World cup soccer football that unites the world

In every sporting event one can invariably find a player, a team, a nation, poised to become the next memorable story – a story that will survive the test of time and go down in history. The FIFA World Cup is unique, in that, every country can qualify. It is the only tournament that can unite the world with its common passion for the sport. It is a tournament where everyone celebrates, dances, and rejoices in the streets of their capitals, exulting in the spectacular feats of their players, their teams and their nation. But what makes the World Cup particularly extraordinary is the national pride that it inspires, especially for the first time qualifiers. Since the first tentative World Cup in Uruguay in 1930, World Cup history was not only about the winner or winning the title, but about the stories. World Cup history resonates with the back-stories that echo through time - of players, teams and nations that surprised the world by achieving the unexpected. From the poignant moments of the underdogs and the worlds Cinderella teams, to the birth of legends and the brilliance of the football giants – the World Cup brings joy to every nation. It is about the stories of players, teams and nations taking it to the highest levels; the stories about emotions and pride that unites the world. At 2006 FIFA World Cup, we welcome the heavy favorites - from the European continent and all the way to the South American continent. For these giants, winning is everything. In their spirit is held the promise of thrilling showdowns, individual feats of brilliance and the majestic harmony in motion of a team united in its quest for the world’s most coveted prize in football. Will the European contenders - Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Netherlands, France, and England have the firepower to overcome the South American power forces from Brazil and Argentina, or will the world be dancing to the samba beat again this year? What about the other European contenders, the lesser known South American teams, or the North American and Central American zone teams? Or better yet, the Australians? Let’s not overlook the African continent! Will the trophy finally make its first trip south of the Mediterranean Sea? For that matter, even the Asian continent and their desire to bring Asian football to new international acclaim should be considered. At the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, we hope to see these underdogs, long shots, and Cinderella teams. There is always something special about the underdogs for winning is not everything to them. Simply by qualifying to walk onto the world stage, they have realized their goals and sparked the hopes of their nation. Armed with this impossible hope, win or lose, they are there to defend their national pride, and valiantly defend it they will, sometimes to the very chagrin and amazement of disbelieving onlookers. As football fans across all continents count down to the opening day of 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, BetUS Sportsbook has launched its 2006 World Cup betting portal for soccer betting enthusiasts around the world. What a day it shall be, June 9th 2006! What a month it shall be, until the truth will set us all free on July 9th 2006! The whole world will be looking to Germany from June to July, watching history in the making. There will be sorrow, there will be joy. There will be dreams crushed, there will be dreams made. There will be silence in the streets, there will be rejoicing and dancing in the streets. After all, this is the World Cup, the tournament of tournaments. So may the best national team win!

The great wide wonderland of snow and skiing

You've made up your mind. You've resolved (maybe again) to get more exercise. All that's left is deciding what to choose. What if you wanted something you can do either indoors or outdoors, in any season, at nearly any time, and provides an all-over "workout" without feeling like you've done any work? Think a minute: This easily describes several of the different types of the surprisingly varied world of snow skiing. The image most people think of is standard: You get on a chairlift, drop off easily, and ski down the slopes. You're wearing heavy, cold-weather gear and usually topple over once or twice on the way down, skis askew in the air, the biting chill of the wind hitting your face. Thankfully, the world of snow skiing has broadened widely and has become a year-round enjoyment for millions -- while also providing an excellent source of cardiovascular exercise. Downhill, or classical, skiing, is the picture-postcard most of us think of when we hear the word "skiing." It usually involves places like The Alps, Aspen, Telluride, or just about anywhere most jet-setters and celebrities frequent. This is the one that involves a chairlift, and skiing down often-steep slopes. There is either real snow or manufactured snow, and you will get cold, but you'll warm up once you get going. The sport is not too difficult once you get the hang of it, but it definitely will not be easy the first day you try. Actually, you can expect to fall down many times. Lessons are usually a good idea, and this type is skiing is going to be expensive. Lift ticket prices, travel to and from ski sites, ski rentals or purchase, and appro-priate wear, including sunglasses, are going to cost you more financially, but the results can be exhilarating and quite fun -- again, once you catch on. Next, there's cross-country skiing. Admittedly, this is going to be physically challenging to most people. Here's where you do all the work yourself. There are no chairlifts to bring you up the hills, and you must ski up on your own. But, on the flip side, you won't careen down mountains near as steep as the ones in downhill skiing, and it's much more affordable than downhill ski-ing. Trail passes and ski rentals are relatively inex-pensive, and you probably can teach yourself -- hence, no lessons! "Skate" cross-country skiing is another form of cross-country skiing that requires slightly different skis. You can actually "skate" with regular, classical skates, but skis do make it easier. You can pick up speed by simu-lating the physical motions of ice skating. It's not too difficult to pick up skate cross-country, but it is harder than classical cross country skiing, and requires more physical endurance. It is also helpful to have clear and wider trails for this to be truly enjoyable. If you're really the adventurous type, the ski jump, in which you leap from specially prepared jump slopes, will definitely test your stamina and maneuverability. Note that this will also test your checkbook balance, as well as alpine skiing, which has fewer twisted courses that permit much faster speeds, but again, it will have a more pronounced affect on your bank balance than the other types of snow skiing. Snowboarding involves a single wide ski, or snowboard, no poles, and is similar to surfing. Ski experts have also now come up with ski boarding, which employs shorter and wider skis that are generally used without poles. Ski boarding also offers the skier some of the sensa-tions of ice skating or in-line roller skating. It is usually easier to learn than classical skiing, largely because ski boards are simply more "handle-friendly." With the comprehensive, attractive array of skiing methods out there today, there's something in it for everyone. Can't stand the cold? Try cross-country. Love the idea of bounding from a slope onto hard, impacted snow and hitting the ground hard and fast? Simple. Take up ski jumping. But please -- take lessons first!

