2008 AMP Energy 500, Background
The 2008 AMP Energy 500 was the 30th of 36 scheduled stock car races of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series,  and the fourth in the ten-race season-ending Chase for the Sprint Cup. It was held on October 5, 2008 at Talladega, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a superspeedway that holds NASCAR races. The standard track at the speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.66 miles (4.28 km) long. The track's turns are banked at thirty-three degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 16.5 degrees. The back stretch has a two-degree banking.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Background
Before the race, Jimmie Johnson led the Drivers' Championship with 5,575 points, with Carl Edwards in second, and Greg Biffle in third. Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top five, and Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch rounded out the top twelve drivers competing in the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Toyota was leading with 172 points, seven points ahead of their nearest rival Ford in second. Chevrolet was third with 159 points, with Dodge a further 39 points behind in fourth. Gordon was the race's defending champion.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Background
Second-place championship driver Edwards said he expected the top three points leaders to remain together during the race, "I'll probably be glued to Jimmie, no matter where he's at. If him and Greg and I can just stay together, and make sure we either all avoid or either all get in the same wrecks, then we'll probably be all right." Earnhardt said he aimed to achieve his sixth victory at Talladega Superspeedway (where he had a large amount of fan support) in an effort to move ahead in the championship standings.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Background
Gordon, who had not won so far during 2008, stated he felt that he could win the race, and employed a strategy where he would attempt to avoid being caught up in a multi-car collision. Johnson felt the AMP Energy 500 would be "interesting" and "a turning point in the chase".


2008 AMP Energy 500, Background
There were two changes of driver before the race. Red Bull Racing Team announced regular driver A. J. Allmendinger would be replaced by Mike Skinner who would drive at Talladega, and by former Scuderia Torro Rosso, Formula One driver Scott Speed who would drive in the seven remaining races of the season. Red Bull Racing vice president and general manager Jay Frye said the change would allow the Red Bull Racing Team to continue its development for the future. Kenny Wallace took over from Michael McDowell in the No. 00 Michael Waltrip Racing car at Talladega, because the team decided to regroup after he failed to qualify the previous race weekend at Kansas Speedway. Richard Childress Racing fielded a fourth car driven by Nationwide Series driver Mike Wallace.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Practice and qualifying
Two practice sessions were held before the Sunday race, both on Friday. The first practice session ran for 75 minutes, the second lasted 45 minutes. Burton was fastest in the first practice session with a time of 48.887 seconds; Elliott Sadler was second, and Brian Vickers third. Robby Gordon was fourth, and Harvick placed fifth. Kasey Kahne, Biffle, Jamie McMurray, Skinner and Ryan Newman rounded out the session's top ten drivers. Earnhardt's engine failed, and his team installed a new one. David Ragan did the same between the two practice sessions.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Practice and qualifying
Later that day, Vickers paced the final practice session (where thirty-seven drivers competed) with a time of 49.694 seconds, ahead of Kahne and Bobby Labonte. Casey Mears was fourth-fastest, ahead of Harvick, Scott Riggs and David Gilliland. Earnhardt, a Chase for the Sprint Cup driver, was eighth, with Skinner and Stewart ninth and tenth.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Practice and qualifying
Earnhardt's right-rear tire exploded while leading a pack of cars at the exit of turn two, nine minutes after the session started, beginning a chain-reaction accident involving cars driven by Gilliland, Stewart, David Reutimann, Hamlin, Clint Bowyer and Kahne, resulting in the session being stopped for 30 minutes. No drivers were injured, but Earnhardt and Gilliland were checked at the infield medical center and later released. Earnhardt, Bowyer, Kahne, Gilliland and Reutimann switched to back-up cars.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Practice and qualifying
Forty-five cars were entered in the qualifier on Saturday afternoon, according to NASCAR's qualifying procedure, forty-three were allowed to race. Each driver ran two laps, with the starting order determined by the competitor's fastest times. Travis Kvapil took the first pole position of his career with a time of 51.109 seconds. He was joined on the grid's front row by Mears in his best qualifying performance of the season. Aric Almirola qualified third, his Dale Earnhardt, Inc. teammate Regan Smith was fourth, and Paul Menard started fifth.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Practice and qualifying
Mike Wallace, Joe Nemechek, Tony Raines, Vickers and Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top ten qualifiers. Of the other drivers in the Chase, Edwards was twelfth, Burton 17th and Johnson 20th. The two drivers that failed to qualify were Sam Hornish Jr. and Patrick Carpentier. After the qualifier Kvapil said, "Definitely qualifying doesn't really mean much as far as your chances to win the race after 500 miles, but we got a good pit selection and we'll have less chance to get caught up in a wreck early on in the race.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Practice and qualifying
It doesn't take long to get shuffled to the back and I'm sure I'll be shuffled in and out throughout the field. But the first few laps we'll be up front and hopefully keeping it clean." He also stated the pole was "special", and it was the first time Ford had occupied that position at Talladega Superspeedway since 1997.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Live television coverage of the race, began at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time in the United States on ABC. At the start of the race, weather conditions were sunny. Fred Cook of Alabama Raceway Ministries began pre-race ceremonies with an invocation. Brad Arnold, the lead singer of rock band 3 Doors Down performed the national anthem, and Pepsi employees Antonio Clements, John Foster, Richard Stuckey, Daniel Harris, Demetrius Blackmon, Reginald Thomas, Kenneth Goodwin, and Raymond Castleberry, who serve in the National Guard commanded the drivers to start their engines. During the pace laps, Earnhardt and Ragan moved to the rear of the field because they had changed their engines; Johnson did the same because his team adjusted his engine outside of the impound.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
The race started at 2:23 p.m. Kvapil maintained his pole position advantage on the first lap, as the field ran three and four abreast during the lap. Mike Wallace led the cars on the outside lane and challenged Kvapil for the lead on lap four, but was unable to get ahead. Edwards and Vickers drove on the outside lane to move to the front on lap nine, and the two exchanged the lead on the backstretch, before Edwards pulled clear of Vickers. Kvapil fell to seventh place by the same lap.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Vickers regained the first position on the next lap, after Edwards drove down the track. On the 14th lap, Almirola and his teammate Menard gave each other assistance, and Almirola passed Vickers on the backstretch to take over the lead. Ragan, with assistance from Kvapil, passed Almirola for first place by taking the outside lane three laps later. After falling down the field earlier in the race, Gordon had moved back up to seventh by lap 18. Earnhardt moved into the lead eight laps later, but Kvapil reclaimed the position on lap 30, after receiving assistance from Gordon.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Earnhardt retook the lead two laps later, and Johnson had moved to fourth after dropping down the field earlier in the race. Mike Wallace briefly claimed the lead on lap 33 before Earnhardt regained it on the lap. The first caution was triggered on the next lap when debris was spotted on the track in turn two. Most of the leaders, including Mike Wallace, made pit stops for tires and car adjustments.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Gordon led on the lap-39 restart, followed by Truex and Burton. One lap later, Burton, with assistance from Johnson, passed Gordon for the lead. Kenseth claimed first position on lap 40 after driving on the outside lane. Vickers followed Johnson on the inside line to reclaim the lead on the following lap, before Sadler passed Vickers around the outside for the lead on the 44th lap. On lap 45, Mears led after passing Sadler, and debris was located on the backstretch, triggering a second caution. All drivers, including Mears, elected to make pit stops.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Sadler reclaimed first position and led the field back up to speed at the lap-50 restart, ahead of Mears and Kyle Busch. Hamlin and Kyle Busch led the cars driving on the outside lane, with Busch claiming the lead on lap 51, pulling away from the rest of the field. Kurt Busch, with help from Vickers, got ahead of Kyle Busch to move into first place on lap 52.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Jamie McMurray took the lead by the 53rd lap, when a third caution was deployed on lap 54 after Reutimann's right-rear tire blew on the backstretch, causing Gordon to take evasive action by turning right and heavily damaged the nose of his car when he collided with the outside wall. Reutimann's tire broke Johnson's front splitter brace. All drivers, including McMurray, chose to make pit stops. Vickers elected to stay on the track and led the field at the restart on lap 59, ahead of Kvapil and Skinner.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
One lap later, Hamlin used the draft to take over the lead, with Labonte moving into second. Kahne used the outside lane to claim first position, before Reed Sorenson also drove on the outside lane to claim first place on the next lap. The pack drove three abreast on lap 63, as Truex moved into first place on the 64th lap. McMurray reclaimed the first position when he got ahead of Truex at the start-finish line on lap 65, and Kahne dropped to 26th position by the same lap. Truex retook the lead from McMurray at the start of the following lap, and Harvick moved into first on lap 67.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Earnhardt moved back into the lead on lap 68, when Vickers' right-front tire blew in the tri-oval on the same lap, starting a multi-car accident involving Gilliland, Truex, Kahne, Skinner, McMurray, Terry Labonte, Raines and Almirola. A fourth caution was triggered initially because of the accident before a red-flag was shown shortly afterward to stop the race to allow officials to clear the track of debris. The race resumed seventeen minutes later as the field elected to make pit stops. Earnhardt led on the lap-72 restart, followed by Menard, Burton, Harvick and Montoya. By lap 74, Montoya had the lead before Hamlin passed him at the start-finish line to lead the lap. Johnson moved to the front of the field two laps later, before losing the lead to teammate Earnhardt on lap 78 as the pack ran three abreast at the start-finish line.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Johnson moved back into the lead on lap 78, after receiving assistance from Earnhardt, before losing it to Stewart around the inside two laps later after Stewart was helped by Mike Wallace. On the 81st lap, Mike Wallace's right-rear tire blew causing a fifth caution to be displayed; Wallace regained control of his car but his tire struck Michael Waltrip's car forcing him to pit for repairs. Most of the field, including Stewart, elected to make pit stops for tires and fuel.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Kyle Busch gained the lead after the pit stops, and led the field back up to speed at the lap-87 restart, followed by Earnhardt. On lap 89, Labonte led the outside lane after he was helped by Earnhardt. Hamlin, Earnhardt and Kenseth traded the first position over the next seven laps. Hamlin's right-front tire exploded in turn two on lap 99 and struck the turn two outside wall, triggering a sixth caution. The leaders, including Kyle Busch, who took the lead before the caution, made pit stops for tires and fuel.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Hamlin was extracted from his car, and placed on a stretcher and transported to a local hospital for further evaluation. Riggs led the field back up to speed at the restart on lap 105, ahead of Menard. On the same lap, Riggs lost the draft allowing Menard to move into the lead. The field went three abreast, as Menard lost the lead to Stewart on the 107th lap, but Menard reclaimed the position one lap later. Stewart retook the lead on lap 112 after he received assistance from Montoya.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Burton challenged Stewart for the lead on lap 115 as both drivers ran side by side at the start-finish line, before Burton moved in front of Stewart two laps later. Harvick moved back into the lead on lap 120, after running on the inside lane. Harvick, Ragan and Stewart formed a single line, as the rest of the field ran in double-file.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
A seventh caution was triggered on lap 138 when Gordon had smoke and fluid coming out of his car, ending his race. Most of the field, including Harvick, elected to pit under caution. Edwards spun after he left pit road but avoided damage to his car. During the pit stop period, the record for the most leaders in a Sprint Cup Series race was broken when Nemechek led one lap (the 27th race leader) before pitting. Kyle Busch led on the lap-145 restart, followed by Ragan, Kvapil, Stewart and Johnson.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Four laps later, Johnson dropped from fifth to the rear of the field, as part of a strategy to run at the rear until the race ended. Kyle Busch lost the draft on lap 151, allowing Earnhardt to retake first place. Burton, with assistance from Richard Childress Racing teammates Bowyer, Harvick and Mike Wallace, moved back into the lead on lap 156. Ragan took over the lead on lap 160, after he was helped by Earnhardt.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Waltrip took the lead on lap 163, and an eighth caution was necessitated on lap 165 when Biffle made contact with Ragan, who hit Harvick, who spun heading into turn three but avoided hitting the barriers or other cars. Some drivers, including Waltrip, chose to pit for fresh tires and fuel during the caution. Montoya elected not to pit, and led the field at the restart on lap 170. The top six drivers quickly began to pull away from the rest of the field, as Stewart ran fourth and Harvick 16th by lap 172.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Stewart and Montoya ran alongside each other at the line on lap 173, before Stewart moved in front for the lead one lap later. On the same lap, a second multi-car accident occurred necessitating a ninth caution when Edwards made contact with teammate Biffle going into turn three, and collected, Earnhardt, Harvick, Kyle Busch, Nemechek, Sorenson, Kenseth, Kvapil, Watrip, Dave Blaney and Montoya. The second red-flag of the race was shown shortly afterward to allow officials to clear debris from the track. The race was restarted twelve minutes later, as some drivers made pit stops.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
Stewart led the field back up to speed at the lap-179 restart, ahead of Nemechek and Sadler. Stewart and Nemechek pulled away from the rest of the field, but Nemechek lost the draft on the next lap and fell behind Sadler. The field formed into a single file, and remained this way until a tenth and final caution of the race was deployed because McMurray's right-rear tire failed on lap 185. The race restarted on lap 189, for a green-white-checker finish (extending the race to 190 laps) with Stewart leading Smith.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race
The field again formed a single line, with most drivers remaining in that formation for the rest of the race. On the final lap, Smith passed Stewart on the frontstretch below the yellow line, and crossed the start-finish line ahead of Stewart. NASCAR determined that Smith was out of track bounds, handing Stewart the victory with Smith provisionally in second. The race had a total of ten cautions and 64 lead changes by 28 drivers. Stewart led four different times for a total of 24 laps, more than any other competitor.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
Stewart, who earned $270,136 for the victory, appeared in victory lane to celebrate his first win of the season, and his first at Talladega Superspeedway, in front of a crowd of 145,000. He was delighted to take the victory: "It's one thing to get back to Victory Lane, but to do it at Talladega wow." Stewart continued, "I've wanted to win here for so long. This hasn't been one of my favorite places on the fan side. People haven't always liked me here. But this was for those guys up in the stands today."


