Radio România Internațional

Tag: Rugby Europe Championship

  • Sport Club RRI: Rugby

    Sport Club RRI: Rugby

    Sezonul de rugby 2017 s-a
    încheiat week-endul trecut. În ultimele două meciuri-test jucate pe teren
    propriu, România a învins Samoa cu 17-13, dar a cedat în faţa Tongăi cu 20-25.


    Meciul
    cu Samoa a fost al doilea din istoria întâlnirilor dintre cele două echipe. În
    prima, disputată în 1989, România a învins cu 32-24. Şi de data aceasta
    Stejarii au învins după un meci echilibrat. Punctele României au fost marcate
    de Florin Vlaicu, o lovitură de pedeapsă, şi Andrei Rădoi şi Ionel Badiu, două
    eseuri transformate de Vlaicu. Punctele samoane au fost marcate de Nanai
    Wlliams, două lovituri de pedeapsă, şi un eseu colectiv transformat de acelaşi
    Williams.


    Al doilea
    meci cu Tonga a fost mai greu decât cel cu Samoa. După un început în care
    românii au condus cu 3-0 şi 6-3, jucătorii din Pacific au trecut la conducere
    şi la final au câştigat. Punctele românilor au fost marcate de Florin Vlaicu,
    două lovituri de pedeapsă, Ionuţ Dumitru şi Johann Van Heerden, fiecare câte un
    eseu, ambele transformate de acelaşi Vlaicu. Tonganii au înscris prin Sonatane
    Takalua, două lovituri de pedeapsă, şi Ateli Pakalani, Leva Fifita şi George
    Taina, autori ai câte unui eseu, unul dintre ele fiind transformat de Takalua.
    Mecul cu Tonga a fost ultimul înainte de meciurile din Rugby Europe
    Championship din primăvara viitoare pentru calificarea la Cupa Mondială.


    Naţionala încheie anul pe
    locul 15 în clasamentul mondial, potrivit ierarhiei date publicităţii de World
    Rugby. Înainte de meciul cu Tonga, românii ocupau poziţia a 14-a, iar în cazul
    unui succes puteau urca pe locul 13. România a acumulat 69,58 puncte
    îmbunătăţindu-şi poziţia faţă de anul trecut, când a încheiat pe locul 16.


    Pe primele două locuri au rămas Noua
    Zeelandă şi Anglia, dar pe locul 3 a urcat Irlanda, Australia căzând pe locul
    4. Georgia, echipa cu care România joacă anual Cupa Antim Ivireanul, este pe
    locul 12 cu 73,46 de puncte.

  • Sport Club RRI: Rugby

    Sport Club RRI: Rugby

    Echipa de rugby a României a făcut, duminică,
    un pas mare către calificarea la Cupa Mondială din 2019. Stejarii au câştigat
    ediţia 2017 a competiţiei Rugby Europe Championship, după ce au învins, în ultima
    partidă a sezonului, redutabila echipă a Georgiei, cu 8 la 7. La final, ambele
    echipe au avut câte 19 puncte, dar România a fost desemnată câştigătoare a
    competiţiei graţie victoriei din jocul direct.


    Importanţa succesului cu Georgia este
    multiplă. Intâi, pentru că Stejarii n‑au mai câştigat în confruntările
    directe de 7 ani. Apoi, pentru că a adus jucătorilor români un impuls de moral
    extrem de necesar după startul catastrofal de sezon. Vǎ amintim că, acum o
    lună, România pierdea în faţa Germaniei, fapt nemaiîntâlnit din vremea dinainte
    de cel de-al doilea război mondial. În al treilea rând, şi cel mai important,
    succesul din faţa gruzinilor duce România la şase puncte de Spania, echipa de
    pe locul trei, principala contracandidată la calificarea directă la Cupa
    Mondială.


    Vă amintim că rezultatele din Rugby Europe
    Championship din 2017 şi 2018, cumulate, contează drept criteriu de calificare
    pentru Cupa Mondială, găzduită în 2019 de Japonia. Dacă ocupă locul întâi,
    România şi-a asigurat prezenţa la întrecere. La fel şi dacă se clasează pe
    locul 2, iar pe primul termină Georgia, calificată deja direct de la Cupa
    Mondială din Anglia. Dacă s-ar clasa pe locul 3, România ar urma să joace
    pentru calificare un meci de baraj cu ocupanta locului 3 în Pacific
    Tri-Nations, unde evoluează Fiji, Samoa şi Tonga, trei echipe foarte puternice.
    Dacă pierd, Stejarii vor merge la un turneu de recalificare, la care mai
    participă o echipă din America, una din Africa şi una din Asia sau Oceania.

  • Romanian rugby, an unprecedented success

    Romanian rugby, an unprecedented success

    It may not have the status and reputation of the team that caused a great furor in the 1980s, when it used to play memorable games against the then great European teams, yet the national rugby team has recently registered a most notable success.



    This past Sunday, following the narrow, 8-7 win against Georgia in Bucharest, Romania emerged as winner of this year’s Rugby Europe Championship, the second-tier European inter-nations competitions. However, the competition stands way below the Six Nations Championship.



