Latest news with #Gera
Free Malaysia Today
11 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Calls for legal reforms after fatal student bus crash
Law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said said it may be time to evaluate the effectiveness of law enforcement measures. PETALING JAYA : Calls have arisen for reforms to Malaysia's legal framework following the accident between an MPV and a bus carrying Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris students which claimed 15 lives yesterday. Law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said said it might be time to evaluate the effectiveness of law enforcement measures, and for the government to consider whether amendments to the Penal Code are necessary. She also said the government must consider whether a new law, similar to the UK's Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007, should be introduced. 'This legislation allows a company to be prosecuted for serious failings in the way it manages the safety of its workers or the public, where negligence results in death,' she said in a Facebook post. She said the UK Act was introduced in response to a number of workplace fatalities where no corporate entity could be held criminally liable under existing laws, particularly in cases involving transport service providers where human lives are at stake and cannot be replaced. Yesterday, the firm that operated the bus involved said the driver had a good track record. Kenari Utara Travel & Tours Sdn Bhd also said the bus, which was serviced last month, had no issues and was always sent for servicing on schedule. Separately, the Malaysian Academic Movement (Gerak) called for the formulation of a national road safety action plan based on the 'safe system' implemented in countries like Australia. It said Australia had succeeded in significantly reducing its road fatality rates through this approach, which focusses on building a system designed to protect users, even when human error occurs. 'Its core principle is that the responsibility for safety does not lie with road users alone, but is shared among all parties, including road planners, engineers, vehicle manufacturers, and enforcement authorities,' Gerak said in a statement. It added that the safe system approach was founded on four main pillars, the first being the construction of roads that can 'forgive' driver errors, such as by installing road barriers and designing safer intersections. It said the second pillar involves ensuring speed limits that are appropriate for the road conditions, environment, and types of road users. The third pillar involves encouraging the use of vehicles with modern safety features and ensuring that commercial vehicles are maintained to the highest standards, while the fourth pillar focusses on continuous education and enforcement to cultivate prudent driving behaviour.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- General
- The Hindu
1,363 Agniveers complete training at Army Service Corps Centre (North)
As many as 1,363 Agniveers of the Indian Army completed their training and passed out successfully at a parade held at Army Service Corps Centre (North) in Bengaluru on Wednesday. They belonged to the fifth batch of Agniveers to undergo the training that commenced on November 1, 2024. Lt. Gen. J.K. Gera, Commandant, ASC Centre & College, reviewed the parade. In his address, he urged the young soldiers to imbibe the ethos of imandari, wafadari, and bahaduri (integrity, loyalty, and courage). The ceremony was attended by parents of the Agniveers and all the parents were honoured with the Gaurav Padak instituted by the Indian Army as a token of recognition of their gesture of encouraging their wards to join the Indian Army in service of the nation. The Army Service Corps Centre (North) is a premier institute imparting training to mechanical transport drivers to support the Army Service Corps units for the whole of the Indian Army. The Agnipath scheme was introduced by the Union government on June 14, 2022 for the recruitment of soldiers into the three services of the Armed Forces.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Welcome to Grand Slam Track, Michael Johnson's brainchild with speed stars, prize money and live data
