TR EMERITUS

[email protected] Eat your heart out, fellow commoner. Our editorial team tours the globe this week to find the world’s richest athletes and provide you with their stunning earning figures. Data from the Sports Preview website and correct as of the summer of 2009. _________________________________________________________________________________ 100% Statistics, based of the sportsperson’s estimated annual earnings from playing and from endorsements for the year up to August 2009. _________________________________________________________________________________ 8 ) Ronaldinho, Brazil, Football (US$34.5m per annum) Many may consider Ronaldinho as a has-been, after all, he may not even be going to the upcoming World Cup at all. However, he pay check is likely to suggest otherwise. The Brazilian has massive contracts with first Barcelona and later AC Millan. On top of that, a large chunk of his annual income comes from endorsements with Nike, Pepsi and Cadbury. 7) LeBron James, United States, Basketball (US$35.5m) For a while now, people has been calling LeBron James as the “next Michael Jordan”. On the court, he still has some way to go to reach that status, but in terms of money-making he is perhaps much closer to Jordan. He signed a $90-million contract with Nike even before he started playing professionally and that payout is still contributing significantly to his multi-million annual take home salary. 6) Kobe Bryant, United States, Basketball (US$36.2m) A rape accusation back in 2003 may have threatened to ruin his career, but Bryant had certainly bounced back. He won the NBA Champions with LA Lakers last year and was named as the Finals MVP (Most Valuable Player). Besides a multi-million contract with Nike, Bryant has lucrative contracts with Coca-Cola, Nutella and McDonald’s. He also has his own series of video games made by Nintendo. 5) Kimi Raikkonen, Finland, Formula One (US$40.7m) The unflappable Finn may no longer be a Formula One driver, but in 2009, he was the highest paid Formula One driver with Ferrari. He repaid his team justly when he won the World Drivers’ Championship in 2008 but was deemed no longer good enough for the 2010 season. Raikkonen is currently taking part in the World Rally Championship, where he is expected to be paid just a small fraction of his salary he once drew from Ferrari. 3) Phil Mickelson, United States, Golf (US$41.7m) Mickelson earned $10million in prize money in 2009 and the rest from appearance and sponsorship fees. Currently in his 18th year as a professional golfer, he has won every major title in the sport, though his achievements are somewhat overshadowed by fellow American Tiger Woods. His endorsements deals include those with Ford, Rolex and Callaway golf clubs. 3) Michael Jordan, United States, Basketball (US$41.7m) Tied at third sort is ex-Basketball player Michael Jordan. The fact that he is still drawing over US$40m a year six years after retirement is a testament to his legacy in the game. Nowadays, Jordan still works as the director of basketball operations for Charlotte Bobcats, but bulk of his annual income comes from royalties paid to him by Nike for the Nike Jordan brand. 2) David Beckham, England, Football (US$46.8m) At 35, Beckham is at the tail-end of his career, playing domestic football for both AC Milan and LA Galaxy. The MLS club reportedly pays him US$5m a year and the rest of his fortunes come from huge endorsement deals with Adidas, Motorola and Pepsi. Recently, he stated that he is interested in football franchise ownership, which should not be a problem financially. Manchester United is for sale I heard? 1) Tiger Woods, United States, Golf (US$107m) In 2009, Tiger Woods’ annual income is nearly twice more than any other sports person on the planet. He has a multi-million contract with Nike and endorses American Express, Gillet, TAG Heuer, amongst others. This is all, of course, before his scandal broke out in late 2009. His comeback tournament at the Masters suggests that he is still to be reckoned with on the golf course, but he has already lost many of his global endorsements. Still, it may not be much of a bother to Tiger, whose entire wealth is estimated to be about US$750m.  Read More →

Reuters, 16 April 2010 Tibetans mourned their dead relatives in the stricken Chinese town of Gyegu today, as the death toll from a strong earthquake earlier this week climbed to 760. Addressing residents of Gyegu in remote and windswept Yushu county high on the Tibetan plateau late yesterday, Premier Wen Jiabao clambered over rubble and pledged continued rescue efforts. Survivors of Wednesday’s tremor spent the night huddled under quilts and in tents, while doctors struggled to treat the wounded in a makeshift medical centre. At a foothill under the main monastery of Gyegu, monks had gathered to chant Tibetan Buddhist mantras in front of piles of dead. Some helped residents look for kin among what appeared to be hundreds of bodies, collected on a covered platform. “Many of the bodies you see here don’t have families or their families haven’t come looking for them, so it’s our job to take good care of them,” said Lopu, a monk clad in maroon robes. “I’d say we’ve collected a thousand or more bodies here. Some we found ourselves, some were sent to us.” Some local Tibetans said they didn’t believe the official death toll estimate of 760, saying many more had died without being officially counted. Many more bodies had already been removed by family members, Lopu said. The actual death toll is still unclear, but the damage was mainly around Gyegu, where most of Yushu county’s 100,000 people reside. Estimates by NGOs support a figure of around 1,000 dead. Some 243 people are still listed as missing, and over 1,000 as “seriously injured”. In remarks translated into Tibetan to a receptive crowd, Premier Wen pledged that rescuers would not give up hope of finding people still trapped under rubble. But temperatures well below freezing at night leave little chance of anyone still surviving under collapsed buildings. Many injured locals spent a cold night in tents or outdoors waiting for medical aid. Harried doctors said they had had almost no sleep over the past two days. Some pregnant women were transferred 1,000km to the provincial capital, Xining, after at least two babies were born in tents outside Gyegu’s damaged hospital, the official Xinhua news agency reported. Chinese President Hu Jintao cut short a summit in Brazil, and cancelled a planned trip to Venezuela and Chile in order to return early to China. Convoys carrying tents, water, food, blankets and medical equipment continued to roll into Yushu county today. Chinese volunteer organisations and state media launched fund-raising and clothing drives. — Reuters  Read More →

