History.

Cuchito's sisters and friends came together as a group, naming it after the Taino queen Anacaona. The septet made its first official appearance in February 1932, at the Payret Theater in Havana. Performing on the radio and also nightly in the "aires libres", open-air cafes, they soon found an enthusiastic audience. The members of the original 1932 septet were Isabel Álvarez, Berta Cabrera, Elia O'Reilly and the four Castro sisters–Ada, Olga "Bola", Cuchito and Ondina. Later on Caridad “Cachita”, Emma, Flora, Alicia, Argimira “Millo”, Xiomara and Yolanda joined the jazz band. Anacaona toured Cuba (1933), Puerto Rico (1935), Mexico (1936), Panama, Colombia and Venezuela (1937). In 1937 the septet published three records with RCA-Victor, then the worldwide leading music label. In the winter of the same year the Anacaona septet was the top act at a newly inaugurated night club on Broadway called „Havana Madrid“. The band was invited to perform at NBC's New York radio station, at the Hotel Commodore, Hotel Pierre, and the Waldorf Astoria where a show was held for Franklin D. Roosevelt’s birthday. The band travelled on to Paris in 1938 with Alberto Socarrás, known as the “Magician on the Flute”. Anacaona was a smash as a jazz band in Les Ambassadeurs on the Champs-Elysées. Later in the evening the Anacaona son septet alternated with Django Reinhardt and his Quintett du Hot Club de France at the Chez Florence in Montmartre. Shortly before World War II the band returned to Cuba.  With concerts in New York and Paris, Anacaona rose to international fame.1947 Anacaona starred for two seasons in the musical show of the Casino Nacional of Havana under the direction of Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona. The band made its screen debut in the film "A La Habana me Voy" ("Off to Havana I go"). They appeared in several other films in Mexico together with film star and rumba dancer Ninón Sevilla. Popular female singers such as Celia Cruz, Omara Portuondo (Buena Vista Social Club), Haydée Portuondo, Moraima Secada and Dominica Verges joined Anacaona during the forties and fifties.  Performing as a show band that played Mambo, Cha-cha-chá and Latin Jazz, Anacaona toured through South America in 1958 and appeared on radio and television as well as in theaters in Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina and Chile. Meanwhile, the revolutionaries led by Fidel Castro were on the move and had taken over when the band returned to Cuba. In 1962 Anacaona joined Cuba's National Council of Culture (Consejo Nacional de la Cultura) and later became part of the Ignacio Piñeiro state enterprise for traditional music. Although internationally the band faded from view, it remained very popular in Cuba and the original line-up continued to play until 1989.

Revival.

The band was reorganized in 1989. The remaining five Castro sisters chose to leave the band, which is still active under the lead of Georgia and Dora Aguirre, the band's bassists. Since 1991 Anacaona has recorded several CDs and performed in more than 20 countries, including the United States, Canada and China. On the occasion of the band's 85th anniversary it toured Cuba in 2017.

Books.

Alicia Castro's "Queens of Havana: The Amazing Adventures of the Legendary Anacaona, Cuba's First All-Girl Dance Band" (Grove Press, 2007) is a history of the band which concentrates on the band's early period. The British edition is titled "Anacaona: The Adventures of Cuba's Most Famous All-Girl Orchestra".

Musical.

A musical inspired by the sisters life and set at the time of the revolution in 1958 was produced by Youth Music Theatre UK in 2012.

Anacaona is the name of an all-female orchestra, founded Havana in the early 1930s by Concepción "Cuchito" Castro Zaldarriaga and her sisters. Eventually, all 11 sisters joined the band. The band was formed during the Machado era when the political situation led to university closings, forcing Cuchito Castro to abandon her studies and her plan to start a dental practice. Instead, she chose a different career in 1932 by proposing a female septet to challenge the male-dominated son music. At the time, it was believed women were not capable of playing son. The band enjoyed close musical ties with well-known Cuban performers, in particular with Ignacio Piñeiro and Lázaro Herrera of the Septeto Nacional. Graciela, whose brother Machito laid the foundations of Latin Jazz, was Anacaona's lead singer for a decade.

Anacaona ist der Name der kubanischen Frauenband, die Concepción „Cuchito“ Castro Zaldarriaga gemeinsam mit ihren Schwestern 1932 während der Diktatur von Gerardo Machado gründete. Nach und nach integrierten sich alle elf Schwestern in die Band. Die Idee, das erste weibliche Septett, das den Son Cubano beherrschte, ins Leben zu rufen, wurde aus der Not geboren: Die Universitäten von Havanna waren wegen Studentenprotesten geschlossen worden, und Cuchito sah sich gezwungen, ihr Studium der Zahnmedizin aufzugeben. Sie waren Pionierinnen zu jener Zeit, als man Frauen noch für unfähig hielt, Son-Musik und Instrumente wie Trompete oder Trommeln zu spielen. Anacaona arbeitete musikalisch eng mit den kubanischen Künstler-Größen jener Zeit zusammen: mit den Musikern des Septeto Nacional, das von Ignacio Piñeiro geleitet wurde, insbesondere mit Lázaro Herrera. Graciela Pérez, die Schwester von Machito, der als Bandleader in New York die Fundamente für den Latin Jazz legte, war über ein Jahrzehnt lang Anacaonas Sängerin.


Analysis.

A lot of dark data is unstructured, which means that the information is in formats that may be difficult to categorise, be read by the computer and thus analysed. Often the reason that business does not analyse their dark data is because of the amount of resources it would take and the difficulty of having that data analysed. According to Computer Weekly, 60% of organisations believe that their own business intelligence reporting capability is "inadequate" and 65% say that they have "somewhat disorganised content management approaches".

Relevance.

Useful data may become dark data after it becomes irrelevant, as it is not processed fast enough. This is called "perishable insights" in "live flowing data". For example, if the geolocation of a customer is known to a business, the business can make offer based on the location, however if this data is not processed immediately, it may be irrelevant in the future. According to IBM, about 60 percent of data loses its value immediately.

Storage.

According to the New York Times, 90% of energy used by data centres is wasted. If data was not stored, energy costs could be saved. Furthermore, there are costs associated with the underutilisation of information and thus missed opportunities. According to Datamation, "the storage environments of EMEA organizations consist of 54 percent dark data, 32 percent Redundant, Obsolete and Trivial data and 14 percent business-critical data. By 2020, this can add up to $891 billion in storage and management costs that can otherwise be avoided."  The continuous storage of dark data can put an organisation at risk, especially if this data is sensitive. In the case of a breach, this can result in serious repercussions. These can be financial, legal and can seriously hurt an organisation's reputation. For example, a breach of private records of customers could result in the stealing of sensitive information, which could result in identity theft. Another example could be the breach of the company's own sensitive information, for example relating to research and development. These risks can be mitigated by assessing and auditing whether this data is useful to the organisation, employing strong encryption and security and finally, if it is determined to be discarded, then it should be discarded in a way that it becomes unretrievable.

Future.

It is generally considered that as more advanced computing systems for analysis of data are built, the higher the value of dark data will be. It has been noted that "data and analytics will be the foundation of the modern industrial revolution". Of course, this includes data that is currently considered "dark data" since there are not enough resources to process it. All this data that is being collected can be used in the future to bring maximum productivity and an ability for organisations to meet consumers' demand. Technology advancements are helping to leverage this dark data affordably, thanks to young and innovative companies such as Datumize, Veritas or Lucidworks. Furthermore, many organisations do not realise the value of dark data right now, for example in healthcare and education organisations deal with large amounts of data that could create a significant "potential to service students and patients in the manner in which the consumer and financial services pursue their target population".

Dark data is data which is acquired through various computer network operations but not used in any manner to derive insights or for decision making. The ability of an organisation to collect data can exceed the throughput at which it can analyse the data. In some cases the organisation may not even be aware that the data is being collected. IBM estimate that roughly 90 percent of data generated by sensors and analog-to-digital conversions never get used.

Als Dark Data bezeichnet man Daten, die zwar von Informationssystemen erfasst und gespeichert, aber nicht verwendet werden. Bei großen Datenmengen (Big Data) können viele Daten entstehen, die nicht alle analysiert, betrachtet oder benutzt werden und so kommt es dazu, dass man sich der Existenz der Daten nicht mehr bewusst ist.


Career.

Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Winnall joined the youth ranks of Wolverhampton Wanderers as a teenager, before signing professional forms in May 2009. He recovered from a cruciate knee injury to make his senior debut on 24 August 2010 in a League Cup victory over Southend United, which was to be his only Wolves first team appearance.  In February 2011 he moved on a month's loan to League Two side Burton Albion, later extended to the end of the season after a run of four goals in six appearances.  The striker went out on loan again, joining League Two side Hereford United on a month's loan from 26 August. After returning to Wolves at its conclusion, he moved on loan again in January 2012, to join Scottish Premier League side Inverness Caledonian Thistle for the rest of the season.  During pre-season for the 2012–13 season Winnall was given permission to undergo a trial with Preston North End but was not offered a contract. Instead his next move was a loan at League One club Shrewsbury Town whom he joined in a one-month deal on 28 September 2012.  At the end of the 2012–13 season his contract with Wolves expired and was not renewed, meaning the striker left the club having made only one first team appearance during his time at Molineux.

Scunthorpe United.

Following a successful trial spell during pre-season, he subsequently signed for League Two club Scunthorpe United in a one-year deal, scoring on his debut on 3 August 2013 against Mansfield Town. He was both Scunthorpe's and League Two's leading scorer in 2013–2014, and was nominated for the latter's Player of the Year Award in March 2014.  Scunthorpe took up a one-year option on his contract in May 2014, extending his deal until 2015. At the same time, Winnall was offered a new contract which – according to Scunthorpe chairman Peter Swann – was a "vast improvement" on his current deal. Swann said: "It's important that the fans know that we do rate him and that we want him to stay here."

Barnsley.

