Posts in category: Uncategorized

A potentially deadly infection carried by mosquitoes may be more prevalent than once thought, U.S. health officials report.

…Team to travel for Olympic qualifiers in South Africa by bus to avoid ban 

By MICHAEL MIYOBA

THE men’s and women’s hockey team are set to travel to South Africa by a bus for the crucial 2024 Paris Olympic qualifiers set to kick off on October 29 to November 5, 2023 in Pretoria.

The Hockey Association has also expressed shock that the Ministry of Sports has u-turned on its earlier pledge to support the association with accommodation fees by choosing to help the teams with a bus which will drive the two teams to South Africa.

The association has appealed to President Hakainde Hichilema to come to its aid and help raise the K460, 000 needed to cover accommodation costs during the teams stay in South Africa.

Hockey Association president Hazel Kennedy said it will be disappointing for the country if the team fail to travel for the qualifiers after the association and the players put in a lot of work and effort to prepare.

Kennedy said failure to participate at the qualifiers will attract a K225, 000 fine and a possible two-year ban from all international engagements.

“For the two teams (Men’s and Women’s) and officials for 11 days, the association is looking for K460, 000 to cover costs associated with accommodation and food.

“We are making a distress call to the President of the Republic of Zambia and the corporate world to come to the aid of the two teams to help with covering the accommodation costs while they represent the country in the qualifiers of the Paris 2022 Olympics,” Kennedy said. 

Kennedy is saddened that the National Sports Council of Zambia has failed to offer strategic intervention over challenges faced by the Hockey Association.

“We feel Sports Council is absent especially when we need them the most,” Kennedy said.

Meanwhile Ministry of Sports, Youth and Arts Permanent Secretary ‎Kangwa Chileshe said this year has been challenging financially due to the hosting of the CAA games with ZA, FIFA women’s World Cup and the renovation of two stadiums which were banned by CAF.

“Last year we fully funded most associations and federations including paying allowances. We made it very clear last year that this year we could only do partial sponsorship as government. We continue to urge the private sector to partner with government and mitigate some of these challenges,” Chileshe said.

Chileshe said the ministry has exhausted its regional and international budget and has mainly been supporting transport in terms of booking buses and purchasing of air tickets and a few logistics. 

He reaffirmed Government’s commitment to continue to make efforts to assist sports federations in Zambia.

A team of UC Davis scientists has used dynamic total-body positron emission tomography (PET) to provide the first imaging of the human body’s immune response to COVID-19 infection in recovering patients. Their work, published in Science Advances, could lead to a better understanding of how the body’s immune system responds to viral infections and develops long-term protection against re-infection.

The more positive the personal attitude of psychology students toward video psychotherapy and the greater the positive expectations and experiences, the more they are willing to offer video psychotherapy after graduation. This was discovered by a research team led by Professor Kai Kaspar at the University of Cologne’s Department of Psychology.

The immense popularity of electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, among young people has led many policymakers to restrict the sale of flavored varieties. But rather than nudging people away from “vapes,” as these e-cigarettes are called, such measures could backfire by driving users to instead buy conventional cigarettes, a much more dangerous product, according to researchers at the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH).

By MICHAEL MIYOBA

THE Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) says it is still waiting for a latest ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) concerning a case involving former Chipolopolo coach, Aljosa Asanovic.

Asanovic reported FAZ to CAS for alleged breach of contract, a case which he won with CAS having ruled that FAZ pays the former Chipolopolo gaffer US$1.1 million.

FAZ appealed the decision by a single judge of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee to award Asanovic $1.1m for alleged breach of contract.

FAZ General Secretary Reuben Kamanga said in a statement issued by FAZ Communications Manager Sydney Mungala that there has been no decision yet by CAS.

“We did appeal the ruling by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee to CAS and throughout this process, we have been liaising closely with our legal team to ensure that justice prevails in this matter,” Kamanga said.

Kamanga has advised FAZ members and stakeholders to be patient as the court process takes a long time to be exhausted.

“Matters of a legal nature require some level of prudency. As it stands, the process is taking place, and the case is still being developed from all sides. We are far away from any decisions being made right now, and any suggestion otherwise is fundamentally inaccurate. FAZ will duly update the public as the case progresses,” he says.

FAZ appointed Asanovic on January 18, 2022, but the Croatian announced that he had unilaterally terminated his contract with Zambia on September 22, 2022.

Asanovic abandoned his post in the aftermath of Zambia, losing 1-0 at home to Mozambique to be dumped out of the African Nations Championship campaign.

People who have uncontrolled high blood pressure or diabetes before getting COVID-19 may be at higher risk of hospitalization or being placed on a ventilator, according to new research that also shows an increased risk of death if diabetes isn’t kept in check.

When given the choice to learn how their actions will affect someone else, 40% of people will choose ignorance, often in order to have an excuse to act selfishly, according to recent research.

Women with a high genetic predisposition for blood clots are six times more likely to develop a blood clot during the first two years of using contraceptive pills according to a new study from Uppsala University. The results have been published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

U.K. television programs showing inaccurate birthing practices should require safety recommendations for viewers to avoid misinterpretations by the public.