an active athlete. Almost 20 years later he is still involved as an Honorary Member. "I knew that I wanted to be involved in running sport and, in particular to be involved in the Olympic Movement", he said. He became an IOC Member in 1999 and has been involved in a wide range of Commissions, including Chairman of the Evaluation and then the Coordination Commissions for the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010. On 28 May 2013 Sergey Bubka announced that he would run for President of the International Olympic Committee. At the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires he lost the vote to Thomas Bach.


title: M. Manikandan

text: M. Manikandan is an Indian director, writer and cinematographer who works in Tamil cinema. He began his career as an assistant cinematographer in Tamil films. He made his directorial debut with the short film "Wind" (2010) and got his breakthrough in feature films with "Kaaka Muttai", which won the National Film Award for Best Children's Film in 2015.


title: M. Manikandan

text: Manikandan was born into a family of police officers in Usilampatti, Madurai district, Tamil Nadu. He did his schooling in different towns owing to his father's frequent transfers. After completing his schooling, he did his diploma in automobile engineering. He developed an interest in photography and started his career as a wedding photographer. He also did odd jobs such as designing ID cards for school and college children. In a later interview he claimed that he did all these in order to save money to pursue a course in digital photography at the Mindscreen Film Institute, a film school managed by Rajiv Menon.


title: M. Manikandan

text: In the mid 2000s, he started his film career as an assistant cinematographer in Tamil films. During this time, he co-wrote several scripts for short films. He got his major break with the short film "Wind" (2010), his directorial debut. The film brought him critical acclaim and was screened in several film festivals. The film caught the attention of Tamil film director Vetrimaran, who helped him produce "Kaaka Muttai", his feature film debut. The film revolves around two slum-dwelling kids whose solitary desire in life is to taste a pizza. The film premiered at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival and was released theatrically in June 2015. At the 62nd National Film Awards, it won two honours – Best Children's Film and Best Child Artist. The film won the Audience Award for Best Feature at the 13th Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles.


title: M. Manikandan

text: In 2021, Manikandan signed Ilaiyaraaja for the songs and background score for his film Kadaisi Vivasayi, but later he replaced Ilaiyaraaja with Santhosh Narayanan as he wasn't satisfied with the background score of the veteran composer, prompting Ilaiyaraaja to lodge a complaint against the director at Music composer’s association.


title: All Time Top 1000 Albums

text: All Time Top 1000 Albums is a book by Colin Larkin, creator and editor of the "Encyclopedia of Popular Music". The book was first published by Guinness Publishing in 1994. The list presented is the result of over 200,000 votes cast by the public in record shops, universities, schools and the French music trade show MIDEM – and ranked in order. Each album's entry is accompanied by an annotation with a 100-word review, details of its creation, and notes about the band or artist who recorded it.


title: All Time Top 1000 Albums

text: The Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" album made the top spot in the first edition, and the same band's "Revolver" made the top spot in the second, third and pocket editions of the series.


title: All Time Top 1000 Albums

text: In 1987, radio presenter Paul Gambaccini asked approximately 80 critics and disc jockeys from the United Kingdom and United States to list their ten greatest albums of all time. From these lists, he compiled the "Top 100 Albums" which was subsequently published by Pavilion Books in 1987. In 1993, Larkin was approached by the now-defunct "Today" newspaper to update this list, which was published in the newspaper. As a consequence, Larkin suggested the idea of a Top 1000 albums book to his publisher. Unlike the Gambaccini list, Larkin wanted to compile a list from votes cast by "broader opinion", and in keeping with the genres used in the "Encyclopedia of Popular Music". Larkin set about polling several thousand people via a printed voting form, left in record shops and sent to schools and universities. The result was the first edition of the "All Time Top 1000 Albums", published in 1994.


title: All Time Top 1000 Albums

text: In 1998 the second edition was published by Virgin Books using the continuing votes received over the previous four years. As a result of the publicity garnered by the encyclopedia and the first edition, Larkin was able to ask for votes during his numerous radio broadcasts for BBC GLR, now BBC London 94.9. He collected 100,000 votes, and the 2nd edition sold 38,000 copies. In 1999, Virgin published a smaller pocket edition, followed by a 3rd edition published in 2000, by which time the ongoing poll had reached over 200,000 votes cast. In September 2000, BBC News reported the "head-to-head" battle between the Beatles and Radiohead, the two bands who took the top four positions on the list.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Spontaneous combustion or spontaneous ignition is a type of combustion which occurs by self-heating (increase in temperature due to exothermic internal reactions), followed by thermal runaway (self heating which rapidly accelerates to high temperatures) and finally, autoignition.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Spontaneous combustion can occur when a substance with a relatively low ignition temperature (hay, straw, peat, etc.) begins to release heat. This may occur in several ways, either by oxidation in the presence of moisture and air, or bacterial fermentation, which generates heat. The heat is unable to escape (hay, straw, peat, etc. are good thermal insulators), and the temperature of the material rises. The temperature of the material rises above its ignition point (even though much of the bacteria are destroyed by ignition temperatures). Combustion begins if sufficient oxidizer, such as oxygen, and fuel are present to maintain the reaction into thermal runaway.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Haypiles and compost piles may self-ignite because of heat produced by bacterial fermentation. Linseed oil and Danish oil in a confined space (such as a pile of oil-soaked rags left out in an uncovered container, especially if the rags were afterward used with anti-moisture solvent to clean up the oil) can oxidize, leading to a buildup of heat and thus ignition. Coal can ignite spontaneously when exposed to oxygen, which causes it to react and heat up when there is insufficient ventilation for cooling. Pyrite oxidation is often the cause of coal's spontaneous ignition in old mine tailings. Pistachio nuts are highly flammable when stored in large quantities, and are prone to self-heating and spontaneous combustion. Large manure piles can spontaneously combust during conditions of extreme heat. Cotton and linen can ignite when they come into contact with polyunsaturated vegetable oils (linseed, massage oils); bacteria slowly decompose the materials, producing heat. If these materials are stored in a way so the heat cannot escape, the heat buildup increases the rate of decomposition and thus the rate of heat buildup increases. Once ignition temperature is reached, combustion occurs with oxidizers present (oxygen). Nitrate film, when improperly stored, can deteriorate into an extremely flammable condition and combust. The 1937 Fox vault fire was caused by spontaneously combusting nitrate film.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Hay is one of the most widely studied materials in spontaneous combustion. It is very difficult to establish a unified theory of what occurs in hay self-heating because of the variation in the types of grass used in hay preparation, and the different locations where it is grown. It is anticipated that dangerous heating will occur in hay that contains more than 25% moisture. The largest number of fires occur within two to six weeks of storage, with the majority occurring in the fourth or fifth week.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: The process may begin with microbiological activity (bacteria or mold), but at some point the process has to become chemical. Microbiological activity will also limit the amount of oxygen available in the hay. Moisture appears to be quite important, no matter what process. At 100 °C, wet hay absorbed twice the amount of oxygen of dry hay. There has been conjecture that the complex carbohydrates present in hay break down to simpler sugars, which are more readily oxidized.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Charcoal, when freshly prepared, can self-heat and catch fire. This is separate from hot spots which may have developed from the preparation of charcoal. Charcoal that has been exposed to air for a period of eight days is not considered to be hazardous. There are many factors involved, among them the type of wood and the temperature at which the charcoal was prepared.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Self-heating in coal has been extensively studied. The tendency to self-heat decreases with the increasing rank of the coal. Lignite coals are more active than bituminous coals, which are more active than anthracite coals. Freshly mined coal consumes oxygen more rapidly than weathered coal, and freshly mined coal self-heats to a greater extent than weathered coal. The presence of water vapor may also be important, as the rate of heat generation accompanying the absorption of water in dry coal from saturated air can be an order of magnitude or more than the same amount of dry air.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Cotton too can be a problem. A striking example of a cargo igniting spontaneously occurred on the ship in the Indian Ocean on 24 August 1834.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: Oil seeds and residue from oil extraction will self-heat if too moist. Typically, storage at 9–14% moisture is satisfactory, but limits are established for each individual variety of oil seed. In the presence of excess moisture that is just below the level required for germinating seed, the activity of mold fungi is a likely candidate for generating heat. This has been established for flax and sunflower seeds, as well as soy beans. Many of the oil seeds generate oils that are self-heating. Palm kernels, rapeseed, and cotton seed have also been studied. Rags soaked in linseed oil can spontaneously ignite if improperly stored or discarded.


