2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Spring classics
Philippe Gilbert made an early attack on the Mur and held on to win – Fränk was seventh, six seconds back. Both brothers rode well at Liège–Bastogne–Liège. On the Côte de Roche aux Faucons, 20 km (12 mi) from the end of the race, they both surged clear of the group of race favorites. Gilbert marked them, and stayed in their slipstreams as the trio surged to the front of the race. Later, the Belgian also took pulls, and even tried to solo for victory, but could not shake the Schlecks. The three survived to the finish, 24 seconds clear of a chase pack that formed on the Côte de Saint-Nicolas. Neither brother attacked in the finale, which came on a slight downhill, leaving the superior sprinter Gilbert to take a rather easy win, his fourth in 11 days.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Spring classics
Despite the spring classics season ending without any victories, Nygaard stated he felt satisfied with the many high placings the team had achieved, particularly in the face of Gilbert's clear strength. Additionally, Leopard Trek became the number one team in the UCI's rankings after Liège–Bastogne–Liège, a position they had occupied, to no small amount of criticism, before the season and before they officially existed. Nizzolo closed out the team's early-season account by with a podium finish at the inaugural ProRace Berlin, taking second in the mass sprint behind Skil–Shimano's Marcel Kittel.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Spring classics
The team also sent squads to Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, the Clásica de Almería, Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne, the Scheldeprijs and the Eschborn-Frankfurt City Loop, but placed no higher than 11th in any of these races.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
The team had an excellent later half of the season in single-day races, attaining top-ten placings in all but one such race that they entered. This successful run started at the Clásica de San Sebastián. Both Schleck brothers were mentioned as possible pre-race contenders, and Fränk Schleck rode to sixth place on the day by finishing with the first chase pack back of solo winner Philippe Gilbert and second-placed Carlos Barredo. In August, Nizzolo continued his strong neo-pro season with a fifth place ride at the GP Ouest-France, finishing second-best from the peloton behind three attacking riders who took each podium place just ahead of them.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
The team next took high placings at the two UCI World Tour races in Canada, the GP de Québec and the GP de Montréal. Though Andy Schleck intended to start the GP de Québec, he was forced to pull out due to dental issue. Wegmann was mentioned among the pre-race contenders, and it was indeed the veteran German who turned in the team's top performance. He followed eventual race winner Gilbert when the Belgian made his winning move on the course's penultimate climb, eventually coming in fourth at the finish, 14 seconds down.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
Denifl was the team's top rider two days later in Montréal. Part of a late breakaway, he occupied third position on the road until the final moments, when Gilbert and his Omega Pharma–Lotto teammate Jurgen Roelandts surpassed him, leaving him fifth on the day. Back in Europe later in September, the team achieved podium finishes at the Grand Prix de la Somme and the Grand Prix d'Isbergues. Wegmann finished third at the Grand Prix de la Somme, completing the podium behind Anthony Roux and Lloyd Mondory at the front of a 13-rider sprint finish.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
O'Grady then narrowly missed out on taking a first solo win in three years in Isbergues, losing a two-up sprint to Saxo Bank–SunGard's Jonas Aaen Jørgensen and settling for second place overall. Wagner led the peloton over the line 8 seconds later to give Leopard Trek two of the three podium spots.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
In October, Wegmann rode to sixth place in his native Germany in the mass finish to the Sparkassen Giro. The next day, trainee rider Rüdiger Selig won a selective sprint finish at Binche–Tournai–Binche, beating out former Tour de France green jersey winner Baden Cooke and a field including seven first-division teams. Viganò nearly joined him on the podium, taking fourth place. Zaugg then showed signs of his coming late-season form at the Giro dell'Emilia, finishing in ninth place 33 seconds back of the solo winner.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
The team took two top-ten places at the next day, at concurrent races, the GP Bruno Beghelli and Paris–Tours. At the Italian race, Monfort found his way into a winning breakaway that formed as the morning's initial breakaway was caught, eventually finishing the day in 7th place, 21 seconds behind the winner Filippo Pozzato. At the same time in France, O'Grady rode to an 8th-place finish behind BMC Racing Team's Greg Van Avermaet.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
With the team's merger with Team RadioShack already announced, the traditional season-closing weekend in Italy at the Giro del Piemonte and the Giro di Lombardia effectively figured to comprise the team's final races under this guise. At the Giro del Piemonte, Bennati made each of the day's selections, first a 31-rider group that formed at the 85 km (53 mi) to go mark and then a 14-rider break in the race's final kilometer. He could manage only seventh in the uphill final sprint, however.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
The team did not have any rider highlighted as a favorite entering the Giro di Lombardia; pre-race analyses held Gilbert as the man to beat. Zaugg rode at the front of the race the entire day, riding off the front to occupy first position as the solo leader on the Villa Vergano climb. He then maintained his advantage on the alternating flat sections and remaining climbs (the Muro dell'Alpino and the finishing climb in Lecco), holding on for victory ahead of Garmin–Cervélo's Dan Martin and Team Katusha's Joaquim Rodríguez by 8 seconds.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
The victory was not only Zaugg's first monument classic win, or even his first single-day win, it was his first professional victory of any kind, coming at age 30. Post-race analysis compared Zaugg's triumph to some of the more notable upsets to which the race has played host in its history.


2011 Leopard Trek season, One-day races, Fall races
The team's lone miss to this level of success was at Vattenfall Cyclassics, where Wegmann finished as the team's best rider, in 15th place.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
After the team had been shut out in early season stage races, Cancellara was victorious in the short individual time trial that closed out Tirreno–Adriatico. Taking the course some two hours before the race's top riders, the four-time world champion covered the 9.3 km (5.8 mi) distance in 10'33", and only one rider came within ten seconds of his time.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
At Critérium International in March, five-time champion Voigt was hopeful of breaking the record he shares with Emile Idée and Raymond Poulidor to stand alone as a six-time champion, but admitted that the course and the weather did not suit him, and so his chances would be slim. During the decisive stage 1, Voigt bridged up to a morning breakaway some 90 km (56 mi) from the finish on the Col de l'Ospedale.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
He said afterward that he might slip away unmarked and stay away for victory, but if he were chased it would make the race hard, and a hard race would suit the Schleck brothers. The latter scenario is exactly what occurred. Voigt was caught well before the summit of the Ospedale and finished the day in 75th place, over 20 minutes down, but the Schlecks both stayed with the front group on the road throughout the stage. Fränk Schleck put in his own attack for victory 2 km (1.2 mi) from the summit and stayed away for victory. Andy Schleck was tenth, a minute down on his brother. The elder Schleck brother held his advantage through the flat stage and individual time trial on day two of the three-stage race, emerging as overall victor.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
Bennati found great success at the Circuit de la Sarthe, taking his first wins in over a year at that race. The Italian sprinter first won stage 1 in a full field sprint before Garmin–Cervélo's Michel Kreder defeated him in the sprint finish the next day. Later the same day as stage 2, Bennati won the 6.8 km (4.2 mi) time trial to extend his overall lead. It was the first time trial Bennati had ever won as a professional.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
He finished six minutes down in the hilly fourth stage, losing any chance at winning the race overall, but he rebounded to claim a third win in the event in a reduced sprint in stage 5. Three wins and a second place meant he handily won the event's points classification as well.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
The team rode with heavy hearts at the Tour of California in May. It was their first event back in competition after their mass withdrawal from the Giro d'Italia the day after the death of team member Wouter Weylandt. The race paid tribute to Weylandt by holding a moment of silence before its first stage and allowing the Leopard Trek team to lead the peloton into the neutralized zone, as well as all organization, staff, and riders wearing black armbands. The team did not attain any victories in the race, with Gerdemann in 11th place their best finisher. Neo-pro Nizzolo took the team's lone win in the month of May, triumphing in the field sprint finish to Bayern-Rundfahrt's final stage.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
The team proved to be a prolific winner in stage race events over the summer. The first was the Tour de Luxembourg, a race with special meaning for the team as it is in Luxembourg where they are headquartered and derive much of their identity. Several riders all but certain to participate in the forthcoming Tour de France rode the Tour de Luxembourg. Cancellara dominantly won the 2.6 km (1.6 mi) prologue individual time trial, finishing five seconds the better of Team Europcar's Damien Gaudin.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
No other time gap from one rider to the next exceeded three seconds, and most were only fractions of a second. Two days later, Gerdemann seized control of the race by winning stage 2 after dropping two breakaway companions. He rode solo to the win 9 seconds ahead of the peloton, which gave him the race lead. He retained through the conclusion of the race two days later, thus taking the overall crown. Later in the month of June came the Tour de Suisse.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
Cancellara again proved the best in the prologue time trial, this one 7.1 km (4.4 mi) long, besting HTC–Highroad's Tejay van Garderen by 9 seconds. He then won the longer time trial stage that concluded the event eight days later, a 32.1 km (19.9 mi) race against the clock. This performance was not as dominant, as his winning margin was again 9 seconds, this time over Team RadioShack's Andreas Klöden. The team missed out on the event's final podium but nonetheless showed strongly overall, with Fuglsang, Fränk Schleck, and Monfort all finishing in the top ten.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
Andy Schleck also took what is for his career a relative rarity gaining a noteworthy result outside the Tour de France. He won the climber's jersey, having first taken it after stage 7. Later in the summer, the team won stages at three further events, with Bennati winning sprints at the Tour of Austria and the Tour de Wallonie, and Fuglsang a solo win at the end of a finishing circuit in stage 3 at the Tour of Denmark.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Stage races
The team also sent squads to the Tour Down Under, the Tour of Qatar, the Volta ao Algarve, Vuelta an Andalucía, Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen, Paris–Nice, Volta a Catalunya, the Tour of the Basque Country, the Tour de Romandie, the Four Days of Dunkirk, the Tour of California, the Critérium du Dauphiné, Delta Tour Zeeland, the Ster ZLM Toer, the Tour de Pologne, the Eneco Tour, the USA Pro Cycling Challenge, the Tour du Poitou Charentes, the Tour of Britain, the Tour de Wallonie-Picarde and the Tour of Beijing, but did not achieve a stage win, classification win, or podium finish in any of them.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
Leopard Trek entered the Giro with limited aspirations. Squad leader Wegmann was a former Giro mountains classification winner, but he said he would not target that award in the 2011 Giro and instead hoped for a stage win. He said the squad would aim to finish eighth or better in the opening team time trial and that Zaugg was the squad's general classification rider, though it would be unlikely for him to finish higher than 15th. The squad came in 14th in the team time trial, finishing with eight riders together at a deficit of 42 seconds to the winners HTC–Highroad. Weylandt was ninth in the field sprint to finish stage 2 the next day.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
During the descent of the third-category Passo del Bocco in stage 3, Weylandt crashed and suffered catastrophic injury. Race doctor Giovanni Tredici and the doctor for the Garmin–Cervélo team were in cars very near Weylandt's group on the road, and administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation for approximately 40 minutes. Doctors also gave Weylandt adrenaline and atropine to try to restart his heart, though Tredici stated after the fact that resuscitation efforts were rather clearly in vain, and that Weylandt was already dead by the time they got to him.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
They were never able to revive the Belgian, and he was declared dead on the spot. A short time later, Weylandt's body was airlifted off the descent and taken to a nearby hospital, where the pathologist conducting the autopsy concluded that the Belgian had sustained a basilar skull fracture, and had died immediately upon crashing. Weylandt's death was the first at the Giro in 25 years, and the first at one of cycling's Grand Tours since Fabio Casartelli died during the 1995 Tour de France.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
Manuel Antonio Cardoso of Team RadioShack had been nearest to Weylandt when he crashed, and stated that Weylandt had touched a small retaining wall on the left side of the road with either his pedal or his handlebars, and was then catapulted across the road to the other side, where he again collided with something. He had looked behind him to ascertain his exact position in the race when he clipped the wall. Teammate Stamsnijder also witnessed the accident, saying "it was a very hard fall."


