Novak, Stan wish fans from Qatar

Comeback man Stan Wawrinka begins campaign in Doha

Stan Wawrinka

Q. Welcome back to Doha. It's ten years after your first final here. You didn't play for two months I guess, so how do you feel exactly right now with this new season?

STAN WAWRINKA: I feel good. I'm very happy to be back. I arrived on Wednesday here. I have been practicing really well. I had two great months practicing and some good preparation physically. So I'm happy, I'm fit, I'm ready for the season and I'm looking forward to starting it.


Q. Can you talk a little about how you are feeling coming into - I am sorry, that was the first question already - but how you feeling coming into the new year and given that you finished 2018 in a strong way?

STAN WAWRINKA: Yeah, as I say, I'm happy to start again. I think I'm playing well. I'm physically fit and ready for the season. Looking forward to starting. I did great preparation, great off season. I was working hard. And good to be ready for the year and, as I say, I'm happy to be fit and starting the year here.


Q. Playing Karen, your doubles partner, when you look at a draw like that, do you feel what the hell, or is it a challenge, or how do you look at it?

STAN WAWRINKA: For sure it's an interesting draw. We played against each other last year. He's a great player. He played really well at the end of the year. He is in top form. He played already a few matches in Abu Dhabi so it will be interesting. He is a good friend. We play doubles together. Tomorrow we play against each other. It will be a tough match to start the year. For me, most important is to be fit, to be ready. I'm happy with what I'm doing on the practice court, so I know that the year is long and I look forward for it

Novak Djokovic ahead of the new season from Qatar

Novak Djokovic

Q. Welcome back to Doha. You are starting a new campaign in a few hours. How excited are you? And what are your new challenges for this new season?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, I'm glad to end up 2018 with a win with my brother on the court. That was a very special moment. We played so far I think maybe four or five tournaments together, doubles, and we've never won a match, so today was a day we will remember together.

And yeah, just starting the new year with a good intention, good energy, trying to be present, be happy with everything that I have that is happening to me. You know, I'm obviously very blessed to play the tennis. I love this sport. And I keep on striving in a way to accomplish great things and see how far I can really go you know with my career.

Obviously, main focus and objectives are Grand Slams. That's where I want to be able shine and play my best. And the top ATP tournaments, of course, I will try to play with full season as I have in the past, but things are different nowadays with two kids and a family. That is obviously a priority for me. So, I have to always try to find a balance between the two and kind of try to satisfy both the professional needs, but also the private ones.

Q. Two quick questions. In terms of the Grand Slams as you've mentioned, how big a deal was it for you to get past Sampras on 14 Grand Slam overall wins and to become the third, or even overtake Rafa? And every year - second question - every year people talk about the next generation of stars coming through and every year they don't. It's the same names pretty much winning the Grand Slams. Do you think that will be the same for this year? And because you're in such a dominant position after last season and Murray and Nadal have injury concerns, still, do you think you are well ahead of the rest of your rivals?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I'll start with your second question first. I don't think I'm well ahead of my rivals. I think - I try to focus on what I need to do in order to get myself in the best possible shape and form to perform at my best because when I do that, I know that I can really be a contender for all the titles. And how others play or feel like doesn't concern me too much because I believe in myself, in my own qualities and I focus on that.

And in terms of the next generation, the next generation is already there in terms of the rankings. You have Zverev that is now an established top five player in the world. For several years in a row he's been winning Masters events. He's won the Masters Cup, the World Tour Finals, which is a great win. And for someone of his age. And then you have Tsitsipas and Coric and guys like that proving they can win against the top players of the world. And it's a matter of time when we will see some of them competing in the last stages of Grand Slams. Whether that's going to happen the next season or not, nobody knows, really.

But judging by the last ten years and the dominance of the four guys in the Grand Slams, I think still if we are healthy and if we are playing well, I think the four guys still have probably the best chance to always win Slams because of the experience and just understanding of what it takes to win that title.

But again, I think we waited long enough to see new faces competing at the highest level of tennis and so I'm really glad as a tennis fan to see new guys and talents and players with a lot of potential who are actually fulfilling their potential and proving that they deserve to be top of the men's game.

