Characters.

The series is based on Kurt Wallander (Branagh), a detective and police inspector in the small town of Ystad, Sweden. Branagh describes Wallander as "an existentialist who is questioning what life is about and why he does what he does every day, and for whom acts of violence never become normal. There is a level of empathy with the victims of crime that is almost impossible to contain, and one of the prices he pays for that sort of empathy is a personal life that is a kind of wasteland." In the novels, Wallander regularly listens to opera in his apartment and his car. This signature hobby has been dropped for this adaptation; producer Francis Hopkinson believes

Production.

In 2006, Yellow Bird managing director Morten Fisker opened discussions with British production companies about developing English-language adaptations of the Kurt Wallander novels, to which Yellow Bird holds the distribution rights. The BBC and Channel 4 were believed to be involved in discussions; the BBC had already announced plans to adapt Mankell's "The Return of the Dancing Master". Fisker wanted to bring a new detective to British screens to replace Inspector Morse, who had been killed off on-screen in 2000. Actors proposed to play Wallander were Trevor Eve, Neil Pearson, Jason Isaacs, David Morrissey, Clive Owen and Michael Gambon. Negotiations were still under way in 2007, when Kenneth Branagh met Henning Mankell at an Ingmar Bergman film festival and asked to play Wallander. Branagh had started reading the "Wallander" books "relatively late" but enjoyed them, and read all nine translated novels in a month. Mankell agreed to let Branagh play the role, and Branagh visited Ystad in December to scout for locations and meet Film i Skånes chief executive Ralf Ivarsson.  A series of three 90-minute adaptations was commissioned by BBC Scotland's Anne Mensah and BBC Controller of Fiction Jane Tranter in January 2008. Like Morten Fisker, the BBC wanted a returning series that would have the same audience appeal as "Inspector Morse", "Prime Suspect" and "Cracker". Yellow Bird was contracted as a co-producer, working with Left Bank Pictures, a production house formed in 2007 by former ITV Controller of Comedy, Drama and Film Andy Harries. Harries described "Wallander" as "more than just a detective series" and that it would be visually "very picture postcard". The first series consists of adaptations of "Sidetracked", "Firewall" and "One Step Behind". Philip Martin was hired as lead director of the series, and met with Branagh, Harries and Left Bank producer Francis Hopkinson in January. The four discussed how the adaptations would appear on screen, agreeing that the characterisations, atmosphere and ideas would be difficult to portray on screen. Richard Cottan was hired to adapt Mankell's novels, and delivered his first scripts in February. Cottan changed the plots of some of the books in order to fit them into a 90-minute adaptation, though made sure the scripts retained Wallander's "journey". The following month, Martin began discussions with cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle about what visual style the films would have. They agreed to use the Red One digital camera to shoot on, which has a near-35 mm resolution and is not as expensive as 35 mm; Dod Mantle said that the BBC "has politics" about the cheaper 16 mm and Super 16. Casting of British actors, which was done in London, was completed by April, and the whole crew moved over to Ystad to begin rehearsals. Martin wanted the actors playing police officers to know how to fire a gun, so arranged for them to spend time at a firing range using live ammunition. Wallander’s distinctive mobile phone ringtone was specially composed by Lee Crichlow.

Broadcast.

A public screening of "Sidetracked" was given by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts on 10 November 2008, and was followed by a question-and-answer session with Philip Martin and Kenneth Branagh. A gala premiere of "Sidetracked" was held in Ystad on 23 November, a week before it was broadcast in Britain. "Sidetracked"s first British broadcast came on BBC One on 30 November, followed by "Firewall" on 7 December, and "One Step Behind" on 14 December. Episodes were simulcast on BBC HD. BBC Four broadcast programmes and films to complement the series; the schedule included a documentary by John Harvey entitled "Who is Kurt Wallander", as well as the Swedish adaptation

Reception.

Critical response.

The series received a positive reception from critics, who praised both Branagh's performance and the character he played; in a preview of the BBC's Autumn season, Mark Wright of The Stage Online wrote that Branagh was "a good fit" for the character and had "high hopes for the success of [the] series". Previewing "Sidetracked", "The Times"s David Chater called Branagh "superb as Kurt Wallander", and the series "one of those superior cop shows in which the character of the detective matters more than the plot". In a feature in "The Knowledge", a supplement of "The Times", Paul Hoggart called Branagh's performance "understated, ruminative, warm, sensitive and depressed" and wrote positively of the design and cinematography and concluded by writing that ""Wallander" is that rare treasure: a popular form used for intelligent, thoughtful, classy drama and superbly shot". At the time the series was commissioned, Scottish author Ian Rankin expressed disappointment to "The Scotsman" that BBC Scotland was producing adaptations of Swedish literature; "My main caveat is that

Awards.

Branagh won the award for best actor at the 35th Broadcasting Press Guild Television and Radio Awards (2009). It is his first major television award win in the UK. The series was nominated for Best Drama Series but lost to "The Devil's Whore". The series, represented by "Sidetracked", won the British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. Richard Cottan, Branagh, Philip Martin and Francis Hopkinson are named as the nomination recipients. At the BAFTA Television Craft Awards, the series won four of five nominations: Martin Phipps for Original Television Music, Anthony Dod Mantle for Photograph & Lighting (Fiction/Entertainment), Jacqueline Abrahams for Production Design, and Bosse Persson, Lee Crichlow, Iain Eyre and Paul Hamblin for Sound (Fiction/Entertainment). Ray Leek was also nominated for his opening titles work.  In May 2009, PBS distributed promotional DVDs of "One Step Behind" to members of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for

Impact on the Wallander franchise.

In a "Radio Times" interview, Henning Mankell announced that he has a new "Wallander" book in the works. Several Swedish media outlets have speculated that the renewed Wallander interest in the UK and the warm reception of the BBC adaptations

Impact on Ystad.

The series has resulted in a new interest among British tourists to visit Sweden, and especially Ystad and the Skåne province according to Itta Johnson, Marketing Strategist with Ystad County. Johnson reports that in the past British people were reluctant to visit Sweden since they saw the country as cold and expensive, but now questions are mostly about the light and the nature seen in the BBC series. Statistics Sweden reports that Skåne is the only Swedish region that has seen an increase in hotel visits during the first quarter of 2009. The largest increase in non-Scandinavian tourists is seen among Britons, who now count for 12% which is almost as large as the percentage of visitors from Germany, at 13%. In 2009, Ystad saw an increase of tourists from the UK with 18%, and local politicians credit the BBC "Wallander" series with attracting British tourists.

Merchandise.

Vintage Books published paperbacks of the first three adapted novels in Series One with tie-in covers featuring Branagh on 20 November 2008. The Series One DVD was published by 2 Entertain Video on 26 December 2008. It features all three films, the "Who is Kurt Wallander?" documentary, and a 55-minute documentary entitled "The Wallander Look". Half of "The Wallander Look" features Branagh and Mankell discussing Wallander. The

External links.

Videos  Interviews  Press releases

Wallander is a British television series adapted from the Swedish novelist Henning Mankell's Kurt Wallander novels and starring Kenneth Branagh as the eponymous police inspector. It was the first time the "Wallander" novels have been adapted into an English-language production. Yellow Bird, a production company formed by Mankell, began negotiations with British companies to produce the adaptations in 2006. In 2007, Branagh met with Mankell to discuss playing the role. Contracts were signed and work began on the films, adapted from the novels "Sidetracked", "Firewall" and "One Step Behind", in January 2008. Emmy-award-winning director Philip Martin was hired as lead director. Martin worked with cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle to establish a visual style for the series.

Les Enquêtes de l'inspecteur Wallander (ou "Wallander"), est une série télévisée britannique créée par Philip Martin, deuxième adaptation des romans de l'écrivain suédois Henning Mankell mais troisième série reprenant le personnage de Kurt Wallander, produite par Yellow Bird, Left Bank Pictures et TKBC pour la BBC en Écosse et diffusée depuis le sur BBC One.


Early life, family background and education.

Rémy Pflimlin was born on 17 February 1954 in Mulhouse, France. His great-uncle, Pierre Pflimlin, was a politician. His father was a Protestant while his mother was a Catholic. One of his brothers, Bertrand-Louis Pflimlin, became a general in the French Army; his other brother, Thierry Pflimlin, went on to work for the oil company Total. His cousin, Étienne Pflimlin, later served as the CEO of Crédit Mutuel.  Pflimlin graduated from HEC Paris in 1978.

Career.

Pflimlin started his career by as the head of advertising for "Jours de France", a magazine published by the Dassault Group, from 1979 to 1985. He then worked for "Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace", a regional newspaper in Alsace. In 1991, he was appointed as the deputy-chairman of the Société alsacienne de publications, the publisher of "L’Alsace", its competitor. He served as its chairman from 1993 to 1999. He also served as the vice president of the Syndicat de la presse quotidienne régionale from 1997 to 1999.  Pflimlin served as the CEO of France 3 from 1999 to 2005. He established regional stations within France 3, including Corsica-based "Via Stella". In 1999, he launched "C'est mon choix", a talk show hosted by Évelyne Thomas. In 2003, he oversaw the creation of "Plus belle la vie", a French television series based in Marseille. Additionally, he decided to show "Shoah", a 613-minute film directed by Claude Lanzmann. Meanwhile, he hired Audrey Pulvar and Marc-Olivier Fogiel, two new television presenters. However, in 2002, the staff went on strike for 22 days over their salaries; it was the longest strike in the history of France 3.  Pflimlin was appointed to the advisory board of the Agence France-Presse in 2005. He served as the head of Nouvelles Messageries de la Presse Parisienne, the main newspaper distributor in France later known as Presstalis, from 2006 to 2010. He was responsible for rebranding the company.  Pflimlin served as the CEO of France Télévisions from 2010 to 2015. When he succeeded Patrick de Carolis, he was the first head of France Télévisions to be appointed by a president (Nicolas Sarkozy), leading some on the left to suggest he was compromised. During his tenure, he streamlined the staff, accountancy of France 2 and France 3. In 2012, with the help of Bruno Patino, he launched a new website, FranceTVInfo. However, he clashed with the new Minister of Culture, Aurélie Filippetti, over his decision to discontinue the programs "Taratata" and "C'est pas sorcier". By 2014, a report authored by the Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel (CSA) was leaked to the press, the gist of which suggested he had failed to meet expectations. During his tenure, he served on the executive board of the European Broadcasting Union. He was succeeded in August 2015 by Delphine Ernotte.  Pflimlin was appointed as the chairman of the board of TV5Monde in January 2013. He served as a member of the Conseil d'État in 2015–2016.

