2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
Hawai'i got the ball back with 2:16 remaining in the fourth quarter, trailing 26–25. Quarterback Tyler Graunke marched the Warriors 61 yards in 11 plays to set up Kelly's heroics. The Wolf Pack tried to ice the junior kicker twice. UNR called a timeout just before the snap on the first try as Kelly's kick split the uprights. The kicker and special teams personnel regrouped and duplicated the feat once more, this time it counted. Nevada had one last chance but the hail mary attempt was intercepted by Jacob Patek on the final play of the game.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
The Warriors extended their win streak to 11-game, tying the longest in school history. UH also finished 5–0 on the road this season and extended their road win streak to eight straight dating back to last season. Lastly, the Warriors extended their WAC win streak to 14 games. Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan did not start the game. Instead, Graunke got the nod. Head Coach June Jones rotated the two quarterbacks along with Inoke Funaki on the opening drive.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
The Warriors (10–0, 7–0 WAC), who won in Reno for the first time in four tries, took the opening kickoff and drove 50 yards in 11 plays, capped by a Kelly 45-yard field goal. After UH punter Tim Grasso pinned Nevada at their own 3 yard line, defensive lineman David Veikune sacked Wolf Pack quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the endzone to give UH a 5–0 lead and its first safety of the season. UH made it 12–0 after sustaining another long drive of 64 yards highlighted by a 3-yard touchdown pass from Graunke to Jason Rivers.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
Nevada (5–5, 3–3 WAC) cut the deficit to 12–7 after Kaepernick hit Luke Lippincott on a 7-yard scoring strike. Graunke then orchestrated a four-play 80-yard drive with the quarterback calling his own number from 7-yards out. A 53-yard pass play from Graunke to C.J. Hawthorne on the first play of the drive set up the touchdown. The Wolf Pack responded with a 41-yard field goal by Brett Jaekle to go into the locker room at halftime with UH out in front, 19–10.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
Nevada took the second half kickoff and traveled 52 yards with Jaekle booting his second field goal of the game, a 42-yarder. The Wolf Pack took its first lead of the game, 20–19, on their next possession with a 17-play drive covering 90 yards elapsing eight minutes and 20 seconds with Kaepernick bootlegging over from three yards out. UH recaptured the lead, 25–20, as Graunke connected with Ryan Grice-Mullen for a 22-yard scoring strike. The Warriors went for two, but Graunke's attempt was batted down.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
After both teams exchanged punts, Nevada then put together a 51-yard drive highlighted by a 45-yard pass play before Lippincott plunged over the left side from 5 yards. The two-point pass attempt was no good giving the Wolf Pack a slim, 26–25 lead with 8:27 left in the fourth quarter. On UH's next possession, Graunke was sacked and fumbled the ball giving Nevada good position from the UH 44-yard line. Two plays later, defensive lineman Keala Watson popped UNR wide receiver Arthur King Jr. and made him cough up the ball with Watson recovering at the UH 47. The Warriors were stopped on a fourth down play when Graunke tried to thread it to Rivers on the left sideline.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Nevada (WAC)
The UH defense held Nevada's offense and forced them to punt to give UH one last try.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
The 13th-ranked University of Hawai'i football team claimed its first outright Western Athletic Conference championship after a 39–27 victory over No. 17 Boise State, Friday night, at a sold-out, raucous crowd at 50,000-seat Aloha Stadium. The win keeps the Warriors' (11–0, 8–0 WAC) hopes alive of a Bowl Championship Series game.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
Hawai'i snapped Boise State's streak of 18 straight WAC wins and a six-game losing streak to the Broncos (10–2, 7–1). It also snapped BSU's stranglehold of the conference title, ending the Broncos five-year reign. The victory extended UH's win streak to a new school-record 12 straight. UH also captured WAC championships in 1992 and 1999, however, those were shared with other teams. Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan led the Warrior aerial attack with 495 yards and five touchdowns, while also rushing for another score.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
Brennan broke three major college records following his first TD of the night to Ryan Grice-Mullen, breaking Ty Detmer's mark for most career touchdowns, most TDs responsible for and most points responsible for. "I think we proved something tonight with all of the so-called experts who picked Boise to beat us", Brennan said. "It was a great win for us, the school and the state. The faith on this team is huge. We believe in ourselves." Receiver Davone Bess set a new school record with 15 receptions for 181 yards and two touchdowns.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
With the two scores, he and Brennan tied the NCAA mark for passing combinations with 39 career TDs. Jason Rivers had 11 catches for 113 yards and one touchdown. C.J. Hawthorne had 111 yards and one score. Friday's contest was a match-up between two of the nation's top offensive teams. Coming into the game, Hawai'i was No. 1 in the country averaging 48.0 points per game and third at 523.9 yards per contest. Boise State, meanwhile, was third with 44.2 points and 10th at 488.7 yards.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
The Warriors finished the game with 574 yards of total offense and held the Broncos to a season-low 101 yards rushing. UH also limited BSU star running back Ian Johnson to 86 yards on the ground. Following a 50-yard dash which put the Broncos up 7–0, the Warrior defense allowed only 19 yards the rest of the game to the Heisman hopeful. "I was a little concerned early when we had the special teams breakdowns", UH head coach June Jones said. "But I'm very proud of the kids. They battled through a lot of adversity and hung in there."


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
I'm very happy for the state of Hawai'i." After matching the Broncos score with Brennan's record-breaking TD to Grice-Mullen, Hawai'i responded with a 95-yard, seven-play drive, ending in a Brennan keeper from one-yard out. The PAT was blocked, one of two blocked extra points by the Broncos on the night. BSU responded on its next drive, retaking the lead, 14–13. The Broncos traveled 69 yards on 11 plays with Johnson taking the pitch and going over the right side for a 1-yard score.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
Hawai'i answered the score with Brennan orchestrating an eight-play drive encompassing 67 yards hitting Bess on a 23-yard scoring strike for a 19–14 lead. The Broncos pulled to within two at the half with a 39-yard field goal by Kyle Brotzman. The Warriors took the opening drive of the second half as Brennan completed all six of his attempts for 70 yards with the last 22 going to Bess on a flair to the left flats for a 26–17 lead. "I think by us putting it in the endzone on the first drive, it got everyone pumped up", Jones said.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
The Broncos scored 10 straight on a six-yard pass from Tayor Tharp to Rickie Brockel and a Brotzman 36-yard field goal after Brennan was picked for the second time in the game. But that was BSU's last lead as the Warriors scored on consecutive drives to end the third quarter. Brennan led the Warriors downfield on 10 plays and 70 yards, culminating on a seven-yard stop route to Rivers for a 32–27 lead.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Boise State (Rivalry)
After forcing the Broncos to punt, Brennan then completed consecutive passes of 19 and 28 yards to running back Kealoha Pilares and Bess, respectively, before finally hooking up with Hawthorne on a 38-yard toss. Neither team scored in the final period. As UH ran out the clock, fans stormed the field in celebration while the team was awarded the WAC Championship trophy by commissioner Karl Benson. "I told everyone that after eight games, the final four would be the determining factor", Jones said. "We got three, we need one more."


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
The University of Hawai`i football team (12–0, 8–0 Western Athletic Conference) completed an undefeated regular season by rallying past Washington, 35–28, Saturday night at sold-out Aloha Stadium. A raucous crowd watched the Warriors erase a 21-point first half deficit and score the game's final 28 points.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan completed 42-of-50 for 442 yards and five touchdowns, four to wideout Jason Rivers, who also grabbed 14 receptions for 167 yards. After the Warriors tied the game at 28, Brennan led the game-winning drive, ending with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Grice-Mullen with 44 seconds left. "What a win", exclaimed UH head coach June Jones. "(The team) was committed to getting a win tonight. They played hard and I can't be more proud of them. It's unbelievable. The (regular season) could not have ended better."


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
UW (4–9, 2–7 Pac-10) scored on its first three possessions in the game's first 10 minutes. The first two scores were aided by a UH illegal substitution penalty and a UH fumble. Quarterback Jake Locker scored on an 8-yard run followed by Luke Kravitz's 1-yard plunge. It was Kravitz again finding the endzone from two yards out to make it 21–0. UH fumbled the ball over to UW three times in the opening quarter.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
The Warriors finally got on the scoreboard with 10:17 left in the second with Brennan hooking up with Rivers on a 7-yard pass to cut the deficit to 21–7. But UW took the ensuing kickoff and traveled 84 yards capped by Paul Homer diving over from a yard out. UH made it a 14-point game as Brennan connected again with Rivers on a 3-yard scoring pass. Brennan completed all five of his passes accounting for the 75 yard-drive. Hawai'i pulled to within seven just before the half when Rivers caught his third touchdown from Brennan, a 13-yarder.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
Originally, the catch was ruled incomplete, but it was overturned after the review. Brennan completed his final 17 passes of the half, breaking the UH record of 16 set by Jason Whieldon in 2003. Neither team scored in the third quarter. UW had a chance, but Ryan Perkins' 38-yard field goal was blocked by Joshua Leonard. The Warriors tied it at 28 when Brennan hit Rivers on a 40-yard streak pass at the 8:01 mark in the fourth.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
The UH defense came up big in the fourth aided by a huge penalty when Locker passed the line of scrimmage to throw what would have been a first down. Instead, the penalty was tacked on and a loss of down forcing UW to punt and setting up UH's game-winning drive. The drive started at their own 24 and the Warriors marched downfield in eight plays covering 76 yards capped by a five-yard pass to Grice-Mullen with 44 seconds left. "Coach Jones trusted me on that last call", Brennan said.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Game capsules, Washington (Pac-10)
"I told coach 'we got 'em' so I changed it to a pass play because I knew they were going to be in man. I've got the most talented receiving corps in the nation." The Huskies weren't done just yet. Locker completed a 25-yarder to Michael Gottlieb and a 49-yard bomb to Marcel Reece to the UH four. Two plays later, Locker's pass was deflected by Gerard Lewis and picked off by Ryan Mouton setting off a wild celebration.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Post Season: 2008 BCS Allstate Sugar Bowl, Georgia (SEC)
The 2008 Allstate Sugar Bowl Game was an American college football bowl game. It was part of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) for the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and was the 74th Sugar Bowl. It was played on January 1, 2008, in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Post Season: 2008 BCS Allstate Sugar Bowl, Georgia (SEC)
Because the SEC champion (LSU) was slated to participate in the BCS National Championship Game, the number-five Georgia Bulldogs were selected to host the number-ten, WAC champion Hawaii Warriors, the last undefeated major college football team going into the bowl season.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Post Season: 2008 BCS Allstate Sugar Bowl, Georgia (SEC)
The Warriors were only the third team not in any of the six BCS conferences (not counting major independent Notre Dame) to play in a BCS game. Boise State qualified for the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, and Utah made the same game two years earlier. Both teams won their respective games.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Aftermath
With Hawaii's defeat, the 2007–08 college football season ended with no undefeated teams, something that had not happened since the 2003–04 season. This is also the second time in the BCS era that this has occurred.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Aftermath
It also began a streak of three straight bowl game losses for Hawaii, a streak that has continued as of 2016. After this season, Hawaii was 40–64, and their lone winning season was also 2010.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Aftermath
Georgia DE Marcus Howard was named the MVP of the Sugar Bowl Game, the first time in its history that a purely defensive player has received the honor.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Aftermath
With the win, Georgia Head Coach Mark Richt became the first head coach in Georgia history to win more than one Sugar Bowl (his previous victory was over Florida State University following the 2002 season). Vince Dooley and Wally Butts won one Sugar Bowl each, with Dooley's only win securing the 1980 National Championship. Dooley lost four other Sugar Bowl games.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Aftermath
On January 8, Hawaii Head Coach June Jones left Hawaii to become the head coach at Southern Methodist University. He signed a five-year contract.