title: Spontaneous combustion

text: There have been unconfirmed anecdotal reports of people spontaneously combusting. This alleged phenomenon is not considered true spontaneous combustion, as supposed cases have been largely attributed to the wick effect, whereby an external source of fire ignites nearby flammable materials and human fat or other sources.


title: JioCinema

text: JioCinema is an Indian subscription video on-demand and over-the-top streaming service, owned by Viacom 18, a subsidiary of TV18. Launched on 5 September 2016, JioCinema's content library includes films, television shows, web series, music videos, documentaries and sports. After the successful merger with Viacom 18 in September 2022, Viacom18 shifted all its sporting content from Voot to JioCinema making it the digital sporting destination of the network. The mobile app is available for Android and iOS devices.


title: JioCinema

text: JioCinema was launched on 5 September along with the public launch of Jio in 2016. JioCinema is one of the apps provided exclusively for Jio users along with other apps (JioTV, JioSaavn, JioNews, JioMart, JioMeet, JioChat and JioTalks), owned by Jio Platforms.


title: JioCinema

text: JioCinema was earlier available only on Google Play Store and iOS App Store, however, also launched a web version a year after the official launch and after that on JioPhone and TV.


title: JioCinema

text: JioCinema has aggregated content from partners like ALTBalaji, Eros Now, Paramount Pictures, Zee Entertainment, Viacom 18, Shemaroo Entertainment, Balaji Motion Pictures, Sun Nxt, Sony and others.


title: JioCinema

text: In December 2018, JioCinema partnered with Disney India to offer Disney content in the JioCinema app. Disney has withdrawn from this deal after the introduction of Disney+ Hotstar in India. In December 2019, with Sun TV Network to host over 4,000 films. available on the Sun Nxt platform across 4 South Indian languages viz: Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam.


title: JioCinema

text: In December 2022, JioCinema became official digital streaming partner of IPL as Viacom18 acquired digital streaming rights till 2027 earlier in June.


title: JioCinema

text: In August 2019, Xiaomi, TCL and in November 2019, Intex announced JioCinema app integration for their smart TVs.


title: JioCinema

text: As per Statista Q2 2020 report, JioCinema has 7% market share among many competitors like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video with 20% each market share, Disney+ Hotstar has 17% market share, Zee5 with 9%, Alt Balaji and Sony Liv with 4% market share each, and other streaming(OTT) platforms have 19% market share.


title: Khadi

text: Khadi (, ), derived from khaddar, is a hand-spun and woven natural fibre cloth promoted by Mahatma Gandhi as "swadeshi" (self-sufficiency) for the freedom struggle of the Indian subcontinent, and the term is used throughout India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The first piece of the hand-woven cloth was manufactured in the Sabarmati Ashram during 1917–18. The coarseness of the cloth led Gandhi to call it "khadi". The cloth is made from cotton, but it may also include silk or wool, which are all spun into yarn on a "charkha". It is a versatile fabric that remains cool in summer and warm in winter. To improve its appearance, khadi is sometimes starched to give it a stiffer feel. It is widely accepted in various fashion circles. Popular dresses are made using khadi cloth such as dhoti, "kurta", and handloom saris such as Puttapaka Saree, Kotpad Handloom fabrics, Chamba Rumal, and Tussar silk. Gajam Anjaiah, an Indian master handloom designer and a recipient of the Padma Shri, is known for his innovation and development of tie-dye handloom products along with the Telia Rumal technique of weaving products based on the Ikat process.


title: Khadi

text: . Greco-Roman merchants imported finer cotton in large quantities to Roman Empire. In medieval times, cotton textiles were imported to Rome through the maritime Silk Road. Arabian-Surat merchants traded cotton textiles to Basra and Baghdad from three areas of Gujarat, the Coromandel Coast and the East Coast of India. To the east, trade reached China via Java. 14th-century Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta mentioned Delhi sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq sending five varieties of cloth to the Yuan emperor in China. Some of the textiles are stored in repositories of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.


title: Khadi

text: After the First Indian War of Independence in 1857, domestic textile production by mill or traditional methods declined to its lowest levels before khadi emerged as a "silent economic revolution" as an outcome of a long and laborious evolutionary process.


title: Khadi

text: The American Civil War (1861-1865) caused raw cotton crisis in Cottonopolis Britain. Indian cotton at cheap prices was sourced for them as the textile industry did not exist in India, and hand spinning was a dying art. During Victorian era (1837–1901), 47 mills existed in the 1870s but Indians still bought clothes at an artificially inflated price, since the colonial government exported the raw materials for cloth to British fabric mills, then re-imported the finished cloth to India. In the Edwardian era (1901–1914) the Swadeshi movement of boycotting foreign cloth remained prominent. During the first two decades of the 20th century it was backed by nationalist politicians and Indian mill owners.


title: Khadi

text: In 1922, Mahatma Gandhi requested the Indian National Congress (INC) to start a khadi department. In 1924, due to a large amount of work, a semi-independent body All India Khadi Board (AIKB) was formed which liaisoned with the INC's khadi department at the provincial and district levels. In 1925, the All India Spinner Association (AISA) was formed comprising the khadi department and AIKB. Mahatma Gandhi was the founder of AISA. He made it obligatory for all members of the INC to spin cotton themselves and pay their dues in yarn. Gandhi collected large sums of money to create grassroots-level khadi institutions to encourage spinning and weaving which were certified by AISA. Handspun yarn was expensive and of poor quality, and weavers preferred yarn produced by mills because it was more robust and consistent in quality. Gandhi argued that the mill owners would deny handloom weavers an opportunity to buy yarn because they would prefer to create a monopoly for their own cloth. When some people complained about the costliness of khadi to Gandhi, he only wore dhoti, though he used wool shawls when it got cold. Some were able to make a reasonable living by using high-quality mill yarn and catering to the luxury market. Gandhi tried to put an end to this practice by threatening to give up khadi altogether, but since the weavers would have starved if they listened to him, they ignored the threat. In 1919, Gandhi started spinning at Mani Bhawan Mumbai and encouraging others to do so. He invented Patti Charkha, using a double-wheel design to increase speed and control while reducing size. In 1946, when huge funds were being spent on development for more productive charkhas, he recommended takli over charkha.