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
Second-place finisher Menard was pleased with his result, saying he had a good car throughout the duration of the race: "Car had speed in it all day. Didn't make any chassis adjustments, just did a little bit of air pressure after the first run to free it up. It was just all track position really."


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
In the post-race press conference, third-place finisher Ragan said that he felt that he had a car which could have secured the victory under the right circumstances, but believed it was a good day for his team: "We always seem to be pretty fast here on the superspeedway track, so that just goes to show you how much effort our Roush Fenway team is putting into this program."


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
NASCAR officials reviewed video evidence of Smith's pass of Stewart on the final lap with Smith and Dale Earnhardt, Inc. president Max Siegel in attendance, and declared the manoeuvre illegal; Smith was issued a pass-through penalty which dropped him from second to 18th. Smith argued that he was forced down below the yellow line: "I was always told that the rule is if you get forced down there, then you are the winner of the race, and on the last lap, anything goes. That’s what I was going with.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
I had a nose inside of him and I could have piled up the whole field." Ninth-place finisher Johnson said there were rumors that drivers were allowed to go below the yellow line on the last lap of the previous day's Craftsman Truck Series race which were circulated on the day of the AMP Energy 500: "I didn’t know what to really think about it, or understood it, or had seen it. It’s ironic how it played out today.”


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
NASCAR spokesperson Jim Hunter however insisted Smith was not forced below the yellow line, and stated drivers were warned beforehand in the pre-race drivers' meeting about gaining a position illegally. Earnhardt said he felt Smith deserved to win, saying there was a lack of clarity over what going below the yellow line meant. Smith stated he did not ask for clarification of the rule because of his low-profile status.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
NASCAR president Mike Helton stated that race officials had correctly awarded the penalty to Smith, and clarified that no driver would be allowed to advance their position by going below the yellow line at any time during a race. Similarities were made between Smith's overtake, and Earnhardt's pass of Kenseth below the yellow line at Talladega at the 2003 Aaron's 499.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
Hamlin was kept in hospital overnight for further evaluation, but complained of a headache and favored his right foot after exiting his car. His crew chief Mike Ford revealed Hamlin's right-rear tire had been cut on the run before his crash which Hamlin later attributed to running over debris on track. Vickers described his right-front tire failure saying: "It sounded like a bomb exploded." Goodyear's product manager Rick Heinrich said the tires used in the race were the same from the Aaron's 499, and conducted an analysis of the tire failures at their plant in Akron, Ohio. Edwards admitted he was at fault for causing the crash between himself and teammate Biffle on lap 174, and apologized to the drivers caught up in the incident. Biffle revealed he was unable to steer his Ford away from the incident.


2008 AMP Energy 500, Race, Post-race comments
The result kept Johnson in the lead of the Drivers' Championship, seventy-two points ahead of Edwards. Biffle and Burton maintained third and fourth positions, while Bowyer moved up to fifth. Harvick moved up into sixth, with Stewart's victory advancing him from eleventh to seventh place. Gordon, Kenseth, Earnhardt, Kyle Busch and Hamlin rounded out the top twelve. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Toyota extended their lead over Ford to twelve points. Chevrolet remained in third with 165, 41 points ahead of Dodge. The race attracted a television audience of 7.44 million people. It took three hours, thirty-six minutes and ten seconds to complete the event, and the margin of victory was 0.052 seconds.


2008 ANAPROF Apertura
In Panamanian football, the ANAPROF Apertura 2008 season (officially "Torneo Apertura 2008") started on February 22, 2008. On May 31, 2008 the Apertura 2008 finalized with San Francisco F.C. crowned five time ANAPROF champion after beating Tauro F.C. 3-1.


2008 ANAPROF Apertura, Final round, Final
Since San Francisco already qualified for 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League, Tauro also qualified.


2008 ANAPROF Clausura
The ANAPROF Clausura 2008 season (officially "Torneo Clausura 2008") started on July 25, 2008. On November 30, 2008 the Clausura 2008 finalized with Árabe Unido crowned four time ANAPROF champion after beating Tauro F.C. 3-2 after extra time. Therefore Árabe Unido will participate in the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League. Plaza Amador remained in the ANAPROF after beating Primera A 2008 champion Río Abajo F.C. with a 3-2 aggregate score. Therefore no team was relegated from ANAPROF for the second consecutive year.


2008 ANZ Championship season
The 2008 ANZ Championship season was the inaugural season of the ANZ Championship. The 2008 season began on 5 April and concluded on 28 July. Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic were minor premiers after finishing top of the table following the regular season. New South Wales Swifts, with a team coached by Julie Fitzgerald and captained by Catherine Cox, won 10 of their 13 matches and finished second behind Magic. Swifts subsequently defeated Magic in both the major semi–final and the grand final to become the inaugural ANZ Championship winners. The grand final was played on 28 July at Acer Arena. Overall, 6792 goals were scored during the season, averaging 98.44 per match. Fox Sports (Australia) and Sky Sport (New Zealand) attracted an average audience per match of 56,581.


2008 ANZ Championship season, Regular season
During the regular season the Australian teams played each other twice and the New Zealand teams once. The New Zealand teams also played each other twice and each of the Australian teams once.


2008 AO112
2008 AO112 (also written 2008 AO112) is an Apollo near-Earth asteroid and potentially hazardous object. It was discovered on 12 January 2008 by the Mount Lemmon Survey at an apparent magnitude of 21 using a 1.5-meter (59 in) reflecting telescope. The asteroid was quickly lost and had an estimated diameter of 310 meters (1,020 ft). On 25 June 2009, with an observation arc of only 1 day in January 2008, the asteroid had a 1 in 4 million chance of impacting Earth on that very day. The virtual impactor had not been eliminated from the Sentry Risk Table by the day of the potential impact.


2008 AO112
The asteroid was recovered on 5 March 2013 as 2013 EM20. Precovery images from 7 April 1997 at Kitt Peak National Observatory were located. It was removed from the Sentry Risk Table on 30 March 2013. It is now known that on 25 June 2009 the asteroid was 1.45 AU from Earth.


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards
The 2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards were held on Wednesday 10 September 2008 at the Auckland Town Hall, celebrating excellence in New Zealand songwriting. The Silver Scroll Award was presented to Jason Kerrison, Bobby Kennedy, Matt Treacy and Clinton Harris for the Opshop song "One Day", and the country duo Topp Twins were inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame. The event also paid tribute to singer-songwriter Mahinārangi Tocker who had died earlier in 2008.