On 23 July 2014, Winnall signed for fellow League One club Barnsley for an undisclosed fee. He scored his first goal for the club on 23 August in a 4–1 win at home to Gillingham. On 8 November 2014, Winnall scored his first senior hat trick, in Barnsley's 5–0 FA cup first round win over Burton Albion. On 28 January 2016, Barnsley rejected an offer for Winnall from Championship club Leeds United.  Winnall remained at Barnsley and he played a big part in Barnsley's season, including beating Oxford United 3–2 to win the Football League Trophy on 3 April 2016. On 14 May 2016, Winnall's double helped keep Barnsley on course for a return trip to Wembley as a 3–0 first-leg win against Walsall gave them a big advantage in their League One play-off semi-finals. Barnsley went on to beat Walsall 6–1 on aggregate, and then beat Millwall 3–1 in the play-off final at Wembley Stadium to earn promotion to the Championship. He scored 24 goals in all competition, with 23 of them league goals for Barnsley, and contributed 8 assists during the 2015–16 season and finished as the third highest goalscorer in League One behind Will Grigg and Nicky Ajose.

Sheffield Wednesday.

On 13 January 2017, Winnall signed for fellow Championship team Sheffield Wednesday. He scored his first goal for Wednesday in a 3–0 win against Birmingham City on 10 February 2017. In a heated return to Oakwell in April, Winnall scored the opening goal against former club Barnsley. On 31 August 2017, Winnall joined Derby County as part of a loan swap deal for midfielder Jacob Butterfield. He scored his first goal for Derby in a 1–1 draw with Birmingham City on 23 September 2017.

Honours.

Barnsley  Individual

Sam Thomas Winnall (born 19 January 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for Championship club Sheffield Wednesday.

Samuel Thomas „Sam“ Winnall (* 19. Januar 1991 in Wolverhampton) ist ein englischer Fußballspieler, der seit 2017 beim Zweitligisten Sheffield Wednesday unter Vertrag steht.


History.

The Oval X-Treme were founded in 1995 as an amateur team for women's hockey players in Calgary, quickly developing a heated rivalry with their northern counterparts, the Edmonton Chimos. In 2002, the Oval X-Treme were approached, along with the Chimos, to join the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL). The two teams joined the Vancouver Griffins to form the West division of the NWHL. After the 03-04 season, where the Oval X-Treme and Chimos faced only each other due to prohibitive costs to fly out east, the two franchises left the NWHL to form the five team Western Women's Hockey League. In 2006, the two leagues were reunited under the NWHL banner. However, this was short lived as the NWHL and WWHL could not reach an agreement upon a playoff schedule. As a result, the merger was not consummated. With the collapse of the NWHL in the summer of 2007, the Western Women's Hockey League was once again a completely independent league.  The Calgary Oval X-Treme suspended activities for the 2009-10 season.  Partially as a result of the Canada national team being based in Calgary, the Oval X-Treme featured many of Canada's top women's hockey players, including Hayley Wickenheiser, Danielle Goyette and Cassie Campbell. As a result, the Oval X-Treme became the undisputed powerhouse of women's hockey in western Canada, winning five consecutive league championships, and compiling a regular season mark of 95-3-2-1 in their last five seasons.  Gina Kingsbury joined the Oval X-Treme in 2006. She had 31 points (11 goals, 20 assists) in 19 games as the Oval X-Treme went on to win the Esso Women's National Championship. In her second season with the Oval X-Treme, Kingsbury scored 20 goals and added 25 assists in 23 games.

Season-by-season.

in National Women's Hockey League (NWHL): in Western Women's Hockey League (WWHL):  Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points.

Last Roster 2008-09.

and

The Calgary Oval X-Treme were a professional women's ice hockey team in the Western Women's Hockey League (WWHL). The team played its home games at the Olympic Oval in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The Oval X-Treme were a member of the National Women's Hockey League for two seasons before breaking away to help form the WWHL in 2004.

Die Calgary Oval X-Treme waren ein kanadisches Fraueneishockeyteam aus Calgary, Alberta, und spielten zwischen 2004 und 2009 in der Western Women’s Hockey League sowie von 2002 bis 2004 in der National Women’s Hockey League. Die Oval X-Treme wurden 1995 als Amateurteam gegründet und entwickelten sich im Laufe der Jahre zu einem der erfolgreichsten Frauen-Clubs in Kanada.


Olympic Athletes from Russia at the 2018 Winter Olympics

Olympische Winterspiele 2018/Teilnehmer (Olympische Athleten aus Russland)

Background.

Russian doping allegations.

In December 2014, German public broadcaster ARD aired a documentary which made wide-ranging allegations that Russia organized a state-run doping program which supplied their athletes with performance-enhancing drugs. In November 2015, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) published a report and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) suspended Russia indefinitely from world track and field events.  In May 2016, "The New York Times" published allegations by the former director of Russia's anti-doping laboratory, Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov, that a conspiracy of corrupt anti-doping officials, Federal Security Service (FSB) intelligence agents, and compliant Russian athletes used banned substances to gain an unfair advantage during the Games. Rodchenkov stated that the FSB tampered with over 100 urine samples as part of a cover-up, and that a third of the Russian medals won at Sochi were the result of doping. On 18 July 2016, an independent investigation commissioned by WADA concluded that it was shown "beyond a reasonable doubt" that the RUSADA, the Ministry of Sport, the FSB and the Centre of Sports Preparation of the National Teams of Russia had "operated for the protection of doped Russian athletes" within a "state-directed failsafe system" using "the disappearing positive [test] methodology". According to the McLaren Report, the Disappearing Positive Methodology operated from "at least late 2011 to August 2015". It was used on 643 positive samples, a number that the authors consider "only a minimum" due to limited access to Russian records.  On 9 December 2016, Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren published the second part of his independent report. The investigation found that from 2011 to 2015, more than 1,000 Russian competitors in various sports (including summer, winter, and Paralympic sports) benefited from the cover-up. Following the release of the McLaren report, the IOC announced the initiation of an investigation of 28 Russian athletes at the Sochi Olympic Games. "La Gazzetta dello Sport" reported the names of 17 athletes, of whom 15 are among the 28 under investigation. As of late December 2017, 13 medals had been stripped and 43 Russian athletes had been disqualified for competition in 2018. The number of athletes under investigation rose to 36 (and eventually 46) in December.  Russia has denied the existence of a doping program with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, blaming the United States for "using the Olympics to meddle in the Russian presidential election".

Official sanctions.

On 5 December 2017, the IOC announced that the Russian Olympic Committee had been suspended from the 2018 Winter Olympics with immediate effect. Athletes who had no previous drug violations and a consistent history of drug testing were to be allowed to compete under the Olympic Flag as an "Olympic Athlete from Russia" (OAR). Under the terms of the decree, Russian government officials were barred from the Games, and neither the country's flag nor anthem would be present (the Olympic Flag and Olympic Anthem would be used instead). On 20 December 2017 the IOC proposed an alternative logo for the OAR athletes' uniforms (shown on right). IOC President Thomas Bach said that "after following due process [the IOC] has issued proportional sanctions for this systematic manipulation while protecting the clean athletes".  As of January 2018, the IOC had sanctioned 43 Russian athletes from the 2014 Winter Olympics and banned them from competing in the 2018 edition and all other future Olympic Games as part of the Oswald Commission. All but one of these athletes appealed against their bans to CAS. The court overturned the sanctions on 28 athletes, meaning that their Sochi medals and results were reinstated, but decided that there was sufficient evidence against eleven of the athletes to uphold their Sochi sanctions. The IOC said in a statement that "the result of the CAS decision does not mean that athletes from the group of 28 will be invited to the Games. Not being sanctioned does not automatically confer the privilege of an invitation" and that "this [case] may have a serious impact on the future fight against doping". The IOC were careful to note that the CAS Secretary General "insisted that the CAS decision does not mean that these 28 athletes are innocent" and that they would consider an appeal against the court's decision. The court also decided that none of the 39 athletes should be banned from all future Olympic Games, but only the 2018 Games. Three of the 42 Russian athletes that originally appealed are still waiting for their hearing, which will be conducted after the 2018 Games.  An original pool of 500 Russian athletes was put forward for consideration for the 2018 Games and 111 were immediately removed from consideration. The remaining athletes had to meet pre-games conditions such as further pre-games tests and reanalysis from stored samples. Only if these requirements were met would the athletes be considered for invitation to the Games. None of the athletes who had been sanctioned by the Oswald Commission were still in the pool at this stage. The final number of neutral Russian athletes invited to compete was 169 and, after speed skater Olga Graf dropped out, the eventual total was 168.

Reaction in Russia.

In the past, the Russian president Vladimir Putin and other officials had stated that it would be an embarrassment for Russia if its athletes were not allowed to compete under the Russian flag. However, his spokesman later revealed that no boycott had actually been discussed prior to the IOC's decision. After the announcement, Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Chechnya, announced that none of the Chechen athletes would be permitted to participate under a neutral flag.  On 6 December, Putin stated that his government were prepared to allow Russian athletes to compete at the Games as individuals, but there were still calls from other Russian politicians for a boycott. Gennady Zyuganov, leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, proposed to send fans to the Games with a Soviet Victory Banner. Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, suggested that the United States "fears honest competition"; while Vladimir Putin was of the opinion that the United States had used its influence within the IOC to "orchestrate the doping scandal". He called the IOC decision an unfair "collective punishment", saying "It all looks like an absolutely orchestrated and politically motivated decision. For me, there are no doubts about this."  The popular Russian newspaper "Komsomolskaya Pravda" reported that 86% of Russians opposed participating in the Olympics under a neutral flag, and many Russian fans attended the Games wearing the Russian colours and chanting "Russia!" in unison, in an act of defiance against the ban. After the games, Russian figure skater Evgenia Medvedeva revealed in an Instagram post that the Russian tricolor was hidden on the OAR medal ceremony uniforms underneath a white fur scarf buttoned on the front of the jacket.