    Following the 38-41 defeat they sustained against Germany in the debut fixture, which acted as a wake-up call for the Romanians to regain their poise and resolve for their remaining fixtures in the aforementioned event, the national squad beat Spain, 13-3, then they thrashed Russia, 31-10, and went on to crush Belgium, 33-17.



    According to the final rankings, the Romanian national rugby team ended the competition on a par with Georgia, as each team had 19 points on their record sheet. However, the Oaks, as they are also known, won the tournament, thanks to their direct confrontation win.



    Romania also took an important step forward ahead of their participation in the 2019 edition of the World Cup, which is held every four years and which the Oaks have never missed out on, so far.



    In another move, thanks to the success in the match against Georgia, an all-time as well as a regional rival, the Romanians have also won the Antim Ivireanu Cup, a trophy that goes to the winning side in direct confrontations, on a yearly basis. No less than seven years have the Oaks been waiting to grab a win against Georgia, a team pundits describe as having made a tremendous progress in the last decade and which is highly likely to gain a place among the Six Nations Championship hopefuls.



    Although is suffers from chronic under-financing, just like many other sports disciplines, Romanian rugby is alive and kicking; our players were able to put on remarkable shows thus compelling recognition at European level. Furthermore, the 4,000 fans attending the match against Georgia stand proof of the fact that rugby can still stir an interest in its fans and not only. And all that, in a country where football remains the unchallenged king of sports and where stands are empty even for first league rugby games. Even under such circumstances, and deprived of a level of financing capable of providing a safe future, Romanian rugby continues to churn out players who are held in high esteem in strong European championships across Europe.



    For instance, as early as the 1990s, the French domestic championship, described as a first-rate one, has signed up Romanian rugby players on a regular basis. To date, there are a few Oaks playing in France, while other Romanian rugby players have been included in the line-ups of Italian or English sides.



  • Succes românesc la rugby

    Succes românesc la rugby

    Deşi nu mai are reputaţia echipei ce făcea furori în anii ’80, perioadă în care a făcut meciuri memorabile în faţa marilor forţe europene, actuala naţionala de rugby a României a înregistrat un succes notabil. Duminică, după victoria strânsă, 8-7, obţinută cu Georgia la Bucureşti, România a reuşit să câştige ediţia din acest an a Rugby Europe Championship, a doua competiţie continentală inter-ţări, la o diferentă valorică mare, totuşi, faţă de Turneul celor Şase Naţiuni.



    După duşul rece din partida de debut, 38-41, cu Germania, stejarii, cum sunt supranumiţi rugbystii români, au mai câştigat cu Spania, 13-3, cu Rusia, 30-10, şi cu Belgia, 33-17. În clasamentul final, România şi Georgia au încheiat cu acelaşi număr de puncte, 19, însă, datorită victoriei din întâlnirea directă, stejarii au câştigat competiţia.



    România a făcut un pas important şi pentru participarea, în 2019, la Cupa Mondială, organizată o dată la patru ani şi de la care stejarii nu au lipsit niciodată. Pe de altă parte, graţie succesului obţinut în faţa Georgiei – un rival, deopotrivă, regional şi tradiţional – , stejarii au câştigat şi Cupa Antim Ivireanu, trofeu care se acordă anual echipei învingătoare în partidele directe. Şapte ani au aşteptat stejarii o victorie împotriva Georgiei, o naţională despre care specialiştii spun că a crescut enorm în ultimul deceniu şi care bate la uşa Turneului celor Şase Naţiuni.



    Deşi suferă de o subfinanţare cronică, aidoma majorităţii ramurilor sportive, rugbyul românesc continuă să respire şi chiar să obţină, iată, performanţe care-i fac să conteze la nivel continental. Iar cei 4.000 mii de spectatori de la partida cu Georgia demonstrează că rugbyul continuă să suscite interes, să-şi cultive fani. Şi aceasta într-o ţară în care, sport-rege fiind, fără rival, fotbalul, inclusiv la nivelul primei ligi, se joacă cu arene goale.



    Chiar şi aşa, în lipsa unei finanţări care să-i asigure un viitor liniştit, rugbyul românesc continuă să producă jucători apreciaţi în campionate puternice din Europa. Încă din anii ’90, de exemplu, campionatul Franţei, privit ca unul de primă mână, a făcut o obişnuinţă din importul de rugbyşti români. Şi acum sunt câţiva stejari care joacă în Hexagon, la care se alătură cei care evolueaza în Italia ori Anglia.

  • March 11, 2017 UPDATE

    March 11, 2017 UPDATE

    EUROPEAN COUNCIL– The EU leaders have made public their intention to re-launch the Union after the Brexit, and a document on the Unions future, the so-called White Paper, is to be adopted at a meeting due in Rome on March 25. The joint declaration and the prospective inclusion in the text of the concept of a multi-speed Europe have been among the issues discussed at the Brussels summit, where Romania was represented by President Klaus Iohannis. He said he had told some of his peers attending the Council meeting that a multi-speed Europe for an indefinite period of time is not a good solution, because it might lead to the Unions split. Romania shouldnt however have fears relative to multi-speed projects, such as the one regarding the European Prosecutor, the president also said. The European Council President, Donald Tusk, and the European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker, have explained that the formula “a multi-speed Europe has been misunderstood. Donald Tusk has said that everything can actually be reduced to the formula “if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, we go together.