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards, Silver Scroll Award
The Silver Scroll Award celebrates outstanding achievement in songwriting of original New Zealand pop music. The evening's music performances were produced by Don McGlashan. Each of the nominated songs were covered in a new style by another artist.


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards, Silver Scroll Award, Long list
Dave Gibson and Justyn Pilbrow "Baby Come On" (Elemeno P)Samuel Scott, Luke Buda, Tom Wedde, William Ricketts, Richard Singleton and Warner Emery "Bright Grey" (The Phoenix Foundation)John Chong Nee and Delani Tuala "Butterflies" (Delani)Anika Moa "Dreams in my Head" (Anika Moa)Liam


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards, Silver Scroll Award, Long list
Finn "Gather to the Chapel" (Liam Finn)Sam Trenwith "If I Say" (Radiator)Kody Nielson "Life Will Get Better Some Day" (The Mint Chicks)Jason Kerrison, Bobby Kennedy, Matt Treacy and Clinton Harris ""One Day"" (Opshop)Jon Toogood, Tom Larkin, Phil Knight, Karl Kippenberger and Barry Palmer "One Will Hear the Other " (Shihad)Lauren Thomson "Our Love Is Due" (Lauren Thomson)Brannigan Kaa, Hone Kaa and Jo Paku "Purua" (Brannigan Kaa)Geoff Maddock "Saying My Name" (Goldenhorse)Wayne Mason "Sense Got Out" (Wayne Mason)Steven Mathieson, Tim Van Dammen and James Brennan "Seriously" (Collapsing Cities)Ryan McPhun "Tane Mahuta" (The Ruby Suns)Nick Buckton "The Phone Song" (Side Kick Nick)Gin Wigmore "These Roses" (Gin Wigmore)Brent Park and Karoline Tamati "Walk Right Up" (Ladi6)Iva Lamkum, Caleb Robinson and Miles Crayford "White Roses" (Iva Lamkum)Dave Dobbyn "Wild Kisses Like Rain" (Dave Dobbyn)


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards, New Zealand Music Hall of Fame
Country singers and entertainers Jools Topp and Lynda Topp – collectively known as the Topp Twins – were inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame. Reb Fountain and Johnny Barker performed a musical tribute to the Topps.


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards, Other awards
Four other awards were presented at the Silver Scroll Awards: APRA Maioha Award (for excellence in contemporary Maori music), SOUNZ Contemporary Award (for creativity and inspiration in classical composition) and two awards acknowledging songs with the most radio and television plays in New Zealand and overseas.


2008 APRA Silver Scroll Awards, APRA song awards
Outside of the Silver Scroll Awards, APRA presented four genre awards in 2008. The APRA Best Pacific Song was presented at the Pacific Music Awards, the APRA Best Country Music Song was presented at the New Zealand Country Music Awards and the inaugural APRA Children's Song of the Year and What Now Video of the Year were presented at StarFest.


2008 ARAG World Team Cup
The 2008 ARAG World Team Cup was a tennis tournament play on outdoor clay courts. It was the 30th edition of the World Team Cup, and was part of the 250 series of the 2008 ATP Tour. It took place at the Rochusclub in Düsseldorf, Germany, from 18 May through 24 May 2008.


2008 ARAG World Team Cup
Argentina were the defending champions but they failed to advance beyond the group stage. Sweden defeated Russia in the final, by two rubbers to one for their fourth title. It was also their first title since 1995.


2008 ARCA Re/Max Series
The 2008 ARCA Re/Max Series was the 56th season of the ARCA Racing Series. The season began on February 9, 2008 at Daytona International Speedway with the Daytona ARCA 200 and ended on October 12, 2008 at Toledo Speedway with the Hantz Group 200. Justin Allgaier, driving for his family team, Allgaier Motorsports, won the season championship. Frank Kimmel, who won the series championship in nine of the previous ten seasons, barely lost the title this season to Allgaier. Kimmel had moved from the No. 46 Clement Racing car, which he won all of his titles in, to the No. 44 car for his family team this season. Kimmel's replacement in the No. 46, Matt Carter, would finish third in the championship.


2008 ASA Midwest Tour season
The 2008 ASA Kwik-Trip Midwest Tour presented by Echo Outdoor Power Equipment was the second season of the American Speed Association's Midwest Tour. The championship was held over 14 races, beginning April 19 in Elko, Minnesota, and ending October 5 in West Salem, Wisconsin. Dan Fredrickson was the champion.


2008 ASB Classic
The 2008 ASB Classic was a women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 23rd edition of the ASB Classic, and was part of the Tier IV Series of the 2008 WTA Tour. It took place at the ASB Tennis Centre in Auckland, New Zealand, from 31 December 2007 through 5 January 2008.


2008 ASB Classic, Finals, Doubles
Mariya Koryttseva /  Lilia Osterloh defeated  Martina Müller /  Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová, 6–3, 6–4


2008 ASB Classic – Doubles
Janette Husárová and Paola Suárez were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.


2008 ASB Classic – Doubles
Mariya Koryttseva and Lilia Osterloh won in the final 6–3, 6–4, against Martina Müller and Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová.


2008 ASB Classic – Singles
Jelena Janković was the defending champion, but chose not to participate that year.


2008 ASB Classic – Singles
Lindsay Davenport won in the final 6–2, 6–2, against Aravane Rezaï.


2008 ASEAN Para Games
The 2008 ASEAN Para Games, officially known as the 4th ASEAN Para Games, was a Southeast Asian disabled multi-sport event held in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand from 20 to 26 January 2008, one month after the 2007 Southeast Asian Games. This was the first time Thailand hosted the ASEAN Para Games.


2008 ASEAN Para Games
Around 1000 athletes from 11 participating nations participated at the games which featured 488 events in 14 sports. Thailand is the fourth nation to host the games after Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The games was opened and by Surayud Chulanont, the Prime Minister of Thailand at the 80th Birthday Stadium.


2008 ASEAN Para Games
The final medal tally was led by host Thailand, followed by Malaysia and Vietnam. Several Games and national records were broken during the games. The games were deemed generally successful with the rising standard of disabled sports competition amongst the Southeast Asian nations.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, Development and preparation
The 4th ASEAN Para Games Organising Committee was formed to oversee the staging of the games.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, Development and preparation, Venues
The 4th ASEAN Para Games had 14 venues for the games.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, Marketing, Logo
The logo of the 2008 ASEAN Para Games is the Chumpol Gate, a historical place in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. Chumpol Gate represents victory. It also denotes the exquisite Thai art and culture. Curvy blue and red lines represent the pageantry of fluttering flags leading eager, excited athletes marching into the stadium. The ASEAN Para Sports Federation logo sits in the center of the emblem, representing friendship and co-operation between participants from ASEAN countries.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, Marketing, Mascot
The mascot of the 2008 ASEAN Para Games, is a dove named Nok-Khao karom which is recognised as a symbol of Nakhon Ratchasima Province. Nok-Khao Karom is a local animal name of Nakhon Ratchasima for dove. Karom is described as a wise, cheerful, gentle, and friendly, reflecting the characteristics of Thai people. The name of the dove is also the abbreviation of the games' values namely, Kind, Appreciation, Reliable, Optimistic, and Manners.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, The games, Opening ceremony
The opening ceremony was held at the 80th Birthday Stadium on 20 January 2008 at 19:00 (TST). The games was declared opened by Thai Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, The games, Closing ceremony
The closing ceremony was held at the 80th Birthday Stadium on 26 January 2008 at 19:00 (TST). The ASEAN Para Games responsibilities was officially handed over to Malaysia, host of the 2009 ASEAN Para Games after Laos, the host of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games, declined to host the games, citing financial difficulties.


2008 ASEAN Para Games, The games, Medal table
A total of 1052 medals comprising 488 gold medals, 320 silver medals and 244 bronze medals were awarded to athletes. The Host Thailand's performance was their best ever yet in ASEAN Para Games History and emerged as overall champion of the games.


2008 ASEAN University Games
The 2008 ASEAN University Games, (Malay: Sukan Universiti ASEAN 2008) officially known as the 14th ASEAN University Games, (Malay: Sukan Universiti ASEAN ke-14) was a Southeast Asian university multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 11 to 21 December 2008. This was the third time Malaysia hosted the games after 1984 and 1993.


2008 ASEAN University Games
Around 1789 athletes participated at the event which featured 219 events in 21 sports. The final medal tally was led by host Malaysia.


2008 ASEAN University Games, Venues
The 14th ASEAN University Games had 24 venues for the games, 9 in Kuala Lumpur, 14 in Selangor and 1 in Negeri Sembilan.


2008 ASEAN University Games, Branding and design
The logo of the 2008 ASEAN University Games is an image of a red brush stroke human figure which represents high spirit, glory, victory, power and strength and the stars on the logo represents the targets and the ambitions of the ASEAN University Games athletes. The font use for the logo, a mixture of century gothic and trajan, represents the ASEAN University Games being an event that has a variety of formal and informal agendas, while the font's stair-like arrangement represents the desire to achieve success. Meanwhile, the colours used for the font (blue, red, white and yellow) are the colours of the Malaysian flag, the ASEAN logo and the flags of its member nations.


2008 ASEAN University Games, Branding and design
The mascot of the 2008 ASEAN University Games is A1 Angkasawan, the astronaut which is described as friendly, smart, high spirit and strong. The use of an astronaut as the event's mascot was to remind people about Malaysia's achievement as the first ASEAN member country that sends an astronaut to space back in 2007. The mortar board of the mascot represents the academic excellent and the participation of university students as athletes of the games. The logo on the chest represents the sportsmanship spirit of the athletes participating at the 14th ASEAN University Games. The colours, blue, red, white and yellow represents Malaysia as the host of the games, with the colour blue also represents the symbol of excellence in hosting the games. Overall, the mascot represents the determination of participating athletes to achieve their respective dreams.


