2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, New Mexico
Eddie Wide rushed for 145 yards, a new personal best, in his sixth consecutive 100-yard rushing game, which is a new Utah record. Sausan Shakerin also added 100 yards rushing. Receiver Jereme Brooks had six catches for 135 yards and a touchdown.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
I have been a head coach for five years, and that is the best team I've faced.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
ESPN held its two-hour College GameDay show from outside TCU's Amon G. Carter Stadium to promote the day's college games—including the TCU–Utah game. The program aired live starting at 8:00 AM MT.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
With the 55–28 win over the Utes, the Horned Frogs took sole position of first place in the Mountain West Conference, improved their record to 10–0 (6–0 MWC), and dropped Utah to 8–2 (5–1 MWC). The Utah defense struggled against TCU and allowed them to amass 549 yards of total offense and 32 first downs.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
Utah fell behind for good late in the first quarter. After Utah tied the game at 7–7, TCU scored 28 straight points to take a 35–7 lead with 11:40 remaining in the second quarter. TCU took advantage of Utah mistakes during their scoring run. TCU took a 14–7 lead and then on the ensuing Utah possession, Greg Burks for TCU blocked Sean Sellwood's punt. Six plays later, TCU took a 21–7 lead. TCU also intercepted quarterback Jordan Wynn and returned the ball 15 yards for a touchdown. The rest of the game, the teams traded scores with Utah scoring 21 more points and TCU scoring 20.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, TCU
After the game, the MWC named TCU sophomore linebacker Tank Carder as its Defensive Player of the Week. Carder had nine tackles during the game, including one for a loss, and an interception that he returned for a touchdown.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, San Diego State
Utah Leads Series: 16 – 12 – 1The Utes scored a touchdown on four of their first five possessions on their way to a 38–0 halftime lead. Utah did not score the rest of the game, but still had a 31 point victory over the Aztecs, who got on the board late in the 4th quarter. The victory improved Utah's record to 9–2 (6–1 MWC) and dropped San Diego State to 4–7 (2–5 MWC).


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, San Diego State
Receiver Jereme Brooks had seven catches for 100 yards and a touchdown, and David Reed added six catches for 89 yards. Running back Eddie Wide led the Utes in rushing with sixteen carries for 84 yards and two touchdowns. Safety Joe Dale also had a touchdown when he intercepted Aztec quarterback Ryan Lindley's pass and returned it 30 yards to the end zone.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, San Diego State
The MWC named Dale its Defensive Player of the Week. In addition to his defensive touchdown, he also recorded five tackles, including one for a loss, and a pass breakup. Three of his tackles were solo tackles.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, BYU
Utah Leads Series: 53 – 34 – 4In the second overtime game in series history, BYU defeated Utah 26–23. The game improved BYU's record to 10–2 (7–1 MWC) and dropped Utah's record to 9–3 (6–2 MWC). The game was the final regular season game for both teams. BYU finished second in the MWC and Utah finished third.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, BYU
BYU held a 20–6 lead entering the fourth quarter. Utah scored 14 fourth quarter points to force overtime, but their comeback fell short. After Utah managed a field goal in overtime to take a 23–20 lead, BYU was given possession of the ball. BYU took advantage, and quarterback Max Hall connected to tight end Andrew George for a 25-yard touchdown reception and the victory.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, BYU
Utah scored five field goals during the game, which proved costly as they were unable to score more points from their forays into scoring position. Kicker Joe Phillips made all five of his field goal attempts.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, BYU
After the game, BYU quarterback Max Hall criticized Utah and its fans. He said, "I don't like Utah. In fact, I hate them. I hate everything about them. I hate their program, their fans. I hate everything. It felt really good to send those guys home." When asked for a clarification and if he really hated Utah, he continued, "I think the whole university and their fans and the organization is  [sic] classless. They threw beer on my family and stuff last year and did a whole bunch of nasty things. I don't respect them and they deserved to lose." During the game, Hall had 12 completions out of 32 pass attempts for 134 yards. He had two touchdown passes and no interceptions.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, BYU
The MWC named Joe Phillips its Special Teams Player of the Week. His five field goals were 39, 21, 31, 40 and 29 yards long, respectively. His 40-yard kick came with 29 seconds left in the fourth quarter and sent the game into overtime.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Poinsettia Bowl: Utah vs. California
Cal Leads Series: 4 – 3 – 0Utah defeated California 37–27 in the Poinsettia Bowl for their ninth consecutive bowl victory. The win improved Utah's record to 10–3 (6–2 MWC) and dropped California to 8–5 (5–3 Pac-10). Utah has the longest bowl winning streak in the country and is tied for the second longest streak of all time. Florida State holds the record with eleven consecutive bowl victories from 1985 to 1996. The win improved Utah's bowl record to 12–3 (.800).


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Poinsettia Bowl: Utah vs. California
California built a 14–0 lead about midway through the first quarter, but Utah was able to recover with 27 straight points. Running back Shane Vereen scored the first touchdown of the game off of a 36-yard rush. The next play from scrimmage, Eddie Young intercepted a Jordan Wynn pass and returned it for a touchdown. Utah responded with an eight-play, 30-yard touchdown drive when Wynn completed a 6-yard pass to tight end Kendrick Moeai. The drive got started when Shaky Smithson returned the kickoff 61 yards to the 30-yard line. Utah scored 17 points in the second quarter to take a 24–14 halftime lead.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Poinsettia Bowl: Utah vs. California
The second half started as a defensive struggle until Utah sacked Kevin Riley and Riley fumbled the ball on the California 14-yard line. California held Utah to a field goal attempt; Joe Phillips connected on the 29-yard field goal. California responded on the next possession with a six-play, 77-yard touchdown drive. Vereen scored his second touchdown of the night on a 1-yard run.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Poinsettia Bowl: Utah vs. California
Utah scored its final points on the night when linebacker Stevenson Sylvester returned an interception 27-yards for a touchdown. The pass had been tipped by Sylvester's teammate, safety Robert Johnson. The Bears scored one more touchdown, but failed to score the two-point conversion for the final 37–27 score.


2009 Utah Utes football team, Game summaries, Poinsettia Bowl: Utah vs. California
Wynn was named the Offensive MVP for the game. He completed 26 of his 36 pass attempts for 338 yards. He had three touchdown passes, but also one interception. Sylvester was named the Defensive MVP. In addition to his defensive touchdown, Sylvester finished with eight tackles, five of which were solo tackles. He also assisted in a tackle for a loss and had a pass breakup. With a 39-yard catch in the fourth quarter, receiver David Reed broke school records for catches in a season (81) and receiving yards in a season (1,188). Reed had six catches for 103 yards during the Poinsettia Bowl.


2009 Utah Utes football team, After the season, Awards
Six Utah players were named to the 2009 MWC Football All-Conference Team first team: wide receiver David Reed, running back Eddie Wide, offensive lineman Zane Beadles, defensive lineman Koa Misi, linebacker Stevenson Sylvester, and defensive back Robert Johnson.


2009 Utah Utes football team, After the season, Awards
Two players were named to the second team: Caleb Schlauderaff and Zane Taylor, both on the offensive line. Four players were given Honorable Mention: placekicker Joe Phillips, punter Sean Sellwood, defensive lineman Sealver Siliga, and linebacker Mike Wright.


2009 Utah Utes football team, After the season, Awards
Beadles was named to several All-American teams recognized by the NCAA to determine "consensus All-Americans". The Football Writers Association of America named him to its first team All-American team. The Walter Camp Football Foundation named him to its second team. Sporting News named him to its third team.


2009 Utah Utes football team, After the season, NFL Draft
Utah had six players taken in the 2010 NFL Draft — setting a school record. The players taken were:


2009 Uzbek League
The 2009 Uzbek League season was the 18th edition of top level football in Uzbekistan since independence in 1992


2009 Uzbek League
Pakhtakor hold the most titles with 8 Uzbek League crowns to their name.


2009 Uzbekistan First League
The 2009 Uzbekistan First League  was the 18th season of 2nd level football in Uzbekistan since 1992.


2009 Uzbekistan First League, Competition format
League consists of 14 teams which play on regular home-and-away schedule: each team plays the other teams twice. The top two teams of the promote to Uzbek top league.


2009 Uzbekistan Second League
Uzbekistan Second League is the third highest football league in Uzbekistan. The league  is headed by UFF.


2009 Uzbekistan Second League, League format
In the second phase the league split into two groups each featuring five teams. The winner and runner-up of each group promote to First League


2009 Uzbekistan Second League, Second phase, season 2009
FK Khiva, Lokomotiv BFK Tashkent, FK Guliston and FK Kosonsoy are promoted to First Division


2009 V-League
V-League 2009 was the 53rd season of Vietnam's professional football league. The league was held from February 7, 2009 to August 23, 2009.


2009 V-League
The league winners qualify for the AFC Champions League qualifying round in 2010. The cup winners enter the AFC Cup.


2009 V-League
The bottom two sides at the end of the season get relegated. The side that finishes 3rd from bottom enters an end of season play-off match against the 2nd Division's 3rd placed side.