2007 Hawaii Warriors football team, Roster
Mario Cox: Dismissed from the team on October 30, 2007. He had played in five games this season.


2007 Hawthorn Football Club season
The 2007 season was the Hawthorn Football Club's 83rd season in the Australian Football League and 106th overall.


2007 Hayward teachers strike
The Hayward teachers strike was an April 2007 ten-day strike of teachers in the Hayward Unified School District in Hayward, California.


2007 Hayward teachers strike, Teacher demands
The teachers, counselors and nurses, represented by the Hayward Education Association (HEA), were upset over a 16% raise given to two district administrators in summer 2006. Negotiations broke down, with the HEA asking for an 8.08% retroactive raise initially, reaching 16% after 2 years, and the district offering a one time 5.5% raise (one source stating 7%) with possible subsequent increases of 1.6%, which was rejected. The district offered an additional one time 3% bonus, which was also rejected. The district had come out of receivership in 2005, and the administration was concerned about the district going back into the red. Teachers cited the administrator's raises as evidence the district undervalued teachers and might be hiding money that could be applied to teacher salaries.


2007 Hayward teachers strike, Strike
The strike commenced on 5 April 2007, with only 45 of approximately 900 teachers showing up to work, with the balance appearing in picket lines. District administrator Dale Vigil initially dismissed the strike effects, but after a week of the strike, Vigil looked to file an injunction against the HEA, to force the teachers back into classrooms. Vigil was confronted at one point by angry strikers, who pounded on his car and pushed him.


2007 Hayward teachers strike, Impact on schools
Only 4,100 of approximately 22,000 district students showed up for classes the first day of the strike. 29 schools were affected initially.


2007 Hayward teachers strike, Community and media response
Farm Workers Union founder and activist Dolores Huerta showed up to support the striking teachers. Local TV and newspaper outlets covered the story.


2007 Hayward teachers strike, Conclusion
The Hayward Teachers strike ended in a tentative agreement on 25 April 2007, when Vigil announced the settlement during a regular school board meeting. Teachers voted to pass the agreement detailing an 11% raise over the next two years, the following day, as classes resumed.


2007 Hazfi Cup Final
The 2007 Hazfi Cup Final was a two-legged football tie in order to determine the 2006–07 Hazfi Cup champion of Iranian football clubs. Saba Battery faced Sepahan in this final game. The first leg took place on Jun 09, 2007 at 17:00 local time (UTC+3:30) at Derakhshan Stadium in Robat Karim and the second leg took place on Jun 16, 2007 at 16:30 local time (UTC+3:30) at Naghsh Jahan Stadium, Esfahan.


2007 Hazfi Cup Final, Format
The rules for the final were exactly the same as the one in the previous knockout rounds. The tie was contested over two legs with away goals deciding the winner if the two teams were level on goals after the second leg. If the teams could still not be separated at that stage, then extra time would have been played with a penalty shootout (taking place if the teams were still level after extra time).


2007 Heartland Championship
The 2007 Heartland Championship was the primary provincial rugby union championship in New Zealand played between August 18 and October 18, 2007. As in the inaugural competition, the 2006 Heartland Championship, 12 teams were involved.


2007 Heartland Championship
North Otago won the Meads Cup, beating Whanganui in the final, while Poverty Bay repeated as Lochore Cup champions, overcoming a half-time deficit of 16 points to beat South Canterbury.


2007 Heartland Championship, Round 1, Standings
The top three places in each pool, highlighted in gray, advanced to the Meads Cup. The remaining teams entered the Lochore Cup.


2007 Heineken Cup Final
The 2007 Heineken Cup Final was a rugby union match played at Twickenham Stadium in London, England, on 20 May 2007 to determine the winners of the 2006–07 Heineken Cup, European rugby's premier club competition. It was contested by English clubs Leicester Tigers and London Wasps. It was the 12th Heineken Cup final overall, and the third to be contested by two teams from the same nation, after the finals of 2003 and 2005, both of which were all-French affairs. It was Leicester's fourth appearance in the final, following a defeat in 1997 and back-to-back victories in 2001 and 2002. Wasps were competing in their second final, three years after their last appearance in 2004, also at Twickenham, which was hosting the final for the third time after 2000 and 2004.


2007 Heineken Cup Final
Each club needed to progress through the group stage and two knockout rounds to reach the final, playing eight matches in total. Wasps and Tigers each won their respective groups to qualify for the quarter-finals. Wasps advanced to the final after defeating Irish side Leinster in the quarter-finals and fellow English club Northampton Saints in the semi-final. Tigers made the final after wins over French side Stade Français in the quarter-finals and the Llanelli Scarlets Welsh regional side in their semi-final. Alan Lewis was the referee for the match, which was played in front of a crowd of 81,076 – a world record for a club rugby union match – and broadcast worldwide in more than 100 countries.


2007 Heineken Cup Final
The first score of the match came from Wasps' Alex King, who kicked a penalty in the 4th minute, but Andy Goode equalised for Tigers with another penalty three minutes later. Wasps went back in front thanks to a try from scrum-half Eoin Reddan in the 13th minute, only for King to miss the conversion.