Criticism.

The International Ice Hockey Federation voiced support for allowing the full participation of "all clean Russian athletes" in the 2018 Winter Games, calling on the IOC to refrain from imposing "collective punishment".  The IOC's decision was heavily criticized by Jack Robertson, who was primary investigator of the Russian doping program on behalf of WADA. Robertson argued that the IOC had issued "a non-punitive punishment meant to save face while protecting the [IOC's] and Russia's commercial and political interests". He also highlighted the fact that Russian whistleblowers proved beyond doubt that "99 percent of [their] national-level teammates were doping". According to Robertson, "[WADA] has discovered that when a Russian athlete [reaches] the national level, he or she [has] no choice in the matter: [it is] either dope, or you're done". He added "There is currently no intelligence I have seen or heard about that indicates the state-sponsored doping program has ceased." It was also reported that Russian officials intensively lobbied US politicians in an apparent attempt to secure Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov's extradition to Russia (Rodchenkov being the main whistleblower).  The CAS decision to overturn the life bans of 28 Russian athletes and restore their medals was fiercely criticised by Olympic officials, including IOC president Thomas Bach who said the decision was "extremely disappointing and surprising". Whistleblower Rodchenkov's lawyer stated that "the CAS decision would allow doped athletes to escape without punishment", also that "[the CAS decision] provides yet another ill-gotten gain for the corrupt Russian doping system generally, and Putin specifically".

Failed doping tests.

Curler Alexander Krushelnitskiy failed his doping test after winning bronze in the mixed doubles curling as he tested positive for meldonium. This is a drug used for treating heart conditions such as angina, chronic heart failure, cardiomyopathy and other cardiovascular disorders. It has the effect of increasing blood flow and can lead to an improvement in endurance. Meldonium was placed on WADA's list of substances banned from use by athletes two years previously. He later received a four-year suspension. Norway was subsequently awarded the bronze medal for the mixed doubles curling event.  Nadezhda Sergeeva, a bobsleigh pilot, tested positive for trimetazidine, which is also included in WADA's list of banned substances. She placed 12th in the women's competition.

Competitors.

The following is the list of number of competitors that could participate at the Games per sport/discipline.

Alpine skiing.

Russia has qualified three male and two female skiers.

Biathlon.

Based on their Nations Cup rankings in the 2016–17 Biathlon World Cup, Russia has qualified 6 men and 5 women. However, the IOC only invited 2 men and 2 women.

Bobsleigh.

Based on their rankings in the 2017–18 Bobsleigh World Cup, Russia has qualified 6 sleds.

Cross-country skiing.

Russia qualified 12 athletes, seven male and five female.

Curling.

Women's.

Russia has qualified their women's team (five athletes), by finishing in the top seven teams in Olympic Qualification points. The representatives were determined at the 2017 Russian Olympic Curling Trials.  The Russian team consists of Victoria Moiseeva, Uliana Vasilyeva, Galina Arsenkina, Julia Guzieva, and Yulia Portunova. The Olympic Athletes from Russia team has a bye in draws 3, 7 and 10. "Wednesday, 14 February, 14:05"  "Thursday, 15 February, 09:05"  "Friday, 16 February, 14:05"  "Saturday, 17 February, 09:05"  "Saturday, 17 February, 20:05" "Monday, 19 February, 09:05"  "Monday, 19 February, 20:05"  "Wednesday, 21 February, 09:05"  "Wednesday, 21 February, 20:05"

Mixed doubles.

Russia has qualified a mixed doubles team by earning enough points in the last two World Mixed Doubles Curling Championships.  There were no trials as the team was chosen by the Russian Olympic Committee.  The Olympic Athletes from Russia team won the mixed doubles bronze medal game against Norway, but due to a positive testing of meldonium from Alexander Krushelnitskiy, their bronze medals were stripped and given to Norway.  "Thursday, February 8, 9:05"  "Thursday, February 8, 20:04"  "Friday, February 9, 8:35"  "Friday, February 9, 13:35" "Saturday, February 10, 9:05"  "Saturday, February 10, 20:04"  "Sunday, February 11, 9:05" "Monday, February 12, 20:05"  "Tuesday, February 13, 9:05"

Figure skating.

Russia qualified 15 figure skaters (7 male, 8 female), based on its placement at the 2017 World Figure Skating Championships in Helsinki, Finland.  Team event

Ice hockey.

Men's tournament.

Russia men's national ice hockey team qualified by finishing second in the 2015 IIHF World Ranking.  In the first Olympics since 1994 that did not feature any active NHL players, the Olympic Athletes from Russia (OAR) team, consisting primarily of SKA and CSKA players of a Russia-based KHL and featuring ex-NHL all-stars Pavel Datsyuk, Ilya Kovalchuk and Vyacheslav Voynov (all SKA), won the gold medal, after a 4–3 overtime victory over the German team in the final. In its post-Olympics World Ranking, the IIHF counted this as a result for the Russian team. The IIHF considers this victory to be Russia's second gold medal in the Olympics, as they also attributed the 1992 Unified Team gold medal to Russia. However, the IOC attributes neither of those results to Russia.  After they return to Moscow, the entire Russian gold medal winning team and other Olympic medalists participated in a Vladimir Putin's presidential rally, where they sang the Russian anthem.

Women's tournament.

Russia women's national ice hockey team qualified by finishing 4th in the 2016 IIHF World Ranking.

Luge.

Based on the results from the World Cups during the 2017–18 Luge World Cup season, Russia qualified 8 sleds (10 athletes). However, only 8 athletes (7 men and 1 woman) are set to join the pool of Olympic Athletes from Russia (OAR) after the accreditation commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Short track speed skating.

According to the ISU Special Olympic Qualification Rankings, Russia has qualified 5 men and 5 women. However, only 7 athletes (3 men and 4 women) received an invitation from the IOC.

Skeleton.

Based on the world rankings, Russia qualified 5 sleds. However, only 2 athletes (2 men) received an invitation from the IOC. Nikita Tregubov, who had previously represented Russia at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games, secured a silver medal in the event.

Speed skating.

Russia earned the following quotas at the conclusion of the four World Cup's used for qualification.

Olympic Athlete from Russia (OAR) is the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) designation of select Russian athletes permitted to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The designation was instigated following the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee after the Russian doping scandal. This was the second time that Russian athletes had participated under the neutral Olympic flag, the first being in the Unified Team of 1992.

Aufgrund einer Vielzahl an Dopingfällen in Russland nahmen nicht gesperrte Sportler als Delegation mit dem Namen Olympische Athleten aus Russland an den Olympischen Winterspielen 2018 in Pyeongchang teil. Die Delegation umfasste 168 Athleten, die in 16 Disziplinen starteten, davon 87 Männer und 81 Frauen.


William Bartholomew (British Army officer)

Military career.

Educated at Newton College, South Devon and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, Bartholomew was commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1897. He was promoted to lieutenant on 23 March 1900, and to captain on 22 March 1902. He attended the Staff College, Quetta from 1909 to 1910.  Bartholomew served in the First World War initially as a General Staff Officer in 4th Division, and then as a brigadier general on the General Staff of XX Corps from 1917 and on the General Staff of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force from 1918.  After the war Bartholomew commanded the 6th Infantry Brigade from 1923 moving on to be Director of Recruiting and Organisation at the War Office in 1927. He was appointed Commandant of the Imperial Defence College in 1929 and Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at the War Office in 1931. He became Chief of the General Staff in India in 1934 and then General Officer Commanding-in-Chief for Northern Command in 1937; he retired in 1940 during the Second World War.  Bartholomew was made an Aide de Camp General to the King from 1938 to 1940 and Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery from 1934 to 1937.

After the Army.

In retirement, Bartholomew served as North Eastern Regional Commissioner for Civil Defence between 1940 and 1945. He lived at Claxton Hall near York. He donated over £20,000 in 1921 to the Public Dispensary and Hospital, Leeds; later becoming world-renowned St James' Teaching Hospital.

External links.

General Sir William Henry Bartholomew, (16 March 1877 – 31 December 1962) was a senior British Army officer during the 1930s and a Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery.

Sir William Henry „Barty“ Bartholomew, GCB, CMG, DSO (* 16. März 1877 in Wiltshire; † 31. Dezember 1962 ebenda) war ein britischer General, der zuletzt zwischen 1937 und 1940 Oberkommandierender "(General Officer Commanding in Chief)" des Nordkommandos der British Army war.


Early years.

Samuel Rowe was born on 23 March 1835 at Macclesfield, Cheshire. He was the youngest son of George Hambly Rowe, a Wesleyan minister, and Lydia Ramshall of London. He was educated at private schools, then studied medicine under Joseph Denton of Leicester and others. He qualified as a doctor in 1856. He was appointed to the army medical staff in 1862 and assigned to Lagos in West Africa. Rowe married Susannah, daughter of William Gatliff of Hawker Hall, Whitby, Yorkshire. They had one son, who died young.

Colonial surgeon.

Rowe arrived in Lagos in July 1862 and was soon appointed a judicial assessor in the chief magistrate's court and a slave commissioner, a difficult position. He afterwards became colonial surgeon. Rowe got on well with the local people, who would later call him "Old Red Breeches", and was made a commandant of the eastern districts. He was appointed special commissioner to make a treaty with the town of Epe in the Ijebu Kingdom. He returned home on leave in July 1864, and continued his studies in Aberdeen, graduating in medicine and surgery in 1865.  Rowe returned to West Africa in 1866 and stayed in Cape Coast Castle. He was again made colonial surgeon and superintendent of the Hausas in Lagos in 1867. In 1869 he also was a magistrate and clerk of the council of Lagos. He was promoted staff surgeon in the army on 4 July 1870. He returned for a stay in England, then was dispatched to the Gold Coast in January 1872. On 1 March 1973 he was appointed surgeon-major. He may have advised Nathaniel King and Sylvester Cole, members of the Sierra Leone elite, to study medicine at Aberdeen. King graduated in 1876 and returned to practice in Lagos, while Cole graduated in 1883 and entered government service in the Gold Coast.  In 1873 Rowe was involved in action against the Ashantis and twice saw action near Elmina, for which he was decorated with a medal and clasp. He was appointed to the Ashanti expeditionary force under Captain John Hawley Glover. Through his experience in working with the local people he helped to enlist Yoruba volunteers. He was appointed C.M.G. in 1874 for his services in the Anglo-Ashanti wars. In 1875, he became colonial surgeon of the Gold Coast colony. Rowe retired from the army on 4 December 1876 with the honorary rank of brigade-surgeon.