2009 V-League, Dream Team
Nguyễn Minh Đức (Xi Măng Hải Phòng) Trần Hải Lâm (SHB Đà Nẵng) Huỳnh Quang Thanh (Becamex Bình Dương)


2009 V-League, Dream Team
Lê Công Vinh (T&T Hà Nội) Leandro (Xi Măng Hải Phòng) Datsakorn Thonglao (Hoàng Anh Gia Lai) Lee Nguyễn (Hoàng Anh Gia Lai) Nguyễn Vũ Phong (Becamex Bình Dương)


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge
The 2009 V8 Supercar Challenge was the eleventh event of the 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series. It was held on the weekend of the October 22 to 25 at the Surfers Paradise Street Circuit in Queensland. After the cancellation of the A1 Grand Prix event the same weekend, the V8 Supercars became the main event on the program for the Nikon SuperGP carnival. The winner of the event was Mark Winterbottom, winning two of the weekend's four races.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Format change
The V8 Supercar Challenge consists of the 19th and 20th races of the season. After the collapse of A1 Grand Prix's involvement in the Nikon SuperGP, V8 Supercar expanded its involvement in the event. The original program planned for a 44 lap, 200 kilometres (120 mi) race to be held on each of Saturday (Race 19) and Sunday (Race 20). The expanded program saw those two races split into a total of four 34 lap, 150 kilometres (93 mi) races, consisting of Races 19a, 19b, 20a and 20b in the 2009 V8 Supercar series. Winner of Race 19 will be decided via points accumulation between races 19a and 19b, with Race 20 calculated in identical manner. Grid positions for Races 19a and 20a to be decided by separate qualifying sessions, with 19b and 20b to be decided by finishing order of the preceding races.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Format change
This format changed for the Gold Coast 600 which became a two-driver endurance with two 300 km races one on saturday and one on sunday starting in 2010.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 19
Races 19a and 19b were held on Saturday October 24.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 20
Races 20a and 20b were held on Sunday October 25.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 20, Race 20a
Fabian Coulthard and Cameron McConville wrecked against the wall before the first corner. Coulthard's car was heavily damaged and would take no further part in the weekend. Steven Richards spun Greg Murphy around further back. Richards was subsequently issued a black flag for a driving infringement. Up front Lowndes out-launched the front row pair of Jason Bargwanna and Rick Kelly to jump into the race lead before the Safety car appeared to clean up the mess left by the opening lap.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 20, Race 20a
Rick Kelly caught and passed Bargwanna at the restart. Bargwanna quickly lost further positions as the car misfired on seven cylinder. A quick pitstop to fix a plug lead got Bargwanna back up to pace, but well back in the pack, a cruel result after his first pole position in ten years. Will Davison dropped to the tail of the field with damage to the front right corner of the car after clipping a dislodged tyre bundle at one of the many chicanes. The car pitted and the HRT crew began to replace the damaged right side steering arm.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 20, Race 20a
Michael Patrizi stopped at the top of the course, safety car sent out to control the field once more. The Safety car was sent out the lap after pitstops began, vaulting the few cars who pitted early to the top of track position. At the subsequent restart Shane van Gisbergen overtook Jamie Whincup prior to passing the start/finish line, incurring an instruction from race control to let Whincup past again. Whincup had slowed approaching to line as he prevented himself from overtaking a pitbound Will Davison.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 20, Race 20a
Lowndes settled into a lead over Rick Kelly, although Kelly was later given a black flag as his Commodore was venting fuel from the back of the car. Kelly eventually pitted on lap 20. The following lap Michael Caruso had a major engine failure, dumping fluid over Seek Turn Three. Lee Holdsworth and Greg Murphy spun at the Beach Esses on lap 27.


2009 V8 Supercar Challenge, Race 20, Race 20a
Lowndes raced on to take a two-second lead over Winterbottom, Garth Tander, Russell Ingall and the Dick Johnson Racing pair of James Courtney leading Steven Johnson. The sting was the second to last lap retirement of Jamie Whincup, bouncing off the walls exiting Falken Tyres Turn at the top of the circuit.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series
The 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series was the eleventh V8 Supercar Championship Series and the thirteenth series in which V8 Supercars have contested the premier Australian touring car title. It began on 19 March at the Clipsal 500 on the streets of Adelaide and ended on 6 December at the Homebush Street Circuit and consisted of 26 races over 14 events which were held in all states and the Northern Territory of Australia as well as New Zealand. The 50th Australian Touring Car Championship title was awarded to the winner of the series by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series
Triple Eight Race Engineering Ford driver Jamie Whincup won the Championship from Holden drivers Will Davison and Garth Tander. Championship races were also won by Craig Lowndes, Michael Caruso, James Courtney and Mark Winterbottom. The two-driver endurance races, held at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit and at the Mount Panorama Circuit, Bathurst, were both won by Tander and Davison.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Race calendar
The Desert 400 originally scheduled to take place on 5–7 November was moved into the 2010 season. A replacement event, The Island 300, was announced in late September at Phillip Island. The Nikon SuperGP altered its format at late notice after the cancellation of the A1 Grand Prix event which was due to be held at the same event. The two by 200 kilometre races were altered to two races each split into two 150 kilometre legs. Race winners were declared on the basis of accumulated points over the two legs held each day.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers
The following teams and drivers contested the 2009 series. This list is based in part on


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Ford announced that from 2009, it would only offer financial support for Ford Performance Racing and Stone Brothers Racing, having previously provided funding for Triple Eight Race Engineering, Dick Johnson Racing, Britek Motorsport, Paul Cruickshank Racing and Ford Rising Stars Racing. The remaining Ford backed teams retained levels of parts and in-kind support.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Similarly Holden announced several teams would be cut from their financial support budget, with Garry Rogers Motorsport, Perkins Motorsport, Sprint Gas Racing and Rod Nash Racing  losing their direct funding, although like the Ford counterparts they still received technical and parts assistance. The new Kelly Racing Team received the funding previously given to HSV Dealer Team.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
The works Toll Holden Racing Team remained at two cars, but a secondary two-car team was set up under the Walkinshaw Performance banner. Racing Entitlements Contracts were purchased from Paul Weel Racing, which had closed at the end of 2008, and the 30th franchise from the former Walden Motorsport team. Will Davison replaced the retiring Mark Skaife alongside Garth Tander at Toll HRT while Paul Dumbrell was signed to drive the Autobarn-backed number 10 Walkinshaw Performance entry, with David Reynolds rounding up the line-up in a Bundaberg Red-backed entry.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Stone Brothers Racing expanded to three cars with Jason Bright folding his own Britek Motorsport operation to utilise one of his team franchises for SBR's expansion. Bright started the season in a BF Falcon, before switching mid-season to a new FG Falcon. Shane van Gisbergen continued in the lead SP Tools-sponsored car in an FG Falcon alongside Alex Davison who replaced the departing James Courtney in an Irwin Tools sponsored car. Courtney joined Steven Johnson at Dick Johnson Racing.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
The second Paul Weel Racing, (ex-Ford Rising Stars Racing) franchise was used to start a new race team, Team IntaRacing, based in Southport. It utilised a Triple Eight Race Engineering sourced BF Falcon and equipment and was centred around former Britek driver, Marcus Marshall with funding coming from new V8 Supercar sponsor Intabill. The Intabill Access Card sponsorship was pulled from the car shortly before the Hamilton 400 but Marshall vowed the sponsorless team would continue. The team subsequently collapsed and the Racing Entitlement Contract was absorbed by V8 Supercar Australia.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Another new team in 2009 was Kelly Racing, formed by John and Margaret Kelly utilising the franchises from the defunct HSV Dealer Team running Holden Commodores for their sons, Todd and Rick Kelly. A four-car superteam was established, with the second pair of franchises being sourced from Perkins Motorsport. The third and fourth drivers were announced as Todd Kelly's 2008 teammate Jack Perkins (supported by Dodo Internet) and Dale Wood. Wood was replaced after the Hidden Valley weekend with Mark McNally taking over the #16 Commodore for the Townsville 400.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Jason Bargwanna returned to a full-time drive joining Greg Murphy at Sprint Gas Racing taking the place of Jason Richards. Bargwanna spent a season on the sidelines after WPS Racing folded prior to the 2008 V8 Supercar season. Jason Richards was confirmed as Andrew Jones' replacement at Team BOC.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Michael Patrizi joined Fabian Coulthard as the drivers of a revamped Wilson Security Racing (PCR) in 2009. PCR expanded from a one-car team by leasing a franchise from Jason Bright's team for Patrizi to run the #333 BF Falcon alongside Coulthard in a Triple Eight Race Engineering-built FG Falcon, backed by Wilson Security.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Supercheap Auto Racing announced the identity of their new driver as graduation Fujitsu Series driver Tim Slade. Slade replaced Paul Morris, who retired at the end of the 2008 season.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Team Kiwi Racing finalised a deal for the 2009 season to run a Paul Morris Motorsport Holden Commodore. Bankruptcy proceedings involving Team Kiwi Racing team principal, David John, meant for an uncertain future and the team was unable to prepare adequately for the 2009 season. The franchise was run as a satellite entry of Paul Morris Motorsport on Team Kiwi Racing's behalf for the first two events of the year while the situation was clarified, thus avoiding approximately $150,000 fines for each race meeting they might have been absent, with former Carrera Cup racer Dean Fiore in the driving seat. V8 Supercar Australia subsequently seized TKR's Racing Entitlement Contract in order that it be sold or leased. It was sold to Fiore, who completed the season under the Triple F Racing banner. The racing number was changed for Triple F's second outing from #021 to #12.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
V8 Supercar Australia announced four wildcards entries into the two 'enduro' events (L&H 500 and Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000). The four teams selected from those who made submissions were all competitors in the second-tier Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series,  namely: Greg Murphy Racing, MW Motorsport, Sieders Racing Team and Sonic Motor Racing Services.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Greg Murphy Racing ran a VE Commodore built by their sister-team Tasman Motorsport with Fujitsu series regular Sam Walter named as one of the drivers. Taz Douglas was later named as the second driver.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
The family-run Sieders Racing Team used the 2006 Bathurst 1000 winning Triple Eight BF Falcon for brothers Colin and David Sieders. Subsequently, Colin Sieders withdrew citing imminent surgery and was replaced with V8 Ute Series racer Andrew Fisher.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
MW Motorsport were represented by their young up-and-coming drivers Damien Assaillit and Brad Lowe, to give them experience ahead of a possible promotion to a main game full-time or co-driver role in 2010.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Teams and drivers, Driver and team changes
Sonic Motor Racing Services ultimately withdrew their entry and V8 Supercar Australia decided not to allow them to be replaced with another team.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Points system
Points are awarded to any driver that completes 75% of race distance and is running on the completion of the final lap.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Points system
Std denotes all races except the L&H 500, Bathurst 1000, and Surfers Paradise. These three races have unique rules.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Points system
L&H 500:   Phillip Island races are split into qualifying races and 500 km feature race. The two drivers per team will be grouped into separate qualifying races that will count towards drivers' individual point totals and towards the starting grid for the feature race. The two drivers will then race one car for the 500 km endurance race.