title: Khadi

text: The khadi movement began in 1918 and was marked with its own changing dynamics. Initially, a clear emphasis could be seen on using khadi as an economic solution due to stagnation, from 1934 onwards the fabric became something that villagers could use for themselves.


title: Khadi

text: In 1921, Gandhi went to Chandina Upazila in Comilla, Bangladesh, to inspire local weavers and consequently in the greater Comilla region, weaving centers were developed in Mainamati, Muradnagar, Gauripur and Chandina.


title: Khadi

text: In 1948, India recognized the role of rural cottage industries in its Industrial Policy Resolution. In 1949, Shri Ekambernathan invented amber "charkha". The All India Khadi & Village Industries Board (AIKVIB) was set up in January 1953 by the Government of India. In 1955 it was decided that a statutory body, the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), should replace the Board and the KVIC Act was passed in 1956, which brought the KVIC into existence as a statutory organisation the following year.After Independence, the government reserved some types of textile production, such as towel manufacturing for the handloom sector, which resulted in a deskilling of traditional weavers and a boost for the power loom sector. Private sector enterprises have been able to make handloom weaving somewhat remunerative and the government also continues to promote the use of Khadi through various initiatives.


title: Khadi

text: Prime Minister Narendra Modi during Khadi Utsav (27 Aug 2022), said "Khadi was ignored after Independence due to which weavers in the country suffered" and asserted that khadi is a movement to help the poor, and further claimed that the KVIC is a statutory organisation engaged in promoting and developing khadi and village industries.


title: Khadi

text: The Pakistan government saw khadi as emblematic of the ideology of Congress that had led the non-cooperation movement, so khadi organisations like the Noakhali Ambika Kalinga Charitable (NAKC) Trust, started on Gandhi's visit in 1946, were discouraged. Pakistan prime minister Firoz Khan Noon (1957–58), who remained Governor East Pakistan (1950-1953) was liberal towards khadi and established The Khadi and Cottage Industry Association in 1952. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's historic 7 March speech of Bangabandhu refueled the momentum to produce khadi. A sudden wave of demand persisted in Bangladesh for many years after the country's independence from Pakistan in 1971. In 1975, some years after the independence of Bangladesh, the NAKC trust was reformed and renamed the Gandhi Ashram Trust.


title: Khadi

text: The soft or refined khadi is known as muslin khadi. Researchers have tried to replicate muslin and identified "phuti carpas" as the variety from the DNA of cotton and from motifs used in making muslin sarees from Victoria & Albert Museum London of 1710 collection with 350 muslin sarees.


title: Khadi

text: The KVIC holds the exclusive rights to use the trademarks "khadi" and "Khadi India". The National Internet Exchange of India Domain Dispute Policy Arbitration Tribunal in New Delhi rejected a private entity's claim that "khadi" is a generic word. In 2017, KVIC and the government of India fought a case at the EUIPO against a German company that had trademarked the word. While KVIC obtained the latest trademark registration in Bhutan on 9 July 2021; trademark registration was granted in UAE on 28 June 2021, and the organisation registered the trademark in Mexico in December 2020.


title: Khadi

text: The KVIC enrolled 2624 functional Khadi institutions in India where decentralized units of "Kshetriya Shri Gandhi Ashram" in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, "Zila Khadi Gramodyog Sangh" in Bihar and Jharkhand, "Sarvodaya Sangh" in Tamilnadu have survived as the oldest operational Khadi organisations.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Bruce Douglas Cockburn ( ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to jazz-influenced rock and his lyrics cover a broad range of topics including human rights, environmental issues, politics, and Christianity.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn has written more than 350 songs on 34 albums over a career spanning 50 years, of which 22 have received a Canadian gold or platinum certification as of 2018, and he has sold over one million albums in Canada alone. In 2014, Cockburn released his memoirs, "Rumours of Glory". In 2016, his album "Christmas" was certified 6 times platinum in Canada for sales of over 600,000.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn was born in 1945 in Ottawa, Ontario, and spent some time at his grandfather's farm outside of Chelsea, Quebec, but he grew up in Westboro, which was a suburb of Ottawa when he was a teenager. His father, Doug Cockburn, was a radiologist, eventually becoming head of diagnostic x-ray at the Ottawa Civic Hospital. He has stated in interviews that his first guitar was one he found around 1959 in his grandmother's attic, which he adorned with golden stars and used to play along to radio hits. This was replaced when his parents bought him a Kay archtop that had flat wound strings and a DeArmond pickup after his first guitar teacher, Hank Sims, declared it unplayable.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Later he was taught piano and music theory by Peter Hall, the organist at Westboro United Church which Cockburn and his family attended. Cockburn had been listening to jazz and wanted to learn musical composition. Hall encouraged him and, along with his friend Bob Lamble, a lot of time was spent at Hall's house listening to and discussing jazz.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn attended Nepean High School, where his 1964 yearbook photo states his desire "to become a musician". After graduating, he took a boat to Europe and busked in Paris.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn attended Berklee School of Music in Boston, where his studies included jazz composition, for three semesters between 1964 and 1966. That year he dropped out and joined an Ottawa band called The Children, which lasted for about a year.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In early 1967 he joined the final lineup of the Esquires. He moved to Toronto that summer to form The Flying Circus with Marty Fisher and Gordon MacBain, former Bobby Kris & The Imperials members, and Neil Lillie, ex-Tripp member. The group recorded some material in late 1967 (which remains unreleased) before changing its name to Olivus in the spring of 1968, by which time Lillie (who changed his name to Neil Merryweather) had been replaced by Dennis Pendrith from Livingstone's Journey. Olivus opened for The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream in April 1968. That summer Cockburn broke up the band with the intention of going solo, but ended up in the band 3's a Crowd with David Wiffen, Colleen Peterson, and Richard Patterson, who had been a co-member of The Children. Cockburn left 3's a Crowd in the spring of 1969 to pursue a solo career.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn's first solo appearance was at the Mariposa Folk Festival in 1967, and in 1969 he was a headliner. In 1970 he released his self-titled, solo album. A single, "Going to the Country", appeared on the RPM Top 50 Canadian Chart.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn's guitar work and songwriting won him an enthusiastic following. His early work featured rural and nautical imagery and Biblical metaphors. Raised as an agnostic, early in his career he became a Christian. Many of his albums from the 1970s refer to Christian themes, which in turn inform his concerns for human rights and environmentalism. His references to Christianity include the Grail imagery of 20th-century Christian poet Charles Williams and the ideas of theologian Harvey Cox.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 1970 Cockburn became partners with Bernie Finkelstein in the music publishing firm Golden Mountain Music. He won the Juno, for Canadian Folksinger of the Year, three years in a row, 1971–73. He was nominated for Canadian Folksinger of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year at the 1974 Juno Awards.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: While Cockburn had been popular in Canada for years, he did not have a big impact in the United States until 1979, with the release of the album "Dancing in the Dragon's Jaws". The album's first single, "Wondering Where the Lions Are", reached No. 21 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 in the US in June 1980, earning Cockburn an appearance on NBC's TV show "Saturday Night Live". Cockburn's label, True North Records, also signed a distribution deal with Recordi Records in Italy.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Through the 1980s Cockburn's songwriting became increasingly urban, global and political as he became more involved with progressive causes. His political concerns were first hinted at on the albums: "Humans", "Inner City Front" and "The Trouble with Normal". They became more evident in 1984, with his second US radio hit, "If I Had a Rocket Launcher" (No. 88 in the US) from the "Stealing Fire" album. He had written the song a year earlier, after visiting Guatemalan refugee camps in Mexico that were attacked by Guatemalan military helicopters. His political activism continues to the present. His internationalist bent is reflected in the many world music influences in his music, including reggae and Latin music.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 1991 Intrepid Records released "Kick at the Darkness", a tribute album to Cockburn whose title comes from a phrase in his song "Lovers in a Dangerous Time". It features the Barenaked Ladies' cover of that song, which became their first Top 40 hit and an element in their early success. This lyric was also referenced by U2 in their song "God Part II" from their album "Rattle and Hum". Also in 1991, three of Cockburn's songs were listed in a Toronto Star survey among Toronto's top songs of all time.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In the early 1990s, Cockburn teamed with T Bone Burnett for two albums, "Nothing but a Burning Light" and "Dart to the Heart". The latter included a song, "Closer to the Light", inspired by the death of songwriter Mark Heard, a close friend of Cockburn and Burnett. Cockburn frequently refers to Heard as his favourite songwriter and he was one of many artists who paid tribute to Heard on an album and video titled "Strong Hand of Love".


