Lack of support from sponsors and other financial constraints are forcing China to give up one of the two spots on the A1 Grand Prix Championships calendar.

The suburban Shanghai International Circuit will play host to the A1 Grand Prix in Shanghai on April 12-15, which is the second stopover for the series on Chinese soil in the 2006-07 season.

Beijing hosted the series last November after Chinese promoters decided to double its presence on the mainland after a successful Shanghai round of the inaugural 2005-06 season.

But a key official with Haiyi Motor, the Chinese promoter of the "World Cup of Motorsports" and the owner of A1 Team China, says the company couldn't afford to stage the event twice anymore in a calender year.

China is the only country which was awarded the rights to host two A1 races in a season but it plans to dump the Beijing leg.

Guan refused to give financial details but confirmed Haiyi spent almost 20 million yuan (US$2.58 million) to prepare the street circuit for the Beijing GP.

The apathy of the domestic business community also added to the strain.

The more popular F1 series has been an enormous success in Shanghai since making its debut in 2004.

China is ranked 13th in the 22-nation standings.


Tomorrow is a big day FOR troubled Chinese soccer, as the friendly against Australia is a chance to make up for missing the 2006 World Cup and re-establish some credibility.

For Australia, the game in southern Guangzhou could be a moment to assert dominance going into this summer's Asian Cup. Australia is the Asian confederation's newest member, and likely to be the new power ahead of Japan, South Korea, Iran and China.

Chinese soccer is struggling.The country has slipped to No. 75 in FIFA rankings and coach Zhu Guanghu has been under pressure since taking over following the World Cup debacle.

Making matters worse, Zhu was attacked by angry fans last weekend after leaving a Chinese domestic league match. He was uninjured, but fans smashed the exterior of the car in which he was riding.

China will play another friendly next week, facing Uzbekistan on Tuesday in Macau.

Three of Asia's best team are also playing on Saturday. It's Japan vs Peru, South Korea vs Uruguay and Qatar vs Iran.

And, yes I have sometimes knocked the "coolness" of the sport of chess. If you call it a sport, which I am now willing to do based on the fact that one of my new hereos plays the sport.


I'm talking about A 15-year-old Peruvian chess player who didn't come back from a tournament in Argentina but he has been found- living with a nightclub dancer.

Emilio Cordova left Lima to play at the South American Chess Championship in Argentina, which he won.

But instead of returning home he went to Brazil and kept asking his family to send him money, saying he was ill.

After a few months his family grew suspicious and asked the police to find the boy.Emilio was found living with 29-year-old Adriana Oliveira, who works as a dancer at a nightclub.

Emilio told his father, who brought him home to Peru, that Mrs Oliveira was only one of his girlfriends.He told the press: "I play chess, study chess but this doesn't mean I can't enjoy myself. I'm young and I want to do this. I have to live.

"To be locked up in my room all the time depresses me."

15 and his dating multiple brazilian strippers, that kid is way cooler than I was when I was fifteen. But that's not all that hard.