2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, Points system
Bathurst:  Both drivers will share one car for entire race.


2009 V8 Supercar season
The 2009 V8 Supercar season was the thirteenth season in which V8 Supercars contested the premier Australian motor racing series for touring cars. It was the 50th season of touring car racing in Australia from the first Australian Touring Car Championship, latter to become the V8 Supercar Championship Series, and the first Armstrong 500, which would evolve into the Bathurst 1000.


2009 V8 Supercar season
The season featured the thirteenth V8 Supercar Championship Series which began on 21 March at the Clipsal 500 on the streets of Adelaide and finished on 6 December at the Homebush Street Circuit. The championship comprised 26 races held at 14 events, visiting all states and the Northern Territory of Australia as well as New Zealand. A non-championship event supported the 2009 Australian Grand Prix. The season also included the tenth second tier Development Series, promoted as the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series, with all seven rounds held as support races for the V8 Supercar Championship Series. For the second year, a third tier series was run, as the Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series. Its five rounds were held at rounds of the Shannons Nationals Motor Racing Championships.


2009 V8 Supercar season, Review
The 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series was dominated by the season long rivalry between the leading Ford team, Triple Eight Race Engineering and its drivers Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes and the leading Holden team, the Holden Racing Team and its drivers, Will Davison and Garth Tander. Between them they won 22 of the seasons 26-point scoring races.


2009 V8 Supercar season, Review
HRT won the most of the seasons prizes, winning the teams prize, leading the charge to Holden regaining the manufacturers prize, the drivers combining to win the Bathurst 1000 and the Phillip Island 500, but Triple Eight won the biggest prize with Jamie Whincup retaining the drivers' championship. Whincup personally won half of the 22 races the two teams won together, the backbone of his title retention with his season beginning Adelaide 500 as his centrepiece and Lowndes chipped in by dominating Winton and winning the non-championship event held on the Australian Grand Prix support program.


2009 V8 Supercar season, Review
Lowndes was fourth in the championship behind Tander, but Davison was the revelation of the season, stepping up to HRT after a strong season with Dick Johnson Racing in 2008, Davison pushed Whincup almost all the way to the title until Davison faded over the final two events at Barbagallo and the new Sydney 500.


2009 V8 Supercar season, Review
Best of the rest was a battle between two Ford teams. Mark Winterbottom won at Surfers Paradise and finished fifth in the drivers championship for Ford Performance Racing while at Dick Johnson Racing, Steven Johnson finished sixth and his teammate James Courtney took two street circuit victories at the Townsville 400 and Sydney 500. The only upset win was Michael Caruso's debut win at Hidden Valley Raceway. Caruso's win for Garry Rogers Motorsport was also the only Holden race win not scored by the Holden Racing Team as the three top Ford team shared honours.


2009 V8 Supercar season, Review
Ford also had success in the second tier series with MW Motorsport driver Jonathon Webb charging to the series crown, utterly dominant in the second half of the series as Ford drivers swamped the top seven positions in the development series. James Moffat was series runner up from David Russell with TV personality racer Grant Denyer putting his best ever season to finish a strong fourth position. The emerging third tier series was won strongly by Adam Wallis in his self-run Holden Commodore.


2009 VA
2009 VA is an asteroid that came within 14,000 kilometres (8,700 mi) of Earth on 6 November 2009 making it the third closest non-impacting approach of a cataloged asteroid.


2009 VA
With a diameter of only 7 metres (23 ft), scientists think that even if it had been on a direct collision course with Earth, it would have likely burned up in the atmosphere. The space rock made its pass by Earth just fifteen hours after its discovery.


2009 VA
The asteroid was first discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey at the University of Arizona. It was determined that the object would make a pass well within the orbit of the Moon, but would not strike Earth. The object passed so close to Earth that its orbit was modified by Earth's gravity.


2009 VFF Bred Cup
The 2009 VFF Bred Cup was the qualifying competition for the 2009–10 OFC Champions League.


2009 VFF Bred Cup
The club who advanced to this tournament was Tafea FC, Vanuatu's sole representative at the competition. The competition was played in two separate championships, north and south, with each winner facing off in the overall final.


2009 VFL season
The 2009 Victorian Football League (VFL) season was the 128th season of the Australian Rules Football competition. The premiership was won by the North Ballarat Football Club, which defeated the Northern Bullants by 23 points in the Grand Final on 25 September. It was North Ballarat's second consecutive premiership, and the second in the club's history.


2009 VFL season, League membership and affiliations
At the end of the 2008 season, the Tasmanian Devils Football Club withdrew from the VFL and disbanded. AFL Tasmania, which operated the club, was focussed on re-establishing the Tasmanian Football League as a statewide competition in 2009, after an eight-year hiatus since the original statewide league's collapse at the end of 2000, and having the Tasmanian VFL club competing for attention and players did not fit with this vision. As a result, the VFL was reduced to thirteen clubs.


2009 VFL season, League membership and affiliations
As a result, the size of the VFL was reduced to thirteen teams: nine VFL-AFL affiliates, two AFL reserves team, and two stand-alone VFL teams.


2009 VMI Keydets football team
The 2009 VMI Keydets football team represented the Virginia Military Institute during the 2009 NCAA Division I FCS football season. It was VMI's 119th all-time football season which started in 1891. They competed in the Big South Conference, and they were led by 2nd year head coach Sparky Woods, who was appointed VMI's 30th head coach in 2008. VMI played its home games at Alumni Memorial Field, as they still do ever since 1962.


2009 VMI Keydets football team
The Keydets kicked off the year by just defeating Robert Morris 14–13. Two losses followed to then-#6 James Madison and then-#1 Richmond, 44–16 and 38–28, respectively. Three more losses followed to conference opponents Gardner-Webb, Coastal Carolina, and Stony Brook. The next week, VMI held off Presbyterian for a 31–20 win. It would be their final win of the year, as the Keydets lost to Charleston Southern, Liberty, Army, and Old Dominion. VMI finished 2–9 overall and 1–5 in the Big South.


2009 Vaahteraliiga season
The 2009 Vaahteraliiga season was the 30th season of the highest level of American football in Finland. The regular season took place between May 30 and August 15, 2009. The Finnish champion was determined in the playoffs and at the championship game Vaahteramalja XXX the Porvoo Butchers won the Helsinki Roosters.


2009 Valais Grand Council election
The 2009 election to the Grand Council was held in the canton of Valais, Switzerland, on 1 March 2009. All 130 members of the Grand Council were elected for four-year terms.


2009 Valais Grand Council election
The centre-right maintained its control on the canton, with the Christian Democratic People's Party remaining by far the largest party, with 54 seats: down four from 2005. The classical liberal Free Democratic Party and the Social Democratic Party each lost two seats, leaving them on 28 and 17 respectively. The Christian Social Party gained one seat, tying them with the Social Democrats on 17 overall. The main winners were the national conservative Swiss People's Party, who doubled their number of seats to twelve. The Green Party added one seat, winning two overall.


2009 Valais Grand Council election
After the election, the two overtly Christian parties, the centre-right Christian Democratic People's Party and centre-left Christian Social Party, formed a bloc in the Grand Council together, which gives them an outright majority. However, the three members of the Christian Social Party from French-speaking Lower Valais, rejected the alliance, and joined the Social Democrats and Greens in the 'Alliance of the Left' (French: Alliance de Gauche).


2009 Valencia Formula Two round
The 2009 Valencia Formula Two round was the first round of the 2009 FIA Formula Two Championship season. It was held on 30 and 31 May 2009 at Circuit de Valencia at Valencia, Spain. The first race was won by Robert Wickens, with Carlos Iaconelli and Kazim Vasiliauskas also on the podium. The second race was again won by Robert Wickens, with Mirko Bortolotti and Philipp Eng also on the podium.


2009 Valencia GP2 Series round
The 2009 Valencian GP2 round was the seventh round of the 2009 GP2 Series season. It was held on August 22 and 23, 2009 at Valencia Street Circuit at Valencia, Spain. The race was used as a support race to the 2009 European Grand Prix. Last year's race was quite eventful, with championship frontrunners Giorgio Pantano and Bruno Senna retiring on the last lap, with Senna retiring just before the finish line. Past Winners include last year's Campos duo Vitaly Petrov and Lucas di Grassi, who both competed this year.


2009 Valencia GP2 Series round
This race saw a driver reshuffle with Davide Valsecchi moving to Barwa Addax Team in place of Romain Grosjean who now races in F1. Formula Three Euroseries Race Winner Stefano Coletti replaces Valsecchi at Durango. The round also saw the departure of FMS, who sold their stake back to Scuderia Coloni.


2009 Valencia Open 500
The 2009 Valencia Open 500 was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 15th edition of the Open de Tenis Comunidad Valenciana, and was part of the 500 Series of the 2009 ATP Tour. It was held at the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències in Valencia, Spain, from November 2 through November 8, 2009.