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 2001 Cockburn performed as part of the Music Without Borders concert, a benefit for the United Nations Donor Alert Appeal, which raised funds for refugees from Afghanistan, at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In January 2003 Cockburn finished recording his 21st album, "You've Never Seen Everything", which features contributions from Emmylou Harris, Jackson Browne, Sam Phillips, Sarah Harmer, Hugh Marsh, Jonell Mosser, Larry Taylor and Steven Hodges.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Some of Cockburn's previously published material had been collected in several albums: "Resume", "Mummy Dust", and "Waiting for a Miracle". His first greatest hits collection was "Anything Anytime Anywhere: Singles 1979–2002", released in 2002.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn performed a set at the Live 8 concert in Barrie, Ontario, on July 2, 2005. "Speechless", an instrumental compilation of new and previously released material, was released on October 24, 2005. His 22nd album, "Life Short Call Now", was released on July 18, 2006.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Canadian senator and retired general Roméo Dallaire, who is active in humanitarian fundraising and promoting awareness, appeared on stage at the University of Victoria with Cockburn. The October 4, 2008, concert was held to aid the plight of child soldiers.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 2009 Cockburn travelled to Afghanistan to visit his brother, Medical Officer Capt. John Cockburn, and to play a concert for Canadian troops. He performed his 1984 song "If I Had a Rocket Launcher" and was temporarily awarded an actual rocket launcher by the military. Cockburn has stated that, while unsure of the original Invasion of Afghanistan, he supported Canada's role there.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 2018, Cockburn's album "Bone on Bone", was named Contemporary Roots Album of the Year at the Juno Awards.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn's songwriting is often political, expressing concern for the environment and the welfare of indigenous peoples. "Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians" writes, "Cockburn always risked an outspoken stand in his work, taking on issues and morality to the detriment of his popular appeal. No artist since Phil Ochs has taken such strong political stands." He has worked with relief agency Oxfam, travelling to Central America in 1983, and with the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. The song "Mines of Mozambique" ("The Charity of Night") reflects his observations of that country during a visit in 1995. Cockburn is affiliated with the Unitarian Service Committee of Canada, twice visiting Nepal with the charity, in 1987 and 2007.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Songs on these themes include "If I Had a Rocket Launcher" ("Stealing Fire"), an angry response to the plight of refugees in Central America; "Stolen Land" ("Waiting for a Miracle"), about the land claims of British Columbia's Haida people; and "If a Tree Falls" ("Big Circumstance")—one of Cockburn's best-known songs—decrying the deforestation of the Amazon.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn wrote and performed the theme song for the children's television series "Franklin". He composed and performed, with Hugh Marsh, the music for the National Film Board of Canada documentary feature "Waterwalker" (1984), directed by Bill Mason. He also composed two songs for the classic English-Canadian film "Goin' Down the Road" (1970), directed by Donald Shebib.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 1998 Cockburn travelled with filmmaker Robert Lang to Mali, West Africa, where he jammed with Grammy Award-winning blues musician Ali Farka Toure and kora master Toumani Diabate. The month-long journey was documented in the film "River of Sand", which won the "Regard Canadien" award for best documentary at the Vues d'Afrique Film Festival in Montreal. It was also invited for competition at the International Festival of Environmental Films in Paris.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 2007 Cockburn's music was featured in the movie adaptation of Irvine Welsh's best-selling novel "".


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: A documentary film, "Bruce Cockburn Pacing the Cage", was released in 2013 on television and a brief theatrical showing; directed by Joel Goldberg, gave a rare look into Cockburn's music, life and politics.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 2018, Cockburn contributed the song "3 Al Purdys" to the compilation album "The Al Purdy Songbook".


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 1982 and was promoted to Officer in 2002. In 1998, he received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: He has received thirteen Juno Awards, and in 2001, during the 30th Annual Juno Awards ceremony, Cockburn was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The Cockburn tribute during the awards included taped testimonials from U2's Bono, Jackson Browne, Cowboy Junkies' Margo Timmins, and Midnight Oil's Peter Garrett. That year he was presented with a SOCAN Folk/Roots award.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: The Canadian Association of Broadcasters inducted Cockburn into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame on October 22, 2002, in Vancouver. On November 27, 2002, the CBC's "Life and Times" series aired a special feature on Cockburn titled "The Life and Times of Bruce Cockburn".