Personal life and death.

Pfimlin was married to an heiress to the Peugeot fortune, and he had four children. He served as the chairman of the Conservatoire de Paris and Musica, a classical music festival in Strasbourg. He also served as the president of the Prix Italia from 2012 to 2014. He was a member of Le Siècle.  Pflimlin died of cancer at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris on 3 December 2016. He was 62 years old. Upon his death, Jean Rottner, the mayor of his hometown of Mulhouse, described him as "a lover of culture, a humanist, but most of all a friend". Meanwhile, François Hollande, the president of France, said he was "a man who gave his life to the press, to the media, and to informing the public. Beyond his foolproof discretion, he hid a deep commitment to culture, including music."

Rémy Pflimlin (; 17 February 1954 – 3 December 2016) was a French media executive. He served as the CEO of France 3 from 1999 to 2005, the Nouvelles Messageries de la Presse Parisienne (later known as Presstalis) from 2006 to 2010, and France Télévisions, France's public national television broadcaster, from 2010 to 2015.

Rémy Pflimlin, né le à Mulhouse et mort le à Paris, est un dirigeant d'entreprise français et une personnalité du monde des affaires.


History.

Apsley House stands at the site of an old lodge that belonged to the crown. During the Interregnum newer buildings were erected between what is now Old Park Lane and Hyde Park Corner. In the 1600s after the Restoration they were leased by James Hamilton (died 1673) and renewed by Elizabeth his widow in 1692 on a 99-year lease (Hamilton Place takes its name from that family). Immediately before Apsley House was built the site was occupied by a tavern called the Hercules Pillars (immortalised by Henry Fielding in "The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling" as the location where Squire Western resides when he first journeys up to London).  The house was originally built in red brick by Robert Adam between 1771 and 1778 for Lord Apsley, the Lord Chancellor, who gave the house its name. Some Adam interiors survive: the Piccadilly Drawing Room with its apsidal end and Adam fireplace, and the Portico Room, behind the giant Corinthian portico added by Wellington.  The house was given the popular nickname of Number One, London, since it was the first house passed by visitors who travelled from the countryside after the toll gates at Knightsbridge. It was originally part of a contiguous line of great houses on Piccadilly, demolished to widen Park Lane: its official address remains 149 Piccadilly, W1J 7NT.  In 1807 the house was purchased by Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, the elder brother of Sir Arthur Wellesley, but in 1817 financial difficulties forced him to sell it to his famous brother, by then the Duke of Wellington, who needed a London base from which to pursue his new career in politics.  Wellington employed the architect Benjamin Dean Wyatt to carry out renovations in two phases: in the first, begun in 1819, he added a three-storey extension to the north east, housing a State Dining Room, bedrooms and dressing rooms. The second phase, started after Wellington had become Prime Minister in 1828, included a new staircase and the "Waterloo Gallery" on the west side of the house. The red-brick exterior was clad in Bath stone, and a pedimented portico added. Wyatt's original estimate for the work was £23,000, but the need to repair structural defects discovered during the work led to costs escalating to more than £61,000. Wyatt introduced his own version of French style to the interior, notably in the Waterloo Gallery and the florid wrought iron stair-rail, described by Pevsner as "just turning from Empire to a neo-Rococo".  The Waterloo Gallery is named after the Duke's famous victory over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. The Waterloo Banquet was held annually to commemorate the famous victory of 18 June 1815. The first banquets were held in the Dining Room but in 1828 when Wyatt completed the Waterloo Gallery the banquet was moved there and became a much larger event, seating 74 as opposed to 36 in the dining room. The Duke's equestrian statue can be seen across the busy road, cloaked and watchful, the plinth guarded at each corner by an infantryman. This statue was cast from guns captured at the battle.  Gerald Wellesley, 7th Duke of Wellington, gave the house and its most important contents to the nation in 1947, but by the Wellington Museum Act 1947 the right of the family to occupy just over half the house was preserved "so long as there is a Duke of Wellington". The family apartments are now on the north side of the house, concentrated on the second floor.

Apsley House is the London townhouse of the Dukes of Wellington. It stands alone at Hyde Park Corner, on the south-east corner of Hyde Park, facing south towards the busy traffic roundabout in the centre of which stands the Wellington Arch. It is a Grade I listed building.

Apsley House est une demeure londonienne situé à Piccadilly, face à Hyde Park Corner et à proximité de l'entrée principale de Hyde Park, au sud-est de celui-ci. Elle fut la résidence des ducs de Wellington.


Description.

The term "fringe science" denotes unorthodox scientific theories and models. Persons who create fringe science may have employed the scientific method in their work, but their results are not accepted by the mainstream scientific community. Fringe science may be advocated by a scientist who has some recognition within the larger scientific community, but this is not always the case. Usually the evidence provided by fringe science is accepted only by a minority and is rejected by most experts.  The boundary between fringe science and pseudoscience is disputed. The connotation of "fringe science" is that the enterprise is rational but is unlikely to produce good results for a variety of reasons, including incomplete or contradictory evidence. Pseudoscience, however, is something that is not scientific but is incorrectly characterised as science.  The term may be considered pejorative. For example, Lyell D. Henry Jr. wrote that, "fringe science [is] a term also suggesting kookiness." This characterization is perhaps inspired by the eccentric behavior of many researchers of the kind known colloquially (and with considerable historical precedent) as mad scientists.  Although most fringe science is rejected, the scientific community has come to accept some portions of it. One example of such is plate tectonics, an idea which had its origin in the fringe science of continental drift and was rejected for decades.

Examples.

Historical.

Some historical ideas that are considered to have been refuted by mainstream science are:

Modern.

Relatively recent fringe sciences include:

Accepted as mainstream.

Some theories that were once rejected as fringe science, but were eventually accepted as mainstream science, are:

Responding to fringe science.

Michael W. Friedlander has suggested some guidelines for responding to fringe science, which, he argues, is a more difficult problem than scientific misconduct. His suggested methods include impeccable accuracy, checking cited sources, not overstating orthodox science, thorough understanding of the Wegener continental drift example, examples of orthodox science investigating radical proposals, and prepared examples of errors from fringe scientists.  Friedlander suggests that fringe science is necessary so that mainstream science will not atrophy. Scientists must evaluate the plausibility of each new fringe claim, and certain fringe discoveries "will later graduate into the ranks of accepted" — while others "will never receive confirmation".  Margaret Wertheim profiled many "outsider scientists" in her book "Physics on the Fringe", who receive little or no attention from professional scientists. She describes all of them as trying to make sense of the world using the scientific method, but in the face of not being able to understand the complex theories of modern science. She also finds it fair that credentialed scientists do not bother spending a lot of time learning about and explaining problems with the fringe theories of uncredentialed scientists, since the authors of those theories have not taken the time to understand the mainstream theories they aim to disprove.

Controversies.

Towards the end of the 20th century, some critics (such as Answers in Genesis) began to cite fringe science theories with limited support. Often their goal was to classify as controversial entire fields of scientific inquiry (notably paleoanthropology, human sexuality, evolution, geology, and paleontology) that contradict literal or fundamentalist interpretation of various sacred texts.  Critics argue that such controversies open a window of plausibility for divine intervention and intelligent design.  As Donald E. Simanek asserts, "Too often speculative and tentative hypotheses of cutting edge science are treated as if they were scientific truths, and so accepted by a public eager for answers." But the public is ignorant of the fact that "As science progresses from ignorance to understanding it must pass through a transitional phase of confusion and uncertainty."  The media also play a role in propagating the belief that certain fields of science are controversial. In their 2003 paper "Optimising Public Understanding of Science and Technology in Europe: A Comparative Perspective", Jan Nolin "et al." write that "From a media perspective it is evident that controversial science sells, not only because of its dramatic value, but also since it is often connected to high-stake societal issues."

Fringe science is an inquiry in an established field of study which departs significantly from mainstream theories in that field and is considered to be questionable by the mainstream.

La (littéralement « science marginale ») est un terme anglo-saxon désignant les recherches scientifiques, au sein de sciences académiques reconnues, qui s'éloignent significativement des théories généralement admises.


History.

Main line: Baltimore to Hagerstown.

The original main line began with the chartering of the Baltimore, Carroll and Frederick Railroad in 1852, with the intent of building a rail line from Baltimore west to Washington County, Maryland. The Maryland General Assembly changed the name of the company to the Western Maryland Rail Road Company in 1853, and construction began from Owings Mills in 1857. An existing Northern Central Railway branch line terminating at Owings Mills was used to connect into Baltimore. The railroad was completed to Westminster in 1861 and Union Bridge in 1862. Further expansion was delayed because of the Civil War. Westward construction resumed in 1868 under Chief Engineer Joseph S. Gitt, and the line was completed to Hagerstown in 1872. This section became the East Subdivision. The company's first major car shops were established at Union Bridge.  In 1873 the WM built its own line from Owings Mills to Fulton Junction in Baltimore, and obtained trackage rights from the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad (B&P) for the remaining two miles of the route eastward to Union Station (later called Penn Station). It built a branch east of Union Station to Hillen Station, which opened in 1876 and became the company headquarters. The WM built a connection from Hagerstown to Williamsport, in order to access coal traffic from the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal.

Extensions in Maryland and Pennsylvania.