2009 Valencia Open 500, Players, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Valencia Open 500, Finals, Doubles
František Čermák /  Michal Mertiňák defeated  Marcel Granollers /  Tommy Robredo, 6–4, 6–3


2009 Valencia Open 500 – Doubles
Máximo González and Juan Mónaco were the defending champions, but González chose not to participate this year. Mónaco partnered with Pablo Cuevas, but they lost in the second round against Victor Hănescu and Horia Tecău. František Čermák and Michal Mertiňák won in the final 6–4, 6–3, against Marcel Granollers and Tommy Robredo.


2009 Valencia Open 500 – Singles
David Ferrer was the defending champion, but withdrew from his second round match due to a hamstring injury. Andy Murray won in the final 6–3, 6–2, against Mikhail Youzhny.


2009 Valencia Superbike World Championship round
The 2009 Valencia Superbike World Championship round was the third round of the 2009 Superbike World Championship season. It took place on the weekend of April 3–5, 2009 at the Circuit de Valencia in Valencia, Spain.


2009 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix
The 2009 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix was the last round of the 2009 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 6–8 November 2009 at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo. It was the final race of the 250cc two-stroke class, as Moto2 (600cc four-stroke) replaced it from 2010 onwards. The MotoGP race was won by Dani Pedrosa.


2009 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix, 250 cc classification
Alex Debón was due to start on pole position, but due to injuries sustained in qualifying practice he did not take part in the race. Therefore, everyone else was moved up one place on the final starting grid.


2009 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix, Championship standings after the race (MotoGP)
Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round seventeen has concluded.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season
The 2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season was the club's 24th year of existence (or 34th if counting the NASL Whitecaps), as well as their 17th and 2nd last year as a Division 2 club in the franchise model of US-based soccer leagues. Vancouver was officially named an MLS expansion city on March 18, 2009. Following the end of the 2010 season, the Whitecaps FC joined MLS, becoming the second Canadian club and 19th overall (counting contracted franchises) to enter the league.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season
The 2009 season started in an up and down fashion including three game winning and losing streaks before ending the season with only one loss in their last ten games. The USL-1 league was a closely contested affair with the Whitecaps a member of an intermediate trifecta in the standings separated by less than three points. The Whitecaps overcame the Railhawks and Timbers in tight, hard won playoff series before finishing as runners-up to the Montreal Impact in a dramatic playoff final series.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season
The Whitecaps also finished second in the 2009 Voyaguers Cup in a controversial fashion after Montreal rested important players for their following USL-1 league match against the Whitecaps.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Schedule and results, Tables
Commissioner's Cup, bye to semifinal round of playoffs  Quarterfinal round of playoffs


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Schedule and results, Tables
† Austin deducted two points for fielding an ineligible player on July 25, 2009


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Schedule and results, Tables, Results summary
Last updated: April 26, 2010Source: Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won;  T = Matches tied;  L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Schedule and results, Voyaguers Cup, Standings
Toronto FC qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League qualifying round.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Current roster
Both Jay Nolly and Marcus Haber played all thirty regular season games with Jay Nolly playing every minute of every game. Charles Gbeke was tied for second among the USL-1 point leaders including the league golden boot with 12 goals while Marcus Haber was 7th (with 8 goals) and Marlon James 8th. Wes Knight had eight assists in the league.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Current roster
After the 2008 season, the Whitecaps and coach Teitur Thordarson changed the roster much more than in the previous seven years. Some of this was due to a ten-month contract versus the previous norm of an eight-month contract. Look at the preseason above starting in February with presumably a training camp before hand versus previous years of training camp starting in late March. For some players with other part-time or off season employment and/or families the extra commitment was too much.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Current roster
Many long time stalwart veteran Whitecap players such as Jeff Clarke, Jason Jordan, Steve Kindel and Alfredo Valente were not on the 2009 roster. Additionally, several other players earning significant playing time over a number of years moved elsewhere. Eduardo Sebrango and back-up goalkeeper Serge Djekanovic started the 2009 season with Canadian rival Montreal while Nicholas Addlery went all the way to Puerto Rico.


2009 Vancouver Whitecaps season, Current roster
Two players who remained to serve as the backbone of the side for 2009 were Martin Nash, the captain, and striker Charles Gbeke for offense. The club added Marco Reda from Charleston, Justin Thompson from Portland, and Ansu Toure from Miami. Foreign players signings included Caribbean internationals Kenold Versailles (Haiti) and Tyrell Burgess (Bermuda), who spent 2008 with the USL PDL's Reading Rage. Another signing for the portion of the season he was with the Whitecaps was former New York Red Bulls defender Jeff Parke.


2009 Vancouver gang war
In early 2009, a series of gang-related shootings occurred due to what police describe as a gang war in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Alleged participants include the Independent Soldiers, the Sanghera Crime Group, the Buttar Gang, the Bacon Brothers, the United Nations Gang, the Red Scorpions, and the Vancouver chapter of the Hells Angels.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Background
The escalation of gang violence in Vancouver, beginning in January 2009, is alleged to have been caused by disruptions to the supply of illegal drugs resulting from the crackdown by the Mexican government against the drug cartels there, who supplied cocaine to British Columbia in return for marijuana. This reduced the profits of the Independent Soldiers (IS) and their sometime allies the United Nations gang. The IS are primarily an Indo-Canadian gang while the United Nations gang is made of a multitude of different ethnic groups. More recently,  Chinese and Guatemalans and other various nationalities have been recruited. Both of these gangs' main modus operandi is gun running and smuggling marijuana known as BC Bud to the United States.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Background
The cocaine trade became very profitable due to the ongoing Mexican Drug War. The Mexican Army has severely curtailed the ability of the Mexican drug cartels to move cocaine inside the U.S. and Canada. The U.S. government says the amount of cocaine seized on U.S. soil dropped by 41 percent between early 2007 and mid-2008 and claims this is due to this pressure. The price in Vancouver has increased from $23,300 to almost $39,000 a kilo.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Background
The cocaine trade has been the domain of the IS and UN's rival Red Scorpion street gang and the Hells Angels biker gang. As the IS and UN gangs moved in, the Red Scorpions hit back leading to an all out gang war.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Progress and escalation
By the end of the first quarter of 2009, more than 20 people had been killed and 40 wounded. The Hells Angels had primarily stayed out of the fighting up to this point while the IS gang was busy trying to protect its turf from the resurgent Buttar Gang after police in April 2009 functionally dismantled the rival Sanghera Crime Group after a series of arrests which created a vacuum allowing the Buttar gang to expand its operations and encroaching on the IS for its marijuana monopoly.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Progress and escalation
But most of the wounded and killed had been members of the Red Scorpions and UN gangs who were engaged in a brutal tit-for-tat turf war. The carnage between the UN and the Red Scorpions was believed to stem from the fatal shooting of Gurmit Dhak at Metro town parking lot in Burnaby B.C. Dozens of other slayings followed, many of them retribution killings and commercial disputes between the UN and the associated members of the Red Scorpions, the Bacon brothers who used to be members of the UN gang. But the conflict between these gangs escalated dramatically after the UN gang along with the IS gang decided to move into the cocaine trade, a long domain of the Red Scorpion gang.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Progress and escalation
After initially failing to announce that they had a gang war on their hands, on March 6, 2009, the Vancouver police announced there is a gang war after making several arrests. In particular they have gone after the leadership of the UN and Red Scorpion gangs and closely monitoring the Bacon Brothers after they survived a rash of hits against them. In May, police arrested eight senior U.N. members, including the leader, Iraqi immigrant Barzan Tilli-Choli, on charges of conspiracy to kill the Bacon brothers, while Dennis Karbovanec a member of the Red Scorpions pleaded guilty to previous crimes. Since the arrest of the leadership, there has been a drop in violence but occasional violence does continue.


2009 Vancouver gang war, Gang-related homicides and shootings
Gang shootings were the subject of intense media coverage in Vancouver in 2009. These events include:


2009 Vanderbilt Commodores football team
The 2009 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University during the 2009–10 college football season. The team's head coach was Bobby Johnson, who served his eighth season as the Commodores' head coach. Vanderbilt has been a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) since the league's inception in 1932, and has participated in that conference's Eastern Division since its formation in 1992. The Commodores played their six home games at Vanderbilt Stadium at Dudley Field in Nashville, Tennessee, which has been Vanderbilt football's home stadium since 1922. The Commodores finished the season 2–10 and 0–8 in SEC play.


2009 Vanuatu Census
The 2009 Census of Vanuatu was conducted on 16 November 2009. The census revealed growth by an average of 2.3 percent a year since the previous census in 1999.


2009 Vanuatu Census
The 2009 census was "the first time the Vanuatu National Statistics Office (VNSO) extensively used geographic information system (GIS) technology for a household survey with the exact location of every household in Vanuatu captured through Global Positioning System (GPS) handsets" and "the first time the VNSO used scanning technology to capture the information from the questionnaires into the computer database."


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes
The 2009 Vanuatu earthquakes were three earthquakes with magnitudes of 7.7, 7.8 and 7.4, constituting some of the largest earthquakes in Vanuatu's history.


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes, Tectonic Setting
The Vanuatu earthquakes of October 7, 2009: M 7.7, Vanuatu, 22:03:14; M 7.8 Santa Cruz Islands, 22:18:51 UTC; and M 7.4, Vanuatu, 23:13:48; all occurred as a result of shallow reverse faulting on or near the plate boundary interface between the Indo-Australian Plate and Pacific Plates. In the region of these earthquakes, the Indo-Australian plate moves to the east-northeast with respect to the Pacific plate at a velocity of about 91 mm/yr. The Indo-Australian plate thrusts under the Pacific plate at the New Hebrides Trench and dips to the east-northeast. The locations, depths, and focal mechanism solutions for the October 7th events are all consistent with them resulting from reverse faulting associated with subduction along the Australia-Pacific plate boundary.


