BARCLAYS ATP WORLD TOUR FINALS
Federer Crowned 2009 ATP World Tour Champion
London, United Kingdom
by ATP Staff
24.11.2009
London, United Kingdom – Swiss superstar Roger Federer has been crowned ATP World Tour Champion for the fifth time, after becoming just the second player in the history of the South African Airways ATP Rankings to regain the year-end No. 1 ranking.
With five year-end No. 1 finishes, Federer ties Jimmy Connors’ mark and now stands just one back of Pete Sampras on the list of all-time ATP World Tour Champions. Sampras finished as the No. 1 player six straight years, from 1993-98.
Federer clinched the 2009 ATP World Tour Champion title by beating Andy Murray at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals tonight. Federer and rival Rafael Nadal, the 2008 ATP World Tour Champion, had entered the prestigious circuit finale at The O2 in London locked in a two-man battle to conclude the season atop the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings.
“It means a lot to have returned to No. 1 and to finish the year again at No. 1,” said Federer. “It was an incredible year for me both on the court and off the court and to be able to break the all-time Grand Slam record and finish the year on top is amazing.”
The 28-year-old Swiss held the World No. 1 ranking for a record 237 straight weeks from 2 February, 2004, to 17 August, 2008, before Nadal ended his streak. Federer reclaimed the top rankings spot on 6 July, 2009, after winning a record-breaking 15th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon.
Federer now joins Ivan Lendl as the only players to have held, lost and regained the ATP World Tour Champion title in the history of the South African Airways ATP Rankings (since 1973). Lendl held the year-end No. 1 South African Airways ATP Ranking from 1985-87 and finished second behind Mats Wilander in 1988 before reclaiming the top spot at the end of 1989.
Federer began his return to the top in mid-May at the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, where he snapped a seven-month title drought by avenging his Australian Open defeat against Nadal. He followed with history-making performances in his next two tournaments. He became the sixth man to achieve a career Grand Slam with victory over Robin Soderling in the Roland Garros final, and then prevailed against Andy Roddick at Wimbledon to eclipse Pete Sampras’ record of 14 majors won.
After celebrating the birth of twin daughters with wife Mirka in July, he returned to the courts the following month to win his fourth title of the season at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati. He then became the first player in history to reach the finals at all four Grand Slams in the same year on three occasions, completing his 2009 campaign at the majors with a runner-up finish to Juan Martin del Potro at the US Open.
Federer is pursuing his fifth circuit finale title this week at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. He won successive titles in 2003-04 when the tournament was held in Houston and reclaimed the title in 2006-07 in Shanghai.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Law and Justice
Watching the first singles match of the ATP World Tour Finals, between Andy Murray and Juan Martin Del Potro. Quite an exciting match, with excellent and brilliant shot-making here and there. In summary, Del Potro fell to a 0-5 deficit in the 1st set, rallied to 3-5 before losing the 1st set 3-6. But he made an impressive comeback to win the 2nd set 6-3. Now third set.
Just finished reading Subhas Anandan's autobiography - The Best I Could. Have been wanting to buy this book since some time back, but due to some recent circumstances, I bought the book last week. Besides giving readers a glimpse of the events which shaped his character, worldview and philosophy, it also recounts certain high-profile criminal cases which have been featured (and which I've read) in the newspapers. I've got to say I found quite a bit of respect for him as a person and as a lawyer, from what he writes at least.
From what he described of his university days (and what some of our medical professors described of theirs), it seems that uni then was much more fun and happening. I wonder whether it's just me, or whether in general, university student life/culture has taken a backslide.
To the layman with an untrained mind in law, this book explores and discusses some concepts about law and the criminal system. I remember a friend (who is now in law school) once telling me that the most useful/important pre-U subject for law would be mathematics, and not literature or English, contrary to what many believe. Because more important than anything else, law is anchored on logic and extremely strong reasoning, even though many may interpret law differently.
Would just like to share 2 short excerpts from the book, something I feel worth thinking about:
"They say that sometimes justice and law are distant cousins. In the case of some countries, you'll be lucky to say that justice and law have the same parents. It is sad to say that sometimes we feel justice and law seem to be indifferent to each other. The law says something but when it is interpreted in the courts, it says something else."
"There are people I've defended who have been acquitted and walked out of court free men and omen. But in all honesty, they walked out free because the prosecution could not prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. The court does not at any stage say, "I am discharging and acquitting you because you are an innocent man." The statement is always, "I find you not guilty. Therefore I discharge and acquit you. It is a myth that everyone who is acquitted is innocent."