Colonial administrator.

The Gambia.

While still in the army, Rowe was in turn head of the governments of the Gambia and Sierra Leone. The Gambia was governed from Sierra Leone during this period. Surgeon Major Rowe was appointed administrator of the Gambia in June 1875. The former administrator, C. H. Kortright, had left the Gambia on 12 February 1875 and Captain Henry T. M. Cooper was acting as administrator. Samuel Rowe arrived on 2 July 1875, but transferred to Sierra Leone the next day, leaving Cooper to continue as acting administrator. Rowe left Bathurst to take office in Freetown, Sierra Leone, as acting governor. Cooper died on 9 January 1877 and on 30 March 1877 Surgeon Major Valesius S. Gouldsbury arrived to take office as administrator.

Sierra Leone.

In Rowe's first tour of duty as governor of Sierra Leone in 1875–81 he was supported by the Colonial Office in pursuing a policy of aggressive colonial intervention in the interior. He led two successful expeditions against the Sherbro people. On 29 April 1887 Rowe returned to the Gambia as administrator, replacing the acting administrator Gilbert T. Carter. During his brief term of office various local rulers agreed to accept British protection. On 12 June 1887 Rowe was promoted to governor-in-chief of the West Africa settlements. On 27 November 1887 he left the Gambia and was replaced by T. Risely Griffith as acting administrator. While governor-in-chief of the British West African Settlements he continued to act as governor of Sierra Leone.  As governor in chief he opposed cession of the Gambia, and strongly opposed the Colonial Office police of giving in to the demands from the French. He planned the expedition by administrator V. S. Gouldsbury to the upper Gambia River in 1881. On 20 April 1880 Rowe was made K.C.M.G. (Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George). He was replaced in Sierra Leone by A. E. Havelock in 1881. The acting governor got news of Havelock's appointment from a foreign consul some weeks before this was confirmed by the Colonial Office.

Gold Coast and Lagos.

On 28 January 1881 Rowe became governor of the Gold Coast and Lagos. This was a better-paid position than Sierra Leone. He replaced W. Brandford Griffith. He managed to avoid another war with the Ashantis through his diplomacy. In March 1883 Rowe issued an ordinance establishing registry offices for instruments affecting land in the Gold Coast Colony. In 1884 he was replaced by W. A. G. Young.

West Africa Settlements.

On 30 December 1884 Rowe was again appointed governor of the West Africa settlements in response to a special petition of the traders and others. Rowe took office in 1885, replacing A. E. Havelock. During his second term, following the Berlin Conference of 1884–85, British activity in the interior increased and there was growing competition with the French, who had colonial ambitions in the same region. Rowe was given enlarged powers to annex land to the north and east of Sierra Leone. On 11 November 1885 he signed the Havelock Draft Convention, which fixed the northwest boundary of Liberia at the southeast bank of the Mano River, making Sierra Leone and Liberia coterminous. In 1886 Rowe was made an LL.D. by Aberdeen University. In August 1887 the Secretary of State for the Colonies said he had received a report from Rowe saying the chiefs of Jarra and Fogni, who had been suffering from raids by slave traders, had offered to place their territories under British protection.  Rowe's health began to fail in 1887, in part due to worries about the advance of the French in the region. On his way home to recuperate he died at Madeira on 28 August 1888. He was replaced as governor by J. M. Maltby.

Sir Samuel Rowe (23 March 1835 – 28 August 1888) was a British doctor and colonial administrator who was twice governor of Sierra Leone, and also served as administrator of the Gambia, governor of the Gold Coast and governor-general of the West Africa settlements. He was known for his ability to form pro-British relationships with the local people. He was in favour of a vigorous programme of expansion from the coast into the interior in response to French activity in the Sahel region, at times in opposition to Colonial Office policy.

Sir Samuel Rowe (* 23. März 1835 in Macclesfield; † 28. August 1888 auf Madeira) war ein britischer Chirurg und Kolonialverwalter.


Dancer.

Born in Liverpool, England, Frederic Franklin claimed that on seeing the 1924 film "Peter Pan", his only thought was to go on the stage. He began his career in 1931 at the Casino de Paris with Josephine Baker. After briefly dancing with the Vic-Wells Ballet, forerunner of The Royal Ballet, he joined the Markova-Dolin Ballet in 1935.  In 1938 Franklin joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo where he was premier danseur until 1952. Known as a quick study and for having an impeccable memory, Franklin also became the company's ballet master in 1944. With the Ballet Russe, Franklin originated many indelible characters and starred in over 45 principal roles by such choreographers as Leonide Massine, Michel Fokine, Bronislava Nijinska, Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, and Agnes de Mille.  While performing internationally with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, Franklin and Alexandra Danilova created one of the legendary ballet partnerships of the twentieth century. Among the other ballerinas he partnered were Alicia Markova, Yvette Chauviré, Moira Shearer, Rosella Hightower, Maria Tallchief, Tamara Toumanova, and Alicia Alonso.

Director and Choreographer.

In 1952, Franklin co-founded the Slavenska-Franklin Ballet with Mia Slavenska and a few years later he became the co-director of the Washington Ballet, and then the co-founder and artistic director of the National Ballet of Washington, D.C..  After a few years in Washington, D.C., Franklin began a freelance career reviving and staging works around the United States and developed artistic associations with many ballet companies including Cincinnati Ballet where he was artistic director for two years and later Director Emeritus, Dance Theatre of Harlem where he became artistic advisor in 1989, Chicago Ballet, Tulsa Ballet, the Oakland Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and American Ballet Theatre.  In 2005, Franklin was featured in the documentary film "Ballets Russes", recounting his years with the famous company. Into his 90s, Franklin continued to perform with American Ballet Theatre, appearing in mime roles such as the Friar in "Romeo and Juliet", Madge in "La Sylphide", and the Prince's Tutor in "Swan Lake". Franklin died from pneumonia in New York City at the Weill Cornell Medical Center on May 4, 2013. He was survived by his partner of 48 years, William Haywood Ausman, and his brother, John Franklin.

Awards.

In 1984, Frederic Franklin was honored with a Laurence Olivier Award for his staging of a Creole-themed Giselle starring Virginia Johnson at Dance Theatre of Harlem. Franklin received the Dance Magazine Award in 1985 and the Capezio Dance Award in 1992. On 16 November 2004 Franklin was appointed a Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. In 2011, Franklin was inducted into the National Museum of Dance's Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame.

Frederic Franklin (13 June 1914 – 4 May 2013), sometimes also called "Freddie", was a British-American ballet dancer, choreographer and director.

Frederic Franklin (* 13. Juni 1914 in Liverpool; † 4. Mai 2013 in New York City) war ein britisch-US-amerikanischer Balletttänzer und Theaterregisseur.


Definition.

Fighting games are a type of action game where two (or sometimes more) on-screen characters fight each other. These games typically feature special moves that are triggered using rapid sequences of carefully timed button presses and joystick movements. Games traditionally show fighters from a side-view, even as the genre has progressed from two-dimensional (2D) to three-dimensional (3D) graphics. "Street Fighter II", though not the first fighting game, popularized and standardized the conventions of the genre, and similar games released prior to "Street Fighter II" have since been more explicitly classified as fighting games. Fighting games typically involve hand-to-hand combat, but may also feature melee weapons.  This genre is distinct from beat 'em ups, another action genre involving combat, where the player character must fight many weaker enemies at the same time. During the 1980s publications used the terms "fighting game" and "beat 'em up" interchangeably, along with other terms such as "martial arts simulation" (or more specific terms such as "judo simulator"). With hindsight, critics have argued that the two types of game gradually became dichotomous as they evolved, though the two terms may still be conflated. Fighting games are sometimes grouped with games that feature boxing, MMA, or wrestling. Serious boxing games belong more to the sports game genre than the action game genre, as they aim for a more realistic model of boxing techniques, whereas moves in fighting games tend to be either highly exaggerated or outright fantastical models of Asian martial arts techniques. As such, boxing games, mixed martial arts games, and wrestling games are often described as distinct genres, without comparison to fighting games, and belong more into the Sports game genre.

Game design.

Fighting games involve combat between pairs of fighters using highly exaggerated martial arts moves. They typically revolve around primarily brawling or combat sport, though some variations feature weaponry. Games usually display on-screen fighters from a side view, and even 3D fighting games play largely within a 2D plane of motion. Games usually confine characters to moving left and right and jumping, although some games such as "" allow players to move between parallel planes of movement. Recent games tend to be rendered in three dimensions and allow side-stepping, but otherwise play like those rendered in two dimensions.

Tactics and combos.

Aside from moving around a restricted space, fighting games limit the player's actions to different offensive and defensive maneuvers. Players must learn which attacks and defenses are effective against each other, often by trial and error. Blocking is a basic technique that allows a player to defend against basic attacks. Some games feature more advanced blocking techniques: for example, Capcom's "Street Fighter III" features a move termed "parrying" which causes the parried attacker to become momentarily incapacitated (a similar state is termed "just defended" in SNK's "").

Counterplay.

