Yesterday I commented on how you had a 1.43% chance of starting for a domestic Icelandic side if you were a male aged 15-39 using quickmaths^TM .
It got me thinking about other small nations and the likelihood of starting for a team in your own national league if you’re a man of playing age.

The Assumptions

To get a rough estimate, I need to make several sweeping generalisations.
Assumption 1) It’s just men.
Despite exceptions like Yuki Nagasato and Ellen Fokkema, I’ll calculate solely from the amount of men in a nation that are between 15-39.
Assumption 2) It’s every man.
I don’t care if you hate football, if you’ve got a condition preventing you from playing football, or if you’re registered as a citizen of your country but live elsewhere, you’re getting included. Likewise, this means those who live in one nation but are a citizen of another won’t be included.
Assumption 3) Starting XIs can only be comprised of 15-39 year olds.
I know many 40+ year old players will be out there, but this demographic would match the general career of top footballers. I’ll use population pyramids to get the amount of men in this demographic. Pyramids tend to move in 5 year increments so 15-39 is the most fair range I can think of.
Assumption 4) All teams are independent from each other.
Inaccurate I know, but if I was calculating for Spain, I’d be counting Barcelona and Barcelona B as two separate clubs. If there is an easy way to separate the reserve teams from the rest, I won't include them (as you’ll see, I’m quite loose with this assumption).

Method

Find out how many men aged 15-39 are in a country. Divide that by the number of teams in their domestic league. Divide that figure by 11. 1 Divided by this answer and multiplied by 100 will give the % chance of a random male aged 15-39 being in the starting 11 for a team any given matchday.
Formula:
M/T=X
X/11=Y
1/Y=Z
Z x 100 = % chance.
(M = men, T = teams)

Limitations

Lots. I’m not trying to be too serious here. As I’ve said, I’m not factoring in people who can’t play, people who have moved out of the country, players who have come in from a different country etc…
Recordkeeping at lower league levels is hard so even the amount of clubs in a league system is a bit shoddy. Some of the population pyramids are marked poorly so I’ll have to guesstimate as best as I can.

Leagues to look at

These are the 11 domestic leagues I’ll look at. Each of these countries/territories are FIFA recognised. Why these 11? They were all on the lower end of FIFA rankings and population number.

Andorra
Faroe Islands
Gibraltar
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Monserrat
New Caledonia
San Marino
St.Kitts and Nevis
Tahiti
Turks and Caicos Islands

So, in order from lower to higher chance…

New Caledonia

Linguistically, New Caledonia is almost identical to Nova Scotia. Climatewise, they’re complete (but not polar) opposites. New Caledonia is neither an overseas region nor an overseas collectivity of France but lies in its own legislative niche in the southwest Pacific Ocean. The 70s was their golden age, with a win over New Zealand and scoring 3 against Bulgaria (only to concede 5). More recently they drew 1-1 against Estonia in 2017.
Their top division contains 12 teams, with a secondary division which contains up to 13 teams in any given season.
A 2019 population pyramid gives me an M number of 54032.
M = 54032 T = 25
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 0.51%.
My favourite domestic team: AS Magenta. They got to the Oceania Champions League Final in 2005, losing to Sydney FC.

Turks and Caicos Islands

A British overseas territory in the Caribbean, the wonderfully named Cockburn Town is it’s capital (pronounced cohw-burn like it’s Edinburgh Street counterpart). Horatio Nelson suffered a rare defeat of the coast of the islands in the 1780s and John Glenn landed near the islands in 1962 after his first spaceflight. Their national team hasn’t achieved much with only one World Cup qualifying win (which they lost on aggregate in the return leg).
Their domestic league has had up to 18 teams in the past, but last season only had 6 in their premier division. This number is fluid so the T number will be between 6-18.
A 2018 population pyramid brought the M number to c.12,200
M = 12200 T = 6-18
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 0.54-1.62%
My favourite domestic team: If you think Red Bull is bad for corporate branding, 2-time league champions KPMG United FC were a strong team in the mid 2000s. In 2006 they changed their name, and won another league title under the new name PWC Athletic.

Tahiti

Tahiti is the largest island in French Polynesia, but FIFA recognises it as a separate footballing nation. Lyle Lanley famously swindled the town of Springfield and fled toward Tahiti. Before he got there however, he was attacked by the inhabitants of North Haverbrook. Tahiti beat the Cook Islands 30-0 in 1971. You might remember Tahiti from the 2013 confederations cup where they played Spain, Uruguay, and Nigeria. They scored 1 and conceded 24 giving them the worst GD of any national team in any major competition.
There are 2 tiers to the Tahiti domestic league, these contain 32 clubs (+14 reserve teams that I won’t count).
A population pyramid for Tahiti is impossible to find, as it is a subregion of French Polynesia. Nevertheless, you can be from any of the other islands and still represent Tahiti. This calculation from a 2020 population pyramid gives me an M number of 52931
M = 52931 T = 32
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 0.67%
My favourite domestic team: It is a tie between AS Excelsior and AS Dragon. Combining them would give the league a mythical allure.

Luxembourg

Luxembourg have been improving rapidly internationally. They beat Hungary in 2017 and they drew 0-0 with France less than a year before France became world champions. Real glory was bestowed upon them in 1980 they reached the semi-finals of the Indonesian Marah Halim Cup where they eventually lost to a Burmese XI.
Luxembourg have 5 tiers in their domestic league. These 5 tiers are home to a massive 104 teams.
A 2019 population pyramid shows Luxembourg having 109,701 males in the relevant age bracket. I clearly underestimated Luxembourg’s population.
M = 109,701 T = 104
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 1.04%
My favourite domestic team: FC Yellow Boys Weiler-la-Tour. What a name. 500pax capacity stadium. They play in the 2nd division which is also known as The Division of Honour. Their primary rivalry is with FC Blue Boys Muhlenbach and FC Red Boys Aspelt with a secondary rivalry against FC Green Boys 77 Harlange-Tarchamps.

Liechtenstein

One of the few double-landlocked countries in the world (they are landlocked as are their bordering countries), Liechtenstein squeezes in between Switzerland and Austria. Their national side signalled the beginning of the end of Jack Charlton’s Irish tenure when they held Ireland to a 0-0 draw in 1995. Ireland went on to get 3 points from a possible 12 and missed out on Euro 96. In 2011 it took until the 97th minute for Scotland to beat Liechtenstein.
The 7 football teams that are based in Liechtenstein all play in the Swiss domestic league. This stretches from FC Vaduz in the top division, to FC Schaan who play in the 8th tier.
The most recent population pyramid I could find was from 2015. No worries. I’ll calculate the M number from the 10-34 age range here instead of the 15-39. In this way it is a slightly more accurate, but still really flawed figure. This number comes to a suspiciously specific 5473
M = 5473 T = 7
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 1.41%
My favourite domestic team: FC Vaduz. I’ve been to Vaduz. It was hot and expensive. While there, I caught a glimpse of Pak Kwang-Ryong, their star striker who has been the North Korean footballer of the year in 2013. Previously he scored against Spurs in 2011.

St.Kitts and Nevis

Saint Kitts and Nevis is a dual island nation in the Caribbean. Neil deGrasse Tyson takes his middle name from his Nevis born grandmother. Founding father of the USA, Alexander Hamilton, was also born on Nevis. As for St Kitts, Marcus Rashford has a Kittitian grandmother. St Kitts and Nevis got to within one round of qualifying for the 2006 World Cup and are the only Caribbean side to beat a European team, when they defeated Andorra in 2015.
The Saint Kitts and Nevis domestic league is split across two tiers and I can find evidence of 14 teams.
A 2018 population pyramid gives me a rough M number of 9,700.
M = 9700 T = 14
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 1.59%
My favourite domestic team: Village Superstars FC. The 7 times league champions have earned their title.

Andorra

Nestled in the Pyrenees, the Andorran national side are the perennial whipping boys of every European and World Cup qualifying cycle. In 2001 they took the lead against Ireland (but conceded 2 in the next two minutes). Albania and Hungary are among the teams that have lost to Andorra previously.
Domestically, clubs play in the Primera and Segona Divisió. I found many defunct clubs but from what I can see, there are currently 18 active clubs in Andorra
The most recent population pyramid I could find was from 2018. Using this data, I calculated that there are c.11,900 males aged 15-39 in Andorra.
M = 11900 T = 18
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 1.66%
My favourite domestic team: FC Andorra. The biggest side. Based in the capital. Named after the country but have never played in the domestic league. They play in Spain. They weren’t included in the calculation.

Faroe Islands

The Faroe Islands did the double over Greece in Euro 2016 qualifying. They’ve also beaten Iceland and Lithuania in the past. The beautiful rugged North Atlantic archipelago voted for independence in 1946 but this result was annulled by the Danes. 2 years later they were granted extensive home rule.
Like Andorra, there are 18 official clubs (There are 4 divisions in Andorra with the bottom ones being exclusively populated by reserve teams. I’ve only counted non-reserve teams in brazen defiance of my 4th assumption).
Again, the most recent population pyramid was from 2018. I found c.8800 15-39 year old males.
M = 8800 T = 18
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 2.25%
My favourite domestic team: B36 Tórshavn. A great run saw them reach the 3rd qualifying round of the Europa League this season, eventually losing out to CSKA Sofia

Gibraltar

Gibraltar has been a FIFA member since 2016. They’ve beaten Armenia, Latvia, Liechtenstein, and San Marino since becoming FIFA members. Their 2 tier national league is currently home to 17 clubs (2 recently disbanded).
Their 2018 population pyramid showed roughly 5600 eligible males living in Gibraltar.
M = 5600 T = 17
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 3.34%
My favourite domestic team: Lincoln Red Imps. They went 1,959 days unbeaten in the domestic league from 2009-2014. Followed up in 2016 with a win over Celtic. Not content with only one Old Firm scalp, they played Rangers this season but got smashed 5-0.

San Marino

One of two states completely enveloped by Italy, San Marino will be remembered for their 1993 match against England when they scored after 8.3 seconds and then went on to concede 7. On the other end of the 90 minutes, they scored an 87th minute equaliser against Ireland only to concede again in the 95th minute in 2007. Turkey, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Gibraltar, and Estonia are the only teams to have ever dropped points against San Marino. A 1-0 win over Liechtenstein in a 2004 friendly remains their only win to date.
The league system in San Marino comprises of 15 teams in two conferences (there is no relegation/promotion). The Sammarinese league is rated 55/55 regarding UEFA Coefficients.
I found a 2016 population pyramid, so like Liechtenstein, I shifted the data to 10-34 year olds for this M number. The number here was c.4800
M = 4800 T = 15
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 3.44% chance
My favourite domestic team: A.S. San Giovanni. The only team from San Marino that has never won anything domestically. They have a downright wacky poorly translated history on Wikipedia which only endeared them to me more.

Monserrat

A volcanic British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. Due to huge eruptions that started in 1995, more than half of the island is uninhabitable. Many indentured Irish servants were brought to Monserrat which has left a noticeable impression on the demographics of the island. Riley, O'Brien, Farrell, Ryan, and Meade are some of the more prominent surnames on Monserrat. The 'Black Irish' of Monserrat is something that has often been reported on.
Monserrat routinely featured at the foot of the FIFA rankings for many years. On the day of the 2002 World Cup Final, Monserrat played Bhutan in what was called ‘The Other World Cup Final’ as it was between the two bottom ranked sides. Bhutan won 4-0 which was their first ever international win.
Monserrat has had an unstable league system due to constant volcanic eruptions. Teams come and go quite frequently. There are at least 5 times and at most 12, so the T number will be 5-12
With a tiny population, the Monserrat M number is only 1240.
M = 1240 T = 5-12
Chances of starting for a domestic team: 4.44%-9.68%
My favourite domestic team: Oh the Montserratian team names are amazing. Montserrat Volcano Observatory Tremors or the Seven Day Adventists Trendsetters would be my top picks.

Bonus

The Vatican City

The not FIFA recognised, home to so many skewed per capita records, I thought I’d include the Vatican just out of curiosity.
The Vatican actually has an internal domestic league, The Vatican City Championship, with 8 teams. The teams are comprised between the staff of the police, the newspapers, the library, and other administrative bodies. The pope is yet to line up for any of the sides. The league also has a cup competition, The Vatican Supercoppa
The only population pyramid I found was poor and unsourced. As there are minimal women living in the Vatican, It’s safe to assume almost all of the 825 residents are male. As it’s difficult to find age breakdowns, I’ll include every person living in the Vatican as my M number.
M = 825 T = 8
Chances of starting for a domestic team = 10.70%
TL;DR

Domestic League	% chance
New Caledonia	0.51
Turks and Caicos Islands	0.54-1.62
Tahiti	0.67
Luxembourg	1.04
Liechtenstein	1.41
St.Kitts and Nevis	1.59
Andorra	1.66
Faroe Islands	2.25
Gibraltar	3.34
San Marino	3.44
Monserrat	4.44-9.68
The Vatican¹	10.70

¹ Not FIFA recognized.

Conclusion

Want your son to have the best chance of being in a starting XI? You better move to Monserrat. If you’re European and don’t want to move too far maybe San Marino is your best bet.
Of course if you were just looking to get into a matchday squad,you could roughly double the percentage.
There are around 200 countries in the world and I only looked at 5% of them. I’m sure there are other ones with better ratios out there but quite frankly, I’m too lazy.
Thanks for reading!
Sources:
Population pyramids:
https://www.populationpyramid.net/
https://www.theodora.com/
Club numbers:
www.wikipedia.org for general info and then the citations on wikipedia for a more detailed look.
https://int.soccerway.com/
www.FIFA.com

Team Presentations 2021: Lotto Soudal

LOTTO SOUDAL

Code	Name	Nation	PCS Rank	UCI Rank
LTS	LOTTO SOUDAL	BEL	15	17

Lotto Soudal boasts one of the longest-running sponsorships in the pro peloton, with Belgium's national lottery serving as a core sponsor since 1985. Rarely focussed on GC efforts in recent years, the team excels in stage-hunting, sprints and classics. While some teams adapted well to the truncated 2020 season, Lotto Soudal was not as successful as usual, despite the addition of some key veterans intended to bolster the team's classics squad.

