Current weather
Forecast for the next days
Source: MeteoSwiss
Current weather
Forecast for the next days
Source: MeteoSwiss
International sports, football
Manchester, England (GenevaLunch) - England striker Wayne Rooney was the target of press articles in the News of the World and the Sunday Mirror that opened up speculation that he might miss the Euro 2012 qualifying match against Switzerland to be played in Basel on Tuesday, 7 September. The British tabloids revealed claims that he had been having a relationship with a £1,000 a night prostitute ( News of the World says £1,200) while his wife Coleen was pregnant. Rooney joins a long list of English and French footballers recently involved in sex scandals.
Links to other sites: News of the World, Sunday Mirror, Sunday Telegraph
International sports, cricket
Cardiff, Wales (GenevaLunch) - England beat Pakistan by five wickets in the first of the Twenty20 matches. Pakistan were held to 126 runs as Graeme Swann gave a master class of off-spin bowling. England started quickly but then lost wickets to reach 62 for 5 before Eoin Morgan and Michael Yardy put together a 67 run partnership to win the match by five wickets with 17 balls left.
The News of the World had earlier released more details of the betting scam they revealed the previous week. They report that captain Salman Butt was found to have at least £10,000 in cash when his rooms were searched by police investigating a betting fraud. The alleged fixer, Mazhar Majeed, was also suspected of trying to open Swiss bank accounts for some of the players.
Swiss play friendly against Australia, CFF announces additional trains for the Switzerland-England match
La Nati - The Swiss national football team
St Gallen, Switzerland (GenevaLunch.com) – Swiss coach Ottmar Hitzfeld says his team is ready to play the Australia Socceroos in a friendly tonight at 20:15, at the AFG Arena in St Gallen.
This is the first time that the Qantas Socceroos face Switzerland at senior international level, thus, the new Aussie coach Holger Osieck is ready to show his squad is ready to win.
Hitzfeld announced he will only keep Lichtsteiner, Grichting, Inler, Derdiyok and Frei for the friendly while trying seven new players. The game, says Hitzfeld, is only a rehearsal for Switzerland’s first qualifying match for the 2012 UEFA Euro Cup which the Nati will play next week against England.
The Swiss railroad system, CFF, announced that on 7 September, 13 additional trains will carry football fans directly to St Jakob Park in Basel before the game.
After the match ends, buses will transport fans back to the station where additional trains to Bern, Geneva, Lausanne, Lucerne, Neuchatel, St Gallen and Zurich will be dispatched.
All football ticket holders can ride free of charge in Basel’s municipal transport system four hours before and after the game.
The qualifying stage for the 2012 Cup begins today 3 September throughout Europe.
Federer in top form at the US Open - Photo Rob Loud/US Open
(GenevaLunch.com) – Swiss tennis players Roger Federer and Patty Schnyder have reached the third round at the US Open.
Federer won 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 over Andreas Beck of Germany. He will now play Paul-Henri Mathieu of France.
“It’s the perfect start, sure. I played Monday, had two days off. I had another easy one physically today, and here I am in the third round feeling like I’m completely in the tournament,” Federer said.
On the women’s side, Patty Schnyder, now ranked 51, won over Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez from Spain 7-6, 6-4.
Schnyder’s reached quarterfinals at the US Open only twice in 1998 and 2008.
Two other Swiss, Stanislas Wawrinka and Marco Chiudinelli play on 3 September.
Climate change funding faces cloudy prospects
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Details of a massive transfer of $100 billion a year to cover the costs of global warming are being hammered out by officials from more than 40 countries meeting in Geneva 2 and 3 September. One of the few outcomes of the failed Copenhagen Climate Conference in December 2009 was a non-binding agreement by the rich world to fund the effects on poorer nations of climate change. The goal is to find long-term ways to cover those costs.
Delegates are haggling about the financing in an economic environment that is decidedly less promising than a few years ago. The European Union and the USA would prefer more funds to come from private enterprise; poorer countries are looking for transfers of public money, and expect massive increases in aid. Some want to reduce carbon emissions, others need the money urgently to mitigate the effects of dramatic climate change. The unusually heavy monsoon rains and the resulting flooding in Paksistan is just one dramatic example of the world’s changing climate.
Mexico hosts the next round of the climate change talks in November, and Switzerland has agreed to co-host this week’s more informal meeting on the various options open to countries. The talks are meant to find consensus on the contentious issues that caused the Copenhagen summit to fail. Emerging powerhouses like China, Brazil and India feel that a curb on their carbon emissions will stymie economic growth, and insist that the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere now were put there by the rich world in the past century and a half. Smaller and poorer nations, such as Bangladesh or Pakistan, are subject to the direct effects of extreme weather; island nations in oceans that may rise significantly as a result of melting ice caps are threatened existentially.
