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Daily Express
08-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Express
Sabah can retain 64th Malaysian School Sports Council crown
Published on: Tuesday, July 08, 2025 Published on: Tue, Jul 08, 2025 By: Johan Aziz Text Size: Raisin (centre) handing over the MSSS championship flag to 2026 host Ranau's representative. TAMBUNAN: State Education Department Director Raisin Saidin believes that Sabah can maintain the glory of last year when the State emerged the overall champions of the 64th Malaysian School Sports Council (MSSM) Athletics Championship. He said this is based on the performance of the athletes competing in the 57th Sabah School Sports Council (MSSS) Athletics Championship where many new records were set in this year's championship. 'I have been informed that a total of 47 new records were set in the 29 track and field events contested over the four days of the tournament,' he said when closing the championship at the Sports Complex here. According to him, this is a very proud achievement because Sabah is increasingly shining in the national and international sports arena. He said this is in line with the intention and purpose of the MSSS Athletics Championship to uncover the talent and potential of athletes to represent Sabah at the 2025 MSSM Championship and hopes that athletes representing the State will be able to make a commitment and then strive to win medals for their beloved 'Land Below the Wind'. Raisin said this kind of tournament is a platform to foster a culture of sports among students and athletes who participate must undergo sports training involving physical training, mental and spiritual preparation. 'The exposure like this needs to be implemented continuously so that its impact can be achieved and can subsequently improve health and quality of life as well as produce potential and great athletes. 'Indeed, a healthy mind comes from a healthy body. These words prove how important it is to have a healthy lifestyle with sports activities that will ultimately harmonise every journey of a person's life, in line with the theme of this year's MSS Sabah 2025, which is 'Sports Build Character, Shaping the Future',' he said. According to him, this MSSS Athletics Championship not only tests mental and physical strength, but can also foster cooperation, in line and in step with efforts to elevate sports, thus improving the country's image and reputation in the eyes of the world. He also expressed appreciation and congratulations for the efforts made by all parties to make this year's athletics championship a success. Organising this championship requires strong commitment and sacrifice from all parties to ensure its smooth running. At the ceremony, Raisin also handed over the Championship flag to Ranau, which will host the championship in 2026, and was given a lively welcome by members of the Ranau contingent. Also present at the ceremony were the District Education Officer Dr. Haison Jahudin, Deputy Director, Student Development Sector, Sabah State Education Department Muddin Beting, Chief Assistant Director, Student Talent Development Unit, Student Development Sector, Sabah State Education Department Datu Asrah Datok Ambas, District Officer Sobitun Makajil, heads of state and federal government departments, Principals and Headmasters, Teachers and Parents. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Daily Express
01-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Express
A platform to unearth talent
Published on: Tuesday, July 01, 2025 Published on: Tue, Jul 01, 2025 By: Johan Aziz Text Size: Ellron presents a certificate of appreciation to the head of the Tambunan contingent. TAMBUNAN: Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan said the hosting of major sports tournaments in the district can serve as a platform to unearth student athletic talent and foster unity. He expressed his deep appreciation to the Sabah Education Department and the Tambunan District Education Office for selecting Tambunan as the host for this year's State-level Sabah Schools Sports Council (MSSS) athletics championship. 'This championship is not merely a competition, but a platform to develop students who are disciplined, competitive and possess a strong fighting spirit. Noble values such as mutual respect, teamwork and leadership are essential in building a progressive society,' he said when officiating the MSSS athletics championship at the Sports Complex here, Sunday. Dr Jeffrey's speech was read by Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ellron Angin. Dr Jeffrey, who is also Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister, emphasised that such championships can serve as a springboard for young athletes to shine at the State and national levels, and possibly on the international stage in the future. As the elected representative for Tambunan, he also took the opportunity to introduce the unique charms of the district to participants and accompanying officials from across Sabah, saying Tambunan is known as the 'Switzerland of the East' due to its natural beauty and cool climate. It is not only physically attractive but is also rich in the history, culture and heritage of the Kadazandusun community. 