Q. When you were a young player coming up, what was your biggest hurdle? And what do you think was the key that made you go from contender to champion?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, if I have to draw the line and tell you one thing, it was probably more mental than anything. But it's really hard to simplify that way. I probably tried to simplify it the most I can to you, but it's not that simple, it takes time, it's a process and obviously everyone goes through a different trajectory and different way to the top. So, for me, I was very fortunate to be very young when I got to the top 100 of the world. And I kind of have risen to top ten pretty quickly, fairly quickly, within two years on the tour. So, I had some turning point and some big wins like Miami Open and Canada where I beat top three players at that time in the world. And those particular tournaments or certain wins that you make against the best players in the world affect your confidence and have a great impact on your career, you know. All of a sudden you feel like you belong there, that you can actually do it.

So when I won my first Slam in 2008, I was 20, 20-year-old, and it all came to me pretty quickly. And then for three years, I was unable to get another Slam and that's probably due to the newly-occurring circumstances for me and challenges and obstacles, mental obstacles, that I had to face they have never faced before.

So, as I said, everyone goes through a different way in coping with certain things differently, so you just have to understand yourself on a level on what really is, what are your strengths and your weaknesses, if I can call them that wait, or things you can improve. And work on yourself rather more than anyone else, really. That is the bottom line. The more quality time and attention and effort that you put into developing yourself as a player and a person, strengthening your character, I guess the more successful your life will be in any way possible, you know.

But nowadays, the society is such that we pay attention more to other people's lives than ours. So, it's quite challenging for young athletes to keep the focus in their own garden, but that's probably one of the most important things.

Q. Just a quick question. Are you surprised that you finished 2018 so well considering the first six months were not so good for you? You could turn things around so quickly. Are you surprised how well you did?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, in a way I am. But at the same time, there was always part of me that kind of believed that I can make that breakthrough and say if you want to call it a comeback very quickly and I think because of that kind of a mindset I probably was a bit impatient after my surgery of the elbow earlier this year in February and it obviously required more time for me to get back on a desired level and I thought I was ready, but I wasn't, you know. I was ready in terms of pain. I didn't have pain so I could play. But in terms of a level of tennis, it took me several months to get on that level on which I am on right now.

Yeah, it was a great learning curve for me. I really appreciate the process and I am very grateful that I have been through that.

Q. I come from Geneva, I have to ask this question. Will you play the Laver Cup next September?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I'm not sure. We still don't know.

Dominic Thiem looking to end Grand Slam drought

Dominic Thiem

Q. Can you say what your expectations are for the new season? How do you look at it? How are you coming off the pre season?

DOMINIC THIEM: Yes, it's tough to say. I had a good pre season for sure, but obviously all the other players still are working hard for sure. So, I'm really happy to be back on tour actually, but the first tournament is always tricky. I played in Abu Dhabi last week but still the first official tournament is a bit different. I'm looking forward to my first match. But I guess that many things can happen. And in general, my last three seasons were amazing and if I can keep up to that, I would be very happy.

Q. This is your second time here in Doha. Do you think you will be luckier, more lucky than last year because you had to withdraw, you were a little bit sick, so do you see yourself playing the semi-final or the final? And if you can talk a bit about the draw.

DOMINIC THIEM: I was very sad last year because I played very good. Actually, I was feeling fit and then all of a sudden, I got ill, I had no chance to play. I would love to have played the semi-finals because I like this tournament and I felt I was playing very good and I could go even further last year. And so, it was a bit of a shock. And that's why I'm also very happy to be back, that I can maybe make all the way this year. But it's tough, it is very strong this year. I think stronger than last year. Novak is playing, Karen, Stan. And there are some very dangerous players unseeded like, Berdych, the guys who are coming back, so it is going to be a tough week.

Q. You played your first Grand Slam final last year, you have been in the top five for a while. How close do you feel you are to taking the next step and grabbing your first Slam?

DOMINIC THIEM: This would be the next step and the last step to my ultimate childhood goal. I mean, this is why I started to play tennis, to win a Grand Slam, one day maybe, and I was very close last year. And it was tough to lose the match but at the same time also a big motivation to continue working to give myself hopefully one day another chance to play another Grand Slam final. And then put it in my own way, that's my goal and that's why I'm practicing every day, basically.

