Korea Military Tensions May Put Bid in Jeopardy

Image via WikipediaSeoul. Taking the World Cup back to South Korea in 2022, 20 years after it was jointly staged there with Japan, would again present football governing body FIFA with dilemmas over the fractured and difficult relationship between the North and South.

As if to remind football’s power-brokers that they are still technically at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a ceasefire, not a peace treaty, tension escalated again this week.

North Korea fired dozens of artillery shells at a South Korean island off the North’s coast, killing at least two civilians and two soldiers. The action prompted return fire from the South and the dispatch of a US aircraft carrier group to Korean waters.

Malaysia fails in its bid to host the 2012 London Olympics hockey qualifiers

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has lost the bid to host one of the three qualifiers for the 2012 London Olympics. India and Japan, however, were successful with their bids while the hosts for the third qualifiers will be announced later.

The decision was made by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) executive committee when they decided on the hosts for their major tournaments over the next four years.

Bidding for one of the qualifiers was a priority for the Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) as their target is to regain their place in the Olympic Games.

The national team are currently playing in the Asian Games in Guangzhou where the winners will gain an automatic berth for the London Games.