Hamilton v Schumacher: Who is the greatest?

 

Paris, France (AFP) – Lewis Hamilton on Sunday won his seventh Formula One world title to equal the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher.

But who is the greatest driver? The British star or the German legend?

The numbers

— The statistics show that Hamilton has raced for 14 seasons and has taken part in 264 Grands Prix since 2007 while Schumacher competed for 19 seasons with 307 races in two spells — 1991-2006 and 2010-2012.

In 2020, Hamilton surpassed two other Schumacher records – number of podiums (163 against 155) and victories (94 against 91).

In qualifying, Hamilton has the clear edge with 97 pole positions dwarfing Schumacher’s 68.

Schumacher, however, has more fastest laps — 77 to 53.

At the age of 35, Hamilton still appears to have time on his side although he has yet to start negotiations on a new contract with Mercedes.

Statistics can, however, be misleading.

The number of Grands Prix each year has increased over time. In the Schumacher era, there were an average of 16 every season. In Hamilton’s time there have been an average of 19.

In the golden age of Juan Manuel Fangio, who won five world titles in the 1950s, there were just eight races in an average world championship.

The talent

— For Mercedes technical director James Allison, who worked with both Hamilton and Schumacher, it is their “burning desire” for victory that distinguishes them from “simply very good drivers”.

“All the truly great champions probably have more in common than they have differences, in that they are all unusually determined,” he said.

“The fact Lewis still cares about winning championships with the same ardour that he had when he was an 18-year-old boy, is what sets him, Michael and the other great champions apart.

All that said, when it comes to pure speed on the track, Hamilton and Schumacher are in the slipstream of the late Ayrton Senna, the world champion on three occasions.

In a recent F1 study using artificial intelligence, it was concluded that Schumacher was 0.114sec slower than the Brazilian while Hamilton was 0.275sec behind.

The rivals

— With three world champions (Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg) as teammates at McLaren and Mercedes, Hamilton has faced fierce internal competition.

His current domination over Valtteri Bottas, on the other hand, is not unlike that of Schumacher’s stranglehold over Rubens Barrichello at Ferrari.

Apart from their team-mates, “Michael may have had a little more competition than Lewis”, said French driver Romain Grosjean.

The Haas team driver added: “On the track, Michael had some dubious little clashes, with Damon Hill, with Jacques Villeneuve … Lewis, he has always been class.”

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50783641/hamilton-v-schumacher-who-is-the-greatest/

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Nine Cambodian Chevening scholarship winners reach the UK

The nine Cambodians who were awarded Chevening scholarships have now arrived in the UK and are preparing to begin their studies.

The scholarships, which are funded by the British Government, saw nine postgraduate students from around Cambodia awarded fully-funded placements in the UK, to study a masters degree in a field of their choice.

The Chevening programme is part of a global initiative to offer future leaders the unique opportunity to study anywhere in the UK and is open to applicants across the globe.

Applications for next year’s Chevening scholarships programme are still open but will close soon on November 3.

Cambodian student Mar Rochnak Hanffa, this year’s scholarship winner now enrolled at the University of Warwick, said: “The UK is world-known for its excellent quality of education, teaching, and methodological approach. The UK houses world-class institutions which offer courses in many subject areas. As a student looking to improve my education, this is a huge step forward for me.”

“This scholarship scheme will also build a positive relationship between Cambodia and the UK. As one of the Kingdom’s major trading partners, the UK has been increasingly active in Cambodia’s political, economic, and human capital development throughout the years. Nevertheless, I still believe there is more room for growth,” he said.

Britain’s Ambassador to Cambodia, Tina Redshaw, said: “Chevening offers a unique opportunity for future leaders, influencers and decision-makers from all over the world to develop professionally and academically, network extensively, experience UK culture and build a lasting positive relationship with the UK.”