2008 ASEAN University Games, Branding and design
"Menggapai bintang" (Reach for the stars) was the theme song of the games. It was composed by Mohd Zaki Bin Ahmad from Universiti Malaysia Pahang and sung by Shahnizal bt. Mohd Arshad with lyrics was written by Ahmad Fedtri Bin Yahya.


2008 ASEAN University Games, Branding and design
The Game's Torch is shaped like a pen, an instrument used in worldwide universities.


2008 ASP World Tour
The ASP World Tour is a professional competitive surfing league. It is run by the Association of Surfing Professionals.


2008 ASTRA Awards
The 6th Annual ASTRA Awards were presented on Monday, 21 April 2008 at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney.


2008 ATP Challenger Series
The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Challenger Series is the secondary professional tennis circuit organized by the ATP. The 2008 ATP Challenger Series calendar comprised 176 tournaments, with prize money ranging from $25,000 up to $150,000.


2008 ATP Challenger Series, Schedule
The table below shows the 2008 ATP Challenger Series schedule.


2008 ATP Challenger Series, Schedule, November
+H: Any Challenger or Futures providing hospitality shall receive the points of the next highest prizemoney level in that category. $/€ 25,000+H Challengers receive points shown at$/€ 50,000. Moniesshown for Challengers and Futures are on-site prize amounts.


2008 ATP Challenger Series, Statistical Information
List of players and ATP challenger titles won, last name alphabetically:


2008 ATP Masters Series
The ATP Masters Series are part of the elite tour for professional men's tennis organized by the Association of Tennis Professionals called the ATP Tour.


2008 ATP Masters Series, Tournaments
Note: Although the Monte Carlo Masters is billed as taking place in Monte Carlo, it is actually held in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, a commune of France adjacent to Monaco.


2008 ATP Tour
The 2008 ATP Tour was the global elite men's professional tennis circuit organised by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for the 2008 tennis season. The ATP Tour is the elite tour for professional tennis organized by the Association of Tennis Professionals. The ATP Tour includes the four Grand Slam tournaments, the Tennis Masters Cup, the ATP Masters Series, the International Series Gold and the International Series tournaments.


2008 ATP Tour, Schedule
This is the complete schedule of events on the 2008 ATP Tour, with player progression documented until the quarter-final stage.


2008 ATP Tour, Statistical information
List of players and titles won (Grand Slam, Masters Cup and Olympic titles in bold), listed in order of number of titles won:


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
(€): All prize money and fees for ATP Masters Series, International Series, and Challengers played in Europe must be paid in euros (€). In most cases they are calculated at the 0.85 USD/EUR exchange rate, but it varies and is often rounded throughout the 2008 ATP Official Rulebook.


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
(^): Tennis Masters Cup: maximum number of points that can be assigned to the player at this round (after he qualified to the semifinal with 3 round-robin wins)


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
(m): Tennis Masters Cup: minimum number of points that can be assigned to the player at this round (after he qualified to the semifinal with 1 round-robin win)


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
+H: Any Challenger or Futures providing hospitality shall receive the points of the next higher prize money level in that category. Monies shown for Challengers and Futures are on-site prize amounts.


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
Points are assigned to the losers of the round indicated. Any player who reaches the second round by drawing a bye and then loses shall be considered to have lost in the first round and shall receive first round loser's points (5 for Grand Slams and all AMS events). Wild cards at Grand Slams and AMS events receive points only from the 2nd round. No points are awarded for a first round loss at International Series Events, Challenger Series, or Futures Series events.


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
Players qualifying for the Main Draw through the qualifying competition shall receive qualifying points in addition to any points earned, as per the following table, with the exception of Futures.


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
(*): 5 points only if the Main Draw is larger than 32 (International Series) or 64 (ATP Masters Series)


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
In addition to the points allocated above, points are allocated to losers at Grand Slam, Tennis Masters Series, and International Series Gold Tournaments qualifying events in the following manner:


2008 ATP Tour, Entry rankings, Point distribution, Glossary
(**): 3 points only if the Main Draw is larger than 32 (International Series Gold) or 64 (ATP Masters Series).


2008 ATP Tour, ATP race, Singles
Grand Slams and Masters Series in bold. Points are shown in order of scoring. The second row shows the result and the week in which it was achieved. Italics indicate that a player is not yet eliminated from a tournament.


2008 ATP Tour, ATP race, Singles
If a player has a valid forfeit or may not enter the Grand Slam or Masters Series, he may count the other events towards the race.


2008 ATP Tour, ATP race, Masters Cup entrants
The top eight players who qualify on the ATP Race (8 teams for doubles) will compete in the year-ending finale, in Shanghai, China, from November 9 through November 16. World no. 1 Rafael Nadal has withdrew his name due to a foot injury.


2008 ATP Tour, ATP race, Masters Cup entrants
As of October 5, the following entrants remain entered in the competition:


2008 ATP Tour, ATP race, Doubles
Unlike the ATP Singles Race, the Stanford ATP Doubles Race uses only the best fourteen tournaments on a team's ranking with no mandatory tournaments counting towards the ranking.


2008 ATP Tour, ATP race, Points distribution (Singles & Doubles)
(*) 1 point only if the Main Draw is larger than 32 (International Series) or 64 (Tennis Masters Series).


2008 ATP Tour, Retirements
Following is a list of notable players (winners of a main tour title, and/or part of the ATP Rankings top 100 (singles) or top 50 (doubles) for at least one week) who announced their retirement from professional tennis, became inactive (after not playing for more than 52 weeks), or were permanently banned from playing, during the 2008 season:


2008 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour
The 2008 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour was a domestic professional beach volleyball circuit organized in the United States by the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) for the 2008 beach volleyball season. The 2008 AVP calendar comprises the Hot Winter Nights Tour, an indoor beach volleyball circuit, and the main AVP Crocs Tour.


2008 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, Schedule, Hot Winter Nights Tour
This is the complete schedule of events on the 2008 Hot Winter Nights calendar, with the players' final standings. Each event consisted of four invited men and women players competing in a one-night round-robin tournament in an indoor beach volleyball arena.


2008 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, Schedule, Crocs Tour
This is the complete schedule of events on the 2008 AVP Crocs Tour calendar, with team progression documented from the semifinals stage. All tournaments, with the exception of the Glendale Best of the Beach Invitational, consisted of single-elimination qualifying rounds followed by a double-elimination main draw. The Glendale Best of the Beach Invitational was a round-robin tournament.


2008 Aaron's 499
The 2008 Aaron's 499 was the ninth race in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. It was held on April 27, 2008 at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary
This race was the second race of the season utilizing restrictor plates and the first time that the spring race was raced using the Car of Tomorrow template, with the 2007 UAW-Ford 500 being the first on the superspeedway. The telecast in the USA started at 1 PM US EDT on Fox, with radio coverage on MRN Radio on terrestrial stations and Sirius Satellite Radio starting at 1:15 PM US EDT.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Qualifying
Furniture Row Racing's #78 car scored the pole thanks to "Front Row" Joe Nemechek, who edged Tony Stewart on the last run of the day.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Qualifying
Failed to qualify: Dave Blaney (#22), John Andretti (#34), J.J. Yeley (#96).


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Qualifying
For Yeley, this was the first race he missed as Hall of Fame Racing were outside the Top 35 Owner Points exemption.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
Tony Stewart, in the #20 Toyota of Joe Gibbs Racing, led the first 20 laps before a spin by Matt Kenseth brought out the first caution. After pit stops, the lead would trade hands dozens of times between Stewart, his Gibbs teammate Denny Hamlin, Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and seven other racers for nearly 100 laps, before debris brought out the second caution on lap 118.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
The lead was again exchanged rapidly, with 16 lead changes in the 23 green-flag laps before Stewart spun in turn 1, without damage. Upon resumption of the race, Hamlin gained and held the lead before lap 161, when Paul Menard spun harmlessly in the tri-oval. A debris caution was declared just two laps after the restart, and Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman obtained the lead. Newman was passed by Kyle Busch on lap 173, as Kyle joined his Gibbs teammates as race leaders.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
On lap 175, contact between Bobby Labonte and Dale Earnhardt Jr. while racing four-wide in Turn 2 resulted in a crash that collected both drivers, Stewart, Martin Truex, Jr., Kurt Busch, and Jamie McMurray. McMurray and Earnhardt remained on the lead lap with minimal damage; however, the vehicles of Truex, Stewart, and Busch were damaged beyond repair. Labonte was able to repair his #43 Petty Enterprises Dodge, but spun out in turn 4 shortly after the green flag was waved again, causing another caution with just six laps to go.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
In the four lap period between the two crashes involving Bobby Labonte, Michael Waltrip took the lead from Kyle Busch. Busch passed the #55 Toyota of the owner-driver on the final restart, and held off charges from Jeff Gordon, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Hamlin for the remainder of the race.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
On the final lap, two separate incidents occurred before the leaders were able to reach the checkered flag. The #00 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota of Michael McDowell spun in the tri-oval coming to the white flag after contact with teammate David Reutimann and Roush-Fenway Racing driver Greg Biffle in the very back of the field; McDowell did not make contact with other vehicles or the wall, and continued.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
Entering turn 1, contact between Earnhardt and McMurray resulted in the #26 Roush-Fenway Ford of McMurray, Ganassi driver David Stremme, and Hendrick teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon all sliding into the outside wall. Johnson's #48 Chevrolet came back down across the racetrack and collected pole-sitter Joe Nemechek, whose #78 Chevrolet blocked half of the track and cast tire smoke across the other half. Regan Smith, Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, David Reutimann, Michael Waltrip, and A.J. Allmendinger were all unable to avoid the pile-up, and Stremme wound up slamming into the resulting mess as well.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Race
When the caution was thrown, Kyle Busch was directly in front of Juan Pablo Montoya on the backstretch. Both drivers safely made it around to the finish line, and Busch was declared the winner for the second time in 2008. It was the third victory for Toyota in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series; their previous two wins had also been scored by Joe Gibbs Racing drivers in 2008. It also marked the first Cup race in which more than two Toyotas finished in the Top 5. It was Montoya's fourth career Top 5 finish in the Sprint Cup Series., and fourth-placed David Ragan scored his third career top-5 finish