Q. Given how the season ended last year with the NextGen, the younger players coming up and doing really well. And also given the French Open, you making the final, do you think for the NextGen this is probably the year when the change happens and one of you guys goes on to win it? Do you think it's closer than ever?

DOMINIC THIEM: We said this for a couple of years now that this is the year it is going to change. So, I'm not sure if one of the younger guys win a Slam because obviously Novak, Rafa, Roger, they are still in a good shape. Andy's coming back, Stan is also coming back. All the guys who won Slams in previous years are on tour, so it will be very tough. Yes, there are four chances for us. Of course, the best young players and we are very pumped to take one Grand Slam and maybe it is going to happen this year, but maybe we are going to sit next year again and talk about this year it is going to be, so nobody knows.

Q. Are you surprised to see a guy like Roger Federer do so well at the age of 37? Tennis is really fast the last few years. But he's won two Grand Slams in 2017 and 2018. Are you surprised he is doing so well? Or is that a challenge for the younger players?

DOMINIC THIEM: I'm not surprised because he is just an exception like the same, like Rafa and Novak, they are maybe the three best players of all time so it's no surprise that they are dead good also in advanced age. That is why I'm expecting them also to play for the biggest titles in 2019. And it's amazing to have these guys still around, not only in tennis, but I would say in all sports in general, they are amazing, they are superstars and I think, like, players like me, a bit younger, we can be happy to be able to still compete with them. But on the other hand, of course, we are trying to take the biggest titles away from them like I was pretty close last year in the French Open.

Djokovic Looks To Ride Momentum Into Doha

Khachanov-Wawrinka set for opening blockbuster

https://youtu.be/pmyM32bjVO0

Novak Djokovic played sensational tennis at the end of the 2018 season. In his final five tournaments of the year, Djokovic won the Western & Southern Open, the US Open and the Rolex Shanghai Mastersbefore finishing runner-up at the Rolex Paris Masters and the Nitto ATP Finals. Now back at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings, the Serbian will look to use that momentum to get off to a fast start in 2019.

Djokovic opens his season at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, where he will face Damir Dzumhur in the first round. In the pair’s only previous FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting just two months ago in Paris, Djokovic led 6-1, 2-1 before three-time ATP Tour champion Dzumhur was forced to retire.

The 31-year-old Djokovic will try to extend his 10-match winning streak in Doha, as the 72-time tour-level titlist has triumphed at the season-opening event in his past two appearances (2016-17). If he gets by Dzumhur, the top seed will face Hungarian Marton Fucsovics or Marius Copil in the second round. Fifth seed Nikoloz Basilashvili, who could face Djokovic in the quarter-finals, won his first two tour-level titles in 2018, and both of them came at ATP Tour 500 events.

And while everyone will want to see Djokovic’s form, plenty of fans will also be glued to a tantalising first-round encounter, on the same half of the draw, between Paris titlist Karen Khachanov and former World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka.

Khachanov finished 2018 as one of the hottest players on the ATP Tour, storming to his first ATP Tour Masters 1000 title in France, playing impressive tennis to beat Djokovic in the final. The Russian, the third seed in Doha, has proven to be one of the biggest hitters on the circuit. But Wawrinka has shown his ability to also unleash on the ball, especially with his elegant, yet ferocious one-handed backhand.

Wawrinka came out on top in their only previous encounter, which came just more than three months ago in St. Petersburg. But that was a tightly contested affair with both sets going to tie-breaks, and the duo should put on another thrilling show in Doha. Khachanov or Wawrinka could eventually play seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut in the last eight, with Djokovic lurking in the semi-finals.

Dominic Thiem is the second seed in Doha, and the Austrian will try to add a third hard-court title to his resumé. Thiem opens against Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who beat him in their only clash two years ago. That match was also on a hard court, albeit indoors, in Rotterdam.

Tomas Berdych, who has not competed since the Fever-Tree Championships in June, makes his return as a wild card against a player whom he has beaten on eight of 10 attempts: Philipp Kohlschreiber. Former World No. 4 Berdych seeks his first title since 2016 Shenzhen. The winner of that match could face No. 8 seed Fernando Verdasco in the second round.

Also on the bottom half of the draw are fourth seed Marco Cecchinato and sixth seed David Goffin, who could meet in the quarter-finals.

Did You Know?

