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Climate crisis: Roger Federer reacts to Greta Thunberg criticism – DW (English)

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The Swiss tennis player has been under pressure for his association with financial institution Credit Suisse over its record of loans to fossil fuel industries. Federer is currently preparing for the Australian Open.

Tennis star Roger Federer has issued a carefully worded response to mounting criticism, notably from Greta Thunberg, over his association with financial institution Credit Suisse.

The 20-times Grand Slam winner came under fire from the climate activist when she criticized the Swiss bank for its record of loans to fossil fuel industries.

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Read more: Bushfires cast shadow over Australian Open

The 38-year-old Federer, who is currently in bushfire-ravaged Australia preparing for the first major of the year, said Sunday he is “happy to be reminded” of his responsibilities, but stopped short of abandoning his sponsorship deal with the bank.

Federer was urged to “wake up” in a retweet by Thunberg last week, which also prompted the hashtag #RogerWakeUpNow to trend on Twitter.

‘Grateful to young climate activists’

Federer said he had a “great deal of respect and admiration” for the youth climate movement inspired by the Swedish teenager.

“I take the impacts and threat of climate change very seriously, particularly as my family and I arrive in Australia amidst devastation from the bushfires,” he said in a statement issued to news agency Reuters.

“I am grateful to young climate activists for pushing us all to examine our behaviors and act on innovative solutions,” he continued.

“We owe it to them and ourselves to listen. I appreciate reminders of my responsibility as a private individual, as an athlete and as an entrepreneur, and I’m committed to using this privileged position to dialogue on important issues with my sponsors.”

Federer said he supported the climate change movement, inspired by teens such as Greta Thunberg (center)

Federer, along with Serena Williams, Rafael Nadal and a number of other players, will take part in a charity event on Wednesday to raise funds to help tackle the devastating fires in Australia that have resulted in the deaths of at least 28 people, destroyed homes and devastated habitats and wildlife.

Credit Suisse says it has pledged to lead the way in helping its clients in the transition to low-​carbon and climate-​resilient business models. It also recently announced that it will no longer invest in new coal-fired power plants.

Meanwhile, 12 Swiss climate activists appeared in court last week after refusing to pay a fine for playing tennis inside branches of Credit Suisse banks in November 2018. The stunt was designed to underscore Federer’s relationship with the institution.

They also had placards that read “Credit Suisse is destroying the planet. Roger, do you support them?”

Attorneys for the campaigners said they were appealing the fine of $22,000 (€20,000) on the basis that they were acting as whistleblowers for the climate crisis.

“It is not enough to just go out on the street or to vote, we must disturb a little bit so people stop acting like nothing is happening,” Paul Castelain, one of the activists, told Reuters outside the court in Lausanne at the time of the trial.

Video footage from the stunt shows students wearing tennis outfits playing matches inside Credit Suisse branches in the Swiss cities of Lausanne and Geneva, in the French-speaking part of the country.

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Toronto Maple Leafs: Treliving Hiring Shows Shanahan's Incompetence – Editor in Leaf

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The problem isn’t that Brad Treliving is the newest GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs, but instead, it’s Brendan Shanahan’s explanation of it.

As previously mentioned, Brad Treliving is a good executive with a long hockey career, but he never should have been hired as the Toronto Maple Leafs GM.

Reports already indicate that the core-four will  remain the same next year, which is fine, but why hire someone new if they’re going to do the same thing and not at least scare the roster that they could be moved?

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A new GM is supposed to ignite change and bring a new approach to the game. It’s not someone who’s just going to re-do the job that Kyle Dubas just did.

When Shanahan fired Dubas, he wanted someone who had experience, which is what Treliving brings, but it’s not like he has a ton of winning experience. He’s never been to a Stanley Cup Finals before and only advanced to the second round twice in nine years in Calgary, so what’s really the difference between him and Dubas?

Nothing, at least not in terms of experience or success.