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Notable Statistics
Furniture Row Racing scored its first pole position, with "Front Row Joe" Nemechek piloting the #78 Chevrolet around the speedway in just 51.103 seconds, a full tenth of a second faster than runner-up Tony Stewart. The team would not earn another until 2013, when Kurt Busch would be the fastest qualifier at Darlington.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Notable Statistics
A.J. Allmendinger earned what was then a career-best qualifying position, 4th, in his return to the Red Bull Racing #84 Toyota. After Allmendinger failed to qualify for the first three races of the season, the team had replaced him with Mike Skinner. Allmendinger led one lap during the caution for Tony Stewart's spin, and was caught up in the crash on the final lap.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Notable Statistics
On the other end of qualifying speed, Bill Davis Racing driver Dave Blaney failed to qualify for the race, making it the only event of the 2008 season that he would not start in the #22 Toyota. It was the first of four DNQ's for Hall of Fame Racing's J.J. Yeley, which would contribute to his departure from the #96 team later in the season.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Notable Statistics
Travis Kvapil drove his #28 Yates Racing Ford to a career-best sixth-place finish, a result that he would match six years later at the same track, but never surpass. Veteran driver Kyle Petty finished 32nd, two laps down, in his 53rd and final start at Talladega. Former Daytona 500 winner Sterling Marlin drove the #09 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet that would go on to win the event the next year; Marlin's 22nd-place finish would be the best result of the remainder of his Cup Series career.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Notable Statistics
It was the lone start of the year for David Stremme, who had been the full-time driver of the #40 Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge in 2007. Reigning IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti had replaced him for the 2008 season, but the rookie driver suffered injuries in the previous day's Nationwide Series race, and Stremme was called upon to substitute. Before the last-lap crash that set him back to a 28th-place finish, Stremme led twice for one lap each, the final laps that Stremme would lead under green-flag conditions in the Cup Series.


2008 Aaron's 499, Summary, Notable Statistics
Another substitute, Ken Schrader, drove the #70 Chevrolet for Haas CNC Racing. Jeremy Mayfield had started out the season behind the wheel of the #70, but had been fired from the team two weeks prior. Schrader's 3rd place starting position was the best qualifying result that the veteran driver achieved since Bristol in March, 2003, and would be the final top-5 starting position of his Cup career. A blown engine relegated him to 42nd-place, preceded only by Reed Sorenson, a fellow victim of engine failure.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel
The 2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 15th edition of the men's tournament (8th for the women) of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, and was part of the International Series Gold of the 2008 ATP Tour, and of the Tier III Series of the 2008 WTA Tour. Both the men's and the women's events took place at the Fairmont Acapulco Princess in Acapulco, Mexico, from February 25 through March 2, 2008.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel
The men's singles featured ATP No. 8, Madrid and Paris Masters champion and Buenos Aires winner David Nalbandian, Costa do Sauípe runner-up and two-time Acapulco titlist Carlos Moyá, and recent Viña del Mar singles and doubles finalist Juan Mónaco. Also present were 2007 Metz semifinalist Guillermo Cañas, Buenos Aires semifinalist Juan Ignacio Chela, Nicolás Almagro, Igor Andreev and Potito Starace.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel
The women's field was led by Viña del Mar champion, three-time Acapulco finalist and 2005 titlist Flavia Pennetta, Dnipropetrovsk Satellite winner Alizé Cornet, and Viña del Mar finalist Klára Zakopalová. Also competing in the draw were Viña del Mar and Bogotá quarterfinalist Martina Müller, Auckland and Bogotá quarterfinalist Sara Errani, Yvonne Meusburger, Kaia Kanepi and Edina Gallovits.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, Finals, Men's Doubles
Oliver Marach /  Michal Mertiňák defeated   Agustín Calleri /  Luis Horna, 6–2, 6–7(3–7), [10–7]


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, Finals, Women's Doubles
Nuria Llagostera Vives /  María José Martínez Sánchez defeated  Iveta Benešová /  Petra Cetkovská, 6–2, 6–4


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Men's Doubles
Potito Starace and Martín Vassallo Argüello were the defending champions. They were both present but did not compete together. Starace partnered with Nicolás Massú, but lost in the semifinals to Oliver Marach and Michal Mertiňák. Vassallo Argüello partnered with Albert Montañés, but lost in the first round to Óscar Hernández and Sergio Roitman.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Men's Doubles
Oliver Marach and Michal Mertiňák won in the final 6–2, 6–7(3–7), [10–7], against Agustín Calleri and Luis Horna.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Men's Singles
Juan Ignacio Chela was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Agustín Calleri.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Men's Singles
Sixth-seeded Nicolás Almagro won in the final 6–1, 7–6(7–1), against David Nalbandian.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Women's Doubles
Lourdes Domínguez Lino and Arantxa Parra Santonja were the defending champions, but were forced to withdraw due to a right foot injury for Domínguez Lino, before their quarterfinals match against Nuria Llagostera Vives and María José Martínez Sánchez


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Women's Doubles
Nuria Llagostera Vives and María José Martínez Sánchez won in the final 6–2, 6–4, against Iveta Benešová and Petra Cetkovská.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Women's Singles
Émilie Loit was the defending champion, but chose not to participate that year.


2008 Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Women's Singles
Flavia Pennetta won in the final 6–0, 4–6, 6–1, against Alizé Cornet.


2008 Abkhazia bombings
In June and July 2008 a series of bombings took place in Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia, killing 4 and injuring 18 people.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, The bombings, June 18 Sukhumi railway bombings
On June 18, two bombs exploded within 5 minutes of each other on the railway tracks outside Sukhumi. No one was injured as a result, though the tracks sustained minor damage.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, The bombings, June 29 Gagra bombings
On June 29, two bombs exploded within 5 minutes of each other in the centre of Gagra, injuring 6. The first explosion happened close to Gagra's market, the second explosion took place near a supermarket. One 38-year-old woman received shrapnel wounds to her eye and had to be treated in a Sochi hospital. One other woman had to be taken to Gagra hospital with shrapnel wounds.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, The bombings, June 30 Sukhumi bombings
On June 30, two bombs exploded within 5 minutes of each other in the centre of Sukhumi, injuring 6. Both explosions happened close to Sukhumi's market. According to Abkhazian law enforcement officers, the explosive devices did not contain shrapnel-generating objects, suggesting that the aim of the explosions was terrorising the population. Four of the six injured had to be taken to the Sukhumi City Clinical Hospital.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, The bombings, July 2 Inguri river border crossing bombing
On July 2, an unidentified vehicle passed the Georgian interior ministry post and approached Russian peacekeepers' post 301. At approximately 300 meter distance, an object was thrown out of the car which subsequently exploded. The vehicle then turned and drove back unhindered past the Georgian interior ministry post. No one was injured as a result of the explosion.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, The bombings, July 6 Gali bombing
On July 6, at 10.58 pm, a bomb exploded in a cafe in Gali, killing 4 and injuring 6. The four people killed were Jansukh Muratia, acting chief of the Abkhazian security service's Gali department, Sukhran Gumba, employee of the border department of the Abkhazian security service, Anzor Lagvilava, interpreter of the UN Mission in Georgia in the Gali district and Iveta Toria, local resident. The six injured were taken to hospitals in Gali and Sukhumi.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Aftermath
In response to the June 29 and 30 bombings, Abkhazia closed its border with Georgia on July 1. Residents of the Gali district who were in Georgia at that moment received three days to return.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Abkhazia
The Abkhazian side accused Georgia of being behind all 7 bombings. It described the June 18 bombings as a terrorist attack against the Russian Railway Forces in Abkhazia, who had recently started repairing the Sukhumi-Ochamchire section of the Abkhazian railway, to the detriment of Georgia. The June 29 and 30 bombings were likewise described as terrorist attacks, perpetrated with the aim of destroying the tourism season in Abkhazia. According to Ruslan Kishmaria, special representative of Abkhazian president Sergei Bagapsh to the Gali district:


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Abkhazia
“I believe the person who ordered these terrorist acts paid well for them and we should look for this person in the security services of Georgia. When Tbilisi pretends to be insulted that the Abkhaz should falsely accuse it, it’s just a game.”


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Abkhazia
In response to the July 6 Gali bombing, Predident Bagapsh accused Georgia of having chosen the way of state terrorism.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Georgia
The Georgian side has vehemently denied the Abkhazian accusations, with Defence Minister David Kezerashvili stating that they were "not serious". Officials in Tbilisi and Georgian media offered as alternative explanation that the bombings were the result of a power struggle among different criminal groups in Abkhazia. Georgian MP Nika Rurua, a deputy chairman of the parliamentary committee for defense and security, said that the blasts were aimed at “terrorizing the local population” in order to increase anti-Georgian sentiment in the region.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Georgia
On July 7, the Georgian government released a statement in which it condemned the bombings and said:


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Georgia
“Those acts of violence are in the interests of forces hoping to prolong the presence of illegally deployed Russian military forces in Georgia; of forces resisting demilitarization and peace in the region and of those who want to derail Georgia’s European and Euro-Atlantic aspirations.”


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Russian peacekeepers
In reaction to the July 2 bombing near the Russian peacekeepers' post, Aleksander Diordiev, aide to the commander of the peacekeeping troops, accused the Georgian side, saying:


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Russian peacekeepers
“The actions of the Georgian secret services are of a provocative nature, which aim at destabilizing the situation in the southern part of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict zone and also at provoking the peacekeepers”


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Independent observers
In response to the Gagra bombings, Tbilisi based political analyst Paata Zakareishvili stated that she thought it unlikely that they were the result of a struggle between criminal groups. According to Zakareishvili it is plausible that the bombings were aimed to disrupt the tourist season:


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Independent observers
"This aim was basically achieved. I think that the tourist season in Abkhazia has been wrecked. I don’t subscribe to the theory that it was some kind of business feud. If one businessman blows up another’s business, his own business also suffers, because the tourist season is the main source of revenue there."


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Independent observers
At the same time, Zakareishvili considered the Abkhazian decision to close their border with Georgia unwise, because it would only serve to alienate the Gali district population.


2008 Abkhazia bombings, Reactions, Georgian call for an international police force
In its statement made on July 7 after the Gali bombing, the Georgian government renewed its call for an international police force in the Gali and Ochamchire districts. This call found support with the United States Department of State, but was immediately rejected by the Abkhazian side.