Djokovic is also competing in doubles in Doha, alongside his brother, Marko Djokovic. They have played together five times previously, with the last time coming in Dubai in 2013.

https://youtu.be/pmyM32bjVO0

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Social Media Has Not Killed Us, Says Gianni Merlo on Journalists

Social Media Has Not Killed Us, Says Gianni Merlo on Journalists

The AIPS President spoke ahead of the ‘AIPS Executive Committee / Jury Meet – 2018’ at the Sharq Village & Spa, in Doha on Monday.

Doha, Qatar- AIPS President Gianni Merlo has stressed on the fact that the primary goal of the ‘AIPS Executive Committee / Jury Meet – 2018’ starting here tomorrow, was to select the “best” entry for the AIPS Sports Awards scheduled for January in  Lausanne, Switzerland.

Merlo, who is leading the AIPS Executive Committee members and jurors from across the world in this 4-day event, spoke to renowned sports journalist Rhodri Williams of AlKass Sports Channels, ahead of the meet at the Sharq Village & Spa – the venue for the meet.

“We have to judge all the entries and after that we will chose the best. The situation is this one – We have received 1276 entries submissions in eight categories – So that is a huge amount of work and they are coming form 119 countries. This is the most successful result.”

Putting the importance of award in perspective, Merlo added, “You can imagine in some way the total world is following these awards. From here we will chose the semi-finalists and that would be around 15 from each category. Then after that a jury of 12 members, specialised in finding only the finalists; that will be three; will be invited in Lausanne.”

“In Lausanne we would decide from among these three who is the first, second and the third.”

Speaking on the fact that a large number of journalists have applied for the awards, and that they have submitted some of their bests works for it, he said, “The good thing the journalists want to fight for their work [to be recognised]. They want to show that we are still alive. That so-called social media has not killed us and this is the answer to it. Because our work is culture. For example – one of the jurors who has already seen the submissions. He told me that there is a journalist, who is always travelling around the world. Going into this submission, he took another trip around the world, knowing things that he didn’t know before, because sports [that] are in the society are really amazing.”

The AIPS President went on to focus how the young and upcoming journalists today have to struggle to defend their independence and how the AIPS is playing a vital role towards it. “Our role is – first, to defend our independence; to send around a new culture, because we have to look to the future. We have to adapt our profession to the new tools, but the principle of our profession stays the same.”

The former ‘La Gazzetta dello Sport’ journalist also shed light on the changing scenario in journalism.

“It is not because of the [presence] of the computer or that of the mobile phones that our philosophy is changing and also our dignity is changing – NO! The principle of the fair journalism is still there. We have to find a new solution of how to write, how to propose, how to send some images.”

“For example – In the submission we found something that ‘New York Times’ had spoken about last week - there would be some video of 360 degrees that helps you to look around the event. In the future maybe that the image would be important, but even after that, people want to read. For example, now there has been an increase in the number of young people who are going [back to] the books. People are going back to the book, back to the paper. Because Kindle and ‘Sound’ are nice and sound, but it’s not the same feeling,” said the 71-year old journalist.

Citing an example from California, he added, “In California people are thinking that we cannot allow people to spend all the day on mobile phones or on the computer. That we completely kill their personality, so we have to go back to their human part. I know that sometimes it looks like a dream, but we must be dreamers.”

On the fact that Doha has become a home of international sporting events, Merlo added, “My first Congress as President [of the AIPS] was in Doha [in 2006]. After that, we have had another Congress [in 2016] and two other Executive Committee Meets and we have had two young reporters’ projects here.”

“The cultural discussion, here has always been very hot; we have discussed how to promote the culture. So, it’s normal that we are here. It is normal because the journalists of Qatar [Qatar Sports Press Committee] are our partners in the world. But, especially they were always together, we discussed about culture. Together we are building a new culture, so it was important to begin here and afterwards we will go around the world,” he said.

Speaking further about embracing the culture of Doha, the IAAF award-winning journalist, said, “The Executive Committee members when they finish their work, they would spend one more day here and go to visit the facilities for the [FIFA World Cup] 2022, to visit the [Qatar] Foundation, and have different experiences. This because some of them have already seen Qatar six years ago, four years ago, but now new things have come up.”