Michael Johnson and Steve Gera were having lunch at Soho House in Malibu two years ago, looking out over the Pacific Ocean, when they first sketched out a plan for what would become Grand Slam Track. 'He pitched me this idea,' recalls Gera, a former US Marine who became a coach and sports executive for several NFL teams and FC Barcelona. 'I had the 'aha' moment of, oh my god, there is actually nothing in between the Olympics that is the best-of-the-best racers on a consistent basis. Yet this sport is so tremendously popular during the Olympics. Like, what happens?' Grand Slam Track begins this week in Kingston, Jamaica with a bold and brash promise to reinvigorate athletics, or at least part of it. An elite field of runners have signed up for the new track-only league – there are no field events – which will play out across four weekend-long meets in Kingston, Miami, Philadelphia and Los Angeles through April, May and June. Johnson is the face of the project, a legend of the sport who delivered iconic moments gliding around the Atlanta track in 1996 wearing those famous gold shoes. Oddly his profile is now far greater in Britain where he has worked as a popular pundit for the BBC, and this is something of a comeback into the American consciousness. His co-founder Gera is equally serious about the sport and he is bullish in their ambitions. 'We are maniacally focused on having the youngest fanbase of any sports league in the world in the next five years,' Gera tells The Independent. 'That's our North Star.' They have laid the groundwork for success, raising more than £25m in funding and promising a £10m prize pot with around £77,000 for winning athletes. They have established dates and venues in a crowded calendar, and lured a litany of Olympic medallists including American track stars Gabby Thomas and Kenny Bednarek who will race against British record holders Dina Asher-Smith and Zharnel Hughes. TV rights have been sold to major broadcasters covering more than 100 territories, with TNT Sports hosting the show in the UK. Grand Slam Track also has a betting link-up with Chicago-based sports tech company Stats Perform. But the hard part is converting a compelling idea into lasting success, one that builds its own story and prestige, that develops value and meaning with jeopardy worth tuning in for. Making sport profitable, especially new endeavours like this one, is a difficult business. The Saudi-backed LIV Golf had star players and vast investment to go with TV deals and an eye-watering marketing budget, but interest has somewhat petered out as it battles with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour for space and for stars. Why will Grand Slam Track be any different? While it has some big names signed up, there are several missing too. One notable absentee is the men's Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles, who questioned the model on a recent podcast episode. 'We're two months out and I'm looking – who are your outside sponsors, who are your non-track and field sponsors? I want to hear, is there a watch deal?' But Gera is confident, pointing to a positive working relationship with the governing body, World Athletics, whose president Lord Coe stated his public support for innovation in the sport. There is no golf-style civil war here, it seems. World Athletics has given Grand Slam Track official status and lists it as a sanctioned event in its calendar. And the event has what Gera insists is a format that will engage young fans. They commissioned detailed research into not only what athletics fans wanted to see more of, but what fans of other sports such as golf and tennis would need to see in order to be enticed to sit down and watch athletics outside of the Olympics. The answer was more stars, more often, racing head to head, which is why the format sees athletes pooled into groups of eight running two distances: those signed up to 'short sprints' will run both 100m and 200m, forcing them to battle more than once over a weekend. The TV viewing experience will be endowed with live performance data, which Gera hopes will bring the action to life in new ways. The exclusion of field events has brought criticism but Johnson has been forthright in his response. 'I am going to save what I think I can save,' he said. 'I think I can save track, I don't think I can save track and field.' There were discussions about holding the series in a British city, with London and Birmingham in the frame, but UK Athletics had concerns over the potential cost of staging the event without guaranteed returns, while Gera says a first year in the Americas makes life simpler. 'The mayor's office in London was great,' Gera says. 'We had discussions with a couple of different cities across the UK [but] that was a decision that we made to just focus on tightly packaging our run of shows in year one. But we're really excited to get the product into Europe in the not too distant future.' That will depend on whether Johnson and Gera can turn Grand Slam Track into a success story. Athletics needs igniting, and Gera is convinced the concept will prove to be more than just another flicker in the sporting landscape.