Written by Our Correspondent Former Romanian diplomat Dr Silviu Ionescu continues to embarrass the Singapore government in his latest interview with Romanian newspaper Libertatea in which he claimed that he might be assassinated if he returns to Singapore to stand trial. Dr Silviu was implicated in a double hit-and-run road traffic accident in December last year which robbed the life of a 31 year old man. Singapore's Attorney-General Chambers has since pressed 13 charges against him. He was allowed by the Singapore authorities to leave Singapore for Romania three days after the accident. "I knew I was in danger in Singapore, but it never crossed my mind that local authorities would go that far. Romania's Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Prosecutors' General Office told me about the international arrest warrant against me," Ionescu was quoted as saying. Dr Silviu added that he had forwarded to the Romania government several "secret" documents regarding the situation in Singapore during his stint there. He explained that he is not hiding behind the veil of diplomatic immunity and accused the Singapore government of breaching the Vienna Convention regarding diplomatic relations and threatened to demand "moral claims." While the Romanian media has given extensive publicity to Dr Silviu and appears to be sympathetic to him, the Singapore media has adopted a more belligerent stance of late against him and the Romanian government to save "face" for the embattled PAP. For a government which prides itself on law and order, Dr Silviu's grand "escapade" has made it a laughing stock in the eyes of Singaporeans who are flabbergasted at its incompetence. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not bother about the case until Dr Silviu started his "crusade" against Singapore in February this year. Only then did it release press statements to rebuke Dr Silviu's accusations that he has been "set up" by the Singapore government. Singapore is fighting a losing war of public perception. The Romanian media has a far bigger audience than Singapore's and is able to reach out to the European Union. The accusations made by Dr Silviu against the Singapore government will surely have a negative impact on its international image which is not helped by a series of less than favorable publicity by the foreign media in recent months. Judging from the aggressive stance taken by Dr Silviu, it is probable that he may have obtained a tacit understanding with the Romanian authorities that he will not be handed over to Singapore. There is no way Singapore can bring Dr Silviu back to stand trial now. In the first place, there is no extradition treaty between Singapore and Romania which renders its report to Interpol pretty useless and redundant. Perhaps it is no more but a "wayang" now to convince disgruntled Singaporeans that the Singapore government is not a pushover and is making efforts to bring Dr Silviu to justice to cover up for its mistakes.   EDITORS’ NOTE: Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans.   Related articles: >> MFA: Dr Silviu does not enjoy diplomatic immunity >> Romanian Justice Ministry rejects request by Interpol to arrest Dr Silviu Ionescu >> Singapore issued arrest for Dr Silviu Ionescu >> Dr Silviu Ionescu: I was “set up” >> Dr Silviu on guilty verdict: “This is bull****” >> Dr Silviu Ionescu doesn’t think much of verdict >> Subhas Anandan wants $100K compensation for widow of deceased accident victim >> Quiet or ”wayang” diplomacy in the escape of Dr Silviu Ionescu >> Confirmed: Dr Silviu Ionescu is the driver >> Email interview with Yenny Young, wife of Mr Tong Kok Wai >> Dr Silviu Ionescu: fact remains that I was not in the car at the time of the accident >> Investigating or procrastinating: Dr Silviu Ionescu still holidaying in Romania >> George Yeo on Romanian embassy car crash: What happened is “very bad” >> Online petition calls on Romanian govt to make ex gratias payment >> Dr Silviu Ionescu: I took cab to notify car theft >> Eye witness saw driver quarreling with a young girl in the car >> Dr Silviu Ionescu: I have no connection with the case >> Dr Silviu Ionescu flagged taxi at Sungei Kadut >> From Romania with love: The Great Singapore escape of Dr Silviu Ionescu >> Singapore police has not ruled out Dr Silviu Ionescu as a suspect in its investigations >> Romanian diplomat suspected to be driver of Audi in hit and run accident at Bukit Panjang  Read More →