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: In 2007 Cockburn received three honorary doctorates, the fourth, fifth and sixth of his career. In early May he received an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and later in the month he received an Honorary Doctor of Letters at the convocation of Memorial University of Newfoundland for his lifelong contributions to Canadian music, culture and social activism. He was then awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Victoria in Victoria, British Columbia. Cockburn previously received honorary doctorates from York University in Toronto, Berklee College of Music, and St. Thomas University in New Brunswick. He received an Honorary Doctorate awarded by McMaster University in 2009. In June, 2014, Cockburn received an honourary Doctorate of Letters from Laurentian University in Sudbury, and Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa, from Carleton University, in Ottawa.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn received Earth Day Canada's Outstanding Commitment to the Environment Award in 2010, and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012. On November 19, 2012, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, at the 2012 SOCAN Awards in Toronto. On February 15, 2017, he received the People's Voice Award in Kansas City from Folk Alliance International. On September 23, 2017, Cockburn was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame at a ceremony held at Massey Hall in Toronto.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn was married from 1969 to 1980 to Kitty Macaulay and has a daughter Jenny, born in 1975, from that marriage.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: While on vacation in Sweden with Kitty he experienced a personal crisis, arising from conflict in their marriage. He prayed and asked Jesus for help. In that moment he felt Jesus in the room, just as he had at their wedding. He became a follower of Christ on that day.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: Cockburn married his longtime girlfriend M. J. Hannett in 2011, shortly after the birth of his second daughter, Iona.