Predicting opponents' moves and counter-attacking, known as "countering", is a common element of gameplay. Fighting games also emphasize the difference between the height of blows, ranging from low to jumping attacks. Thus, strategy becomes important as players attempt to predict each other's moves, similar to rock–paper–scissors.

Grappling / Takedowns.

In addition to blows such as punches and kicks, players can utilize throwing or "grappling" to circumvent "blocks". Most fighting games give the player the ability to execute a grapple move by pressing 2 or more buttons together or simply by pressing punch or kick while being extremely close the opponent. Other fighting games like "Dead Or Alive" have a unique button for throws and takedowns.

Projectiles.

Used primarily in 2D fighting games, projectiles are objects that a fighter can launch at another fighter to attack from a distance. While they can be used to simply inflict damage, projectiles are most often used to maneuver opponents into disadvantageous positions. The most notable projectile is Ryu and Ken's Hadoken from "Street Fighter".

Rushdown.

The opposite of turtling, Rushdown refers to a number of specific, aggressive strategies, philosophies and play styles across all fighting games. The general goal of a rushdown player is to overwhelm the opponent and force costly mistakes either by using fast, confusing setups or by taking advantage of an impatient opponent as they are forced to play defense for prolonged periods of time. Rushdown players often favor attacking opponents in the corner or as they get up from a knockdown; both situations severely limit the options of the opponent and often allow the attacking player to force high-risk guessing scenarios.

Spacing / Zoning.

Zoning is whatever series of tactics a player uses to keep their opponent at a specific distance. What exactly that distance is depends on both who the "zoner" and the opponent are using; differing based on the tools at their disposal versus the tools that the opposing player has.

Turtling.

Turtling refers to fighting game tactic of playing very defensively and waiting for the opponent to make a move. It's somewhat of an extreme form of "defensive play".

Special attacks.

An integral feature of fighting games includes the use of "special attacks", also called "secret moves", that employ complex combinations of button presses to perform a particular move beyond basic punching and kicking. Combos, in which several attacks are chained together using basic punches and kicks, are another common feature in fighting games and have been fundamental to the genre since the release of "Street Fighter II". Some fighting games display a "combo meter" that displays the player's progress through a combo. The effectiveness of such moves often relate to the difficulty of execution and the degree of risk. These moves are often beyond the ability of a casual gamer and require a player to have both a strong memory and excellent timing. Taunting is another feature of some fighting games and was originally introduced by Japanese company SNK in their game "Art of Fighting". It is used to add humor to games, but can also have an effect on gameplay such as improving the strength of other attacks. Sometimes, a character can even be noted especially for taunting (for example, Dan Hibiki from "Street Fighter Alpha"). "Super Smash Bros. Brawl" introduced a new special attack that is exclusive to the series known as a Final Smash.

Matches and rounds.

Fighting game matches generally consist of several rounds (typically "best-of-three"); the player who wins the set number of rounds wins the match. Once the in-game announcer gives the signal to fight (typically "Round 1... FIGHT!"), the match officially begins; if the score is tied after an even number of rounds, then the winner will be decided in the final round. Fighting games widely feature life bars, which are depleted as characters sustain blows. Each successful attack will deplete a character's health, and the round continues until a fighter's energy reaches zero. Hence, the main goal is to completely deplete the life bar of one's opponent, thus achieving a "knockout". Beginning with Midway's "Mortal Kombat" released in 1992, the "Mortal Kombat" series introduced "Fatalities" in which the victor kills a knocked-out opponent in a gruesome manner. Games such as "Virtua Fighter" also allow a character to be defeated by forcing them outside of the fighting arena, awarding a "ring-out" to the victor. The "Super Smash Bros." series allows them to send the fighters off the stage when a character reached a high percentage total. Round decisions can also be determined by time over (if a timer is present), which judge players based on remaining vitality to declare a winner. In a "Super Smash Bros." match, if the score is tied between two or more fighters when time expires, then a "sudden death" match will decide the winner by giving each fighter 300%. Fighting games often include a single-player campaign or tournament, where the player must defeat a sequence of several computer-controlled opponents. Winning the tournament often reveals a special story–ending cutscene, and some games also grant access to hidden characters or special features upon victory.

Character selection.

In most fighting games, players may select from a variety of playable characters who have unique fighting styles and special moves. This became a strong convention for the genre with the release of "Street Fighter II", and these character choices have led to deeper game strategy and replay value.  Although fighting games offer female characters, their image tends to be hypersexualized, and they have even been featured as pin-up girls in game magazines; in many games they also exhibit exaggerated "breast physics". Male characters in fighting games tend to have extra-broad chests and shoulders, huge muscles, and prominent jaws.  Custom creation, or "create–a–fighter", is a feature of some fighting games which allows a player to customize the appearance and move set of their own character. "Super Fire Pro Wrestling X Premium" was the first game to include such a feature, and later fighting games such as "Fighter Maker", "Soulcalibur III", "", and "" adopted the concept. This also applies to the Miis in "Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS" and "Wii U" and "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate" divided into three different fighting styles.

Multiplayer modes.

Fighting games may also offer a multiplayer mode in which players fight each other, sometimes by letting a second player challenge the first at any moment during a single-player match. A few titles allow up to four players to compete simultaneously. Uniquely, the "Super Smash Bros." series has allowed eight-player local and online multiplayer matches, beginning with "Super Smash Bros. for Wii U" and continuing with "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate", although many consider "Super Smash Bros." to be an arena platform combat subgenre due to its deviation from traditional fighting game rules and design. Several games have also featured modes that involve teams of characters; players form "tag teams" to fight matches in which combat is one-on-one, but a character may leave the arena to be replaced by a teammate. Some fighting games have also offered the challenge of fighting against multiple opponents in succession, testing the player's endurance. Newer titles take advantage of online gaming services, although lag created by slow data transmission can disrupt the split-second timing involved in fighting games. The impact of lag in some fighting games has been reduced by using technology such as GGPO, which keeps the players' games in sync by quickly rolling back to the most recent accurate game state, correcting errors, and then jumping back to the current frame. Games using this technology include "Skullgirls" and "".

History.

Late 1970s to early 1990s.

Fighting games find their origin in boxing games but evolved towards battles between characters with fantastic abilities and complex special maneuvers. Sega's black and white boxing game "Heavyweight Champ", which was released in 1976, is considered the first video game to feature fist fighting. 1979's "Warrior" is another title sometimes credited as one of the first fighting games. In contrast to "Heavyweight Champ" and most later titles, "Warrior" was based on sword fighting duels and used a bird's eye view. In 1983, Sega released another boxing game "Champion Boxing", which was Yu Suzuki's debut title at Sega. However, Data East and its related developer Technōs Japan's "Karate Champ" from 1984 is credited with establishing and popularizing the one-on-one fighting game genre. In it, a variety of moves could be performed using the dual-joystick controls, it used a best-of-three matches format like later fighting games, and it featured training bonus stages. It went on to influence Konami's "Yie Ar Kung Fu", released in January 1985, which expanded on "Karate Champ" by pitting the player against a variety of opponents, each with a unique appearance and fighting style. The player could also perform up to sixteen different moves, including projectile attacks. The martial arts game "The Way of the Exploding Fist", released in June 1985, achieved critical success and subsequently afforded the burgeoning genre further popularity on home systems. Numerous other game developers tried to imitate the financial successes of "Karate Champ", "Yie Ar Kung-Fu" and "The Way of the Exploding Fist" with similar games; Data East took unsuccessful legal action against Epyx over the computer game "International Karate". Also in 1985, Elite's "Frank Bruno's Boxing" introduced high and low guard, ducking, lateral dodging, and a meter which was built up with successful attacks, and when full enabled a special, more powerful punch, to be thrown.  Both "Karate Champ" and "Yie Ar Kung Fu" later provided a template for Capcom's "Street Fighter" in 1987. "Street Fighter" found its own niche in the gaming world, partially because many arcade game developers in the 1980s focused more on producing beat-em-ups and shoot 'em ups. Part of the game's appeal was the use of special moves that could only be discovered by experimenting with the game controls, which created a sense of mystique and invited players to practice the game, although similar controller motions used for grappling maneuvers in the earlier "Brian Jacks Uchi Mata" were deemed too difficult. Following "Street Fighter's" lead, the use of command-based hidden moves began to pervade other games in the rising fighting game genre. "Street Fighter" also introduced other staples of the genre, including the blocking technique as well as the ability for a challenger to jump in and initiate a match against a player at any time. The game also introduced pressure-sensitive controls that determine the strength of an attack, though due to causing damaged arcade cabinets, Capcom replaced it soon after with a six-button control scheme offering light, medium and hard punches and kicks, which became another staple of the genre. In 1988, Home Data released "Reikai Dōshi: Chinese Exorcist", also known as "Last Apostle Puppet Show", the first fighting game to use digitized sprites and motion capture animation. Meanwhile, home game consoles largely ignored the genre. "" was one of few releases for the Sega Genesis but was not as popular as games in other genres. Technical challenges limited the popularity of early fighting games. Programmers had difficulty producing a game that could recognize the fast motions of a joystick, and so players had difficulty executing special moves with any accuracy.

Early 1990s.