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50774747/nine-cambodian-chevening-scholarship-winners-reach-the-uk/

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COVAX, working for global equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, Cambodia is a signatory

At an early stage during this pandemic, it quickly became apparent that to end this global crisis and WHO din’t just need COVID-19 vaccines, it also need to ensure that everyone in the world has access to them.

This triggered global leaders to call for a solution that would accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines, as well as diagnostics and treatments, and guarantee rapid, fair and equitable access to them for people in all countries.

Today WHO has that solution, COVAX. The result of an extraordinary and unique global collaboration, with 172 countries and economies now involved, collectively representing 70 per cent of the global population, COVAX has the world’s largest and most diverse portfolio of COVID-19 vaccines, and as such represents the world’s best hope of bringing the acute phase of this pandemic to a swift end.

 COVAX is one of three pillars of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, which was launched in April by the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Commission and France in response to this pandemic.

Bringing together governments, global health organisations, manufacturers, scientists, private sector, civil society and philanthropy, with the aim of providing innovative and equitable access to COVID-19 diagnostics, treatments and vaccines.

The COVAX pillar is focussed on the latter. It is the only truly global solution to this pandemic because it is the only effort to ensure that people in all corners of the world will get access to COVID-19 vaccines once they are available, regardless of their wealth.

Coordinated by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the WHO, COVAX will achieve this by acting as a platform that will support the research, development and manufacturing of a wide range of COVID-19 vaccine candidates, and negotiate their pricing.

All participating countries, regardless of income levels, will have equal access to these vaccines once they are developed. The initial aim is to have 2 billion doses available by the end of 2021, which should be enough to protect high risk and vulnerable people, as well as frontline healthcare workers.

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50764790/covax-working-for-global-equitable-access-to-covid-19-vaccines-cambodia-is-a-signatory/

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Vietnam National Day observed in Cambodia

 

The Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia on Monday held a ceremony to lay a wreath at the Vietnam – Cambodia Friendship Monument on the occasion of the 75th National Day which falls on Wednesday, September 2.

The event saw the presence of the embassy’s staff, representatives from the Khmer-Vietnam Association, and the Vietnamese business community in Cambodia.

As part of chains of activities on the occasion, the embassy organised many events, including a friendship football tournament.

The Consulate General of Vietnam in Preah Sihanouk province has coordinated with the Vietnamese Embassy and the Khmer-Vietnam Association in Cambodia to receive donations, including rice, masks and antiseptic solution from Mekong Delta Can Tho city’s Party Committee, authorities and people to support Vietnamese families in Cambodia who are in extremely difficult circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic. VNA

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50759294/vietnam-national-day-observed-in-cambodia/

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Travel between Malaysia and Cambodia (via Singapore) to become available in days

Singapore Airlines has secured approval for passengers to travel between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, transiting via Singapore.

The process will renew travel between Malaysia and Cambodia (via Singapore) which was banned in August because of fears of COVID-19 spreading more widely.

Singapore Airlines will run two weekly services between Phnom Penh and Singapore from Sept 1, on Tuesdays and Sundays.

Those flying from Phnom Penh to Kuala Lumpur can depart from Phnom Penh International Airport on a Tuesday, transit in Singapore Changi Airport overnight and then catch

a connecting flight to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on a Wednesday.

During transit in Singapore, all passengers will be required to remain in the designated transit holding area until they are official escorted to a boarding gate for their connecting flight.

The Cambodian government temporarily banned all flights from Malaysia and Indonesia on Aug 1. All arrivals will be required to follow strict quarantine conditions once arriving in Cambodia.

They include a $2,000 deposit at a bank set up in Phnom Penh International Airport, 14 days in self-isolated quarantine at a designated hotel or other agreed venue and a COVID-19 test. The passenger is free to go about his or her business thereafter if cleared.

read more: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50757706/travel-between-malaysia-and-cambodia-via-singapore-to-become-available-in-days/

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How to boost your child's immune system during the pandemic

Between the coronavirus pandemic, the reopening of some U.S. schools and the approach of flu season, parents are facing a perfect storm of health anxieties concerning their kids. And with new research suggesting that children could be a “potential source of contagion” for COVID-19 — though experts caution that more data is needed to determine if they are capable of spreading the virus the same way they do influenza — there’s more urgency to keep youngsters healthy and their immune systems strong enough to fight off classroom and daycare germs.