title: Bruce Cockburn

text: As of 2014, Cockburn and his family reside in the San Francisco area, where Cockburn wrote his memoirs.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: The UEFA Euro 2012 Final was the final match of Euro 2012, the fourteenth edition of the European Football Championship, UEFA's competition for national football teams. The match was played at the Olympic Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine, on 1 July 2012, and was contested by Spain and Italy. The sixteen-team tournament began with a group stage, from which eight teams qualified for the knockout phase. En route to the final, Spain finished top of Group C, with a draw against Italy and wins over Croatia and the Republic of Ireland. Spain then defeated France in the quarter-finals before beating Portugal in the semi-final after a penalty shoot-out. Italy were second in Group C, with draws against Spain and Croatia, and a victory over the Republic of Ireland. In the knockout rounds, Italy defeated England after a penalty shoot-out, then Germany in the semi-final.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: The final took place in front of 63,170 supporters and was refereed by Pedro Proença from Portugal. Spain took the lead in the 14th minute, when Andrés Iniesta played a through-ball to Cesc Fàbregas, who ran past Giorgio Chiellini to the by-line before pulling back a cross for David Silva to head in from close range. Italy responded with shots from Antonio Cassano that were saved by Spain's goalkeeper Iker Casillas but Spain doubled their lead before half-time, when Xavi passed to Jordi Alba, who capped a long forward run with a shot past Gianluigi Buffon in the Italy goal. Fernando Torres replaced Fàbregas with 15 minutes left to play, and scored in the 84th minute – assisted by Xavi – to become the first man to score in two European Championship finals. Torres then passed the ball back with the outside of his boot for Juan Mata to sweep into an empty net for a final score of 4–0. Spain's Iniesta was named as UEFA's man of the match.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain became the first team to win two consecutive European Championships, and the first team to win three consecutive major tournaments – Euro 2008, the 2010 FIFA World Cup and Euro 2012. It was the greatest margin of victory in the history of the European Championship finals, and the fourth time that teams who played each other in the group stage faced one another once again in the final (after 1988, 1996 and 2004). Usually, the winner of the European Championship gains entry to the Confederations Cup, which was played in Brazil in 2013. However, since Spain already qualified as the 2010 World Cup champions, Italy qualified automatically as the UEFA representative, with their win in the semi-final against Germany, despite losing in the final to Spain.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: UEFA Euro 2012 was the fourteenth edition of the UEFA European Football Championship, UEFA's football competition for national teams, held between 8 June and 1 July 2012 in Poland and Ukraine. Qualifying rounds were held between August 2010 and November 2011, in which fifty-one teams were divided into nine groups of five or six, playing each other on a home-and-away round-robin tournament basis. The top team in each group, along with the two host teams, qualified for the sixteen-team finals, with the remainder of the sixteen qualifying via two-legged play-offs. In the finals, the qualified teams were divided into four groups of four with each side playing each other once. The two top teams from each group advanced to a knock-out phase.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain were reigning European champions, having won the European Championship in 2008. They had also secured the title on one other occasion, defeating the Soviet Union 2–1 in the 1964 final, and were runners-up in the 1984 final. Similarly, Italy won the title in 1968, defeating Yugoslavia 2–0 in the final, and were runners-up in 2000, losing 2–1 to France in the final. Before the tournament, the two sides had previously met each other 30 times, Italy winning ten games and Spain eight. Italy won the most recent meeting, a 2–1 friendly on 10 August 2011 at the Stadio San Nicola in Bari. Spain, who began the tournament as one of the favourites, ranked highest in the FIFA World Rankings, while Italy ranked twelfth overall, and eighth among UEFA teams.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: The Olympic Stadium in Kyiv, Ukraine, the largest stadium of the eight Euro 2012 venues, was selected as the venue for the final, after a meeting held in Ukraine on 25 June 2007. Built in 1923, the 63,195-capacity stadium had been renovated for the tournament, during which a transparent roof had been installed. The Olympic Stadium had hosted three Euro 2012 group matches along with one of the quarter-finals.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain were drawn in Group C alongside Italy, Croatia, and Republic of Ireland, opening against Italy on 10 June 2012. Italy took the lead in the 61st minute through striker Antonio Di Natale, who had come on for Mario Balotelli. Three minutes later, Spain equalised when midfielder Andrés Iniesta assisted Cesc Fàbregas, who slotted the ball past goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. In their next match on 14 June against Republic of Ireland, striker Fernando Torres opened the scoring early in the fourth minute, retaining the ball after Republic of Ireland defender Richard Dunne's unsuccessful tackle, before scoring from ten yards past defenceless goalkeeper Shay Given. In the 49th minute, after Given had blocked an Iniesta shot, David Silva collected the rebound and extended the Spanish lead, after nutmegging three defenders. With 20 minutes remaining, Torres scored his second goal, taking a pass from Silva and chipping the ball over Given. Fabregas scored the final goal after receiving a Silva corner and shooting from a difficult angle. Their third and final group stage match against Croatia on 18 June, proved to be more difficult, and Croatia had several goalscoring chances, notably from Ivan Strinić and Ivan Perišić, which Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas had no problems dealing with. The match looked to be heading for a draw, until the 88th minute, when substitute Jesús Navas struck the winning goal, from an Iniesta assist.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: In the quarter-finals, on 23 June 2012, Spain took on France. Spain opened the goalscoring with defender Jordi Alba running to the touchline under pressure and sending a pinpoint cross to unmarked midfielder Xabi Alonso, who drove a powerful header past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris. Spain completed their win late in the second half with Alonso's penalty kick after France defender Anthony Réveillère brought down Pedro inside the penalty area. In the semi-finals on 27 June, Spain faced Portugal in a competitive match. Portugal pressured the Spanish "tiki-taka" possession game high up the pitch, and created several goalscoring chances. Spain managed to hold on, which required the match to go into extra time. Spain began to take control of the match with the introduction of Pedro and Fabregas, but failed to score over both halves, leading to a penalty shoot-out. Alonso, who had previously taken a penalty kick against France, had his spot kick saved by Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patrício. Portugal looked to take the advantage, with midfielder João Moutinho as the next penalty taker, but his strike was kept out with a diving save from Casillas. Iniesta took his penalty with precision before Portuguese defender Pepe struck his kick just past Casillas's fingertips. Defender Gerard Piqué calmly scored in the same corner of the goal as Pepe. Another defender, Bruno Alves, stepped up to take the third penalty for Portugal, but midfielder Nani encouraged Alves to let him take the penalty, which Nani struck high in the left corner of the goal after sending Casillas the wrong way. The fourth Spanish penalty was taken by defender Sergio Ramos, who chipped the ball past Rui Patrício, in the style of former Czech footballer Antonín Panenka. Portugal's fourth penalty was taken by defender Bruno Alves, who struck the crossbar with a rising shot. Spain's final penalty taker was Fàbregas, who scored Spain's fifth goal, as the ball went in via the left post. Spain emerged victorious, and headed to the UEFA European Championship final for the fourth time.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: As well as Spain, Italy were placed in Group C in the group stage. Their opening match was against Spain on 10 June 2012 which ended in a 1–1 draw. Di Natale gave Italy the lead on the hour mark but Spain equalised through Fàbregas four minutes later. Italy's next fixture was against Croatia on 14 June. Italy were dominant in the first half of the match, and had several chances to score. A foul from Croatia midfielder Ivan Rakitić on Balotelli resulted in a free kick for Italy. Andrea Pirlo stepped up, and struck the free kick, which went past Croatia goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa, inside the left side of the goal. In the 72nd minute, Croatia striker Mario Mandžukić headed in an equalising goal, after an assist from Strinić. Their third and final group match against the Republic of Ireland was on 18 June. Striker Antonio Cassano struck the first goal, from a Pirlo corner, which Republic of Ireland defender Damien Duff failed to clear. Near the end of the match, centre midfielder Keith Andrews was booked for the second time, after committing a foul on Pirlo, resulting in a sending off by Turkey referee Cüneyt Çakır. As the match headed its way into the 90 minutes, in injury time, Balotelli struck a volley past Given, assisted by attacking midfielder Alessandro Diamanti.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: In the quarter-finals, Italy faced England. Both sides were dominant and had possession in the first half. Italy players, such as midfielders Riccardo Montolivo, Pirlo, Balotelli, and Cassano had chances to score, but failed to do so. England players also rounded off chances, through strikers Wayne Rooney and Danny Welbeck, midfielders Steven Gerrard and Scott Parker, and defenders Glen Johnson and Ashley Cole. In the second half, Italy proved to be the more dominant, but neither managed to produce a goal, and the match was taken into extra time. Diamanti had the best chance to score in the first half, the ball hitting the outside of the left post. Both sides still failed to score and the match headed into a penalty shoot-out. Balotelli was the first penalty taker for Italy and he struck the penalty kick into the left corner, past England goalkeeper and Manchester City club teammate Joe Hart. Gerrard did not hesitate, and scored into the same left corner. Montolivo was the second player for Italy to take a penalty kick. He attempted to strike the ball into the same corner, but his shot went wide. He was followed by Rooney, who scored to put England ahead. Pirlo was the next Italian penalty taker and scored with a Panenka-style penalty. Midfielder Ashley Young stepped up to take England's third penalty, but hit the crossbar. Italy now had the advantage, as Antonio Nocerino successfully scored the fourth penalty. The pressure was now on England, and it proved to be decisive for Italy, as defender Cole stepped up to take the fourth penalty for England, which Buffon saved. In the semi-finals, Italy faced Germany. Italy dominated possession early, and after receiving the ball from Cassano, Balotelli opening the goalscoring in the 20th minute of the first half in the left corner inside the goal, heading past German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. Sixteen minutes later Balotelli struck again, this time striking into the top right corner on a one-on-one with Neuer, assisted by a Montolivo lob over the German defence. In the second half, Germany improved, and were awarded a penalty in the 90th minute after Federico Balzaretti was penalised for handball. Germany midfielder Mesut Özil struck the penalty kick into the right corner. Despite this, Italy held on to their lead, securing victory and progression to the final.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Pedro Proença, representing the Portuguese Football Federation, was chosen by UEFA to referee the final. Proença had previously been in charge of two UEFA finals, the 2004 UEFA Under-19 Championship Final between Turkey and Spain, and the 2012 UEFA Champions League Final between Chelsea and Bayern Munich. He had also refereed nine other Champions League matches, and 18 UEFA Cup and Europa League matches. Proença was accompanied by assistant referees Bertino Miranda, Ricardo Santos, Jorge Sousa and Duarte Gomes. The fourth official was Turkish referee Cüneyt Çakır.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain coach Vicente del Bosque picked the same eleven players for the final as had played in the group match between the two sides and their quarter-final against France, played in a 4–3–3 formation. The only debate was over whether Fàbregas, a natural midfielder, would start up front (as he had against Italy and France), or if Del Bosque would pick one of Torres (who had started against Republic of Ireland and Croatia) or Álvaro Negredo (who played up front in the semi-final against Portugal). Spain's defence consisted largely of Real Madrid players – Casillas in goal, Álvaro Arbeloa on the right side of defence and Ramos in the centre. Barcelona's Piqué joined Ramos in the centre and Alba of Valencia played on the left. The central midfield featured Xavi and Sergio Busquets of Barcelona and Real Madrid's Alonso, with the flanks patrolled by Iniesta (also of Barcelona) on the left and Silva of Manchester City. Silva and Alba were the only two players to not play for Real Madrid or Barcelona in the starting line-up.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: In contrast with Spain's tactical stability, Italy had used different line-ups throughout the tournament, brought about by both injury and suspension. However, after the first two group games, coach Cesare Prandelli appeared to develop a distinct preference for a 4–1–3–2 formation, with playmaker Pirlo occupying the deep midfield role. He also tended to favour a forward pairing of Cassano and Balotelli. Midfielder Daniele De Rossi had occupied a sweeper role in the first two group games, but was later used as a left-sided attacking midfielder. Goalkeeper Buffon, left-back Giorgio Chiellini, and centre-backs Andrea Barzagli and Leonardo Bonucci formed a Juventus core to the defence, having gone the entire 2011–12 Serie A season unbeaten. They were supported on the right by Milan's Ignazio Abate, who returned to the team after missing the semi-final through injury, replacing Balzaretti of Palermo. Pirlo, also of Juventus, again played the deep-lying playmaker role behind his club-mate Claudio Marchisio on the right wing, Milan's Montolivo in the centre and Daniele De Rossi of Roma on the left. Milan's Cassano and Manchester City's Balotelli again played up front.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Before the start of the match, the closing ceremonies were held, featuring a live performance by six hundred volunteer performers, performing a field march of a football match. Also featured was a performance by German pop singer Oceana, performing the official theme to Euro 2012, "Endless Summer". The official match ball for the final was the Adidas Tango 12 Finale, a silver-coloured variation of the Adidas Tango 12, and part of the Adidas Tango family. The Tango 12 was used as the official match ball throughout the tournament, provided by German sports equipment company Adidas. It is designed to be easier to dribble and control than the reportedly unpredictable Adidas Jabulani used at the 2010 World Cup.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain kicked off the match at 9:45pm local time (6:45pm UTC), playing in a red and dark blue kit, while Italy wore blue shirts and white shorts. Italy had the game's first attack on 2 minutes, Cassano running down the left of the pitch to the corner of the penalty area before losing the ball, which flew towards the centre of the pitch. Pirlo then had a shot from distance, but it went high and wide. On 4 minutes, Spain went forward for the first time, Silva advancing down the right before passing towards Alonso on the edge of Italy's penalty area. Italy's defence got the ball back to their goalkeeper, and it was then cleared by Chiellini. A minute later, Chiellini hit a long ball towards the Italian penalty area towards Balotelli, but Ramos reached it first with a header and was able to clear. Balotelli was knocked over during the challenge, but there was no foul given. Spain then began to control the match, with lengthy periods of possession and several chances to score, including a header by Ramos that went over the crossbar, and a shot by Xavi from a Fàbregas pass, which also went over.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain took the lead in the 14th minute, when Iniesta played a through-ball to Fàbregas, who drove past Chiellini to the by-line before pulling back a cross for David Silva to head into the net from six yards. Chiellini was hampered by a thigh injury he had picked up in the earlier rounds and on 20 minutes he sliced a clearance, allowing Alonso to launch an attack down the right. Bonucci and then Pirlo cleared the danger, after which Chiellini was replaced by Balzaretti. Italy responded to going behind with several attacks, first through Balzaretti, whose cross from the left was intercepted just before Balotelli could head it goalwards. Cassano then had two shots which were saved by Casillas on 29 and 33 minutes. On 38 minutes, Balotelli had another chance, firing a shot towards the top corner of the goal following a one-two with Mantolivo; it went over the top. Spain then doubled their lead four minutes before half-time when, after a period of passing around their defence, Casillas sent a long ball which was eventually picked up by Xavi. He then passed to Alba, who capped a long forward run with a left-footed finish past Buffon.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Di Natale came on for Cassano at half-time and went close to scoring with his first touch one minute into the second half, heading over the crossbar after a cross from Abate. This was followed a minute later by a chance for Spain, when Fàbregas fired a shot from the edge of the penalty area which went narrowly wide of the goal. Fàbregas then crossed into the penalty area after beating Balzaretti on the right-hand side, leading to a goal-mouth scramble which was eventually cleared by Italy. On 49 minutes, the ball struck Bonucci's hand and Spain appealed for a penalty, but the referee deemed it unintentional. Di Natale then had a second effort, striking a shot from and forcing a save from the onrushing Casillas. Italy's final substitution saw Thiago Motta replace Riccardo Montolivo. In the 58th minute, Pirlo sent a free kick into the penalty area which was cleared by Casillas with his palms, and then Balotelli hit a shot which went over the crossbar. Motta then suffered a hamstring injury only four minutes after coming on; with all of their substitutes used, Italy had to play the last 30 minutes of the match a man down.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Torres replaced Fàbregas with 15 minutes left to play, and scored in the 84th minute – assisted by Xavi – to become the first man to score in two European Championship finals. Torres then turned provider four minutes later, cutting the ball back with the outside of his boot for fellow substitute and Chelsea forward Juan Mata to sweep into an empty net for a final score of 4–0.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: After the match, the Henri Delaunay Trophy was handed to the Spanish captain Casillas by UEFA president Michel Platini. During the post-match press conference, Spain's manager Del Bosque described his team's triumph as a "great era for Spanish football", but praised opponents Italy's work effort, despite the defeat, stating that they lacked "luck". He added that "the game ended" after the injured midfielder Motta came off with 28 minutes remaining and left Italy with ten players for the remainder of the match. Italy manager Prandelli commented that he would leave Kyiv both proud and disappointed of his side: "When we fly over Kyiv and see the stadium lights I will have pangs of disappointment but I leave proud". He continued by describing that his players lacked "fitness" and were "tired", and added that Italy "were up against a great side, the world champions. and as soon as we went down to ten men it was game over. We had a couple of chances at the start of the second half but didn't take them and when Thiago Motta went off we had nothing left in the tank".