'Among the main attractions in this district are the Mahua Waterfall, the Rafflesia Conservation Garden, the Mat Sator Memorial and the Sinurambi View Point. There are also traditional dishes such as linopot, tuhau, bambangan and hinava which are a source of pride for the local people,' he added. Dr Jeffrey urged all athletes to compete with true sportsmanship and uphold the values of integrity and fair competition. He said winning or losing is not the main measure of success – what matters most is the experience, knowledge and friendships formed throughout the championship. He also express appreciation to all teachers, coaches and parents who play a crucial role in supporting and guiding children in the field of sports. A total of 24 contingents are competing in the four-day MSSS athletics championship. They are Beaufort, Keningau, Tambunan, Ranau, Sandakan, Tawau, Kota Marudu, Kota Belud, Papar, Penampang, Tuaran, Beluran, Kota Kinabalu, Kinabatangan, Kuala Penyu, Kudat, Kunak, Lahad Datu, Pensiangan, Pitas, Semporna, Sipitang, Telupid/Tongod and Tenom. Also present were Sabah Education Director Datuk Raisin Saidin, Tambunan District Education Officer Haison Jahudin, district education officers from across Sabah, principals, headmasters, teachers and parents. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
BBC News
04-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Sellafield could leak radioactive water until 2050s, MPs warn
The UK's largest nuclear site could continue leaking radioactive water until the 2050s, MPs have warned, while its clean-up operations struggle to progress quickly Public Accounts Committee (PAC) criticised the speed of decommissioning work at Sellafield in Cumbria, citing "cost overruns and continuing safety concerns" in a report published on Wednesday. Although the committee noted there were "signs of improvement", PAC chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said Sellafield continued to present "intolerable risks".The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) acknowledged the leak at its Magnox Swarf Storage Silo (MSSS) was its "single biggest environmental issue". The MSSS, which the NDA described as "the most hazardous building in the UK", has been leaking radioactive water into the ground since 2018, releasing enough to fill an Olympic swimming pool every three is likely to continue leaking until the oldest section of the building has been emptied in the 2050s, about a decade later than previously Geoffrey said: "As with the fight against climate change, the sheer scale of the hundred-year timeframe of the decommissioning project makes it hard to grasp the immediacy of safety hazards and cost overruns that delays can have."Every day at Sellafield is a race against time to complete works before buildings reach the end of their life. "Our report contains too many signs that this is a race that Sellafield risks losing." Pointing to the fact that Sellafield Ltd had missed most of its annual targets for retrieving waste from buildings, including the MSSS, the committee warned: "The consequence of this underperformance is that the buildings are likely to remain extremely hazardous for longer."A spokeswoman for the NDA said the "leak in the Magnox Swarf Storage Silo is contained and does not pose a risk to the public". "Regulators accept that the current plan to tackle the leak is the most effective one." 'False dawn' Sir Geoffrey said it was of "vital importance that the government grasp the daily urgency of the work taking place at Sellafield and shed any sense of a far-off date of completion for which no-one currently living is responsible"."Sellafield's risks and challenges are those of the present day."There are some early indications of some improvement in Sellafield's delivery, which our report notes. "The government must do far more to hold all involved immediately accountable to ensure these do not represent a false dawn, and to better safeguard both the public purse and the public itself." Sellafield ceased generating electricity in 2003 and, in addition to work cleaning up the site, now processes and stores nuclear waste from power plants around the government plans to create an underground geological disposal facility (GDF) to store nuclear waste for the thousands of years it will take to become the committee said delays in creating the GDF, which is now not expected to be complete until the late 2050s, meant more costs for chief executive David Peattie said it welcomed the report, adding it took the "findings seriously and the safety of the site and the wellbeing of our people will always be our highest priorities"."We are pleased they recognise improvements in delivering major projects and that we are safely retrieving waste from all four highest hazard facilities." The PAC expressed concern there was a "sub-optimal culture" at Sellafield and called on the NDA to publish information about the prevalence and perception of bullying in its annual NDA spokeswoman said: "We're committed to an open and respectful culture and we've taken decisive action to enable this, including strengthening our whistleblowing policy."The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said it "expected the highest standards of safety and security as former nuclear sites are dismantled, and the regulator is clear that public safety is not compromised at Sellafield"."This is underpinned by monthly performance reviews and increased responsibility for overseeing major project performance, enabling more direct scrutiny and intervention," a spokeswoman for the department said. "We have zero tolerance of bullying, harassment and offensive behaviour in the workplace - we expect Sellafield and the NDA to operate on this basis, investigate allegations and take robust action when needed." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
A NASA rover sent home an immersive Mars panorama. Watch the video.