2007 Heineken Cup Final
Tigers reduced the deficit to two points with a quarter of an hour gone, when Goode scored his second penalty following an infringement by Fraser Waters on Lewis Moody, but Raphaël Ibañez extended Wasps' lead with their second try in the 34th minute, only for King to again miss the conversion. A third penalty for Goode two minutes from half-time meant Wasps led 13–9 at the interval. In the second half, three penalties and a drop goal from King, unanswered by Leicester, ensured Wasps won the game 25–9 and their second Heineken Cup.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Background
The Heineken Cup, European rugby's premier club competition, was established by the Five Nations Committee in 1995 to provide a new level of professional cross-border rugby competition. Clubs from the Premiership Rugby, Pro14, Super 10 and the Top 14 leagues qualified for the competition based on their performance in their respective national leagues.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Background
The 2007 final was the last match of the 2006–07 Heineken Cup and the 12th final of the Heineken Cup. It was the first time in the competition's 12-year history that two English clubs would play each other in the final. This was London Wasps' second Heineken Cup final and their first since beating Toulouse 27–20 in the 2004 final. Leicester Tigers had conversely appeared in four previous finals, the most recent being the 2002 final when they defeated Munster 15–9. The two sides had met each other in the competition twice before in December 2004.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Background
Leicester Tigers had won each of their two meetings in the 2004–05 Heineken Cup pool stage. Tigers won the two fixtures between the two clubs in the 2006–07 Premiership Rugby 19–13 at Adams Park in November 2006 and 40–26 at Welford Road Stadium in April 2007. It was the Tigers' third cup final of the season; they had won the 2006–07 EDF Energy Cup and the 2006–07 Premiership Rugby. This meant that the club were aiming to achieve the first treble in English rugby union history.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final
The 2006–07 Heineken Cup featured 24 teams from England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France and Italy who were assigned into six groups of four each. Teams were awarded four points for a win, two for a draw and bonuses were given to clubs scoring four of more tries or losing by seven or fewer points. The winners of each of the six groups as well as the two highest-placed runners-up qualified for the quarter-finals. The four quarter-final winners made the semi-finals which decided the two teams who would face each other in the final.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, London Wasps
Wasps were assigned to the first pool along with Benetton Treviso, Castres and Perpignan. Wasps won their first match 19–16 at home at Adams Park on 21 October 2006, but were defeated 19–12 by Perpignan in their first away fixture of the pool at Stade Aimé Giral a week later. The club's third pool match saw them whitewash Treviso 55–0 in poor weather at Adams Park on 10 December 2006 with a Heineken Cup club-record nine tries and five conversions. The result gave Wasps enough points to usurp Castres atop the pool table.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, London Wasps
The return fixture at Stadio Comunale di Monigo six days later saw Wasps defeat Treviso 71–5 with a club-record eleven tries and eight conversions to go one point atop the pool table ahead of Perpignan. Wasps' fifth pool game saw the club beating Perpignan 22–14 at Adams Park and needing to win their final match to qualify for the knockout stages. They were able to reach the quarter-finals in their final pool game with a 16–13 victory over Castres at Stade Pierre-Antoine one week later.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, London Wasps
In the quarter-finals, Wasps were drawn to play Leinster and the match was played at Adams Park on 31 March 2007. Wasps made but ultimately withdrew a request to host the match at a larger ground so they could receive more gate receipts. Two Alex King penalties and one conversion and Eoin Reddan's try gave Wasps the lead. Chris Whitaker's try and Felipe Contepomi's try and conversion for Leinster made it 13–10 to Wasps at half-time.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, London Wasps
Second-half tries from James Haskell, Daniel Cipriani and Reddan as well as a penalty and conversion from King ensured Wasps won the match 35–13 to make the semi-finals. In the semi-final, played at Ricoh Arena on 22 April 2007, Wasps faced fellow Premiership Rugby side Northampton Saints. A try, conversion and two penalties all scored by Bruce Reihana put Saints 13–0 ahead before Wasps won the match 30–13 and progression to the final with scoring by Paul Sackey, Haskell, Mark van Gisbergen and Josh Lewsey.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers were drawn into the fourth pool along with Munster, Cardiff Blues and Bourgoin. Tigers lost their first match of the pool 19–21 to Munster at home at Welford Road Stadium on 22 October, ending the side's 26-match unbeaten record at home. The team won their following match 21–17 away to Cardiff Blues at Millennium Stadium a week later. Tigers' third pool game, held on 8 December 2006 at Stade Pierre Rajon in heavy rain forcing a pitch inspection, was against the yet-to-win Bourgoin.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, Leicester Tigers
They led Bourgoin 28–3 at half time with three tries and penalties as well as two conversions. Although Bourgoin scored 10 points in the second half, Tigers won 28–13 and claimed their second victory in succession at an away venue. The return fixture at Welford Road eight days later saw Tigers defeat Bourgoin 57–3 with eight tries, seven conversions and one penalty.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, Leicester Tigers
Tigers' second match against Cardiff Blues, this time at Welford Road on 13 January 2007, saw the side score six tries and two Ian Humphreys conversions in a 34–0 victory to set up a final match decider with Munster at Thomond Park the following week. Tigers beat Munster 13–6 to end Munster's 26-match unbeaten home record in the Heineken Cup and qualify for the quarter-finals.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, Leicester Tigers
In the quarter-finals, Tigers played Stade Français at home on 1 April 2007. Tigers took the lead inside three minutes when Seru Rabeni scored a try. Penalties from Stade's David Skrela and a Juan Martín Hernández try tied the match 11–11 at half-time. In the second half, Skrela scored a penalty from 35 metres (38 yd) to put Stade in the lead equalled by Andy Goode for Tigers seven minutes later. Skrela's subsequent penalty and drop kick from 40 metres (44 yd) put Stade 20–14 ahead.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Route to the final, Leicester Tigers
On 72 minutes, Tom Varndell scored a try under the goal post that was converted by Goode for Tigers to win 21–20 and make the semi-finals. In the semi-final held at Walkers Stadium on 21 April 2007, Tigers played Llanelli Scarlets. Tigers took a 16–10 lead before half-time through points all accumulated by Goode. In the second half, a Matthew Rees try converted by Stephen Jones gave Scarlets a 17–16 advantage. Tries by Shane Jennings and Louis Deacon that were each converted by Goode betwixt a Goode penalty saw Tigers win 33–17 and qualify for the final.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Pre-match
In April 2006, European Rugby Cup (ERC), the organisers of the Heineken Cup, awarded the right to host the 2007 final to Twickenham Stadium in South West London. It was the third time the stadium had hosted the Heineken Cup final. Twickenham had previously staged the 2000 Heineken Cup Final between Northampton Saints and Munster, which Northampton won 9–8, and the 2004 Heineken Cup Final. The referee for the match was Alan Lewis, representing the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU).


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Pre-match
It would be the first time the 42-year-old Lewis would officiate a Heineken Cup final although he had refereed the European Challenge Cup finals of 2002 and 2005. Lewis' assistants were Alain Rolland, and Simon McDowell, also representing the IRFU. The fourth official was Peter Fitzgibbon, also from the IRFU. The IRFU's David McHugh was the television match official. Douglas Hunter and Richard McGhee of the Scotland Rugby Union (SRU) were the citing and match commissioners. Both clubs sold out their 9,500 ticket allocation distributed to their supporters. A total of 56,000 tickets were sold to the general public and 7,000 were allocated to ERC's European rugby stakeholders. The match was broadcast worldwide in more than 100 countries.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Pre-match
This was the last match for both coach Pat Howard and centre Daryl Gibson at Tigers, who were replaced by Marcelo Loffreda and Aaron Mauger respectively. Shaun Edwards, a Wasps coach, called the match "the biggest game ever between Wasps and Leicester and the biggest club rugby match ever in the world since the sport began 100 years ago" and that his team did not need internal motivation "because it's Wasps versus Leicester." He added: "If we allow ourselves to be bullied, we'll get what we deserve. If we can't handle Tuilagi or Seru Rabeni then we're in trouble."


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Pre-match
Paul Sackey, a winger for Wasps, said before the match that his team would be inspired by their 2003–04 Premiership Rugby final day defeat to Tigers and felt they could equal their physical strength: "Talking Leicester up is half a bonus for us because we're the underdogs. We're really disappointed we haven't got any silverware yet this year and that motivates us even more." Tigers captain Martin Corry did not wish to make a comparison with his team's Premiership win to potential events at Twickenham, saying: "We will enjoy the victory and enjoy lifting the trophy, but we will make sure that come Monday we're all focusing completely on Wasps."


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Pre-match
Tigers were considered favourites to win the final by bookmakers. Wasps fly-half King had recovered from a knee and hamstring injury sustained on the final day of the Premiership Rugby season three weeks earlier to be selected amongst the club's starting lineup. Gibson was returned to the centre position, replacing Ollie Smith. Phil Vickery was due to move to loose head prop since no replacement was found for the injured Tim Payne, but instead played at tight head to accommodate the inclusion of Tom French, who replaced Peter Bracken at the front.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Pre-match
Josh Lewsey played in centre in place of Dominic Waldouck, who was put onto the substitutes bench. Tigers registered no scrum half covers for the fixture. They were without scrum half Harry Ellis who, during the 2006–07 Premiership Rugby final, sustained a anterior cruciate ligament rupture in his left knee, requiring reconstructive surgery. Ian Humphreys was named to the substitutes bench in place of Ben Youngs, who was ineligible to play in European matches. The club were without Martin Castrogiovanni who was sidelined with a sprained right knee.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, First half
Goode commenced the match in hot weather at 14:30 British Summer Time (UTC+01:00) on 20 May 2007, in front of a crowd of 81,076 spectators, a world record crowd for a rugby union club fixture. After eight seconds, Tigers were awarded a turnover after Wasps' Lewsey fouled Frank Murphy. Wasps earned two penalties in quick succession due to infringements by Tigers. For each, King elected to attempt a kick at goal, and was successful in his second attempt slightly to the left of the goal from 22 metres (24 yd) on four minutes.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, First half
The match was temporarily interrupted on five minutes when King needed treating following an attempted incorrect tackle on Lewis Moody. After seven minutes, Tigers earned a penalty kick after Lawrence Dallaglio was adjudged to have been on the incorrect side of the tackle area. Goode kicked the ball between the goal posts to equalise at 3–3. A third penalty was awarded to Wasps when Tigers were deemed to have come on the side. King's wide shot from the left struck the left upright of the goalpost. On 13 minutes, Raphaël Ibañez looked at his choice for a short-range line-out, and Reddan collected his underarm pass from a short distance. Reddan ran 20 metres (22 yd) unchallenged to the left-hand corner and scored a try to make it 8–3 to Wasps.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, First half
King's attempt to convert the try went across the posts. Two minutes later, Fraser Waters blocked Moody as the former tried to protect Joe Worsley at the kick-off in front of the referee and the goal posts. The result earned Tigers a penalty kick, which was scored by Goode for his second of the match to make it 8–6. Wasps received another penalty after 18 minutes when Corry was reprimanded by Lewis for not moving away from the ball. King's penalty kick was a weak effort from 45 metres (49 yd), giving him his third miss of the day.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, First half
Play was stopped on 27 minutes due to a dispute between Vickery and Corry which was found to have been started by the former. Tigers earned a penalty in a five-metre scrum but Goode's kick went straight down the field. Ibañez passed low to Simon Shaw, who was near the five-metre line. Shaw returned the ball to Ibañez, who ran to the corner unchallenged and scored Wasps' second try to double their lead to 13–6 on 34 minutes. King was again unable to convert the try when the ball hit the goalposts at his fourth shot at goal. Four minutes later, Tigers earned a penalty kick when Tom Palmer committed an infraction at a ruck. Goode scored to complete a penalty hat-trick. No further points were scored and the first half ended with Wasps leading 13–9.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Second half
Neither side made changes to their lineup during the interval. Two minutes into the second half, Wasps increased their lead through a King penalty kick going between the posts from 30 metres (33 yd). This came after Alesana Tuilagi was observed holding the ball longer than allowed during a tackle. Another penalty was awarded on 44 minutes this time to Tigers but Goode's shot went wide. In the 48th minute, Sackey was gang-tackled by three Tigers players and needed treatment.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Second half
Lewis observed Tuilagi committing a second infringement when the latter was offside in a ruck and the referee awarded Wasps a penalty in the 49th minute. King kicked to the right of the goal from 35 metres (38 yd) and scored his third penalty of the match to extend Wasps' lead to 19–9. On 50 minutes, Smith came on for Gibson in the centre at Tigers. Dallaglio picked up a left knee injury and was replaced by James Haskell a minute later. After 54 minutes, Vickery gathered the ball and allowed Tom Voyce to get a position that allowed King to make a drop kick from in front of the goal posts and increase Wasps' lead by three more points.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Second half
Wasps replaced Shaw with Daniel Leo in the 55th minute. Tuilagi went to fly-half and threw a high pass over Geordan Murphy's head before Dan Hipkiss broke through the Wasps defense and passed the ball to Smith, who then gave it to Corry. In the 62nd minute, Tigers brought Ian Humphreys on for Goode. In the 68th minute, Hipkiss passed to Tuilagi, who ran to within 10 metres (11 yd) on the left before he was tackled by Ciprani who was then supported by other Wasps players.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Second half
The subsequent defensive scrum saw Haskell run 70 metres (77 yd) up the field before Humphreys tackled him 5 metres (5.5 yd) from the line. Tigers flankers were observed to be offside at the ruck, earning Wasps a penalty kick. King, kicking from the right, successfully scored his fourth penalty in the 73rd minute. In the concluding seven minutes, Tigers substituted four players and Wasps made five personnel issues but no further points were scored. Lewis blew the final whistle, with Wasps winning the match 25–9 and their second Heineken Cup.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Match, Details
Assistant refereesAlain Rolland (Ireland)Simon McDowell (Ireland)Fourth officialPeter Fitzgibbon (Ireland)Television match officialDavid McHugh (Ireland)Citing commissionerDouglas Hunter (Scotland) Match commissionerRichard McGhee (Scotland)