2008 Abruzzo regional election
The Abruzzo regional election of 2008 took place on 14–15 December 2008, due to the early resignation of President Ottaviano Del Turco, after his indictment for alleged corruption. The election was to take place on 30 November–1 December, but was postponed because of legal issues over the ammission of the list of For the Common Good.


2008 Abruzzo regional election
The candidate of The People of Freedom (PdL) was Giovanni Chiodi, a former mayor of Teramo. The PdL rejected any alliance with the Union of the Centre (UDC) and The Right in order to strengthen its goal of becoming a majority force free from the blackmails of small "old politics" parties.


2008 Abruzzo regional election
On the centre-left, local and national leaders of Democratic Party (PD) tried to produce a joint candidate with Italy of Values (IdV) and UDC, but IdV said that an alliance with the PD was possible only if the PD would have supported their own candidate, Carlo Constantini. IdV was even tempted by running a solitary campaign: Abruzzo was in fact a stronghold for the party, whose leader Antonio Di Pietro came from neighbouring Molise. However, in late October, the PD agreed to support Costantini at the head of a large centre-left coalition, comprising also the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC), the Party of Italian Communists (PdCI), the Federation of the Greens and the Socialist Party (PS).


2008 Abruzzo regional election
The PD tried to woo also the UDC in the centre-left coalition, but the UDC refused any alliance with populist IdV and decided to run its own candidate, Rodolfo De Laurentiis. Teodoro Buontempo was the candidate of The Right.


2008 Abruzzo regional election
On election day Gianni Chiodi defeated Carlo Costantini. The election was a major defeat for the PD, while IdV had a very good result, despite the poor showing of its candidate, who won fewer votes than its supporting parties.


2008 Abu Kamal raid
The 2008 Abu Kamal raid was an attack carried out by helicopter-borne CIA paramilitary officers from Special Activities Division and United States Special Operations Command, Joint Special Operations Command inside Syrian territory on October 26, 2008. The Syrian government called the event a "criminal and terrorist" attack on its sovereignty, alleging all of the reported eight fatalities were civilians. An unnamed U.S. military source, however, alleges that the target was a network of foreign fighters who planned to travel through Syria to join the Iraqi insurgency against the United States-led Coalition in Iraq and the Iraqi government.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Background
Throughout the Iraq War, Syria had reportedly served as a conduit for foreign fighters intending to enter Iraq to fight the US, coalition, or Iraqi military and police forces. The Los Angeles Times reported that some US officials had complained that militants and their reinforcement and logistics networks have been able to operate openly in Syria and that the Syrian government had not made sufficient effort to stop it.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Background
The New York Times however reported that the timing of the raid was startling partly because American officials have praised the Syrian government in recent months for its efforts to halt traffic across the border. In 2007, US General David H. Petraeus credited Syria in "large part" due to its "robust interdiction efforts" against the infiltrators, as well as Major Adam Boyd who stated in 2008 that Syria was being cooperative arresting fighters on their side of the border, however he also noted instances of local corruption in both Syrian and Iraqi border patrol units.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Background
The US alleged that the militants flew into Damascus and then, with the help of emplaced networks, travelled across the Syrian border into Iraq, mainly through the city of Ramadi. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad denied these claims, while he admitted some militants do come into Syria through Damascus International Airport without knowledge from Syrian authorities, he claimed that the majority of militants crossed into Syria from the borders of neighboring countries. Neither claims could be confirmed due to the limited information on what routes the foreign fighters took to get into Syria. According to the US military, the foreign militants were responsible for 80% to 90% of the suicide attacks in Iraq, mainly targeting Iraqi civilians.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Background
In the summer of 2007, a US military raid on a suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq house in the Iraqi town of Sinjar, near Syria, yielded documents containing information about alleged Syrian smuggling networks used to move foreign fighters into Iraq. The documents included al-Qaeda in Iraq records of more than 500 foreign fighters who had entered from Syria, according to the Combating Terrorism Center at the US Military Academy, where civilian analysts examined the documents.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Background
A July 2008 report on what the documents contained indicated that at least 95 Syrian "coordinators" were involved in facilitating the movement of the foreign fighters into Iraq. The report stated that many of the coordinators were from smuggling families in Bedouin clans and other Syrian tribes. The documents, however, do not show any signs of any Syrian government involvement in the facilitation of these fighters.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Background
Since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, there had been a few reported incidents of the US military firing across the border at targets in Syria. Petraeus again stated in October 2008 that efforts by US and Iraqi forces, as well as by the Syrian government, had cut the number of militants crossing into Iraq from Syria from about 100 a month in early to mid-2007 to 20 a month. Petraeus, however, stated that more needed to be done to halt the flow of militants. In 2008, the US blamed violence in Mosul on foreign fighters from Syria. Although the 100 a month figure is cited by Petraeus in 2008, earlier accounts from John Negroponte, as well as Major Marty Weber, contradict this number. Both testified in early to mid-2007 that around 40-70 fighters were infiltrating into Iraq through Syria.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid
The raid took place in Eastern Syria near Abu Kamal, which is near the Iraqi border city of Al-Qa'im. This area was regarded by the U.S. as the main crossing point into Iraq for fighters, money, and equipment in support of the Iraqi insurgency. At some point in time the Central Intelligence Agency confirmed the location of al-Qaeda coordinator Abu Ghadiya, accused of being responsible for much of the smuggling, and suggested the raid be undertaken. According to Cable News Network, US President George W. Bush likely approved the mission.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid
Four American Black Hawk helicopters (other sources say 2 Black Hawk helicopters, who were escorted by 2 AH-6 little bird helicopters) entered Syrian airspace around 16:45 local time on October 26 and deployed roughly two dozen soldiers, who attacked a building under construction in the village of As Sukkariyah, just north of Abu Kamal. Sky News reported that two of the four American helicopters landed, allowing 10 US Army Special Forces (other sources say they were Delta Force) soldiers to disembark and storm a building under construction.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid
The Syrian government stated that the soldiers killed eight civilians, including a man, his four children, and a married couple. Journalists reported that the local people say that the victims of the raid were all innocent civilians. However, U.S. officials continued to claim that all those killed during the raid were associated with Abu Ghadiya, the operation's target. A villager from the area stated that at least two men were seized by the American forces.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid
An eyewitness told the BBC that two of the dead — the married couple — were "very simple people" who "lived in a tent and were being paid to guard building materials such as cement and timber, 24 hours a day. These people will have had nothing to do with the insurgency in Iraq." Syria's official news agency gave the names of the dead as Dahud Mohammed al-Abdullah, his four sons, and Ahmed Khalifeh Ali Abbas al-Hassan and his wife. The US disputed the Syrians' statement of civilian casualties, claiming that all of the people killed in the assault were militants.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Target
The target of the raid was said to be a "foreign fighter logistics network". A U.S. source told CBS News that "the leader of the foreign fighters, an al-Qaeda officer, was the target of Sunday's cross-border raid." He said the attack was successful but did not say whether or not the al-Qaeda officer was killed. Fox News later reported that Abu Ghadiya, "Al Qaeda's senior coordinator operating in Syria", was killed in the attack and The New York Times reported that during the raid the US troops involved killed several armed males who "posed a threat."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Target
Very little is known about Abu Ghadiya, the United States Department of the Treasury claimed that he was a Sunni Iraqi born between 1977 and 1979 in Mosul, whose actual name was Badran Turki Hishan al Mazidih. However, other reports claimed that Abu Ghadiya was born in Damascus in 1976 and his real name was Sulayman Khalid Darwish. He graduated from the Damascus University Dentistry School sometime during the 1990s, until he later went to Afghanistan and joined al-Qaeda.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Target
Both reports accuse him of working for Iraqi al-Qaeda leader Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi and the US claimed he later started working for Abu Ayyub Al-Masri after Zarqawi's death. The US had reportedly known about Abu Ghadiya for "months or years" and had been pressing the Syrian government to hand over, capture, or kill him. According to The New York Times, Abu Ghadiya was either killed near his tent or died after being taken by the American troops; his body was flown out of Syria. American officials have stated that Ghadiya was killed in the raid along with several other members of his cell.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Target
The Syrian government disputed American claims, stating that these were "lies from the United States" and that the American troops had violated international law and Syrian sovereignty. A 2009 investigation by Vanity Fair that interviewed Syrian eyewitnesses, including a man shot during the raid, cast doubt on the Ghadiya assertion. Former Clinton administration official Robert Malley, who met with State Department officials at the time, was quoted in the article affirming that Ghadiya was killed in the raid.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Target
However, an al-Qaeda in Iraq obituary released in August 2006 says that Abu Ghadiya was killed by the Saudi-Iraqi border sometime in November 2004. Furthermore, former CIA officer Robert Baer was highly skeptical, saying, "If they brought back an al-Qaeda body, why don't they have something? There's no conceivable way they would have killed him and not shown it".