    UNIFIED PAY LAW – Fresh talks will be held in Bucharest next week between the government and trade unions on the unified pay law for state sector employees. The draft is to be finalised by the end of the month. So far, the government has held talks with trade unions in the education, healthcare and social assistance, with those in the domain or public order and safety, with representatives of cultural institutes as well as with trade unions with the Labour Ministry. The first to benefit from pay-rises will be doctors and nurses. Some of the novelties included in the draft law include granting the equivalent of two minimum national wages per year, to buy foodstuffs, to all state sector employees and a so-called holiday gift voucher.



    EXERCISE – An extensive international intervention exercise in case of heavy flooding is unfolding until Sunday in Timis County, western Romania. The exercise enjoys European financing and the participation of trainers from the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. Attending are also support teams from several countries like Austria, Germany, France and Latvia. According to the head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, the exercise is like a test to see whether teams from several countries can cooperate to intervene in case of disaster.



    COMMEMORATION – Spaniards on Saturday commemorated the victims of the terror attacks of March 11, 2004, in Madrid, which killed 191 people, among whom 16 Romanians, and left some 2,000 others injured. On the same day, several bombs went off in 4 commuter trains in the stations of Atocha, El Pozo and Santa Eugenia. The masterminds of the attacks are still unknown to the present day. The trial came to a close in 2007, with the victims relatives and the survivors saying the sentences were much too easy. It was the severest terror attack in Spain which led to the withdrawal of Spanish forces from Iraq. After this bloody attack, the European Parliament declared March 11 the European Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism.



    RUGBY – Romanias national rugby team on Saturday defeated Belgium, 33-17, in the fourth round of the Rugby Europe Championship, a competition which, as of this year, replaces the former European Nations Cup, the second most important continental rugby tournament, after the Six Nations Tournament. In the matches played so far, Romania defeated Russia away from home, outperformed Spain on home soil, but it surprisingly lost to Germany, away from home. In the world classification, Romania ranks 16th and Belgium 27th.


    JUDO– Romanian woman judoka Larisa Florian has won the gold medal in the 52 kg category, at the Grand Slam tournament held in Baku, Azerbaijan, according to the official site of the Romanian Judo Federation. After grabbing a bronze medal in Dusseldorf, Germany, Larisa Florian manages to score a new exceptional result, thus joining the Top 10 of the best athletes in the world in the 52 kg category. Larisa Florian is among the Romanian young talents considered to stand high chances to get a medal in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (Translated by D. Vijeu)

  • March 11, 2017

    March 11, 2017

    EUROPEAN COUNCIL– The EU leaders have made public their intention to re-launch the Union after the Brexit, and a document on the Union’s future, the so-called White Paper, is to be adopted at a meeting due in Rome on March 25. The joint declaration and the prospective inclusion in the text of the concept of a multi-speed Europe have been among the issues discussed at the Brussels summit, where Romania was represented by President Klaus Iohannis. He said he had told some of his peers attending the Council meeting that a multi-speed Europe for an indefinite period of time is not a good solution, because it might lead to the Union’s split. Romania shouldn’t however have fears relative to multi-speed projects, such as the one regarding the European Prosecutor, the president also said. The European Council President, Donald Tusk, and the European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker, have explained that the formula “a multi-speed Europe” has been misunderstood. Donald Tusk has said that everything can actually be reduced to the formula “if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, we go together.”



    UNIFIED PAY LAW — Fresh talks will be held in Bucharest next week between the government and trade unions on the unified pay law for state sector employees. The draft is to be finalised by the end of the month. So far, the government has held talks with trade unions in the education, healthcare and social assistance, with those in the domain or public order and safety, with representatives of cultural institutes as well as with trade unions with the Labour Ministry. The first to benefit from pay-rises will be doctors and nurses. Some of the novelties included in the draft law include granting the equivalent of two minimum national wages per year, to buy foodstuffs, to all state sector employees and a so-called holiday gift voucher.



    ATTACK THREAT — A mall in the Western German city of Essen has been closed today, because of an attack threat, the local police has announced, without however providing details on the source and type of the threat. In December 2016, 12 people were killed in Berlin by a truck which rammed into a Christmas fair crowd. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State terrorist group and was not the only one carried out in Germany and blamed on that Jihadist group. The German intelligence services estimate there are some 10 thousand radical Islamists on German soil, 1,600 of whom being likely to resort to violence.