The basketball pass passing to excitement

One of the skills important for a player to learn before playing the actual game of basketball is passing the basketball. Passing is the act of the handing over the basketball to the player's teammatemunication between the team members is crucial in passing. You have to acknowledge the pass first, either verbally or nonverbally, before handing over the basketball to a player. Passing can be used as an escape route if the player is heavily guarded by the defenders in order to keep the ball in the team's possession and later on shooting the basketball to the team's basket. In basketball, passing skills are acknowledged by statistics, which are called an assists. Passing the basketball may be done in several ways. The Chest Pass This pass is thrown in a straight line with high velocity used on the court's perimeter. When the recipient is moving, this pass is made ensuring that the player doesn't over reach to catch the basketball. When the recipient is stationary, this pass is made ensuring that the player who will accept the basketball doesn't have to move. This pass is received in a triple threat position wherein the feet are shoulder width apart, elbows and knees bent, the shooting hand at the top and the other hand on the side of the basketball. In passing the basketball, it must be held at the level of the sternum, then by pushing the back foot and taking a step with the front foot while extending the arms to make the pass. The Bounce pass. The accuracy of this pass is dictated by its trajectory and speed. The change of directions of this pass makes it difficult for the defender to judge where the basketball will go, therefore making it hard to steal. This pass is easier to handle than an overhead pass where the recipient is moving. This pass should be caught by the recipient with a stride when he is moving and shouldn't force the recipient to move when stationary. This pass is also received in a triple threat position wherein the feet are shoulder width apart, elbows and knees bent, the shooting hand at the top and the other hand on the side of the basketball. When making the pass, the ball is held at waist level, altering the position from hip to hip depending on the location of the recipient. The spot where the basketball should go will be aimed three-quarters of the way between the recipient and the passer. Passing is done by pushing the back of the foot, taking a step with the front foot, while extending the arms downward to make the pass. The Overhead Pass This is a powerful pass but an easy pass to steal. This is done so that the basketball goes over the top of the defender and is received by the other member of the team at the back of the defender. This pass is also received in a triple threat position wherein the feet are shoulder width apart, elbows and knees bent, the shooting hand at the top and the other hand on the side of the basketball. The hands of the player are placed on both sides of the basketball. Using the player's forearms, the ball is put behind the head, the back of the foot is then pushed off, the front foot takes a step, then the elbows are brought down and the arms are then extended to make the pass. The Behind the Back Pass This pass is done behind the back without looking where the ball is going to fool the defender. This is most effective when the player is in motion because the player can easily move in the opposite direction of where the ball will go. This pass needs a lot of patience and practice because it takes time to figure out the right moves to make this pass successful. If expertise in this pass isn't mastered, it shouldn't be done during a game. This is done by holding the basketball with both hands. The dominant hand's shoulder is moved towards the back and the ball is cupped by the dominant hand with the wrist and fingers pointing in the direction of the shoulder's movement. The ball is then carried behind the player's back with the arms wrapped around behind the back and the basketball is then released. The Alley-Oop Trust and timing is crucial for this pass to be successful. Practice should be done by the player to figure out the motion of this pass. A short, arching toss is the kind of action that is the easiest to receive by the other members of the team. The recipient should have the vertical leap to dunk or the basket should allow the adjustment of the rim's height. The player should decide to do the alley-oop before making it to the three point arch. The player should establish eye contact with the other member of the team, who will do the hops. A short arching tossing motion is then delivered toward the basket with a shot like motion when the recipient is two or three steps away doing the jump. The spot should be aimed barely above the rim in the side where the recipient is coming from. The other member then receives the pass and makes a dunk, and shoots the basketball in the team's basket. Assisting the team to score through correct passing is just as essential as taking the shot. Good passing skills and communication among the team members is crucial to make the team's game play a success. Practice makes perfect and good communication among team members will go along way in basketball when passing or assisting is concerned.