2020 Season Recap

With fewer races across the 2020 season, Lotto Soudal's results suffered. The team dropped 8 spots in the UCI team rankings, and 7 spots in the PCS rankings and won half as many races as it did in 2019. In fact, the team had not won so little since 2010. The wins Lotto Soudal did take last season came mostly from marquee sprinter Caleb Ewan, who started the season off strong with two stages and the points classification in the Santos Tour Down Under. The team took a third stage win there, when World Tour newbie Matthew Holmes surprised everyone by snatching victory away from Richie Porte on the latter's seemingly favourite finale up Willunga Hill. Ewan kept his momentum up after the COVID break, winning two stages of the Tour de France as well as Scheldeprijs. Later in the season, Tim Wellens helped things along with two stage wins in La Vuelta. Unfortunately, the team's major signing for 2020, Philippe Gilbert, had the first winless season since 2003. Likewise, breakway master Thomas de Gendt failed to win a race for the first time since 2015. Despite some success on both sides of last year's COVID calendar, Lotto Soudal's 2020 was decidedly lackluster.
Top Riders Last 5 Years

Rank	2020 (points PCS)	2019	2018	2017	2016
1	Ewan (845)	Ewan (1592)	Wellens (1514)	Greipel (1313)	Greipel (1115)
2	Wellens (457)	Wellens (1214)	Benoot (940)	Wellens (1148)	Gallopin (779)
3	Degenkolb (405)	Benoot (1067)	Greipel (759)	Gallopin (966)	Wellens (659)
4	Gilbert (191)	De Buyst (550)	Debusschere (464)	Benoot (895)	Benoot (510)
5	Vermeersch (185)	Keukeleire (520)	Campenaerts (434)	De Buyst (615)	Roelandts (508)

Tot.	3000	5993	5002	5933	5258
PCS Rank	15	8	14	8	9

Results 2020

This includes stage wins, GC, Mountain, Youth and Points Classifications.

Type	Rider	1.	2.	3.	Tot.
WT		9	4	6	19
	Ewan	6	2	1	9
	Wellens	2	-	1	3
	De Gendt	-	-	3	3
	Holmes	1	-	1	2
	Thijssen	-	1	-	1
	Vanhoucke	-	-	1	1
Pro		3	4	2	9
	Ewan	2	3	-	5
	Degenkolb	1	-	2	3
	Gilbert	-	1	-	1
2.x		2	-	-	2
	Armée	1	-	-	1
	Vanhoucke	1	-	-	1
1.x		-	2	-	2
	Dewulf	-	1	-	1
	Thijssen	-	1	-	1
Nats				2	2
	Frison	-	-	1	1
	Hagen	-	-	1	1

Tot.		14	10	10	34

Top Results 2020

According to PCS Points

Rnk.	Race	Rider	Placement	Points^PCS	Points^UCI
1.	Schelderprijs	Caleb Ewan	1	125	200
2.	Tour de France stage 3	Caleb Ewan	1	100	120
3.	Tour de France stage 11	Caleb Ewan	1	100	120
4.	Milano-Torino	Caleb Ewan	2	85	150
5.	La Vuelta stage 5	Tim Wellens	1	80	100

For the second season in a row, Caleb Ewan and Tim Wellens were Lotto Soudal's top two riders, with Ewan accounting for most of the team's 2020 success. Between the pair, Lotto Soudal won stages in two of the three Grand Tours. Ewan also claimed two stages and the points jersey in the Tour Down Under. Meanwhile, new 2020 signing John Degenkolb managed to bring some success with a stage in the Tour de Luxembourg and a pair of podium finishes elsewhere on the calendar. Some younger riders also produced results that suggest bigger things in years to come. Harm Vanhoucke briefly snuck into the top 5 overall at the Giro d'Italia with an impressive 3rd place finish on Mount Etna. Gerben Thijssen also sprinted to a pair of 2nd place finishes and a top 5 in the fall.

Outgoing Transfers

Rider	Born	Nation	2020 Pt.	Best Season	Type	New Team
Armée, Sander	1985	BEL	140	2017⁴²⁴	Climber	Team Qhubeka Assos
Dewulf, Stan	1997	BEL	141	2020¹⁴¹	Sprinter	AG2R Citroën Team
Dibben, Jonathan	1994	GBR	38	2017¹³¹	ITT	Retirement
Hagen, Carl Fredrik	1991	NOR	55	2019⁴⁵³	GC	Israel Start-Up Nation
Hansen, Adam	1981	AUS	36	2014³⁴⁹	Rouleur	Retirement
Iversen, Rasmus	1997	DEN	0	2019¹⁵	Rouleur	Herning CK Elite
Maes, Nikolas	1986	BEL	32	2013³³³	Classics/Rouleur	Retirement
Mertz, Remy	1995	BEL	50	2018⁶⁷	Classics	Bingoal - Wallonie Bruxelles
Van Goethem, Brian	1991	NED	18	2014⁸⁶	Rouleur	Retirement
Wallays, Jelle	1989	BEL	18	2015³⁸⁴	Classics	Cofidis, Solutions Crédits

The team isn't saying goodbye to any big names from their 2020 roster. Carl Frederik Hagen is moving on to Israel Start-Up Nation, where, if he finds his climbing form from the 2019 Vuelta, he could likely end up supporting Dan Martin and Chris Froome's GC ambitions. Classics specialist Jelle Wallays is moving on to Cofidis, a team that at the moment doesn't produce much in the way of classics results. Meanwhile, one of Lotto Soudal's few winning riders last season - Sander Armée - is also leaving for the recently rescued African team Qhubeka Assos. A few riders have also opted to retire, namely Jonathan Dibben, Adam Hansen and Nikolas Maes. One of the more notable departures is Stan Dewulf, a young sprinteclassics specialist who won Paris-Roubaix Espoirs in 2018. Dewulf is joining the classics-focussed AG2R Citroën team.

2021 Roster

Rider	Born	Nat.	2020 Pt.	Best Season	Type	Joined Team
Conca, Filippo^NEW	1998	ITA	30	2020	Climber	from Biesse Arvedi
Cras, Steff	1996	BEL	14	2018⁵³⁶	ClimbeGC	2020
De Buyst, Jasper	1993	BEL	128	2017⁶¹⁵	Sprinter	2015
De Gendt, Thomas	1986	BEL	155	2012⁵⁶³	Breakaways	2015
Degenkolb, John	1989	GER	405	2014¹⁹¹⁹	Classics	2020
Ewan, Caleb	1994	AUS	845	2019¹⁵⁹²	Sprinter	2019
Frison, Frederik	1992	BEL	66	2018¹³⁶	Rouleur	2015
Gilbert, Philippe	1982	BEL	191	2011³⁰³¹	Monuments	2020
Goossens, Kobe	1996	BEL	75	2020	GC/Sprint	2020
Grignard, Sébastien^NEW	1999	BEL	-	-	ITT	from Lotto Soudal U23
Holmes, Matthew	1993	GBR	124	2020	GC	2020
Kluge, Roger	Germany	1986	73	2016¹⁶⁶	Leadout	2019
Kron, Andreas^NEW	1998	DEN	158	2020	Puncheur	from Riwal Securitas Cycling Team
Marczynski, Tomasz	1984	POL	47	2012³⁴⁷	Two Vuelta Stages	2016
Małecki, Kamil^NEW	1996	POL	171	2020	All-round	from CCC Team
Moniquet, Sylvain^NEW	1998	BEL	12	2020	GC/Climber	from Equipe continentale Groupama-FDJ
Oldani, Stefano	1998	ITA	78	2020	Puncheur	2020
Sweeny, Henry^NEW	1998	AUS	17	2018⁵⁰	Leadout/Classics	from Lotto Soudal U23
Thijssen, Gerben	1998	BEL	128	2020	Sprinter	2018
Van der Sande, Tosh	1990	BEL	65	2019³²⁷	Puncheur	2012
Van Gils, Maxim^NEW	1999	BEL	28	2020	Climber	from Lotto Soudal U23
Van Moer, Brent	1998	BEL	38	2020	ITT	2018
Vanhoucke, Harm	1997	BEL	162	2020	Climber	2018
Vermeersch, Florian	1999	BEL	185	2020	Sprinter	2020
Verschaeve, Victor^NEW	1998	BEL	5	2019¹⁹	PuncheuClimber	from Lotto Soudal U23
Vervloesem, Xandres^NEW	2000	BEL	25	2020	GC/Climber	from Lotto Soudal U23
Wellens, Tim	1991	BEL	457	2018¹⁴⁹⁴	Classics	2012

Avg.	26 yrs.	27 riders	141,6 pt.

Most of Lotto Soudal's additions for 2021 are young riders stepping up from CT, PRT or U23 teams. In fact, five of the team's nine new signings for this season are riders that are graduating from the Lotto Soudal U23 squad. Of those riders, arguably the most promising at the moment is Xandres Vervloesem, who won the Ronde de l'Isard. Sylvain Moniquet, who led that same race for most of the stages, is another young signing this year, coming from the Groupama-FDJ continental team. Andreas Kron also joins from Riwal Securitas to bolster the team's classics roster. Despite some headaches thrown their way by Gianni Savio, Lotto Soudal has the pleasure of adding Filippo Conca to the team this year. Conca has finished 5th overall at the Baby Giro in two consecutive seasons, alongside other respectable results in Italian U23 races.

2021 Outlook

With key riders remaining on the team, Lotto Soudal should see a return to form in 2021. Caleb Ewan should produce some strong sprint wins across the calendar and Tim Wellens will be on the attack in classics and stage-hunting scenarios. Philippe Gilbert will hope to reignite his spark and there's no doubt the team will take him and Ewan both to Milan-San Remo to target the first monument of 2021. With so many young riders joining the team, it will be interesting to see who gets chances to target smaller races and who will just be looking to get their feet wet in the World Tour pool. Look for Gerben Thijssen to get more sprinting chances across the calendar, while Harm Vanhoucke will no doubt see some mountain action in 2021. And this season as always, we can rest assured that there are three certainties in life: death, taxes and Thomas de Gendt in the breakaway.

Appreciating Chanyeol!!! A collection of his best performances!

It's time for Loey!!!
I am personally excited to make this one because he has a lot of variety of content, many duets and a lot of solo songs for a member who hasn't had a solo debut. Additionally he's a multi-talented multi-instrumentalist among many other things which is really impressive.
Let me know which one is your favourite and do add on a few of your own if I've missed them.
Hand Solo at ElyxiOn Japan One of my most favourite raps from him, his delivery is emotional and very strong.
Wind Of Change Cover at SBS Music Bank Special Stage 2019 Originally by the scorpions. His English pronunciation is great and I absolutely adore his deep voice.
Hope MV Remake H.O.T. Mnet Exo 90 2014 Chanyeol acts in this and he looks so cute with past SMRookies Yuta and Jaehyun (NCT). Also Chen and Past SMRookies Johnny and Doyoung (NCT) sang this and it sounds amazing.
Delight Solo Cover Of Rocket Dive at The Lost Planet Japan Originally by Hyde. Chanyeol sounds and looks like an anime character in the best way possible. I really want him to do an anime opening now because this video proves he's capable of it. He's singing in Japanese too! A Chanyeol rock solo would be great too!
Drum Solo at The Lost Planet Beijing This guy can play the drums as well and he's really good at it! Love how he's playing so passionately.
Electric Guitar Solo at Exo'rdium Seoul He played growl on his electric guitar and it sounds incredible.
Don't Make Money on UnPretty Rapstar Chanyeol featured in this Heize song and absolutely killed it. Loved the verse where he said his popularity is higher than Mnet because it's facts.
Acoustic Special Stage SBS Gayo Daejun 2016 Whistle x TT x Monster special stage with Rosé (Blackpink), Jihyo (Twice), Chanyeol and 10cm. Love how he rapped his verse it sounds very nice in the acoustic version. His hairstyle looks gorgeous on him too.
Stay With Me Duet Goblin OST at Yu Huiyeol's Sketchbook 2018 The original version with Punch is absolutely incredible. This is one of the most popular OST's and you can see it in many edits. Chanyeol's deep voice works well with Punch's voice. There are many stay with me duets with multiple singers but this one is my most favourite.
Stay With Me Duet at SMTOWN 2017 Chanyeol performed with Wendy (Red Velvet) and sounds amazing with this one too! Here is another close-up video of the same performance.
Stay With Me Duet at KCON Australia 2017 Chanyeol Performed with Seola (WJSN) and this is a great duet too! Here's a better video of the same performance.
I Miss You/Stay With Me Duet at MAMA 2017 Chanyeol singing with Soyou and sounding very amazing as usual.
Stay With Me at KBS Music Bank Special Stage Jakarta 2017 Chanyeol performs this with Yuju and he sings really well as usual.
Dream Duet at KBS Music Bank Special Stage 2016 Chanyeol performed this with Nayeon (Twice) and they both sound really good. Chanyeol has really strong vocals and his deep voice is a big advantage.
MFBTY at Dream Concert 2015 Chanyeol is rapping here with Wendy (Red Velvet). His tone is intense and it sounds really cool to hear.
Hug Me Cover OST at JYP Party People 2017 Originally by Sungjae. His voice sounds really calming in this short cover.
Creep Cover at JYP Party People 2017 Originally by Radiohead. I love all his English covers and this one is one of my favourites. It's unfortunate it's a bit short. Here's another video of him singing the same song somewhere else.
All Of Me Cover at The Exo-Love Concert in Dome Originally by John Legend. His professionalism is impeccable. He was still singing steadily while holding his falling microphone with one hand and playing the piano by his other hand.
Heavy Cover on Instagram 2017 Originally by Linkin Park. His English pronunciation is amazing once again and his voice really suits the song. Like always my only complaint is that it's too short.
1-4-3 I Love You Acoustic Version Originally Henry's song. Henry did the acoustic version with Chanyeol and he plays the guitar really well and compliments Henry's voice.
My Heart's Jewel Box Cover at KMF 2014 Chanyeol performs this with Baekhyun and L. Once again an excellent cover done by them both. I really love Chanyeol's parts in this.
Love Song Cover Duet Originally by Bumkey and Rhythmking. Chanyeol is on the guitar once again and he plays so nicely. Baekhyun's falsetto sounds good too!
Don't Be Sad Cover at KBS Special Stage This showcases Chanyeol's beautiful voice so much. Him and Lay are playing guitars while singing and Baekhyun and D.O. sound exceptionally good too!
I Am Korea, The Day We Meet Special Performance Sung by The National Grand Chorus. This has many talented singers in the performance. Chanyeol along with Chen and Baekhyun are representing exo and all of them did a fantastic job. Chanyeol's parts here stand out a lot.
Special Rap Stage at SMTOWN 2019 Chanyeol raps great here and him and Amber from f(x) sound and look like they are having so much fun.
Drop That Chanyeol Focus at SMTOWN 2017 This has big rockstar energy and I'm here for it! Chanyeol and electric guitars go well together and that is a fact.
DJ Set at Music Bank Hanoi 2015 Chanyeol just vibing on the DJ Set like a true king.
Drop That Chanyeol Focus at Ex'ordium Gangzhou Chanyeol playing the electric guitar and then moving on to the DJ Set is the coolest thing I've seen.
Freal Luv I cannot believe this legendary collab between Far East Movement x Marshmello ft Chanyeol and Tinashe exists. Loving Pcy's verse here a lot.
Faded Collab Devine Channel ft. Loopy and Chanyeol. Once again Pcy's vocals stand out.
Ocean View Duet Rothy sounds great and I'm glad she asked Chanyeol to collaborate with her on this! Their voices go together so well!
Bad Girl Collab Chanyeol featured on Henry's (SuJu M) first solo album and delivered a killer verse. This is them performing Bad Girl at SMTOWN Live World Tour in Seoul and they're having fun and enjoying.
Rewind Collab at Show! Music Core Zhou Mi (SuJu M) had Chanyeol feature on the Korean Version of the song and his rap verse is very cool. Extra Info: Tao featured on the Mandarin Version of the song and was also incredible on it.
Get Used To It mq x Loey NNG Studio I'm so happy he's getting to shine as a music producer as well.
Slow Walk mq x Loey NNG Studio He's actually a very good producer it's insane.
I'm Fine mq x Loey NNG Studio His producer work is very exceptional! Loving this a lot.
Clock Breeze mq x Loey Studio NNG mq and Loey duo can never go wrong.
Yours Live at CASS Blue Playground 2020 I'm so thankful to Raiden and Chanyeol for this collab along with Lee Hi and Changmo. All of them sound excellent and the live version is as good as the official version. The Blinders Remix is really nice too. Raiden even played it at SMTOWN 2021 with Winter (aespa) singing Lee Hi's parts. I so wished we would have had Chanyeol live too because he would've killed it.
Yours Acoustic Version You can see the amount of musical talent Chanyeol has in this video. Him, Raiden and Changmo did an acoustic version of an EDM song and made it sound great.
Lightsaber + Drop That at MAMA 2015 Chanyeol's raps in both songs are incredible. It's impressive how he rapped Lightsaber in Korean, Mandarin and Japanese .
Forever in ElyxiOn Japan Chanyeol's rap once again sounds very satisfying to hear!
Two Moons at Exo Showcase in Seoul Originally performed by both exo sub-units (K and M) with Key. This is one of the most recognised memes in the fandom with the "Ayo Waddup Krease, Ayo Wassup". As messy as it is it's really endearing to watch rookie Chanyeol and Kris rap together. There's also Kai and Lay dancing in the foreground.
SSFW SM Station Song His voice is very unique and I'm glad he started singing a lot more than before now.
We Young SM Station Song at ElyxiOn Seoul I would like to thank this song, Chanyeol and Sehun for being the catalyst to start off Exo SC. It was one of the best things to happen in 2019 and they both are having so much fun. The original MV is so nice too!
What A Life Highlight Medley Loving the back and forth raps between Chanyeol and Sehun.
What A Life Live in ExplOration Seoul He's having so much fun with Sehun it's cute to see.
Just Us 2 in ExplOration Seoul Chanyeol and Sehun singing and then Suho doing Gaeko's verse is iconic. I love how Chanyeol was hyping up Suho.
1 Billion Views CBP Connect Featuring Moon. This album was a lot stronger than their previous album and they both have matured and are enjoying a lot more which is heartwarming to see.
Nothin' Solo Teaser MV This song is super catchy and I like what Chanyeol did with this song. The full track is amazing.
All his OSTs are amazing, I've already added Stay With Me above so here are the others :
Minimal Warm OST Chanyeol's low tone sounds very beautiful and calming in this song. Here's the lyric video.
Go Away Go Away Duet OST Chanyeol paired with Punch again and it's also a very beautiful song.
Anbu OST Lee Sunhee and Chanyeol's voices go so well together.
I Knew I Love OST Cover Hospital Playlist This is just a livestream but he still sounds phenomenal.
He has so many songs I'm gonna keep adding more as I find them. He has a lot of guitar covers which I've included in D.O.'s appreciation post and I'm gonna save the EXO-SC live performances for Sehun because I do not want multiple performance repeats.
I miss him too and I wish he comes back soon enough. There is speculation of a exo group comeback in spring and I want him to be a part of it.
Hope you guys enjoy! :))