“Qatar is like Beijing of some years ago, every six month you would find something new. It would provide them with the [opportunity] to enter in the era of the new World Cup here. And a visit to the Gymnastics [48th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2018] event as well.”

“This is the most important thing – we will touch down everywhere,” he added.

Courtesy: Qatar Sports Press Committee

We are committed to AIPS' objectives: Mubarak Al Boainin

We are committed to AIPS' objectives: Mubarak Al Boainin

The Qatar Sports Committee Board member was speaking to the reporters on the sidelines AIPS Executive Committee / Jury Meet in Doha, on Tuesday.

Doha, Qatar- Qatar Sports Press Committee board member, Mubarak Al Boainin, highlighted the importance of hosting the AIPS Executive Committee & Jury Meet, here on Tuesday.

He was speaking to reporters on the sidelines on the Meet that is focusing on the 'AIPS Sport Media Awards' scheduled for Lausanne, Switzerland, in January 2019.

"Qatar today is the sought after destination in terms of sports and promoting sporting culture. In such a scenario, it is but obvious that we members of the Qatar Sports Press Committee are playing host to this prestigious event."

"As AIPS President Mr. Gianni Merlo, yesterday pointed out that, they have received 1276 submissions in eight different categories; it means that the journalists from across the world are following it. To be precise the submissions have come from 119 countries," said Mubarak, about the importance of the event for journalists across the world.

"We at Qatar Sports Press Committee are committed towards the ideologies of fair journalism, so it is but obvious that we welcome such a Meet in Qatar".

Speaking about the schedule for the Meet, Mubarak added, "The event is spread across four days starting today. The first two days the Executive Committee Meeting will take place and the next two days the Jurors will meet."

"We also intend to take the members of the AIPS Executive Committee, to the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, a trip to Qatar Foundation is also planned. These apart they would also go to Aspire Done, which is hosting the 2018 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships".

"The tour also intends to highlight the development made by Qatar in all walks of life, rather than just sports. For example, the first time Mr. Merlo came to Qatar was 21 years ago and since then he has been a regular here. But, the thing he noticed the most is its development. He even said yesterday in a interview that Qatar changes every six months. Not to speak of the fact that the state-of-the-art sports infrastructure like the Aspire Dome is an example in itself for other nations desirous of hosting premier events. And Qatar hosts more than 90 events in a year including the big ticket ones," added Mubarak.

"Also such events like the AIPS Executive Committee / Jury Meet, provides a platform for developing technologies in sports journalism to come to the fore as premier journalists and photographers get recognised for their work. When that happens, they innovate and that builds upon the sports culture and that's what we want," he said. (Courtesy: QSPC)

Gianni Merlo plays down sociopolitical factors as a hindrance for journalists

Gianni Merlo plays down sociopolitical factors as a hindrance for journalists

"Yes he can be independent and I am one of them," the AIPS President was quoted as saying on the sidelines of the ongoing 'AIPS Executive Committee / Jury Meet' here on Wednesday.

 

Doha, Qatar- The AIPS President Gianni Merlo on Wednesday stressed that despite the sociopolitical or geographical roadblocks, a journalist can still be independent or vociferous in his writing.

"Yes, if he wants. Yes he can be independent and I am one of them," said Merlo. He was speaking to Qatar Sports Press Committee's Anam Arsalan on the sidelines of the 'AIPS Executive Committee / Jury Meet', here on Wednesday.

"In many countries they live in a difficult situation, but this doesn't mean we are judging anybody. We are only judging [the entries] from the journalistic point of view; it's not the politics that is moving us. For example, today we saw an article that sent to jail the president the country's football federation. The journalist even got sued for it, but he won."

"So, we know how to judge and everybody here is free minded. The problem is that there are a lot of journalists, who are doing a good job [and that makes our job difficult]."

He also pointed out that regulation match reports have become redundant today. "Match report... who cares, now you have television , you can see the entire match there. The future of journalism are the contents of your article that are opinions or points or colour pieces that are completely new and you have to write them with photos and everything, so it is a different thing." 

"See most often the reader knows the result before he reads the newspaper also in most cases the result is written write at the top of the article so the reader is looking for an opinion," he added.