Links to other sites: Bloomberg, Federal Office for the Environment, Le Temps,
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Swiss franc is at near parity with the US dollar following stronger than expected GDP results. The euro, which in the past week has sunk to record lows against the franc, was boosted by remarks by European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet to the effect he does not expect a double-dip recession. Bloomberg reported Thursday 2 September that “the currency climbed 0.5 percent to $1.0111 as of 10:50 in Zurich. It appreciated 0.4 percent to 1.2964 per euro, after strengthening to a record high of 1.2852 on August 31.”
Links to other sites: Bloomberg, Financial Times (31 August), XE exchange rate site
Services to expand, open to community
Artist's rendering of new CSS sports and health performance centre in Lausanne
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The CSS (Centre sport et santé), a sports performance centre shared by EPFL and the University of Lausanne, will have a new home in 2012. Lausanne architects Krüger and Kazan have been given the mandate to build the CHF11 million new centre, an extension to the existing Omnisport building, with construction to begin in January 2011.
The project is supported financially by cantonal bank BCV, Vaud’s cantonal sports fund and the Chuv university hospitals.
The new centre will have as its primary focus students at the two universities, but it will be open to the larger community, to others who are interested in measured sports performance at all levels including individuals.
Grape variety growing rapidly in international popularity; Swiss Pinot Noirs among best
Gérald Carrupt, canton Vaud, judge at the Mondial du Pinot Noir in Sierre
Sierre, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The World Champion Pinot Noir producer is a Graubuenden winery, Weingut Donatsch Malans, for its Donatsch Pinot Noir Passion. The award, announced 2 September by the Mondial du Pinot Noir international wine competition, is given to the winery that for three successive vintages has received the highest score at the Mondial (best average and consistent style). It draws attention to the best terroirs, but also to the oenologist’s know-how and skill in continually producing top wines, and to the wine’s ability to age well.
The Mondial, which took place in Sierre in early August 2010, had 1,134 wines entered this year, from 21 countries. Pinot Noir reds, blanc de noirs and rosé wines are the main entries, but Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc, cousin varieties, also compete separately. Six percent, or 71 wines were awarded gold and 260 wines, 23 percent were given silver. Swiss wines carried away the largest number of gold awards, 56, followed by Germany with 10, Austria with 3. Australia and Bulgaria each had one gold winner. Switzerland entered more wines than other countries, but its strong performance has much to do with the fact that Pinot Noir is the most widely-grown grape in the country, outpacing even Chasselas, the white wine for which Switzerland is often known.
Judges at the Mondial du Pinot Noir mark the wines via computer, with tables screened to reduce distractions but also to keep notes private
Yann Juban from France, a judge and also deputy director of the Paris-based OIV (Organisation Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin), which oversees the competition, told GenevaLunch that one of Switzerland’s real strengths as a wine-producing country is its Pinot Noirs. The grape, which is delicate and a challenge to vinify well, grows in virtually every grape-growing canton.
Pinot Noir growing in popularity, internationally
The competition is growing in importance as the popularity of Pinot Noir rises: Sébastien Gavillet is a wine consultant from Las Vegas who was one of the Mondial du Pinot Noir judges.
Alpmobil electric car at the Grimsel pass, overlooking the Rhone glacier, Furka pass and steam rail line
Sierre and Crans-Montana, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Swiss Alps always look good in early autumn but the weekend of 3 September canton Valais has a powerful set of attractions on offer. Vinea, the Swiss wine fair that is the country’s biggest outdoor wine festival, opens its doors Friday evening in Sierre and is expected to pull in some 10,000 people during the two days when 1,200 different wines are on offer from 150 wineries.
And if you’re heading for either event, you’ll be in a good position to take a ride on the extension of the renovated and beautiful Furka steam train that runs between Realp and Oberwald, past the Rhone glacier and over the high mountain pass. The new stretch from Oberwald to Realp opened two weeks ago.
An alternative (or combine the two) is to rent a special tourism offer electric car in Meiringen, canton Bern, a town made famous by the death of Sherlock Holmes at its Reichenbach Falls, and drive over the magnificent Grimsel pass. From there you can glimpse the Rhone glacier and watch the steam train heading up the nearby Furka pass, or hop on the train.
Furka steam train on its maiden voyage, new Realp-Oberwald line, August 2010
You can also do the trip starting in the Goms Valley (Oberwald or other towns) and head to Meiringen. The nearly silent cars cost CHF60 for the day and, of course, there’s no fuel to pay for.
European Masters golf tournament 2-6 September
Vinea, in the heart of the Alps, is Switzerland's largest outdoor wine fair
Just above the city in the resort of Crans-Montana, the Omega European Masters golf tournament, which opens 2 September, will be well underway; it continues until Sunday. Weather in the resort is expected to be mostly sunny, with temperatures between 7 and 17C, so take along a jacket. Children under 16 are free and tickets for adults are CHF60-70, with weekend special offers. The number of tickets is not limited, so there is no problem buying at the entrance to the golf course. This is Switzerland’s spot on the European tournament.