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
Italian police, conducting an inquest into Weylandt's death, also took an official statement from the Portuguese rider at Team RadioShack's hotel. A memorial was placed at the crash site, where Weylandt's widow and mother, along with cyclists, passersby and residents of nearby villages, placed flowers. The Leopard Trek team remained in the race for another day at the encouragement of Weylandt's family. Race leader David Millar spent the evening discussing with members of Leopard Trek, his teammate (and Weylandt's training partner and best friend) Tyler Farrar, and Weylandt's family how best to pay tribute to the fallen rider. Weylandt wore bib number 108 in the race, and Giro officials have said they will not assign the number in future editions of the race.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
The next day's stage was preceded by a minute's silence, and ridden as a procession in Weylandt's memory. In keeping with convention, there was no competitive racing. Each of the 23 teams took to the front of the peloton for about 15 minutes, and the remaining Leopard Trek squad, along with Farrar, were allowed to finish first with their arms around each other. Millar led the rest of the field across the line a few seconds later. No results for the stage were recorded, and it did not count towards the general classification or any of the points competitions.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
After the stage, instead of any podium presentations, the four jersey classification leaders (Millar, Alessandro Petacchi, Gianluca Brambilla, and Jan Bakelants) appeared on stage with the Leopard Trek team to lead another moment of silence. Subsequently, Farrar and the remaining Leopard Trek squad all decided to leave the race. Feillu did not want to leave the Giro, feeling that continuing to race would have been the best way to honor Weylandt, but he did not mind acquiescing to his teammates' will.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia, Death of Wouter Weylandt
For most of them, the decision was based on a desire to attend Weylandt's funeral, which took place nine days after his death. Members of the Giro squad served as pallbearers. Other teammates, as well as Farrar, members of Weylandt's former team Quick-Step, and Giro director Angelo Zomegnan were all in attendance, along with hundreds of cycling fans assembled outside the chapel.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Leopard Trek came to the Tour de France with, per season-long expectations, a squad centered around overall victory. The leader was probably Andy Schleck, entering as runner-up in the past two Tours de France and three-times running winner of the young rider classification, an award for which he was no longer eligible. Brother Fränk said his goal was to have Andy win the Tour, with Fränk himself also there on the podium with him. The remaining squad members were Cancellara, Gerdemann, Monfort, Fuglsang, Voigt, O'Grady, and Posthuma. Every rider on the squad had ridden the Tour de France before, and all but Monfort, Fuglsang, and Posthuma had previously worn the yellow jersey. Pre -race analysis speculated Cancellara could aim for a few days in the race lead before the course shifted to the high mountains.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Cancellara showed himself in the finale of the Tour's first stage, which featured a mostly flat course culminating in a short uphill finish. He attacked for victory inside the final kilometer, but Omega Pharma–Lotto's Philippe Gilbert quickly closed the gap, effectively neutralizing the move. Cancellara then sat up (abandoned any further attempts to win), and finished 18th. Both Schleck brothers managed to stay at the front of the race ahead of two major crashes toward the end, which led to riders such as Samuel Sánchez and Alberto Contador losing a minute and 20 seconds.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The next day's team time trial presented an opportunity for the squad. With four-time and reigning world time trial champion Cancellara leading them, they rode to fourth place on the day, within fractions of a second of BMC Racing Team and Team Sky and four seconds the lesser of the day's winners Garmin–Cervélo. While the team missed out on taking the yellow jersey, the ride did install Gerdemann, Fränk Schleck, and Cancellara into fifth through seventh place overall, with Andy Schleck in tenth and Fuglsang in 11th tied on the same time, giving the team several options going forward.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Two days later, Fränk Schleck was the team's best man on the Mûr-de-Bretagne, finishing in the leading group with stage winner Cadel Evans. Brother Andy, along with Fuglsang, was in the chase group eight seconds back. Cancellara finished with the second-to-last group a little over four minutes down on the winner, ruling him out of any possibility of wearing the yellow jersey in this Tour.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The next several stages favored sprinters and a solo breakaway winner. The overall standings did not change until stage 9, when a breakaway group involving Thomas Voeckler gained sufficient time that the veteran Frenchman became the new race leader. The Schleck brothers were two and a half minutes down in the classification at this point, but within a few seconds of the nearest true overall favorite Evans. Fuglsang as well remained in the top ten, 30 seconds the lesser of Andy Schleck and just over three minutes off the race lead.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Fränk Schleck took time out of the bulk of the field in stage 12. With 2.5 km (1.6 mi) remaining in the stage-concluding climb to Luz Ardiden, the elder Schleck brother broke free of the group of the race's top riders in pursuit of two down the road. He did not quite reach them, finishing ten seconds back on the day, but the ride moved him up to second place overall, 28 seconds ahead of his brother and 17 the better of Evans.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The brothers both missed an important move in stage 16, ending on the descent from the second-category Col de Manse. Contador, Sánchez, and Evans rode the most aggressive descent, a tactic which gained them a solid measure of time. Evans took 21 seconds out of Fränk Schleck to re-assume second place overall; the younger Schleck brother lost a full minute and six seconds to the veteran Australian.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The team set about taking time back in the high mountain stage 18, ending with an hors catégorie arrival at the Col du Galibier. Monfort and Posthuma both made the morning breakaway, providing support for Andy Schleck after he attacked out of the group of overall favorites on the ascent of the Col d'Izoard. Schleck bridged first to Posthuma and then to Monfort, the latter guiding him down the 17 km (11 mi) long descent of the Izoard, as Schleck is a superlative climber but a poor descender.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
After catching and surpassing all other remaining members from the morning breakaway, Monfort then rode an extremely lengthy and strenuous pull ahead of Schleck until 17 km (11 mi) remained in the stage, when he finally bonked and dropped back. This left Andy free to climb the Galibier solo, taking the stage win alone two minutes ahead of the next rider, which happened to be brother Fränk. He rode clear of the group of the race's top riders in the final kilometer, gaining eight seconds against Evans.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
While the team's tactics on the day appeared to cinch the yellow jersey for Andy, prior race leader Voeckler retained the yellow jersey by a margin of 15 seconds. The status quo among the Schlecks and Evans held on stage 19, though with Voeckler finally falling from the top of the overall classification that gave Andy Schleck the yellow jersey ahead of the stage 20 individual time trial. Stage 19, ending at Alpe d'Huez, had favored Schleck ahead of Evans, and he was characterized as missing an important opportunity to pad his lead ahead of the time trial, where Evans' skills are superior.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Though Evans was the stronger of the two against the clock, Schleck had surpassed expectations in the long time trial at the 2010 Tour de France, leading to speculation as to whether his 57-second cushion over the Australian could be sufficient for him to win the Tour. Evans rode one of the best time trials of his career, finishing in second place seven seconds off the pace of Tony Martin, the rider who was crowned world time trial champion later that year.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Andy said of his and his brother's rides that they were probably the best time trials likewise of their respective careers, but they were no match for Evans' performance. The Australian was two and a half minutes better than both of them, taking the overall lead by a minute and a half with Andy slipping to second and Fränk to third. Since the Tour's final stage is traditionally mostly ceremonial save for a final sprint finish, the time trial effectively cemented the final overall standings. Andy took the positive from the result, saying he and his brother were both proud of each other for their efforts and were excited to stand on the podium together in Paris, even if neither of them was on the top step.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
Leopard Trek's squad for the Vuelta a España consisted of Bennati, Cancellara, Fuglsang, Monfort, O'Grady, Viganò, Wagner, Zaugg, and Rohregger. Bennati was speculated to be a contender for the Vuelta's sprint stages, while for Cancellara the race represented an opportunity to hone his form ahead of the world championships. No rider on the squad was highlighted as an overall contender.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