Under the leadership of company president John Mifflin Hood, the railway made its first extension into Pennsylvania by leasing a line from Edgemont, Maryland, to Waynesboro and Shippensburg. This line became the Lurgan Subdivision and was leased from the Baltimore and Cumberland Valley Railroad in 1881, and was connected to the Harrisburg and Potomac Railroad in 1886.  A second route into Pennsylvania, the Hanover Subdivision, was acquired by the WM when it gained control of the Baltimore and Hanover Railroad, and the Gettysburg Railroad, in late 1886. This line connected to the WM main at Emory Grove, proceeded north to Hanover and Gettysburg, then southwest to connect again to the WM at Highfield, Maryland, near the Pennsylvania border. A branch from Porters to York, Pennsylvania was completed in 1893; this became the York Subdivision.  The WM established a connection with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) in 1892 with the opening of the Potomac Valley Rail Road (controlled by WM) between Williamsport and Big Pool, Maryland. This connection brought a major increase in through-freight traffic. Construction of an extension from Hagerstown to Cumberland began in 1903 and completed in 1906. This became the West Subdivision. To service the expanded system, the WM built a major shop complex at Hagerstown in 1909, with a roundhouse, machine shops and related facilities. Rail yards at Hagerstown were also expanded.

Expansion plans.

The Fuller Syndicate, led by George Gould, purchased a controlling interest in the WM in 1902 and made plans for westward expansion of the system.  In 1904 the WM completed construction of a large marine terminal at Port Covington, on the Patapsco River in Baltimore, to support the Gould organization's expansion plans. The terminal facilities included coal, grain and merchandise piers, overhead cranes, 11 rail yards, warehouses, a roundhouse, a turntable and a machine shop. In the 1920s rotary dumpers for coal and coke were installed, and a large grain elevator.  In 1907 the syndicate acquired several railroad companies, including the George's Creek and Cumberland Railroad (GC&C), which had built a line west through the Cumberland Narrows, and then south to Lonaconing, Maryland. Using the portion of the line through the Narrows, the Connellsville Extension was built west from Cumberland to Connellsville, Pennsylvania, beginning in 1910, and it was completed in 1912. At Connellsville the WM connected with the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad (P&LE). In 1915 the WM obtained trackage rights on a B&O line from Bowest Junction (2 miles south of Connellsville) to Chiefton, West Virginia, which provided access to coal mines in the area west of Fairmont, West Virginia.  The GC&C line provided the WM with access to mines in the Georges Creek Valley. In 1927 the WM abandoned some of the GC&C track and accessed additional mines in the area through trackage rights on the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad (C&P). In 1944 the WM purchased the C&P, and formally merged the operations in 1953.  Although never a giant, the Connellsville subdivision of WM handled through midwest fast freight traffic and coal from company-owned mines near Fairmont and Somerset, Pennsylvania.  WM opened a passenger station in Cumberland and one in Hagerstown in 1913. The Cumberland station contained the offices for the Western Division. Today the building is called Canal Place, a facility operated by the National Park Service, and includes the station for the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad and a visitors center for the C&O Canal National Historic Park. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The Hagerstown station was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

West Virginia coal country.

The West Virginia Central and Pittsburg Railway (WVC&P) began as a narrow gauge line in 1880, its name and gauge changed in 1881 and in the ensuing years it opened a huge swath of timber and coal territory in the Allegheny Highlands of West Virginia. The railroad was directly responsible for the creation of such towns as Davis, Thomas, and Parsons.  In the large valley near the mouth of Leading Creek and the Tygart Valley River, the WVC&P constructed the city of Elkins (named after investor Stephen Benton Elkins). Elkins was home to a large rail yard for the railroad and served as the hub of Western Maryland and Chessie System operations in the region well into the 1980s.  The WVC&P was sold to the Fuller Syndicate in 1902 and was merged into the Western Maryland in 1905. Known as the Thomas Subdivision, the line connected to the Western Maryland mainline at Maryland Junction, south of Cumberland. This line, famous for its Black Water Grade in Blackwater Canyon, became an important part of the Western Maryland's success until its eventual abandonment in the 1970s.  The WVC&P established the Coal and Iron Railway (C&I) in 1899 to reach logging operations and a connection with the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O). The route left Elkins and the Tygart Valley River drainage by way of a tunnel under Cheat Mountain, followed the Shavers Fork river upstream and then the West Fork Greenbrier River down from its headwaters to Durbin in Pocahontas County, where it connected with the C&O Greenbrier Division. Construction to Durbin was complete by 1903. With the acquisition of the WVC&P in 1905, the C&I became part of WM and this line became the Durbin Subdivision.  In 1927 the WM purchased the Greenbrier, Cheat and Elk Railroad, which ran from Cheat Junction, on the Durbin sub, to Bergoo. This line became the GC&E Subdivision. In 1929, WM's purchase of a line from the West Virginia Midland Railway extended the GC&E sub southward to Webster Springs. While these lines were originally built as logging railroads, the WM also used them for coal operations.

Twentieth century operations.

The Fuller Syndicate attempted to assemble its own transcontinental railroad system beginning around 1902, by acquiring various rail lines. It faced stiff competition from the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), the B&O and others, and became financially overextended in its expansion plans. As a result, the WM entered receivership in 1908. A new corporation, the Western Maryland Railway Company, was formed and purchased the WM assets in 1909, and the receivership ended in 1910.  In 1931, the Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway (P&WV) reached Connellsville to connect with the WM. The connection enabled the formation of the Alphabet Route, a partnership involving the WM, P&WV and six other railroads that provided competition with larger railroads including the PRR. Today the P&WV is leased by the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway.  The major rail yards on the WM were Jamison Yard at Hagerstown, capacity 3,000 cars, mainly for west-bound traffic; and Knobmount Yard, capacity 1,600 cars, south of Ridgely, West Virginia, mainly for east-bound traffic.  The WM began using diesel locomotives in 1941 for yard operations, and for regular line use in 1949. It discontinued use of steam locomotives in 1954.

Dissolution.

Passenger service on the WM began in 1859. The WM's original Hillen Street Station in downtown Baltimore "(pictured)" was demolished in 1954. A smaller replacement Baltimore station was briefly used between 1954-1957. Revenue passenger-miles declined from 26 million in 1925 to 2 million in 1956, and passenger service ended in 1959. In 1964, the C&O and the B&O jointly filed for permission to acquire control of the Western Maryland Railway with the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). The ICC approved the acquisition in 1968. In 1973, as part of the Chessie System, Western Maryland ownership went to C&O and it was operated by the B&O. The B&O itself merged with the C&O in 1987, which itself became part of CSX Transportation.

Legacy.

Much of the original WM west of Big Pool has been abandoned including the summit of the Allegheny Mountains and the Eastern Continental Divide near Deal, Pennsylvania. In addition to CSX, portions of the former WM are now operated by Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad, the Maryland Midland Railway (MMID), Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, Pennsylvania & Southern Railway and York Railway. A portion of the former WM roadbed in Baltimore is now used by the Baltimore Metro Subway going northwest from downtown to Owings Mills, Maryland in Baltimore County.  Other portions are now rail trails. These include the Western Maryland Rail Trail in Maryland; the Blackwater Canyon Trail and Allegheny Highlands Trail in West Virginia, and the Great Allegheny Passage in Maryland and Pennsylvania.  In Allegany County, Maryland, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park includes the Western Maryland Railroad Right-of-Way, Milepost 126 to Milepost 160, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981, and the Western Maryland Railway Station in Cumberland which provides tourist orientation and historical exhibits.  A former WM warehouse is still standing on Hillen Street in downtown Baltimore, next to the Orleans Street Viaduct; it is now occupied by Public Storage, which also owns and operates the building.

Subdivisions.

At the peak in the early 20th century, WM operated the following lines:

The Western Maryland Railway was an American Class I railroad (1852–1983) which operated in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was primarily a coal hauling and freight railroad, with a small passenger train operation. The WM became a property of the Chessie System holding company in 1973, although it continued independent operations until May 1975 after which time many of its lines were abandoned in favor of parallel Baltimore and Ohio Railroad lines. In 1983 it was fully merged into the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, which later was also merged with the former Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad into the Chessie System in 1987, which is now renamed as CSX Transportation.

Le Western Maryland Railway (sigle AAR: WM) était une compagnie américaine de chemin de fer de classe I en exploitation dans le Maryland, la Virginie-Occidentale et la Pennsylvanie. C'était avant tout un transporteur de charbon et de fret, mais exploitait également quelques trains de voyageurs. Il fut intégré au Chessie System en 1973 et arrêta son exploitation en 1983, lors de sa fusion dans le Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Le B&O fut ensuite fusionné dans CSX Transportation en 1987.


Football.

Celtic.

McLean moved from Forfar to Glasgow to join Celtic as a 16-year-old; he quickly won a Glasgow Cup medal, being selected to make his debut in the replayed final against Rangers and scoring the decisive goal in a 2–1 victory. Though understudy to the established centre-forward Jimmy Quinn and out of favour for a spell after expressing anger at criticism from manager Willie Maley after a poor team performance, he was involved in Scottish Football League title wins in his first and second seasons, including a significant part in Celtic's 'famous fortnight' in April 1909, when they played eight games in twelve days to retain the championship. However, he was not able to displace Quinn and moved on to Preston North End while still a teenager.

The Wednesday, Rangers loan.

In England he was the top scorer twice in successive seasons in England's top flight when playing for The Wednesday, as the Sheffield club were then named. He shared the distinction with two others on the first occasion, all with 25 strikes, before he was outright winner in 1912–13 on 30. In 1915, World War I halted league football in England, but not in Scotland, and McLean was permitted to play for Third Lanark, where he scored 70 goals in less than three seasons, and for Celtic's cross-town rivals, Rangers. In his sole season with the Ibrox club he was top scorer in the Scottish League in 1918–19 (29 goals in 24 matches); he thus became the first player to be outright top scorer in the top divisions in both England and Scotland. The feat has since only been matched by McLean's future teammate at Dundee, Dave Halliday. He also won another Glasgow Cup, eleven years after his first, with a win his former employers Celtic; however, they claimed the league title over Rangers by a one-point margin. At the end of the war in 1919, McLean returned to Wednesday but was soon transferred to Bradford (Park Avenue) where he spent three years.

Dundee.

McLean joined Dundee in 1922 where in his first season he was a teammate of Alex Troup. Dave Halliday was top scorer in Dundee's run to the 1925 Scottish Cup Final, in which McLean's goal had Dundee leading at half time. Celtic's Patsy Gallacher equalised before Jimmy McGrory headed a last minute winner for the Glasgow club. After his Dundee spell, McLean closed out his career back home with five more years at Forfar Athletic.

International.

McLean received one cap for Scotland, in a 1912 British Home Championship match against England. While based in England, he took part in five Home Scots v Anglo-Scots trial matches between 1910 and 1920, scoring four times, with further international opportunities limited by the war.