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Syrian permission given pre-attack
On October 28, Israeli journalist Ronen Bergman reported that Syrian intelligence had cooperated with the US against al-Qaeda, and that Syria had told the US that it would not intervene in a US strike. Several days later, The Times also reported that the Syrians had agreed to the raid through a backchannel established with the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Directorate.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, Syrian permission given pre-attack
According to the report, after the Syrians gave the U.S. information pertaining to the location of Abu Ghadiya, they agreed to allow the U.S. to apprehend him and take him to Iraq; as such, when Syrian air defenses, on high alert since the Israeli-led Operation Orchard, detected the American helicopters and requested permission to engage them, it was denied. One tribal leader told the paper that an hour and a half after the attack, Syrian intelligence officers came to the area, warning the villagers that if they spoke about what had just occurred, their family members would die. He also claimed that a rocket-propelled grenade had been launched from the compound by one of the militants at the American helicopter. However, Akram Hamid, a survivor of the raid, said that "No one was shooting at the soldiers."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, US government position
The Syrian Government called the raid "terrorist aggression" and a violation of their sovereignty. The Americans defended the action as self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter, citing their belief that Syria was responsible for providing "sanctuary to terrorists". The same reason was used for U.S. raids into Pakistan a few months before as part of the War on Terror. Turkey had also used this argument for its raids against PKK rebels in northern Iraq, while Colombia used this defence for cross-border attacks against FARC.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, The raid, US government position
The US position, as presented to the UN General Assembly a month before the incident by President George W. Bush, was that sovereign states have "an obligation to govern responsibly, and solve problems before they spill across borders. We have an obligation to prevent our territory from being used as a sanctuary for terrorism and proliferation and human trafficking and organized crime." Anthony Cordesman, an analyst at the US Center for Strategic and International Studies, said about the raid that, "When you are dealing with states that do not maintain their sovereignty and become a de facto sanctuary, the only way you have to deal with them is this kind of operation."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, Syria and Iraq
[in response to U.S. claims that the raid was conducted to strike at an Al Qaeda operative]"This is lies from the United States ... Killing civilians in international law means terrorist aggression. We consider this criminal and terrorist aggression."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, Syria and Iraq
Syria summoned the U.S. and Iraqi chargés d'affaires to Damascus to protest the unauthorized raid. Sergeant Brooke Murphy, an American military spokesman in Baghdad, said that commanders were investigating. According to the Associated Press, an anonymous U.S. official said that a raid had taken place, and had aimed to target members of a foreign fighter logistics network that reached from Syria into Iraq. In other media, Syria characterized the attack as "terrorist aggression". Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem went ahead with a meeting with UK Foreign Minister David Miliband the day after the raid, but their joint news conference was canceled. On October 28 Syria closed an American school called the Damascus Community School in Damascus and a US cultural center.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, Syria and Iraq
Iraq was in an awkward position because it wanted to remain friendly with Syria, but also wanted to prevent people believed to be creating unrest in Iraq from entering through Syria. Iraq's official spokesperson officially denounced the attack, stating, "The Iraqi government rejects U.S. aircraft bombarding posts inside Syria." However, an Iraqi Government spokesman stated Syria had in the past refused to hand over fighters who were accused of killing 13 Iraqi border guards. He also stated that the proposed agreement for US forces to stay in Iraq after the UN mandate ended "will limit this type of operation.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, Syria and Iraq
It will limit the United States from using Iraqi land to attack others." Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said about the raid, "This area was a staging ground for activities by terrorist organizations hostile to Iraq." al-Dabbagh added that Iraq had previously requested that Syria turn over members of the insurgent group that used Syria as its base.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, Syria and Iraq
Iraqi government officials in Mosul and the surrounding governorate of Ninevah strongly supported the raid and encouraged the US and Iraqi central governments to do even more to stop the flow of insurgents from Syria into Iraq. Said Khosro Goran, the vice-governor of Ninevah, "We have an open border with Syria and our neighbors are actively encouraging the terrorists."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions
Russia condemned the attack and refused "the use of force against independent sovereign states under the disguise of combating terrorism." A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson stated, "We oppose any deed that harms other countries' sovereignty and territorial integrity." India expressed disapproval of the raid, stating that actions resulting in the deaths of civilians are counterproductive. France expressed serious concern over the loss of Syrian civilian lives and called for restraint and respect for the territorial integrity of states. Spain's foreign minister called for an end to such dangerous events and expressed condolences to Syria for the deaths of civilians.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions
North Korea condemned the raid, stating "The military attack is an unpardonable, inhuman criminal act ... and state terrorism committed under the pretext of the anti-terrorism war"  The government of Venezuela also condemned the raid, calling it a barbaric act, and President Hugo Chávez characterized the raid as illegal aggression. Vietnam opposed the US unilateral military attack and said that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations must always be absolutely respected. Cubaexpressed vigorous condemnation for the raid, characterizing it as a criminal action and a violation of international law. The Indian Foreign Ministry said that "The scourge of terrorism affects many nations across the world. While this must elicit decisive responses, when such actions result in the death of innocent civilians, they defeat the very objective of the intervention."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions
The Arab League denounced the raid and voiced its support to Syria to protect its sovereignty and people. AL Secretary General Amr Moussa underlined the League's support for Syria's right to defend its land and people and called for an investigation in the incident to hold those responsible into account. The Foreign Ministry of Qatar said that the raid contravened "the principles of international law and charters", and expressed its condolences for those killed and injured.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions
Iran condemned the raid, stating that "We actually condemn any attack which violates national sovereignty of countries and leads to the killing of innocent people. Such invasions are unacceptable." Facing increased internal pressure the Iraqi government unexpectedly criticized the expedition into the border village. A spokesman for the Iraqi, Ali al-Dabbagh, said: "The Iraqi government rejects US aircraft bombarding posts inside Syria. The constitution does not allow Iraq to be used as a staging ground to attack neighbouring countries."


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions, Increased animosity
The Syrian government reacted by warning of retaliation if the US stages any more cross-border strikes, while also demanding respect of its sovereignty. The Syrian foreign minister accused the US of conducting a planned act of "criminal and terrorist aggression" in broad daylight with "blunt determination". Walid Muallem said, "We would defend our territories. All of them [were] civilian, unarmed, and they [were] on Syrian territory." The Syrians also summoned the US and Iraqi ambassadors to protest against the raid, according to the Syrian Sana news agency. Though the US did not officially respond to the accusations, sources were quoted saying a smuggling ring taking foreign fighters into Iraq was the target.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions, Increased animosity
The Syrian government also ordered the closure of an American school and the American Cultural Center in Damascus. And a public spokesman for the US embassy in Damascus said on Wednesday that the Embassy may close to the public for an unspecified period of time.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, International reactions, Increased animosity
On October 30, 2008, thousands of Syrians in Damascus protested against the raid. They waved national flags and banners reading "No to U.S. aggression on the Syrian territory" and "The American aggression will not succeed". The New York Times reported that the rally appeared to be organized and staged by the Syrian government. According to the Middle East Times, Syria publicly expressed anger to conceal its own involvement in the raid. Neither report could be verified independently.


2008 Abu Kamal raid, Aftermath, Other reactions
A number of politicians in the United States have condemned the raid. Representative Dennis Kucinich protested the raid, stating, "Saber rattling and attacks upon sovereign nations who did not attack us are unacceptable." Representative Nick Rahall was quoted in 2009 as saying that "[Syrian civilians] lost their lives in an unfortunate attempt by the previous administration to once again mislead, bully, and isolate a regime".


2008 Achamkhara incident
The 2008 Achamkhara incident refers to the armed confrontation, that took place on July 9, 2008, on the flanks of Mount Achamkhara in the internationally unrecognised Republic of Abkhazia, between Abkhazian and Georgian troops.


2008 Achamkhara incident, Background
At the time of the incident, Mount Achamkhara was located near the de facto border between the self-declared Republic of Abkhazia and the formerly Georgian-controlled Kodori Gorge.


2008 Achamkhara incident, The incident
The claims of both sides are different, with conflicting versions of the events and there isn't any independent confirmation, on what took place.


2008 Achamkhara incident, The incident, The Abkhazian view
Abkhazia claims, that at 9:25 a.m., its security post on Mount Achamkhara was raided by around 10 Georgian attackers, using automatic weapons and grenade launchers. Two of its reservists were injured and had to be hospitalised.


2008 Achamkhara incident, The incident, The Georgian view
Georgia claims, that its policemen were attacked by Abkhazian troops, while they were securing the Achamkhara heights in anticipation of a UNOMIG visit to the Kvabchara Valley. It further claims, that 3 of its police officers were injured and they in turn had killed 4 Abkhazian assailants.


2008 Achamkhara incident, UNOMIG investigation
Both sides appealed to the UNOMIG, with the wish to investigate the incident, which was started on June 10. It hasn't revealed anything yet.


2008 Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships
The 21st Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Glasgow, Scotland from 10–12 October 2008, at the Kelvin Hall.


2008 Acropolis International Basketball Tournament
The Acropolis International Tournament 2008 was a basketball tournament held in OAKA Indoor Hall in Athens, Greece, from July 7 until July 9, 2008. This was the 22nd edition of the Acropolis International Basketball Tournament. The four participating teams were Greece, Croatia, Brazil and Australia.


2008 Acropolis Rally
The 2008 Acropolis Rally of Greece was the seventh round of the 2008 World Rally Championship. It took place between May 29-June 1.


2008 Adamawa State gubernatorial by-election
The 2008 Adamawa State gubernatorial by-election occurred on April 26 2008. Incumbent PDP Governor Murtala Nyako won re-election in the supplementary election, defeating ACN candidate to emerge winner.


2008 Adamawa State gubernatorial by-election
Murtala Nyako emerged winner in the PDP gubernatorial primary election. His running mate was Bala James Ngilari.


2008 Adamawa State gubernatorial by-election, Electoral system
The Governor of Adamawa State is elected using the plurality voting system.


2008 Adamawa State gubernatorial by-election, Results
There were 12 parties registered with the Independent National Electoral Commission to contest in the re-run election. The two main contenders were PDP Governor Murtala Nyako, who won the contest, and ACN's Markus Gundiri, who follows closely.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season
The 2008 AFL season was the Adelaide Football Club's 18th season in the Australian Football League (AFL).