The squad was one of the first to start the stage 1 team time trial. Viganò crashed at one point and finished almost three minutes behind his teammates, but the squad still managed to put up the day's winning time, finishing with the necessary five riders together four seconds the better of defending Vuelta champion Vincenzo Nibali's Liquigas–Cannondale squad. Fuglsang was the rider who crossed the line first, making him the first wearer of the race leader's red jersey.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
He said after the stage that the team had not pre-determined who would cross the line first, as is customarily the case in advance of a team time trial. It had simply been Fuglsang's turn to ride on the front when the finish line came. He said would try to ride for the overall classification, with Bennati and Cancellara to hunt for stage wins in the sprints and individual time trial, respectively. Bennati contested the sprint finish the next day, taking sixth behind Christopher Sutton. Since Fuglsang also finished at the front of the race, combined stage finishes meant that Bennati would take the red jersey for stage 3. Solo stage winner Pablo Lastras claimed the jersey the next day, but Fuglsang and Monfort continued to be well-placed in the overall standings.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
Neither dropped below 11th place overall heading into the stage 10 individual time trial, where the squad had three riders finish in the top ten. Cancellara's fourth-place ride was perhaps a disappointment, in that he finished a minute and 27 seconds slower than the stage winner Tony Martin, the rider seen as his chief rival for the world championships time trial. Fuglsang took sixth on the day and Monfort tenth, putting Fuglsang 12 seconds off the race lead in second place overall and Monfort sixth 59 seconds back.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
Both of them lost time in stage 11, finishing in a group 27 seconds back of the group containing most of the race's top riders, but both remained in the top ten overall. Both again fell down the standings in stage 14 on La Farrapona, a day when out of the first 50 riders no more than four finished together. Their overall positions reversed the next day on the storied Alto del Angliru. Monfort finished with a group that lost time to only six riders, while Fuglsang was a further minute and eight seconds down the road from his teammate.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
This left Monfort fifth overall and Fuglsang seventh, after Fuglsang had been the higher-placed of the two for the entire race to that point. The next major mountain was Peña Cabarga in stage 17. Both riders were well off the pace, with Monfort finishing 19th and Fuglsang 31st. Monfort still held sixth overall with the result, but Fuglsang fell out of the top ten, down to 12th place. Fuglsang improved a place to 11th after stage 19, when Wouter Poels, who had been ahead of him, finished six minutes behind the main field.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
Those were their final overall positions, with both Monfort's sixth place and Fuglsang's 11th representing the best such finishes for either of them in a Grand Tour. The day before the race ended, Bennati gave the team a second stage win, coming home first in a large sprint finish in stage 20 at Vitoria.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Merger with Team RadioShack
During the Vuelta a España, reports surfaced that the Leopard Trek team was in talks to bring in sponsorship and management from the American-based Team RadioShack. Reports suggested that team owner Flavio Becca was dissatisfied with the team's management and aimed to bring aboard Johan Bruyneel and others from Team RadioShack. While team officials for Leopard Trek initially denied the rumor, and Bruyneel refused to address them altogether, the merger was confirmed by both sides on September 6, with five days remaining in the Vuelta.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Merger with Team RadioShack
Becca had sought out Bruyneel because of his history of successes in the Tour de France, guiding Lance Armstrong to seven championships there and Alberto Contador to two. Bruyneel later commented that he looked forward to trying to add Andy Schleck's name to his list of Tour success stories. Bruyneel's arrival effectively ousted Brian Nygaard, who immediately left his position as the team's general manager; it is unclear who, if anyone, succeeded him for the remainder of 2011. Becca offered him a lesser position within the team, but Nygaard refused it, saying it was as good as being fired. Upon announcing Nygaard's departure, Becca also revealed that his company would hold the fused team's license and that it would continue to be based out of Luxembourg, essentially confirming the 2012 entity as an extension of this franchise while Team RadioShack would be considered defunct.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Merger with Team RadioShack
What followed was a period of uncertainty regarding exactly who would and would not be a part of the merged team. Leopard Trek had 27 riders under contract for 2012 and Team RadioShack had 13 – UCI rules impose a hard limit of 30 riders on top-level teams, meaning at least ten riders with valid contracts would be released from them. Leopard Trek riders were not told about the merger ahead of time and were unsure of their status at a time when riders everywhere looked to conclusively determine their places of employment for the upcoming season.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Merger with Team RadioShack
The situation was further complicated by two rider transfers made in August, when Ben Hermans and Grégory Rast signed with Leopard Trek away from Team RadioShack, meaning they had effectively re-joined the team they had only just left. The new team also signed four riders who had not been a member of either side in 2011. This resulted in 12 riders departing for other teams, with 13 incoming from Team RadioShack's 2011 formation (that number including Hermans and Rast) and 12 riders being retained from Leopard Trek's 2011 formation. The fused team announced its new name as RadioShack-Nissan-Trek, though UCI rules limit registry to two title sponsors, meaning their name in the official UCI record is RadioShack-Nissan.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Merger with Team RadioShack
Reactions to the merger were widespread. Amid descriptions of the team as a "super-team" from at least one analyst were Team Saxo Bank manager Bjarne Riis' claims that he simply looked forward to defeating them. Cervélo co-founder and former Cervélo TestTeam manager Gerard Vroomen saw the merger on a strictly business level, with neither side having sufficient resources to field a team at the level they would like, while cooperatively they would.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Merger with Team RadioShack
Trek had been bike supplier for both teams in 2011, and funneling money they would normally spend on two teams into one, coupled with an expected reduction in support from the electronics company RadioShack, would make it all the simpler for them to back a top-level team. The merger also drew criticism, as the two sides' initial press releases describing it did not make it seem that they were in agreement over their perception of the merger and the newly combined entity. The fact that neither ridership nor lower-level management nor ousted sponsors seemed to know about the move at all ahead of time also drew criticism.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Rider breakdown
With 58 riders – excluding Wouter Weylandt, after his death at the Giro d'Italia – competing for Leopard Trek and Team RadioShack during the 2011 season, a battle for places on the squad ensued. As UCI regulations stipulated that a squad could not have more than 30 riders for the season, many riders were left without a guaranteed place in the merged RadioShack–Nissan team for the 2012 season.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Rider breakdown
Thirteen riders remained within the Leopard SA-licensed setup for 2012; the two-year contracts of Daniele Bennati and Jakob Fuglsang, as well as the three-year contracts of Fabian Cancellara and Maxime Monfort, and the four-year contracts for Andy Schleck and Fränk Schleck, were all honoured. Joost Posthuma, Jens Voigt, and Oliver Zaugg, who had all joined the team on one-year contracts in 2011, extended their deals to remain with the team into 2012. Linus Gerdemann also remained with the team, despite having been linked with Team Katusha, while Thomas Rohregger signed a new two-year deal with the team. Also remaining with the team were Giacomo Nizzolo and Robert Wagner.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Rider breakdown, Riders in
A total of seventeen riders joined the Leopard SA setup for 2012, of which thirteen riders had been part of Team RadioShack in 2011. These riders included American national champion Matthew Busche, Tour of California winner Chris Horner, Vuelta an Andalucía victor Markel Irizar, and Andreas Klöden, who won the Tour of the Basque Country in 2011. Also joining from Team RadioShack were stagiaire George Bennett – signing his first professional contract – as well as Ben Hermans, Ben King, and Portuguese duo Tiago Machado, and Nelson Oliveira. Yaroslav Popovych and Grégory Rast both signed with the team to bolster their efforts in the Classic races, while Jesse Sergent and Haimar Zubeldia followed the lead of some of their team-mates to join the newly formed team.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Rider breakdown, Riders in
The four remaining places on the roster were taken by riders who had not been involved with the merging of the two teams, and joined RadioShack-Nissan-Trek from rival squads; Jan Bakelants joined from the Omega Pharma–Lotto team, Laurent Didier from Saxo Bank–SunGard, Tony Gallopin left Cofidis to join the team, while Hayden Roulston joined from HTC–Highroad, which also ceased to exist at the end of the season.