IFFHS recognition.

In the International Federation of Football History & Statistics updated 2008 list of the world's most successful top division goal scorers (1888–2008), McLean was placed at 43rd equal with 316 top division strikes.

Cricket.

McLean also played cricket for Strathmore C.C. and played in the game in June 1930 at The Hill in Kirriemuir when J.M. Barrie opened the pavilion, and two members of the touring Australian side, one of them the great Macartney, played before a packed crowd.

Personal life.

He was the elder brother of footballer George McLean who was also a forward. They were teammates at Bradford for one season (1921–22, David's last of three campaigns at the club and George's first of nine) and both closed out their careers at Forfar, but David (eight years older) had retired by the time George came 'home'.  Apart from when his footballing career took him elsewhere, he lived in Forfar all his life. He frequently attended football matches and was often invited to be the guest of Celtic at games in which they were involved. He died in December 1967.

David Prophet McLean (13 December 1890 – 23 December 1967) was a Scottish footballer who played as a striker, scoring consistently throughout his career. At club level he represented Celtic, Preston North End, Sheffield Wednesday, Third Lanark, Rangers, Bradford (Park Avenue), Dundee and Forfar Athletic. He had one cap for Scotland.

David Prophet McLean, né le à Forfar (Écosse), et mort le dans la même ville est un joueur de football international écossais qui évolua en tant qu'attaquant.


Career.

Black Sabbath, "The Eternal Idol", "Headless Cross" and "Tyr" (1987–90).

During the recording of "The Eternal Idol" (1987), Martin was brought in to re-record Ray Gillen's tracks, alongside former Electric Light Orchestra drummer Bev Bevan who had previously been in Sabbath during 1983/84 on the Born Again tour.  Martin had been contacted by Black Sabbath to replace Glenn Hughes the year previous. He secured his place in the band after a successful audition singing the track "The Shining". Before the release of the new album, Black Sabbath accepted an offer to play six shows at Sun City, South Africa during the apartheid era. During this period Geezer Butler was coerced into rejoining the band with Bev Bevan remaining on drums. The band was supposed to play a music festival in Plymouth on 18 July, but Butler backed out at the last minute but Martin and Sabbath had been in rehearsals on 14–16 July in preparation.  The band drew criticism from activists and artists involved with Artists United Against Apartheid, who had been boycotting South Africa since 1985. Bev Bevan refused to play the shows, and was replaced by Terry Chimes, formerly of The Clash. After nearly a year in production, Martin's debut with Sabbath "The Eternal Idol" was released on 8 December 1987 and ignored by contemporary reviewers. On-line internet era reviews were mixed. AllMusic said that "Martin's powerful voice added new fire" to the band, and the album contained "some of Iommi's heaviest riffs in years".  The album would stall at No. 66 in the UK, peaking at 168 in the US. Sabbath toured in support of "Eternal Idol" in Germany, Italy and for the first time, Greece. Unfortunately, in part because of a backlash from promoters over the South Africa incident, other European shows were cancelled. Bassist Dave Spitz left the band shortly before the tour, and was replaced by Jo Burt, formerly of Virginia Wolf.  Following the poor commercial performance of "The Eternal Idol", Black Sabbath were dropped by Vertigo Records and Warner Bros. Records, and signed with I.R.S. Records. The band took time off in 1988, returning in August to begin work on their next album. As a result of the recording troubles with "Eternal Idol", Tony Iommi opted to produce the band's next album himself. "It was a completely new start", Iommi said. "I had to rethink the whole thing, and decided that we needed to build up some credibility again". Iommi enlisted ex-Rainbow drummer Cozy Powell, long-time keyboardist Geoff Nicholls and session bassist Laurence Cottle, and rented a "very cheap studio in England".  Black Sabbath released "Headless Cross" in April 1989, and this album was again ignored by contemporary reviewers. Eventually, AllMusic would give the album four stars, calling "Headless Cross" "the finest non-Ozzy or Dio Black Sabbath album". Anchored by the number 62 charting single "Headless Cross", the album reached number 31 on the UK charts, and number 115 in the US. Queen guitarist Brian May, a good friend of Iommi's, played a guest solo on the song "When Death Calls". Black Sabbath were told by Gloria Butler that Geezer was going to join the band again. The band waited until April 1989 for Butler, but Geezer instead went and joined Ozzy Osbourne's band. Following the album's release, the band added touring bassist Neil Murray, formerly of Whitesnake, Gary Moore's backing band, and Vow Wow.  The ill-fated "Headless Cross" U.S. tour began in May 1989 with openers Kingdom Come and Silent Rage, but because of poor ticket sales, the tour was cancelled after just eight shows. The European leg of the tour began in September, where the band were enjoying chart success. After a string of Japanese shows, the band embarked on a 23 date Russian tour with Girlschool. Black Sabbath was one of the first bands to tour Russia, after Mikhail Gorbachev opened the country to western acts for the first time in 1989.  Tony Martin returned to the studio with Black Sabbath in February 1990 to record "Tyr", the follow-up to "Headless Cross". While not technically a concept album, some of the album's lyrical themes are loosely based on Norse mythology. "Tyr" was released on 6 August 1990, and reached number 24 on the UK albums chart, but was the first Black Sabbath release not to break the "Billboard 200" in the US. The album would receive mixed internet-era reviews, with AllMusic noting that the band "mix myth with metal in a crushing display of musical synthesis", while "Blender" gave the album just one star, claiming that "Iommi continues to besmirch the Sabbath name with this unremarkable collection". The band toured in support of "Tyr" with Circus of Power in Europe, but the final seven UK dates were cancelled because of poor ticket sales. For the first time in their career, the band's touring cycle did not include US dates. The tour had a few surprises, that being that Ian Gillan, Geezer Butler, & Brian May made appearances during a few of the shows.  Butler officially rejoined the band after the end of the Tyr tour ahead of the "Dehumanizer" (1992) album with the intention of putting something back together with Tony Iommi and Cozy Powell. In an interview with Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi in Kerrang in mid-1991 they talked about having to "get rid of" Tony Martin. This effectively ended Martins first spell with the band.

Brief Departure from Sabbath and "Back Where I Belong" (1991–93).

Tony Martin recorded his first solo album "Back Where I Belong" (1992) while Black Sabbath had reunited with Ronnie James Dio for the "Dehumanizer" (1992) album.  At the demo level for "Back Where I Belong", Tony Martin played all the instruments and the album itself featured former Black Sabbath members bassist Neil Murray and drummer Cozy Powell, as well as Brian May on guitar, among others. Cozy Powell also joined the band for the subsequent tour after leaving Black Sabbath himself. There were two singles released for the album. The first was "If There Is a Heaven", and the second was "Angel in the Bed". This album includes a version of "Jerusalem" from the Black Sabbath album "Tyr" (1990).  Tony Martin stated that "Back Where I Belong is an album of songs that were written over the period between 1990 and 1991. The title reflects my feelings at having this opportunity to write, record, and perform my own material. The recording of this album has been made possible due to the contributions of the following people who have all given their individual and very special talents to this project, for which I would like to express my eternal thanks!" Tony Martin returned briefly to Black Sabbath to work on "Dehumanizer" (1992) when things were not working out with Ronnie James Dio. He, Geoff Nicholls and Cozy Powell worked on a song called "Raising Hell" during these sessions which subsequently ended up on Martins second solo album "Scream" (2005).  Martin said: "I had already started my first solo album Back Where I Belong so when I got the call to go back I was committed by that point. And in fact it was just a couple of months after they had started the thing with Ronnie James Dio. I was determined to finish my solo thing and so turned them down at that point. We did keep in touch though and I went to some shows. Ronnie wasn’t too pleased, but eventually they had enough and asked me to rejoin again later so it felt like I hadn’t actually left. In fact, I was never formally fired, the phone just stopped ringing. Ian Gillan [Deep Purple singer, also another ex-Black Sabbath lead singer] asked me once if I had actually been fired and I said, "No." He said, "Neither have I." We should just turn up one day and walk on stage!"  Martin's return to Sabbath at this stage was again short lived as Warner Bros had paid a huge amount of advance money for "Dehumanizer", and again, record company pressure forced another change, they wanted either Ozzy Osbourne or Dio. Tony Martin was again forced out from the band in favour of Dio.  Tony Martin famously met Dio on the "Dehumanizer" tour after being invited to the show by Iommi & Butler. Martin would be flown in to replace Dio (who had left the band over the Ozzy Osbourne retirement show) on the last show of the tour but after visa problems Rob Halford was asked to do the show instead.

Return to Black Sabbath, "Cross Purposes" and "Forbidden" (1993–97).

