Ousmane Dembélé and Chloe Kelly nominated for men's and women's Ballon d'Or awards
Paris, Aug 8 (AP): Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembélé and England forward Chloe Kelly are among the contenders to win the men's and women's Ballon d'Or award.
The 30 men's and 30 women's nominees were revealed Thursday by France Football magazine, with the winners to be announced at a ceremony in Paris on Sept. 22.
The 28-year-old Dembélé was inspirational in leading PSG to its first Champions League title after years of falling short and helped the French club complete a treble. He scored a career-high 35 goals overall for PSG last season.
Teenage star Lamine Yamal, whose mesmerizing performances lit up the Champions League and helped Barcelona win the Spanish league title, is among the other men's nominees.
Kelly starred for England at Euros
When England won the women's European Championship last month, the 27-year-old Kelly blasted home the decisive penalty in the final against World Cup winner Spain. She also played a key role earlier in the tense knockout stages.
Last season, Kelly played on the right flank as Arsenal won the women's Champions League with another against-the-odds win over powerhouse Barcelona.
She faces competition from defender Lucy Bronze and goalkeeper Hannah Hampton — her England teammates who both play for Chelsea — and from Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmatí, the winner of the past two awards.
Barcelona players have won the past four women's awards. Bronze was runner-up in 2019 to U.S. forward Megan Rapinoe.
PSG players in the spotlight
Dembélé was one of nine PSG players nominated for the men's award, including goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, forward Désiré Doué, who scored twice in the 5-0 rout of Inter Milan in the Champions League final, and inspirational winger Khvitcha Kvaratskhelia, who joined from Napoli in the January transfer window.
The other men's nominees include Egypt striker Mo Salah, whose 29 league goals helped Liverpool win the Premier League, and prolific Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé, who netted 44 times for Madrid last season.
Midfielder Rodri won the Ballon d'Or last year after impressing with Manchester City and Spain but missed most of last season with a knee injury.
Real Madrid snubbed the star-studded ceremony last year in apparent protest because its forward Vinícius Júnior finished in second place. After staying away, Madrid and its players then vented their feelings on social media.
The voting system
The Ballon d'Or was created by France Football magazine and has been awarded since 1956 for men, and since 2018 for women. It is voted for by journalists from the top 100 countries in the FIFA rankings for the men's award and the top 50 FIFA-ranked countries for the women's award.
Each journalist, one per country, selects players in ranked order with points attributed to each position. The winner is the player who receives the most points.
Other nominations
PSG coach Luis Enrique was among the nominees for best men's coach and England's Sarina Wiegman best women's coach.
Donnarumma, whose shot-stopping in the knockout stages proved crucial to PSG's success, is favored to win the Lev Yashin award for best men's goalkeeper, while Hampton is among the five women's candidates for that award.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
1,850 missing mobile phones recovered as Delhi Police focusses on victim-centric policing
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi Police has recovered 1,850 stolen and lost mobile phones worth around Rs 4 crore in past 40 days under "Mission Reconnect", an initiative aimed at returning phones to their rightful owners in outernorth Delhi, an official said on Saturday.
The recovered phones were traced from different parts of the country, including remote areas, through technical surveillance and sustained field operations, police said, adding that the devices were handed over to their owners during a programme at the Sports Ground, New Police Lines, Kingsway Camp.
The initiative focused on a victim-centric approach and aimed at strengthening public trust through proactive policing and coordinated efforts across states, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outernorth) Hareshwar Swami said.
As part of the programme, teams performed 'nukkad nataks' and screened awareness videos on cybercrime, drug abuse prevention, and senior citizen safety, sensitising the public about digital frauds and safety measures, officials said.
The initiative combines technology, investigation and community participation to ensure recovery of lost property and reconnect citizens with their valuables, they added.