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Post-match
The Heineken Cup trophy was lifted by both Wasps captain Dallaglio and King following the presentation of runners-up medals to the Tigers side. Fraser was named man of the match but returned the glass vase presented to him because he did not want to damage it celebrating Wasps' victory on the pitch. Dallaglio commented on the victory: "Being underdogs pumps you up. We defended as if our lives depended on it. That was our greatest ever win in a final." He added: "Of all the finals that was number one without a doubt.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Post-match
Everyone was telling us that was the best Leicester team ever, so we must be the best Wasps team ever." Worsley noted the team had not been consistent all year "but on our day we're awesome". Wasps' head coach Ian McGeechan commented: "I don't know what the second team are going to say. They're the only team to have beaten the European champions." Ibañez remarked: "You can’t imagine how good it feels to have win the Heineken Cup with these guys – it is fantastic. Those two lineout tries were good weren’t they – two specials!"


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Post-match
Howard, who flew back to Australia to take over the family pharmacy business following a two-year spell as Tigers' coach, spoke of his team's failure to win the treble: "To do a treble is an amazing thing. You've got to turn up lots of times. For the first time, we let ourselves down today." He also noted Wasps' physicality and Tigers' slight loss of composure contributed to their defeat. Nevertheless, Howard declared he was "immensely proud" of the club and commented: "It's been pretty special this year, but we've let ourselves down today.


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Post-match
I'll be down for an hour or so then I'm going to celebrate our two wins." Corry admitted Wasps' outplayed the Tigers but said fatigue played no part in their defeat, adding: "Those tries cost us the game. When you defend the line-out as fiercely as we do it leaves you vulnerable and Wasps found the holes. In the second half we gave everything. I saw that in the lads' eyes. As a captain and coach that's all you can ask for."


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Post-match
Wasps received £37,000 for winning the final. McGeechan criticised the prize money disparity in winning the Heineken Cup and being relegated from Premiership Rugby, saying: "At present, the system penalises Wasps when we give up a dozen players to Test rugby because under the current share-out of funds, we do not have the money to bring in new players. It's just not possible."


2007 Heineken Cup Final, Post-match
Dallaglio raised concern over the level of financial investment and Wasps' resources, adding: "We need to go away and address the issues off the field and make sure we don't fail because of our lack of ability to compete at that level. We need to sort ourselves out and move forward. We need to compete with the likes of Leicester, Harlequins and Northampton who have great facilities."


2007 Heineken Open
The 2007 Heineken Open was an ATP Tour tennis tournament held on outdoor hard courts at the ASB Tennis Centre in Auckland, New Zealand from 8 January until 15 January 2007.


2007 Heineken Open
The tournament saw third-seeded David Ferrer claim his first of three tournaments this year, which was also his first hardcourt final.


2007 Heineken Open, Finals, Doubles
Jeff Coetzee /  Rogier Wassen defeated  Simon Aspelin /  Chris Haggard, 6–7(9–11), 6–3, [10–2]


2007 Heineken Open – Doubles
The Doubles competition of the 2007 Heineken Open tennis tournament was held on outdoor hard courts at the ASB Tennis Centre in Auckland, New Zealand between 8-15 January 2007. Andrei Pavel and Rogier Wassen were the defending champions, but Pavel did not participate this year.


2007 Heineken Open – Doubles
Jeff Coetzee and Wassen won in the final 6–7(9–11), 6–3, [10–2], against Simon Aspelin and Chris Haggard.


2007 Heineken Open – Singles
Following are the results of the 2007 Heineken Open – Singles competition.


2007 Heineken Open – Singles
Jarkko Nieminen was the defending champion, but he lost in the first round to Olivier Rochus. David Ferrer defeated Tommy Robredo 6–4, 6–2 to claim the title.


2007 Hel van het Mergelland
The 2007 Hel van het Mergelland was the 34th edition of the Volta Limburg Classic cycle race and was held on 7 April 2007. The race started and finished in Eijsden. The race was won by Nico Sijmens.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes
The 2007 Helmand province airstrikes were a set of airstrikes conducted by NATO on 22 June 2007 which resulted in death of at least 45 Afghan civilians. The death count in southern Helmand province was the highest since 2001, when US-led forces used heavy bombing in their campaign to drive the Taliban from power.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, Background
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. This marked the beginning of the U.S. War on Terror. The stated purpose of the invasion was to capture Osama bin Laden, destroy Al-Qaeda, and remove the Taliban regime which had provided support and safe harbor to Al-Qaeda.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, Background
The U.S. and Britain led the aerial bombing campaign, with ground forces supplied primarily by the Afghan Northern Alliance and supplemented by NATO troops. The U.S. military name of the conflict was Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, Background
A U.N. tally shows that of civilian deaths this year, 314 were caused by international or Afghan security forces, and 279 by insurgents. A similar Associated Press count, though lower, shows the same trend: 213 killed by the U.S. or NATO and 180 by the Taliban.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, The event
On 22 June 2007, NATO fighters attacked alleged insurgents in South Afghanistan. They targeted several houses in the southern part of Helmand province. What is not clear is exactly how many people died. It is known that women and children were among the dead, some local leaders say over 100 people were killed. The US and NATO say they do not have civilian casualty figures.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, Afghans' reaction
Civilian deaths have infuriated Afghans. Afghan president Hamid Karzai has condemned the forces for carelessness and viewing Afghan lives as "cheap." He has also blamed the Taliban for using civilians as human shields. President Hamid Karzai ordered a six-man team to conduct a more thorough investigation into the dozens of deaths in Helmand province, said Sher Mohammad Akhanzada, a member of parliament from the province. Karzai accused NATO of careless operation.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, NATO's response
NATO, which has admitted some civilians were killed in the battle late Friday but says the number is far fewer than 45, welcomed Karzai's order.


2007 Helmand Province airstrikes, International reactions
Pakistan condemned civilian killings by NATO forces in tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.


2007 Helsingborgs IF season
Helsingborgs IF had the most successful international run from a Swedish club for quite a while, beating Heerenveen and Galatasaray in The UEFA Cup, before losing out to Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven in the last 32.


2007 Helvetia Cup
The 2007 Helvetia Cup or 2007 European B Team Championships in badminton was held from January 17 to January 21 in Reykjavík, Iceland.


2007 Helvetia Cup
The three better teams of the competition won promotion to the top group.


2007 Herefordshire Council election
Elections to Herefordshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, along with the other local elections in England and Scotland. The entire council was up for election, with each successful candidate serving a four-year term of office, expiring in 2011. The Conservative Party gained a majority on the council, after seven years of the council being under no overall control.


2007 Herefordshire Council election, Council Composition
Prior to the election the composition of the council was:


2007 Herefordshire Council election, Ward Results
Asterisks denote incumbent Councillors seeking re-election. All results are listed below:


2007 Herefordshire Council election, Ward Results, Hollington
Cllr Dawe previously stood as an Independent candidate in 2003.


2007 Herefordshire Council election, Ward Results, Mortimer
The single seat in this ward was uncontested. The incumbent Conservative Party candidate Lillian Olwyn Barnett remained as the councillor for this ward.


2007 Hertsmere Borough Council election
The 2007 Hertsmere Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2007 to elect members of Hertsmere Borough Council in Hertfordshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.


2007 Hertsmere Borough Council election, Background
Before the election the Conservatives controlled the council with 28 seats, while the Liberal Democrats were the main opposition with 6 seats. 15 of the 39 seats were being contested at the election.


2007 Hertsmere Borough Council election, Background
The election in Borehamwood Kenilworth ward saw the sitting Labour councillor for the previous 24 years, Frank Ward, stand as an independent against Conservative and Labour candidates. This came after Ward was deselected by the local Labour Party, with Ward accusing local Labour party members of a conspiracy and religious discrimination. However this was denied by Labour, with Labour saying he had "failed to meet the required standards to be considered as a Labour Party candidate".


2007 Hertsmere Borough Council election, Election result
The Conservatives maintained their majority on the council, staying on 28 seats after both gaining and losing a seat. The Liberal Democrats gained Bushey St James from the Conservatives to rise to 7 seats, but the Conservatives also gained a seat from Labour in Borehamwood Kenilworth, meaning that Labour was reduced to 4 councillors.


2007 Hertsmere Borough Council election, Election result
Conservative Penelope Swallow won in Borehamwood Kenilworth with a 49-vote majority over Labour, with independent Frank Ward having taken 216 votes. Ward said he was pleased with the result as he "was only determined that I would split the Labour vote, so to some extent I did win." However the retiring Labour group leader Leon Reefe said they felt "betrayed" by Ward.


2007 Higashiōsaka city assembly election
Higashiōsaka, Osaka held an election for the city assembly on September 23, 2007. The right-wing parties Liberal Democratic Party of Japan and New Komeito won a majority. The Japanese Communist Party emerged as the biggest opposition party.


2007 Higashiōsaka city assembly election, Issues
The major issue was the no-confidence vote towards mayor Junzō Nagao, a member of the Japanese Communist Party. Submitted shortly before the election it will force a mayoral election on October 23.