Drummer Vinny Appice left the band following the reunion show to join Ronnie James Dio's solo band, later appearing on Dio's "Strange Highways" and "Angry Machines". After Iommi & Butler realised that the Ozzy Osbourne reunion talks were breaking down they enlisted former Rainbow drummer Bobby Rondinelli, and reinstated Martin. Martins 4th album with Sabbath, "Cross Purposes", was released on 8 February 1994. The album received mixed reviews, with "Blender" giving the album two stars, calling Soundgarden's 1994 album "Superunknown" "a far better Sabbath album than this by-the-numbers potboiler". AllMusic's Bradley Torreano called "Cross Purposes" "the first album since "Born Again" that actually sounds like a real Sabbath record".  The album just missed the Top 40 in the UK reaching number 41, and also reached 122 on the "Billboard 200" in the US. "Cross Purposes" contained the song "Evil Eye", which was co-written by Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen, although uncredited because of record label restrictions. Touring in support of "Cross Purposes" began in February 1994 with Morbid Angel and Motörhead in the US. The band filmed a live performance at the Hammersmith Apollo on 13 April 1994, which was released on VHS accompanied by a CD, entitled "Cross Purposes Live". After the European tour with Cathedral and Godspeed in June 1994, drummer Bobby Rondinelli quit the band and was replaced by original Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward for five shows in South America. Following the touring cycle for "Cross Purposes", bassist Geezer Butler quit the band for the second time.  Iommi would criticize Martin during this period in his book, to which Martin responded; "It surprises me. I mean, they never said anything to me. Surely, if you've got a problem, the first person you should say something to is the person that's in the band with you... You don't wait ten years. It sounds like a really stupid thing to say, as they didn't say anything to my face – and, if that's the case, then more fool them for not saying anything, because, you know, we could have fixed it. I said to them, endlessly, that if there was anything they wanted changed, done differently, just to say and we could fix it, but clearly they didn't, they hadn't got the guts to, obviously, and to write about it in a book afterwards seems a bit daft to me. I'm not bitter about it, but it is surprising... it seems a bit stupid to say that after the event".  Following Butler's departure, newly returned drummer Bill Ward once again left the band. Butler and Ward were meant to have recorded "Forbidden" (1995). In the wake of their departure Iommi then reinstated former members Neil Murray on bass and Cozy Powell on drums, effectively reuniting the "TYR" line-up. The band enlisted Body Count guitarist Ernie C to produce the new album, which was recorded in London in the fall of 1994. The album featured a guest vocal on "Illusion of Power" by Body Count vocalist Ice-T. The resulting "Forbidden" was released on 8 June 1995, but failed to chart in the US or the UK. The album was widely panned by critics; AllMusic's Bradley Torreano said "with boring songs, awful production, and uninspired performances, this is easily avoidable for all but the most enthusiastic fan"; while "Blender" magazine called "Forbidden" "an embarrassment... the band's worst album".  Black Sabbath embarked on a world tour in July 1995 with openers Motörhead and Tiamat, but two months into the tour, drummer Cozy Powell left the band, citing health issues, and was replaced by former drummer Bobby Rondinelli. This would be Martin's final tour with the band.  In December 1996, both Tony Martin (via a letter to Sam Naugler) and Iommi (via an interview with Pete Scott) both confirm that Martin is not "out" of Sabbath, so as late as December 1996, it would appear that Iommi intended on going forward with the band as it last existed at the end of 1995. As for the rest of the band, Neil Murray was working with Cozy Powell in Peter Green's (founder of Fleetwood Mac) 'Splinter Group'.  In 1997, Tony Iommi disbanded the contemporary line-up to officially reunite with Ozzy Osbourne and the original Black Sabbath line-up. Vocalist Tony Martin claimed that an original line-up reunion had been in the works since the band's brief reunion at Ozzy Osbourne's 1992 Costa Mesa show, and that the band released subsequent albums to fulfill their record contract with I.R.S. Records. Martin later recalled "Forbidden" as a "filler album that got the band out of the label deal, rid of the singer, and into the reunion. However I wasn't privy to that information at the time". I.R.S. Records released a compilation album in 1996 to fulfil the band's contract, entitled "The Sabbath Stones", which featured songs from "Born Again" (1983) to "Forbidden" (1995).  Martin would also later hit out on Sabbath for being deleted from the band's history; "It seems a bit of a waste of ten years of the band's history. To cut that out, they're not just cutting me out, they're cutting themselves out. It seems like cutting your own nose off to spite your face. Why would you want to delete ten years of your history? It seems to me that they've got their minds elsewhere, and whatever brings them the most money seems to be what they go for. I mean, the Ozzy reunion. How many times do you want to go and pay to see them do the same stuff? OK, people argue that those old songs are people's favourites. Well; it's probably that way because you keep ramming it down people's throats and don't give them a chance to buy anything else. It seems disjointed and disconnected to me, and I don't understand why they would want to even cut themselves out of that history".

Solo and other collaborations (1998–2005).

After leaving Sabbath, Martin worked with a variety of projects, including Aldo Giuntini. With Dario Mollo, he released two further albums; "The Cage" in 1999 and "The Cage 2". Martin also worked with Empire for their 2003 record "Trading Souls".  Late in 2004, Tony let it be known that there would be a new solo album by him out in 2005. The album was recorded at Tony Martin's house, which is in Headless Cross in Redditch, Worcestershire England. The album featured again former Sabbath member Geoff Nicholls and some drum tracks from the late Cozy Powell. Martin explained; "I have recorded 2 tracks featuring the legendary drumming of Cozy Powell. How? well, when I fronted Cozy Powell's Hammer, he gave me 20 drumming tracks to write some songs with, I forgot I had them until I found them recently in the move to my new house."

Tony Martin's Headless Cross (2006 present).

Tony Martin established Headless Cross in 2005 and would go on to tour Europe in 2006. The band also toured Brazil in 2008.  After Dio's passing in 2010, there was some speculation that he would either return to Black Sabbath or join the renamed Black Sabbath Heaven & Hell. Martin however ruled out ever working with Sabbath again stating: "Sabbath hasn’t talked to me in 15 years. All of the albums that I was on were removed from sale completely by them and it would take unbelievable changes to get it all back together". Black Sabbath were rejoined by Ozzy Osbourne in 2011 with the band's legal disputes apparently concluded.  Tony Martin's Headless Cross last performed at the Asylum in Birmingham, UK on 27 July 2012. This marked Martin's first ever UK show as a solo artist and first show with his new Headless Cross line-up. Martin stated in interviews that this will be his only live show of the year.  In January 2013 Martin signed to a new music publishing deal by Alan Bambrough of Sony/ATV Music Publishing Limited. Martin's would be working on the fourth album "Giuntini Project IV" (2013) from Giuntini Project, the Italian people heavy metal band started in 1988 by guitarist Aldo Giuntini as a solo project. This will be the third album Martin has appeared on. Martin will also appear on releases with Layla Milou and with Veronica Freeman, vocalist with Benedictum.

Reunion with Iommi and Black Sabbath re-releases.

In January 2016 Martin announced on his Facebook page that he "was greeted by Tony Iommi VERY warmly" at the unveiling of the Cozy Powell memorial (also attended by Neil Murray) and that they may work together again. Shortly after Iommi himself announced his intention to work with Tony Martin again. Iommi said: "We've held back on the reissues because of the current Sabbath thing with Ozzy, but they will certainly be happening. I'd like to do a couple of new tracks for those releases ["Headless Cross" and "Tyr"] with Tony Martin. I'll also be looking at working on "Cross Purposes" and "Forbidden"."

Personal life.

In August 2015, Martin married his wife Carol.  On a religious level, Martin has claimed to be a non-believer and that he "doesn't believe there was a Christ." He even wrote a comical/satirical Christmas tune titled "Who Put the Devil in Santa," which plays off this lack of belief.

Anthony Philip Harford (born 19 April 1957), better known by his stage name Tony Martin, is an English heavy metal vocalist, best known for his time fronting Black Sabbath, initially from 1987 to 1991 and again from 1993 to 1996. Martin was the band's second longest serving vocalist after Ozzy Osbourne. He has since been involved in many other projects (such as M3, Misha Calvin, The Cage, Giuntini Project, and Phenomena).

Anthony Philip Harford, dit Tony Martin, est un chanteur et multi-instrumentiste britannique né le. Il est célèbre pour avoir été le chanteur du groupe de heavy metal Black Sabbath de 1987 à 1991 puis de nouveau de 1994 à 1996. Il a enregistré pas moins de 5 albums studio et un album live avec le groupe de Tony Iommi, ce qui en fait le chanteur le plus productif du groupe derrière Ozzy Osbourne et juste devant Ronnie James Dio.


Early life.

Müürsepp was born in Tallinn, to Hilja Volter, who worked in a barbecue restaurant, and Suido Müürsepp, a truck driver. He attended the Tallinn Secondary School No. 39, the Tallinn Secondary School No. 43, and the Tallinn Secondary School No. 49, leaving without graduating in 1991. Müürsepp started playing basketball when he was nine years old, under coach Andres Sõber. He made his Korvpalli Meistriliiga debut in 1990, at age 15, playing for TPedI. In the 1990–91 season, Müürsepp played with Andris of the II liiga, winning the Estonian Cup.

Professional career.

Early years (1992–1996).

In 1992, Müürsepp moved to Sweden and joined Alvik Basket of the Swedish Basketball League (SBL).  In 1993, Müürsepp signed a 12-year, $5 million contract with the Israeli powerhouse Maccabi Tel Aviv. He subsequently played with Maccabi Tel Aviv's reserve team and Hapoel Haifa of the Israel Basketball Super League (IBSL).  In 1995, he was loaned to Kalev of the Korvpalli Meistriliiga (KML). Müürsepp led Kalev to the Estonian league championship and the Estonian Cup, averaging 16.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game for the 1995–96 season.

Miami Heat (1996–1997).

On 26 June 1996, Müürsepp was selected with the 25th overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz. The Jazz then traded him to the Miami Heat for a 2000 first round draft pick. On 12 September 1996, Müürsepp signed a three-year, $1.8 million contract with the Heat. Müürsepp made his NBA debut on 21 December 1996 in a 86–66 away win over the Houston Rockets. He finished with 2 points, one rebound and one assist in one minute and 22 seconds during the fourth quarter. He averaged 1.7 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game in 10 games for the Heat.

Dallas Mavericks (1997–1998).

On 14 February 1997, the Heat traded Müürsepp, Predrag Danilović and Kurt Thomas to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Jamal Mashburn. He made his debut for the Mavericks a day later, scoring 2 points in a 84–99 away loss to the Utah Jazz. In the 1996–97 season, Müürsepp averaged 4,3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game for the Mavericks. He missed the first 14 games of the 1997–98 season with a foot injury. On 5 March 1998, Müürsepp scored a career-high 24 points in a 119–109 home win over the Los Angeles Clippers. He appeared in 41 games (7 starts) during the 1997–98 season, averaging 5.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 0.7 steals in 14.7 minutes.

NBA lockout (1998–1999).

On 24 June 1998, the Mavericks traded Müürsepp, Pat Garrity, Bubba Wells and a 1999 first round draft pick to the Phoenix Suns for Steve Nash. However, due to a lockout, the 1998–99 season did not start until 5 February 1999. During the lockout, Müürsepp made two appearances in the KML, playing for Nybit. The Estonian Basketball Association was subsequently fined for allowing Müürsepp to play with a without prior permission from FIBA. On 23 January 1999, the Suns traded Müürsepp, Mark Bryant, Bubba Wells and a 1999 first round draft pick to the Chicago Bulls for Luc Longley.

Greece (1999–2001).

