Mangaluru prepares to host third edition of ‘Den Den’ intl sea swimming championship
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Mangaluru: While swimming in pools is a familiar sport, swimming in the open sea is an adventure. Embracing this adventure, the Mangalore Surf Club is set to organise the third edition of its international sea swimming championship, ‘Den Den,’ on January 26 at Tannirbhavi Beach.
The championship, which has been conducted for the past two years, has witnessed growing participation with each edition. Preparations for the event are already underway, as the organisers expect a significant rise in the number of swimmers this year.
National-level swimmers from various parts of the country will take part in the competition, which will be held in the sea waters off Tannirbhavi Beach at Surf Club Beach (Tannirbhavi Beach-1).
Karthik Narayan, Secretary of the Mangalore Surf Club, said around 200 swimmers participated in the second edition last year, while nearly 400 competitors are expected to take part this year.
The club has already started preparations for the sporting event, with the championship pulling in a larger number of swimmers every year.
Olympian Gagan Ullal of the Mangalore Surf Club, who represented India at the London Olympics, is heading the technical committee for this year’s Den Den Swimming Competition.
Given that the event is being held in open sea waters, the Indian Coast Guard will extend its cooperation for security and safety measures, as in previous years. Along with trained lifeguards, the Coast Guard will be responsible for ensuring the safety of swimmers and preventing interference from fishing boats or other vessels during the competition.
Organisers said the Den Den Swim Campaign is conducted with a strong emphasis on sea safety and awareness.
The competition will be conducted with the main objective of ensuring the safety of sea water. It commences at 6.30 am and conclude at 9.30 am.
Highlighting the new additions this year, Karthik Narayan said that while last year’s event featured races of 500 metres, 2 km, 4 km and 6 km, an 8 km sea swim has been introduced in this edition.
He also noted that while three international swimmers participated last year, the organisers are expecting around 10 international swimmers to compete this time.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