2011 Leopard Trek season, Away from competition, Rider breakdown, Riders out
Aside from Weylandt, thirteen members of Leopard Trek in 2011 did not continue with the merged team in 2012. Will Clarke joined Champion System as the squad made their début as a UCI Professional Continental Team in 2012. Stefan Denifl and Martin Mortensen both joined Vacansoleil–DCM, while Anders Lund and Bruno Pires joined Team Saxo Bank. Other riders to join UCI ProTeams were Stuart O'Grady, who joined the new-for-2012 GreenEDGE team, Davide Viganò left for the Lampre–ISD team, Fabian Wegmann joined Garmin–Barracuda, and late-season stagiaire Rüdiger Selig joined Team Katusha for the 2012 season. Elsewhere, Dominic Klemme and Tom Stamsnijder joined Project 1t4i, later Argos–Shimano; Brice Feillu found a place on the roster of the Saur–Sojasun team, while Martin Pedersen signed with domestic Continental team Christina Watches–Onfone.


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger
The 2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It was the 18th edition of the tournament which was part of the 2011 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Binghamton, United States between 8 and 14 August 2011.


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following player received entry as a lucky loser into the singles main draw:


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger, Champions, Doubles
Juan Sebastián Cabal /  Robert Farah def. Treat Conrad Huey /  Frederik Nielsen, 6–4, 6–3


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger – Doubles
Treat Conrad Huey and Dominic Inglot were the defending champions, but Inglot decided not to participate. Huey partnered up with Frederik Nielsen.


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger – Doubles
Juan Sebastián Cabal and Robert Farah won this tournament. They defeated Treat Conrad Huey and Frederik Nielsen 6–4, 6–3 in the final.


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger – Singles
Kei Nishikori was the defending champion, but decided not to participate.


2011 Levene Gouldin & Thompson Tennis Challenger – Singles
Paul Capdeville defeated Wayne Odesnik 7–6(7–4), 6–3 in the final to win this tournament.


2011 Lexus of Las Vegas Open
The 2011 Lexus of Las Vegas Open will be a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It will be the third edition of the tournament which is part of the 2011 ITF Women's Circuit. It will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States between 26 September and 2 October 2011.


2011 Lexus of Las Vegas Open, WTA entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2011 Lexus of Las Vegas Open, Champions, Doubles
Alexa Glatch /  Mashona Washington def. Varvara Lepchenko /  Melanie Oudin, 6–4, 6–2


2011 Lexus of Las Vegas Open – Doubles
Lindsay Lee-Waters and Megan Moulton-Levy were the defending champions, but both players chose not to participate. Alexa Glatch and Mashona Washington won the title by defeating Varvara Lepchenko and Melanie Oudin in the final 6–4, 6–2.


2011 Lexus of Las Vegas Open – Singles
Varvara Lepchenko was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Kurumi Nara. Romina Oprandi won the title by defeating Alexa Glatch in the final 6–7(2–7), 6–3, 7–6(7–4).


2011 Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador leadership election
Two leadership elections were held in the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador in 2011:


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum
A referendum to amend the Constitution of Liberia was held on 23 August 2011. Voters chose whether to ratify four amendments regarding judge tenure, elections scheduling, presidential candidate requirements and the electoral system. The National Elections Commission of Liberia (NEC) oversaw the referendum.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum
Following the referendum, the NEC announced on 31 August that none of the four amendments had been ratified by the necessary two-thirds of voters. Unity Party Chairman Varney Sherman and Senator Fredrick Cherue of River Gee County later filed a petition with the Supreme Court seeking to overturn the NEC's certification of the defeat of Proposition 4 regarding a change from absolute majority to simple majority in all non-presidential elections, arguing that the NEC had unconstitutionally included invalid ballots in its computation of the results. The Supreme Court ruled on 20 September that the NEC had erred in its calculation of the vote and declared that Proposition 4 had passed.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Background
Both houses of the Legislature of Liberia passed a series of four amendments to the current Constitution of Liberia on 17 August 2010. Per Article 91(a) of the Constitution, the amendments must be ratified by two-thirds of registered voters in a referendum held not sooner than one year after the passage of the amendments in the Legislature. Though all four amendments will be voted on in the same referendum, Article 91(b) requires that each amendment be individually approved by the voters.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Background
Initially, NEC Chairman James M. Fromayan announced that the referendum would not be held before the scheduled presidential and legislative elections on 11 October 2011, stating that the estimated cost of holding both elections in close proximity would be prohibitive. However, he reversed his position in September 2010, citing the fact that of the estimated US$69 million needed to conduct the 2011 elections, 65% of those funds would be used to hold runoff elections for legislative seats.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Background
He noted that as funding for the runoff elections had not been secured and that one of the proposed amendments would eliminate those elections, it was prudent to hold the referendum before the 2011 elections. With assurances for funding the referendum received from the government and foreign donors, the NEC scheduled the referendum to be held on 23 August 2011.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Residence requirement
Article 52(c) of the Constitution requires that presidential and vice-presidential candidates have been residents of Liberia for 10 years prior to their election. A proposed amendment would have shortened the residency requirement to five years, as well as specify that residency must be held for five continuous years immediately prior to the election.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Supreme Court tenure
The terms of appointment for judges in the Liberian judicial system are defined by Article 72(b):


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Supreme Court tenure
The Chief Justice and the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court and judges of subordinate courts of record shall be retired at the age of seventy.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Supreme Court tenure
A proposed amendment would have increased the mandatory retirement age for all justices to seventy-five.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Date of elections
Voting for the President, Vice–President, members of the Senate and members of the House of Representatives shall be conducted throughout the Republic on the second Tuesday in October of each election year.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Date of elections
The current date falls near the end of the rainy season in the country, which causes logistics difficulties for holding elections. The proposed amendment would have altered the date of national elections to the second Tuesday of November.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Date of elections
Additionally, municipal elections for mayors, city councils, and paramount, clan and town chiefs have yet to be held since the transition back to constitutional rule in 2005. In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled that so long as the country could not afford to hold municipal elections, the president could appoint mayors in consultation with local leaders. However, the Court ruled that once it was financially able, the National Elections Commission would be required to hold elections for municipal positions.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Date of elections
As the Constitution does not specify a date for the holding of these elections, the proposed amendment would have staggered these elections with presidential elections, with elections for city mayors, city councils and chiefs held three years after each presidential election.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Voting system
Article 83(b) mandated a two-round voting system for the presidential and legislative elections:


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Voting system
All elections of public officers shall be determined by an absolute majority of the votes cast. If no candidate obtains an absolute majority in the first ballot, a second ballot shall be conducted on the second Tuesday following. The two candidates who received the greatest numbers of votes on the first ballot shall be designated to participate in the run-off election.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Proposed amendments, Voting system
As a cost-saving measure, this article was not enforced for the 2005 legislative elections, where candidates were elected by a plurality. The amendment made this arrangement permanent; all subsequent elections use a single-round first-past-the-post method for all legislative and municipal elections while maintaining the two-round system for presidential elections.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Political positions
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf announced her support for all four of the amendments, but said that her administration viewed the amendment regarding the switch to simple majority in legislative elections as the only crucial proposal due to its financial implications. The opposition Liberty Party also announced its support for the amendments but argued for more comprehensive constitutional reform. National Patriotic Party leader Jewel Taylor stated that she would vote against all four amendments, believing that the residency clause amendment discriminated against recent returnees and the extension of judge tenure would delay replacement of the country's judges with more qualified appointees.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Political positions
Congress for Democratic Change presidential candidate Winston Tubman called for a boycott of the referendum, calling into question its constitutionality, the impartiality of NEC Chairman Fromayan, and the feasibility of holding the referendum so near to the 2011 elections. Tubman later backed away from calling for an outright boycott, while still expressing opposition to the amendments.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Voting
President Sirleaf declared the day of the referendum a public holiday. The referendum was overseen by 1,949 registered domestic and international observers, including officials from the National Democratic Institute, International Foundation for Electoral Systems, the African Union Civil Society Group and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Voting was held at 4,457 stations across the country and proceeded peacefully, with only a single isolated incident of violence reported in Barclayville. However, the vote was marked by low turnout and confusion regarding the reasons for the referendum. Several women's advocacy groups criticized the government for a lack of awareness among women regarding the referendum.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Voting
Several voters called into local radio stations on the day of the referendum to report that their ballots had a significant error on them, with one question asking whether the voter wanted to increase judges' retirement age from "75 to 75 years" rather than the correct "70 to 75 years." NEC officials acknowledged and apologized for the error, noting that the ballots had been printed in Denmark and thus the error had been discovered after the printing had been completed. The NEC also stated that polling stations with the incorrect ballots had posted clarifications. NEC Chairman Fromayan later told reporters that the error would have no impact on the results of the referendum.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Results
The official results were scheduled to be released on 7 September 2011. However, the NEC finished counting one week ahead of schedule and released the results on 31 August 2011. The NEC declared that none of the four amendments gathered the required two-thirds majority necessary for ratification.


2011 Liberian constitutional referendum, Results
However, following the referendum, Unity Party Chairman Varney Sherman and Senator Fredrick Cherue of River Gee County filed a petition to the Supreme Court seeking a writ of prohibition to overturn the NEC's certification of the defeat of Proposition 4 regarding the method of elections. The plaintiffs argued that the NEC had improperly counted invalid votes as "no" votes in their computations of the results. Had invalid votes been excluded from the computations, the percentage of "yes" votes for Proposition 4 would have been 67.65% of the valid votes, more than the two-thirds necessary for ratification. On 20 September, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Sherman and Cherue and declared that Proposition 4 had been ratified.


2011 Liberian general election
The 2011 Liberian general election was held on 11 October 2011, with a presidential runoff election held on 8 November 2011. The presidency, as well as all seats in the House of Representatives and half of the seats in the Senate, were up for election. The election was overseen by the National Elections Commission (NEC).


2011 Liberian general election
The results of the legislative elections and first-round presidential election were released on 25 October 2011. In the legislative elections, the Unity Party maintained its plurality in both the House and the Senate, but as in the previous election, no party secured a majority in either chamber. Incumbent retention was low; only two of the fourteen incumbent senators seeking to retain their seats won reelection, while only twenty-five of the fifty-nine House incumbents running were reelected.


2011 Liberian general election
In the first round of the presidential election, incumbent President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of the Unity Party led the presidential field with 43.9% of the vote, followed by Congress for Democratic Change candidate Winston Tubman with 32.7%. As no candidate received an absolute majority, Sirleaf and Tubman stood in a run-off election held on 8 November 2011. Tubman alleged that the first round had been rigged in Sirleaf's favor and called on his supporters to boycott the run-off. The Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa reported a turnout of 61% as compared to the 74.9% turnout in the first round. The NEC declared Sirleaf the winner of the run-off on 15 November 2011 with 90.7% of the vote.


2011 Liberian general election, Accreditation, Candidates
Accreditation of candidates by the NEC was held from 20 July to 15 August 2011 at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville. Candidates were required to submit a letter of intent, sworn declarations of citizenship and domicile, a tax clearance, financial disclosure forms and a valid form of identification.


2011 Liberian general election, Accreditation, Candidates
Following the conclusion of the accreditation period, NEC Chairman James M. Fromayan noted that of the 2,700 registration forms delivered to political aspirants, only 920 had been returned. He said that no grace period would be allowed for late applicants.


2011 Liberian general election, Accreditation, Observers
The NEC accredited 799 international observers from 31 countries and international organizations to monitor the elections, including the African Union, European Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Open Society Initiative for West Africa, National Democratic Institute, International Foundation for Electoral Systems, Search for Common Ground and personnel from the American, French, German, Spanish and Swedish embassies. A team from the Carter Center was led by former Nigerian President Yakubu Gowon. Additionally, 3,851 local observers from 68 national organizations and media outlets were accredited by the NEC to observe the elections.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
In January 2010, incumbent President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf confirmed that she would run for a second term in office while speaking to a joint session of the Legislature. Sirleaf was renominated as the Unity Party's (UP) presidential candidate at the party's national convention on 31 October 2010. That same day, Vice President Joseph Boakai was nominated by Sirleaf and confirmed by the delegates to be the party's vice presidential candidate. The True Whig Party endorsed the Unity Party presidential ticket on 16 June 2011.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
George Weah, who lost to Sirleaf in the 2005 runoff election, confirmed his intention to run for president in 2011. The third-place candidate from the 2005 elections, Liberty Party leader Charles Brumskine, also announced his plans to run for president. On 25 October 2010, the two candidates agreed following a meeting in Accra to create a coalition between the Liberty Party and Weah's Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), fielding a single list of candidates in the legislative elections. Additionally, Weah and Brumskine agreed to run against Sirleaf on a single ticket. However, this deal ultimately fell apart, and the Liberty Party announced in February 2011 that Senator Franklin Siakor had been chosen as Brumskine's running mate for the election.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
On 1 May 2011, the CDC nominated Winston Tubman, the nephew of former President William Tubman and a Harvard-trained lawyer who finished fourth in the 2005 presidential election, as its candidate for president, with Weah as his running mate.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
Prince Johnson, the former rebel leader of the Independent National Patriotic Front of Liberia during the First Liberian Civil War and a Senator from Nimba County, also announced his candidacy for the presidency, forming the National Union for Democratic Progress as his party. Johnson originally chose Grand Cape Mount County Senator Abel Massalay as his running mate, but fired him in January 2011. Johnson then chose Lavala Supuwood, a prominent attorney, as his vice presidential candidate. Massalay later endorsed Sirleaf's bid.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
The New Deal Movement joined with the National Patriotic Party (NPP), the National Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL), the Liberian People's Party, the United People's Party, the Liberia Equal Rights Party and the Labor Party of Liberia to form the National Democratic Coalition (NDC), which planned to nominate a single presidential ticket and a single list of legislative candidates. On 12 February 2011, New Deal nominated Dew Mayson, a former Liberian ambassador and university professor, as its standard bearer, and NDC had been expected to nominate Mayson as its presidential candidate.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
However, New Deal suspended Mayson as its standard bearer on 6 July 2011 following for unspecified reasons, only to later reinstate him in less than a week later. Mayson later told reporters that there was an internal debate within the NDC over whether to contest the presidential election or to solely field candidates for the legislative elections. The day prior to the NDC's convention, the NPP and the NDPL withdrew from the coalition, and on 17 July, the remaining members of the coalition nominated Mayson as their presidential candidate.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
Following their withdrawal from the NDC, the NDPL announced on 2 August 2011 that it would support the Unity Party presidential ticket, while NPP voted on 3 August to support the CDC ticket.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Nominations
Nathaniel Barnes, leader of the Liberian Destiny Party and Liberian Ambassador to the United Nations, originally announced his intention to challenge Sirleaf for the presidency in December 2010, but announced on 8 July 2011 that his party had decided not to field a presidential candidate.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Candidates
Originally, NEC Chairman Fromayan stated that of the sixteen candidates who had filed for a presidential run, only 11 had listed a vice presidential nominee on their ticket, and that those candidates without running mates would be ineligible to run. However, the NEC published a list of provisional presidential candidates on 22 August 2011, listing all sixteen candidates, each with a running mate.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Campaign
Sirleaf's campaign has highlighted the progress made in several areas since her inauguration, with Sirleaf using the Liberian English catchphrase "da my area" to emphasize her expertise in nation building. Sirleaf has emphasized her administration's work in relieving the country's debt, paying civil servants on time, rebuilding the Armed Forces of Liberia, improving basic services and infrastructure, and restoring Liberia's international standing.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Campaign
Brumskine campaigned on a platform based on four pillars: reconciliation, reform, recovery and rebuilding. He stated that if elected, he would work to decentralize the government, as well as decrease the powers of what he called the "imperial presidency." He also proposed creating a national peace corp in which students would travel to different counties in order to promote development and reconciliation, as well as a "mobile clinic" where teams of doctors would travel from village to village.


