Monday, September 07, 2009 TAIWAN: The 21st Summer Deaf Olympics officially kicked off in the Taiwanese capital, Taipei. The twelve-part opening ceremony included singing by Taiwanese pop star A-mei, an appearance by actor Jet-Li and choreographed artistic performances themed on Taiwan's landscape, ecology, and even its food.One of the acts, meant to highlight Taipei as a culinary capitol, had performers dressed up as noodles, vegetables and stewed eggs. They assembled into famous local dishes, such as minced pork and beef noodle soup.Many of the performers, who are deaf, responded to split-second visual cues.The Deaflympics features 20 sports, including soccer, swimming, wrestling, table tennis and orienteering. A record 4,000 athletes from 81 countries are registered to compete this year. Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou also attended the opening ceremony.The Deaf Olympics were first held in Paris, France in 1924. The competition, the first ever for athletes with disabilities, was then known as the Silent Games. This is the first time the Deaflympics have been held in Asia. The closing ceremony will be on September 15.
Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in...
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