The release of "Street Fighter II" in 1991 is considered a revolutionary moment in the fighting game genre. Yoshiki Okamoto's team developed the most accurate joystick and button scanning routine in the genre thus far. This allowed players to reliably execute multi-button special moves, which had previously required an element of luck. The graphics took advantage of Capcom's CPS arcade chipset, with highly detailed characters and stages. Whereas previous games allowed players to combat a variety of computer-controlled fighters, "Street Fighter II" allowed players to play against each other. The popularity of "Street Fighter II" surprised the gaming industry, as arcade owners bought more machines to keep up with demand. "Street Fighter II" was also responsible for popularizing the combo mechanic, which came about when skilled players learned that they could combine several attacks that left no time for the opponent to recover if they timed them correctly.  SNK released "" a few months before "Street Fighter II". It was designed by Takashi Nishiyama, the creator of the original "Street Fighter", which it was envisioned as a spiritual successor to. "Fatal Fury" placed more emphasis on storytelling and the timing of special moves, and added a two-plane system where characters could step into the foreground or background. Meanwhile, Sega experimented with "Dark Edge", an early attempt at a 3D fighting game where characters could move in all directions. Sega however, never released the game outside Japan because it felt that "unrestrained" 3D fighting games were unenjoyable. Sega also attempted to introduced 3-D holographic technology to the genre with "Holosseum" in 1992, though it was unsuccessful. Several fighting games achieved commercial success, including SNK's "Art of Fighting" and "Samurai Shodown" as well as Sega's "Eternal Champions". Nevertheless, "Street Fighter II" remained the most popular, spawning a "Champion Edition" that improved game balance and allowed players to use characters that were unselectable in the previous version. The popularity of "Street Fighter II" led it to be released for home game consoles and allowed it to define the template for fighting games. Fighting games soon became the dominant genre in the arcade game industry of the early 1990s.  Chicago's Midway Games achieved unprecedented notoriety when they released "Mortal Kombat" in 1992. The game featured digital characters drawn from real actors, numerous secrets, and a "Fatality" system of finishing maneuvers with which the player's character kills their opponent. The game earned a reputation for its gratuitous violence, and was adapted for home game consoles. The home version of "Mortal Kombat" was released on September 13, 1993, a day promoted as "Mortal Monday". The advertising resulted in line-ups to purchase the game and a subsequent backlash from politicians concerned about the game's violence. The "Mortal Kombat" franchise would achieve iconic status similar to that of "Street Fighter" with several sequels as well as movies, television series, and extensive merchandising. Numerous other game developers tried to imitate "Street Fighter II" and "Mortal Kombat"'s financial success with similar games; Capcom USA took unsuccessful legal action against Data East over the 1993 arcade game "Fighter's History". Data East's largest objection in court was that their 1984 arcade game "Karate Champ" was the true originator of the competitive fighting game genre, which predated the original "Street Fighter" by three years, but the reason the case was decided against Capcom was that the copied elements were scenes a faire and thus excluded from copyright.  Sega AM2's first attempt in the genre was the 1993 arcade game "Burning Rival", but gained renown with the release of "Virtua Fighter" for the same platform the same year. It was the first fighting game with 3D polygon graphics and a viewpoint that zoomed and rotated with the action. Despite the graphics, players were confined to back and forth motion as seen in other fighting games. With only three buttons, it was easier to learn than "Street Fighter" and "Mortal Kombat", having six and five buttons respectively. By the time the game was released for the Sega Saturn in Japan, the game and system were selling at almost a one-to-one ratio.  The 1994 PlayStation launch title "Battle Arena Toshinden" is credited for taking the genre into "true 3-D" due to its introduction of the sidestep maneuver, which IGN described as "one little move" that "changed the fighter forever." The same year, SNK released "The King of Fighters '94" in arcades, where players choose from teams of three characters to eliminate each other one by one. Eventually, Capcom released further updates to "Street Fighter II", including "Super Street Fighter II" and "Super Street Fighter II Turbo". These games featured more characters and new moves, some of which were a response to people who had hacked the original "Street Fighter II" game to add new features themselves. However, criticism of these updates grew as players demanded a true sequel. By 1995, the dominant franchises were the "Mortal Kombat" series in America and "Virtua Fighter" series in Japan, with "Street Fighter Alpha" unable to match the popularity of "Street Fighter II". Throughout this period, the fighting game was the dominant genre in competitive video gaming, with enthusiasts popularly attending arcades in order to find human opponents. The genre was also very popular on home consoles. At the beginning of 1996, "GamePro" (a magazine devoted chiefly to home console and handheld gaming) reported that for the last several years, their reader surveys had consistently seen 4 out of 5 respondents name fighting games as their favorite genre.

Late 1990s.

In the latter part of the 1990s, the fighting game genre began to decline in popularity, with specific franchises falling into difficulty. "Electronic Gaming Monthly" awarded the excess of fighting games the "Most Appalling Trend" award of 1995. Although the release of "Street Fighter EX" introduced 3D graphics to the series, both it and "" flopped in arcades. While a home video game also titled "" was released for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn, it is not a port but a separately produced game based on the same premise. Capcom released "Street Fighter III" in 1997 which featured improved 2D visuals, but was also unable to match the impact of earlier games. Excitement stirred in Japan over "Virtua Fighter 3" in arcades, and Sega eventually ported the game to its Dreamcast console. Meanwhile, SNK released several fighting games on their Neo-Geo platform, including "Samurai Shodown II" in 1994, "Real Bout Fatal Fury" in 1995, "The Last Blade" in 1997, and annual updates to their "The King of Fighters" franchise. "" from 1999 (part of the "Fatal Fury" series) was considered one of SNK's last great games; the company announced that it would close its doors in 2001. "Electronic Gaming Monthly" reported that in 1996, U.S. gamers spent nearly $150 million on current generation fighting games, and in Japan, fighting games accounted for over 80% of video game sales.  In retrospect, multiple developers attribute the decline of the fighting genre to its increasing complexity and specialization. This complexity shut out casual players, and the market for fighting games became smaller and more specialized. Furthermore, arcades gradually became less profitable throughout the 1990s due to the increased technical power and popularity of home consoles. Even as popularity dwindled, the fighting game genre continued to evolve; several strong 3D fighting games also emerged in the late 1990s. Namco's "Tekken" (released in arcades in 1994 and on the PlayStation in 1995) proved critical to the PlayStation's early success, with its sequels also becoming some of the console's most important titles. The "Soul" series of weapon-based fighting games also achieved considerable critical success, beginning with 1995's "Soul Edge" (known as "Soul Blade" outside Japan) to "Soulcalibur VI" in 2018. Tecmo released "Dead or Alive" in the arcades in 1996, porting it for the PlayStation in 1998. It spawned a long running franchise, known for its fast-paced control system, innovative counterattacks, and environmental hazards. The series again included titles important to the success of their respective consoles, such as "Dead or Alive 3" for the Xbox and "Dead or Alive 4" for the Xbox 360. In 1998, "Bushido Blade", published by Square, introduced a realistic fighting engine that featured three-dimensional environments while abandoning time limits and health bars in favour of an innovative Body Damage System, where a sword strike to a certain body part can amputate a limb or decapitate the head.  Video game enthusiasts took an interest in fictional crossovers which feature characters from multiple franchises in a particular game. An early example of this type of fighting game was the 1996 arcade release "X-Men vs. Street Fighter" (Marvel vs. Capcom), featuring comic book superheroes as well as characters from other Capcom games. In 1999, Nintendo released the first game in the "Super Smash Bros." series, which allowed match-ups such as Pikachu versus Mario.

Early 2000s.

The early part of the decade saw the rise of major international fighting game tournaments such as Tougeki – Super Battle Opera and Evolution Championship Series, and famous players such as Daigo Umehara. In 2000, Italian studio NAPS team released "Gekido" for the PlayStation console, which uses a fast paced beat 'em up system, with many bosses and a colorful design in terms of graphics. Several more fighting game crossovers were released in the new millennium. The two most prolific developers of 2D fighting games, Capcom and SNK, combined intellectual property to produce "SNK vs. Capcom" games. SNK released the first game of this type, "," for its Neo Geo Pocket Color handheld at the end of 1999. GameSpot regarded the game as "perhaps the most highly anticipated fighter ever" and called it the best fighting game ever to be released for a handheld console. Capcom released "" for arcades and the Dreamcast in 2000, followed by sequels in subsequent years. Though none matched the critical success of the handheld version, "Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO" was noted as the first game of the genre to successfully utilize internet competition. Other crossovers from 2008 included "" and "Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe". The most successful crossover, however, was "Super Smash Bros. Brawl," also released in 2008 for the Wii. Featuring characters from Nintendo's various franchises, the game was a runaway commercial success in addition to being lavished with critical praise.  In the new millennium, fighting games became less popular and plentiful than in the mid-1990s, with multiplayer competition shifting towards other genres. However, SNK reappeared in 2003 as SNK Playmore and continued to release games. Arc System Works received critical acclaim for releasing "Guilty Gear X" in 2001, as well as its sequel "Guilty Gear XX", as both were 2D fighting games featuring striking anime inspired graphics. The fighting game is currently a popular genre for amateur and doujin developers in Japan. The 2002 title "Melty Blood" was developed by then amateur developer French-Bread and achieved cult success on the PC. It became highly popular in arcades following its 2005 release, and a version was released for the PlayStation 2 the following year. While the genre became generally far less popular than it once was, arcades and their attendant fighting games remained reasonably popular in Japan in this time period, and still remain so even today. "Virtua Fighter 5" lacked an online mode but still achieved success both on home consoles and in arcades; players practiced at home and went to arcades to compete face-to-face with opponents. In addition to "Virtua Fighter" and "Tekken", the "Soul" and "Dead or Alive" franchises continued to release installments. Classic "Street Fighter" and "Mortal Kombat" games were re-released on PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade, allowing internet play, and in some cases, HD graphics.

Late 2000s to present.

"Street Fighter IV", the series' first mainline title since "" in 1999, was released in early 2009 to critical acclaim, having garnered praise since its release at Japanese arcades in 2008. The console versions of the game as well as "Super Street Fighter IV" sold more than 6 million copies in total. "Street Fighter's" successful revival sparked a renaissance for the genre, introducing new players to the genre and with the increased audience allowing other fighting game franchises to achieve successful revivals of their own, as well as increasing tournament participance. "Tekken 6" was positively received, selling more than 3 million copies worldwide as of August 6, 2010. Other successful titles that followed include "Mortal Kombat", "", "The King of Fighters XIII", "Dead or Alive 5", "Tekken Tag Tournament 2", "SoulCalibur V", and "Guilty Gear Xrd". Despite the critically acclaimed "Virtua Fighter 5" releasing to very little fanfare in 2007, its update "Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown" received much more attention due to the renewed interest in the genre. Numerous indie fighting games have also been crowdfunded on websites such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo, the most notable success being "Skullgirls" in 2012. "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate" for the Nintendo Switch in 2018 is the best-selling fighting game of all time, topping it's Wii predecessor Super Smash Bros. Brawl, having sold 18.84 million copies with a huge roster of fighters, items and stages from Nintendo's history and a lot of praise from fans and critics alike.