AFLW 2021 season preview | Feedback & Input please

Here is the draft for the AFL subreddit I'll post on Tuesday.
We need a thread title for this too, any jokes or simpsons/futurama quotes?
Any feedback? I'd like a another two or three quotes to insert, either your expectations for the season, your best 21 (I'm no good at making teams) or anything else.
Here is a teamboard/magnet board so you can play around with your best 21 selection: http://jimmae.epizy.com/teamboard-womens.html
Here is the post below:
"What position have you got for me?" crowd gasps "That's right. A girl who wants to play football. How about that?" 'Well, that's super-duper, Lisa. We've already got four girls on the team.' - Carlton AFLW 2021 Season Preview

Carlton AFLW 2021 Season Preview

Social Media: Community subreddit /CarltonBlues & Official club twitter https://twitter.com/carltonfc_w
Founded: 1864 (AFLW since 2017)
Home Ground: Princes Park, Carlton North (Capacity 25,000; Covid restricted to 9,000)
Coach: Daniel Harford
Line Coaches: Steven Salopek (Backs), Kade Simpson (Forwards), Lauren Morecroft (Mids), Wayne Shultz (Skills)
Captains: Katie Loynes, Kerryn Harrington
Leadership Group: Alison Downie, Nicola Stevens, Darcy Vescio
Playing List & Bios: https://www.carltonfc.com.au/teams/aflw
Season 2021 Fixture

2020 in review

2020 season result: 2nd Conf B, W/L: 6-1
2020 league stats: Disposals 1st, Marks 1st, Hitouts 2nd, Goals 3rd, Behinds 3rd, Tackles 6th
Leading Goalkickers: Georgia Gee (8.0), Tayla Harris (8.5)
After losing our former skipper to the enemy and going down in the 2019 Grand Final, the 2020 side played as if nothing had changed. Carlton were on a hot five game win-streak pushing deep into finals contention before the season was shortened and then cancelled only minutes after the 29 point semi-final win against Brisbane.
Madison Prespakis, Tayla Harris and Kerryn Harrington were all named in the 2020 AFL Women's All-Australian team. Georgia Gee was also nominated in the 40-woman squad.
Madison Prespakis, Georgia Gee and Charlotte Wilson were all named in the women's 22under22 team, with Prespakis named vice captain.
Georgia Gee won the club's Rising Star award as the most improved player.
Grace Egan won the Best First Year Player award.
Jess Edwards won the Carlton Way Blue Bloods award as best club woman.

List changes

Traded In	Traded Out	Drafted	Delisted
Maddy Guerin (Melb) with Pick #15	Sarah Hosking (Rich) for Pick #15	Mimi Hill #13	Joanne Doonan
Elise O'Dea (Melb) with Pick #15		Daisy Walker #28	Emerson Woods
Charlotte Hammans (Suns) with Pick #56		Winnie Laing #36	Katie Harrison
			Sharnie Whiting

Joanne Doonan (Rookie) was forced to retire and return to Ireland due to the pandemic at the conclusion of the 2020 season.
Chloe Dalton signed a two year contract extension after last season but was going to miss the 2021 season to compete in the Olympics and contest for a second gold medal. With the presumed cancellation of the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games, Dalton may re-join the Carlton squad at the last minute as there is still one unused list spot... watch this space.

Expectation for 2021

Grand finalists. Following up from our 2019 appearance and hopefully going one step further.

Frankly the team themselves seem to be all in; it’s Flag or bust, but I’d be happy with a top 4 finish and a couple of good finals wins.

JediHamish over at /CarltonBlues

Potential Best 21

FF	Darcy Vescio	Serena Gibbs
HF	Georgia Gee	Tayla Harris	Charlotte Hammans
C	Lauren Brazzale	Nic Stevens	Elise O'Dea
FOLL	Madison Prespakis	Breann Moody	Grace Egan
HB	Kerryn Harrington	Mua Laloifi	Nat Plane
FB	Charlotte Wilson	Brooke Vernon
INT	Lucy McEvoy	Brooke Walker	Jess Hosking
INT	Mimi Hill	Alison Downie

EMG	Katie Loynes	Gab Pound

This squad was picked by JediHamish, I added the two emergency players to complete a potential team announcement.
My personal changes from this squad would be Jess Edwards in for Brooke Vernon; Maddy Guerin in for Charlotte Hammans and if she plays this season Chloe Dalton in for Mimi Hill at this stage. Although it'll be hard to pick a squad this season, there is some exciting depth on the playing list, which can be found here

Players to Watch

Grace Egan - Selected at pick 13 (2019) from the Richmond Academy. In her first year 'Greg' made an immediate impact as the clubs equal first tackler and obtaining the second most disposals.
Madison Prespakis - League MVP winner polling 15 out of 18 votes, club B&F winner (second time) will no doubt replicate her work effort and skill to remain a top player of the competition.
Elise O'Dea - One of the competitions leading midfielders (x2 All Australian) should provide depth to the midfield and help Prespakis in the middle.
Georgia Gee - The small forward is a livewire infront of goals and able to rundown and tackle larger opponents and contest the ball in the midfield.
Vamoua Laloifi - Solid as a rock in the backline Vamoua was intercepting everything coming her way in her first season, coming primarily from a basketball background (Fijian national team) she should improve in her second year of football.
Mimi Hill - Midfielder, I don't know too much about her but since being drafted has appeared to be a coaches favourite in pre-season, we should see her playing early this season.
Maddy Guerin - Coming off of an ACL injury and being traded from Melbourne, it will be interesting to see what she can do in the midfield.
Abbie McKay - Being drafted as the first FatheDaughter selection she hasn't played many games in her two seasons, expect this to change.
Come and join us over at /CarltonBlues throughout the season.
Go blues!

Carlton AFLW 2021 season preview

An abridged history of Deceuninck-Quick Step (Part 2)

In the first part of my grand epic on DQT, we started off at the roots of the team. From the MG-GB team and Mapei-Viner teams a new giant in cycling would be born. Over the coming years, the Belgian-Italian team would dominate the cycling classics, but would also come close to its end.

1995 season

Let’s go over what we have. At the start of 1996, Mapei took up GB as it’s new cosponsor, and with it, the Belgian core of the GB-MG Magliaficio squad. Losing a few other riders like aging ‘90 Vuelta winner Marco Giovannetti and the decent Swiss puncheur Mauro Gianetti and gaining Museeuw, Peeters and Bomans, this meant a serious improvement to the team’s core. With a cobbled squad consisting of Museeuw, Tafi, Ballerini, Peeters and Bortolami, all featured in the previous chapter of our story, wins were surely guaranteed. Not to mention the shirt. I promise it's getting it's own chapter.
The early season is full of promise: the classic squad scores with Museeuw in the Italian opener of Laigueglia and with Ballerini in the Belgian opener Omloop Het Volk, and even the traditional domestiques get to share in the glory as Bart Leysen wins E3. On April 1st, the day before the Ronde van Vlaanderen, the biggest shockwave in Belgian cycling for that year happens: the shining diamond of the Lotto team, Frank Vandenbroucke, makes a midseason transfer to Mapei. After showing streaks of brilliance last year at the age of 20, Lefevere wanted him and Mapei wanted to pay for him: they offered him enough money to buy out his Lotto contract and he went to make what looked like an unavoidable move, desperate to learn from some of cycling’s biggest stars. Later in the season he would have a spectacular win in Paris-Bruxelles.
In high spirits, the team attacks the Ronde Van Vlaanderen in typical fashion: with brutal and overwhelming force. Museeuw breaks clear on the Muur and is protected by his strong teammates Bortolami and Ballerini, with Peeters, Tafi, Willems and Leysen being essential in the setup for the victory. He wins with 1:30 lead over ex-teammate Fabio Baldato. And the wins don’t stop coming: the ‘95 Paris-Roubaix is a prey for Franco Ballerini, who attacks from far out and gets protected by Museeuw, Bortolami and Tafi who finish in the 15-man group which sprints for 2nd place. Museeuw gets beaten by Tchmil, but it’s a glorious day: 2 teammates on the podium of a monument is quite the performance.
Meanwhile you might have forgotten that Mapei-Clas didn’t only have its Italian classic riders, but also strong and impressive Grand Tour contenders. Tony Rominger is one of them, and he shows he’s in good for by crushing his homerace in Romandie before absolutely destroying the Giro d’Italia by winning 3 TTs, a mountaintop finish and the general classification with a 4 minute lead over the Gewiss-Ballan duo Berzin-Ugrumov. The Tour de France was a rather sad affair, due to Escartin losing 6 minutes in a 54km hilly TT, and Rominger not being able to compete with Indurain, Riis and Zülle in the high mountains.
In the Vuelta, Abraham Olano gets crushed by 3 dominant ONCE riders: Laurent Jalabert wins the GC, 5 stages, the points jersey and KOM jersey, and teammates Bruyneel and Mauri end 3rd and 4th in the GC to sweep the teams classification as well. Olano snatches the 3 time trial victories and another stage is won by the Italian sprinter Baffi. However, Olano had planned a different peak...
On the inhumanly brutal Duitama course, 15 laps with a 4,2km climb averaging 7,8% with the lowest elevation at 2491m, Olano would go on to win the World Championship ahead of his compatrion Indurain and Marco Pantani. Mapei would go on to have plenty more World Champions on their ranks. At first glance, I’m seeing a total of 10 road race championships for riders of Lefevere’s team since 1995. It showcases the talent of Lefevere to assemble a team of the best one day racers in the world, but also of his skills in pressuring national teams to assign his riders as leaders for the championships. If we include the 4 team trial championships in the 7 years it was organised, and the handful of ITT championships won by Michael Rogers and Tony Martin, it shows an impressive resume in sniping down the rainbow jersey.
The “new” Mapei-GB team would end the season as the #1 ranked team on the UCI ranking, with 50 total victories, 3 World Cup victories (Museeuw also won the legendary Zuri Metzgete), dozens of semi-classics and plenty of GT stages.

1996 season

The 1996 transfers are relatively mild. Sure, the team loses out Fernando Escartin, but it recruits some Italian youngsters and a fresh young Belgian sprinter: Tom Steels. And since you don’t change a winning team, why make more transfers?
The year starts off delightfully: Fitte Peeters leads out neopro Tom Steels to a win in Omloop Het Volk. Nowadays they form the powerduo in Deceuninck’s team car, and it was in these years that their bond was forged. The year continues nicely with Carlo Bomans winning E3 and Museeuw snatching victory in the Brabantse Pijl, still held with finish on the Bruineput, which is the real finish of that race.
Spirits were high for the Ronde Van Vlaanderen. And of course the race was won by...Michele Bartoli, of the MG Maglificio team. Museeuw has a flat just before the Muur, where Bartoli distances the elite group. Oh, and to rub salt in the wound, Museeuw gets outsprinted for 2nd place by another ex-teammate, Fabio Baldato, leading to a very sour podium for Mapei-GB. This would not stand: furious calls were made between the Mapei company headquarters and the cycling team. Company manager Giorgio Squinzi put it quite frankly: They better pull something out of the bag for Roubaix, or the season would be ruined. Tom Steels won a 100-man mass sprint in Gent-Wevelgem the wednesday after the Ronde, but the real exploit was expected on sunday.