On 1 February 1999, Müürsepp signed with Aris of the HEBA A1. In May 1999, he was suspended by the HEBA for three months for use of ephedrine.  On 15 July 1999, Müürsepp signed with AEK on a one-year, $700,000 contract with an option to extend for another season. Müürsepp helped AEK win the FIBA Saporta Cup in 2000 and two consecutive Greek Cups in 2000 and 2001. AEK reached the 2000–01 Euroleague semifinals, where they were eliminated by Baskonia. In the Euroleague, he averaged 8.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game in 17 games.

Russia (2001–2006).

In September 2001, Müürsepp signed a one-year contract with UNICS Kazan of the Superliga A.  On 14 August 2002, Müürsepp signed with Dynamo Moscow on a one-year contract. However, he left the club in November 2002 after they failed to pay his wages for the second consecutive month. In December 2002, Müürsepp signed with Ural Great Perm for the rest of the season.  On 18 June 2003, Müürsepp re-signed with UNICS Kazan. He led Kazan to the 2003–04 FIBA Europe League title and was named the Europe League Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP), scoring a game-high 22 points in 87–63 win over Maroussi.  On 17 June 2004, Müürsepp signed a one-year contract with Russian champions CSKA Moscow. In the 2004–05 season, he won the Russian championship and the Russian Cup. CSKA Moscow reached the 2005 Euroleague Final Four, losing 78–85 to Baskonia in the semifinal and 91–94 to Panathinaikos in the third place game. Over 24 Euroleague games, Müürsepp averaged 8.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  On 11 July 2005, Müürsepp returned to UNICS Kazan for a second time, signing a one-year contract.

Late career (2006–2010).

On 27 June 2006, Müürsepp returned to Estonia by signing a one-year contract with University of Tartu. He won his second Estonian championship in 2007.  On 23 August 2007, Müürsepp signed a one-year contract with the Melbourne Tigers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He was released by the Tigers in December 2007 due to an ankle injury.  On 28 February 2008, Müürsepp signed with Kalev/Cramo. He left Kalev/Cramo after the 2008–09 season without having played in an official game for the team.  On 26 February 2010, Müürsepp joined Rakvere Tarvas, where he was reunited with Andres Sõber, his first coach. He retired after the 2009–10 season.

Coaching career.

Müürsepp began his coaching career in August 2010 as an assistant coach for Kalev/Cramo under head coach Aivar Kuusmaa, a position he held for seven years. He won six Estonian championships (2011–2014, 2016, 2017) and two Estonian Cups (2015, 2016) with Kalev/Cramo.  In 2013, Müürsepp served as an assistant coach for the Belarus national team during the 2015 EuroBasket qualifying tournament.  On 6 January 2018, Müürsepp became an assistant coach for Tallinna Kalev/TLÜ under head coach Gert Kullamäe. In January 2019, he became the head coach for Tallinna Kalev/TLÜ following Kullamäe's mid-season departure.

National team career.

Müürsepp was a member of the Soviet Union junior national team that finished fifth at the 1991 European Championship for Cadets, averaging 10.6 points per game. He also represented the Estonia national junior team.  Müürsepp began playing for the senior Estonian national team in 1993. He led Estonia at the 2001 European Championship, averaging 18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game in three games. The team finished the tournament with a 0–3 record for 14th place. Müürsepp finished his national team career in 2007.

Martin Müürsepp (; born 26 September 1974) is an Estonian professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of Tallinna Kalev/TLÜ of the Estonian-Latvian Basketball League. Widely regarded as one of Estonia's greatest basketball players of all time, he is the only Estonian to have played in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Martin Müürsepp (né le à Tallinn, en Estonie) est un entraîneur et ancien joueur de basket-ball estonien. Il mesure 2,08 m et évolue au poste d'ailier fort.


History.

Background.

Canadian origins.

Beginning in 1914, the Polish community in North America began to organize in hopes of setting up a military organization with an end-goal of an independent Poland. In late 1914 a delegation was sent by the Polish-American group PCKR (Polski Centralny Komitet Ratunkowy / Polish Central Relief Committee) to Canada in hopes of setting up a Polish unit made up of North Americans of Polish ancestry, but the Canadian government rebuffed them. As the war dragged on, they tried again and found a supporter in Quebec industrialist William Evan Price III. With his contacts, the Polish delegation met Sam Hughes, the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence, and pitched a "Polish Legion of Canada" composed of three battalions. This time there was considerable interest, and the Canadians sought and were given permission by British high command to start setting up a Polish Army Camp in Niagara-on-the-Lake. With permission granted the Polish army-in-exile called its camp "Tadeusz Kościuszko Camp," honouring a Polish patriot who led the 1794 Kościuszko Uprising aimed at freeing the country from Imperial Russia and the Kingdom of Prussia. Over 20,000 men trained in Canada, equipped and paid by France. Yet even though the camp was in Canada and supported financially by the French, the Americans viewed it as a threat to their neutrality.

America enters the war.

The emergence of the Blue Army was closely associated with the American entry into World War I in April, 1917. A month earlier, Ignacy Jan Paderewski submitted a proposal to U.S. House of Representatives to accept Polish-American volunteers for service on the Western Front in the name of Poland's independence. Some 24,000 Poles were taken in (out of 38,000 who applied) and after a brief military training, they were sent to France to join General Haller, including many women volunteers (PSK). Polish-Americans were eager to fight for freedom and the American-style democracy because they themselves escaped persecution by the empires who partitioned Poland a century earlier. When the war erupted, the American Polonia created the Polish Central Relief Committee to help with the war effort, although ethnically Polish volunteers arrived in France from all Polish diasporas at the same time numbering over 90,000 soldiers eventually. The Entente responded in kind by recognizing the Polish National Committee formed in France (led by Dmowski) as Poland's interim government, with Wilson's written promise (issued on 8 January 1918) to recreate a sovereign Polish state after their victory. Poland's long-term occupier, Tsarist Russia, got out of the war, overrun by the Bolsheviks who signed a treaty in Brest-Litovsk on 3 March 1918, which was voided after Imperial Germany was overthrown in November 1918 and the successor revolutionary government surrendered in the 11 November 1918 armistice.  The Blue Army was formally merged into the Polish Army after the Armistice between the Allies and Germany. Meanwhile, three interim Polish governments emerged independently of one another. A socialist government led by Daszyński was formed in Lublin. The National Committee emerged in Kraków. Daszyński (lacking support) decided to join forces with Piłsudski who was just released by the Germans from Magdeburg. On 16 November 1918, Poland declared independence. A decree defining the new republic was issued in Warsaw on 22 November 1918. A month later, Paderewski joined in from France. At about the same time, heavily armed Ukrainians from the "Sitchovi Stril'ci" (Sich Riflemen) seized the city of Lemberg, and the battle for the control of the city erupted against Piłsudski's legionaries. It was a high-stakes gamble with all sides attempting to establish a new regime ahead of the European peace conference in Versailles of January 1919. Similar Polish uprisings erupted in Poznań on 27 December 1918, Upper Silesia in August 1919 then again in 1920 and May 1921 — separated by the ad-hoc (or outright illegitimate) plebiscites with trainloads of German agents acting as local inhabitants. In the spring of 1919, the Blue Army (no longer needed in the West) was transported to Poland by train. The German forces were very slow to withdraw. In all, some 2,100 soldiers of the Blue Army who enlisted in France from the Polish diasporas died in the fighting, including over 50 officers serving with Haller. Over 1,600 men were wounded. Haller's army included 25,000 ethnic Poles drafted against their will by the German and Austrian armies, out of 50,000 conscripts from across partitioned Poland. They joined Haller from the POW camps in Italy in 1919. The final borders of Poland were set only in October, 1921 by the League of Nations.

World War I.

Western Front.

The first divisions were formed after the official signing of a 1917 alliance by French President Raymond Poincaré and the Polish statesman Ignacy Jan Paderewski. The majority of the recruits, approximately 35,000 of them, were either Poles serving in the French Army or former captured Polish prisoners of war, who were conscripted and forced to serve in the German Heer and Austrian Imperial-Royal Landwehr armies. Many other Poles also joined from all over the world—these units included recruits from the United States with an additional 23,000 Polish-American volunteers and former troops of the Russian Expeditionary Force in France. Members of the Polish diaspora community in Brazil joined the army, with more than 300 men volunteering as well.  The Blue Army was initially placed under direct French military control and commanded by General Louis Archinard. However, on 23 February 1918, political and military sovereignty was granted to the Polish National Committee, and soon after that, the army was directly commanded by independent Polish authorities. Also, more units were formed, most notably the 4th and 5th Rifle Divisions in Russia. On 28 September 1919, Russian government officials formally signed an agreement with the Entente that officially recognized the Polish military units in France as "the only independent, allied and co-belligerent Polish army." On 4 October 1918, the National Committee appointed General Józef Haller von Hallenburg as chief commander of the Polish Legions in France. The first unit to enter combat on the Western Front was the 1st Rifle Regiment ("1 Pułk Strzelców Polskich") fighting from July 1918 in Champagne and the Vosges mountains. By October, the entire 1st Rifle Division had joined the campaign around the area of Rambervillers and Raon-l'Étape.

Transfer to Poland.