And Murray clinches victory with 6-2 in the 3rd set.
Now Roger will play Verdasco at 4:45am.
Just finished reading Subhas Anandan's autobiography - The Best I Could. Have been wanting to buy this book since some time back, but due to some recent circumstances, I bought the book last week. Besides giving readers a glimpse of the events which shaped his character, worldview and philosophy, it also recounts certain high-profile criminal cases which have been featured (and which I've read) in the newspapers. I've got to say I found quite a bit of respect for him as a person and as a lawyer, from what he writes at least.
From what he described of his university days (and what some of our medical professors described of theirs), it seems that uni then was much more fun and happening. I wonder whether it's just me, or whether in general, university student life/culture has taken a backslide.
To the layman with an untrained mind in law, this book explores and discusses some concepts about law and the criminal system. I remember a friend (who is now in law school) once telling me that the most useful/important pre-U subject for law would be mathematics, and not literature or English, contrary to what many believe. Because more important than anything else, law is anchored on logic and extremely strong reasoning, even though many may interpret law differently.
Would just like to share 2 short excerpts from the book, something I feel worth thinking about:
"They say that sometimes justice and law are distant cousins. In the case of some countries, you'll be lucky to say that justice and law have the same parents. It is sad to say that sometimes we feel justice and law seem to be indifferent to each other. The law says something but when it is interpreted in the courts, it says something else."
"There are people I've defended who have been acquitted and walked out of court free men and omen. But in all honesty, they walked out free because the prosecution could not prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. The court does not at any stage say, "I am discharging and acquitting you because you are an innocent man." The statement is always, "I find you not guilty. Therefore I discharge and acquit you. It is a myth that everyone who is acquitted is innocent."
And Murray clinches victory with 6-2 in the 3rd set.
Now Roger will play Verdasco at 4:45am.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Straits Times Saturday Special Report: Secret Lives
Read the special report which offers a glimpse of the lives of HIV/AIDS patients in the Straits Times this morning. Would encourage all those out there to get your hands on a copy and spend a few minutes of your time to read it.
I've never clerked a patient with AIDS in the wards before, neither do I know anyone who has HIV. They may have contracted HIV in a moment of folly, but they deserve our empathy no less because the price they are already paying the price and bearing the consequences, physically, emotionally, financially and socially.
Very frankly, I don't know how I would respond or interact with a patient with HIV. As it is now, I'm still not very apt at interacting with people, or even friends, who are hospitalised or are undergoing treatment for illnesses. I don't know whether they would want to talk about their illness, or whether I should just babble on and update them about the things going on in my life. Even for friends whom you've known for a substantial amount of time, the silence may not be totally comfortable, and could be a tad awkward. "Just being there" doesn't seem so easy when you don't know whether that's what your friend really wants or needs.
"Sometimes things happen without any reason. When there are no explanations, let God show you the way."
I've never clerked a patient with AIDS in the wards before, neither do I know anyone who has HIV. They may have contracted HIV in a moment of folly, but they deserve our empathy no less because the price they are already paying the price and bearing the consequences, physically, emotionally, financially and socially.
Very frankly, I don't know how I would respond or interact with a patient with HIV. As it is now, I'm still not very apt at interacting with people, or even friends, who are hospitalised or are undergoing treatment for illnesses. I don't know whether they would want to talk about their illness, or whether I should just babble on and update them about the things going on in my life. Even for friends whom you've known for a substantial amount of time, the silence may not be totally comfortable, and could be a tad awkward. "Just being there" doesn't seem so easy when you don't know whether that's what your friend really wants or needs.
"Sometimes things happen without any reason. When there are no explanations, let God show you the way."
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Death
For 2 days in our Family Medicine posting, we have a palliative care programme, where we are exposed to palliative medicine, visit a hospice and make a house visit to a patient requiring palliative care (both to be done tomorrow). To get us to think about certain issues, we were shown this movie - "Wit", starring Emma Thompson. Powerful it was, to the extent that some of my male classmates teared at the end.