    RUGBY — Romania’s national rugby team is today meeting Belgium in Brussels, in the fourth round of the Rugby Europe Championship, a competition which, as of this year, replaces the former European Nations’ Cup, the second most important continental rugby tournament, after the Six Nations Tournament. In the matches played so far, Romania defeated Russia away from home, outperformed Spain on home soil, but it surprisingly lost to Germany, away from home. Romania ranks second in the group, after Georgia, with Belgium on the last position. In the world classification, Romania ranks 16th and Belgium 27th.


    JUDO— Romanian woman judoka Larisa Florian has won the gold medal in the 52 kg category, at the Grand Slam tournament held in Baku, Azerbaijan, according to the official site of the Romanian Judo Federation. After grabbing a bronze medal in Dusseldorf, Germany, Larisa Florian manages to score a new exceptional result, thus joining the Top 10 of the best athletes in the world in the 52 kg category. Larisa Florian is among the Romanian young talents considered to stand high chances to get a medal in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (Translated by D. VIjeu)

  • March 10, UPDATE

    March 10, UPDATE

    European Council summit — The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said Friday after the European Council meeting that he explained to the EU leaders that a multi -speed Europe was not a good solution and that it could eventually lead to the breaking of the EU. He added that on Friday talks were held on the Declaration to be adopted in Rome on March 25. The EU heads of state and government met in Brussels without Great Britain to discuss the future of the community bloc. The talks were dominated by the ideas of a multi-speed Europe, one of the solutions proposed the President of the European Commission, J. C. Juncker, as a solution to re-launch the EU after Brexit. The vice-president of the EC, Frans Timmermans, told Radio Romania that any member state, Romania included, would be able to enter the so-called “closer cooperation groups” if they wanted so.



    Brussels — Germany and France on Friday called on the EU countries to accept the scenario of a multi-speed Europe. At a press conference held after the summit in Brussels the German chancellor Angela Merkel said the EU would show “its unity in diversity” at the Rome summit scheduled for March 25, which will mark 60 years since its setting up. The French President Francois Hollande presented his vision on a European Union in which some states should be able to form groups of enhanced cooperation that should allow them to advance faster than the others in terms of such policies as security and social systems without, however, losing the cohesion of member states.



    Constitutional Court — The Constitutional Court of Romania has found that there is conflict of interests between the Public Ministry and the Government, generated by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate’s action to check the legality and opportunity of issuing Government decree no. 13 through which they tried to amend the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes. The Court had been notified about the investigation undertaken by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate by the speaker of the Senate, Calin Popescu Tariceanu. Judges consider that the investigation has disturbed the activity of the Government and that it is only Parliament that can decide on a country’s laws.



    Unitary pay law — Negotiations continued at the Labour Ministry in Bucharest between the Government and trade unions regarding the unitary pay law. On Friday, trade unions from the field of culture said they agreed with the new pay scheme, adding there will be pay rises of up to 40%, benefiting especially employees with low salaries. Negotiations on the unitary pay draft law have already been carried out with trade unions in the defense, public order and healthcare sectors. The document is supposed to be adopted by July 1st in order to show effects as of January 1st next year. According to the Labour Minister Olguta Vasilescu, state employees’ salaries will be increased gradually by 2021, and the only ones who will benefit from a full rise in 2018 are the employees in the healthcare sector.



    Vaccination schedule — In Romania a new draft law on vaccination will be submitted to public debate in one month at the latest- the new health minister, Florian Bodog announced. Once the law is adopted, parents will be obliged to respect the childhood vaccination schedule. The initiative comes in the context in which Romania has reported an alarming drop in the vaccination rate every year and has been facing many epidemics that made victims among children. The health minister added that, as regards the crisis of the quadrivalent vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and poliomyelitis, the authorities have already started their distribution to family doctors. On Friday he pointed out that over 3,400 cases of measles have been reported in Romania so far, and 17 people have died because of the virus. Health minister Bodog explained that the epidemics started in Romania from a nomadic group, the virus resembling the one that affected Italy an Hungary, although it is not clear if there are common factors involved.



    Rugby — Romania’s rugby team is on Saturday taking on the Belgian side away from home in the fourth round of Rugby Europe Championship, the competition replacing the European Nations’ Cup, the second continental rugby competition after the Six Nations’ Tournament. So far, Romania has defeated Russia away from home and Spain on home turf, but lost surprisingly to Germany away from home. Romania is ranked 2nd after Georgia, while Belgium is bottom-of-the-table. Romania is ranked 16th in the world rankings at present. (translation by L. Simion & V. Palcu)

  • Athlete of the Week – Rugby player Florin Vlaicu

    Athlete of the Week – Rugby player Florin Vlaicu

    Romania started off on the wrong foot this international rugby season. Their last weeks defeat by Germany represented one of their poorest results in the past years, being at the same time the biggest surprise in Rugby Europe Championship since its early days.



    After the disastrous performance in Germany, Romania managed to secure a difficult 13-3 win against a determined Spanish side in Bucharest. Florin Vlaicu scored all the points for the hosts, following two penalty shots and a try conversion. We can thus say that it was Florin Vlaicu who made the difference, a reason for which Radio Romania International has designated him Athlete of the Week.