At first glance, this view may look like a vista from a bluff in the southwestern United States. But those aren't ordinary mountains in the distance. What appears to be a sierra is in fact the rim of an enormous crater on Mars, formed when an asteroid slammed into the Red Planet billions of years ago. The vantage point is from the slopes of the three-mile-tall Mount Sharp, sculpted over time within the crater after the ancient collision. NASA's Curiosity rover captured this extremely wide snapshot as it traversed its extraterrestrial stomping grounds in Gale Crater this February. The agency has since converted that data into a 30-second immersive video, which you can watch further down in this story. It's perhaps the next best thing to actually hiking the chilly desert roughly 140 million miles away in space. "You can imagine the quiet, thin wind," said NASA in a post on X, "or maybe even the waves of a long-gone lake lapping an ancient shore." SEE ALSO: A NASA Mars rover looked up at a moody sky. What it saw wasn't a star. NASA's Curiosity rover snaps a selfie image on lower Mount Sharp in Gale crater in August 2015. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS Since its mission launched in 2011, Curiosity, a Mini Cooper-sized lab on six wheels, has traveled about 352,000,020 miles: some 352 million whizzing through space and another 20 rumbling over Martian terrain. At the time when Curiosity drank up this scenery, it was climbing a region of Mount Sharp known as the sulfate-bearing unit. This area is chock full of salty minerals. Scientists think streams and ponds left them behind as the water dried up billions of years ago. Studying this geology offers clues about how and why Mars may have transformed from a more Earth-like world to the frozen desert it is today. Almost exactly a year ago, the rover accidentally discovered elemental sulfur, its wheels crushing the material to expose a bed of yellow crystals. When pure sulfur is made naturally on Earth, it's usually associated with superheated volcanic gases and hot springs. Another way it can form is through interactions with bacteria — a.k.a. life. "We don't think we're anywhere near a volcano where the rover is," Abigail Fraeman, deputy project scientist on the Curiosity mission, told Mashable in September, "so that is a puzzling feature to find in this particular location." A 30-second video in the above X post showcases the vast Martian panorama. Now Curiosity is on its way to a new destination where it will study an unusual landscape, called a "boxwork." This region likely necessitated warm groundwater to form. And where there's water, there's potential for life — at least the kind scientists know about. Researchers wonder if the boxwork could have hosted ancient single-celled microorganisms. From Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter images, the land feature looks like a spiderweb of ridges, spanning several miles. Dark sand fills the hollow spaces among the lattice. Scientists believe this particular boxwork may have formed when minerals in the last trickles of water seeped into surface rock and hardened. As the rocks weathered over the ages, minerals that had cemented into those cracks remained, leaving behind the weird pattern. The rover's science team doesn't expect Curiosity to reach its destination until at least late fall, said Catherine O'Connell-Cooper, a planetary geologist at the University of New Brunswick in Canada, in the mission log. "Our drives are long right now," O'Connell-Cooper wrote, "but we are still taking the time to document all of the wonderful geology as we go, and not just speeding past all of the cool things!"
Daily Express
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Express
Deaxter steals the spotlight
Published on: Tuesday, May 20, 2025 Published on: Tue, May 20, 2025 By: Garry Lewis Text Size: Deaxter smashed both State and national school-level records. TAMBUNAN: Young athletics sensation Deaxter Pius stole the spotlight at the Tambunan District Schools Sports Council (MSSD) Championship after clocking extraordinary times in the 400-metre and 200-metre events, breaking both State and national school-level records. In the 400 metres, Deaxter recorded a time of 49.52 seconds, not only securing the gold medal but also shattering the Sabah Schools Sports Council (MSSS) record of 50.75 seconds and surpassing the Malaysian Schools Sports Council (MSSM) record of 49.59 seconds. Advertisement He also impressed in the 200-metre event, completing the race in 22.36 seconds — beating the MSSS record of 22.50 seconds. This outstanding achievement places Deaxter among the most promising young athletes at the school level today, with high hopes that he will continue to shine in upcoming State and national competitions. The district sports management expressed their pride in Deaxter's accomplishments and pledged their full support to help elevate this young talent to greater heights. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