2007 Higashiōsaka city assembly election, Results
The results showed an increase of the vote for the Japanese Communist Party with almost 10,000 votes since last election and all nine candidates was elected. The LDP lost two seats, as did the New Komeito.


2007 High Peak Borough Council election
Elections to High Peak Borough Council in Derbyshire, England were held on 3 May 2007. All of the council was up for election and the control of the council changed from no overall control to Conservative control. Overall turnout was 38.2%.


2007 Highland Council election
Elections to the Highland Council were held on 3 May 2007; the same day as elections to the Scottish Parliament and to the 31 other councils in Scotland. Previous elections to the Council had been conducted using the single member plurality system (a.k.a. ' First Past the Post'). Changes implemented by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 meant that future local government elections were to be conducted using the Single Transferable Vote, beginning with those in 2007. The 80 Highland Councillors were now to be elected from 22 wards, returning either three or four members.


2007 Highland Council election
The election saw Independent councillors retain their plurality, despite losing a significant number of members, and the Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party both increasing their representation, with that of the Labour Party decreasing. The Independent and SNP groups subsequently went into coalition to form the Administration of the Council.


2007 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Legislative Assembly elections were held in Himachal Pradesh in 2007.


2007 Hitman case
The 2007 hitman case is an Australian criminal case involving Steven Wayne Spaliviero and Swede Charlotte Karin Lindström. Lindström is so far the only one sentenced for the crime. Spaliviero served 11 years in prison and was released October 2017, but was never charged for the hitman case. The hitman case has been widely reported by media in Australia and Scandinavia.


2007 Hitman case, Charlotte Lindström
Charlotte Karin Lindström (born 9 August 1984 in Sollentuna, Sweden) is a former waitress, promotion model, and former prisoner having spent three years in a Sydney jail after being arrested on 26 May 2007 in Sydney, Australia on suspicion of trying to hire a hitman to kill two men who were about to testify against her boyfriend Steven Spaliviero in court.


2007 Hitman case, Case
Lindström arrived in Sydney in 2004 working as a part-time model as well as a waitress in the exclusive nightclub Hemmesphere in Sydney.


2007 Hitman case, Case
In Sydney, Lindström met Steven Spaliviero and they soon started a relationship living in an apartment in Darling Harbour. Lindström later told the court that she soon realised that he was both a wealthy businessman and a drug dealer. In early 2007, investigators started to look into Spaliviero's business and soon found two witnesses who said they had information about the man's drug dealing business. At that time Spaliviero was already on bail from Melbourne in relation to another drug case. Spaliviero was arrested, refused bail and sent to Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre ("MRRC") in Silverwater, New South Wales.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
In MRRC, Spaliviero allegedly met another inmate who offered him to get witnesses in Spaliviero's case killed. In relation to this, Spaliviero phoned Lindström from MRRC telling her to meet a "solicitor" and give him money.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
Lindström started acting upon instructions from Spaliviero. When Lindström finally met who she thought was a hitman, but who in reality was an undercover police officer, she was arrested. The police officer on the case stated that Lindström wanted to have two men taken to the "cemetery" which meant she wanted them dead. The price was agreed as A$100,000 for each contract.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
Upon her arrest on 26 May Lindström was remanded in custody. Later an application for bail was made where Steven Spaliviero's mother, Dolores Spaliviero, offered to put up A$2,000,000 surety to get Lindström out from custody. In addition, Lindström's friend and employer, Justin Hemmes provided an undertaking that if Lindström was set free on bail, he would let her continue her work at the Hemmesphere nightclub until the trial. The application for bail was denied due to flight risk and Lindström was remanded in custody.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
On 18 September, having had a deal made with the prosecutors Lindström pleaded guilty to the charges. On 21 December, she pleaded guilty in another court in Sydney. Lindström appeared in a bullet-proof vest at her court hearings because of the alleged death threats against her.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
Lindström was initially sentenced to four years in jail being eligible for early parole on 25 May 2009. Even though Lindström was given a hefty discount from her sentence because she had agreed to testify against Steven Spaliviero and two other men, the Crown appealed against the sentence as "manifestly inadequate". The criminal court of appeals heard the appeal on 4 July 2008.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
On 23 July 2008, her maximum sentence was increased from three years and ten months to four years and nine months, making her eligible for parole in May 2010. On 11 August 2008, Lindström started testifying against Spaliviero in his court case, even reading a love letter to the court which she had written to him in February 2007, some months before her own arrest.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
Despite Lindström's extensive testimonies, Spaliviero and two other defendants were found not guilty for the murder plot.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
Lindström was released on parole from Long Bay jail in New South Wales on 25 May 2010 and deported the next day from Australia.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
Since her release from prison, Lindström has returned to her native home Sweden and is understood to have had ongoing threats against her life.


2007 Hitman case, Murder plot
According to the Australian media, on 15 August 2010, Charlotte Lindström agreed to return to Australia to testify in the trial of Spaliviero's associate. Due to an unspecified severe illness, she has not been allowed to travel to Australia. The upcoming trial has been postponed.


2007 Hitman case, Court hearings after sentence
On 11 August 2008, Lindström was in court reading the love letter she wrote to Steven in February 2007, some months before her own arrest.


2007 Hitman case, Court hearings after sentence
In June 2009, Lindström started to testify against Spaliviero in a Sydney courtroom. A video of Lindströms 2007 arrest in Sydney was also released to the media. However, in July 2009 Steven Spaliviero and two suspected accomplices were found not guilty of conspiracy to murder the witnesses. Spaliviero argued that Lindström had acted alone and that he, Spaliviero, only wanted to discredit the witnesses, not murder them.


2007 Hitman case, Media
In November, a few months after being released Charlotte Lindström appeared on the Australian 60 Minutes on Channel 9 telling about her time in jail and about how she could do the crime she was sentenced for.


2007 Hitman case, Media
Channel 9 in Australia aired a documentary on 6 September 2011 concentrating on Charlotte Lindström's murder plot. According to the article in The Sydney Morning Herald Charlotte Lindström "no longer has feelings for" Steven Spaliviero.


2007 Hitman case, Media
Steven Spaliviero published a book in 2017 called Narco X about his criminal past and his relationship with Lindström.


2007 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament
The 2007 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 23rd Tournament in the history of the conference. It was played between March 8 and March 17, 2007. Quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the final four games were played at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, the home venue of the NHL's Boston Bruins. By winning the tournament Boston College received the Hockey East's automatic bid to the 2007 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.


2007 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Format
The tournament featured three rounds of play. The teams that finish below eighth in the conference are not eligible for tournament play. In the first round, the first and eighth seeds, the second and seventh seeds, the third seed and sixth seeds, and the fourth seed and fifth seeds played a best-of-three with the winner advancing to the semifinals. In the semifinals, the highest and lowest seeds and second highest and second lowest seeds play a single-elimination game, with the winner advancing to the championship game. The tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the 2007 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.


2007 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Conference Standings
Note: GP = Games Played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; PTS = Points; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against


2007 Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters season
The 2007 Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters season was the 62nd season for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters franchise.


2007 Hokkaido gubernatorial election
A gubernatorial election was held on 8 April 2007 to elect the Governor of Hokkaido Prefecture.


2007 Holiday Bowl
The 2007 Pacific Life Holiday Bowl was a college football bowl game played December 27, 2007 in San Diego. It was part of the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season and one of 32 games in the 2007–08 bowl season. It featured the Texas Longhorns against the Arizona State Sun Devils. Texas won 52–34 and set Holiday Bowl records for the earliest score and for most points scored in the first quarter. Texas also set a school record for most points scored in a bowl game. A bizarre play involving Chris Jessee, a member of the Longhorn football operations staff and the stepson of the Texas head coach, has been cited as one of the strangest plays of the season.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Bowl background
The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I FBS college football bowl game that has been played annually at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, since 1978. The game is currently sponsored by Pacific Life Insurance, so it is known as the "Pacific Life Holiday Bowl"; previous title sponsors have been SeaWorld, Thrifty Car Rental, Plymouth, and Culligan. Bowl games typically have contracts with specific colleges to provide eligible teams. The conferences affiliated with the Holiday Bowl has changed over the history of the bowl. As of 2007, the game features the 2nd place Pac-10 team and the 3rd place Big 12 team.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Bowl background
In 2004, one-loss California was blown out in an upset by the Big 12's Texas Tech, 45–31. Sonny Cumbie, Tech's quarterback, had one of the most memorable performances in Holiday Bowl history. In 2005, an Oregon team playing without its star quarterback (10–1) lost to a battered Oklahoma team, 17–14, solidifying many people's opinions that Oregon was unworthy of a BCS bid. Oklahoma's victory in 2005 was vacated as penalty for having two ineligible players on the team. As a result, there is officially no winner to that game. In the 2006 Holiday Bowl,  the California Golden Bears defeated the Texas A&M Aggies 45–10.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Bowl background
One of the more popular (yet unusual) events associated with the Holiday Bowl is the Wiener Nationals, the national championships for the U.S. dachshund racing circuit.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Team selection
Before the official bowl invitations were made, executive director Bruce Binkowski speculated that the matchup would be Texas vs. USC, which would have been a rematch of the classic 2006 Rose Bowl.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Team selection
With Texas' loss to Texas A&M the Longhorns fell out of contention for a BCS bowl; their bowl situation would be decided largely by the play of other Big 12 teams. Number four Missouri beat number two Kansas to win the Big 12 North Division. Missouri rose to the top spot in the BCS rankings prior to facing Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game. Oklahoma won the game to become the Big 12 Conference champion and secure their berth in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Team selection
Even though Missouri defeated Kansas, won their division, and outranked Kansas in the BCS standings (number 6 compared to number 8 the Orange Bowl selected Kansas instead of Missouri to play in the 2008 Orange Bowl. BCS rules do not provide for all the highest ranked teams to be automatically included in BCS games; considerable discretion is given to the individual bowls in choosing among eligible teams. The Tigers were invited to play in the 2008 Cotton Bowl Classic; the Cotton Bowl Classic having first pick of Big 12 teams after the BCS bowls have made their selections. The Holiday Bowl had the next selection and they chose Texas.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Team selection
Arizona State University was ranked number 11 in the BCS standings and they were eligible for a BCS bowl themselves, but like Missouri, ASU was left out of the BCS selections. They were the two highest ranked teams not selected for BCS bowls. This was primarily because the Rose Bowl selection committee chose to arrange a Pac10/Big10 matchup by pitting the lower ranked Illinois against Pac-10 representative USC.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Team selection
Another factor was BCS Buster Hawaii being ranked 10th; the rules specify that a non-BCS team is automatically selected if they are ranked 10th or higher and if an at-large bid is available. The Holiday Bowl selected the Sun Devils to face the Longhorns to set up the first meeting in the history of the two programs.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Texas
The bowl was the 10th straight bowl invitation for Texas, setting a new school record by beating the previous streak of nine straight bowl games from 1977–85. The Horns entered the game with a 6–3 bowl record under head coach Mack Brown, including victories in five of their last six bowl games and three consecutive bowl wins for the first time in school history. Texas beat Michigan 38–37 on a last-second field goal in the 2005 Rose Bowl and defeated USC 41–38 in the final minute of the 2006 Rose Bowl. They beat Iowa 26–24 in the 2006 Alamo Bowl.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Texas
It was the Texas’ 47th bowl appearance, which ranks second all-time in NCAA history behind Alabama's 54 appearances. That made Texas one of only four schools nationally to win three bowl games in a row. Including six seasons at North Carolina, Brown had directed his teams to 16 straight bowl games – the second-longest active streak in the nation.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Texas
The game was UT's fourth appearance in the Holiday Bowl. Except for BYU with eleven appearances, Texas has played in the Holiday Bowl more times than any other team. All three previous UT appearances were close contests, decided by a total of 17 points. UT defeated Washington, 47–43, in 2001, and fell to Oregon, 35–30, in 2000 and Washington State, 28–20, in 2003. In the 2001 game, quarterback Major Applewhite led Texas to set a Holiday Bowl record by overcoming a 19-point second-half deficit to win the game. UT scored 27 fourth-quarter points to secure the win.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Texas
Brown said, "As a team, our focus will be on getting that 10th win and keeping our bowl winning streak alive. We've got a lot of work to do and the Holiday Bowl always seems to be a wild game with lots of sudden changes so we're looking forward to getting back on the practice field and preparing to play."