    Born in Bucharest in July 1986, Vlaicu made his debut with local side Steaua. He also played for Farul Constanta and Olympia Bucharest. He went to Italy to play for Calvisano and then came back to Steaua Bucharest. He grabbed his first cap for Romanias national side taking on Ukraine in 2006 in a game counting towards the European Nations Cup. He was part of the Romanian lineup in three World Cup editions in 2007, 2011 and 2015, scoring 28 points in total.



    With 799 points scored for the national squad, Vlaicu holds an absolute record in the Romanian rugby. His objective is to make it to 1000 before withdrawing from competitions. If successful he would join an impressive hall of fame including New Zealander Dan Carter, English Jonny Wilkinson, Welsh Neil Jenkins, Irish Ronan OGara and Italian Diego Dominguez. Fact is that after these two weeks, Vlaicu is the best scorer in Rugby Europe Championship with 26 points followed by Raynor Parkinson of South Africa who is currently playing for Germany. (Translated by V. Palcu)


  • Sportivul săptămânii – Rugbistul Florin Vlaicu

    Sportivul săptămânii – Rugbistul Florin Vlaicu

    Sezonul internaţional de rugby a început
    prost pentru România. Înfrângerea din faţa Germaniei, de acum
    mai bine de o săptămână, a reprezentat unul dintre cele mai slabe rezultate ale
    Naţionalei noastre de rugby din ultimii ani. A fost, totodată, cea mai mare
    surpriză din cadrul competiţiei Rugby Europe Championship, de la înfiinţarea
    acesteia.


    După catastrofa din Germania, în etapa a doua
    a competiţiei, România a învins, sâmbătă, la Bucureşti, reprezentativa Spaniei.
    Stejarii s‑au impus greu, cu 13 la 3, pe fondul unei rezistenţe solide a
    oaspeţilor. Toate punctele echipei române au fost reuşite de Florin Vlaicu,
    respectiv un eseu transformat şi două lovituri de pedeapsă fructificate. Se
    poate spune astfel că Vlaicu a fost cel care a făcut diferenţa, motiv pentru
    care Radio România Internaţional l-a desemnat Sportivul Săptămânii.


    Născut la 26 iulie 1986, la Bucureşti, Vlaicu
    a debutat în rugby-ul mare la Steaua Bucureşti. A mai evoluat la Farul
    Constanţa, CSM Olimpia Bucureşti, apoi în Italia, la Calvisano, după care s-a
    întors la Steaua. A fost selecţionat pentru prima dată la echipa naţională a
    României pentru un meci din Cupa Europeană a Naţiunilor, în 2006, cu Ucraina. A
    făcut parte din echipa României la trei Cupe Mondiale, respectiv cele din 2007,
    2011 şi 2015, marcând în total 28 de puncte.


    Cu 799 de puncte înscrise pentru echipa
    naţională, Florin Vlaicu deţine recordul absolut în rugby-ul românesc.
    Obiectivul său este să ajungă la 1000 de puncte înainte de a se retrage. Dacă
    ar reuşi, s-ar alătura unei galerii selecte din care mai fac parte
    neo-zeelandezul Dan Carter, englezul Jonny Wilkinson, galezul Neil Jenkins,
    irlandezul Ronan O’Gara şi italianul Diego Dominguez. Fapt este că, în acest
    moment, după două etape, este cel mai bun marcator din Rugby Europe
    Championship, cu 26 de puncte, urmat, cu 22 de puncte, de sud‑africanul Raynor
    Parkinson, care evoluează sub culorile Germaniei.

  • Sportivul săptămânii – Rugbistul Florin Vlaicu

    Sportivul săptămânii – Rugbistul Florin Vlaicu

    Sezonul internaţional de rugby a început
    prost pentru România. Înfrângerea din faţa Germaniei, de acum
    mai bine de o săptămână, a reprezentat unul dintre cele mai slabe rezultate ale
    Naţionalei noastre de rugby din ultimii ani. A fost, totodată, cea mai mare
    surpriză din cadrul competiţiei Rugby Europe Championship, de la înfiinţarea
    acesteia.


    După catastrofa din Germania, în etapa a doua
    a competiţiei, România a învins, sâmbătă, la Bucureşti, reprezentativa Spaniei.
    Stejarii s‑au impus greu, cu 13 la 3, pe fondul unei rezistenţe solide a
    oaspeţilor. Toate punctele echipei române au fost reuşite de Florin Vlaicu,
    respectiv un eseu transformat şi două lovituri de pedeapsă fructificate. Se
    poate spune astfel că Vlaicu a fost cel care a făcut diferenţa, motiv pentru
    care Radio România Internaţional l-a desemnat Sportivul Săptămânii.


    Născut la 26 iulie 1986, la Bucureşti, Vlaicu
    a debutat în rugby-ul mare la Steaua Bucureşti. A mai evoluat la Farul
    Constanţa, CSM Olimpia Bucureşti, apoi în Italia, la Calvisano, după care s-a
    întors la Steaua. A fost selecţionat pentru prima dată la echipa naţională a
    României pentru un meci din Cupa Europeană a Naţiunilor, în 2006, cu Ucraina. A
    făcut parte din echipa României la trei Cupe Mondiale, respectiv cele din 2007,
    2011 şi 2015, marcând în total 28 de puncte.