The Independent
31-03-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Welcome to Grand Slam Track, Michael Johnson's brainchild with speed stars, prize money and live data
Michael Johnson and Steve Gera were having lunch at Soho House in Malibu two years ago, looking out over the Pacific Ocean, when they first sketched out a plan for what would become Grand Slam Track. 'He pitched me this idea,' recalls Gera, a former US Marine who became a coach and sports executive for several NFL teams and FC Barcelona. 'I had the 'aha' moment of, oh my god, there is actually nothing in between the Olympics that is the best-of-the-best racers on a consistent basis. Yet this sport is so tremendously popular during the Olympics. Like, what happens?' Grand Slam Track begins this week in Kingston, Jamaica with a bold and brash promise to reinvigorate athletics, or at least part of it. An elite field of runners have signed up for the new track-only league – there are no field events – which will play out across four weekend-long meets in Kingston, Miami, Philadelphia and Los Angeles through April, May and June. Johnson is the face of the project, a legend of the sport who delivered iconic moments gliding around the Atlanta track in 1996 wearing those famous gold shoes. Oddly his profile is now far greater in Britain where he has worked as a popular pundit for the BBC, and this is something of a comeback into the American consciousness. His co-founder Gera is equally serious about the sport and he is bullish in their ambitions. 'We are maniacally focused on having the youngest fanbase of any sports league in the world in the next five years,' Gera tells The Independent. 'That's our North Star.' They have laid the groundwork for success, raising more than £25m in funding and promising a £10m prize pot with around £77,000 for winning athletes. They have established dates and venues in a crowded calendar, and lured a litany of Olympic medallists including American track stars Gabby Thomas and Kenny Bednarek who will race against British record holders Dina Asher-Smith and Zharnel Hughes. TV rights have been sold to major broadcasters covering more than 100 territories, with TNT Sports hosting the show in the UK. Grand Slam Track also has a betting link-up with Chicago-based sports tech company Stats Perform. But the hard part is converting a compelling idea into lasting success, one that builds its own story and prestige, that develops value and meaning with jeopardy worth tuning in for. Making sport profitable, especially new endeavours like this one, is a difficult business. The Saudi-backed LIV Golf had star players and vast investment to go with TV deals and an eye-watering marketing budget, but interest has somewhat petered out as it battles with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour for space and for stars. Why will Grand Slam Track be any different? While it has some big names signed up, there are several missing too. One notable absentee is the men's Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles, who questioned the model on a recent podcast episode. 'We're two months out and I'm looking – who are your outside sponsors, who are your non-track and field sponsors? I want to hear, is there a watch deal?' But Gera is confident, pointing to a positive working relationship with the governing body, World Athletics, whose president Lord Coe stated his public support for innovation in the sport. There is no golf-style civil war here, it seems. World Athletics has given Grand Slam Track official status and lists it as a sanctioned event in its calendar. And the event has what Gera insists is a format that will engage young fans. They commissioned detailed research into not only what athletics fans wanted to see more of, but what fans of other sports such as golf and tennis would need to see in order to be enticed to sit down and watch athletics outside of the Olympics. The answer was more stars, more often, racing head to head, which is why the format sees athletes pooled into groups of eight running two distances: those signed up to 'short sprints' will run both 100m and 200m, forcing them to battle more than once over a weekend. The TV viewing experience will be endowed with live performance data, which Gera hopes will bring the action to life in new ways. The exclusion of field events has brought criticism but Johnson has been forthright in his response. 'I am going to save what I think I can save,' he said. 'I think I can save track, I don't think I can save track and field.' There were discussions about holding the series in a British city, with London and Birmingham in the frame, but UK Athletics had concerns over the potential cost of staging the event without guaranteed returns, while Gera says a first year in the Americas makes life simpler. 'The mayor's office in London was great,' Gera says. 'We had discussions with a couple of different cities across the UK [but] that was a decision that we made to just focus on tightly packaging our run of shows in year one. But we're really excited to get the product into Europe in the not too distant future.' That will depend on whether Johnson and Gera can turn Grand Slam Track into a success story. Athletics needs igniting, and Gera is convinced the concept will prove to be more than just another flicker in the sporting landscape.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Yahoo
Sharon mom sentenced in kids' THC poisoning
MERCER, Pa. (WKBN) — A Sharon mom was sentenced on child endangering charges after children ingested THC candies. Cassandra Gera was sentenced to two years of probation, fined and ordered to perform 20 hours of community service in connection to a July 2023 incident when she and her sister were supervising children and two of them — ages 4 and 5 — were found to have ingested THC candies. Gera's sister, Charyssa Gera, was fined on a third-degree misdemeanor disorderly conduct conviction. She was previously charged with endangering children. In June, Sharon police were called to the 300 block of Sterling Avenue for a 4- and 5-year-old child who were both unresponsive due to a possible poisoning. Authorities also found vomit on the floor by the children. Reports said authorities determined that it appeared that the children had eaten a whole package of the THC candy. The nearly-empty bag of candy was found in a closet in the children's bedroom, a criminal complaint stated. According to the criminal complaint, one child had respiratory failure, so police described the incident as being a near fatality. Michael Reiner contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
