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Kaka crowned FIFA’s player of 2007

ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) — Brazil midfielder Kaka completed a virtual sweep of annual awards Monday by winning FIFA’s World Player of the Year accolade for 2007.

The Milan playmaker received 1,047 points, ahead of Argentine Lionel Messi on 504 and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo with 426 in a vote by national team captains and managers.

On the women’s side, Marta of Brazil captured the award with 988 points, ahead of Birgit Prinz of Germany with 507 and Cristiane of Brazil with 150.

For Kaka, it is the third accolade this year. He also won European soccer’s Golden Ball and World Soccer magazine’s player of the year award.

Tonight is a really special night for me, Kaka said after being handed the trophy.

He is the fifth different Brazilian to win the title joining Ronaldo — who has won the trophy three times — Ronaldinho (2), Romario (1) and Rivaldo (1).

When I was young, I dreamed of becoming a professional player for Sao Paolo and playing one game for the national team, Kaka said.

Before the award ceremony at Zurich’s opera house, Kaka owed his success this year to his club.

Kaka led Milan to a 2-1 victory over Liverpool in the Champions League final last season. On Sunday, he scored one goal and set up two for Filippo Inzaghi as Milan won its record fourth world club title by beating Argentina’s Boca Juniors 4-2.

Marta was the top scorer of the 2007 Women’s World Cup in China, with seven goals. The 21-year-old lead Brazil to the finals, where they were beaten 2-0 by Germany.

I’m very happy to be here once more, and you can be sure I am going to give my best to be here on other occasions, said Marta, who won the award last year after three consecutive wins by Prinz.

Pele won the President’s Award. The Fair Play prize went to FC Barcelona for donating space on its jersey to advertise the U.N. children’s fund UNICEF.

Messi, who tore a thigh muscle over the weekend when Barcelona beat Valencia 3-0, memorably showed his skills when he scored against Getafe in April after picking up the ball in his own half and going past four opposition players before sliding the ball past the goalkeeper.

The feat drew comparisons with Diego Maradona’s second goal in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal match against England, voted the greatest goal in FIFA World Cup history in 2002.

Asked about being compared with the Argentine legend, Messi said, I just want to … become a better player and hope to win a couple of titles with a good team, and that’s about it.

Cristiano Ronaldo would have been the first winner from an English club. The Manchester United player is currently tied at the top of the Premier League’s scoring list on nine goals with Arsenal’s Emmanuel Adebayor and Everton’s Ayegbeni Yakubu.

The 22-year-old Portuguese was Manchester United’s top scorer last season, helping the club win its first Premier League title in four years. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Witnesses in Colorado fear paying ultimate price

DENVER, Colorado — A Colorado man terrorized by threats after testifying against his daughter’s abusive boyfriend says he has spent $10,000 on a security system, hired a bodyguard for his son’s wedding and never leaves home without a .45-caliber handgun strapped to his chest.

The man, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the case, says the state did nothing to protect him after the 1999 conviction of Keith Reynolds for domestic abuse — even after prosecutors told him a hit had been put on his family.

A report in the Denver Post pointed out major problems protecting witnesses in the state of Colorado. Paul Logli, chairman of National District Attorneys Association, told Congress this year that witness intimidation has become almost epidemic, according to the Denver Post.

When asked if prosecutors had made the family aware of Colorado’s witness protection program, the witness in the Reynolds case said, All they told us was maybe we should move.

I’m pretty sure I told one of them — either him or his wife — about the program. I can’t remember if I gave them all the details. the prosecutor assigned to the case, who didn’t want to be named, told CNN.

After Reynolds’ conviction, the witness and his wife saw strange cars parked outside their home. They received phone calls during which the only sound on the other end of the line was a gun being cocked. The couple received a death threat from Reynolds himself through the mail.

Reynolds was then sentenced to ten years in a maximum security prison for witness intimidation. However, it is likely he’ll be released within five years.

No national statistics on crimes against witnesses exist, and minimal research has been conducted on the subject. The latest National Institute of Justice survey on record — conducted more than a decade ago — shows that more than half of big city prosecutors consider witness intimidation a major problem.

Colorado has $50,000 allocated to its witness protection budget. In contrast, the city of Denver spent almost $100,000 on landscaping last year.

The state, on average, spends about $1,000 per witness. That figure supposedly includes moving expenses, rent, and furniture. The federal program spends in excess of $40 million per year on witness protection.

One possible reason for the disparity is that witnesses in state cases do not get new identities, as do federal witnesses. It’s not designed to be a long-term relocation at the public’s expense; it’s a way to ensure the immediate safety of the witnesses, according to Peter Weir, executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Safety.

Colorado’s witness protection program is a joke, according to The Rev. Leon Kelly, founder and executive director of the Open Door Youth Gang Alternatives.