Vinea opens a day earlier, features more Swiss wines and special guest Hermitage
The main street of Sierre is taken over by Vinea as of Friday evening, with a line of white tents housing 150 Swiss winemakers. The purpose of the fair is to bring together the public and producers in a relaxed setting to encourage consumers to learn more about Swiss wine. This is wine at its educational best: drunken visitors are rare, producers are keen to answer questions, even at the most basic level, and there is no sellilng so it’s pressure-free. If you want to buy wine, you’ll have to order it and have it shipped or pick it up later. Since many of the country’s wineries are small family operations whose cellars are open to visitors by appointment this offers a rare chance to sample their wines without having to call ahead, and to compare different wineries’ products.
Vinea has several new features this year, starting with a chance for the public to sample the winning wines of the major international wine competition, the Mondial du Pinot Noir, Friday evening. The awards ceremony for the Mondial is always held at the start of Vinea, but the wines are available to the public for the first time this year.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Swiss economy grew more strongly than expected in the second quarter of 2010, 0.9 percent in real terms (data at previous year’s prices) compared to the previous quarter and 3.4 percent compared to Q2 a year earlier. The State Secretariat for Ecoonomic Affairs (SECO) note that Q2 2009 was the lowest period during the 2009 recession.
Fixed investments by industry grew by 2.1 percent, while exports rose, but less than in the first quarter, with overall growth of 1.7 percent. Exports of goods were soft but services expanded by 5.3 percent, which Seco accounts for as ” merely the result of an extraordinary growth in the trade with raw materials.” Imports rose by 4.6 percent.
Government consumption continued to decline, by 0.1 percent. Private consumption remained stable. Figures also published 2 September show the retail sector (not including fuel) growing in July 2010, compared to the previous quarter (1 percent in nominal terms) and to July 2009, up 2.9 percent in nominal terms. The non-food sector showed the strongest growth.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Migros supermarkets have put out an alert for those with milk product allergies: Hipp – Bio Pâtes aux tomates et courgettes in 190 g jars is a babyfood that mistakenly says it has no milk added. The jar label also mentions that it has powdered milk and Migros cautions against you or your baby eating the product if you have milk allergies. The product is otherwise perfectly safe, the store notes.
Roger Federer in Ethiopia, 2010 (photo, ©2010 Roger Federer Foundation)
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – If you didn’t get a ticket for the December charity tennis match between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in Zurich, despite having asked for an alert that they were going on sale, you’re not alone: Ticketcorner sold 10,000 tickets in five minutes Wednesday morning 1 September.
Their phone lines and web site were jammed for long after by frantic fans.
Proceeds from the Match for Africa event go to the Roger Federer Foundation, which supports education and sports projects.
Roger Federer in Ethiopia donating sports supplies
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Swiss Federal Council Wednesday 1 September adopted an ordinance, soon to be replaced by a law, on the procedures to be followed when another country asks for assistance in cases of suspected fiscal fraud. A key element in the text is that the Swiss government will not accept a demand for “administrative assistance” under double taxation treaties if the request is made based on stolen data. The federal tax service will make a preliminary review of the request, which must show “good faith”, the new ordinance dictates. It goes into effect 1 October 2010, but is not retroactive.
A second key element is that the requesting government must provide adequate information to allow Switzerland to identify the account holder and the party holding information about the account, in order to avoid what are called fishing expeditions. Tension rose in 2009 between France and Switzerland over what the Swiss labelled at the time a fishing expedition. France later dropped its request.
Germany and France have both received stolen data from Swiss banks, a cause of some political tension. The UBS case, where a special treaty was drawn up between the US and Switzerland to review data on 4,450 cases of suspected tax fraud, was not based on stolen data per se, but rather on information supplied by a former employee of the bank, to US authorities.
Pakistan/ Floods/ A young Afghan boy stands next to his home damaged by flash floods in the Hazijai Afghan refugee village in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (photo: ©2010 UNHCR / R Ali
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – One-fifth of Pakistan is under water and while floodwaters are receding in some places, the need for basic shelter in flooded areas in Pakistan has become critical, say Geneva-based humanitarian organizations, who are launching appeals for more public support. International Office for Migration (IOM) Director General William Lacy Swing, who has been visiting the area, says “these floods are one of the most extreme humanitarian disasters in living memory.”
The flooding is causing enormous displacement problems in Pakistan as well as in neighbouring Afghanistan, where the number of returning refugees is growing rapidly.