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Texas
The game was the sixth time in the eight consecutive seasons that the Longhorns had played in either this game or in the Rose Bowl; both are held in southern California. This led Long Beach Press-Telegram columnist Bob Keisser to joke that the team would be renamed "the University of Texas-La Jolla." Entering the game, the Longhorns were averaging 462.0 yards of total offense (13th in the NCAA), 199.8 rushing yards (25th in the NCAA), 262.2 passing yards (36th in the NCAA) and 36.0 points per game (19th NCAA). Defensively, Texas was allowing 24.6 points, 374.8 total yards, 99.3 rushing yards per game (10th in the NCAA).


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Texas
Because of the loss to Texas A&M, Mack Brown put the Longhorns through a boot camp in preparation for the bowl. Practices began at 6:00 am, starting positions were declared open to the best player, and players who made mistakes were forced to take ownership of those mistakes in front of the team.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Arizona State
ASU completed a 10–2 regular season and won a share of the Pac-10 Conference Championship. Their won–loss record tied that of the USC Trojans, but the Trojans won the tie-breaker by virtue of winning their game against ASU. The Trojans went to the 2008 Rose Bowl as conference champion and the Holiday Bowl selected ASU. The Sun Devils finished the regular season ranked number 11 in the final BCS rankings, number 11 in Coaches poll and number 12 in the AP rankings while Texas was number 19 in the BCS and number 17 in both the coaches and AP rankings.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Arizona State
When the Holiday Bowl chose ASU, the Sun Devils head Coach Dennis Erickson said, "We're excited about going to the Holiday Bowl. We get to play Texas. That's a great program, a historic program, and great opportunity for us. As I said last night after the game, we have no control over the BCS; all we can do is go out there and play football. Which we did a good job of 10 times. That's something that they have to deal with and they dealt with it and they did the best they can do with they system.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Arizona State
This is just how it is. Our players are really excited about going where we're going." Vice President for ASU Athletics Lisa Love said. "Playing a perennial power like the University of Texas, December 27 in the Holiday Bowl, which, by the way, is wonderfully hosted by that committee. This is a great, step forward. This is exactly what we wanted to do. We are very pleased to be mentioned in the same breath as a program like Texas."


2007 Holiday Bowl, Pre-game notes, Arizona State
The Sun Devils were competing in a bowl game for the fourth-year in a row and were appearing in the Holiday Bowl for the third time in program history. The Sun Devils lost to Arkansas, 18–17 in 1985 and to Kansas State, 34–27 in 2002. The Sun Devils held a 12–9–1 all-time bowl record. Their most recent appearance was a 42 21 loss to Hawaii in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl at the end of the 2006 season.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary
One week prior to the game, Las Vegas casinos favored Texas by 2 points. Rivals.com favored Texas by 1½ points. The game was played Thursday, December 27, 2007 at 7:00 pm Central in San Diego's 70,561-seat Qualcomm Stadium and the official attendance was 64,020. ESPN provided both national television and national radio coverage of the game. The temperature was 53 °F (12 °C) at kick-off but dipped into the 40s before the first half ended.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, First quarter
Texas dominated the first quarter and set two Holiday Bowl records. The Longhorns' first score, on a two-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Colt McCoy to Derek Lokey, was the quickest in game history at 13:39 remaining in the quarter. Lokey is best known as the Longhorns starting nose tackle but he is also used as an offensive end in short-yardage situations. He had lined up at full-back for the play.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, First quarter
At the Holiday Bowl luncheon the day before, Lokey had joked that there was not a play in the Longhorn playbook that would result in him being deliberately given the ball. The Longhorns scored 21 first quarter points – two more than SMU scored against BYU in 1980 in the old Holiday Bowl record.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, First quarter
After Texas took the early seven point lead, the teams traded punts. On the first play of ASU's second possession, UT's Brandon Foster forced and recovered a fumble to bring about UT's third offensive series. Brown put in back-up quarterback John Chiles, who is considered a greater running threat than McCoy. Chiles lined up in the zone read offense and handed off to Jamaal Charles, who ran 48 yard to the ASU 4-yard line. On the next play, Chiles ran the ball in for UT's second touchdown.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, First quarter
The next ASU drive ended when Brandon Foster intercepted a pass at the Texas 11-yard line. The teams traded punts and UT began a new drive on their 30-yard line with 1:40 remaining in the half. McCoy threw a 55-yard pass to Quan Cosby and on the next play Jamaal Charles ran in 15 yards for the touchdown. Texas’ three touchdown-scoring drives were accomplished using only 2:04 of game clock. The UT defense forced two turnovers and held the Sun Devils scoreless for the period.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
In the second quarter, ASU's Rudy Carpenter led the Sun Devils to a first down at the Texas 14-yard line. They lost one yard on first down and an incomplete pass set up third and eleven. Carpenter attempted another pass but threw the ball hurriedly in an effort to avoid a sack by Texas linebacker Roddrick Muckelroy. The ball hit the ground and the officials initially threw a flag for intentional grounding; it would later be ruled a backwards pass which becomes a fumble once it hits the ground. The ball continued to bounce towards the Texas sideline with players from both teams in pursuit. The most bizarre event of the game occurred as the ball came close to the sideline.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Chris Jessee, a member of the Longhorns football operations staff and Mack Brown's stepson, stepped onto the field and bent down as if to pick up the bouncing ball. Jessee thought that the ball was an incomplete forward pass and he was making the signal for intentional grounding as he stepped forward. The ball came close to Jessee's hands but it was not clear if he managed to touch it or if it bounced over his hands cleanly. Texas' Roy Miller slapped the ball, keeping it in-bounds. Aaron Lewis picked up the ball and advanced it 13 yards to the Arizona State 44-yard line.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Replay officials took 12 minutes to review the play. On the video replays, the ball comes very close to Jessee's hands but it does not seem to change speed or trajectory as it goes past them. Despite the video replays providing no conclusive proof that Jessee had actually touched the ball officials ruled that he had made contact. The ball was declared dead at that point and the officials declared that Jessee had committed illegal interference; they declared an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty assessed against Texas. The ball went back to the Sun Devils and they were awarded half the distance to the goal, giving ASU fourth-and-3 at the 7-yard line. On the next play, Carpenter threw a touchdown pass to Chris McGaha to make the score 21–7 Texas.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
The controversial penalty was a big break for ASU as it resulted in a large momentum shift in allowing the Sun Devils to score. Video replays did show several Longhorns were on the field along with Jessee, despite an earlier bench warning that was given to Texas. For his role in inadvertently penalizing his team, Jessee has been compared to Steve Bartman, the man who may have inadvertently hurt the World Series prospects of the Chicago Cubs by interfering with a ball still in play.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Unlike Bartman, Jessee's goof did not result in a loss for his team; the Longhorns were able to shrug off the setback. Commentators also joked that Jessee might star in the Southwest Airlines advertising campaign called wanna get away? which includes people in difficult or uncomfortable positions longing to leave town.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Asked about the play after the game, Jessee said “I did not touch the ball. I thought it was a forward pass and I was looking at the ball being thrown and I was signaling for a grounding penalty. Then, when I realized the ball was in play, I pulled my hands back… The guys played a great game. The focus shouldn't be on this.”  During the game, Mack Brown was furious with the penalty call and insisted that Jessee did not touch the ball. After the game Brown said that Jessee stepping onto the field "[showed] how bad our family wanted to win the game".


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Commentators agreed the play was extremely unusual. The Austin American-Statesman said that it was one of the most bizarre moments of an odd college football season. Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune said, "I've been watching football since Jon Arnett and Ernie Zampese were playing for USC, and I've never seen anything like that. It was as if Jessee wanted it for a souvenir. Carpenter should have autographed it." Dennis Erickson said, "It's the most unusual play I've seen in college football."