Diving can be a truly spectacular hobby

Diving can be a truly spectacular hobby, and many people now go on holidays especially to go diving in some of the world’s best spots – Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, for example, or South America’s Galapagos Islands, among many others. What these dive sites have in common is spectacular marine animals, with sharks being a particular favourite, as well as colourful coral and other interesting marine plants. To go diving, first you need a qualified instructor and access to scuba apparatus. It is a good idea to learn the basics of diving in your home country before you travel a long way to go diving, as you will have more fun in exotic locations if you have at least some idea in advance what you’re doing. The most popular diving holidays are often ‘live-aboards’, which means that you live onboard the dive boat for the entire duration of the trip. This allows you to save both on accommodation and on the cost of diving, as well as being a unique place to stay. However, be careful to travel light, and take a short trip on a boat first to see whether you get seasick – you’ll have no fun on a live-aboard if you do. There are lots of other things to be careful of if you do decide to go diving. For one, you need to make sure not to come up too fast, as sudden changes in water pressure can be harmful to the body. You also need to be careful about the heat of the water you dive in (it shouldn’t be drastically different from body temperature), and about wearing a wetsuit to avoid getting stung by the many underwater creatures and plants that can give you a nasty scratch. Don’t worry too much though: as long as you pick a good diving school, your instructor should go through all the risks with you thoroughly, and give you all the equipment and knowledge that you will need to avoid them.

Rules and variations

After the deal has been completed, the non - dealer may pick up the knock card and add it to his hand. If he refuses the knock card, the dealer may pick up the knock card and add it to his hand. If both players refuse the knock card, the non - dealer draws the top card from the turned-down deck and adds it to his hand. Whichever player has made the opening play then discards a card from his hand face up in the discard slot of the card tray (the slot in which the knock card was placed). Thereafter each player in turn completes a play by adding either the top card from the turned - down deck (sometimes called the stock) or the top card from the discard pile to his hand, and discarding a card from his hand. The player may discard the same card he has just drawn from the stock. At the start and completion of each play, the player should have ten cards in his hand. Only the top card in the discard pile should be visible at any time. Once a player has lifted a card from either the stock or the discard pile, he is considered to have made a play and must now discard to complete his play. Completion of the Hand Play continues until (a) a player knocks; (b) a player reaches gin; or (c) neither player knocks or goes gin, and it would be necessary to draw the next to last (fifty-first) card from the stock in order to continue play; at this point the game ends in a draw, and neither player receives any score. The Point Count Matched cards count zero points; unmatched cards from Ace through 10 count the face value of the card; and picture cards count 10 each. Matched cards are cards which form part of a meld. A meld consists of three or more cards of the same rank (such as three 5s or four Jacks) or three or more cards of the same suit in unbroken sequence (as 5-6-7 of diamonds or 9-10-Jack-Queen of spades). If an Ace is used in a sequence, it can only be used as low card (such as Ace-2-3); if a King is used in a sequence, it can only be used as high card (such as Jack-Queen-King). No card can be used in more than one meld (for instance the 4 of hearts cannot be used in a set of three 4s and a sequence of 4-5-6 of hearts at the same time.) Knock or Gin A player who is able to end the hand after drawing a card announces his intention to knock or gin and the total point count of his unmatched cards (unless it is gin), lays down his hand arranged into individual melds and unmatched cards, and discards the eleventh card face down on the discard pile. A player may knock when, after drawing but before discarding, his unmatched cards total the value of the knock card or less, exclusive of the card he intends to discard. If the opponent has any unmatched cards which can be added to the knocker’s meld, he may lay off such cards and they are no longer treated as unmatched cards. (However, layoffs may not be made in the case of gin.) If the opponent’s total count of unmatched cards (after layoffs) is equal to or less than the knocker’s total count, the opponent is credited with an undercut. If a player makes an illegal knock, the game continues except that the cards of the illegal knocker are exposed to the view of his opponent for the remainder of the hand and he must knock as soon as he is able to. Scoring Toward Game 1. If the player who knocks has a lower unmatched point count than his opponent, he wins the hand, and score for the hand is the difference in their unmatched point counts. 2. If the player who knocks has an unmatched point count equal to or higher than his opponent, the opponent wins the hand and receives the difference (if any) in the point counts, plus a bonus of 25 points for an undercut. H is also credited with one extra box.