1996 Paris-Roubaix

Yes, the race that gets it’s own chapter. I could write about it myself, but allow me to cite mmitchell30 ‘s piece for ProCyclingUK.com - and you can also watch from 7:45 onwards in this highlights video.
*“With 86km to go in the race, 4 members of the Mapei team escaped off the front of the peloton. They were Johan Museeuw, Gianluca Bortolami, Andrea Tafi and Franco Ballerini. It’s very very rare to see most of a team just disappear off the front so far from the finish. It’s even rarer to see no-one from another team able to make the move. The most recent race where I can remember a similar event is the famous 2015 Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. In that race, Ian Stannard bested a trio of Quickstep riders.
Whilst trying to get away Franco Ballerini punctured 3 times within 12km and ended up falling back. Ultimately he’d be caught by Lotto’s Andrej Tchmil and Gewiss’ Stefano Zanini. He got to enjoy a nice draft to the finish line once he stopped doing his own chase. Andrej Tchmil missed a corner and ended up 3 minutes behind the other two riders by the finish. Museuuw himself punctured on the Orchies secteur and his teammates had to wait for him.
The managing director of team sponsor Mapei called the team director Patrick Lefevere with 15km to go. The director wanted to ensure that Johan Museeuw won the race. With 8km to go Museeuw punctured which caused confusion amongst the 3 riders at the front. Eventually Tafi and Bortolami waited and once they arrived at the Velodrome, Museeuw won without having to sprint. The sponsor’s directive being adhered to. The pair of Zanini and Ballerini finished 4th and 5th. They were 2 minutes 38 behind the podium and a similar gap ahead of the next group.
The 1996 Paris-Roubaix race eventually became the quickest race in terms of average speed since the route had been altered in 1968. Museeuw’s winning ride was at an average of 43.31kph.”*
The picture of these 3 teammates crossing the finishing line in perfect harmony is one of the most iconic pictures of 90s cycling in my opinion. It showed the utter dominance of the Mapei team in the classics of that era.

Rest of the 1996 season

Well, you have to come down from such a rush. Mapei would go on to win the Scheldeprijs with an attack from Frank Vandenbroucke and Museeuw got 3rd place in the Amstel Gold Race. Frank Vandenbroucke went on to win 4 stages and the GC of the Tour of Austria and the GP Plouay. The “old” Mapei-Clas core also had a decent season. Olano managed a 3rd place in the Giro and only very nearly lost the Olympic time trial in Atlanta, Rominger got 3rd in a Vuelta where Mapei won 5 stages. The only disappointment was the Tour de France: despite a promising opening, with Olano and Rominger ending week 2 on 2nd and 3rd place of the GC behind a surprisingly untiring Bjarne Riis. In stage 17 however, Riis, his Telekom team with young Jan Ullrich and the Festina riders Dufaux and Virenque, went on a massive mountain raid and put the Mapei riders on 8 minutes in the flat end of the stage. Olano and Rominger dropped to 9th and 10th place, and ended the TDF in those positions and without a stage win.
In the ‘96 world championships on a hilly parcours in Lugano, Johan Museeuw would go on to win the rainbow jersey after a dominating sprint against his Swiss opponent and former Mapei-Clas rider Mauro Gianetti, keeping the title in the team. His real rival, Michele Bartoli, would be frustrated by the work of Axel Merckx who covered his every move to protect Museeuw’s break. And to close off the season, Andrea Tafi would go on to win Lombardia from an early break, despite his rather large body frame. This was the era of big riders winning mountainous stage races and classics, and Mapei formed no exception.
The season would however also be marked by a true exodus. A lot of the Clas-core riders saw their contracts expire, and they chose to cash in on their results. Rominger and Olano would go on to lead Cofidis and Banesto respectively, Bortolami would transfer to Festina team as their new leader. A lot of domestiques and riders for the smaller Spanish and Italian races also left, requiring a rebuild of half the squad.

1997 season

A solution was found in the failing Panaria-Vinavil team. Despite a good year with Pavel Tonkov winning the Giro, Jan Svorada showing he has some of the fastest legs in the peloton and Oscar Camenzind showing flashes of puncheur brilliance, the team doesn’t recover from losing main sponsor Lampre the year before and gets absorbed into Mapei. Targeted recruitment also happens: Gianni Bugno is brought on as a road captain, and despite only winning a Vuelta and Langkawi stage in his final 2 years, his experience provides value to the countless youngsters on the Mapei squad. Other notable recruits include Nico Mattan, Belgian baroudeur who would form a strong bond with Frank Vandenbroucke, Stefano Zanini (the only non-Mapei rider in the top 5 of the ‘96 Roubaix) and the aging Zenon Jaskula, who got a 3rd place in the ‘93 Tour for GB-MG Magliaficio. Lefevere picking up cheap deals? Where did you hear that before?
Well, the year wasn’t quite as glorious. In terms of raw wins, they certainly performed quite nicely: 78 victories sounds like a typical Lefevere year, but they lacked a certain zing. Only one World Cup victory was achieved, with Andrea Tafi winning the Wincanton Classic, but in “their” races the harvest was rather meagre. Museeuw got punished by a badly timed flat tire in the Ronde Van Vlaanderen, where Ballerini got outsprinted by Rolf Sorensen and Frederic Moncassin in their 3-man breakaway. In the ‘97 Roubaix race, a rather large group stayed together until deep in the final, with 27 riders finishing within 30 seconds of the winner. The race was decided with a sprint between 8 of the best riders of the cobbled classics, with Frederic Guesdon (Francaise des Jeux) beating Jo Planckaert (Lotto) and Museeuw.
Another 3rd place, and no improvement was to come: Museeuw sprinted to a consolation 6th place behind LBL winner Bartoli’s breakaway, and Andrea Tafi finished off the classic season with a 2nd place in the Amstel Gold Race. With only wins on Kuurne and Brabantse Pijl, this year had a dreadful spring campaign for what looked like a dominating Mapei team. The hopes for a recovery in the rest of the year were high, but couldn’t quite deliver. While plenty of smaller races like Tour of Austria, Volta a Portugal, Romandia and Luxembourg were won and even dominated, nothing quite went their way.
Pavel Tonkov won 3 stages and got 2nd in the Giro GC, behind Ivan Gotti, and the Mapei squad got 2 more victories from breakaways. In the Giro, Tonkov suffered badly in the first weeks and lost half an hour, but recovered with 2 mountaintop finishes while Jan Svorada got 3 sprint wins. In the Tour de France, dominated by Ullrich and his Telekom team where Riis got thrown overboard stage after stage, things were worse though. Tom Steels, frustrated by several missed sprint chances after his 2nd place in the first stage, got disqualified from the race for a mid-masssprint bidon toss towards Frederic Moncassin. This overshadowed the 2nd place Frank Vandenbroucke got in stage 3, where he looked like he was gonna win an uphill sprint if it wasn’t for Eric Zabel. Vandenbroucke would go on to get another 2nd place in a sprint of the GC favourites in a medium mountain stage, but Mapei had to leave Paris empty handed. Camenzind got 12th place in the GC, Jaskula and Nardello turned out too weak to contend for a GC placement, and ex-Mapei riders Olano and Escartin had decent races with a 4th and 5th place behind a brutally impressive Ullrich.
The 78 wins would seem impressive, but no Tour de France victory and no Monument victory absolutely crushed the spirit of the team. Even the World Championships didn’t bring relief: a small break without Mapei riders contested the victory on the San Sebastian parcours, with Laurent Brochard being a surprising winner. Another 2nd place in Lombardia, for Paolo Lanfranchi, who I genuinely hadn’t heard off before, put the nail in the coffin of the 1997 season.
The season ended with some more news: GB would disappear as a sponsor of the team, and would be replaced by it’s DIY store’s brand Bricobi. Transferwise the season would end calmly, Carlo Bomans opted for a pre-retirement year at Palmans, while Zenon Jaskula ended his career with another year at a smaller Eastern European team. A few neopros were recruited to fill the void, on a one year-contract: GB’s sponsorship was expected to run out at the end of the coming season, with no expectations for a renewment. Was this the ending of a team that had been so bright over the last few years?

2020 Emilia Romagna GP Free Practice and Qualifying Debrief - r/Formula1 Editorial Team

2020 Emilia Romagna GP Free Practice and Qualifying Debrief

Free Practice by UnmeshDatta26, showstopperNL, and DeathPig
Qualifying by redbullcat, ZeroSuitFalcon, and Felix_670
Editor's note: we have a special piece paying tribute to Senna to start our report today so be sure to check that out!

Live Session Discussion Threads

Remembering 1994: A Tribute to Ratzenberger and Senna

by flipjj
Twenty-six years ago, the fatal accidents of Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna occurred at this very track. As Formula 1 returns to Imola for the first time in recent memory, the shadow of “the blackest day of grand prix racing”, and of Senna in particular, loom large over this weekend.
Senna has passed solidly into legend now, his exploits being subtly increased with each telling of his stories. But to those of us who saw it happening, they are not mythological events remembered with shaky on-board cameras and some of Murray Walker's finest work: they are memories of a magical time in Formula 1.
His loss cut deeply not just because a transcendent talent was taken early. With Prost's retirement at the end of 1993 and with Michael Schumacher still a young upstart, Senna was the top driver in the sport, and he was into the wise and experienced phase of his career, poised to follow in the footsteps of Sir Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, and Alain Prost, where being the best driver also meant battling FOM (Bernie) and FIA (Balestre before and Mosley in 1994) in matters of safety, competition standards, and more.
But it is on the racetrack where his loss was most apparent. His feats behind the wheel, the ones that are now discussed in hallowed tones, were awe-inspiring as they happened. His utter dominance of Monaco. His unbelievable qualifying laps. His crash because a wall moved (my favourite Senna story). His never give up attitude, taking cars with missing gears or failed cylinders to the line or willing his body through the toll of driving the car to the finish even if he would not have the strength to lift his trophy afterwards. There are so many amazing tales that the fans that were there for it will never forget.
I knew of him early, back when I was karting. When he moved to England, I hoped he would do well, but by the time he reached F1, I hated him. I saw him as the main challenge to Nelson Piquet's status as Brazil's #1 Formula 1 driver and even 8-year-old me could see he was faster, more charismatic — the national press fawned on him before 1984 started and Piquet himself made fun of the TV crew from Brazil mercilessly — and would be the end of my childhood driver’s title winning days (thankfully we still got 1987).
But no childish hate could prevent this eager 8-year-old from watching the Toleman in the 1984 Monaco GP. Or deny the brilliance when that black Lotus conquered Estoril in the rain. Or refuse those shaky on-board laps where he put one second on everyone else (I still have a Suzuka qualifying lap saved on my phone, for convenient re-watching). He was a marvel to watch. He was a magician in the cockpit, his skill is still breathtaking to watch, three decades later. My favourite on track moment of his, however, involves him stopping.
During qualifying for the 1992 Belgian GP, Erik Comas crashed his Ligier heavily at Blanchimont and was knocked unconscious with his foot pressing the throttle. The engine was likely to blow up if it was not cut and Comas was in serious danger, but with a live track, the marshals could not reach him quickly. As Senna passed the accident, he realized what was happening, and even as other cars were going around the debris, he jumped out of his McLaren onto a live race track, found the kill switch to Comas' car and held his head still until the medics arrived, likely saving his life. Intelligence, wisdom, courage, empathy, selflessness when helping others, Senna displayed so many of his finest qualities in that moment. That, above all, is what Formula 1 was robbed of 26 years ago. And, in a tragic twist of fate, Comas tried to do the same for his friend in Imola in 94, but sadly was unable to help.
And no talk about Senna would be complete without mentioning his impact in Brazil. He was more than a sports figure: he was a beacon of hope, a metaphor for what we, as a country, could be if we harnessed our energy towards progress. Senna did so much for the poor and marginalized of our country, most of it in silence, that it is impossible to properly measure the impact his efforts to improve the country have had to this day. (The work he started continues today through the Instituto Ayrton Senna).
He was, and still is in the eyes of many, one of the best humans our country has ever produced. A man who could be caring and daring, devoted to what he believed in, never shying away from taking on more responsibilities if he had to, and never afraid to fight for others, in Formula 1 or outside racing entirely, while still excelling in an extremely difficult career.
Senna was no saint. He was hard on the people he worked with, he demanded effort, sacrifice, and excellence. He would push you into the wall if it could gain him one tenth. There are several skeletons in his closet, both personal and professional.
But when we weigh the pros and cons, there is no question Ayrton Senna da Silva, bearer of one of Brazil's most common surnames, was an uncommon and excellent man. Flawed no doubt, as we all are, but Senna was never afraid to recognize and work on his flaws and, most importantly, never afraid to strive to be the best he could be, pulling his team, his sport, his country, towards the same goals with him.
Few have reached the level of excellence he did. And that is why he will be even more sorely missed as Formula 1 returns to Imola this weekend.
PS: If you want to contribute to Instituto Ayrton Senna and help further its goals, you can do so here.

ICYMI

Kimi Räikkönen and Antonio Giovinazzi sign for 2021, Sauber extends their partnership

Alfa Romeo have now announced that they are retaining their driver lineup for the upcoming season, putting an end to the rumors of Giovinazzi losing his drive at the end of this season. This news comes on the heels of the team announcing that Sauber will be extending their name partnership for another season.
During the Eifel GP at the Nürburgring, Räikkönen vehemently denied having signed a contract and yesterday we learned that he had only signed his contract this week. He is already the oldest driver on the grid with the most GPs in history under his belt, and he will definitely look to extend that record further.
Giovinazzi has a difficult year ahead of him. While he has equaled his teammate in qualifying head-to-head, he has had a hard time getting the better of his more experienced teammate on Sundays, with Kimi finishing ahead of him in all but 3 races. Only time will tell the direction the team, and the drivers, will take as they head into new regulations in 2022.

Williams reconfirm duo for next season

After swirling rumors that Russell was about to lose his drive at Williams after being confirmed under Claire Williams’ management, the team reconfirmed their lineup for next season. Nicholas Latifi and George Russell will be driving for Williams in the 2021 season. Russell denied any rumors that he was going to be replaced with Perez, chalking the rumors to Perez’s camp sowing confusion to distract the media from his real move.