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Former San Diego Charger Hank Bauer was asked if he had ever seen a similar play; he replied, "Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever. At any level." Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman said it was “one of the most bizarre plays in bowl history – let's just say the only thing missing was the Stanford band”. The game's replay official, Bob Patrick, explained afterwards that in such a bizarre circumstance, the officials have the right to award whatever penalty they feel is equitable.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
Later in the second quarter, Arizona State had a fourth-and-two at the Texas 31-yard line. ASU tried for a first-down, but tight end Brent Miller allowed the pass to bounce off his hands and the Longhorns took over on downs. Texas drove the 69 yards to take a 28–7 lead. The drive included a fake punt on fourth-and-one where the Longhorns snapped the ball to upback Rashad Bobino who pushed ahead for a three-yard gain and a first down.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Second quarter
The Sun Devils made the score 28–10 on a 32-yard field goal by Thomas Weber. UT took over with less than a minute remaining in the half but were unable to get into scoring position before time expired. During the first half, Jamaal Charles averaged 9.6 yards per carry for Texas. The Longhorn defense held the Sun Devils to only 5 rushing yards in the entire half.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Third quarter
In the third quarter, as in the second quarter, the Sun Devils finished with a field-goal advantage but Texas forced another key turnover. On ASU's first drive they scored on a 46-yard field goal. Texas went three-and-out and punted to the Sun Devils who took over at the UT 40-yard line. ASU's first play was an apparent touchdown pass but it bounced out of the hands of the intended receiver and was intercepted by the Longhorns at the Texas 5.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Third quarter
Starting at their own 5-yard line, UT gave the ball to Charles for a one-yard gain. Then Charles fumbled but recovered the ball himself on the 8-yard line. A delay of game penalty moved Texas back to the 4-yard line. McCoy connected with Nate Jones for the first down at the UT 22. Seven plays later Texas was forced to punt but ASU's Kyle Williams fumbled the ball and Texas recovered on the ASU 32. Jamaal Charles rushed for a one-yard gain. On second down, McCoy made a 29-yard rush but fumbled the ball into the end zone; it was recovered by Jermichael Finley for a Longhorn touchdown, making the score 35–13.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Third quarter
Hunter Lawrence kicked off 55 yards for the Horns but ASU's Rudy Burgess returned it 35 yards to the 50-yard line. The Sun Devils scored on a 22-yard pass to Michael Jones. The third quarter ended with Texas on offense at the ASU 21-yard line. Texas also drew a second sideline infraction warning during the third quarter.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Fourth quarter
Texas completed that drive with a 21-yard field goal to make the score 38–20. The Sun Devils could not make a first yard down and punted back to Texas. The Horns put in John Chiles at quarterback and freshman Vondrell McGee at running back. McGee scored a touchdown on a 28-yard run. The Sun Devils replaced Carpenter with Danny Sullivan at quarterback. He led the team down the field and they scored on a 10-yard pass to Michael Jones. That made the score 45–27.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Fourth quarter
The Longhorns advanced to the ASU 34-yard line. Facing fourth-and-six, Texas took a timeout to consider their options. McCoy attempted a pass to Quan Cosby but it was incomplete and the Sun Devils took over on downs. With Sullivan still in at quarterback, the Sun Devils mounted a ten-play drive that culminated in a three-yard touchdown run by Jarrell Woods. That put Arizona State trailing by eleven points. They attempted an onside kick but Texas recovered it at the Arizona State 44-yard line. Charles carried the ball three-straight times for gains of 5, 7, and 32 yards and a touchdown.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Game summary, Fourth quarter
The Sun Devils’ next drive ended when Danny Sullivan's pass was intercepted by Brandon Foster at the Texas 44-yard line and returned for 5 yards to the Texas 49-yard line. The Longhorns used three rushing plays to run out the clock.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Analysis
The Longhorns won the game 52–34. The 52 points were the most ever scored by the Longhorns in their 47 bowl games. With the Longhorns in control through most of the game, many fans left early. The San Diego Union Tribune estimated that 5,000 fans remained in the stands at the end of the game. The game lasted 4 hours and 17 minutes – equaling the 1989 Penn State – BYU game as the longest Holiday Bowl to date.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Analysis
UT's Colt McCoy and Brian Orakpo (defensive end) were chosen at the game's offensive and defensive MVPs respectively. McCoy went 21-for-31 passing for 174 yards and netted 84 yards rushing; he  gained 147 yards on the ground but also lost 63, including 25 on two sacks. Orakpo made 4½ tackles for a loss – including two of the four sacks of Sun Devil starting quarterback Rudy Carpenter. Jamaal Charles rushed for 161 yards and two touchdowns. He reached 1,619 yards for the season and 3,328 for his career. That made him the fourth-leading rusher in UT history going into his senior season. Six days after the game, Jamaal Charles announced that he would forgo his senior season with Texas to enter the 2008 NFL Draft.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Analysis
On the Sun Devil side, quarterback Rudy Carpenter tied Jake Plummer for the second-most career touchdowns in school history with his 64th and 65th. Carpenter went 18-for-36 for 187 yards and two touchdowns. He also lost 45 yards on four sacks. Arizona State had a total of five turnovers.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Analysis
Sports commentator Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman opined, “The truth of the matter is that the 17th-ranked Longhorns were everything most people thought they'd be in August as they bone-rattled a very good Arizona State team that came within an eyelash of a BCS berth. If Texas had been half this consistent all season, it'd be playing in a bowl game [after New Year’s Day]. But Mack Brown will settle for a better-late-than-never performance with an impressive 52–34 victory over the Pac-10 co-champion Sun Devils in a Holiday Bowl that was just shorter than the Bush years.


2007 Holiday Bowl, Analysis
Texas had made a habit of finishing strong with some spirited fourth-quarter rallies all season, but this time it started stronger than garlic breath and never let up. This Texas team knocked the ever-living stuffing out of ASU. This Texas team showed fire, showed passion and mostly showed up. These Longhorns finished the year with a fulfilling game that could possibly squeeze them into the top 10 and should titillate their fans for eight months and stoke a high 2008 preseason national ranking.”


2007 Holiday Bowl, Analysis
UT's first opponent of 2008 is Florida Atlantic University, who won the 2007 New Orleans Bowl and set a record for the shortest amount of time between starting a football program and securing a bowl victory.


2007 Holiday Cup
The 2007 Holiday Cup was the ninth edition of the women's water polo competition, held in the Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach, United States. The tournament took place from December 5 to December 9, 2007. The tournament served as a preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympics qualifiers (with the exception of the United States and the Netherlands who had already qualified).


2007 Holland Ladies Tour
The 10th edition of the annual Holland Ladies Tour was held from September 3 to September 8, 2007. The women's stage race with an UCI rating of 2.1 started in Valkenburg, and ended in Denekamp.


2007 Holland Series
The 2007 Holland Series involved the Corendon Kinheim, defeating the Konica Minolta Pioniers in 3 straight games.


2007 Holy Cross Crusaders football team
The 2007 Holy Cross Crusaders football team was an American football team that represented the College of the Holy Cross during the 2007 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Holy Cross tied for second in the Patriot League.


2007 Holy Cross Crusaders football team
In their fourth year under head coach Tom Gilmore, the Crusaders compiled a 7–4 record. Casey Gough, Obi Green and Dominic Randolph were the team captains.


2007 Holy Cross Crusaders football team
The Crusaders outscored opponents 395 to 264. Holy Cross' 4–2 conference record tied with Colgate and Lafayette for second place out of seven in the Patriot League standings.


2007 Holy Cross Crusaders football team
Holy Cross played its home games at Fitton Field on the college campus in Worcester, Massachusetts.


2007 Honda 200
The 2007 Honda 200 was a race in the 2007 IRL IndyCar Series, held at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. It was held over the weekend of 20 -July 22, 2007, as the twelfth round of the seventeen-race calendar. It was the inaugural race for the IndyCar Series at the track. Eventual 2012 IndyCar champion Ryan Hunter-Reay made his IndyCar debut at this race.


2007 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
The 2007 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg was the second round of the 2007 IndyCar Series season. It took place on April 1, 2007.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election
The 2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election was held on 25 March 2007 to select the Chief Executive of Hong Kong. Incumbent Chief Executive Donald Tsang was re-elected, defeating the pro-democracy challenger, legislator Alan Leong of the Civic Party by 649 to 123 votes in the 796-member Election Committee dominated by the pro-Beijing electors.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election
It was the first competitive Chief Executive election featuring two candidates from different political camp as the pan-democracy camp were able to field their candidate to challenge the Beijing-favoured candidate for the first time. It has been said that the competitive nature of this election, with debates held between the candidates, changed Hong Kong's political culture.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Election Committee election
The Election Committee subsector elections was held on 10 December 2006 to form the 800-member Election Committee to select the Chief Executive. Out of 134 candidates, the pro-democrats won 114 seats. All pro-democracy candidates in Accountancy, Education, Engineering, Health services, Higher education, Information Technology and Legal subsectors won, of which the pro-democracy Legal candidates won all the seats in the subsector. Together with the 20 ex officio pro-democrat members of the Legislative Council, the pro-democrats were able to nominate their Chief Executive candidate.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Election Committee election
Barrister Alan Leong, member of the Civic Party and Legislative Council first expressed his interest in running as early as September 2006. A consensus was reached between the divided pro-democracy camp, despite the opposition from the radical democrats including the League of Social Democrats (LSD). Leong announced his candidacy in October 2006.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Pre-nomination campaign
Alan Leong centred his campaign on democratic reforms, labour issues, anti-discrimination, solving the income disparity, education, employment, environment and public finance reforms. Incumbent Chief Executive Donald Tsang was noted for his impassiveness in the campaign. On announcing his candidacy, Tsang evaded all media invitations, and ignore Leong's constant pressure. He did not formally declare his run until early February, stressing that his priority was to fulfil his job expectations as the Chief Executive rather than a Chief Executive candidate. Tsang's slogan was "I will get the job done".