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: As a result of Spain's win, Del Bosque also became the second manager, after Germany manager Helmut Schön, to lead a national side to a UEFA European Championship and a FIFA World Cup trophy, and the first to have also won the UEFA Champions League.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain became the first team to win two consecutive European Championships, and the first team to win three consecutive major tournaments – Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012. It was the greatest margin of victory in the history of the European Championship finals, and the fourth time that teams who played each other in the group stage played each other again in the final (1988, 1996 and 2004). Analysts attributed their success in part to a style of play called tiki-taka, which had been introduced by Aragonés and was continued by Del Bosque. This style prioritises short passing, maintaining possession for long periods and patience. The tiki-taka style was also adopted by Pep Guardiola with Spanish club Barcelona, who achieved success in domestic and European competition in the same period. After the 2012 victory, BBC Sport's Phil McNulty wrote that the team were contenders for the greatest national team of all time. Citing their "ultimate combination of silk and steel", with the "Barcelona 'carousel' of Xavi and Andres Iniesta augmented by Real Madrid's Xabi Alonso in midfield", McNulty opined that "it would have to be a very powerful argument against Spain" being the greatest.


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Spain's media were highly positive about the result. "Marca" suggested the Spain team was "the best team of all time", and "El País" reported that the side played with a "distinguishing style" and that it "no longer arouses skepticism but admiration". Italy's "La Gazzetta dello Sport" lamented that "the game was already over after the first half" and "Corriere dello Sport" declared the defeat as "embarrassing". "La Repubblica" suggested that the Italy team were in poor physical condition. Croatian newspaper "24sata" complimented Spain's victory, noting "Tiki-tastic! No one in the history of the Euro has ever achieved such an impressive victory as Spain's against Italy in the Euro 2012 final." "Ekstra Bladet", a Danish newspaper, reported that the final provided "excellent entertainment" and that Italy played their part, "by meeting the Spaniards high up the pitch." France's "L'Équipe" noted that Spain "controlled to perfection" the final and had "made it a question of honour to go down in history in style" while Portugal's "A Bola" proclaimed the Spain side to be "irresistible" and that their victory was "Historical! Unforgettable!"


title: UEFA Euro 2012 Final

text: Usually, the winner of the European Championship gains entry to the Confederations Cup, which was due to be played in Brazil in 2013. However, since Spain had already qualified as the 2010 World Cup champions, Italy qualified automatically as the UEFA representative, with their win in the semi-final against Germany, despite losing in the final to Spain.