Earlier, the AIPS President even spoke about the criteria adopted for selecting the best entries. "Here we are choosing the journalists that are going to the semi-finals, so nobody is a loser. So it is only a criteria; the criteria of journalism and so on... and we are very satisfied as the level of the entries is very good. No one is not accepted, it is only that if there is somebody that has more meaning, doesn't mean that the other journalist is less. It depends on the articles that he has decided to submit. It may be possible that the journalist may not have submitted his best piece."

The primary objective of the Meet is to shortlist the candidates for the 'AIPS Sport Media Awards' scheduled for Lausanne, Switzerland, in January 2019.  (Courtesy: QSPC)

AIPS Sport Media Awards', an important step in a journalist's life: Zsuzsa Cisztu

AIPS Sport Media Awards', an important step in a journalist's life: Zsuzsa Cisztu

The Hungarian actress and journalist spoke during the Executive Committee & Jury Meet at the Sharq Village & Spa, in Doha, on Wednesday.

Doha, Qatar- AIPS Executive Committee member from Hungary, Zsuzsa Cisztu, on Wednesday highlighted the importance of the AIPS Sport Media Awards saying, "I think this is very important new step in every journalist's life."
She was speaking on the sidelines of the Executive Committee & Jury Meet at the Sharq Village & Spa - the venue for the four-day event, with the primary aim of shortlisting the candidate for the 'AIPS Sport Media Awards' function scheduled for Lausanne, Switzerland, in January 2019.
"Basically, to have international recognition for your work in a stage like this. This is something we had never had a chance to reach, not even to think about. When I was a young journalist a couple of decades ago, I wish I had a chance to even had a submission, to apply for a contest like this," Cisztu, a former artistic gymnast.
Speaking about the quality of submissions, the 48-year old, who is also an acclaimed actress and broadcast journalist said, "Now, today looking at the submissions, you can tell that... coming from a major TV station like CNN or BBC, or representing papers like L'Equipe. Coming from a little poor village of Africa or from Syria or India, you can make fantastic journalistic approach. It's not always a matter of money, it's a matter of dedication, a matter of looking at things, you know. Having a very special view of the world, one to be curious, or have to have the desire to show the very colourful way of the world to other people."
"So, I think this international award is fantastic, fantastic possibility for not just young journalists, but also professional journalists to be recognised internationally."
Courtesy: Qatar Sports Press Committee
  

Attachments area

Sports Betting Gets New Meaning as Startup Invests in Athletes

      Sports Betting Gets New Meaning as Startup Invests in Athletes

 The "Moneyball” era has revolutionized sports, letting teams capitalize on huge troves of data to fine-tune their rosters and win championships.
Now an upstart investment firm wants to take the idea a step further. Home Court Capital -- backed by the son of a National Basketball Association deputy commissioner and a former chief investment officer of Israel’s largest bank -- will crunch data to assess pro athletes and then bet on their earnings potential.
Home Court has raised $150 million that it will put toward early-career athletes in the NBA, National Football League and Major League Baseball. The idea is to pinpoint individuals after their rookie years and give them millions of dollars upfront in exchange for a slice of their future salary and other revenue, say, from endorsement deals.
The approach isn’t entirely new: It’s common for young golfers to accept investments in exchange for a piece of future earnings, and the model has also been tried in minor-league baseball. But this would bring the strategy to top athletes in the highest-profile sports, giving those players a new way to manage their finances.
"We’re laser-focused on providing financial security and flexibility to our clients,” said Home Court Capital President Peter Gourdine, who grew up around pro sports. His late father, Simon, became the highest-ranking black executive in sports when he was named the NBA’s No. 2 official in 1974 and subsequently guided the union.
Unearthing Gems
Here’s how it works: Backed by a team of quants armed with big-data analytics and what the firm calls machine-learning techniques, Home Court will seek to identify second-year players in the NBA and NFL -- and early-career major leaguers -- who they speculate will outperform peers as their careers advance. In other words, the players who are poised to get fatter contracts and lucrative endorsements.
The firm cites two NBA players as examples: Oklahoma City’s Steven Adams and New Orleans’s Jrue Holiday, neither of whose rookie statistics would’ve suggested stardom. Both players have excelled -- and cashed in -- since then. Adams signed a $100 million extension in 2016, while Holiday is getting paid more than $25 million this season.
‘Secret Sauce’
Of course, there’s still no foolproof way to predict sports. Even great athletes get injured and lose games. Others get stuck on underperforming teams or fail to land endorsement deals. But Gourdine and his partner, Guy Fischer, who previously worked as deputy head of the capital markets division at Bank Leumi, have faith in their predictive-modeling "secret sauce.” They also plan to target a wide array of athletes, hedging their bets.
"This enables us to create a diversified portfolio of investments across the three leagues, player positions, and other important variables, to mitigate concentration risk,” said Fischer, who oversaw investments of more than $23 billion at Bank Leumi.
Once Home Court homes in on a prospective target, the firm will offer that athlete an upfront cash payment -- in some cases, amounting to millions of dollars -- in exchange for something in the 8 percent to 10 percent range of future earnings. If the athletes don’t end up generating the expected income, the money doesn’t need to be repaid. But they’ll have to share the wealth if their career blossoms.
This kind of arrangement doesn’t make sense for superstars like LeBron James, because they’re typically flush from the start. James joined the NBA straight from high school with such fanfare that Nike Inc. awarded him a record-breaking rookie shoe contract.
Home Court’s backers didn’t want to be identified. Gourdine says they include a privately held investment company, a closely held tech company and some high net-worth individuals.