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Nominations
Donald Tsang had been widely expected to secure re-election by a landslide, as he had received nominations from 641 members of the same body. The pro-democracy candidate, Alan Leong secured 132 nominations, ensuring that he would contest the election, the first opposed Chief Executive election.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Nominations
Although the outcome of the election was a foregone conclusion, it was hoped that the debates would stimulate discussion about the future direction of Hong Kong, were meant for the respective candidates to put forward their political visions for public scrutiny.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates
This was the first time for Hong Kong to have a broadcasting debate between the Chief Executive candidates. Two debates were held – one on 1 March and the other on 15 March.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates
The first debate consisted of an audience of 900, mainly the politicians, including the 530 Election Committee members. The public was excluded. The second debate consisted of an audience of 200 people randomly chosen by the University of Hong Kong and the Lingnan University. The first debate was held on 1 March 2007, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm, presided by Rita Fan; the second 90-minute debate was held on 15 March 2007 at the TVB City in Tseung Kwan O, co-organized by the 8 main media corporations in Hong Kong. Both debates were broadcast live by TVB, ATV and RTHK.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Format
530 members of the Election Committee attended the forum, which was stage-managed. The general public was not allowed to attend the debate but their questions to the candidates were collected in advance through fax or e-mails. A total of 3,409 questions were submitted, and 6 of them were selected for the candidates to answer in the debate.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Format
Direct questioning between the candidates was prohibited. The 90-minute debate was divided into 4 sessions. The two candidates were first given 3 minutes to deliver their election platform; Leong went first. After that there was a question-and-answer session. Each of the chosen questioners had 30 seconds in which to raise questions, and the candidates were allowed 20 minutes to respond to each question without using any props, notes, charts or diagrams. After the Q&A, Tsang was the first one to give his conclusion of the debate.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Issues
Questions raised by 22 members of the Election Committee and 7 citizens covered areas of democracy (doubts on universal suffrage), economic development, educational reform, etc. The issues which drew most heated argument from both candidates concerned democratic development and the relationship between central and SAR governments.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Issues
Leong challenged Tsang to support the target of universal suffrage in 2012. Leong suggested the central government's pragmatic and rational attitude was amply demonstrated by the total trust it put in Tsang, once considered a remnant of the British colonial government. Tsang said it would be "dangerous and unworkable" if his opponent was elected.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Protests
Election Committee member "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung interrupted the debate just before the introduction of election platform by Tsang. He mocked both by putting on a bowtie and put a handkerchief in his pocket, adopted clichés of Tsang and Leong respectively. He crawled like a dog in front of the stage and shouted slogans opposing the small-circle election, but was escorted out by 10 security guards. Other organisations also protested outside the venue concerned mainly about the lack of public participation in the forum, and also some social problems which existed in society.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Outcome
The first debate attracted 1.863 million viewers, approximately 27 percent of the local population.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Outcome
Most of the local newspapers did not report much on the contents of the election platform proposed by the two candidates, but rather reported more on their debating skills, behaviour, presentation and even how they dressed in the forum.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Outcome
A survey conducted by the University of Hong Kong shows that after the debate Tsang still leads. A public opinion programme organised by the University of Hong Kong has shown that 46.5% of the 510 respondents considered Tsang outperformed Leong while 33.9% of them thought the opposite. 67.9% of them said that they would vote for Tsang as the Chief Executive and only 21.7% of them would vote for Leong if they had the voting right. Tsang apparently won public support because of his strength in the details of policy issues, while Leong's understanding of public finances and other policies seemed to be weaker than Tsang.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Outcome
Both candidates gained increased support from the general public after debate as indicated by the survey results, compared to a previous survey where only 65.3% and 16.1% of the respondents support Tsang and Leong being elected respectively. Nevertheless, all the figures reflect an unexpected performance displayed by Leong, who adopted a combative approach and seized every opportunity to attack Tsang's record, especially in terms of environmental protection and the possibility of universal suffrage by 2012. On the other hand, Tsang appeared to present himself as a statesman defending his record, rather than attacking the weaknesses of Leong.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The first debate, Outcome
A survey conducted right after the debate by the Public Governance Programme of Lingnan University showed that 61.4% of the 611 respondents "supported" Tsang while just 25.9% of them supported Leong. In the survey, 26.7% of the respondents had an improved impression upon Tsang after the debate; while 13.1% of them had a less favourable impression, and 57.4% of them had an unchanged impression of Tsang. By contrast, 36.5% of the 611 respondents had a more favourable impression of Leong. Liberal Party Chairman, James Tien said that although Tsang's campaign office apparently "lacked preparation", his performance "would not undermine the central government's support for him".


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The second debate, Format
200 members of the general public were allowed to participate in this event to raise questions. This debate was divided into 3 sessions: social livelihood, politics and economics as themes for each session. During the debate, the two candidates respectively answered 9 questions from the audience and 6 from the media.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The second debate, Issues
During the second debate, Tsang said that the commitment to universal suffrage was enshrined in the Basic Law, a national policy which nobody could change. He promised he will start planning and negotiating the issue on the universal suffrage within the coming 5 years if he was successfully renewed in the post.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The second debate, Issues
On the other hand, faced with certain defeat at the poll, Leong said that "Hong Kong has triumphed in this first ever contested race in Hong Kong and China's democratic history." And he vowed to return in the 2012 universal suffrage election. In response, NPC chairman Wu Bangguo, was quoted as replying the final decision on matters related to Hong Kong's political system rested with the central government and not the SAR government.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Debates, The second debate, Outcome
According to the second survey on Chief Executive Forum carried out by the University of Hong Kong, the instant poll showed that 38.9% of 520 respondents thought that Tsang's performance of was better than that of Leong, while 39.3% of the respondents thought Leong performed better. The result shows a significant difference, compared with the first instant poll, in which Mr. Leong was behind his rival.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Opinion polling
Donald Tsang dominated in the polls despite his relative inactivity and lack of eloquence in public debate. Alan Leong never achieved a rating higher than 20 percent in the rolling opinion polls conducted by the Hong Kong University Public Opinion Programme between 26 February and 23 March.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Voting, Controversy
In an apparent attempt to maximise votes for Tsang, Stanley Ho had suggested that those casting blank votes could be tracked down. This caused a furore, prompting a senior mainland official and top local advisers to Beijing to defend the secrecy of the Chief Executive election vote.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Voting, Controversy
Ho later issued a statement clarifying: "According to traditional wisdom, those who make mischief will one day be unveiled," "I was merely reminding those who intend to cast blank votes that the day will come when they will be unveiled. My remarks carried no other implication."


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Protests
Some pro-democracy politicians boycotted the CE and EC elections, claiming that to participate would legitimise undemocratic practices.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Protests
Emily Lau of The Frontier was one such critic. "It will be a beautiful misunderstanding if some people believe they need not do anything more and that universal suffrage will be introduced some day,", she said.


2007 Hong Kong Chief Executive election, Protests
On the day before the EC elections, the Civil Human Rights Front organised a protest where they walked backwards around LegCo 7 times, then marched slowly to Central Government Offices, symbolising the great leap backwards for democracy which they believed the EC represented. Leung Kwok-hung trapped himself in a giant bird cage and followed Leong around on EC election day to protest Leong's participation.


2007 Hong Kong Games
The 2007 Hong Kong Games, officially known as The 1st Hong Kong Games (Chinese: 第一屆全港運動會) was a major multi-sport event in Hong Kong and the debut of the bi-annual Hong Kong Games. The games were staged between 4 April	and 6 May 2007, with participation from 1287 athletes. The events were held in Hong Kong's Kwai Tsing District.


2007 Hong Kong Games, Purpose
The Hong Kong Games are held to provide more opportunities for participation, sharing and cooperation in sports in the community and to promote communication and friendship among the 18 districts. It also allows the relevant units to strengthen the cohesion of the community. Moreover, it promotes the idea of "sports for all" in the society in order to raise the standard of sports in Hong Kong.


2007 Hong Kong Games, Purpose
The Sports Commission is the organiser for the Hong Kong Games, and the Community Sports Committee is the coordinator. The 18 District Councils, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and the related sports associations are the co-organisers of the Games.


2007 Hong Kong Games, Events
The 2007 Hong Kong Games were held in Kwai Tsing District and included 4 separate events: athletics, basketball, badminton and table tennis. In the 2009 2nd Hong Kong Games, two more events were added: swimming and tennis. In 2009, the Games moved to Yuen Long District.


2007 Hong Kong Island by-election
The 2007 Hong Kong Island by-election was held on 2 December 2007 and was won by Anson Chan with 54.6% of the votes cast. It was precipitated by the death of the then chairman of the Pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) Ma Lik on 8 August 2007.


2007 Hong Kong Island by-election
It was the second by-election in a geographical constituency to be held since the transfer of sovereignty in 1997 and the largest remainder proportional representation electoral system was adopted in 1998, coincidentally in the same constituency – Hong Kong Island.


2007 Hong Kong Island by-election
There were eight candidates in all, all standing as independents. However, the two front-runners had respectively secured the backing of the largest political groupings, Pan-democrats and Beijing loyalists. The pro-democracy camp agreed to unite behind a single candidate, Anson Chan, former Chief Secretary for Administration, selected through a selection process; the Liberal Party and the DAB bargained behind closed doors to select Regina Ip, the former Secretary for Security who resigned following the 500,000-strong 2003 1 July protest.


2007 Hong Kong Island by-election, Background, 2000
The last by-election was held on 10 December 2000, when then DAB vice-chairman Gary Cheng declined to accept his seat as a result of a scandal. The current leader of the Civic Party, Audrey Eu, who was then running as an independent backed by the pro-democracy camp won the by-election with 52.1% of valid vote. Cheng was subsequently jailed for abuse of office.


2007 Hong Kong Island by-election, Background, 2004
The previous election on 12 September 2004 returned six candidates to office based on a party list proportional representation system. The pro-Beijing camp returned two candidates, and pro-democracy camps three, with the remainder filled by the independent Rita Fan.