Essentially, the movie depicts the journey taken by a literature professor from the moment she was diagnosed with advanced metastatic ovarian cancer, to the point when she passed away. Not only did it give me a glimpse of what a terminally-ill patient with cancer goes through, it also exposed, albeit exaggeratedly (hopefully), some short-comings of health-care providers and (supposedly) professionals. As much as professors in medical school and doctors in the hospitals belabour the point that one must view a patient as a human and as a whole, how easy it is for us as medical students to view them as 'interesting cases' with good histories or physical signs to elicit; and possibly as doctors in future to look at them as diseases to be managed and treated, instead of people whom we should be caring for holistically.
There was this particular scene when the doctor was just shooting questions at the patient, some less relevant than others, showing no concern or interest to her as a person, in the process of clerking her. I laughed. How ironic in retrospect, when I realise that sometimes, this seems to be the way I'm clerking patients at times, especially when time is short, and there are many other patients to see. I asked myself, "Is this who I'm going to turn out to be?" I pray not.
A dying person loses many things, as brought up during the discussion after the movie.
One loses his physical appearance - hair, eyebrows, etc.
One loses the roles he used to play - the one being cared for, instead of the carer; the one being provided for, instead of the provider; roles at work and in the family.
One loses freedom when one is hospitalised - Fixed timings for meals, medications and bedtime; having to wear the same garb as everyone else; having to do what the doctors, nurses, therapists tell you to do (and you can't really say no); having your movement restricted within the confines of the hospital.
One loses independence.
One loses control - not only of his situation, but many times, of his body.
One risks losing his identity if his identity is dependent on the people who used to surround him.
One risks losing his value if his value is based on the work that he used to do.
One risks losing his self-worth if his self-worth is established based on the roles he used to perform.
There is only so much one can hold on to at this stage. Some people are motivated to live their remaining days doing something meaningful. All very well. But what if one is so weak, to the extent of not being able to do anything, what is going to sustain him till the day he has to go?
If one must look for something to hold on to, it had better be something that never changes, and that can only be one thing - that God loves you, and you are His beloved child.
"Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And death shall be no more, Death, thou shalt die.
~ John Donne, Holy Sonnet X
Life, death, soul, God, past present. Not insuperable barriers. Not semi-colons. Just a comma.
Essentially, the movie depicts the journey taken by a literature professor from the moment she was diagnosed with advanced metastatic ovarian cancer, to the point when she passed away. Not only did it give me a glimpse of what a terminally-ill patient with cancer goes through, it also exposed, albeit exaggeratedly (hopefully), some short-comings of health-care providers and (supposedly) professionals. As much as professors in medical school and doctors in the hospitals belabour the point that one must view a patient as a human and as a whole, how easy it is for us as medical students to view them as 'interesting cases' with good histories or physical signs to elicit; and possibly as doctors in future to look at them as diseases to be managed and treated, instead of people whom we should be caring for holistically.
There was this particular scene when the doctor was just shooting questions at the patient, some less relevant than others, showing no concern or interest to her as a person, in the process of clerking her. I laughed. How ironic in retrospect, when I realise that sometimes, this seems to be the way I'm clerking patients at times, especially when time is short, and there are many other patients to see. I asked myself, "Is this who I'm going to turn out to be?" I pray not.
A dying person loses many things, as brought up during the discussion after the movie.
One loses his physical appearance - hair, eyebrows, etc.
One loses the roles he used to play - the one being cared for, instead of the carer; the one being provided for, instead of the provider; roles at work and in the family.
One loses freedom when one is hospitalised - Fixed timings for meals, medications and bedtime; having to wear the same garb as everyone else; having to do what the doctors, nurses, therapists tell you to do (and you can't really say no); having your movement restricted within the confines of the hospital.
One loses independence.
One loses control - not only of his situation, but many times, of his body.
One risks losing his identity if his identity is dependent on the people who used to surround him.
One risks losing his value if his value is based on the work that he used to do.
One risks losing his self-worth if his self-worth is established based on the roles he used to perform.
There is only so much one can hold on to at this stage. Some people are motivated to live their remaining days doing something meaningful. All very well. But what if one is so weak, to the extent of not being able to do anything, what is going to sustain him till the day he has to go?
If one must look for something to hold on to, it had better be something that never changes, and that can only be one thing - that God loves you, and you are His beloved child.
"Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And death shall be no more, Death, thou shalt die.
