May 6, 2023 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 06.05.2023, 19:22
CORONATION — King Charles III of Britain and Northern Ireland and his wife, Queen Camilla, were crowned at Westminster Abbey in London before 2,300 guests and millions of spectators all over the world. King Charles was anointed with holy oil, symbolizing the sacred nature of his rule, was vested with an imperial mantle, and the ancient crown of St. Edward was placed onto his head. Among the many heads of state and government, kings and queens and members of the extended British royal family, were also Princess Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania and Prince Consort Radu and also Romanian President Klaus Iohannis. Three festive days follow in the UK. King Charles, former Prince of Wales until the age of 74, took over the throne of Great Britain and Northern Ireland after the death of his mother, Queen Elisabeth II, in September last year. The Romanian media describes King Charles as a great friend of Romania which he has constantly visited in the last 20 years. King Charles has helped preserve and popularize traditions and customs in Transylvania. He also owns a number of properties in Romania.
MESSAGES — US President Joe Biden congratulated King Charles and Queen Camilla on their coronation. ”The enduring friendship between the U.S. and the U.K. is a source of strength for both our peoples,” Biden said in a Tweet. The First Lady, Jill Biden, represented the US at the ceremony. According to the BBC, no US President has ever attended the coronation of a British monarch. In turn, European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen said on Twitter that “the Coronation is a testament to the enduring strength of the British monarchy, a symbol of stability and continuity.
BOXING – Romanian boxer Flavius Biea won the vacant IBA world champion belt in the middleweight category, after defeating Argentinean Juan Jose Velasco on points, on Friday evening, in a 12-round match, in a professional gala held in Mioveni, Romania. Although dominated by the South American, Biea was seen as the winner by two of the judges, while the third saw Velasco as best athlete. Biea, aged 33, has thus become the fifth Romanian professional boxing world champion after Mihai Leu, Leonard Doroftei, Lucian Bute and Adrian Diaconu. Renowned boxers fought for this title, such as Floyd Mayweather, Oscar De la Hoya, Roberto Duran, Roy Jones Jr. and Arturo Gatti.
ORDER — The Bucharest Government will next week pass an emergency order on reducing public spending, Liberal PM Nicolae Ciuca and the Social Democrat leader, Marcel Ciolacu announced. The ordinance should be completed on Monday, during a meeting of the ruling coalition, put out for public debate and then approved by the Government. Ciolacu gave assurances again this would not be an austerity order that diminishes salaries or pensions. In turn, PM Ciuca said additional taxation of high incomes was also ruled out.
CHESS — Chess World Champion Garry Kasparov opened the Superbet Chess Classic Romania 2023 tournament in Bucharest, held between May 6 and 15 as part of the Grand Chess Tour. The competition brings together the world’s best chess players. Garry Kasparov and Teodora, a 12-year old girl who started playing chess only a few months ago, made the first symbolic move of the tournament. Representing Romania at are Bogdan Deac (21 years old, ranking 39th in the world) and Richard Rapport (27 years old, ranking 13th in the world). Born in Hungary, Rapport transferred last fall on the list of the Romanian Chess Federation which he has been representing ever since.
HANDBALL — The Romanian women’s handball champion, Rapid Bucharest, was defeated on Saturday in Norway in the Champions League quarterfinals by Vipers Kristiansand, 31-40. The Norwegian squad thus has the chance to defeat the title won last year. On Sunday another Romanian team in the competition, CSM Bucharest is up against Team Esbjerg of Denmark on home turf, in the quarterfinals. (EE)