    Cu 799 de puncte înscrise pentru echipa
    naţională, Florin Vlaicu deţine recordul absolut în rugby-ul românesc.
    Obiectivul său este să ajungă la 1000 de puncte înainte de a se retrage. Dacă
    ar reuşi, s-ar alătura unei galerii selecte din care mai fac parte
    neo-zeelandezul Dan Carter, englezul Jonny Wilkinson, galezul Neil Jenkins,
    irlandezul Ronan O’Gara şi italianul Diego Dominguez. Fapt este că, în acest
    moment, după două etape, este cel mai bun marcator din Rugby Europe
    Championship, cu 26 de puncte, urmat, cu 22 de puncte, de sud‑africanul Raynor
    Parkinson, care evoluează sub culorile Germaniei.

  • RRI Sports Club – Rugby

    RRI Sports Club – Rugby

    In the inaugural game of the current edition of the Rugby Europe Championship, Romania’s Stejarii – “The Oak Leaf Knights” trounced Portugal, 39-14. The Romanians have also been awarded the offensive game bonus point thanks to their excellent run in the second half of the game. At half time, Portugal had a 4 point lead, 14-10. Scoring for Romania were Stephen Shennan and Vlad Nistor, with two tries each, while Florin Radoi scored yet another try. Florin Vlaicu successfully converted four of the Romanian team’s tries, also converting two penalty kicks.



    In other fixtures at the weekend, Georgia thrashed Germany, 59-7, while Russia outclassed Spain, 22-20. The Romanian national squad’s next fixture is the game against Spain on February 13, in Madrid.



    For the game against Spain, Romania’s national squad’s pool of regulars has included six more players. Apart from the 31 rugby players summoned for the game against Portugal, the Welsh manager Lynn Howells also summoned captain Mihai Macovei and Otar Turashvili, both currently playing for French team Colomiers. Joining them are props Silviu Sebastian Suciu and Paul Alexandru Rusu, both signed up by CSM Stiinta Baia Mare, scrumhalf Alexandru Tigla, of CSM Bucharest and young Ionut Balaban of the National Center of Excellence.



    Furthermore, scrumhalf Tudorel Bratu, having sustained a minor injury during a training session last week, has completely recovered and will be used for next week’s game against Spain, according to Agerpress news agency.



    This past weekend saw games being played counting towards the inaugural stage of the Six Nations Tournament. On Saturday in Edinburgh, England defeated Scotland 15-9, while France narrowly defeated Italy, 23-21, on Stade de France. In Dublin on Sunday, Ireland held Wales to a 16-all draw.



    The second stage of the competition is scheduled for this weekend, when France will be facing Ireland, Wales will be taking on Scotland and Italy will go up against England.

  • RRI Sports Club – Rugby

    RRI Sports Club – Rugby

    In the inaugural game of the current edition of the Rugby Europe Championship, Romania’s Stejarii – “The Oak Leaf Knights” trounced Portugal, 39-14. The Romanians have also been awarded the offensive game bonus point thanks to their excellent run in the second half of the game. At half time, Portugal had a 4 point lead, 14-10. Scoring for Romania were Stephen Shennan and Vlad Nistor, with two tries each, while Florin Radoi scored yet another try. Florin Vlaicu successfully converted four of the Romanian team’s tries, also converting two penalty kicks.



    In other fixtures at the weekend, Georgia thrashed Germany, 59-7, while Russia outclassed Spain, 22-20. The Romanian national squad’s next fixture is the game against Spain on February 13, in Madrid.



    For the game against Spain, Romania’s national squad’s pool of regulars has included six more players. Apart from the 31 rugby players summoned for the game against Portugal, the Welsh manager Lynn Howells also summoned captain Mihai Macovei and Otar Turashvili, both currently playing for French team Colomiers. Joining them are props Silviu Sebastian Suciu and Paul Alexandru Rusu, both signed up by CSM Stiinta Baia Mare, scrumhalf Alexandru Tigla, of CSM Bucharest and young Ionut Balaban of the National Center of Excellence.



    Furthermore, scrumhalf Tudorel Bratu, having sustained a minor injury during a training session last week, has completely recovered and will be used for next week’s game against Spain, according to Agerpress news agency.



    This past weekend saw games being played counting towards the inaugural stage of the Six Nations Tournament. On Saturday in Edinburgh, England defeated Scotland 15-9, while France narrowly defeated Italy, 23-21, on Stade de France. In Dublin on Sunday, Ireland held Wales to a 16-all draw.



    The second stage of the competition is scheduled for this weekend, when France will be facing Ireland, Wales will be taking on Scotland and Italy will go up against England.