Silly Season 2020 Still In Progress

by u/ZeroSuitFalcon
Following Alfa Romeo and Williams’ driver lineup announcements, the number of open seats shrinks yet again. At this point, the only open seats on the grid are both seats at Haas, one seat each at Red Bull and Alpha Tauri, and Lewis Hamilton’s seat at Mercedes. Of these five, the only obvious shoe-in is Hamilton. Here are my predictions for the remaining four seats:
The remaining Red Bull seat will go to Hulkenberg. He is known to be one of the better drivers at setting up cars and providing feedback on updates and I feel that RB would be keen on his recommendations to move towards a more stable platform. I do wish that Albon would be able to come close to Verstappen, but the results just aren't there and I doubt that he can put together a string of results convincing enough for RB to keep him before Turkey.
The remaining AlphaTauri seat will go to Albon as he gets demoted from RB. I think that Gasly and Albon will be made to fight to see where they are in regards to each other - a very close battle already as both had similar gaps to Verstappen in quali and in the race. I think Marko/Mateschitz will wait for Tsunoda to develop more in F2, to see if he can put together a stronger campaign for the F2 championship.
The first Haas seat will go to Perez. Haas is in desperate need of capital, the aero/chassis of the car is nowhere and they have to undertake that challenge while Ferrari sorts out their engine woes. I think Perez's association with Carlos Slim for money and the US/Mexico connection for PR poses great attractive qualities. The money Perez brings to the table in terms of sponsorships cannot be ignored.
The final Haas seat will go to Mick Schumacher. He is definitely going to close out the F2 championship and find himself promoted. Magnussen himself stated that his seat is open to a Ferrari junior and I believe they will choose Mick. While his pace and skill relative to his father is unknown, he can still drive and the association of his last name with Formula 1 again is going to be huge.

Track and Tech Talk

Pirelli have chosen to bring the middling set of tires, the C2, C3 and C4 tires to the track this weekend. Instead of the usual 13 tires provided to teams over a weekend, as this is a shortened weekend, the teams will only be running with 10 tires in total, two sets of hard, two sets of medium and six sets of soft tires. Three of the used tires from practice will be returned to ensure that the teams have the same amount of tires as they would following FP3 on other race weekends.
Pirelli expects the track to be quite bumpy and that could cause significant lateral forces on the tire as drivers correct their steering movements. The track has been resurfaced since the last time Formula 1 came to Imola, so the surface will be quite smooth, similar to Portimão. That said, running softer tires this week will mean the drivers will struggle less for grip than last time out.
The track is quite narrow, which will reduce overtaking opportunities across the track. Many corners are too tight for two cars to go side by side, so may be in for another DRS fest on the main straight. Team strategy will be key to jumping spots in the race. Expect to see many cars running lower downforce levels depending on how much they can sacrifice, as the track has strictly enforced track limits on two of the most technical corner exits.
Following the trend of the stewards this whole season, they have decided to enact very strict track extension rules at the exit of Turns 9 and 15. From Free Practice, we have seen how many cars and drivers couldn’t meet the strict track limits, with 60 lap time deletions in the session alone. This could throw a spanner in qualifying if the drivers can’t keep the car on track.

Free Practice

Free Practice at the legendary Imola circuit started with the teams gingerly exploring the historic tarmac. We only had a single practice session before Qualifying, with F1 exploring a new approach to weekends that are spread out across just two days, rather than three.
However, it wasn’t long before the drivers started to push, with Sainz going out on the gravel at Rivazza 2 - the last turn on the circuit and Alex Albon losing lap times with the particularly tight track limits six times. With the midfield battle still the only battle this year, every weekend is an opportunity for the teams to secure a better standing in the Constructors’ championship. The competition appeared to get to the drivers’ heads, with Ocon driving through the McLaren pitbox clipping a low board and almost hitting a cameraman before rolling into his slot.
Things were going wrong down the roster as well, with Latifi’s Williams getting BBW failure. The camaraderie at Williams was evident, as the mechanics and staff formed an intuitive human wall to prevent prying eyes and cameras from getting a look at the coveted innards. Ferrari’s Leclerc was also running afoul of the tires, with the young Monegasque not liking his red walled softs. However, he was still able to keep his understeering Ferrari ahead of his teammates’. Max Verstappen was also seeing red with the Red Bull, the RB16 apparently not feeling good. This was evident as he almost bungled a pit lane entry, stopping at the entry line and then going into the pits.
Max battled with one of his usual podium compatriots Valterri Bottas as the duo ran the softs. With limited information and just one practice session, most teams were having drivers do qualifying sprints as well as longer race runs to understand as much as they could about the track.
Renaults were back up the field after a strange weekend in Portugal last weekend, which undoubtedly left them wanting more, especially the Honey Badger. With the Renaults finishing P6 and P7 out of practice, this weekend looks more promising than last. Ricciardo looks particularly confident, and he is sure to be faster than his teammate this weekend if this session was anything to go by.
Gasly also had a strong showing, as he returned with a deal with AT in hand for 2021. Leclerc, for all his troubles, was also able to finish P5. He has shown his ability to drive beyond the obvious ability of the car, and although he has been struggling for understeer, he could put the car in a comfortable position.
However, the top of the standings were still the usual Mercedes duo, Lewis ahead of Bottas. Curiously, not all Mercedes cars were looking good, with the RP20 looking substantially off its usual pace if Free Practice was anything to go by.
The Haas duo had vastly different sessions as well: Magnussen got racey with Norris into the final two turns while Grosjean enjoyed his morning driving through the Italian countryside.
With the lack of historical data from previous years, it was a massive challenge for teams to collect data on the degradation of the tires. All of the drivers outside of Vettel, Perez, and Magnussen have driven here in some capacity, with Kimi being the only driver having driven here in an F1 car. From what we can see, the teams expect the drivers to use two charging laps to gain some temperature on the red-walled soft tires during qualifying.

Qualifying

Renault Leave It to the Last Minute

On track traffic was absolutely horrid this time out, the twisting and winding of the track coupled with the short width of the track doing little to abate matters. Subsequently, drivers had to back off more than usual to avoid dirty air affecting their fast runs.
At the start of Q1, the Scuderia’s Charles Leclerc was out on track first and consequently, briefly set the fastest lap, before Red Bull’s Max Verstappen predictably passed him on the timing sheets.
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas attempted to set the teams first benchmark, but was unable to adhere to the track limits set at Turn 9 and found his lap time deleted. Alex Albon’s on track struggles continued visibly from Free Practice into Qualifying as he ran wide at Turn 9 as well.
Sebastian Vettel’s struggles with his car have been a huge theme this season and this session was no different. He was clearly struggling to keep his car on track and a run in with some rumble strip caused him to lose some carbon from his car. Ferrari’s current strategy seems to be weight reduction over aerodynamics - a strategy that does not favor Vettel’s driving style.
Ocon and Ricciardo were P13 and P19 as the session was coming to a close. They waited until there was less than a minute remaining to start their hot laps and found themselves promoted to Q2 in P7 and P11 respectively - close call for the Renaults.
Also in the closing stages of the sub-session, Magnussen found himself in the gravel on the exit of Turn 15. He knew his day was done and promptly rode the pasture into the pit lane to park his car in his pit box. His lap would have been deleted anyway if he chose to finish, as the cameras found him over track limits at Turn 9 as well. Romain Grosjean finished an unremarkable P16 to accompany Magnussen’s P17.
Lewis Hamilton had a final run in Q1 that placed him 4 tenths ahead of his teammate, however that lap time was deleted as well, relegating him down to a lowly second and a massive 0.004 seconds behind his teammate.
Despite some signs of life from Nicholas Latifi, he ultimately failed to beat his teammate George Russell once again. Russell found himself as high as P11 during his final run but finished P14, making it into Q2 once again. Russell and Latifi were separated by 2 tenths but Stroll, Grosjean, Magnussen and Räikkönen fit into that gap with Giovinazzi rounding out the field.

Red Bull Team Shows Their Worth, Yet Again

Into Q2 and most teams went out on the medium tire, hoping to be able to start the race on the more favourable compound, instead of the short-lasting soft. However, early on his first lap out of the pits, Verstappen complained (re: yelled into the radio) to his pit wall that he had “no power”, boxing immediately with the car pushed into the garage.
His teammate Albon, meanwhile, under pressure to keep his seat for next year, was pushing hard. This caused him to overdrive, spinning at Variante Alta, the chicane near the end of the lap, and flatspotting his medium tires.
Other drivers had started to set times, however, with Vettel setting the first competitive lap. However, this was later deleted as the beleaguered German extended the track at Rivazza #2, the last corner, spreading gravel over the racing line which wasn’t swept away until after the session ended.
The Red Bull team were working feverishly to fix Verstappen’s car to get him back on track. Team Principal Christian Horner said on the world feed that it had been diagnosed as a spark plug malfunction, which typically takes 15 minutes to fix. Minutes later, however, Verstappen was back on track and at full tilt, raising the question - can Red Bull mechanics replace a spark plug quicker than Albon can set a lap time?
Back on track, Hamilton and Bottas were setting their final lap times, with Bottas once again beating Hamilton by a mere half a tenth of a second. Gasly, in an impressive showing, and foreshadowing Q3, put his Alpha Tauri third, with Albon fourth, two tenths ahead of his wunderkid teammate. Ricciardo took fifth, with Verstappen sixth - a good effort considering it was his only Q2 flying lap following his mechanics’ master class. Leclerc was 7th, with Kyvat an excellent 8th in his first Q3 appearance of the year. Sainz and Norris rounded out the top 10 qualifiers for the final part of qualifying.
In a surprise twist, both the Racing Points of Stroll and Perez failed to get into Q3, the first time both pink cars failed to get into Q3 since the Styrain Grand Prix. With Perez 11th, Ocon posted a disappointing lap time, good for only 12th and two tenths off his Aussie teammate. For the second time in two races, Russell, in an ever-improving Williams FW43, out-qualified Vettel, while Stroll rounded out the top 15.

Bottas Pips Hamilton

With just over 10 minutes of track time left for the day, the cars went out on this glorious circuit for the final time of the afternoon. Lewis Hamilton was the first man to put a lap on the board, doing so in a scrappy manner after dipping his tyres into the gravel in the final sector.
This Q3 session brought us something we haven’t seen since the Mexican Grand Prix last year, Daniil Kyvat. The Russian did a great job to not only bring his Alpha Tauri into Q3 but also to put himself in a very respectable P8 to start the Grand Prix tomorrow. His teammate Pierre Gasly qualified in fourth place, another superb performance from the Frenchman who has been having a stellar season bouncing back from chaos in 2019.
Meanwhile at Mclaren, the day was not as good. Carlos Sainz, who we typically see outperforming his younger teammate, qualified down in 10th with Lando Norris just one spot ahead of him. The Woking team’s new upgrades appeared to not work as they intended. Although their qualifying was not up to par, they are still in a good position to get solid points on Sunday especially with the Racing Points a few grid spots back.
Today Charles Leclerc was once again the only Ferrari to make it into Q3. The Ferrari driver will be starting in P7 after wrestling his SF1000 into the top 10. After an excellent performance in Portugal last week, young Charles will be hoping to deliver the best result he can at the Scuderia’s third home race of the season.
Just ahead of Leclerc in P6 is Alexander Albon. The Thai driver had a frustrating afternoon with track limits, with multiple laptimes of his being deleted during the course of the three sessions. Nevertheless, he put in a solid lap that will give him an opportunity to capitalize on some points and make an effort in order to save his seat at the Red Bull team.
Daniel Ricciardo, like Pierre Gasly, also had a great day. Despite a brief scare in the pit lane, the Aussie star put in a nice lap to place his Renault in the top 5. He will be starting the race tomorrow alongside Gasly.
Now to the top 3, where we caught a glimpse of some true competition amongst the big teams. Lewis Hamilton put in a 1:14.229 which ultimately was not enough as his teammate Valtteri Bottas, unlike last week in Portugal, was able to conquer the Briton. The Finn pipped Hamilton from pole position by a margin of 8 hundredths of a second and is looking forward to a secret meeting with Toto later tonight. Max Verstappen will be starting behind the Mercedes duo in P3.

Looking Forward to the Race

In the post qualifying interviews, Lewis Hamilton told Johnny Herbert that it will likely be a boring race tomorrow, emphasizing the difficulty of overtaking at this circuit. Jeremy Clarkson, who is not shy of expressing his opinions on modern F1, disagreed. If some middle-aged men can overtake each other in big supercars at Imola, surely the 20 best drivers in the world in Formula 1 cars can make it happen, too.
Banter aside, we genuinely have a recipe for an interesting Grand Prix tomorrow. Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly, Daniel Ricciardo, and Alexander Albon are all starting together which should make for a spectacle. Elsewhere there is the fight for the remaining points between Esteban Ocon, the McLarens, and the Racing Points in addition to the potential scrap for the win between the two Mercedes drivers. Imola is undoubtedly one of the best circuits in the world. For it’s sake and ours, let’s hope Formula 1 can deliver a race that is worthy of this legendary place.

Predictions

By redbullcat
If Lewis can get a good start tomorrow and overtake his teammate on the long run down to Tamburello, the race at the front is as good as done, with overtaking at Imola being so tricky. Barring any more power unit issues Verstappen should coast to third, or second if he can leapfrog Bottas with an alternative strategy.
The race for the final points positions should be close, with the McLarens, Perez in the Racing Point, and Ocon in the Renault starting on the 5th and 6th row. While I hope Gasly can hold on to his stunning 4th, I feel like he may begin to slip back, especially with Ricciardo right behind and Leclerc continually outperforming the SF1000 relative to his ultra-successful teammate.
As ever, I would love to see George Russell get his first F1 points. All he needs is a few good overtaking moves - tricky at Imola, but a lad of George’s skill can pull it off - some clever defending, and a retirement or two. C’mon George!
By Felix_670
With overtaking very difficult here at Imola, if Valtteri Bottas can hold off Hamilton and potentially Verstappen into turn 1, he could have a shot at winning this race. However, if that doesn’t happen and Lewis pips him into T1, it’s over. Alternatively, I think if Max gets an electric start he could take the lead into T1 and hold off the Mercs at least for a good few laps, nothing more than that unfortunately. It would be cool to see.
In the midfield, especially from P4-P7 I think we could get a fantastic fight and spectacle. Gasly, Danny Ricc, Albon, and Leclerc all starting next to each other?! Sign me up.
Elsewhere I think the fight for the last points positions should also be pretty good. The two RPs will be hungry to recover from their disappointing quali in addition to the McLarens and Ocon. I believe one of these guys will retire and Sebastian Vettel will be there to pick up the scraps for another points finish. Nothing more than P9, but I bet he’d sure as hell prefer that then 13th.
Editor’s note: if you missed flipjj‘s ebook on Lewis Hamilton’s 92 win career, be sure to check it out here.

[Figure Skating] The Queen ousted by Russia's latest wunderkind at the Olympics; Fans, commentators, media alike all cry foul

So yesterday in my post about the Yuna Kim-Brian Orser split back in 2010, I mentioned the 2014 judging outcry in the ladies' singles event at the Sochi Olympics, and some people asked me to write about it. Since I am also excited to spill the tea and have time today, here it is!
Disclaimer that while sources on this are much easier to find than the previous drama I wrote about, I also wasn't in the fandom while this went down in 2014, having only joined much more recently. Any facts I got wrong, please do correct me!
Let's get into the 2014 Sochi Olympics Judging Scandal at the ladies' singles event, where 17-year-old Adelina Sotnikova of Russia won the title of Olympic Champion over Yuna Kim of South Korea, undisputed star of skating, causing outcry from everyone except seemingly the Russians.