The army continued to gather recruits after the end of World War I. Many of these new volunteers were ethnic Poles who were conscripted into the German, Austrian and Russian armies, and later discharged following the signing of the armistice agreement on 11 November 1918. By early 1919, the Blue Army numbered 68,500 men and was fully equipped by the French government. After being denied permission by German officials to enter Poland via the Baltic port city of Danzig ("Gdańsk"), transportation was arranged via rail.  Between April and June of that year, all the army units were moved to a newly independent Poland, across Germany in sealed train cars. Weapons were secured in separate compartments and kept under guard to appease German concerns about a foreign army traversing its territory. Immediately after its arrival, the divisions were integrated into the regular Polish Army and sent to the front lines to fight in the Polish–Ukrainian War, which was being contested in eastern Galicia. The perilous journey from France (through revolutionary Germany) to Poland in the spring of 1919 was documented by those who lived through it.  Captain Stanisław I. Nastal: "Preparations for the departure lasted for some time. The question of transit became a difficult and complicated problem. Finally after a long wait a decision was made and officially agreed upon between the Allies and Germany. The first transports with the Blue Army set out in the first half of April, 1919. Train after train tore along though Germany to the homeland, to Poland."  Major Stefan Wyczółkowski: "On 15 April 1919 the regiment began its trip to Poland from the Bayon railroad station in four transports, via Mainz, Erfurt, Leipzig, Kalisz, and Warsaw, and arrived in Poland, where it was quartered in individual battalions; in Chełm 1st Battalion, supernumerary company and command of the regiment; 3rd Battalion in Kowel; and the 2nd Battalion in Wlodzimierz".  Major Stanisław Bobrowski: "On 13 April 1919 the regiment set out across Germany for Poland, to reinforce other units of the Polish army being created in the homeland amid battle, shielding with their youthful breasts the resurrected Poland".  Major Jerzy Dąbrowski: "Finally on 18 April 1919 the regiment's first transport set out for Poland. On 23 April 1919 the leading divisions of the 3rd Regiment of Polish Riflemen set foot on Polish soil, now free thanks to their own efforts".  Lt. Wincenty Skarzyński: "Weeks passed. April 1919 arrived – then plans were changed: it was decided irrevocably to transport our army to Gdańsk instead by trains, through Germany. Many officers came from Poland, among them Major Gorecki, to coordinate technical details with General Haller."

Polish–Ukrainian War.

Haller's troops changed the balance of power in Galicia and Volhynia. Their arrival allowed the Poles to repel the Ukrainians and establish a demarcation line at the river Zbruch on 14 May 1919. The Blue Army was equipped by the Western Allies, and supported by experienced French officers specifically ordered to fight against the Bolsheviks, but not the forces of the Western Ukrainian People's Republic. Despite the diplomatic conditions, the Poles dispatched Haller's Army against the Ukrainians first, instead of the Bolsheviks. The tactical initiative was done in order to break the stalemate in eastern Galicia. In response, the allies sent several telegrams ordering the Polish government to halt its offensive, as using the allied-equipped army against the Western Ukrainian People's Republic specifically contradicted the status of the French military advisors, but the demands were ignored. The offensive by the Blue Army succeeded in breaking the stalemate and brought about a collapse of the West Ukrainian army. In July 1919, after securing victory on the Ukrainian front, the Blue Army was transferred to the border with Germany in Silesia, where it prepared defensive positions against a possible German invasion of Poland from the west.

Polish–Bolshevik War.

During the Polish-Bolshevik War several Blue Army formations were merged with the regular Polish army, and jointed together to form the 49th Hutsul Rifle Regiment and 18th Infantry Division. Haller's well trained and highly motivated troops, as well as their British built Bristol F.2 reconnaissance planes, Italian made Ansaldo A.1 Balilla fighter planes and French FT-17 tanks, also played a significant role in the war. The Polish-American first engaged the Bolshevik forces near the town of Rivne ("Równe" in Polish) on 18 June 1919. After pushing the Bolsheviks east, the Blue Army advance halted and the troops engaged in small skirmishes until the end of the war. Haller's troops would try to entrap small units of Bolshevik soldiers as well as raid garrisons for food, ammunition and to spread panic amongst the enemy.

Post-war.

The Blue Army's 15th Infantry Rifle Regiment formed a basis for the 49th Hutsul Rifle Regiment (part of the 11th Carpathian Infantry Division) after the end of World War I.  During the Communist crackdown in Poland after World War II, most of the history related to the Polish-Soviet War and the Blue Army was censored, distorted and repressed by the Soviet authorities.

Anti-Jewish violence.

Throughout the fighting on the Ukrainian front, soldiers from the Blue Army assaulted local Jews, believing that some of them were cooperating with Poland's enemies. In eastern Galicia this included fighting a Jewish battalion of the Ukrainian Galician Army under the leadership of Solomon Leinberg.  On 27 May 1919 a soldier by the name of Stanisław Dziadecki who served in one of the Blue Army's rifle divisions in Częstochowa, was shot and wounded while on patrol. A Jewish tailor was suspected of the shooting, and was promptly executed by Haller's soldiers and accompanying civilians, who proceeded to loot Jewish homes and businesses, killing 5-10 Jews and injuring several dozen more. Pavel Korzec wrote that as the army traveled further east, some of Haller's soldiers, as a way to exact retribution, continued to loot Jewish properties and engage in violence. Willian Hagen described Haller's troops together with civilian mobs as assaulting Jewish policemen, beating worshipers and destroying Jewish prayer books in synagogues in eastern Chełm. Polish police and regular army soldiers were occasionally able to restrain Haller's troops.  According to Howard Sachar, in the year and a half prior to the Blue Army's arrival, the total number of Jewish casualties in the region was between 400 and 500; Haller's troops' violence caused this number to double. The Morgenthau Report estimated that the total number of Jews killed as a result of actions made by the Polish military (including the Blue Army) did not exceed 200–300. As a result of the Blue Army's activities, General Haller's visit to the United States was met with protests from American Jewish and Ukrainian communities. Tadeusz Piotrowski wrote that in most cases it's impossible to disentangle gratuitous antisemitism from commonplace looting and soldier brutality. He claims that the term "pogrom" in the accepted sense of the deliberate killing of Jewish civilians could not be applied to the great majority of the incidents in which the Blue Army was involved.

Causes.

According to Alexander Prusin there were a number of causes for the anti-semitic acts of the Polish forces. Socioeconomic tensions regarding land reforms and conflation of Jews with the landed class led to the feelings of hostility. Also, the lack of appropriate government compensation to the Polish soldiers led to soldiers viewing the looting of Jews as partial re-compensation for their service. For soldiers from Western Poland who remembered how many Jews have previously collaborated with Germany during a recent Polish-German conflict in 1919, this allowed framing of anti-semitic attacks as retribution on enemies of the Polish nation. Further, for many Poles Jews were associated with Bolshevism, and the Endeks in particular promoted the stereotype of Jewish Bolshevism. Likewise, according to Joanna Michlic, some perpetrators of anti-Jewish violence legitimized their actions in the name of national self defense. Officers and soldiers in the Blue Army expressed these tendencies, and often treated all Jews as communists, despite the traditional religious character and political diversity of Jewish communities. Some of the more significant incidents of abuse were inflicted by the Polish-American volunteers. It is likely that the cultural shock of finding themselves confronted by a multitude of unfamiliar ethnic, political and religious groups that inhabited Western Ukraine led to a feeling of vulnerability, that in turn provoked the violent outbursts. Encyclopaedia Judaica writes that because of its French ties the Blue Army enjoyed independence from the main Polish command, and some of its soldiers exploited this when engaging in undisciplined action against Jewish communities in Galicia.

Personnel.

Veteran status of Polish-American volunteers.

After the war, the Polish-American volunteers who served within Haller's Army were not recognized as veterans by either the American or Polish governments. This led to friction between the Polish community in the United States and the Polish government, and resulted in the subsequent refusal by Polish-Americans to again help the Polish cause militarily.

Jewish volunteers.

Polish Jews enlisted and fought alongside ethnic Poles within the Blue Army, serving as soldiers, doctors and nurses. According to Edward Goldstein writing in "The Galitzianer", on examining a list of 1,381 casualty names compiled by Paul Valasek, he identified 62 (or approximately 5%) Jewish sounding names in the list.

Notable persons.

Ludwik Marian Kaźmierczak, the paternal grandfather of the German chancellor Angela Merkel, and an ethnic Pole born in Posen (Poznań), German Empire served in the Blue Army. During World War I, he was drafted into the German Army in 1915 and fought on the western front. After being taken as a prisoner of war in France, he joined the Blue Army, and subsequently fought in the Polish-Ukrainian and Polish-Soviet wars. After ending his service Kaźmierczak immigrated back to Germany.

Order of battle.

The order of battle shows the hierarchical organization of an armed force participating in a military operation or campaign. The Blue Army order of battle was as follows:

Bibliography.

Notes  References

The Blue Army (Polish: "Błękitna Armia"), or Haller's Army, was a Polish military contingent created in France during the latter stages of World War I. The name came from the French-issued blue military uniforms worn by the soldiers. The symbolic term used to describe the troops was subsequently adopted by General Józef Haller von Hallenburg himself to represent all newly organized Polish Legions fighting in western Europe.

L'Armée bleue (en ), aussi dite "Armée polonaise en France" (en ) ou "Armée Haller" (en ), est une brigade de soldats polonais, commandée par Józef Haller, qui combattit au sein de l'Armée française durant la Première Guerre mondiale.


Early life and education.

Samuel was born in Hamilton, Victoria, the son of Maree and Clifford Samuel. He grew up in Adelaide, South Australia and graduated from Rostrevor College in 2001. He has a younger brother, Benedict, a writer, producer and actor, as well as an older sister, Bridget, a stage manager.  Despite completing his senior secondary years at Rostrevor College, Samuel undertook final year drama at Christian Brothers College under the tutelage of Amanda Portus, where he played the part of Tom Snout (the wall) in Rostrevor College's production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as well as playing Belvile in CBC's production of Aphra Behn's "The Rover" ("The Banished Cavaliers").  Samuel later attended Flinders University Drama Centre in 2005. He played Hamlet in the graduate production.

Acting debut and international breakthrough.

Samuel made his debut on the Australian TV show "McLeod's Daughters" in 2003. He starred in the Australian horror movie "Road Train" as Marcus, and also acted in the Australian movie "Drowning" with "Elephant Princess" star Miles Szanto, directed by Craig Boreham. In 2009, he was cast as Brent in the Australian horror/thriller movie "The Loved Ones" in the lead role opposite Robin McLeavy. Although it received several award nominations, the film was a financial failure.  In early 2010, Samuel was cast as Riley Biers in "". The film gave Samuel his first blockbuster film worldwide. Samuel received his first award nomination and win at the 2011 MTV Movie Awards. In an interview with "GQ Australia" in November 2010, Samuel described the process of his shock "Twilight" casting. "I sent off the audition tape from Sydney, which landed in a big pile on someone's desk. So then to actually hear something back was kind of unusual. I guess I was a bit of a gamble, but it's bizarre and wonderful."  Samuel appeared in the 2011 film "Anonymous". He plays a lead role in "A Few Best Men" (2011/2012). He was cast in 3D feature "Bait", released in September 2012 and short film "Sanctuary", which was also released in 2012. In 2013 he played Ian in "Adore/Two Mothers" alongside Robin Wright and Naomi Watts. In 2016, Samuel plays the titular character in Cris Jones' "The Death and Life of Otto Bloom", with Rachel Ward and her daughter, Matilda Brown. The film is set to open the Melbourne International Film Festival.