~ John Donne, Holy Sonnet X
Life, death, soul, God, past present. Not insuperable barriers. Not semi-colons. Just a comma.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Transformed by the Renewing of the Mind
It is ironic, as one of my friends commented, that the number of my blog posts usually increase in the middle of a posting or near an EOPT, but dive immediately after it or when I'm in a relatively slack period of my posting (e.g. during Family Medicine). Maybe it's that blogging, as mentioned in my very first post, is cathartic for stress-relief. Maybe when I have more time, I choose to spend it doing other things, like playing computer games, watching movies/DVDs, reading, etc. But anyway, quite a lot have transpired over the past 10 days or so. Hopefully I can update more over the next few days (:
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will. ~ Romans 12:1-2
For some reason, "be transformed by the renewing of your mind" keeps appearing in my head recently. Once a couple of weeks ago, once just last Monday, and once again today. And I'm still struggling to comprehend the enormity and significance of the meaning behind this 2 seemingly very loaded verses.
During a rally last Monday, the speaker used the example of some churches who do not really advocate the use of drums and electric/bass guitars during worship. So on one hand, they read Psalms 150 but on the other, frown upon the use of any instrument besides the organ and piano. We shouldn't be judgmental, bearing in mind the style of worship should be acceptable by the congregation in the context of their culture. But we have to constantly reflect whether our traditions are becoming a burden to us, getting in the way of renewal.
Just today, during singing practice, a question was asked, "Can Christians sing seemingly-Christian songs written by non-Christians?" It was then noted that a few composers of sacred music, past and present, were not actually Christian. Do we then say that we must not sing these songs? One of us shared, if I may paraphrase, "God is beyond limits. Let us not limit what He can do with our own inadequate and rigid understanding."
To sum it up, as my Pastor shared, music in itself is neutral. The distinction between sacred and secular boils down to the person who sings/plays it. A person singing 'sacred music' without the intention or heart of praising God is not worshipping. A person singing a song without any overt mention of Jesus or God, perhaps even a 'secular song' about love, but directing it towards God and praising Him, is truly worshipping. At the end of the day, it is the heart of worship, and that, is all about Jesus.
True transformation can only occur when we allow the Holy Spirit to renew, reeducate and redirect our minds. Not that we have a blanket disregard of traditions, 'conservative thinking' or rules and laws, but rather, to understand, adapt and apply the spirit of the law, rather than the letter of the law. (Romans 2:29)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Quote-worthy:
Our complaints are not over the lack of necessities but the abundance of benefits. The source of our problems is our blessings.
~ Max Lucado, Six Hours, One Friday
Do our wealth and talents cause us to indulge in spiritual vanity and stand in our way of worshipping God?
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will. ~ Romans 12:1-2
For some reason, "be transformed by the renewing of your mind" keeps appearing in my head recently. Once a couple of weeks ago, once just last Monday, and once again today. And I'm still struggling to comprehend the enormity and significance of the meaning behind this 2 seemingly very loaded verses.
During a rally last Monday, the speaker used the example of some churches who do not really advocate the use of drums and electric/bass guitars during worship. So on one hand, they read Psalms 150 but on the other, frown upon the use of any instrument besides the organ and piano. We shouldn't be judgmental, bearing in mind the style of worship should be acceptable by the congregation in the context of their culture. But we have to constantly reflect whether our traditions are becoming a burden to us, getting in the way of renewal.
Just today, during singing practice, a question was asked, "Can Christians sing seemingly-Christian songs written by non-Christians?" It was then noted that a few composers of sacred music, past and present, were not actually Christian. Do we then say that we must not sing these songs? One of us shared, if I may paraphrase, "God is beyond limits. Let us not limit what He can do with our own inadequate and rigid understanding."
To sum it up, as my Pastor shared, music in itself is neutral. The distinction between sacred and secular boils down to the person who sings/plays it. A person singing 'sacred music' without the intention or heart of praising God is not worshipping. A person singing a song without any overt mention of Jesus or God, perhaps even a 'secular song' about love, but directing it towards God and praising Him, is truly worshipping. At the end of the day, it is the heart of worship, and that, is all about Jesus.
True transformation can only occur when we allow the Holy Spirit to renew, reeducate and redirect our minds. Not that we have a blanket disregard of traditions, 'conservative thinking' or rules and laws, but rather, to understand, adapt and apply the spirit of the law, rather than the letter of the law. (Romans 2:29)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Quote-worthy:
Our complaints are not over the lack of necessities but the abundance of benefits. The source of our problems is our blessings.
~ Max Lucado, Six Hours, One Friday
Do our wealth and talents cause us to indulge in spiritual vanity and stand in our way of worshipping God?
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