Incredible Football Festival of India (IFFI)

When November swings around it’s time to roll out the red carpet as a plethora of mega stars from Bollywood fly into Goa to celebrate the International Film Festival of India (IFFI). The week long extravaganza brings glamorous actors and directors from the film fraternity in contact with fans of the big screen. This year’s event happened between the 20^th and 28^th of November in Panjim and was extra special for me.

On the sidelines of the main event, an open air football film festival was organised by Serendipity, which took place from the 22^nd till the 27^th of November at the Children’s park in Campal. The idea behind the screenings was that Goans love football, so this would attract them towards attending the glitzy annual event.

The friendly German professor, Jans Tilman was the curator of the football documentaries and was present to interact with the audience before and after the movies. This was actually Jan’s second trip to Goa as he previously organised similar football screenings at IFFI in 2011. On average each day, two very short documentaries were shown to warm up the crowd before the main movie. Good lighting surrounded the big screen and there was a popcorn stall which added to the quaint ambience.

Curator Jan Tillman

The International football documentaries included:

Libere Indirecto (Indirect Free Kick) Juanjo Gimenez - Spanish, 10 min

Maxima Pena (Maximum Penalty) Juango Gimenez - Spanish, 11 min

Sudani from Nigeria Zakariya Edayur - Malayalm, 120 min

Rodilla Juango Gimenez - Spanish, 18 min

Lebanon Wins The World Cup Tony Elkhoury & Anthony Lappe - Arabic, 23 min

Der Ganz Grobe Traum (Lesson of a Dream) Sebastian Grobler – German/English, 113 min

Boca de Fogo (Fire Mouth) Luciano Perez Fernandes - Portuguese, 9 min

Das Wunder Von Bern (The Miracle of Bern) Sonke Vortmann – German

L’ultim Partit (The Last Match) Jordi Marcos – Spanish/ Catalan/Flemish, 70 min

Eighteam Juan Rodriguez-Briso - English, 69 min

Inside The Volcano the Rise of Icelandic football Saever Gudmundsson – English/Icelandic, 86min

Il Mundial Dimenticato (The Lost World Cup) Fillipo Marcello & Lorenzo Garzella - Italian /German/ Spanish, 85 min

Out of the movies I got to watch, I loved L’ultim Partit, which was a documentary on the late Dutch legend Johann Cruyff, which also featured inputs from Pep Guardiola and Xavi Hernandez. It showcased Cruyff’s enthusiasm for the game, cemented the belief in his own football ideologies and the immense contribution he played through his charitable foundation in the twilight years of his life.

Football: A Beautiful Life at IFFI

The movies presented were innovative, inspiring and informative. The crowd were also introduced to exciting mockumentaries. Let’s hope that this football theme becomes an annual part of IFFI, which sees more participation from Goan football fans in the future.

Also during IFFI, Indian Sports movies such as Gold, 1983, Mary Kom, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, M.S Dhoni: The untold story, Soorma were screened by Khelo India, at the joggers park in Altinho, which provided a further short in the arm for sports movie buffs.