Kelly says the state doesn’t provide enough incentive for witnesses to come forward. More than a decade ago, a young man named Darryl Givens asked Kelly for advice while deciding whether to testify in a murder case or face prison. Givens chose to testify. A few months later, he was shot twice in the head by men he considered friends. That day continues to haunt Kelly.

Rhonda Fields says failures in the witness protection program may have contributed to her son’s murder. Javad Fields was a college graduate who was engaged to be married. He had plans to move east when a Fourth of July barbecue in 2004 in changed all that. He witnessed the murder of his best friend and subsequently testified against three men suspected in the killing.

Javad Fields and his fiancee were gunned down while driving along a suburban street in Aurora, Colorado. The couple, both 22, died instantly.

Rhonda Fields says her son was never told about a witness protection program. She confronted prosecutors after his murder. Fields told CNN, I asked them what happened. Why weren’t any measures taken to safeguard his life? And I was told he never asked for any protection.

Javad’s mother does not think it was her son’s responsibility to ask for protection. I think it’s the authorities’ responsibility to notify witnesses of the dangers that are involved with being a witness, she said.

Field’s case illustrates glaring weaknesses in the witness protection program. Prosecutors filed an order for protection requesting Javad Fields’ personal information be kept secret, but it wasn’t signed by a judge until one year later, after defense lawyers had already given the suspects Fields’ personal information, along with crucial trial documents.

I felt like the DA’s office used my son to win their case but did not take the proper measures to safeguard his life, Rhonda Fields told CNN.

District Attorney Carol Chambers maintains the program has improved. She says a notice about witness protection is now attached to every subpoena, ensuring witnesses are aware of their options. That didn’t start, however, until two years after Javad Fields was killed. E-mail to a friend

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Pam Anderson files for divorce after 2 months

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) — It seems like only two months ago that Pamela Anderson was aglow with happiness over her quickie Las Vegas wedding to Rick Salomon.

Actually, it was.

But the 40-year-old ex-Baywatch beauty has filed for divorce from her 38-year-old husband after just two months of marriage.

Anderson cited irreconcilable differences in papers filed Friday in Los Angeles County Superior Court. The documents were first obtained by the celebrity Web site CelebTV.com.

Anderson and Salomon wed October 6 during a break between the 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. shows of Hans Klok’s The Beauty of Magic at Planet Hollywood resort, where Anderson was starring as a magician’s assistant. The couple separated less than 10 weeks later, on December 13.

Salomon is best known for making a sex videotape with Paris Hilton, his girlfriend at the time, and was previously married to actress Shannen Doherty. Anderson was previously married to singer Kid Rock and Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Liverpool owners backing Benitez

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Liverpool co-owner George Gillett Jr. has backed Spaniard Rafa Benitez to continue as manager of the Premier League giants.

Gillett said he regretted that he, co-owner Tom Hicks and Benitez had fallen out over transfer issues and publicly aired their dispute.

This wasn’t supposed to happen, but it has happened, and now the focus has to be on finding a common platform to continue our cooperation, Gillett was quoted as saying in Monday’s edition of the Liverpool Echo newspaper.

Rafa is the one we want as a manager further on, and we have faith in him.

Gillett was speaking to the Liverpool Former Players’ Association on Sunday, after the Reds had lost to Manchester United 1-0 in the Premier League.

It was the first time Gillett and Hicks had visited Liverpool since the spat began last month.

Liverpool are currently fifth in the table following a 1-0 weekend home defeat by big rivals Manchester United, but have reached the last-16 of the Champions League — with the draw to be made on Friday. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Unlucky Terry sidelined six weeks

LONDON, England — Chelsea and England captain John Terry could be sidelined for six weeks after scans showed that the defender broke three bones in his foot during Sunday’s 1-0 defeat at Arsenal.

Terry left the Emirates Stadium on crutches after being forced off after 39 minutes following a challenge by Emmanuel Eboue who later reportedly apologized for the tackle.

Scans today have revealed that John Terry has fractured three bones in his right foot, including his third metatarsal, said a Chelsea statement on the club’s official Web site.

The initial diagnosis suggests he may be out for six weeks.

Club doctor Bryan English told Chelsea TV on Monday: An x-ray taken in the Arsenal medical room straight after John Terry left the field didn’t show the injury.

However as is usual with mid-foot injuries the fractures were revealed following scans which were performed this afternoon. John will start his rehabilitation immediately with the Chelsea medical team and we will continue to monitor the injury.

Terry will miss Wednesday’s Carling Cup quarterfinal at home to Liverpool and is also poised to miss Premier League games against Blackburn, Aston Villa, Newcastle, Fulham, Tottenham and Birmingham plus the FA Cup third round tie against QPR. E-mail to a friend

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