Appeal triples in size to US$120 million
The UNHCR (UN High Commissioner for Refugees) issued a broadcast appeal late Tuesday 30 August, featuring its Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie. That UN agency says that “with nearly 20 million people estimated to have been affected, the needs of the victims are outpacing the ability of humanitarian organizations to provide assistance. Last week UNHCR revised upwards its global appeal for the Pakistan flood operation to US$120 million from US$41 million.”
Fiat 500 classic cars in Crans-Montana
US classic cars, Les Collons
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Fans of special cars had a good warm-up for the autumn car shows season last weekend, with an American vintage cars show in Les Collons, France and a bevy of Fiat 500s toodling around Crans-Montana. The Fiat 500s had a series of events going, such as mini-races in ski lift parking lots, and the mountainside was covered with streams of small, brightly coloured cars.
GenevaLunch photographer Ceelurd took in the American V-8s in France, then headed for Crans-Montana for what he describes as the “cutie pie” cars. To see his collection of photos from the car shows, visit the “Vintage and classic cars 2010″ photo album.
One of the big car shows coming up is the Swiss British Classic Cars in Morges 2 October; keep an eye on our events pages for details. You’ll find details there of an Aston-Martin and Mercedes art (not the cars themselves) exhibit at the Kempinski in Geneva this weekend.
Club has record season ticket sales
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - If anyone doubted that hockey is an increasingly popular sport in Geneva, season ticket sales for the Geneva-Servette Hockey Club have just proved them wrong: 4,800 season tickets sold in three months. The sales tally breaks the previous record, in 2009, of 4,740 season tickets, and the season has not yet opened. The team will play its last friendly 5 September in Geneva. Remaining season tickets are on sale on the GSHC web site.
International sports, tennis
Flushing Meadows, New York, USA (GenevaLunch) – Roger Federer has made it past his first hurdle in the US Open, defeating Brian Dabul from Argentina 6-1 6-4 6-2 in a night match. But it wasn’t his overall win that captured the crowd so much as his third set winning shot, between the legs. The Swiss player told reporters afterwards that “I’ve only hit a few in my life. To do it twice at the US Open centre court… it’s amazing to share this moment with you guys.”
Links to other sites: BBC, Guardian, US Open
Video
Map of the changes to Cornavin station, to improve pedestrian traffic flow
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - A six-year-old girl was hit by a tram in front of Geneva’s main station late Saturday and, according to the Tribune de Geneve, she remains in serious condition at the hospital. Details of the accident, under investigation, are sketchy, but the Geneva newspaper raises the question of safety in front of the station, where in 2008 the city created a 20-kph-zone with pedestrians given priority.
The area is crisscrossed steadily with tram, bus, taxi, bicycle and pedestrian traffic, raising public complaints about too many distractions for people crossing the area.
Major renovations at the station, part of which are designed to improve the flow of pedestrian traffic inside but also around the station, are an additional distraction.
The growing number of bicycle riders in the city, who often ignore traffic rules, has been cited by the TPG on a number of occasions as a problem for tram drivers. The Tribune reports that since the start of 2010 Geneva has had seven tram-bicycle collision, one of them fatal to the bike rider, and 11 tram-pedestrian accidents.
IPCC needs structural, cultural changes to regain credibility, InterAcademy Council report advises
Australian desert (photo: ©2010 Peter Brodbeck, flickr)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Geneva-based Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) needs to make “fundamental reform” to its management structure and to work in a spirit of far greater openness: this is the conclusion of the special report on the organization by the InterAcademy Council. The IPCC, created by the United Nations Environmental Programme and the World Meteorological Organization in 1988 and winner of a Nobel Prize in 2007, was caught in a whirlwind of criticism early in 2010 when scientific errors were found in its latest report: a key part of the group’s work is to review scientific evidence of climate change. The IPCC has 194 membersWhile the errors themselves were eventually determined to be relatively insignificant, the outcry drew attention to IPCC’s scientific methods. The organization’s credibility came under fire.
The UN in March 2010 asked one of the most respected bodies in the scientific community, the InterAcademy Council, with heads of the world’s major scientific academies as members, to review the methods of the IPCC and report back within six months. The UN made it clear that the role of the IPCC in assessing climate change and the fact of climate change itself were not in question.
Representatives from 194 countries make up the panel that is the IPCC. The panel’s job is “to inform policy decisions through periodic assessments of what is known about the physical scientific aspects of climate change, its global and regional impacts, and options for adaptation and mitigation,” according to the InterAcademy Council.
“Operating under the public microscope the way IPCC does requires strong leadership, the continued and enthusiastic participation of distinguished scientists, an ability to adapt, and a commitment to openness if the value of these assessments to society is to be maintained,” says Harold Shapiro, president emeritus and professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University in the US and chair of the committee that wrote the report.
Report calls for a number of changes
Ed. note: The following summary is taken directly from the InterAcademy Council’s IPCC review web pages, with bold headings set by GenevaLunch