Dr. Shanna Kowalsky, a pediatric associate hospital epidemiologist and assistant clinical professor of Pediatrics and Infectious Disease at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, predicts that the colder fall and winter months ahead will also be a factor in increasing the risk of COVID-19 transmission, as activities move indoors. Even as the U.S. death count climbs past 170,000 people, Kowalsky tells Yahoo Life that the country could have seen “even worse outcomes” had the pandemic not struck during a time when the weather was milder and mitigating risk by limiting socialization to the outdoors remained a possibility.

“I think that as the school year starts and we’re going to start moving into flu season and then winter, where we really can’t be outdoors as much, it’s going to force people indoors,” she says. “I think that the risk in general to people is going to be higher ...

“It’s more important now than ever to make sure we keep up with our general health care maintenance,” she adds.

What does that entail, exactly? And what are the most effective things parents can do to help boost their kids’ immune systems?

For starters, add some fruits and veggies to your curbside grocery order. Kowalsky advises eating a “healthy, well-balanced” diet featuring items like berries and leafy greens.

Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/how-to-boost-your-childs-immune-system-during-the-pandemic-according-to-a-doctor-225138237.html

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Debate begins for who's first in line for COVID-19 vaccine

Who gets to be first in line for a COVID-19 vaccine? U.S. health authorities hope by late next month to have some draft guidance on how to ration initial doses, but it’s a vexing decision.

“Not everybody’s going to like the answer,” Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, recently told one of the advisory groups the government asked to help decide. “There will be many people who feel that they should have been at the top of the list.”

Traditionally, first in line for a scarce vaccine are health workers and the people most vulnerable to the targeted infection.

But Collins tossed new ideas into the mix: Consider geography and give priority to people where an outbreak is hitting hardest.

And don’t forget volunteers in the final stage of vaccine testing who get dummy shots, the comparison group needed to tell if the real shots truly work.

“We owe them ... some special priority,” Collins said.

Huge studies this summer aim to prove which of several experimental COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Moderna Inc. and Pfizer Inc. began tests last week that eventually will include 30,000 volunteers each; in the next few months, equally large calls for volunteers will go out to test shots made by AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Novavax. And some vaccines made in China are in smaller late-stage studies in other countries.

For all the promises of the U.S. stockpiling millions of doses, the hard truth: Even if a vaccine is declared safe and effective by year's end, there won’t be enough for everyone who wants it right away -- especially as most potential vaccines require two doses.

It’s a global dilemma. The World Health Organization is grappling with the same who-goes-first question as it tries to ensure vaccines are fairly distributed to poor countries -- decisions made even harder as wealthy nations corner the market for the first doses.

In the U.S., the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is supposed to recommend who to vaccinate and when -- advice that the government almost always follows.

But a COVID-19 vaccine decision is so tricky that this time around, ethicists and vaccine experts from the National Academy of Medicine, chartered by Congress to advise the government, are being asked to weigh in, too.

Setting priorities will require “creative, moral common sense,” said Bill Foege, who devised the vaccination strategy that led to global eradication of smallpox. Foege is co-leading the academy’s deliberations, calling it “both this opportunity and this burden.”

With vaccine misinformation abounding and fears that politics might intrude, CDC Director Robert Redfield said the public must see vaccine allocation as “equitable, fair and transparent.”

How to decide? The CDC’s opening suggestion: First vaccinate 12 million of the most critical health, national security and other essential workers. Next would be 110 million people at high risk from the coronavirus -- those over 65 who live in long-term care facilities, or those of any age who are in poor health -- or who also are deemed essential workers. The general population would come later.

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