Who is Yuna Kim?

As I mentioned in my previous post, Queen Yuna really needs no introduction, but anyway: Yuna Kim, called "Queen Yuna" by both fans and media, is the 2010 Olympic Champion, 2009 and 2013 World Champion, and the 2014 Olympic Silver Medalist which is what this scandal revolves around. She focuses more on her ice show, exhibitions and media career, having retired after this whole drama I'm writing about went down. In her time, she was an amazing trailblazer for Figure Skating in South Korea, which is traditionally stronger in speed skating. Iirc, she had already said that she plans on retiring after the 2014 Olympics before it happened.
Arriving in Sochi in 2014, Yuna was definitely the most famous skater competing at the time, her fame only grown since she won the 2010 Olympics four years prior. She was the icon of figure skating, the skater to watch. She was like the Michelle Kwan of her time with David Beckham kind of fame; even people who didn't watch the sport knew her. Her fans were worldwide and extensive. Coming into Sochi like that, she was definitely front-runner for the Gold, despite her career in the past four years being filled with several breaks from competition.

Who is Adelina Sotnikova?

Adelina Sotnikova is the 2014 Olympic Champion aged 17 and two-time Europeans Silver Medalist (2013, 2014). Adelina, being 17, had not been competing on the senior level for long and had never won a major senior competition before the 2014 Olympics, and it should be noted that the European Championship where she won her two silvers is considered not as prestigious as other competitions such as the World Championships or Grand Prix Final. She was, however, hailed as one of Russia's two newest lady skating stars with Yulia Lipnitskaya, both of them young (17 and 15 years old) and with time to grow.
Going into Sochi in 2014, the first thing you'd probably notice is that Adelina has home-ground advantage, which will come into play later. After her silver medal at the 2014 European Championship around a month before the Olympics, she was mostly considered a possible contender for Bronze, if that, but the majority of people instead saw her teammate Yulia as the greater potential medalist, as she had a silver medal from the Grand Prix Final that season and had won the European Championships that year over Adelina.

Build-Up: The Sochi Olympics and politicking in Figure Skating

So now that I've introduced you to our main players, I need to give context on several other things in order to understand what happened going into Sochi:
**The Figure Skating Scoring System (IJS)**
In 2002, a scandal in the Olympic pairs event (which needs a whole other post to describe) resulted in a complete overhaul of the judging system that while, in my opinion, is more objective compared to the old ranking system that was the 6.0 system, is also harder for the casual fan to understand. In order to understand many of the arguments later made, however, you need a basic understanding of the scoring system (now know as the IJS).
This is a link to an excellent in-depth guide, but I'll summarise it here: In all international competitions, there are two segments: the short program, and the free program. They differ only in limitations on jumps done, and time limit (the free is longer and is more, well, free of restrictions), but the way they are scored is the same. Skaters get individual scores for their short and free programs, which add up to make their total score. So say, if a skater is 9th in the short program, they can still finish 3rd overall by doing amazingly in the free while everyone else falters; which is how Denis Ten of Kazakhstan won a historic Olympic Bronze in the men's event that year as well (RIP, Denis; We'll always miss you).
Each segment's score has two components: technical score (TES) and performance score (PCS). So a skater's total score can further be broken down into short program TES + short program PCS + free program TES + free program PCS.
Technical Score (TES) judges the difficulty of a skater's program, split into Base Value (BV), which is sort of the difficulty of the program planned, and Grade of Execution (GOE), aka how well did the skater do her program. GOE scores range from -3 to +3. It's therefore possible to have a harder program score lower than a easier one if the harder program has worse GOEs. The thing to note is that while BV is fixed to the type of jumps etc done, GOE is decided by a panel of nine judges giving scores and taking the average, and therefore is one of the more subjective parts of scoring. This will be noteworthy during the event.
Performance score (PCS) judges the artistic side of the skater's program, split into five categories such as performance and interpretation of the music. Each of the nine judges will give a score out of ten, with increments of 0.25, which is also averaged. This means PCS is also one of the more subjective parts of scoring.
Judges at international competition, especially the Olympics, come from all over the globe but mostly from the big skating federations like Russia, Japan, the USA etc. In 2014, judging was completely anonymous, so we didn't know which judge gave what score. We were, however, given the names of the judges, so it's easy enough to figure out everyone's nationality and make guesses based on GOEs and PCS (I mean judges always tend to be more lenient to their own skaters. Normally though, a small range of GOEs is expected because what judges consider good execution may differ slightly, that's what the average is for).
Politicking in Figure Skating
Figure Skating is, unfortunately known for politicking, especially when two major components of scores (GOE and PCS) are so subjective. The "big three" of Skating Federations is traditionally Russia (FFKK), Canada (Skate Canada), and the USA (USFSA). In recent years, however, more federations have grown and become more powerful, such as Japan (JFS) and China (CSA) as more and more prominent skaters come from there. Coming from a bigger federation tends to give you a boost in both PCS and GOE, because, well, politicking. I've never gotten a straight answer from anyone on why, but that is the trend often seen: skaters from big feds tend to have an advantage, not just in funding.
Adelina, being from Russia, has two huge advantages in this scoring system: One, she's Russian, so she gets generous PCS and GOE; two, she's skating on home-ground, where seemingly more judges are from the hosting country. You can imagine how that's an advantage.
Yuna, as famous as she is, also tends to get high PCS and GOE, although imo she actually does deserve those high scores. Coming from a smaller fed that is South Korea (I did mention she was their trailblazer right), skating in Russia means many Russian judges will want to have a Russian champion.
It's important to note, however, that such politicking is almost never on the skater's end; it's not like there's cases of skaters bribing the judges all the time. It's the sort of subtle politics that goes on between the judges and the skaters' federations.
Home-ground advantage
2014's Sochi Olympics had, imo, one of the worst audiences ever seen at the Olympics. In this video of Yuzuru Hanyu's world record-breaking short program over in the men's event, you can hear the audience shouting "ROSSIYA" before his skate, and although I don't have video receipts, I'm told this happened to Yuna as well. Skating on home-ground means Adelina has her fair share of fans in the audience all rooting for a Russian champion. While this can mean the pressure is on to win, causing some skaters to buckle, it can also mean huge support for a skater.
While Yulia was the favourite of the Russians, it doesn't mean Adelina didn't also receive support. Russia had never won Olympic Gold in the ladies event before this, and so despite supporting Yulia more, both Adelina and Yulia received much support from the Russians. This also does influence PCS scores slightly; judges are only human and getting the audience on your side should give you a boost in performance marks.

The Controversy: Scoring

God I don't even know how to explain this, so lemme just throw out both scores from the 2014 ladies' singles event and the world-records at the time to compare, then break it down slowly.

*Skater*	*Short Score*	*World Record at the time*	*Free Score*	*World Record at the time*	*Total Score*
Yuna	74.92	78.50	144.19	150.06	219.11
Adelina	74.64		149.95		224.59

As we can see, Adelina scored a good five points ahead of Yuna in a sport where medals can be decided based on 0.01 of a point, and won the Olympic Gold. It's also noteworthy that she her free skate is within 0.09 points of Yuna's own standing world record from the 2010 Olympics, and that her short program is only a hair away of Yuna's score.
Immediate. Fan. Outcry.
Debates rages on how this could have happened; how could the Queen have lost to a skater who has never previously won a senior level competition before, who isn't even the favourite in her home country? How did Adelina even score a score within 0.09 of the world record when her last competition's score (at the European Championships) was around 130?
Responses range between fans; fans of Adelina (largely Russians) are, of course, overjoyed; fans of Yuna are outraged. At least 1.5million fans sign a petition calling for an inquiry, blog posts and youtube videos are made analysing every single GOE and PCS point given to each skater, and generally the skating world goes apeshit. I highly recommend this video of the Italian Commentators being absolutely pissed when Yuna's results are announced, to the point that they nearly forgot their own Carolina Kostner's historic Bronze Medal. (Thank you to u/bubbled_pop for the link in my previous posts' comments, I've never seen the full thing before and it's amazing and hilarious)
In the aftermath of all this, it's hard to narrow down exactly the arguments made for and against the judging, but I'll split it up and try to work my way down. This is where you should revise the scoring system summary I wrote above, because here's where it comes into play.
For Yuna
Honestly, after reading this section, it's pretty convincing that Adelina's scores were pretty inflated (through most likely no fault of her own, mind), but try and keep an open mind:
One, a whole bunch of shade was cast on the judging panel, not without good cause. This video breaks it down quite well, but I'll summarise:
Two of the judges in the free skate had some shady pasts, one Russian and one Ukrainian. Yuri Balkov of Ukraine and Alla Shekhovtseva of Russia had some major red flags to their names. Shekhovtseva is the wife of the longtime president and general director of the Russian Skating Federation, and Balkov had previosuly been suspended for a year for being caught on tape fixing results of the ice dancing events in the 1998 Nagano Olympics and reportedly has ties to Moscow. Also, the technical panel head that day was Russian Alexander Lakernik, who is essentially in charge of spotting major execution mistakes such as edge calls that incur additional deduction from a skater's score. In short, three judges have ties to Russia and a reason to fight for a Russian champion. Many speculate that after Russian favourite Yulia fell in her free skate and thus took herself out of the running, the judges were desperate and inflated Adelina's scores to allow her the win. This is supported by how there are some judges on her score card who gave Adelina +3s for nearly everything, even things other judges felt were average +1s at best.
Additionally, the nine judges are picked from a pool of 13. After the short program, judges from South Korea (Yuna's home country), U.S., Great Britain, and Sweden were swapped out for the free skate because they had already worked the short program. "The two other new long program judges were from Estonia and France, which was the country that conspired with Russia to try to fix the pairs and ice dancing competition at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City," USA Today reports, according to the article I linked above. Suspicious? So were the fans at the time.
This is not at all helped by pictures of Adelina hugging Shekhovtseva that later emerged, prompting even more conspiracy theories about judging being fixed. It can be argued that it was taken after the competition, initiated by Adelina, and Russian judges would have plenty of reason to hug their first champion in Ladies's singles. This convinced exactly no one.
Two, It's been argued that Adelina's GOEs and PCS were inflated to the max. This is the one thing I actually have substantial receipts on, so let's go! (Also, if I sound tired here, reddit deleted this entire bit twice the first two times I wrote it and I'm rewriting again it half asleep, sorry) There are several articles detailing this section well, but I'll summarise:
Firstly, it must be established that yes, Adelina's performance was more technically difficult, having a higher BV (aka harder program) than Yuna's and was also higher from her performance at the European Championships the month before, mostly due to her increasing the difficulty of the jumps. You can see the scores at the ISU page for the 2014 Olympics, but if you don't understand the jargon, basically Adelina's BV was nearly four points above Yuna's, meaning it's a technically harder program. This is backed up by the fact that Adelina did 7 triple jumps to Yuna's 6 in the free, meaning more points.
The problem, however, comes from her GOEs and PCS, aka the most easily inflated parts of a score, especially if you have judges on your side; and also when you compare Adelina's scores to her competitors that day.
Just at the Olympics alone, Adelina scored 12 points from her GOEs; at her last major competition, the European Championships, she only scored 8 points in GOE. This Video compares Adelina's scores at the TEB, a competition about four months before the Olympics, to her Olympic scores, finding an almost 25-30 inflation of scores split into 4.70 in Short program PCS, 9 points in free program GOE, and 10 points in free program PCS. Although her scores at the European Championships were improvements over TEB after a three month training period between the competitions, a 4-5 increase in GOE in a month is almost unheard of. Additionally, Adelina had several mistakes in her Olympic skate that were not called by the judges, including an edge call on a Lutz jump that would have given her a deduction and negative GOE instead of the +1 GOE she got, and an under-rotated Loop jump that, if called, would also have resulted in deduction. Basically, even with her mistakes, Adelina scored a score way higher than anything she'd ever achieved before.
In PCS, Adelina scored about 74 points at the Olympics, only slightly (like less than 0.50 points) lower than Yuna, and higher than both Carolina Kostner and Mao Asada's scores of about 73 and 69 respectively, aka Adelina's performance quality was better than or on par with all of them, despite all three being known for great performances. Split into categories, Adelina scored higher on skating skills than Yuna and Mao (who is known for great steps and skating skills) and on choreography than Carolina and Yuna, despite many feeling the other two's performances were better, not even mentioning the other three categories. At the European Championships, her PCS was 69, hence in a month, Adelina's performance quality had supposedly improved enough to beat out every other skater known for good performances.
Overall, from the European Championships to the Olympics, Adelina's free program score increased from 131 (a then-season's best) to 149, and her total score from 202 to 224, which just. Doesn't happen unless a skater really screwed up their first competition, and Adelina obviously didn't considering it was a season's best. It's like saying in a month, Adelina's improved on every single thing she did.
Basically, Adelina's score was not only incredibly high with an almost impossible improvement, it also had no reason to beat out not just Yuna, but Bronze Medalist Carolina and 4th place Mao.
For Adelina
That's not to say Adelina doesn't have her own supporters. There are two main arguments that people like to give for Adelina's win:
One, technical ability: Some argue that the technical difficulty, aka the Base Value (BV) of Adelina's planned content was higher due to her executing more triple jumps. According to the score sheets, Adelina's planned jumps and spins content in her free program had seven triple jumps to Yuna's six, and would have already given her an advantage of four points over Yuna, explaining why her final score is four points above Yuna's, assuming they received similar GOE and PCS. The problem with this is actually, as mentioned above, many feel Adelina's PCS and GOE, aka the easily inflated parts of the score, were too high. Additionally, Mao Asada of Japan had eight triple jumps and still scored less than Adelina despite having much better PCS on average.
Two, Yuna's heart wasn't in it. After her 2010 win, Yuna had made some hints of doing all she had wanted to do and was willing to retire, but had been forced by the Korean Federation to continue competing until Sochi. Some people argued that her programs, while still good, were flat and uninspired, thus allowing Adelina to push ahead. Personally, I call bullshit, but that's how figure skating works, I guess; you'll always have people who disagree.
Personally, a lot of those reasons sound like bullshit to me. You can probably guess which side I'm on.
Responses
Whatever the reasons or side you took, the debate raged on. There's a comment I read somewhere by a Yuna fan who was at Sochi for the Olympics about how after Yuna lost gold, there were two Russian girls nearby who saw her crying and made snide remarks while giggling, which generally seems to sum up the Russian fans' response to this, saying Adelina deserved it and rejoicing over their first Olympic gold medal in Ladies' Singles. Tatiana Tarasova (TAT) and Alexei Mishin, two very prominant Russian Coaches take Adelina's side, along with Tara Lipniski, Johnny Weir and Scott Hamilton of the USA, although the last three later change sides after the Olympics. A New York Times article is published detailing how Adelina won.
Meanwhile, Yuna's much bigger fanbase fights back.ESPN's poll shows that 75% of participants think Yuna should have won, and a change.org petition to give Yuna gold breaks several records at the site. #yunawasrobbed starts trending especially in South Korea, where Yuna is a national icon, and unfortunately, many people direct their ire towards Adelina, who is actually probably fairly innocent in this and is not to blame for the judges' bias. Many former-Olympic and competitive skaters throw in their own two cents mostly on Yuna's side, including pratically all commentators in the building that day, Kurt Browning (four-time world champion) and Paul Wylie (1992 Olympic Silver) who couldn't explain how in the hell Adelina's score was so high, Dick Button, an absolute legend in skating as the 1948 and 1952 Olympic Champion, Katerina Witt and so on. See the Wikipedia page for the full list, because it crashed my page for some reason the last time I copied the text in and I'm not doing that again.
To this day this is still a pretty hot topic in the skating community. I've seen some people saying Adelina seemed way too happy at the press conference, handled pointed questions badly and didn't acknowledge how inflated her scores were, but she's 17 and just won the Olympics, I don't think it's fair to degrade her media skills at 17 years old. Yuna, on the other hand, took this all graciously (unlike Evgeni Plushenko in 2010, a whole other drama where he constantly insulted the Gold medalist), accepted her silver medal and retired gracefully, though not without sadness from her fans.
Responses to this drama by official sources are short, but here's a timeline below (Taken mostly from Wikipedia):

