Giant Spanish Football Team Against Iraq Invasion



Spain, March 24 - Players from Spanish football powerhouse FC Barcelona donned
anti-war T-shirts and displayed a banner calling for peace Sunday, March 23,
minutes before their weekly league game.

Many of the near 100,000 spectators packing the Camp Nou stadium stood and
applauded as the players walked around the center of the playing field holding
up the banner which read: 'Barca for peace’, news agencies reported Monday,
March 24.

The gesture came a day after more than a million people demonstrated throughout
Spain calling for an end to the war being waged by the United States and Britain
against Iraq .

Saturday's protesters also clamored for the resignation of the conservative
Spanish government of Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar for supporting the
attacks.

An estimated half million people took to the streets in Barcelona for the
protest.

Anti-war demonstrations have been held daily throughout Spain since the war
started Thursday.



Opposition parties are opposed to the war en bloc and opinion polls indicate the
vast majority of Spaniards are too.

Iraq Invasion Reverberated Across Sports



The invasion of Iraq reverberated across sports this weekend with protests at a
soccer game in Spain, an auto race in Malaysia and at cricket's World Cup in
South Africa, news agencies reported.



England's 2004 European Championship qualifier in Liechtenstein, scheduled for
next weekend, could be called off or moved because of security concerns,
reported BBC online news service.



At Formula One's Malaysian Grand Prix, the Minardi team's cars raced with a
"Malaysia for Peace" logo. About two hours before the race, police removed
banners at the track entrance reading "Stop War on Iraq" and "Say No to Bush.”



Peace activists demonstrating near the NASCAR race at Bristol Motor Speedway
were outnumbered by flag-waving counter-protesters.

Hundreds demonstrated in Johannesburg, South Africa, at cricket's World Cup
final between Australia and India. Some signs were critical of Australia's
participation in the war.

At a marathon in Washington Sunday March 23 , known as The Unofficial Washington
DC Marathon, no streets were closed along the route and runners stopped for red
lights. Organizers decided Wednesday to call off the real race because of
security worries.

Some of the 500 people who ran through the capital's streets wore T-shirts that
read, "Can't blow up what you can't catch”.

More than 6,800 runners from 50 states and 14 countries had registered for the
official race. Paul Rades and Kevin Kozlowski won the makeshift race, crossing
the finish line together.



"O Canada" drew steady boos Saturday in Sunrise, Florida, before Ottawa's
victory over Florida. The Panthers said they were disappointed "a number of fans
behaved disrespectfully”.

Fans cheered both anthems before the NBA game between the Raptors and 76ers in
Toronto Sunday.

The college men's basketball tournament was shown on CBS on Saturday, with
updates on developments in Iraq. CBS has the option of switching games to ESPN
or other cable channels, and did so on Thursday, the first day of the
tournament.



-ottawa beat florida??? I can't believe it!! hmm..I
guess I haven't been giving us enough credit!!



Forza Roma!!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/vinnized





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