title: Wazir (film)

text: Wazir () is a 2016 Indian Hindi-language neo-noir action thriller film directed by Bejoy Nambiar and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Written and edited by Abhijat Joshi and Chopra, the film stars Farhan Akhtar and Amitabh Bachchan alongside Aditi Rao Hydari, Manav Kaul and Neil Nitin Mukesh. John Abraham makes a special appearance. The film's dialogue and additional dialogue were written by Abhijeet Deshpande and Gazal Dhaliwal, respectively. The music was composed by several artists including Shantanu Moitra, Ankit Tiwari, Advaita, Prashant Pillai, Rochak Kohli and Gaurav Godkhindi, with the background score composed by Rohit Kulkarni. Sanu Varghese served as the film's cinematographer.


title: Wazir (film)

text: Based on an original story by Chopra, "Wazir" follows the story of a suspended Anti-Terrorism Squad officer who befriends a chess player who is a wheelchair user. The idea of the film came to Chopra in the 1990s and he started writing it in English with Joshi over a period of four years starting in 2000. It was supposed to be Chopra's first Hollywood film, with Dustin Hoffman playing the protagonist. However, its producer died and the film was shelved for nearly eight years. Chopra and Joshi later re-wrote the script so it could be produced as a Hindi film. Principal photography began on 28 September 2014.


title: Wazir (film)

text: "Wazir" opened on 8 January 2016 to mixed to positive reviews from critics who particularly praised the action sequences and the performances of both Bachchan and Akhtar, but criticised the predictable nature of the film. The film performed well at the box office, with approximate worldwide revenues of ₹78.69 crore (US$12 million).


title: Wazir (film)

text: Anti-Terrorism Squad officer Danish Ali (Farhan Akhtar) lives with his wife Ruhana (Aditi Rao Hydari) and little daughter Noorie. One day, while Danish is driving with his wife and daughter, he spots the terrorist Farooq Rameez and chases him. Noorie is killed in the ensuing shootout while Rameez escapes. Ruhana is shattered and blames Danish for Noorie's death. Danish later kills Rameez during a police operation, angering his seniors, who wanted Rameez alive to find out which politician he was going to meet. Subsequently, Danish is suspended from the ATS.


title: Wazir (film)

text: A grief-stricken Danish is about to kill himself at Noorie's grave when a mysterious van appears, driving off when Danish yells at it. Danish finds a wallet lying where the van was, goes to return it, and meets its owner, a handicapped chess master named Pandit Omkar Nath Dhar (Amitabh Bachchan), who turns out to have been Noorie's chess teacher. Pandit starts teaching Danish chess and tells him about Nina, Pandit's daughter who also died. Nina (Vaidehi Parashurami) had been teaching chess to Ruhi (Mazel Vyas), the daughter of a government minister, Yazaad Qureshi (Manav Kaul), and had fallen down the stairs at Qureshi's house and died. Pandit is convinced that her death was not an accident. Puzzled and intrigued, Danish tries to meet Qureshi, but cops at the minister's office threaten him with arrest. Danish later meets Ruhi at her school to ask her about Nina, but Ruhi is taken away by Qureshi who threatens her for talking to Danish. That night Pandit is brutally attacked by Wazir (Neil Nitin Mukesh), a hitman sent by Qureshi, who warns Pandit and Danish to stop chasing Qureshi.


title: Wazir (film)

text: Pandit leaves for Kashmir, where Qureshi is headed. Wazir calls Danish and threatens to kill Pandit right there. Danish frantically chases Pandit's van, but Wazir blows it up, killing Pandit. Determined to exact revenge and discover who Wazir is, Danish leaves for Kashmir without informing Ruhana and makes a plan with the Superintendent of Police Vijay Malik (John Abraham) to pull Wazir out. During Qureshi's speech, Malik detonates explosives hidden in a chandelier above the podium, causing a panic, and holds back the police to give Danish time to act. Qureshi escapes in the confusion and goes to where he and Ruhi are staying, but Danish breaks in and asks him about Wazir. Qureshi claims he does not know anybody called Wazir, when a crying Ruhi reveals to Danish that Qureshi is not her father – he is actually one of the militants who massacred her entire village and posed as her father when Indian Army troops arrived. Ruhi had told Nina this, so Qureshi killed Nina and staged it as an accident. Danish realises that Rameez and the other terrorists had come to meet Qureshi, and kills him. Subsequently, the ATS and Ruhi reveal to the media that Qureshi was actually a terrorist.


title: Wazir (film)

text: A few days later, while watching Ruhana's play – based on chess and dedicated to Pandit – Danish realises that Pandit was in fact the play's "weak pawn" who befriended a "strong rook" (Danish) who would kill a "wicked king" (Qureshi) to wreak revenge. Shocked by this epiphany, Danish finds Pandit's housekeeper, who says that she did not actually see Wazir on the night he attacked Pandit, but remembers an instruction about a USB pen-drive which Pandit had told her to give to Danish if he came looking for Wazir at all. The pen-drive contains a video of Pandit, who explains that Wazir never existed – he was just a persona created by Pandit, who knew that, due to his handicap, he was powerless against Qureshi, who he wanted dead. Pandit intentionally dropped his wallet near Noorie's grave so Danish could find it and befriend him. His knife wounds from Wazir's attack were self-inflicted, and he had used voice recordings to pose as Wazir on the phone. Pandit had sacrificed himself to ensure that Danish would kill Qureshi and get revenge for both of them. Shaken by the revelation, Danish and Ruhana reunite.


title: Wazir (film)

text: The idea of "Wazir" came to Vidhu Vinod Chopra after badminton player Syed Modi was murdered on 28 July 1988 in Lucknow. However, Chopra has said that the film is completely different from the incident. When Chopra met his eventual co-writer Abhijat Joshi in 1994, he told him about the idea of setting a thriller around two chess players. Chopra described the two characters as "Rakesh Maria and Viswanathan Anand playing chess". The script was later written by them in four years, between 2000 and 2004. It was supposed to be Chopra's first Hollywood film, with Dustin Hoffman playing the protagonist. In 2005, their producer Robert Newmyer suddenly died and the script was shelved.


title: Wazir (film)

text: Chopra saw Bejoy Nambiar's 2013 film, "David"; he was particularly impressed by the black-and-white portions of it. Chopra subsequently called Nambiar and expressed a desire to work with the director; Chopra had a cache of unfilmed scripts, and Nambiar selected the chess one. Chopra and Joshi then spent two years writing a Hindi version of it.


title: Wazir (film)

text: Both Chopra and Joshi consulted chess experts from America for the film. The cinematography of the film was done by Sanu Varghese, who had previously worked with Nambiar on "David". The film's story was tweaked constantly during its seven-month editing period; both writers also served as editors. This was the first time since his 1989 picture "Parinda" that Chopra had edited a film. Joshi, who edited for the first time on "Wazir", believes that "a film is rewritten on the editing table". Visual effects were used to hide Bachchan's legs, to make them look as if they ended below the knees. The makers of the film went through 40 to 50 wheelchairs to find one that would be comfortable for Bachchan over the long shoot. The working titles of the film were "Do" and "Ek Aur Ek Do", and it received its final title, "Wazir", in October 2014, based on the character of that name in the film.