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes, Tectonic Setting
The 7.8 Mw  earthquake of October 7, 2009 (22:18 UTC), occurred about 60 km north, and 15 minutes after, a slightly smaller earthquake with a 7.7 Mw  of the same date Occurred (22:03 UTC). A third, smaller event at 7.4 Mw  occurred at 23:13 UTC, 15 km to the southeast of the first event. All three events are likely related; while the first two similarly sized events may be considered a doublet earthquake, preliminary analysis suggests that the 7.4 Mw  earthquake is likely a large aftershock of one of the events.


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes, Earthquake
More than a dozen earthquakes above 5.0 magnitude shook the country within two days of the earthquake sequence, The largest earthquake of the sequence (7.8 Mw) struck 294 km (183 mi) northwest of the island of Santo, and is the second largest earthquake of 2009, behind the 8.1 Mw 2009 Samoa earthquake Which occurred 8 days earlier nearby. None of these tremors caused any casualties, but the largest event did trigger tsunami waves as high as 62 cm (2.03 ft).


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes, Earthquake, Aftershocks and other events
About 15 Minutes prior, a 7.7 Mw earthquake struck the same area, because of their magnitudes being too similar to be considered aftershocks, both events are considered a doublet event.


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes, Earthquake, Aftershocks and other events
About an Hour after that event, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck the same area, it is considered an aftershock to one of the events, At least 9 aftershocks of magnitude 6 or higher were recorded by the USGS, With some located in the Solomon Islands, such as a 6.1 Mw about 3 days after the Mainshock, the largest earthquake of the aftershock sequence behind the 7.4 event was a 6.8 Mw on October 8, on June 3 2009, an unrelated Mw 6.3 earthquake Struck 38 km west of the capital of Port-Vila, injuring 4, damaging a few buildings and triggering landslides.


2009 Vanuatu earthquakes, Tsunami
A tsunami was observed all over the Pacific Ocean, generating waves as high as 62 cm (2.03 ft) in Port-Vila, Vanuatu, 30 cm (0.98 ft) in Santa Monica, California, and 16 cm (0.52 ft) in Atka, Alaska.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election
An indirect presidential election was held in Vanuatu on 1 September and 2 September 2009. The electors are the 52 MPs and the six heads of provincial governments; ten signatures of support are required for nomination. Outgoing president Kalkot Mataskelekele was renominated for a second term, but Iolu Abil ultimately succeeded in winning a five-year term after three rounds of voting by the electoral college.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election, Election background
Kalkot Mataskelekele's five-year term as President of Vanuatu ended on August 16, 2009. The Speaker of Parliament Maxime Carlot Korman was sworn in as acting President until Mataskelekele's successor could be elected.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election, Election background
Under the Constitution, the President of Vanuatu is elected by the 58 member electoral college, which is composed of the 52 members of Parliament as well as the six heads of each of the provincial governments of Vanuatu (Malampa, Penama, Sanma, Shefa, Tafea and Torba). A presidential candidate must win two-thirds of the electoral college in order to be elected president. According to the Constitution, the presidential election must be held within three weeks after the previous office holder's term expires.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election, Election background
The government of Vanuatu allocated approximately US$70,000 to cover the costs of the 2009 presidential election.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election, Election background, Candidates
Fifteen candidates seeking the presidency submitted their names to the electoral office – two women and thirteen men. However, only eleven candidates were ultimately found to be eligible to stand for election.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election, Election
Eleven candidates, including two women, stood in the first round of the election on 1 September 2009 (fifteen had filed, but four of them were not eligible to stand). Vincent Boulekone won 16 votes, Mataskelekele won 14 votes and Iolu Abil won 11 votes. Kalo Nial and female candidate Yvette Sam both won seven votes. As 39 votes were required to be elected, a second round was set for 2 September 2009. The government claimed that its votes had been split between various candidates as the government had decided to allow individual MPs to decide whom to vote for in the first round, so that respect could be shown to previous leaders.


2009 Vanuatuan presidential election, Election
The second round was also inconclusive, but in the third round (also on 2 September), Iolu Abil was elected with 41 votes. There were only six other candidates remaining in the third round. Abil was supported by the government (he was the PM's preference, while the deputy Prime Minister Ham Lini would have preferred to reelect Mataskelekele).


2009 Varsity Cup
The 2009 Varsity Cup was contested from 2 February to 30 March 2009. The tournament (also known as the FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International for sponsorship reasons) was the second season of the Varsity Cup, an annual inter-university rugby union competition featuring eight South African universities.


2009 Varsity Cup
The tournament was won by  Maties for the second consecutive season; they beat  NWU Pukke 11-6 in the final played on 30 March 2009.


2009 Varsity Cup, Competition Rules
There were eight participating universities in the 2009 Varsity Cup. These teams played each other once over the course of the season, either home or away.


2009 Varsity Cup, Competition Rules
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored four or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by seven points or less. Teams were ranked by log points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).


2009 Varsity Cup, Competition Rules
The top four teams qualified for the Title Play-Offs. In the Semi-Finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals will play each other in the final, at the home venue of the higher-placed team.


2009 Varsity Cup, Teams
The following teams took part in the 2009 Varsity Cup competition:


2009 Vattenfall Cyclassics
The 2009 Vattenfall Cyclassics is a one-day road race, which is part of the 2009 UCI ProTour, took place on 16 August 2009. The race covered a total of 225 kilometres (140 mi) and took place in Hamburg, Germany.


2009 Veikkausliiga
The 2009 Veikkausliiga was the seventy-ninth season of top-tier football in Finland. It began on 18 April 2009 and ended on 17 October 2009. Inter Turku were the defending champions.


2009 Veikkausliiga
The championship was won by HJK Helsinki, who came out on top of a three-team race which also involved Honka Espoo and TPS Turku. On the bottom end of the table, RoPS were relegated to the Ykkönen while JJK will have to compete in a two-legged relegation play-off.


2009 Veikkausliiga, Promotion and relegation
KooTeePee finished at the bottom of the 2008 season and were relegated to Ykkönen. Their place was taken by Ykkönen champions JJK. 13th placed Veikkausliiga team KuPS and Ykkönen runners-up competed in a two-legged relegation play-offs for one spot in 2009 Veikkausliiga. KuPS won 2–1 on aggregate and thereby retained their league position.


2009 Veikkausliiga, League table, Relegation play-offs
JJK as 13th placed team of 2009 Veikkausliiga and KPV as runners-up of the 2009 Ykkönen competed in a two-legged play-offs for one spot in the 2010 Veikkausliiga. JJK won the play-offs by 5–3 and remained in Veikkausliiga.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum
The 2009 referendum was a vote in which the citizens of Venezuela approved Amendment No. 1 (Enmienda No. 1) of the Constitution of Venezuela; this abolished term limits for the offices of President, state governors, mayors and National Assembly deputies.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum
The current constitution, enacted in 1999 by referendum, previously established a three-term limit for deputies and a two-term limit for the other offices. The proposed amendment was put to a referendum on 15 February 2009 and endorsed by 54% of the electorate, with approximately 70% of registered voters participating. Upon having his term limits removed, Chávez promised to supporters that he would lead Venezuela until 2030.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Background
A proposal for an important change in the main structure of the Constitution, that included abolishing presidential term limits among major social, economical and political changes was rejected in 2007 when university students led protests and played a critical role in the result; President Hugo Chávez had said the reform was needed to implement his socialist program. Chávez conceded defeat by saying "for now, we couldn't" ("por ahora no pudimos"), echoing the phrase he used after the failure of his February 1992 attempted coup d'état against the Carlos Andrés Pérez government.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Background
On 30 November 2008, six days after broadening support in regional elections, Hugo Chávez decided that it was the opportunity to seek continuous presidential terms, announcing on television that he would be open to a new wave of discussion on the proposal for allowing the postulation without limits to presidential candidature. A National Electoral Council supportive of Chávez quickly accepted elections, scheduling the referendum a little over a month after the regional elections for February 2009.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Background
The following day, his supporters started working towards a constitutional amendment for this goal. Chávez utilized successful managers from PDVSA to lead his referendum campaign. He also offered the abolition of term limits to governors and other officials who supported his removal of term limits. The Chávez administration then distributed many free kitchen and household appliances to his supporters beside flyers stating "Chávez loves us and love is repaid with love" and "Chávez is incapable of doing us harm".


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
The full title of the law was Amendment No. 1 of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Enmienda No. 1 de la Constitucion de Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela). It was approved by a majority of the members of the National Assembly. The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (Chávez's political party) states that the initiative was backed by more than six million people. The amendment affects Articles 160, 162, 174, 192 and 230 of the constitution. They are amended as follows:


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 160: The governor shall be elected for a four-year term by the majority of the votes cast. The governor may be re-elected immediately and only once for one more term.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 160: The governor shall be elected for a four-year term by the majority of the votes cast. The governor may be re-elected.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 162: The regional legislators shall be elected for a maximum of two terms in a row.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 174: The mayor shall be elected for a four-year term by the majority of the votes cast and may be re-elected immediately and only once for one more term.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 174: The mayor shall be elected for a four-year term by the majority of the votes cast and may be re-elected.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 192: The deputies for the National Assembly are elected for a five-year term with the possibility of re-election for a maximum of two terms in a row.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 192: The deputies for the National Assembly are elected for a five-year term with the possibility of re-election.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 230: The presidential term of office lasts six years. The President of the Republic may be re-elected immediately and only once for one more term.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 230: The presidential term of office lasts six years. The President of the Republic may be re-elected.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Provisions of the amendment
Article 341 of the constitution, which governs amendments, states that "amendments shall be numbered consecutively and shall be published beneath the Constitution without altering the text of the latter". Therefore, the 2009 amendment has not altered the original text of the constitution. Rather, Amendment No.1 (including new texts for each of the five amended articles) is published below the original text as a codicil.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Referendum question
Do you approve the amendment of articles 160, 162, 174, 192 and 230 of the Constitution of the Republic, as processed by the National Assembly, which increases the political rights of the people, with the purpose of allowing any citizen incumbent in an elected office, to be nominated as candidate for the same office, for the period of time established constitutionally, his or her possible re-election depending exclusively on popular vote?