The only difference is that Shanahan is a bitter old-man who was scared that the young buck in Dubas was getting too much attention and that he might take his job one day.

Toronto Maple Leafs: New GM Brings Nothing Different From Dubas

If you look across the league, it’s crazy how much esteem Dubas has. By the way Shanahan described Dubas during his firing, it’s like he was only in the league for 10 minutes and didn’t have the respect of his peers.

Shanahan’s statement was actually hilarious when you compare his words to what other people have said about Dubas. Here’s what Shanahan said during his press conference:

“Treliving earned tremendous respect during his time in the NHL and built excellent relationships … We are confident that Brad’s leadership and strategic vision will elevate the Maple Leafs in our continued pursuit of a championship.”

As for Dubas, if you read Pierre LeBruns’ article in The Athletic last week, the same words were essentially said about him, here are some quotes from that article:

For example:

  • Jarmo Kekalainen (Columbus Blue Jackets): “I have the utmost respect for Kyle, both as a professional and as a person. He’s always a straight shooter to deal with. No bulls—. Just an all-around really good person and a professional. All our discussions were straightforward and analytical. I think he has a very thorough approach to everything; you have to be prepared when you talk to him because he’s going to look at things from every angle. I have a lot of respect for him.”
  • Bill Zito (Florida Panthers) : “Obviously, a very bright man. And a guy that I have a lot of faith in his character. He’s a guy you could do a deal with. And if it wasn’t papered, you could tell the (player) go ahead get on the plane. As an agent, we used to say if you did a deal with a GM and you didn’t have a contract back yet, would you send your player on the plane? That’s a level of respect I have for Kyle’s integrity. Obviously, I’m very fond of him. I think he did a hell of a job there.”
  • The GMs of Nashville, Tampa and Edmonton were all quoted as saying really nice things about him as well.

All of these old-school and experienced GM’s said nothing but great things about Dubas, yet the Leafs didn’t want him. They explained all of the attributes that Shanahan wanted in a GM, yet they decided to move on and hire Treliving instead.

Shanahan took a bitter approach and gassed one of the most thoughtful and intelligent hockey minds of this generation and instead hired a guy who hasn’t doesn’t seem to be an improvement in any way.

No disrespect to Treliving because I think he’s going to do a fine job, but the explanation of Dubas’ firing gets dumber with every second and continues to show the incompetence of Shanahan as the President of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

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How much are Stanley Cup Final tickets? – ESPN – ESPN

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The Stanley Cup Final will return to Las Vegas and South Florida for the Florida Panthers vs. the Vegas Golden Knights. For fans of the Knights, who reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2018, tickets to the first two games at T-Mobile Arena are a bit cheaper this time around.

The average price for a ticket to Game 1 is $763, according to Vivid Seats data. In 2018, during the franchise’s first trip to the Final, the average was $1,062. That was the highest in recent years for a team making its Final debut or returning after a long drought. Last year’s Game 1 between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Colorado Avalanche had an average price of $1,052. The Avalanche, who hosted Game 1, were playing their first Final game since 2001. When the St. Louis Blues hosted their first Final game in decades in 2019, the average was $869.

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For Saturday’s opening game, the lowest-priced available ticket is going for $405 on the Knights’ website, while TickPick lists a no-view, standing room only ticket for $311. The most expensive ticket is $9,750. These prices don’t reflect taxes or fees.

For Game 3, the Panthers’ first Stanley Cup Final home game since 1996, the average price for a ticket at FLA Live Arena is $628, according to Vivid Seats. At Ticketmaster, the Panthers’ ticket-seller, the lowest-priced ticket is $538. The most expensive ticket is reselling for $9,000 before taxes and fees. The average price for Game 4 is a bit higher at $689.

If the series goes to seven games, fans might need some extra casino winnings to get into the arena. Prices via the Knights’ website range from about $900 to $25,000.

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NBA Finals Takeaways: Nuggets’ stars show they’re ready for biggest stage – Sportsnet.ca

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