21 Feb: the ISU, the international governing body for skating, says that "The ISU has not received any official protest with regard to the Ladies’ Free Skating event or any other event held during the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games and is confident in the high quality and integrity of the ISU judging system." aka all proper rules were carried out and enforced. They also pointed out that judges were from a variety of countries, not just Russia. Additionally, they say that South Korea, at the Olympics, had thirty minutes to contest the scores but did not do so, hence they cannot be appealed that way anymore.
10 Apr: the Korean Olympic Committee (KOC) and the Korean Skating Union (KSU) filed an official complaint with the ISU Disciplinary Commission (DC) concerning judging. The complaint was regarding "the wrongful constitution of the panel of judges and the unjust outcome of the competition". It requested that the DC conduct a thorough investigation, "take appropriate disciplinary actions against the concerned individuals", and institute corrective actions.
14 Apr: the DC ruled the complaint inadmissible because a general request for investigation is not within DC's jurisdiction and the complaint was not addressed at an individual or federation as required.
30 Apr: KOC and KSU filed a second official complaint with the DC. This time the complaint was against Alla Shekhovtsova and Figure Skating Federation of Russia (FSFR), specifically citing the hug Shekhovtsova shared with Sotnikova and Shekhovtsova's marriage to the current Director General of the FSFR.
30 May: the DC dismissed the complaint. It ruled Shekhovtsova "is not responsible for the judging panel's composition", her marriage did not create a conflict of interest, and since Sotnikova initiated the hug, Shekhovtsova did not break any rules by responding.
And that's about it. "As of June 2014, the KOC and KSU are considering appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)" says Wikipedia, but nothing seems to have come out of it.

So yeah, not much help there. The debate rages on, and we'll probably never have any substantial outcome to this.

Aftermath

In the end, no inquiry went through and the medals were not changed. No matter what protests and complaints filed, Yuna kept her silver medal, Adelina kept her gold, and people just had to move on. Nothing short of Adelina somehow being involved in the Russian Doping Scheme will take that medal away from her.
Yuna, as I said in my previous post, moves on. She retires as planned after the 2014 Olympics, taking her silver, her 2010 Olympic gold, all the titles she's amassed over her career (She's never, ever finished off the podium ever, not even while a junior) and the love of all her fans. She now focuses more on her media career, still being one of the most well-known skaters ever, and occasionally shows up randomly at competitions in Korea as a guest of honour to give out hugs and plushies. She also lit the Olympic cauldron at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic games. In her career, she did incredible miracles for promoting figure skating as a sport in South Korea, and South Korea's ladies field is now incredibly deep and full of talent, many of them citing Yuna as their inspiration. IMO, She will be known forever as Queen Yuna to her fans, and she seems happy and content enough now.
Adelina, however, was basically ruined by this whole shebang. Adelina imo was a talented skater with great spins who could have had a few years more of competition had this not happened; even winning bronze wouldn't have resulted in such controversy. The YouTube video on the Olympic Channel on her free skate has an absolutely abysmal likes-to-dislikes ratio and people in the comments calling her the thief who stole Yuna's crown; despite the fact it was most likely not her fault her scores were inflated as such, she was the one who (undeservedly imo) earned all the ire and hate of the fans aged 17. After her Olympic win, her career went downhill; after sitting out the 2014 to 2015 skating season due to ligament injury, she was superseded by the next batch of Russian ladies when she returned in the 2015 to 2016 season, which really shows the sad truth of the depth of talent in the current Russian Ladies. After not competing since that season, she finally announced her retirement in 2020, but since 2016 had only been appearing in ice shows anyway. To this day, I only ever see mentions of her when talking about Yuna's loss of the Gold in 2014.
Fans continue to debate long and hard about this result; a not insignificant of the English-speaking fandom seems to favour Yuna and likes putting down Adelina, although many others, while supporting Yuna, are much more sympathetic to Adelina which is where I fall on this scale. While I do agree and will scream to the high heavens that Yuna deserved the Gold, it's extremely sad to me that it also caused Adelina's downhill career when she herself probably played barely any part in her inflated scores (It's not like she asked them to make it higher). In this scandal, there were truly no winners.

Content Update: Britmas arrives alongside a flood of new and returning content including many Christmas specials, pantomimes, Rising Damp in full, Channel 5 programming and more

Buckle in, boys and girls. This is going to be an epic, selection box of a read. So, let's get started, shall we?
We begin with every episode of '70s classic Rising Damp. This includes the 1975 Christmas special, listed separately as part of Britmas. We'll get to that later. Rising Damp is broken down into 5 series (with the pilot episode on its own). The overall synopsis is as follows:

Leonard Rossiter, Frances de la Tour, Richard Beckinsale and Don Warrington star in this classic 70s comedy set in a tumbledown boarding house. Follow the ups and downs of landlord Rigsby and his long-suffering tenants Ruth, Alan and Philip.

Next up, we have a large slate of Channel 5 programming. Here is the full list:

Billionaire Babies (1 series)

Meet the uber privileged youngsters whose rich parents will stop at nothing to give them what they want. Think private zoos, super yachts and fancy cars. Nothing is too grand for these billionaire babes.

By Royal Appointment: Shops Serving The Queen

Documentary shining a light on both the most famous and lesser known shops that carry the royal warrant. From cheese to chocolate, books to bespoke suits, the royals don't do shopping centres.

Charles & Camilla: King and Queen in Waiting

Documentary exploring the royal couple’s enduring romance. Discover how their scandalous love affair transformed into a loving partnership that saw Camilla win the nation’s hearts.

The Clues that Caught the Killer: Fred & Rose West

Crime documentary examining the clues that caught serial killers Fred and Rose West. In his first ever documentary interview, investigating officer Terry Moore reveals the details of the police work that resulted in Rose West's conviction.

The Eastenders Murders: True Crime, Real Tragedy

Crime documentary investigating the murder of two former Eastenders stars, Gemma McCluskie and Sian Blake. Follow the final days of both women before their tragic deaths and hear insights from friends & experts.

Grenfell Tower: Minute By Minute

Survivors of the Grenfell Tower tragedy recount their experiences in this poignant documentary. On 14th June 2017, a fire broke out in a West London tower block that would have devastating consequences & spark a national debate on housing.

Inside Cadbury: The Real Chocolate Factory

Documentary exploring the turbulent history of Cadbury’s. For almost 200 years, it’s been the home of chocolate, making a staggering 350 tonnes of milk chocolate a day but life hasn’t always been sweet for the firm.

Lip Sync Battle UK (2 series)

Catch Danny Dyer, Jimmy Carr, Alesha Dixon & other celebs as they strut their stuff on stage in this utterly bonkers musical reality show. Watch them go head to head in the ultimate lip syncing challenge!

OMG (1 series)

Intimate doc series exploring the extraordinary lengths that ordinary people go to in order to get their ideal body. From those forking out thousands on plastic surgery to those piercing & painting every inch of their skin, hear their stories.

Princess Anne: The Daughter Who Should Be Queen

Royal doc exploring how the Queen’s only daughter comes across in public. Despite being born into a male dominated world, Anne has survived a kidnap attempt, divorce and even an Olympic Game, so how does she do it?

Undercover Girlfriends (2 series)

Reality show following five girls as they spy on their boyfriends to work out if they are 'the one'. Watch as their oblivious lovers head off on a VIP trip thinking they're filming a TV show about being on a mates’ holiday.

There's still more, as the "Centre Stage" collection - the hub for everything pertaining to the arts - was also treated to an update today with the following 3 additions:

Cirque Du Soleil - Luzia

Enjoy the world famous Cirque du Soleil, a mixture of circus arts and street entertainment that produces incredible theatrical events.

The Merchant of Venice

Lavish screen adaptation of the National Theatre play starring Laurence Olivier as one of Shakespeare's most controversial characters - the moneylender, Shylock.

Twelfth Night

Alec Guinness stars in this merry Shakespeare farce about the muddling up of lives and loves. Expect slapstick, puns and double entendres galore. Hundreds of years after it was written and it’s still a bleeding riot.

Not wanting to miss the party, Channel 4 has also made an appearance today with Diana: The Truth Behind The Interview, which originally aired last month and investigates the machinations of the infamous 1995 Panorama interview.

Princess Diana's 1995 interview with the BBC stunned the world. Twenty five years later, insiders reveal the story behind one of the most momentous programmes in the history of TV.

And finally, we come to today's main event - Britmas 2020, featuring a large variety of Christmas specials, pantomimes and more. The new and returning additions are as follows:

'Allo, 'Allo! Christmas Special 1985: The Gateau from the Chateau

Christmas Special 1985. WWII comedy starring Gordon Kaye as a French café owner. Rene gets himself tangled up in a string of murder plots when General Von Klinkerhoffen decides to stick around & get more involved in controlling the district.

'Allo, 'Allo! Christmas Special 1991

Christmas Special 1991. WWII comedy starring Gordon Kaye as French café owner Rene. Hoping for a bit of peace now the British airmen have made it back to Blighty, Rene is shocked to discover that Yvette is pregnant. Sacre bleu!

2Point4 Children Christmas Special 1993: Babes in the Wood

Christmas Special 1993. The Porters & their friend Rona decide to spend a relaxing Christmas with Bette and Auntie Pearl in a country hotel. Of course it doesn't quite go to plan...

A Christmas Carol

A modern take on Dickens. Loan shark Eddie Scrooge has his local housing estate in a grip of fear, but on the night before Christmas he is visited by the ghost of his ex-partner.

Aladdin

Follow the story of Aladdin and his magic lamp in this panto featuring music from S Club 7. Starring Patsy Kensit & Paul Merton.

All Creatures Great and Small Christmas Special 1983

Christmas Special 1983. Christopher Timothy stars as the country vet in James Herriot’s 1940s tales of rural Yorkshire. After the war, James struggles to adjust to normal life and the new addition to the family.

All Creatures Great and Small Christmas Special 1985

Christmas Special 1985. Christopher Timothy stars as the good-natured vet in James Herriot’s 1940s tales of rural Yorkshire. Whether rescuing dogs from peat bogs or separating livestock from their flock, there’ll be no rest for this poor vet.

All Creatures Great and Small Christmas Special 1990

Christmas Special 1990. When Tristan discovers that the attractive new school teacher is part of the bell-ringing team, he decides to try his hand at campanology. Meanwhile, the brothers fall out over the treatment of an enormous wolfhound.

Are You Being Served? Christmas Special 1975: Christmas Crackers

Christmas Special 1975. Bafta-nominated comedy set in a department store in 70s London. The staff are called to an early morning meeting to discuss boosting Christmas sales. But, someone’s already had a bright idea – and it involves novelty costumes.

Are You Being Served? Christmas Special 1976: The Father Christmas Affair

Christmas Special 1976. Grace Brothers desicion to have electric Father Christmas models fails so they try and find a human replacement, but which staff member will make the cut?

Are You Being Served? Christmas Special 1979: The Punch and Judy Affair

Christmas Special 1979. Bafta-nominated comedy set in a department store in 70s London. The floor staff are desperate to win back their colleagues’ goodwill after not joining their strike, so they come up with a cunning plan.

Bergerac Christmas Special 1986: Fires in the Fall

Christmas Special 1986: John Nettles stars as the Jersey detective who's asked to delve into some supernatural myths when an ageing millionairess gets drawn in by a psychic who claims to speak to the dead.

Bergerac Christmas Special 1987: Treasure Hunt

Christmas Special 1987. John Nettles stars as the Jersey detective who investigates a series of robberies and a murder that become increasingly complicated by the return of his arch nemesis, Philippa Vale.

Bergerac Christmas Special 1988: Retirement Plan

Christmas Special 1988. John Nettles stars as the Jersey detective who travels to Spain to deal with someone who has been threatening Charlie, and then finds himself caught up in a gangland power struggle.

Bergerac Christmas Special 1989: Second Time Around

Christmas Special 1989. John Nettles stars as the Jersey detective who gets asked by a recently-freed prisoner to investigate a historic murder case, believing that he was framed for the killing of a former gangster.

Bergerac Christmas Special 1990: Three for the Picking

Christmas Special 1990. John Nettles stars as the Jersey detective who, now living in Provence, offers to assist Albert with his grape harvest, but the arrival of two other young helpers causes problems.

Bernard and the Genie

Lenny Henry stars in this magical festive tale from Richard Curtis. Bernard is having a rubbish Christmas after being betrayed by his fiance, best friend and boss. But when he rubs an antique lamp and things start to change, quite explosively!

Bread Christmas Special 1989: A Quiet Christmas

Christmas Special 1989. Christmas with the Boswells is anything but quiet as Nellie and Jack get to see some turkeys and the family have their Christmas presents stolen.

Bread Christmas Special 1990

Christmas Special 1990. Peter Howitt stars in Carla Lane’s classic sitcom about life for the cash-strapped Boswell clan in 80s Liverpool. Mrs Boswell discovers, to her dismay, that sometimes it’s the smallest things that cause the biggest headaches.

Butterflies Christmas Special 1979: Christmas with the Parkinsons

Christmas Special 1979. Carla Lane’s bittersweet 70s comedy about a frustrated suburban housewife stars Wendy Craig & Nicholas Lyndhurst. Despite the stress of cooking for Christmas, Ria’s hopes are lifted by the thought of meeting her admirer.