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Campaign
Brumskine criticized Sirleaf for her financial involvement in the First Liberian Civil War and for reneging on her pledge in 2005 to only serve one term. He further stated that if he lost the 2011 election, he would retire from politics to make way for what he called "a new and younger generation of Liberians."


2011 Liberian general election, Presidential election, Campaign
Tubman stated that one of the most pressing issues facing the country was reconciling the Americo-Liberian minority and the indigenous majority, warning that a failure to do so would lead to another civil war. With regards to policy, Tubman noted that he would pursue many of the same policies as Sirleaf, but argued that his credentials made him a better choice to lead the nation. He also criticized Sirleaf for her past involvement in the country's civil conflict.


2011 Liberian general election, Legislative election
As a result of the 2010 Threshold Bill, which revised the apportionment scheme used in the 2005 election, an additional nine seats were added to the House of Representatives. On the basis of the 2008 Census, Montserrado County gained three additional seats, Nimba County gained two seats, and Bong, Grand Bassa, Margibi and Lofa Counties each gained one seat. In all other counties, the electoral districts remained unchanged.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Alleged analysis
On 9 July, the Liberian newspaper FrontPageAfrica published a pre-election analysis allegedly commissioned by the Unity Party that discussed Sirleaf's expected vote tally in the first round of elections. The report, attributed to law professor Larry Gibson of the University of Maryland, projected Sirleaf to earn 37.7% of the vote in the first round and highlighted the importance of gaining the endorsement of Dew Mayson and Prince Johnson in the second round, as well as stating that Unity should maintain its "connections" at the NEC.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Alleged analysis
Sirleaf's office denied that the analysis had been authorized by or submitted to Sirleaf, saying "The so-called email contains fabrications and lies, and attempts to create confusion in the minds of Liberians as they embark upon this year's democratic process." Gibson also denied authoring the analysis, noting that while he had assisted Sirleaf during her 2005 campaign, he had not worked for her or any other Liberian political campaign since then.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Voter fraud
The NEC announced on 9 August 2011 that it had discovered more than 10,000 people on its voter rolls who had registered more than once to vote in the elections. The NEC forwarded the names to the Ministry of Justice for prosecution for voter fraud. The Justice Ministry later confirmed that it was investigating the matter.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Pre-election violence
Senator Gloria Musu-Scott of the Unity Party claimed that her vehicle convoy had been attacked on 9 August 2011 while travelling to Monrovia from Maryland County, where she had been renominated as the Unity Party's candidate for the county's Senate seat. According to Scott and one of her drivers, she had changed vehicles when the one she was in had broken down. After she left the broken vehicle and its driver behind, five masked men approached the driver looking for her, searching the vehicle before leaving. Scott stated that she had reported the incident to the Justice Ministry for investigation.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Pre-election violence
On 15 August 2011, angry protestors attacked George Weah at his home, though he was unharmed. That same day, another group attacked Senator Geraldine Doe-Sheriff, National Chairman of the CDC, and other party officials at the CDC headquarters in Bentol. Doe-Sheriff and the officials were physically beaten and prevented from leaving the building, while a journalist covering the event was also attacked. The protestors were reportedly angered over alleged fraud in the CDC legislative primaries held the previous day.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Pre-election violence
Two men destroyed the car of UP party official Eugene Nagbe with a petrol bomb in the yard of his home in Margibi County on 17 August 2011. Nagbe, who had been Secretary-General of the CDC before leaving to become the Deputy Campaign Manager of Sirleaf's campaign in early 2011, was not harmed in the attack. The Justice Ministry later said that it had begun an investigation into the incident.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Pre-election violence
Former House Speaker Edwin Snowe later claimed that Nagbe had previously received a threatening text message from a phone traced to the fiancée of George Weah's chief bodyguard, and that he had forwarded the text to the police. The Liberia National Police later arrested three suspects believed to be involved in the attack on Nagbe, as well as separate instances of armed robbery and gang rape.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Pre-election violence
On the same day as the attack on Nagbe, Assistant Information Minister for Culture Jacqueline Capehart was attacked while giving a speech promoting awareness of the constitutional referendum scheduled for 23 August. During her presentation, several youths began throwing stones at her before the police intervened and arrested them. Capehart was not injured during the attack, but a disc jockey participating in the event sustained injuries and was taken to the hospital. Numerous media outlets also reported that on the same day, former footballer Christopher Wreh was attacked following his endorsement of Sirleaf's presidential campaign. Several unidentified suspects were later arrested by the LNP in connection with the attack on Capehart.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Pre-election violence
President Sirleaf addressed the nation on 19 August, condemning the attacks against Doe-Sheriff and Nagbe as "politically motivated." Reiterating her call for peaceful elections, Sirleaf stated, "Violence against, and intimidation of, political actors and individuals undermine and destroy democracy. Such conduct is the beginning of anarchy, and if not deterred, such conduct could reverse the political gains we have made and probably cost our country to retrogress into another civil conflict." Sirleaf also ordered the country's security forces to investigate the attacks and prevent further violence.


2011 Liberian general election, Pre-election controversies, Nobel Peace Prize
On 7 October 2011, four days prior to the election, Sirleaf was awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. Tubman denounced the award to Sirleaf, saying that "she brought war on our country and spoiled the country" and that the award was a "provocative intervention" in Liberian politics. Sirleaf herself called the timing a coincidence and avoided mentioning the award during the final days of campaigning.


2011 Liberian general election, Amendment referendum
In September 2010, the NEC announced that a popular referendum to ratify four constitutional amendments passed by the Legislature in August 2010 would be held prior to the elections. If passed, three of the amendments would have directly affected the elections:


2011 Liberian general election, Amendment referendum
The referendum was held on 23 August 2011, and the NEC announced on 31 August that all four amendments had been rejected. Following litigation, the Supreme Court ruled on 20 September that the NEC had improperly calculated the results, and that the amendment replacing the absolute majority requirement and run-off elections for non-presidential elections with a simple majority requirement had been ratified.


2011 Liberian general election, Amendment referendum, Legal challenge
On 14 September, presidential candidate Simeon Freeman of the Movement for Progressive Change filed a petition with the Supreme Court requesting that the Court disqualify the six presidential candidates of the Unity Party, Congress for Democratic Change, Liberty Party, National Democratic Coalition, National Union for Democratic Progress and Liberia Transformation Party. The petition argued that due to the failure of the referendum proposal to reduce the residency requirement from 10 to 5 years, these presidential candidates could not contest the election due to their residency outside the country during the Second Liberian Civil War.


2011 Liberian general election, Amendment referendum, Legal challenge
NEC Chairman James Fromayan said that the text of the residency clause was vague, in that it did not define the term "resident" or say whether a candidate had to reside in Liberia for the ten years immediately prior to the election. As such, Fromayan stated that the NEC had qualified the six candidates to run because "we don't want to penalize anybody on the grounds of a particular constitutional clause that lacks clarity."


2011 Liberian general election, Amendment referendum, Legal challenge
Prior to a preliminary hearing on 20 September, the Supreme Court issued an injunction barring the six parties from campaigning pending the outcome of the litigation. However, the Court lifted the injunction on 20 September after the respondent parties argued that they had not yet been able to submit their responses to the MPC's claims. The Court denied the petitioners' motion on 5 October, ruling that as the residency requirement had been suspended prior to the 2005 elections, the requirement could not be applied until ten years after the suspension.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Voting
Voting proceeded smoothly and peacefully, with no reports of violence. Heavy voter turnout was reported in most of the country. Severe rain in Montserrado County and some other parts of the country led to minor delays in the opening of some polling places, though most of the country was free from severe weather. President Sirleaf travelled to Feefee in her native Bomi County to cast her vote, while Tubman cast his vote at G. W. Gibson High School in Monrovia.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Reactions
The observer teams from the Carter Center, ECOWAS and the African Union all praised the first round of elections for their smoothness and peacefulness. Specioza Kazibwe, the head of the AU observer mission, termed the elections "phenomenal" and praised Liberians for turning out in high numbers despite heavy rain. The AU team also declared the elections to be "free, fair, transparent and credible" and urged all political parties to accept the outcomes of the elections.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Reactions
The ECOWAS observer mission also praised the vote, saying that "on the whole, the elections of 11 October 2011, were conducted under acceptable conditions of freedom of voters and transparency of the process." The Liberia-based Elections Coordinating Commission commended polling workers for their professionalism and for giving special priority to elderly, disabled and pregnant voters. The Carter Center noted some minor procedural irregularities, but it stated that none of the irregularities were significant enough to affect the outcome of the election and called the elections "peaceful, orderly, and remarkably transparent." United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated that the elections were an "important milestone" in the move to "consolidate peace and democracy in the country."