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Results
Opinion polls conducted on the measure in December 2008 varied widely, with results ranging from 32% approval (with 61% disapproval) to 51% approval (with 39% disapproval). The final results were as follows:


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Results
These figures were given in the second partial official bulletin, issued when canvassing reached a 98.81% of the votes. The trends are deemed to be irreversible. Final results are awaited in the following days.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, Opposition
The initial reaction of the opposition to the referendum proposal was that it was illegal. Henry Ramos Allup, secretary general of the opposition party Acción Democrática called the proposal "'illegal and unconstitutional' because Article 345 says that 'A revised constitutional reform initiative may not be submitted during the same constitutional term of office of the National Assembly.'" Chávez avoided this issue by declaring that the change to the constitution would be in the form of an amendment, instead of a constitutional reform.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, Opposition
In addition, the constitutional amendment was re-defined to apply to all popular elected positions, not just to the president. Elenis Rodríguez Martínez, a leader of the opposition party Primero Justicia, stated that the proposed change constitutes a fundamental change to the constitution, and therefore cannot be voted as an amendment. She stated that, "Under Article 340, 'the purpose of an amendment is to add to or modify one or more articles of the Constitution, without altering the fundamental structure of the same.'


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, Opposition
When the president says that he wants to delete some words from Article 230 of the Constitution, he is lying, because he really wants to remove an essential part of the text and in doing so he is altering its structure, as well as part of the provisions of Article 6, which reads that 'the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is ... alternating' (...) This is a camouflaged reform." However, the Constitutional Court ruled that such a change was within the scope of a constitutional amendment, and that such an amendment could be re-attempted each year. The editors of Venezuelan publishing house Veneconomy argue that the 15 February date is too soon to comply with time-frames set forth by the suffrage law and related laws for the registration of voters newly turned-18 and for the organization of polling stations.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, Opposition
Students again took a leading role in protests, as they did in the campaign against the 2007 referendum. On 16 January students blocked a Caracas highway, burned trees and taunted the police. After viewing video of the protests, Chávez gave the order: "Throw lots of (tear) gas at them, and take them prisoner for me. If you don't, I'm going to go after the authorities responsible."


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, Opposition
Tensions rose in advance of the referendum, with a group of 40 armed men taking over the Caracas city hall, to which an opposition mayor had been elected in November, and declaring the building "recovered for the revolution". Tear gas was also thrown at the compound of the papal nuncio, who had granted asylum to an anti-Chávez student leader accused of sexual assault; and an anti-Chávez student leader's car was burned.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, Opposition
Opposition figures have accused Chávez of using all the resources of the government to support the Yes campaign, ranging from near-total support for the Yes campaign on state radio and television to placement of Yes campaign ads on official ministry websites. According to opposition figure Leopoldo López, "we aren’t competing against a political party, we’re competing against an entire state and all of the power it can wield". The opposition also says that No campaign ads have had their approval delayed and scheduling manipulated by the National Electoral Council.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, International
Following claims that US officials had met with Venezuelan opposition leaders in Puerto Rico (which the US denied), Chávez accused U.S. President Barack Obama of meddling in the referendum, adding that "He's said I'm an obstacle for progress in Latin America... Therefore it must be removed, this obstacle, right?" Chávez also added that Obama was under pressure from the Pentagon to be tough on Venezuela by quoting: "He [Obama] knows that if he doesn't obey the orders of the empire, they'll probably kill him."


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, International
President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva backed Hugo Chávez's proposal of a possible re-election and asked why nobody criticized Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, who was also proposing the removal of Colombia's current two-term limit, having already removed the previous one-term limit, a move that made possible his re-election in 2006.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, International, International observers
Around 100 international observers were accredited to observe the vote, but neither the Organization of American States nor the European Union had official observers in Venezuela. Observers from Latin American nations, European Parliament members, and European academics said that the ballot had been free and fair. The United States Department of State spokesman Noel Clay praised the "civic spirit" of the referendum. He added that it was important that elected officials in Venezuela focused on "governing democratically".


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, International, International observers
On 13 February 2009, the Venezuelan government expelled Luis Herrero, a Spanish member of the European Parliament (and member of the European People's Party), after he called Chávez a dictator and criticized Chávez's handling of the constitutional referendum. One of the parties in the opposition to Chávez had asked Herrero to observe the referendum.


2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum, Reaction, International, International observers
In April 2009, NACLA reported that its observers had found that "the voting in Venezuela’s 2009 referendum was, overall, fair, transparent, and clean."


2009 Verizon Festival of Speed
The 2009 Verizon Festival of Speed was the fourth round of the 2009 Rolex Sports Car Series season. It took place at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on May 17, 2009.


2009 Verizon Wireless 250
The 2009 Verizon Wireless 250 was the third round of the 2009 Rolex Sports Car Series season. It took place at New Jersey Motorsports Park on May 3, 2009.


2009 Victoria Cup
The 2009 Victoria Cup was the second edition of the Victoria Cup challenge, played on September 29, 2009 between the 2008–09 Champions Hockey League winner ZSC Lions and the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). The ZSC Lions won the game 2–1.


2009 Victoria Cup, ZSC Lions
The ZSC Lions qualified to play for the 2009 Victoria Cup by winning the 2008–09 Champions Hockey League competition. The ZSC Lions from Switzerland won the competition by beating Russia's Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the finals. Metallurg Magnitogorsk played in the inaugural 2008 Victoria Cup game.


2009 Victoria Cup, Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks were named on May 10, 2009 to represent the NHL. The Blackhawks made it to the Western Conference Finals in 2008, eventually losing to the Detroit Red Wings. They would go on in the 2009 season to clinch the 2nd seed in the Western Conference and win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1961. The Chicago Blackhawks were founded in 1926 and are one of the "Original Six" teams of the NHL. This was the Blackhawks' first game against a European club in Europe. The Blackhawks have played in Europe before, having played two exhibition games in 1992 in London, England against the NHL Montreal Canadiens. The Blackhawks played an exhibition game at Hallenstadion on September 28 against HC Davos, which they won 9 - 2.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission
The 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission is an Australian Royal Commission that concluded on 31 July 2010. It investigated the nature of circumstances surrounding the Black Saturday bushfires.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, Preceding events
Premier John Brumby announced a Royal Commission into the fires to examine "all aspects of the government's bushfire strategy",including whether climate change contributed to the severity of the fires.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, Preceding events
On 13 February 2009 Brumby announced that Justice Bernard Teague, former judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria, would chair the Commission, to be assisted by two other Commissioners. On 16 February, the assistant Commissioners were appointed: Ron McLeod, former Commonwealth Ombudsman and the head of an inquiry concerning the 2003 Canberra bushfires; and Susan Pascoe, the Commissioner of the State Services Authority. The Commission was given very broad terms of reference, with Premier Brumby saying that the Commission would be "[t]he most open inquiry that is possible. No stone unturned. Every bit of information on the table. And if that means calling ministers or premiers, or whoever it is, we will be happy to assist."


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
In the preliminary hearing on 20 April, commission counsel Jack Rush delivered in his opening address that an interim report assessing the inadequately short notice warnings would be delivered by the commission to the government by August. The report would evaluate the current "stay or go policy" for bushfire evacuation, and during the commission various bureaucrats' performance and judgment was scrutinized, including Commissioner of Emergency Services Bruce Esplin, and CFA Operations Officer Jason Lawrence but most significantly CFA Chief Officer Russel Rees.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
Rees's knowledge and the rapidity of his actions (mainly lack of) were questioned, and his defense included: that 7 February was the first day the Integrated Emergency Coordination Centre (IECC) had been tested and it worked well; that intelligence was unclear during the day; that the IECC were very busy; the fires were being fought from the inside and not the outside; and that he couldn't focus on one fire because it would narrow his statewide perspective. The commission's questioning explicitly revealed that Rees had not kept close contact with the progress of the Kilmore East fire.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
At 4pm, ten minutes before the Strathewen fires had consumed the area, Rees had accepted a state situation report claiming the fire remained in Mount Disappointment's forest and wouldn't reach Whittlesea for five hours, 30 minutes later the Kilmore East fire reached Kinglake West and swarmed Kinglake less than three hours later. News of deaths reached the Kangaroo Ground CFA office at 5pm and Rees said he'd first been informed of these deaths between 7 and 8pm.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
Rees was also unaware: of the aircraft line-scan taken after the fire erupted, chief fire behavior expert Dr Kevin Tolhurst's presence and predictive map he and his team produced. Rees's evidence explained that warnings weren't issued from the centre but from the periphery, the local incident-control centers (ICCs), the IECC's only responsibility was to place such warnings on the CFA website, but nor Rees or any IECC members saw the warnings.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
The working bushfire 'stay or go' (evacuate or protect your home) policy was scrutinized and severely questioned. The policy was founded on the empirical claim, researched by Dr Katherine Haynes, that concluded that survival was more likely for people to be actively fighting the fire at home than passively shelter or evacuate to be stuck on the roads. The policy was defended by Esplin, who argued against the proposal of compulsory mass evacuation insisting that people intending to leave their homes should have been gone long before specific fires were imminent.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
He clarified that threat messages weren't a signal to evacuate but exclusive prompts to assist people who planned to defend their property. Robert Manne adds "In the philosophy of Bruce Esplin … the kind of mid-afternoon warnings the citizens north of Melbourne so desperately needed on 7 February simply had no place".