Christmas Lights

Robson Green & Mark Benton star as ultra competitive brothers in law who take their friendly rivalry to extremes when decorating their houses one Christmas. Have they gone too far this time?

Cinderella

Catch Simon Nye's comic interpretation of the classic fairy tale, with an all-star cast including Ronnie Corbett, Frank Skinner & Sian Phillips. Poor Cinderella is badly treated by her ugly stepsisters, until her Fairy Godmother arrives to help.

Coronation Street: The 2005 Christmas Pantomime

Coronation Street cast including Debra Stephenson & Bradley Walsh star as classic panto characters in this special show crammed with songs, comedy and special effects, combining a selection of the nation's favourite pantomimes.

Corrie at Christmas

Sue Johnston narrates this celebration of the best festive moments from almost six decades of TV’s longest-running soap. Delving into the archives, the programme showcases storylines about betrayals, break-ups, weddings and more.

Ever Decreasing Circles Christmas Special 1989

Christmas Special 1989. Richard Briars, Penelope Wilton & Peter Egan star in this classic 80s sitcom. Self-styled backbone of the local community Martin gets an offer to relocate for work, but what would the community do without him?!

Hi De Hi! Christmas Special 1985: The Great Cat Robbery

Christmas Special 1985. From the creators of Dad’s Army comes this Bafta-winning 80s sitcom. When the staff at Maplins holiday camp realise a burglar was a former camper, they wonder if he left any of his ill-gotten gains behind...

Jack and the Beanstalk

Paul Merton narrates this panto classic from London's Old Vic. Written by Simon Nye, it captures the tale of young Jack in typically boisterous fashion with stars including Griff Rhys Jones, Denise Van Outen & Julian Clary.

Last Of The Summer Wine Christmas Special 1983: Getting Sam Home

Christmas Special 1983. The boys visit Sam in hospital and agree to help him spend one last night with his 'other woman', but Ivy gets suspicious.

Last of The Summer Wine Christmas Special 1985: Uncles of the Bride

Christmas Special 1985. Edie and Wesley's daughter, Glenda, is marrying the hapless but kind-hearted Barry.

Last of The Summer Wine Christmas Special 1987: Big Day at Dream Acres

Christmas Special 1987. It's the annual garden fete at Dream Acres - Nora Batty is VIP waitress and a tramp who has taken a special interest in a particular donkey.

The Nativity Christmas Special

Peter Capaldi & Neil Dudgeon star in Tony Jordan's take on the story of the Nativity set in the troubled times of turn-of-the millennium Judea.

No Place Like Home Christmas Special 1984

Christmas Special 1984. Classic 80s sitcom. Arthur Crabtree is feeling miserly and decides on a frugal Christmas - his family, however, goes to the other extreme with hilarious consequences.

No Place Like Home Christmas Special 1987

Christmas Special 1987. Arthur becomes a hero after foiling a supermarket raid.

Panto Mania

Documentary which takes a look behind the scenes of four traditional pantos staged in North West England, all of which are put together by amateur dramatic groups.

Rising Damp Christmas Special: For the Man Who Has Everything

Christmas Special 1975. Leonard Rossiter, Don Warrington, Richard Beckinsale & Gay Rose star in this classic 70s sitcom. Rigsby thinks that Philip has got him the Christmas present of his dreams but, as usual, it’s not what it seems.

Robbie the Reindeer Christmas Special: Close Encounters of the Herd Kind

Animated comedy about a reindeer called Robbie. When Robbie's wedding is halted by the presence of a sinister crystal and his fiance is kidnapped, Robbie finds himself on a mission to stop the destruction of the planet by the evil Vorkan.

Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em Christmas Special 1974

Christmas Special 1974. Michael Crawford & Michele Dotrice star as the disaster-prone husband and long-suffering wife in this much-loved 70s sitcom. Frank tries to get a new job, while also causing havoc at the church nativity play.

Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em Christmas Special 1978

Christmas Special 1978. Classic 70s comedy starring Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice. Frank’s had a thrilling offer from a relative living abroad – and it involves learning to fly!

Steptoe & Son: A Perfect Christmas

Christmas Special 1974. Final episode of the classic comedy starring Harry H Corbett & Wilfred Brambell. Harold’s had enough of Christmas at home and plans a trip abroad. But Albert isn’t so keen, in fact he’d rather go to Bognor than abroad…

To the Manor Born Christmas Special 1979

With the fforbes-Hamiltons always providing the church's crib, Audrey, Marjory and Old Ned, who is acting as Audrey's butler while Brabinger is visiting his granddaughter, make a crib.

To the Manor Born Christmas Special 2007

25 years after their hugely popular love-hate relationship was finally resolved in marriage, we revisit the happy couple for a one-off special as they prepare to celebrate their silver wedding anniversary.

And as if all of THAT festive frivolity isn't enough for one day, the soaps are joining in too! First, Eastenders has returned to the service with a "Christmas Specials" boxset that features the following:

Eastenders Christmas 1985

There's a divorce, a proposal and a good old sing-along in the Queen Vic on Christmas Eve.

EastEnders Christmas Special 1986 (Part 1)

Dirty Den serves up the cruelest of Christmas presents to poor wife Angie.

EastEnders Christmas Special 1986 (Part 2)

Everyone's celebrating but Arthur Fowler finds the Christmas cheer all too much.

EastEnders Christmas Specials 1995 (Part 1)

The Vic is full of Christmas cheer while the Fowlers put on a brave face.

EastEnders Christmas Specials 1995 (Part 2)

Robbie gets caught eating turkey while Pat confronts ghosts from her past.

Eastenders Christmas Special 1998 (Part 1)

Grant's freedom is in the balance.

Eastenders Christmas Special 1998 (Part 2)

Bianca and Grant are forced to put aside their differences.

Eastenders Christmas 2005 (Part 1)

Alfie prepares to leave the square. Will Kat be going with him?

Eastenders Christmas 2005 (Part 2)

The drama continues in Albert square on Christmas day.

Eastenders Christmas 2006 (Part 1)

Dot tries to stop Pauline leaving the Square for good, but can she convince her?

Eastenders Christmas 2006 (Part 2)

Sonia's decision to confront Pauline ends disastrously.

Eastenders Christmas 2007 (Part 1)

The Beales family are in for a very tense Christmas dinner.

Eastenders Christmas 2007 (Part 2)

After watching the explosive video, tensions are running high...

Secondly, Emmerdale has added the 1979 Christmas special:

As final preparations are made for the Pantomime, Annie makes a discovery.

And wrapping everything up. Coronation Street has added 13 more Yuletide episodes to the archive (bringing the total overall count in the last 7 days to the promised 60):

Coronation Street: Christmas 1961

Christmas Day. The men go to a sports outing and the wives prepare the dinner.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1964

It's Christmas panto time but Cinderella hits a few snags.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1966

Vera Lomax lies dying but is suspicious of Ena's sudden concern.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1967

Elsie is pensive at the thought of moving to America.

Coronation Street Christmas 1968 - Part 1

The Street's residents put on a pantomime, with Lucille as Aladdin.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1968 - Part 2

The residents celebrate Christmas Day in The Rovers, with Ena on the piano.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1972

The residents of the Street put on a 1940s show in the Rovers.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1985

The Barlows' Christmas is spoilt when Susan agrees to go for a drink at a hotel.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1988

Ken reports Deirdre missing to the police. Alec employs Vera behind the bar.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1995 (found in the "Coronation Street 1995 - 1997" collection)

Vera has an exhausting Christmas running the Rovers.

Coronation Street: Christmas 1998

Christmas Day. The Duckworths stage a sit-in at the Rovers.

Coronation Street: Christmas 2005

Claire has news for Ashley. Mike is scared and distressed.

Coronation Street: Christmas 2016

It's all kicking off as Nick & Peter come to blows, and Bethany's secret gets out.

whos favourite for grand national 2020 video

Grand National TV Schedule 2021: How To Watch Aintree Showpiece. This year the Grand National is being televised live on ITV. If you are in the UK, then there is no need for pay-per-view or any fancy subscriptions to satellite channels. The race itself starts at 5.15pm on Saturday April 10, 2021, but the TV coverage itself starts several hours ... With no Grand National in 2020, we know that the Grand National 2021 will be a huge event so here are some of the runners that we think can run a great race on April 10th 2021. KIMBERLITE CANDY. GOOD. A very interesting 2021 Grand National prospect. Pulled up in the Irish Grand National but has since finished 2nd in the Becher Chase at Aintree before heading to Warwick to win a big race over ... Tiger Roll is understandably the bookies' favourite for the virtual race this year after securing back-to-back Grand National wins in 2019. 2020 Virtual Grand National: the runners, the odds, the verdict. 1 of 1. UPDATED 1:40PM, APR 4 2020. 1 Tiger Roll. Virtual National and dual Grand National winner; needs to be high on the shortlist. Odds: 5-1. 2 Bristol De Mai. Decorated Grade 1 chaser; only just stays the Gold Cup trip, so stamina is the doubt. Odds: 20-1 . 3 Aso. Former Ryanair second who has not convinced in stamina terms ... If you’re interested in finding out which horses all of the Grand National 2020 jockeys will be riding in the Grand National then visit our RUNNERS page. All the runners are listed with full form guide, odds and our opinion on their chances of winning the big one. Barry Geraghty July 20, 2020 / by Simone Wright. Ruby Walsh June 21, 2020 / by Simone Wright. A.P. McCoy May 30, 2014 / by Simone ... Any Second Now, 10-1, was third while Tiger Roll, the 5-1 favourite, who was seeking to equal Red Rum’s record of three wins in the race, was a gallant fourth after a rushed preparation. THE Virtual Grand National is just minutes away! Here is your ultimate guide to the final field of 40. Follow all the latest with our VIRTUAL GRAND NATIONAL 2020 LIVE BLOG 1. Tiger Roll/Davy Russel… No mare has won the Grand National since 1951 but this lady went very close when finishing second to Tiger Roll. Bristol De Mai. Weight: 0-0 Ground Preference: Soft Rating: -791. Profile. 33-1 See Offer 33-1 See Offer. Two time winner of the prestegious Betfrair Chase. One of the highest rated chasers in training. Burrows Saint. Weight: 0-0 Ground Preference: Good to Soft Rating: -795. Profile ... Moved into the Grand National 2021 betting market when it was announced that he would be moved to trainer Gordon Elliott who has since confirmed that the National is a possible aim for the chaser. Won the RSA Chase in 2018 before stepping up to the Gold Cup in 2019 and 2020, though he didn’t place in either. Tiger Roll: The first back-to-back winner since the 1970s, who managed to win in 2018 and 2019, and assumes the position of the greatest favourite for the 2021 Grand National, is Tiger Roll. Gordon Elliott has indicated that Tiger Roll will again be trained at 11 years old for the 2021 Grand National.

whos favourite for grand national 2020 top

Virtual Grand National 2020 Preview - YouTube

Add or download the song to your own playlist: https://Eurovision.lnk.to/ESC2020IDLesley Roy will represent Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Ro... One of the favourites jimmy Mcdougal???s horse Pitta bread. Jonjo O'Neill talks to us about the chances of 2015 Crabbie's Grand National favourite SHUTTHEFRONTDOOR and whether his likely rider AP McCoy is the greatest... – Listen to "Think About Things" now: https://dadifreyr.lnk.to/thinkaboutthingsYD– Get your own Daði Freyr sweaters: https://dadifreyr.lnk.to/webYD"Think Abo... Welcome to the Sun Racing Youtube channel! The home of racing rambles, unmissable previews and exclusive interviews.Whether you're here for the latest tips, ... The Roop won the Lithuanian national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song On Fire. Video by: LRT-If you want to know more about the Eurov... Subscribe to the new channel with Angelina's rehearsals and performances videos! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChM_lpT4shdnsez93QMJPigAngelina Jordan's of... This year's Grand National is the virtual kind, as we're all in the middle of the Coronavirus lockdown. There's not huge amounts of data to go on, but here's... #2021EpsomDerby #ThunderMoonHorse #VincentOBrienNationalStakes THUNDER MOON TAKES OUT THE 2020 GOFFS VINCENT O'BRIEN NATIONAL STAKES (G1) AT CURRAGH RACECOUR... 50+ videos Play all Mix - True to myself - Veronika Tsubikova (Eurovision Belarus 2020) YouTube Viorela Moraru - Remedy LIVE (Eurovision Moldova 2020) - Duration: 3:10. Ylva & Linda 639 views

2020 Virtual Grand National: the runners, the odds, the ...

whos favourite for grand national 2020

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The chances of any male aged 15-39 starting for a team in their national domestic league - an analysis of 11 Leagues.

The Assumptions

Method

Limitations

Leagues to look at

New Caledonia

Turks and Caicos Islands

Tahiti

Luxembourg

Liechtenstein

St.Kitts and Nevis

Andorra

Faroe Islands

Gibraltar

San Marino

Monserrat

Bonus

The Vatican City

Conclusion

Team Presentations 2021: Lotto Soudal

LOTTO SOUDAL

2020 Season Recap

Results 2020

Top Results 2020

Outgoing Transfers

2021 Roster

2021 Outlook

Appreciating Chanyeol!!! A collection of his best performances!

AFLW 2021 season preview | Feedback & Input please

Carlton AFLW 2021 Season Preview

2020 in review

List changes

Expectation for 2021

Potential Best 21

Players to Watch

Carlton AFLW 2021 season preview

Carlton AFLW 2021 Season Preview

2020 in review

List changes

Expectation for 2021

Players to Watch

An abridged history of Deceuninck-Quick Step (Part 2)

1995 season

1996 season

1996 Paris-Roubaix

Rest of the 1996 season

1997 season

2020 Emilia Romagna GP Free Practice and Qualifying Debrief - r/Formula1 Editorial Team

2020 Emilia Romagna GP Free Practice and Qualifying Debrief

Links

Live Session Discussion Threads

Remembering 1994: A Tribute to Ratzenberger and Senna

ICYMI

Kimi Räikkönen and Antonio Giovinazzi sign for 2021, Sauber extends their partnership

Williams reconfirm duo for next season

Silly Season 2020 Still In Progress

Track and Tech Talk

Free Practice

Qualifying

Renault Leave It to the Last Minute

Red Bull Team Shows Their Worth, Yet Again

Bottas Pips Hamilton

Looking Forward to the Race

Predictions

[Figure Skating] The Queen ousted by Russia's latest wunderkind at the Olympics; Fans, commentators, media alike all cry foul

Who is Yuna Kim?

Who is Adelina Sotnikova?

Build-Up: The Sochi Olympics and politicking in Figure Skating

The Controversy: Scoring

Aftermath

Content Update: Britmas arrives alongside a flood of new and returning content including many Christmas specials, pantomimes, Rising Damp in full, Channel 5 programming and more

whos favourite for grand national 2020 video

whos favourite for grand national 2020 top

Virtual Grand National 2020 Preview - YouTube