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Opposition withdrawal
Preliminary results released by the NEC on 14 October 2011 showed, with 50.3% of polling places reporting, Sirleaf leading with 45.4% of the vote, with Tubman in second place with 29.5% and Prince Johnson in third with 11.4%. On 15 October, nine political parties announced that they were withdrawing from the elections and ordering their poll observers to withdraw from the monitoring process, including Tubman's Congress for Democratic Change, Johnson's National Union for Democratic Progress, the National Patriotic Party, National Democratic Coalition, Union of Liberia Democrats, Liberia Transformation Party, Victory for Change Party, Liberia Reconstruction Party, and Grassroot Democratic Party.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Opposition withdrawal
In a statement, the nine parties claimed that the NEC was fraudulently altering the vote count to favor Sirleaf, saying that they planned to present their evidence of fraud through the media and would not respect the outcome of the elections. They claimed that they could offer witnesses and photographs to back up their claims of fraud. On the same day, a local office of the Unity Party in Monrovia was set ablaze, with UNMIL and the Liberia National Police investigating the incident.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Opposition withdrawal
NEC Chairman Fromayan rejected the opposition's charges, stating, "All the parties participated in the elections. The counting was done and both the local population and the international observers that came acclaimed the process to be free, fair and transparent." A spokesman for the Unity Party accused the opposition of trying to create chaos in the country, saying "They are doing this thing because it is not going their way." The Carter Center stated that it stood by its original description of the election as free and transparent. In reaction to the withdrawal, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, lead prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, said that the prosecutor's office was closely monitoring the events and warned that any use of violence by the parties and candidates would not be tolerated.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, First round, Opposition withdrawal
On 16 October, the NEC released additional results based on 96.7% of polling places reporting that had Sirleaf still leading with 44% of the vote, Tubman increasing his second place total to 32.2% of the vote and Prince Johnson with 11.8%. The nine opposition parties called for a recount of the votes, as well as for the NEC to release the total number of votes in each county and district. However, Tubman said that based on the updated results, he would be willing to participate in the likely run-off election between Sirleaf and himself, backing off from his previous statements.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Endorsements
On 18 October, Prince Johnson announced that he was endorsing Sirleaf in the second-round, saying, "This is because some of her policies are good for this country. If all her policies are not good, we will do addition and subtraction so that what we want to see in it will be reflected." He termed his choice of Sirleaf "the lesser of two evils" and added that he refused to support Tubman because of the CDC's stated aim of implementing the TRC report that recommended prosecution of Johnson for war crimes.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Endorsements
Former President Moses Blah endorsed Sirleaf on 24 October, praising her administration's development projects in his native Nimba County. Seventh-place finisher Togba-Nah Tipoteh of the Freedom Alliance Party of Liberia also endorsed Sirleaf for the second round on 27 October, citing her administration for the level of transparency it had brought to the political process. Charles Brumskine, who came in fourth in the first round, endorsed Sirleaf on 31 October, saying: "[O]ur task as we see it is one of judging capacity and potential and making good faith effort to help move our country forward." Sirleaf also received the endorsement of Gladys Beyan, the sixth-place finisher in the presidential election for the Grassroot Democratic Party of Liberia.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
Ten opposition parties, including the nine parties that briefly withdrew from the elections, met with Ellen Margrethe Løj, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General to UNMIL, on 17 October, asking the UN to manage the run-off elections in place of the NEC. ECOWAS announced that same day that it would be sending a larger contingent of observers for the run-off election, but also chastised the opposition parties for their actions after the first-round elections and urged them to use "constitutional means" to redress their grievances.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
On 26 October, Tubman stated that unless the leadership of the NEC was replaced, the CDC would boycott the run-off election. Tubman said that his party had lost confidence in the impartiality of the NEC due to the CDC's allegations of vote-tampering and its feeling that the NEC had not sufficiently addressed its concerns. Acarous Gray, the Secretary-General of the CDC, specified on 27 October that unless the government dismissed NEC Chairman Fromayan, it would not participate in the second round.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
This threat came in the wake of an official letter received by the CDC from the NEC informing the CDC that it had placed first in the first-round presidential election with 43.9% of the vote against UP's 32.7%. The CDC cited this letter as evidence of fraud on the part of the NEC to favor UP. The NEC acknowledged the letter, but said that the incorrect voting figures had been a typographical error. The NEC fired the head of its communication department on 28 October as a result of the error.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
Fromayan resigned as NEC Chairman on 30 October, saying: "I am resigning to give way to peace. I do not want to be the obstacle to the holding of the run-off election." His deputy chairperson, Elizabeth J. Nelson, assumed his role at the NEC that same day. Sirleaf's press secretary said that Sirleaf had accepted Fromayan's resignation, adding, "The president also thanked him for his service to the people of Liberia." Tubman welcomed the news, stating, "It is a victory for the CDC, a victory for democracy and a victory for the Liberian people."


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
However, CDC Secretary-General Acarous Gray stated on 31 October that while Fromayan's resignation was a step forward, the CDC would not participate in the run-off election unless the NEC recounted the votes of the first round and sufficiently investigated its claims of ballot tampering. Tubman responded that same day that he, and not Gray, was empowered to make the decision over whether or not to participate in the run-off election, and that he had not yet made a decision.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
The Deputy Information Minister for Public Affairs, Jerelimic Piah, said that the government viewed the contradictory statements from Tubman and the CDC leadership as evidence that Tubman was not in control of his party and urged Tubman to assert his leadership over the CDC to curtail "provocative comments" being made by CDC officials.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
On 4 November, Tubman stated that he would boycott the second round, saying, "We will never reward fraud and abuse of power and will never grant legitimacy to a corrupt political process." Tubman added that "any government coming out of the 8 November process will be done without a national mandate to govern and will not be recognised by the CDC." The NEC said that under the terms of the country's constitution and elections law, the second round would proceed regardless of the CDC's boycott and urged voters to turn out.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
Sirleaf urged voters to attend the polls and vote for the candidate of their choice in a national radio address on 5 November, arguing that "Tubman...has called on Liberians to give up their franchise, their right to vote" and that "what he is doing is forfeiting the right to the finals because he fears defeat." ECOWAS stated that it was disappointed in Tubman's "retrogressive tone" and reiterated its call for the CDC to participate in the run-off, adding that it would recognize any winner it judged to have been elected in a free and fair election regardless of the boycott.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, CDC boycott
The head of the AU observer mission, Speciosa Kazibwe, said, "We are very concerned. It's a bad signal ... political leaders must be prepared to win or lose." A spokeswoman for the US State Department also expressed disappointment in Tubman's decision, as she noted that "the CDC's charge that the first-round election was fraudulent is unsubstantiated." The spokesman also warned against any attempts at violence by CDC partisans.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Violence
Clashes between the Liberia National Police (LNP) and CDC protestors left at least two people dead and several wounded outside of the CDC headquarters in Sinkor on 7 November 2011. The CDC had bussed in hundreds of CDC partisans to participate in a protest against the holding of the second-round election. The protestors said they had planned to march through Monrovia to the UNMIL headquarters and the United States Embassy to present a petition protesting the second-round elections. When the LNP blocked off access to Tubman Boulevard, the crowd began throwing stones at the officers and attempting to break through the police line, leading to tear gas being deployed and shooting which killed at least one person.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Violence
A spokesman for the LNP initially claimed that the officers had not deployed live rounds against the protestors, limiting themselves to tear gas in order "to disperse the crowd so that people who were not part of the demonstration could move about freely." Tubman and Weah cited the incident as evidence that the run-off should not take place. The LNP later admitted that one police officer had fired into the crowd, and that the officer had been detained by UNMIL.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Violence
Justice Minister Christiana Tah said that security would be increased during the election and that an investigation would be conducted into the incident. While initial reports from the scene claimed that at least four people had been killed, officials later said that only two people had died. On 11 November, President Sirleaf announced the formation of an independent commission to investigate the shooting and vowed that any person who had broken the law would be brought to justice. On the commission's recommendation, Sirleaf dismissed LNP Inspector General Marc Amblard, who accepted responsibility for the incident.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Closure of media outlets
Following the riot on 7 November, the government shut down four radio stations and three television stations, all of which were reported to be pro-CDC outlets. The government said that the closures had been legal, with a writ ordering the closures issued by the First Judicial Circuit Criminal Court in Monrovia.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Closure of media outlets
The government's petition to the Court argued that the stations had "illegally used their respective media outlets by broadcasting hate messages against the government and deliberately spreading misinformation and messages of violence, and instigating the people to rise up and take to the streets and engage in confrontation with the Liberia National Police and the United Nations security forces." Sirleaf later said that the closures had been conducted "with the aim to prevent the incitement of further violence and protect lives." The closures were condemned by the Press Union of Liberia, the Liberia Media Center, the Center for Media Studies and Peace Building, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and the Liberty Party. The First Judicial Circuit Criminal Court ordered the reopening of the stations on 15 November.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Voting
Turnout on the day of the run-off was low, with some polling stations closing early upon realizing that no more voters would show up. Nevertheless, international observers from ECOWAS and the Carter Center commended the election, with the Carter Center saying, "Liberia's run-off election was conducted in general accordance with the country's legal framework and international obligations, which provide for genuine democratic elections. While the run-off was undermined by the CDC boycott, the eruption of electoral violence, and low voter turnout, it allowed Liberians who wished to participate to express their will in a transparent and credible process."