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission
In its final week, the commission looked at the fuel-reduction burns in Bendigo and Gippsland. As it turned out, none of the 51 recommendations the commission handed down dealt with fuel reduction, but there was significant public concern that something more should have been done.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission, Criticism of the stay or go policy
Manne drew his own conclusions based on the evidence heard at the Royal Commission:"From the evidence collected at the royal commission, the cumbersome new bureaucratic machine, the IECC, seems to have operated like an army without a general, where no one thought it their responsibility to take the lead.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission, Criticism of the stay or go policy
"Because of the false empirical assumptions of the stay-or-go policy, many of those at the IECC seem to have convinced themselves that if last-minute warnings triggered flight, this would pose a deadlier threat than staying put.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission, Criticism of the stay or go policy
"Far too few inside the firefighting bureaucracies were willing on 7 February to break the rules, to disobey authority or to act spontaneously at time of crisis". The interim report was released to the public on 17 August.


2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, The commission, Criticism of the fuel-reduction burns
In a guest editorial for Australian Forestry, Michael Ryan, one of the victims who lost houses in Bendigo and who works in forestry, said that Victorian authorities need to "manage fuels appropriately in diverse forest types, and residents at the rural-urban interface need to be properly prepared—and on 7 February the reality is that many were not."


2009 Victorian Premier League
The 2009 Victorian Premier League season was held between February and September 2009.


2009 Victorian Premier League, Teams, Promotion and relegation
Teams promoted from Division 1:(After the end of the 2008 season.)


2009 Victorian Premier League, Teams, Promotion and relegation
Teams relegated to Division 1:(After the end of the 2008 season.)


2009 Victorian Premier League, Victoria Men's Team 2009
A Victoria Men's Team consisting of Victorian Premier League players formed to compete against Melbourne Victory for two Victorian bushfire charity appeals matches. The games were scheduled for 12 May and 20 May. Victoria coach Chris Taylor stated that the players were selected "on the basis that some...may go on to play in the national competition in the future."


2009 Victorian Premier League, Victoria Men's Team 2009
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2009 Victorino Cunha Cup
The Victorino Cunha Cup is an annual Angolan basketball tournament held in honour of former Angolan basketball coach Victorino Cunha. The 1st edition (2009), ran from October 16 to 23, and was contested by four teams in a round robin system. Primeiro de Agosto was the winner.


2009 Victory Bowl
The 2009 Victory Bowl was a college football post-season bowl game. The game was played on November 21, 2009 at Francis Field in Greenville, Illinois. The Geneva College Golden Tornadoes, a provisional member of NCAA D-III Presidents' Athletic Conference played against the Greenville College of NCAA D-III Upper Mid-West Athletic Conference.


2009 Victory Bowl
Geneva College won their fifth Victory Bowl in its sixth appearance (both NCCAA Victory Bowl records).


2009 Victory Bowl, Game summary
Geneva claimed a hard-fought victory over Greenville 29-28, with the issue being decided in the game's final seconds. Greenville took an early lead on a 1-yard touchdown run by Ambers. Gerard Muschette put Geneva on the board with a 5-yard touchdown run during the second quarter to tie the game at 7-7. The Panthers extended their lead on a 39-yard touchdown run by Ambers. The failed extra point gave Greenville a 13-7 lead going into the half.


2009 Victory Bowl, Game summary
Ambers scored his third of three touchdowns for Greenville with a 14-yard run. Friedrich caught a two-point conversion attempt from Lira to extend Greenville's lead over Geneva to 21-7. The Golden Tornadoes answered back with Muschette's second touchdown run. The 1 yard run and the extra point cut the Panther's lead to 21-14. Greenville's final points of the game came in the third quarter when Fred scored on a pass of 33 yards from Lira. Ackerman's extra point put the score at 28-14 Greenville.


2009 Victory Bowl, Game summary
Offensive MVP Gerard Muschette scored his third touchdown of the day late in the 3rd quarter on a five-yard run, but a failed extra point resulted in a scored of 28-20. Senior Matt Barge scored for the Golden Tornadoes with 4:54 left in the 4th quarter to cut the Panther's lead over the Golden Tornadoes to 28-26. A failed two-point conversion attempt by the Golden Tornadoes left Greenville ahead. A successful stand by the Golden Tornado Defense, led by Brian Wilson, gave the ball back to Geneva with 2:12 remaining.


2009 Victory Bowl, Game summary, The Drive
The Golden Tornadoes' final possession of the 2009 season began on their own 3 yard line, with 2:12 remaining in the game. Junior quarterback David Girardi completed a first down pass to Barge for a ten-yard gain. Three incomplete passes resulted in a 4th and 10 for Geneva from their own 13 yard line. Heavy pass rush caused Girardi to scramble from the pocket who then completed a pass to Barge for a gain of 10 and a first down. Another pass to Barge, this time for 14 yards moved the ball out to Geneva's 37 yard line.


2009 Victory Bowl, Game summary, The Drive
A short gain on a pass by Girardi to Thurston moved the ball out to Geneva's 41 yard line. The Golden Tornadoes then relied "900 Saint Vincent" for a 47-yard gain down to Greenville's 12 yard line. The play called for Girardi to take a few steps towards Geneva's bench, asking for a new play. The ball was then directly snapped to running back Matt Barge who then lateralled the ball back to Girardi. Girardi then completed a deep post to Nuetzel for a huge gain. Geneva gained 8 more yards on two short passes to Dean and Thurston. A final incomplete pass led to a 4-2 at Greenville's 3 yard line when Nick Dipietro kicked the game-winning field goal with :19 seconds left in the game.


2009 Victory Shield
The Victory Shield 2009 is the 64th edition of the Victory Shield, an annual football tournament that began in 1925 and is competed for by the Under 16 level teams of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. It was held from 1 October to 26 November 2009 and was won by England for the 9th time in a row.


2009 Vietnamese Cup
The 2009 Vietnamese National Cup (known as the Bamboo Airways National Cup for sponsorship reasons) season is the 17th edition of the Vietnamese Cup, the football knockout competition of Vietnam organized by the Vietnam Football Federation.


2009 Vietnamese Cup
Five teams (Viettel Football Club (The Cong, in season), Becamex Binh Duong FC, Nam Dinh Football Club, Khanh Hoa FC and Ha Noi ACB F.C.) will not compete in the first round, and are automatically qualified for the round of 16.


2009 Vietnamese Cup, Finalist players, Viettel FC (The Cong) Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2009 Vietnamese Cup, Finalist players, SHB Da Nang FC Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2009 Vietnamese National Football First League
Vietnamese National Football First League (V.League 2) is the second highest league in Vietnamese football after the V.League 1 with 14 teams competing in it.


2009 Vietnamese National Football Second League
The 2009 Vietnamese National Football Second League has 16 teams, both professional and semi-professional, is divided into 3 groups, 2 groups with 5 teams and 1 group with 6 teams.


2009 Vietnamese National Football Second League
Teams play in a round robin format. the 3 top teams as well as the best 2nd team with most points qualifies for promotion playoff.


2009 Vietnamese National Football Second League
The 2 winners are promoted to the Vietnam First Division. No teams are relegated and no foreign players are permitted to play.


2009 Villanova Wildcats football team
The 2009 Villanova Wildcats football team represented Villanova University in the 2009 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They played their home games at Villanova Stadium in Villanova, Pennsylvania. They were co-champions of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and advanced to the National Championship game where they defeated Montana, 23–21. It was Villanova's first national championship in football, marking them as the only team to have both an NCAA Division I Football and Men's Basketball championship (the FCS is the only official NCAA Division I Football Championship). They finished with a record of 14–1, 7–1 in CAA play.


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum
A constitutional referendum was held in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines on 25 November 2009. Voters were asked whether they approved of a new constitution which would have replaced the constitution in force since independence in 1979. The proposal was supported by only 43.13% of voters in the referendum, well short of the required two-thirds threshold. If approved, the proposed constitution would have abolished the monarchy of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, headed by Queen Elizabeth II, and would have given more power to the opposition. The referendum was the first of its kind to be held by a member of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States.


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum, Campaign
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves and his Unity Labour Party (ULP) campaigned heavily for the "Yes" vote, Gonsalves advocating that, though he had nothing personally against Queen Elizabeth II, he believed it was time for Saint Vincent to stop having a monarch as its head of state; he offered the opinion: "I find it a bit of a Nancy story that the Queen of England  [sic] can really be the Queen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines."


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum, Campaign
Though he had earlier shown affinity towards executive presidents Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro, Gonsalves asserted that the proposed constitution for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines would not have created such a presidential post; the Prime Minister argued that an executive presidency would give the office holder too much power in the small country.


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum, Campaign
In an interview with the Trinidad and Tobago Express, he stated that type of presidency "may well make perfect sense" for the neighbouring country of Trinidad and Tobago, but such a government would not work in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, saying further: "it is our assessment that to conjoin the power of a prime minister with the power of a head of state, head of government, or head of state in our circumstances, that is a matter which will end up making that office holder more powerful than the current situation."


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum, Campaign
Opposition to the constitutional changes was led by the New Democratic Party (NDP), which held the position that the proposed constitution would neither reduce the power of the prime minister nor strengthen the country's democracy. The NDP's leader, Arnhim Eustace, opined that the Gonsalves government and opposition parties had not come to an agreement on a number of fundamental issues, including the Integrity Commission, the Human Rights Commission, the Ombudsman, and the Electoral and Boundaries Commission.


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum, Campaign
The CARICOM Secretariat announced that it would, at the request of the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, officially observe the referendum, with the support of the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation for Development (AECID), an agency of the government of Spain.