  • 07.02.2016

    07.02.2016

    ONU — Une réunion d’urgence du Conseil de sécurité des Nations Unies est convoquée aujourd’hui ; elle consacrée au tir d’une fusée, par la Corée du nord, la nuit dernière, apparemment pour placer un satellite en orbite. La réunion a été demandée par les USA et le Japon, deux membres du Conseil de sécurité, et par la Corée du sud, les trois pays affirmant qu’il s’agirait en fait d’un nouvel essai balistique de Pyongyang. Le secrétaire général des Nations Unies, Ban Ki-moon, a demandé à la Corée du nord d’arrêter les actions provocatrices. La communauté internationale a condamné ce test balistique, qui a eu lieu un mois après le dernier essai nucléaire effectué par le régime communiste nord-coréen. Pyongyang fait déjà l’objet de lourdes sanctions internationales suites aux tirs balistiques et aux trois essais nucléaires effectués en octobre 2006, mai 2009 et février 2013.



    Réunion — La présidente de la Commission pour les affaires européennes de la Chambre des députés de Bucarest, Ana Birchall, se trouve à la Haye, aux Pays-Bas, où elle participe à la Conférence des Organes Parlementaires Spécialisés dans les Affaires de lUnion des Parlements de l’Union européenne (COSAC). Les principaux thèmes de débat portent sur les priorités de la présidence néerlandaise du Conseil de l’UE, dont la migration, la sécurité des frontières communautaires, les finances et la zone euro, la consolidation du marché intérieur européen ou encore la relation entre l’UE et la Grande Bretagne. Les Pays-Bas assurent la présidence tournante du Conseil de l’Union au cours du premier semestre 2016.



    Séisme — A Taiwan, les équipes de secouristes continuent les opérations de sauvetage des survivants, après le séisme de 6,4 sur l’échelle ouverte de Richter, qui a frappé, samedi, la ville de Tainan. Au moins 24 personnes ont perdu la vie, près de 500 autres sont blessées et 120 sont portées disparues.



    Tennis — A Cluj-Napoca (nord-ouest), la rencontre Roumanie — République tchèque, comptant pour le premier tour du Groupe mondial de la Fed Cup, de tennis féminin, continue aujourd’hui avec les matchs de simple qui opposent les Roumaines Simona Halep (numéro 3 mondiale) et Monica Niculescu aux joueuses tchèques Petra Kvitova (numéro 9 WTA) et Karolina Pliskova, respectivement. Après les matchs de simples disputés hier, les deux équipes sont à égalité, 1 partout. Simona Halep a perdu la première rencontre devant Karolina Pliskova, mais Monica Niculescu a terminé victorieuse son match contre Petra Kvitova. Si l’égalité se maintient, un dernier match de double opposera la paire roumaine Andreea Mitu-Raluca Olaru aux Tchèques Denisa Allertova-Barbora Strycova. L’équipe de la Tchéquie est la meilleure de la Fed Cup, depuis plusieurs années, avec 9 trophées gagnés, y compris en 2015.



    Rugby — La sélection de rugby de Roumanie a débuté par une victoire nette dans la nouvelle édition du Rugby Europe Championship, deuxième échelon continental derrière le Tournoi des six nations. Samedi, à Cluj-Napoca (nord-ouest), les Roumains ont eu raison de la sélection du Portugal, sur le score final de 39 à 14. La prochaine étape aura lieu dans une semaine ; les rugbymen tricolores affronteront les Espagnols, à Madrid. Les matchs suivants sont prévus au mois de mars, quand la Roumanie rencontrera la Russie, l’Allemagne et la Géorgie.



  • February 7, 2016 UPDATE

    February 7, 2016 UPDATE

    ROMANIA— Romania is doing surprisingly well at the moment and has a healthier political system than Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria, and “the economic growth rate compares very favourably to that in the rest of Europe”, says US pundit and writer Robert D. Kaplan, in an interview with the AGERPRES news agency. He said he is aware that Romanians still complain about many things that are not going well and that there is still a certain amount of corruption in the country, but “the point is that Romanian people are concentrating on the right things.“ Kaplan also believes that Romania and the United States “are as close now as one could hope for,” and this closeness is also owed to the fact that “Romania is one country in East-Central Europe that does not have a pro-Russian party, a pro-Russian faction.”



    COSAC — The Chair of the European Affairs Committee with the Romanian Chamber of Deputies, Ana Birchall, is attending in the Hague, the Netherlands, the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC). The focal points of the talks are the priorities of the Dutch presidency of the EU Council, which include migration, tightening EU border security, EU and Euro zone finances, strengthening the European domestic market and the relationship between the EU and the United Kingdom. The Netherlands is currently holding the rotating presidency of the EU Council, in the first half of 2016.



    SECURITY — The UN Security Council convened in an emergency meeting in New York on Sunday, after North Korea launched a long-range missile overnight, apparently to place a satellite on orbit. The meeting had been requested by the US and Japan, members of the Council, alongside South Korea, which claim that it was actually a ballistic test carried out by Pyongyang. The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, has called on North Korea to halt provocative actions. The international community has condemned Pyongyang’s ballistic test, which comes just a month since the latest nuclear test carried out by North Korea. Heavy international sanctions have already been imposed on Pyongyang, following its ballistic firing and carrying out three nuclear tests in October 2006, May 2009 and February 2013, respectively.