A fighting game is a video game genre based around close combat between a limited number of characters, in a stage in which the boundaries are fixed. The characters fight each others until they defeat their opponents or the time expires. The matches typically consist of several rounds, in an arena, with each player character having different abilities but each is relatively viable to choose. Players must master techniques such as blocking, counter-attacking, and chaining attacks together into "combos". Starting in the early 1990s, most fighting games allowed the player to execute special attacks by performing specific input combinations. The fighting game genre is related to but distinct from beat 'em ups, which involve large numbers of enemies against the human player.

Das Fighting Game (englisch für, im deutschen umgangssprachlich oft als bezeichnet) ist ein Subgenre des Actionspiels. Obwohl der Begriff sehr verallgemeinernd erscheint, bezeichnet er doch ein sehr spezifisches Genre von Computerspielen. Zentrales Spielelement sind meist zwei ebenbürtige Kämpfer, die sich in einem klar abgesteckten Areal (etwa einer Arena) gegenüberstehen. Gewinner ist, wer den Kontrahenten (oft über mehrere Runden) zuerst besiegt.


Cross-country skiing at the 2018 Winter Olympics – Men's 30 kilometre skiathlon

Olympische Winterspiele 2018/Skilanglauf – 30 km Skiathlon (Männer)

Summary.

The field included all the 2014 medalists: the defending champion Dario Cologna, the silver medalist Marcus Hellner, who was also the 2010 champion, and the bronze medalist Martin Johnsrud Sundby. Only Sundby returned to the podium.  At 20 km, a group of 15 skiers, which included all eventual medalists, was leading the race, about 20 seconds ahead of the rest of the field. About 5 km before the finish line, Krüger escaped and was not caught by the rest, winning the gold medal. From the chasing group, Sundby and Holund escaped less than 2 km before the finish. Eventually, Sundby was leading, and Holund did not catch him, winning bronze.

Qualification.

A total of up to 310 cross-country skiers qualified across all eleven events. Athletes qualified for this event by having met the A qualification standard, which meant having 100 or less FIS Points in the distance classification. The Points list takes into average the best results of athletes per discipline during the qualification period (1 July 2016 to 21 January 2018). Countries received additional quotas by having athletes ranked in the top 30 of the FIS Olympics Points list (two per gender maximum, overall across all events). Countries also received an additional quota (one per gender maximum) if an athlete was ranked in the top 300 of the FIS Olympics Points list. After the distribution of B standard quotas, the remaining quotas were distributed using the Olympic FIS Points list, with each athlete only counting once for qualification purposes. A country could only enter a maximum of four athletes for the event.

Results.

The race was started at 15:15.

The men's 30 kilometre skiathlon cross-country skiing competition at the 2018 Winter Olympics was held on 11 February 2018 at 15:15 KST at the Alpensia Cross-Country Centre in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The event was won by Simen Hegstad Krüger, for whom this was the first Olympic medal. There was a podium sweep for Norway with Martin Johnsrud Sundby and Hans Christer Holund winning silver and bronze medals, respectively.

Der 30-km-Skiathlon im Skilanglauf der Männer bei den Olympischen Winterspielen 2018 fand am 11. Februar 2018 statt. Austragungsort war der Alpensia Cross-Country Skiing Centre. Die Goldmedaille sicherte sich Simen Hegstad Krüger mit einem Vorsprung von acht Sekunden vor seinem Landsmann Martin Johnsrud Sundby. Die Bronzemedaille ging mit Hans Christer Holund ebenfalls an einen Norweger.


Synopsis.

During World War II, the Nazis are on the verge of winning the war in Europe, bullets do little as the Nazis seem unstoppable. In the meantime, four prisoners of war – Sterling, Rivet, Kurgan and Wolfgang have been freed by “Mrs. White,” a secret British Intelligence Operative, who needs someone to take down Hitler and his Third Reich once and for all. Their objective is to fight the war - without rules or mercy. Their reward is all the Nazi gold they can carry. These specialists are brought together with a purpose, rebel against the Nazi oppression and sabotage the Nazis' chances of victory by sabotaging, assassinate, steal, and pulverise anything bearing the Swastika.

Development.

"Raid: World War II" is developed by Lion Game Lion, a Croatian Starbreeze partner studio, that has developed downloadable content for Payday 2. The team chose to work with Diesel, an engine made by Overkill Software (ex-Grin Studios), because they have an extensive experience on working with the engine. The game has a budget of US$8 million, financed by Starbreeze Studios.

Reception.

Raid: World War II received mixed to negative reviews. According to Metacritic, it currently holds an aggregate score of 53% on PC, 46% on Playstation 4 and Xbox One. IGN gave the game a score of 5.0. PlayStation Lifestyle given a score of 5.5/10. Push Square rate 2/10. TheSixthAxis rated the game, 3 out of 10. Game informer given a score of 4 out of 10.

Raid: World War II is a four player co-op first-person shooter video game that lets players team up as the Raid crew and venture through events of World War II. The game was developed by Lion Game Lion and was published by Starbreeze Studios for Microsoft Windows.

Raid: World War II ist ein First Person Shooter, welcher im Zweiten Weltkrieg angesiedelt ist. Ziel der bis zu vier Spieler, die im Koop-Modus spielen ist es, als eine Überfallgruppe Aufträge zu erfüllen. Das Spiel wurde von Lion Game Lion entwickelt und von den Starbreeze Studios für Windows, PlayStation 4 und Xbox One entwickelt.


Early life.

Ramos was born in Los Angeles, California. Her father is of one quarter Filipino ancestry. Her mother is Jewish. She became interested in acting at a young age. Ramos began developing her acting abilities at the age of 9, entering into formal training at Center Stage L.A. "According to her mother, 11-year-old Sarah Ramos would go to bed each night pleading to get an agent — then wake up each morning asking about the status of her parents' talent agent search." She graduated from Columbia University in May 2015.

Career.

Ramos began her acting career as a child in various television commercials. She gained attention as Patty Pryor in the NBC drama TV series "American Dreams" (2002–2005). This role garnered her acting accolades, including winning the Women's Image Network Award (WIN) for Best Actress in a TV Drama in 2003 and various nominations by the Young Artist Awards. "Variety" commented: "Patty is an out-and-out brat, and Ramos does it right."  In April 2006, she landed the role of Hannah Rader a.k.a. Kate Holland on the CW series "Runaway". However, the show was canceled after one season. Ramos's other television credits include guest-starring roles in "Scrubs", "Close to Home", "Ghost Whisperer", "Law & Order", "Wizards of Waverly Place", "Without a Trace", "Private Practice", and "Lie to Me".  In 2009, she was cast as Haddie Braverman in the NBC series "Parenthood". "Parenthood"'s fourth season premiered in September 2012; however, Ramos would no longer be a regular but had a guest-starring billing as her character went to college. In the Season 5 finale, aired in April, 2014, Haddie came home for the summer, bringing along a girlfriend from college. "Entertainment Weekly" wrote that her performance was "one of the most underrated, sustained performances on TV recently, calling upon her to express an array of moods and emotions that went well beyond the usual prime-time network-drama teen role." She returned in Season 6 for two episodes, including the series finale.  In 2011, she voiced a character for an episode of "Family Guy". In May 2011, it was announced she had joined the cast of the film "Predisposed" starring Jesse Eisenberg and Melissa Leo.  In 2011, she also co-wrote and co-directed a short film, "The Arm", that won a Special Jury Prize for Comedic Storytelling at the Sundance Film Festival in 2012. She also directed a music video starring most of her "Parenthood" co-stars to the cover of "Girl on TV" sung by Landon Pigg and a short "Marry Me" for the Ally Coalition.  Ramos makes a brief appearance in the feature film "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" which has a cast that includes her "Parenthood" co-star Mae Whitman.  Sarah wrote, directed and starred in the short film "Fluffy" (2016), produced by B. B. Dakota.

Personal life.

In July 2016 Ramos announced via social media that she is in a relationship with director Matt Spicer, who she has been dating since 2013. They are now engaged, according to her Instagram post on July 30, 2019.

Sarah Emily Ramos (born May 21, 1991) is an American actress who began her career as a child actress. She is known for her roles on the television series "American Dreams" (2002–2005) and "Parenthood" (2010–2015).

Sarah Emily Ramos (* 24. Mai 1991 in Los Angeles, Kalifornien) ist eine US-amerikanische Schauspielerin, die hauptsächlich durch ihre Rolle der "Haddie Braverman" in der Fernsehserie "Parenthood" bekannt ist.


History.