2009 Vincentian constitutional referendum, Conduct
Voting took place in heavy rain, with 52,262 of the 97,724 eligible Vincentiens casting ballots at 225 polling stations. The Supervisor of Elections opined that this was a good turn-out given the inclement weather.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers baseball team
2009 Virginia Cavaliers baseball team represented the University of Virginia in the 2009 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Cavaliers played their home games at Davenport Field. The team was coached by Brian O'Connor, leading his sixth season at Virginia.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers baseball team
The Cavaliers won the 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Tournament, then advanced to the 2009 College World Series.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers baseball team, Ranking movements
^ Collegiate Baseball ranks 40 teams in their preseason poll, but only ranks 30 teams weekly during the season. † NCBWA ranks 35 teams in their preseason poll, but only ranks 30 teams weekly during the season. * New poll was not released for this week so for comparison purposes the previous week's ranking is inserted in this week's slot.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers football team
The 2009 Virginia Cavaliers football team represented the University of Virginia in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season as a member of the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The Cavaliers were led by ninth-year head coach Al Groh. The previous season, Groh fired his offensive coordinator, his son Mike Groh, and replaced him with Gregg Brandon, who had himself been fired as the head coach at Bowling Green. Brandon installed the spread offense at Virginia. The Cavaliers finished the season 3–9, 2–6 in conference play and failed to qualify for a bowl game. Following the conclusion of the season Virginia dismissed Al Groh as head coach and hired Mike London as his replacement.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer team
The 2009 Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer team represented the University of Virginia during the 2009 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the Cavaliers' 69th season fielding a men's varsity soccer program, and the program's 56th season playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer team
The Cavaliers had one of their most successful seasons in program history, winning both the ACC Men's Soccer Tournament, and the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament. The Cavs won their first ACC Tournament title since 2004, and their first NCAA Tournament title since 1994. It was head coach George Gelnovatch's first year winning the NCAA title. Altogether, it was the Cavs' sixth national championship season. Additionally, the Cavs won the minor early season Portland/Nike Invitational. The Cavaliers also finish first in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America rankings for the first time since 1994.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer team, Background
The Cavaliers came off a season where they finished 11–9–1 across all competitions and 4–4 in ACC play. The Cavaliers finished fourth in the ACC and earned an berth into the ACC Men's Soccer Tournament. Virginia reached the ACC Championship where they lost to eventual NCAA champions, Maryland, 1–0. Their run in the ACC Tournament secured an at-large bid into the 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament seeded 10th, ensuring a second round bye. Virginia lost in the Second Round of the tournament to Connecticut, 2–0.


2009 Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer team, Roster
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2009 Virginia House of Delegates election
2009 Elections to the Virginia House of Delegates were held on November 3, 2009. Prior to the election, Republicans held 53 seats, Democrats held 43 seats, and Independents held 2 seats (both of whom caucus with the Republicans).


2009 Virginia House of Delegates election
There were 2 seats previously held by Democrats that were vacant on election day: the 69th (Frank Hall resigned April 14, 2009) and the 80th (Ken Melvin resigned May 1, 2009). Eight incumbent Democrats were defeated, one incumbent Republican was defeated, and one open Republican seat was won by a Democrat.


2009 Virginia House of Delegates election
The composition of the House of Delegates in 2010 was 59 Republicans, 2 Independents who caucus with the Republicans, and 39 Democrats.


2009 Virginia House of Delegates election, Results, By House of Delegates district
Party abbreviations: D - Democratic, R - Republican, C - Constitution Party, I - Independent, IG - Independent Green, L - Libertarian


2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship
The 2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship was a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the first edition of the tournament which was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA between 2 and 8 November 2009.


2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship, ATP entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship, ATP entrants, Other Entrants
The following player received a Special Exempt into the singles main draw:


2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship, Champions, Doubles
Martin Emmrich /  Andreas Siljeström def. Dominic Inglot /  Rylan Rizza, 6–3, 6–2


2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship – Doubles
Martin Emmrich and Andreas Siljeström became the first champions of this tournament, by defeating Dominic Inglot and Rylan Rizza 6–4, 3–6, [11–9] in the final.


2009 Virginia National Bank Men's Pro Championship – Singles
Kevin Kim defeated Somdev Devvarman 6–4, 6–7(8–10), 6–4 in the final.


2009 Virginia Tech Hokies football team
The 2009 Virginia Tech Hokies football team represented Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University during the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team's head coach was Frank Beamer. The Hokies finished the season 10–3 (6–2 ACC) and won the Chick-fil-A Bowl, 37–14, over Tennessee.


2009 Virginia Tech Hokies football team, Flyovers
Virginia Tech home games have featured flyovers by military aircraft.


2009 Virginia elections
The following offices were up for election in the United States Commonwealth of Virginia in the November 2009 general election:


2009 Virginia elections, Schedule of election related events
The Virginia State Board of Elections set the following calendar of events for the November 2009 election:


2009 Virginia elections, Schedule of election related events
In addition, candidates must file campaign finance reports with the state or local election boards at certain specified intervals during the campaign year. The three incumbent statewide officeholders and members of the General Assembly are barred by law from fundraising during the annual session of the General Assembly, from mid-January through roughly the end of February.


2009 Virginia elections, Schedule of election related events
Sufficiently large political parties (in practice, the Democratic and Republican parties) have the option of nominating candidates in primary elections. Nominees not chosen in primaries are selected in a caucus or convention process. Incumbent members of Congress and the General Assembly have the option of choosing their party's nominating method for their office; otherwise, the decision is made by a committee of party officials from the jurisdiction involved.


2009 Virginia elections, Schedule of election related events
Persons 18 years old or older on the general election date (born on or before November 3, 1991) may register and vote in both the primary and general elections. Voters in Virginia do not register by party; they have the option of voting in any one party's primary, and may switch at will from one election to the next.


2009 Virginia elections, Issues, Reapportionment
In 2011 the General Assembly will redraw district boundaries for seats in the United States House of Representatives, the Senate of Virginia, and the House of Delegates, based on results of the 2010 United States Census. This is a highly partisan process, which can determine the balance of power in those bodies for up to ten years. There are three major players in the process:


2009 Virginia elections, House of Delegates, Retirements
As of July 17,  2009, ten House members had announced they would not run for re-election:


2009 Virginia elections, House of Delegates, Retirements
In addition, Bob Hull (D-Fairfax) was defeated for renomination by Kaye Kory in the June 9 primary.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election
The 2009 Virginia gubernatorial election took place in Virginia on November 3, 2009. The incumbent Governor, Democrat Tim Kaine, was not eligible to run due to term limits established by the Virginia Constitution, though others in the state's executive branch were not restricted. (Virginia is the only state that prohibits a Governor from serving consecutive terms.) Republican Bob McDonnell was elected as Governor as part of a Republican sweep. Republican Bill Bolling was reelected as lieutenant governor, and Republican Ken Cuccinelli was elected as attorney general. The winners were inaugurated on January 16, 2010, and served until January 11, 2014.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election
State Senator Creigh Deeds was selected as the Democratic nominee, having defeated former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe and former state Delegate Brian Moran in the Democratic primary election. This was the first contested Democratic primary in two decades. McDonnell, a former state Attorney General, was selected at his party's nominating convention. He defeated Deeds in the general election by a margin of 59%–41%. As of 2021, this is the last time a Republican was elected Governor of Virginia, and the last time a Republican won any statewide race. This is also the last time any of the following counties have voted Republican in a statewide race: Albemarle, Fairfax, Prince William, Henrico, Prince Edward, Sussex, Brunswick, and the independent city of Suffolk.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, Democratic primary, Campaign
The Democratic primary campaign for governor unofficially began on December 13, 2007 when State Senator Creigh Deeds, who ran for Attorney General of Virginia in 2005, announced that he would run for the Democratic nomination. State Delegate Brian Moran, brother of Congressman Jim Moran, joined Deeds on January 4, 2008, when he established a political action committee. For the following year (before McAuliffe indicated his intentions to run), Deeds and Moran squared off picking up endorsements, and raising money. On January 3, 2009, McLean resident Terry McAuliffe, former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and chairman of Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign announced that he was also running. The Democratic primary, which took place on June 9, 2009, was the first contested in over twenty years.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, Democratic primary, Campaign
Moran received many endorsements from members of the State Democratic Party as well as the mayors of the Hampton Roads area. Deeds picked up support from Northern and Western Virginia, such as the endorsement from U.S. Congressman Rick Boucher. The area of strength for Deeds was concentrated in Western and Southern Virginia, and the area of strength for Moran consisted mostly of Eastern Virginia with both reaching out to Northern Virginian voters.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, Democratic primary, Campaign
The race was close from the beginning, with McAuliffe considered to be a semi "front-runner" due to his lead in the polls and big campaign war chest. However, in the last few weeks of the race, Deeds began to surge up in the polls. By election night, June 9, Deeds swept to victory. Creigh Deeds spent $14.49 for each vote on the Democratic primary election. Terry McAuliffe spent $68.25 for each vote on the Democratic primary election.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, Republican candidate
Attorney General Bob McDonnell first announced his intention to run at American Legion's Boys State of Virginia 2007. This was the sixth consecutive Virginian gubernatorial election in which an Attorney General ran. McDonnell was the only Republican candidate to file with the election board before the November 2008 deadline. As a result, there was no Republican Party primary. McDonnell accepted the Republican nomination at a state convention on May 30, 2009, in Richmond. Chairman of the Republican National Committee Michael Steele had said that the election for governor of Virginia is one of the most important elections for the Republican Party.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, General election
Deeds and McDonnell both ran for Attorney General of Virginia in 2005. McDonnell won by just over 300 votes, in the same election in which Tim Kaine was elected Governor with 52% of the vote.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, General election
The main themes of the election were the economy, transportation, and jobs.


2009 Virginia gubernatorial election, General election
The first debate was in Hot Springs, Virginia on July 25.