    TENNIS– The Czech Republic defeated Romania 3-2 in the first round of the Fed Cup World Group. In the last match Andreea Mitu and Raluca Olaru lost to Karolina Pliskova-Barbora Strycova in two sets. Simona Halep (WTA’s no.3) battled past Petra Kvitova, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, in the western Romanian city of Cluj Napoca on Sunday, in a first round match of the Fed Cup World Group. In another match, Monica Niculescu (WTA’s no.37) lost to Karolina Pliskova (WTA’s no.13), in three sets. The Czech Republic boasts four Fed Cup titles, in the past five years.



    RUGBY– Romania’s national rugby team on Saturday scored a clear victory, 39-14, on home turf, in the city of Cluj Napoca, north-western Romania, against Portugal, in a new edition of Rugby Europe Championship, the second ranking continental competition, after the famous RBS 6 Nations Tournament. In the next leg, due next Saturday, Romania will meet Spain, in Madrid. In March, Romanian rugby players are pitched against Russia, Germany and Georgia. In autumn, under the guidance of Welsh coach Lynn Howells, Romania participated in the World Cup final tournament in England, where it defeated Canada, in the group stage, and lost to France, Ireland and Italy.


    (Translated and edited by Diana Vijeu)

  • February 7, 2016

    February 7, 2016

    SECURITY – The UN Security Council convenes today in New York, in an emergency meeting, after North Korea overnight launched a long-range missile, apparently to place a satellite on orbit. The meeting has been requested by the US and Japan, which are members of the Council, alongside South Korea, which claim that it was actually a ballistic test carried out by Pyongyang. The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, has called on North Korea to halt provocative actions. The international community has condemned Pyongyangs ballistic test, which comes just a month since the latest nuclear test carried out by North Korea. Heavy international sanctions have already been imposed on Pyongyang, following its ballistic firing and carrying out three nuclear tests in October 2006, May 2009 and February 2013, respectively.


    MIGRATION-French President, François Hollande, and German
    Chancellor, Angela Merkel, are to attend an informal dinner in Strasbourg, at
    the invitation of the European Parliament President, Martin Schulz. Prior to
    that, the French and German leaders will have a bilateral meeting to tackle
    such issues as the migrant crisis and its impact on the Schengen area, and the
    key demands made by Great Britain to remain in the EU, respectively. The
    meeting is held just days ahead of a European summit due in Brussels on
    February 18-19, when Hollande and Merkel exert new pressure regarding the
    redistribution of refugees in Europe. As regards the referendum in Great
    Britain, Paris and Berlin are not willing to make further concessions to Prime
    David Cameron, other than those offered by the head of the European Council,
    Donald Tusk.


    COSAC – The Chair of the European Affairs Committee with the Romanian Chamber of Deputies, Ana Birchall, is today attending in the Hague, the Netherlands, the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC). The focal points of the talks will be the priorities of the Dutch presidency of the EU Council, which include migration, tightening EU border security, EU and Euro zone finances, strengthening the European domestic market and the relationship between the EU and the United Kingdom. The Netherlands is currently holding the rotating presidency of the EU Council, in the first half of 2016.


    EARTHQUAKE – In Taiwan, rescue teams in the town of Tainan are going ahead with the operations of rescuing survivors after several buildings and blocks of flats collapsed in the wake of Saturdays powerful quake which measured 6.4 degrees on Richters scale. At least 24 people lost their lives, some 500 others sustained injuries and 120 are reported missing. So far, over 350 survivors have been taken out from the buildings reduced to rubble.



    TENNIS– In the north-western Romanian city of Cluj Napoca, Simona Halep, WTAs no.3, is today meeting Petra Kvitova, WTAs no.9, on the second day of matches being played by Romanias and the Czech Republics tennis teams, in the first round of the Fed Cup World Group. Also today, Monica Niculescu, WTAs no.40, is facing Karolina Pliskova, WTAs no.13. After the simple tennis matches played yesterday, Romania and the Czech Republic are at a 1:1 draw. In the first matches, Halep was defeated by Pliskova, whereas Niculescu defeated Kvitova. A possible double tennis match will oppose the pair Andreea Mitu/Raluca Olaru to Denisa Allertova/Barbora Strycova. The Czech Republic is the best performing Fed Cup team in recent years, being the holder of 9 titles, including that of 2015.



    RUGBY– Romanias national rugby team on Saturday scored a clear victory, 39-14, on home turf, in the city of Cluj Napoca, north-western Romania, against Portugal, in a new edition of Rugby Europe Championship, the second ranking continental competition, after the famous RBS 6 Nations Tournament. In the next leg, due next Saturday, Romania will meet Spain, in Madrid. In March, Romanian rugby players are pitched against Russia, Germany and Georgia. In autumn, under the guidance of Welsh coach Lynn Howells, Romania participated in the World Cup final tournament in England, where it defeated Canada, in the group stage, and lost to France, Ireland and Italy.


    (Translated and edited by Diana Vijeu)