The original idea and planning for a new attraction—which would become Time Traveler—lasted over four years. In January 2016, while a prototype for a new spinning roller coaster concept was being made by Mack Rides, Jane Cooper, chief operating officer and president of Herschend Family Entertainment, and Brad Thomas, president of attractions for Silver Dollar City, went to test it at Europa-Park where it was featured on the roller coaster Blue Fire. During their first trip, Thomas described the first experience on the prototype they had was "really like a teacup", but showed promise for the project and design. Thereafter, both Cooper and Thomas made various trips to the park to discuss and plan the ride's concept with Mack Rides before acquiring the model for the park's new attraction.  From February 2016, Herschend Family Entertainment (owner of Silver Dollar City) filed trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for multiple names including "Barke", "Time Traveler", and "Top Dog". During one of the several trips in June 2016, the name of the attraction was conceived from Cooper and Thomas' observation of the roller coaster's train design frame. Construction for the roller coaster began in October 2016. On February 15, 2017, photos were taken by the "Springfield News-Leader" of construction taking place within the park, with a park official acknowledging that footers were in place for a new attraction, but not confirming what it would be.  Silver Dollar City announced "Time Traveler" on August 16, 2017, which upon completion would be the tallest, fastest, and longest spinning roller coaster in the world. The ride was manufactured by Mack Rides at the cost of $26 million to design and build. Among its records, the roller coaster would be the only spinning roller coaster with a double launch, vertical loop, and three inversions. On September 19, 2017, the final piece of track was placed for the attraction, with a park spokesman saying that the ride was about 50 percent complete.  The trains for the ride were officially revealed on November 14, 2017 during the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Attraction Exposition 2017. The roller coaster's first test runs began on December 14, 2017. In February 2018, Silver Dollar City announced that the roller coaster would open coinciding with the park's seasonal operations. A media day was held on March 13, 2018 for the ride which included 150 guests, with the ride officially opening on March 14, 2018. Originally the ride was to be sponsored by White River Valley Electric, a supplier for the park's electricity. However, the five-year deal was cancelled soon after its announcement following concerns from the company's members and board of directors.

Ride experience.

Theme.

The roller coaster is themed to the narrative of the fictional character, Charles Henry, and his recent acquisition of the family clockmaker business. Henry, inspired by science fiction works of Jules Verne, set out tinkering with the idea of making the world better through the invention of time travel. In accordance with the phrase "dream big, do good" created for the ride, Henry, along with his daughter Emmaline, went on to create the time traveling device that would highlight human abilities and provide the best decisions for humanity through the alteration of time. The motto for the attraction was used for marketing by the park to highlight individual accomplishments in the community connected to the park's surrounding location, similar to their previous attraction, Outlaw Run, which honored law enforcement through its story.

Queue area.

Located in the Valley Road section of the park, the main street was reconfigured to construct new buildings for the area, which included restaurants. The station of the roller coaster consists of a three-story building that displays the narrative of Charles Henry and his clock factory. The first story of the queue building consists of the factory's storage area, with information asking guests to become volunteer employees of the business. The second story exhibits the company's offices and shows the experimentation of the factory's clock components. The third story progresses the narrative of Henry, leading to the revelation of his time traveling device, by which riders would experience his invention. The ride's theming throughout the queue area was constructed by the Weber Group, while the musical score was created by John Presley.

Layout.

After the front gates open, the trains leave the station and head into its maximum vertical angle drop of 90-degrees. Descending the drop at its maximum speed of, the trains enter a dive loop, head upwards into a left banked turn and then a right banked U-turn. Next, the trains enter the first linear synchronous motor (LSM) launch section where they stop momentarily before accelerating to in three seconds. The trains then enter a banked left curve before continuing down left into the vertical loop. Immediately after, the trains follow upwards into a left banked turn and subsequently head downward into a right banked curve where it transitions into a zero-gravity roll. The trains after traverse into another left banked turn upwards before dipping down into the second LSM launch going from to. Following the launch, the trains head up into a overbanked turn to the right before heading towards a left banked turn and into the final brake run where the train makes a right U-turn back into the station. One cycle of the ride takes about two minutes.

Characteristics.

Track.

The steel tubular track is long and reaches maximum height of. Unlike conventional roller coasters, Time Traveler does not have a lift hill because it enters the course's layout after the initial drop out of the station because of the mountainous terrain. The layout was manufactured, developed, and designed by Mack Rides. The track for the ride is colored olive with the supports colored mocha to coincide with the steampunk color palette. Throughout the layout, the ride crosses over itself fourteen times.

Trains.

Time Traveler operates with three trains, each with four cars that are arranged two across in two rows seating back-to-back, allowing for sixteen riders per train. The cars of the trains are brass-colored, themed with various cogs, gears, and "industrial components". Riders are required to be at least tall to ride. The ride is the first "X-treme Spinning Coaster" model that was produced by Mack Rides, which introduced a free-spinning car that is controlled by magnetic brakes.

Ride mechanics.

The train model produced by Mack Rides features unique mechanics different from that of traditional spinning roller coasters. Each of the trains have an eddy current brake situated under the coaster's car. When the coaster's metallic disc, located on the upper part of the car, passes through the locked brake, it acts as a conductive surface assisting in rotating the car frame as well as slowing the rotation. The eddy brake can be tightened or loosened to adjust the rotation of the coaster's car. The trains feature a power rail system to align the coaster's cars as they are stationary in the brake run returning to the station, which in addition works as a charger for the on-ride decorated lights on the hand railings located in front of the riders. A busbar located under the ride's train conveys data from the cars to the operator's control systems. The lap bar restraints automatically lower on each train and are locked into place by hydraulic cylinders, which are checked by ride attendants and operators. Steel bristles are additionally located near each of the car's wheels to release electric charges a train may produce and hinder electronics on them.

Records.

When the roller coaster opened in 2018, it became the fastest and tallest full circuit spinning roller coaster. Although not a full circuit spinning roller coaster, Big Air located at E-DA Theme Park would be the fastest and tallest spinning roller coaster. In addition, the coaster became the first spinning roller coaster in the world to have three inversions, surpassing Gekion Live Coaster located at Tokyo Joypolis, which only has one inversion.

Reception.

Time Traveler was well received among its critics and guests. Arthur Levine of "USA Today" praised the ride for its use of magnetic brakes to control the spinning of the ride, stating that the ride was "thrilling, but it’s not in the same league as some of the more extreme non-spinning coasters out there". He also expressed that it did distinguish itself from other roller coasters because of its "mild spinning", launches, and smoothness. Bailey Strohl of "KTTS" said, "Each ride is unlike the last, with each car offering a 360-degree controlled spin that delivers high dimension", stating it bore a new ride every time. Matt Meltzer of "Thrillist" described the ride as comfortable and non-nauseating, saying that guests would be "screaming through a giant grin that’s impossible to wipe off until the ride stops." He further remarked that a back-seat ride would be more worth than a front-seat ride because of the clear views of the landscape.  James Rao of "Theme Park Insider" commented that the roller coaster provided a smooth and comfortable ride from start to finish being "another coaster addition that complements Silver Dollar City’s hilly terrain and provides a unique adventure in an already amazing park." He also commented that the ride, although shorter in length and time from other roller coasters, made up through its pacing and elements. Guests from the American Coaster Enthusiast (ACE) conference hosted at the park remarked positively of its spinning mechanics, theming, and ride vehicle design.

Time Traveler is a steel spinning roller coaster located at the Silver Dollar City theme park in Branson, Missouri, United States. Manufactured by Mack Rides of Germany in collaboration with the park's in-house team, Time Traveler opened in 2018, becoming Silver Dollar City's first new roller coaster since Outlaw Run opened in 2013. Time Traveler features the fictional story of clockmaker Charles Henry and his daughter spotlighting human achievements through time travel. The roller coaster reaches a height of with a maximum speed of and a total track length of.

Time Traveler ist eine Stahlachterbahn vom Typ "Xtreme Spinning Coaster" des Herstellers Mack Rides, die am 14. März 2018 im US-amerikanischen Freizeitpark Silver Dollar City in Betrieb genommen wurde. Sie gilt als erster Spinning Coaster mit Inversionen und zugleich die erste Auslieferung des Modells "Xtreme Spinning Coaster" des Herstellers.


Early life, World War I and the interwar years.

Georges Blun was born to a French family on 1 June 1893 in the then German-held region of Alsace-Lorraine. He was married to a fellow journalist. He worked for the British MI5, as well as French intelligence during World War I. In 1920 he was expelled from Switzerland for conducting "clandestine activities" and communist agitation. By 1925, he had grown close to the leadership of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.  From 1925 to 1930 he worked in the Weimar Republic as a correspondent for various newspapers, such as "Journal des débats".  In 1928, it was reported that following publication of a controversial ('distorted') article on the Silvesternacht (New Year's Eve) in Berlin in a Paris paper, he resigned his chairmanship of the Association of Foreign Press and made an apology visit to the government press department.  He returned to Switzerland in 1939 after having worked as a journalist in Berlin for a considerable amount of time.

World War II.

During World War II, he became a resistance fighter against Nazi Germany in the service of the Red Orchestra. Under the pseudonym "Long" he was the head of the eponymous George Blun group in Switzerland. This group formed part of the Red Three, led by Alexander Radó.  During the war, he spied primarily and most notably in service of the Soviet Union, but also worked for American, British, French, Swiss and Polish intelligence agencies as well - a fact described by at least one source covering the events as "common" among Switzerland-based spies at the time. His loyalties were described by Nigel West as "always prioritizing" the Communist International and the GRU, while the CIA assesses his group as having an "ambiguous" ideology.  During his clandestine activities, he worked with figures such as Hans Bernd Gisevius, 20 July plot members, as well as Joseph Wirth, the latter of which had served as Chancellor of Germany.  Blun's group was viewed by the Soviets as the second most valuable, after the group led by Rachel Dübendorfer.

Post-War life.

Blun survived the war, following which, along with Otto John and several others, reportedely became a member of a political group led by Josef Müller. The group advocated for a united and neutralist Germany with a pro-USSR alignment.  He was still working as a journalist by May 11, 1950, when he penned an article in the French "Le Monde" newspaper regarding the division of Berlin and was cited for his work covering the division of the country.  He passed away in 1999.

Georges Blun (1 June 1893 – 1999) was a French journalist and intelligence agent who was the Berlin correspondent of the "Journal de Paris".

George Blun war ein Widerstandskämpfer gegen Nazideutschland im Dienste der Roten Kapelle. Dort war er der Kopf der gleichnamigen "George-Blun-Widerstandsgruppe" in der Schweiz. Die Widerstandsgruppe stand unter der Leitung der Roten Drei, die von Alexander Rado geführt wurde.