Personal life.

Samuel follows Australian rules football and is a supporter of the Adelaide Football Club in the Australian Football League.

Xavier Samuel (born 10 December 1983) is an Australian actor. He has appeared in leading roles in the feature films "Adore", "September", "Further We Search", "Newcastle", "The Loved Ones", "Frankenstein", "A Few Best Men", and played Riley Biers in "" and Billy in "Spin Out".

Xavier Samuel, né le, est un acteur australien. Il a accédé à une certaine notoriété en interprétant le rôle de Riley Biers dans "", le troisième film tiré de la Saga Twilight signée Stephenie Meyer.


Personal life.

Jeremy Abbott was born in Aspen, Colorado to Allison and Danny Abbott. He has an elder sister, Gwen Abbott, a nationally ranked downhill skier who competed in the X Games as a ski racer, and a younger brother. He attended Cheyenne Mountain High School for five years, stretching his high school career out one year longer than the usual, so he could concentrate on both skating and getting good grades. He graduated in 2004.  In January 2015, Abbott's father, Danny Abbott, died from complications of Parkinson's Disease.  In addition to his coaches, Jeremy Abbott cites his family—mother Allison Scott, stepfather Allen Scott, his late father Danny Abbott, and sister Gwen Abbott,—as the pillars of his success. Following his win on the junior level at 2005 US nationals, Abbott established a fund in Aspen, Colorado, to help up-and-coming skaters to pay for training. In 2006, he established a second fund for skaters in the surrounding area.

Skating career.

Early years.

Abbott began skating at age two. He began competing at age four after seeing and becoming inspired by Robin Cousins. He has competed in three figure skating disciplines. As a juvenile, he competed in ice dancing with Amanda Cunningham from 1995–96 and with Katie Hoffmaster from 1997–98. He competed as a pair skater with Brittany Vise in 1998–99 and Krystal Sorenson from 2001–02.  In his early years, Abbott was coached by Peggy Behr in Aspen, Colorado. In 1999, Abbott moved from Aspen to Colorado Springs, Colorado, to train at the Colorado Springs World Arena with Tom Zakrajsek. He began representing the Broadmoor Skating Club.  Abbott began competing in singles at the novice level in the 2000–01 season, but failed to make it out of sectionals. The next year he made it to Nationals, where he placed 6th at the novice level.  For the 2002–03 and 2004–05 seasons, Abbott competed on the junior level nationally, though he did not reach 2003 nationals at the junior level. He fractured his L5 vertebra in 2003, which kept him off the ice for fifteen weeks leading up to Regionals, yet he was able to win Regionals, and go on to place 7th at the 2004 U.S. Championships.  He won the Junior national title at the 2005 U.S. Championships. A remark he made during this competition, "Stranger things could happen; pigs could fly!", led him to adopt as his mascot a pig with wings, or a flying pig. Abbott made it the slogan of his charitable fund, which he started to give back to young male skaters struggling to pay coaching fees, ice time and competition fees.

2005–2008.

Abbott was given his first senior international assignment in the 2005–06 Olympic season, placing 18th at the 2005 Nebelhorn Trophy. Abbott, then, placed fifth at the very competitive Midwestern Sectionals, and just missed a chance to go on to Nationals and compete for an Olympic berth. Abbott later blamed his performance on his poor training habits, and said that he had become lazy after winning the junior national title; failing to make it out of sectionals gave him the motivation he needed.  In the 2006–07 season, Abbott was given another international assignment, this time to the 2006 Finlandia Trophy, which he won. He won sectionals and advanced to Nationals, where he won the pewter medal, the highest placement for a first-timer in the senior men's event at nationals in twenty years. Abbott was named the first alternate to the World and Four Continents teams. When Johnny Weir withdrew from the 2007 Four Continents, Abbott was given the opportunity to compete at the event, which was held at his home rink, World Arena, Colorado Springs. He beat out U.S. silver medalist and training mate Ryan Bradley for the bronze medal.  In the 2007–08 season, Abbott debuted on the Grand Prix circuit, placing 8th at the 2007 Skate Canada and 4th at the 2007 NHK Trophy. At the 2008 U.S. Championships, he again won the pewter medal. He placed 5th at the 2008 Four Continents. He was sent to the 2008 World Championships after Evan Lysacek withdrew with injury, and placed 11th.

2008–2009.

In the 2008–09 season, Abbott had a breakthrough season on the Grand Prix circuit. He won the 2008 Cup of China and placed fourth at the 2008 Cup of Russia to qualify for the 2008–09 Grand Prix Final. He won the Grand Prix Final, becoming the first American man to do so, and achieved the highest total free skate score for an American man at that time. At the 2009 U.S. Championships in Cleveland, Abbott won both the short program and the free skate to win the gold medal. At the 2009 World Championships, Abbot placed 10th in both the short and long programs and 11th overall. In the off-season, he performed at the Festa On Ice show in South Korea, his first ice show in a foreign country.  In May 2009, Abbott changed coaches to Yuka Sato in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

2009–2010 season.

Abbott began the 2009–10 season with a 5th-place finish at the 2009 NHK Trophy. He then won the 2009 Skate Canada to qualify once again for the Grand Prix Final, where he placed fourth. At the 2010 U.S. Championships, Abbott won both segments of the competition to win the title overall, finishing 25 points ahead of the second place Evan Lysacek. He was named to the Olympic team. At the 2010 Olympics, Abbott placed 15th place in the short program, with a score of 69.40. Abbott earned a score of 149.56 in the free skate, placing 9th in that segment of the competition and moving up to place 9th overall. At the 2010 World Championships, he skated a strong short to place 6th in the segment. In the long program, he fell on the quad and double axel and placed 5th overall. In the off-season, Abbott performed on the Stars on Ice tour.

2010–2011 season.

Abbott decided to remain with Sato for the 2010–11 season. In a November 2011 interview, he said he was seeing a sports psychologist once a week. He also works with Jason Dungjen. His training was hampered by his first serious boot problems of his career. Abbott explained, "I could not get the blades mounted quite right, and they were never quite comfortable". He went through eight pairs of boots. The problems were resolved toward the end of the season.  At the 2011 U.S. Championships, Abbott was second after the short program but struggled through parts of his long program to finish fourth overall. He won his third pewter medal with a total score of 224.16, missing the bronze medal by just 0.19 points. The selection committee decided to leave him off the 2011 Worlds team, disappointing Abbott who thought the rules stated that other results would be taken into consideration. He was named to the team to the 2011 Four Continents instead, where he won the bronze medal behind Japanese skaters Daisuke Takahashi and Yuzuru Hanyu.

2011–2012 season.

For the 2011–12 Grand Prix season, Abbott was assigned to compete at 2011 Cup of China and 2011 Cup of Russia. He later said they were not the two he had asked for but that it had worked out well. He placed third in both programs at Cup of China and came away with the gold medal overall. At Cup of Russia, Abbott won the short program with a new personal best of 83.54 points. He was fifth in the free program and won the bronze medal overall. He qualified for his third Grand Prix Final.  At the 2012 U.S. Championships, Abbott placed first in both programs and won his third national title. He withdrew from the 2012 Four Continents due to back spasms and was replaced by 13th-placed Richard Dornbush. He won the silver medal at the 2012 Challenge Cup in The Hague. He finished 8th at the 2012 Worlds.

2012–2013 season.

Abbott was 5th at his first Grand Prix event of the season, the 2012 Skate America. Early in the season, he had a compressed disk in his lower back, which also caused nerve problems in his legs, but his condition began to improve by his next event in France. He won the silver medal at the 2012 Trophee Eric Bompard. At a practice at the 2013 U.S. Championships he was informed that one of his spins would not count and changed it before competing. He won bronze at the event, behind champion Max Aaron and silver medalist Ross Miner.

2013–2014 season.

During an interview for "The Skating Lesson Podcast" Abbott told Jennifer Kirk that the 2013–14 would be his last and that he would again use his long program from the 2011–12 season. He came in sixth at his first Grand Prix assignment, the 2013 Skate Canada International, and won the bronze medal at the second, the 2013 NHK Trophy. At the 2014 U.S. Championships, he placed first in the short program and second to Jason Brown in the free skate. Abbott finished first overall and was named in the U.S. team to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. He was awarded a team bronze medal. He went on to compete at the World Championships, where he had a fourth place free skate and placed fifth overall. Combined with teammate Max Aaron's 8th-place finish, the US Men gained back their third spot.

2014–2015 season.

Abbott was given assignments for Skate America and NHK Trophy for the 2014–15 season. He placed 5th at both events.  Shortly before the 2015 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Abbott's father died from Parkinson's disease. Despite this hardship, Abbott decided to compete anyway and finished 5th. During the gala, Abbott paid a tribute to his late father.

2015–2016 season and after.

At the beginning of the 2015–2016 season, Abbott stated that he would sit out the season, but said he did not plan on retiring. In October 2015, he participated in the 2015 Japan Open, a team event in Japan. In January 2016, he won gold at the 2016 Medal Winners Open, an ISU-sanctioned pro-am competition held in Japan.  During the 2016–2017 season, Abbott participated in the 2016 Japan Open. At the end of the season, he announced his retirement from competition.

Detailed results.

"Small medals for short and free programs awarded only at ISU Championships. At team events, medals awarded for team results only."

Jeremy Abbott (born June 5, 1985) is a former American figure skater. He is the 2008 Grand Prix Final champion, a two-time (2007, 2011) Four Continents bronze medalist, and a four-time (2009, 2010, 2012, 2014) U.S. national champion. He represented the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympics, where he placed ninth, and at the 2014 Winter Olympics, winning a bronze medal in the team event.

Jeremy Abbott, né le à Aspen, dans le Colorado, est un patineur artistique américain. Il est triple champion des États-Unis (2009, 2010 et 2012), médaillé de bronze aux championnats des quatre continents 2007, ainsi que champion 2008 de la finale du Grand Prix ISU.