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Playing list changes
In: Tony Armstrong (draft pick 58), Myke Cook (draft pick 38), Patrick Dangerfield (draft pick 10), Jarrhan Jacky (draft pick 30), Aaron Kite (draft pick 71), Brad Moran (traded from Kangaroos for draft pick 37), Andy Otten (draft pick 27), Brad Symes (traded from Port Adelaide for draft pick 28), Taylor Walker (draft pick 75)


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Playing list changes
Rookie: Ed Curnow (rookie draft pick 40), Brodie Martin (rookie draft pick 52), James Moss (rookie draft pick 9), Jared Petrenko (rookie draft pick 25)


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Playing list changes
Out: Rhys Archard, Matthew Bode, John Hinge, Ben Hudson (traded to Western Bulldogs), Andrew McIntyre, Martin Mattner (traded to Sydney for draft pick 28), John Meesen traded to Melbourne for draft pick 37), Ian Perrie, Darren Pfeiffer, Mark Ricciuto (retired), Jason Torney, James Turner, Scott Welsh


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, NAB Cup
The 2008 NAB Cup provided much hope for Adelaide fans stemming from their team's progression to the Grand Final. Adelaide was initially able to beat the more fancied Collingwood in Dubai, before accounting for Fremantle and Hawthorn (both at home). Adelaide had kicked more Supergoals than their to-be opposition St Kilda and so was given the privilege of hosting the NAB Cup Grand Final. It was the 2nd time in three years, and 5th time overall, that the Crows had reached the pre-season cup final. However they were unable to defeat St Kilda, losing by five points.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, NAB Cup
The match was heavily criticised by some in the Victorian media for having the lowest crowd attendance for a pre-season grand final in history. In particular the members of the Adelaide Football Club were criticised for not attending their team's home final; though most media outlets spreading this criticism neglected to take into account the extreme heat (with very low humidity) which at night wouldn't have been too much of a problem because of the sun.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, NAB Cup
Despite their narrow loss, fans saw glimpses of the future for the club. The rejuvenated midfield, replacing ageing champions such as Tyson Edwards and Simon Goodwin and freeing them to move into the forward line. A new forward line thus emerged, featuring young key position forwards James Sellar and Kurt Tippett – both tipped to lead Adelaide's attack in the new era – along with the addition of veterans Andrew McLeod, Simon Goodwin and Tyson Edwards to provide experience and quality in what had long been Adelaide's Achilles' heel.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
(Note: in the table above, green rows are wins, red rows are losses. In the Score column Adelaide scores are always shown first.)


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
The season got off to an anticlimactic start in a high scoring shootout at the Telstra Dome as the Crows went down to the Western Bulldogs (126–123) when Nathan Bock missed a set shot on goal just as the siren sounded, which would have won the match. The club surprised all those who doubted them by thrashing finals hopefuls West Coast in a stunning round 2 display at home, winning by 76 points (133–57).


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Round 3 saw the return of the Rivalry Round, and possibly the most anticipated Showdown in history, against a Port Adelaide side which had lost the first 2 rounds of the season: firstly against the reigning champs Geelong at AAMI Stadium, and then in a match that they were predominantly tipped to win against the Swans at the SCG. With the Crows having won 6 of their last 7 Showdowns, a win in Showdown XXIV would square the ledger with 12 Showdown victories each.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
The clash was probably one of the most M rated Showdowns in history, even more so than the one near the end of season 2006 which saw Trent Hentschell go down with a serious knee injury and out for the entire 2007 season. The Crows managed to attain a 16-point lead late in the match, before Port made one last scoring surge. However, the Crows held firm, and managed to hold the victory by 6 points (85–79) as the home crowd of over 45,000 went into a frenzy after the final siren had sounded.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
The following week, round 4, Adelaide had a bad day and struggled in a 44-point loss to Hawthorn in Launceston (114–70). They bounced back to win four straight games, with the help of three of those games being played at home.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Round 5 saw a 17-point win over Fremantle at home (88–71), round 6 a 30-point win over Carlton at the MCG (111–81), round 7 a 33-point win over North Melbourne at home (107–74), and round 8 a 76-point thrashing of Melbourne at home (150–74).


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
In the Round 8 victory against Melbourne at AAMI stadium, Brett Burton took one of the greatest marks in Crows history at the Northern end of the ground in the final quarter where he climbed the shoulders of an opponent and grabbed the ball into his chest before falling hard to the ground. After the win against Melbourne, Adelaide stood 5–0 at home for the first time ever in its history.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
The Crows looked to continue their winning streak against a struggling, but hard to beat West Coast Eagles in a tough trip to Subiaco Oval in Round 9. However, inaccurate kicking cost the Crows dearly and they never managed to get back into the game after a slow start. With a tendency that continues to bewilder fans, the Crows again managed to find a way to lose the 'unlosable' game, in their red uniforms, eventually going down by 50 points to the team they destroyed by 76 points just 7 rounds previously (97–47).


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
In round ten of the 2008 season the Adelaide Crows overcame the Essendon Bombers in a close and hard fought match, finally coming out winners by five points: 74 – 69. Poor goal kicking accuracy was the main reason for the game being so close, with the main culprits being Brett Burton, Simon Goodwin and Jason Porplyzia. Scott Thompson was one of Adelaide's key players getting 33 possessions in the midfield and providing a lot of drive going forward. Burton was reported for a head-high bump to Essendon's Henry Slattery and was subsequently offered, and accepted, a two-match ban by the AFL's match-review committee.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Round eleven saw the Crows return to the MCG to face the under-performing Richmond in their red clash jumper yet again. Continuing a worrying trend in matches away from home, Adelaide started slowly and were fortunate to only trail by 14 points at half-time. After the long-break, however, the Crows woke from their slumbering style and proceeded to kick 15 goals to 5 in the second half, to run out easy winners by 50 points (146–96). Bernie Vince had 30 disposals, Scott Thompson kicked 6 goals, and Ivan Maric stepped up to dominate the ruck against the more experienced Simmonds.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
At the halfway point in the season, Adelaide had an 8–3 record with a percentage of 120.90, and sat two points clear of Sydney in fourth spot on the premiership ladder. Home record: played 6, won 6; away record: played 5, won 2.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Round 12 saw Adelaide lose to Hawthorn by 4 points and it could be hard to argue that it could be their most agonizing defeat of the season (76–72). The team started well, scoring two goals with 23 disposals before Hawthorn had a confirmed stat. But the Hawks came back and the game was tight throughout, with Adelaide leading by 1 point at quarter-time, and increasing that lead by one for each of the next two quarters.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
The last quarter was again a close affair until the tough and calm Luke Hodge of Hawthorn snapped a goal with only a few minutes left on the clock to put the Hawks in front. From there Hawthorn closed down the game and held on by four points. It was Hawthorn's third away win against Adelaide, but their first since that infamous 97-point thrashing in Round 9, 1994. Adelaide dropped to fifth on the premiership ladder after the loss, and it may be seen in the weeks ahead as a devastating blow to their top 4 hopes, despite their 8–4 record.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Adelaide slipped to 8–5 after losing to Brisbane at the Gabba by 13 points (83–70) in round 13. Although leading by 12 points at half-time, and 2 at three-quarter time, Adelaide were outrun by Brisbane in the last term. The Crows couldn't get their forward structure working properly even with the return of Burton from suspension.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
In the second weekend of the split round 14, Adelaide were visited by Geelong and promptly defeated by 68 points (124–56). Adelaide were never in the contest, scoring only one point in the first quarter. The Crows slipped to 6th on the premiership ladder after the loss with a percentage of only 109.09.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
In round 15, Adelaide travelled to Melbourne to face Collingwood at the MCG. The Crows led by as much as 22 points midway through the second term but faded after half-time to lose by 32 (106–74). This was the first time the team had lost four games in a row under Neil Craig. Added to the loss were injuries to Burton (knee) and Porplyzia (shoulder), the former of which would end his season.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
In front of the smallest crowd in Showdown history, Adelaide lost the second game of 2008 against Port Adelaide by 12 points in round 16, (92–80). A lack of a settled forward line and Port's commitment led to a stifled Crows outfit. Adelaide slipped out of the eight after this loss, their fifth in a row.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Adelaide faced Sydney at the SCG in round 17 as underdogs, even though they had a dominant record over the Swans since 2002. Sydney couldn't get anything moving and Adelaide were inspired by the sudden return of Porplyzia, who kicked five goals, with a 23-point win (77–53). Adelaide have now won 9 of the past 10 games against Sydney.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Dominant second and third quarters, during which they kicked 11 goals to 5, helped Adelaide to a tight 8-point win (94–86) over Carlton at AAMI Stadium in their round 18 clash. Brad Moran popped up with four goals at full-forward, a move that was forced by a heavy knock to Jason Porplyzia in the second term, which would redislocate his shoulder as well as causing potentially season-ending brain bruising. At the end of the round, the Crows sat in sixth place with a 10–8 win/loss ratio.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
In an easy game against Richmond in Round 19 (a win of 63 points, 108–45), Andrew McLeod celebrated his 300th game playing AFL football with a superb display off the half-back line. The AAMI stadium surface was wet and slippery after heavy rain during the morning of the game which made for difficult conditions. Adelaide handled the ball far better than the Tigers, kicking 7.2 to 0.1 in the second term to lead by an even 9 goals at half-time. After that, the Crows were never threatened and held on to sixth spot on the AFL ladder, four points clear of Collingwood.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Adelaide then travelled to the Telstra Dome for a potentially tricky game against in-form Essendon in Round 20. After the game was a low-scoring slog for the first quarter and a half, the Crows broke away with ten goals to one either side of half time to lead by 56 points late in the third quarter and eventually won by the same margin (129–73). Key forward Nick Gill finally delivered on much promise, booting five goals including three in the last quarter.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Controversial draftee Patrick Dangerfield played his debut and showed potential despite being unspectacular, kicking a goal on the half-time siren. The win guaranteed the Crows a place in the finals, and also put them in the top four pending the result of North Melbourne's clash with Carlton. After a win by North, Adelaide sat in fifth position with 48 points and a percentage of 113.01. Of interest is the fact that this was the first time Adelaide had defeated Essendon in Melbourne, after 11 attempts spread over the 17 years since they entered the AFL competition.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
A return to the Telstra Dome in Round 21 saw the Crows tackle St Kilda and play probably their worst game of the year so far. St Kilda had the incentive of the game being Robert Harvey's final home game, as well as the added bonus of cementing their place in the final eight with a win. But Harvey started on the bench and Adelaide led 3.3 to 0.1 before St Kilda got into their stride late in the first quarter. After quarter-time Adelaide only kicked a further 3 goals to St Kilda's 12 to lose comprehensively (95–47). The loss meant Adelaide slipped to sixth on the ladder with a percentage of 109.60. To add to Adelaide's woes, Chris Knights was reported for making forceful front-on contact which he got off.


2008 Adelaide Football Club season, Home and away season
Adelaide knocked off the Western Bulldogs by 9 points (76–67) in wet conditions at AAMI Stadium. It was their 5th win in 6 games. The win moved Adelaide into 4th spot but St Kilda's big win over Essendon the next day dropped Adelaide down to 5th spot and into a very difficult home final vs Collingwood.