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Reactions
Tubman initially expressed his interest in reconciling with the government, saying on 11 November that "since Mrs. Sirleaf will now claim she is the president and is recognized by the international community, we have to find a way to work with her and I believe it is not beyond our ability to find a way for that to happen." However, he reversed his position the next day, terming the Unity Party "election hijackers" and calling for new elections and further protest by CDC supporters. The government rejected Tubman's demand for new elections.


2011 Liberian general election, Conduct, Second round, Reactions
On 11 November, Sirleaf announced that she would establish a "national peace and reconciliation initiative" to address the country's divisions and begin "a national dialogue that would bring us together." Nobel Peace Prize laureate Leymah Gbowee was chosen by Sirleaf to lead to initiative.


2011 Liberian general election, Aftermath
Representative Nelson Wah Barh, who had been re-elected as the House representative for Sinoe County District 3, died on 17 October shortly before a party intended to celebrate his re-election. The NEC announced that it would hold a by-election to fill Barh's seat, but noted that the election could not be held until the 53rd Legislature had convened in January and officially informed the NEC of the vacancy.


2011 Liberty Bowl
The 2011 Liberty Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game played on December 31, 2011, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. With sponsorship from AutoZone, the 53rd edition of the Liberty Bowl was officially the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.


2011 Liberty Bowl
The game, which was telecast at 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC, featured the Cincinnati Bearcats, Big East co-champions, versus the Vanderbilt Commodores of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). It was the first edition of the game to be aired by ABC since 1980. Cincinnati won the game, 31–24, in front of a crowd of 57,103.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Teams
After finishing the 2011 season with six wins and six losses, the Vanderbilt Commodores ended in fourth place in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) East Division. They were chosen as the SEC representative to the Liberty Bowl. The Commodores' roster included junior-year quarterback Jordan Rodgers, the younger brother of Green Bay Packers' Super Bowl-winning quarterback Aaron Rodgers.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Teams
The Cincinnati Bearcats ended the regular season with nine wins and three losses and were co-champions of the Big East Conference. Cincinnati was chosen as part of the alternate Big East tie-in with the Liberty Bowl in place of the Conference USA champions. The Bearcats' squad included Ralph Abernathy IV, grandson of Ralph Abernathy, a leader in the Civil Rights Movement.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Teams
In the 2011 season, both teams had beaten Connecticut. Vanderbilt won 24–21 at home in the second game of their season. Cincinnati won 35–27 at home in their final regular-season game. Both teams also lost to Tennessee. Vanderbilt dropped their second-to-last game on the road to the Volunteers by a score of 21–27. Cincinnati's loss was also in Knoxville by a score of 23–45 in the second game of their season.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Game
After a touchdown by Zac Stacy and a successful conversion kick by Ryan Fowler, the Commodores were ahead at the end of the first quarter by 7–0. The Bearcats dominated the scoreboard in the second quarter with touchdowns by George Winn and Anthony McClung (with successful conversions by Tony Milano) and Cincinnati went into halftime with a 14–7 lead.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Game
The halftime entertainment was presented by KC and the Sunshine Band. The group performed three of their hit songs – "Boogie Shoes", "Get Down Tonight", and "That's The Way I Like It". They were accompanied by a number of marching bands and dance groups from around the country.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Game
After halftime, Vanderbilt tied the score with a Jerron Seymour touchdown and Ryan Fowler conversion and the third quarter ended 14–14. Shortly after the start of the fourth quarter, Cincinnati again took a 17–14 lead with a Tony Milano field goal. Vanderbilt responded with a touchdown by Chris Boyd and conversion by Fowler to retake the lead 21–17. Ralph Abernathy IV and Isaiah Pead then scored a pair of touchdowns (and two conversions for Milano) for Cincinnati, who went ahead 31–21. Vanderbilt finished the game with a Ryan Fowler field goal. The final score was Cincinnati 31 – 24 Vanderbilt.


2011 Liberty Bowl, MVP
After running for 149 yards and a touchdown, Isaiah Pead was named the game's Most Valuable Player. Pead led the Bearcats in carries (28) and rushing yards (149) and was the team's third leading receiver with 3 receptions for 15 yards.


2011 Liberty Bowl, Statistics
Both teams were evenly matched in total offensive yards (Cincinnati 301, Vanderbilt 295) and yards per play (Bearcats 4.1, Commodores 4.2), but Cincinnati had a decisive edge (20–14) in total first downs. Vanderbilt played more of a passing game with 12 completions in 34 attempts for 168 yards (4.9 yards per attempt). Cincinnati also completed 12 passes but in 29 attempts for 2.8 yards per attempt. The Bearcats played more of a running game with 44 carries for 221 yards (5 yards per carry) while the Commodores had 36 carries for 127 yards (3.5 yards per carry).


2011 Liberty Bowl, Statistics
Both teams threw two interceptions, but the Commodores also lost a fumble. Cincinnati received five penalties for 55 yards and Vanderbilt had six penalties for 39 total yards. The Bearcats had a slight edge in time of possession with 30:46 to the Commodores 29:14.


2011 Liberty Flames football team
The 2011 Liberty Flames football team represented Liberty University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Flames were led by sixth-year head coach Danny Rocco and played their home games at Williams Stadium. They were a member of the Big South Conference. They finished the season 7–4, 5–1 in Big South play to finish in second place.


2011 Libyan rape allegations
The 2011 Libyan rape allegations refer to allegations that Gaddafi's forces in Libya were committing mass rape during the 2011 Libyan civil war. Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Luis Moreno Ocampo said "we have information that there was a policy to rape in Libya those who were against the government." Libyan psychologist Seham Sergiwa said she distributed questionnaires in opposition-held areas and along the Libya–Tunisia border, and 259 women responded that they were raped. Sergiwa told Amnesty International's specialist on Libya that she had lost contact with the 140 victims she interviewed. In March 2011, Iman al-Obeidi said she was gang-raped before Libyan security services dragged her away.


2011 Libyan rape allegations
Investigations by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Doctors Without Borders did not find first-hand evidence that mass rapes had occurred. Amnesty International's senior crisis response adviser said although no evidence was found, this did not prove that mass rape did not occur.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, 2011 allegations
Allegations arose in 2011 that Viagra and other impotency drugs were being distributed by Gaddafi to sustain the rapes. The charges were denied by Libyan diplomats and described as propaganda. Libyan psychologist Seham Sergiwa reported a wide pattern of rapes by Libyan government soldiers during the 2011 conflict. In June 2011, the International Criminal Court began an investigation into the rape allegations seeking to add the rapes to Gaddafi's list of war crimes charges.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, 2011 allegations
United States secretary of state Hillary Clinton, stated that "rape, physical intimidation, sexual harassment, and even so-called 'virginity tests' have taken place in countries throughout the region." Clinton also stated that "It is an affront to all people who are yearning to live in a society free from violence with respect for basic human rights. We urge all governments to conduct immediate, transparent investigations into these allegations, and to hold accountable those found responsible."


2011 Libyan rape allegations, 2011 allegations
Patrick Cockburn expressed concern that misleading reports of rapes by Libyan government forces were used to justify the NATO-led 2011 military intervention in Libya. In June 2011, the UN investigator M. Cherif Bassiouni did not find evidence of mass rapes.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, 2011 allegations
In the 1970s and 1980s there were reports of Muammar Gaddafi making sexual advances toward female reporters and members of his entourage. After the civil war, more serious charges came to light. Annick Cojean, a journalist for Le Monde, wrote in her book, Gaddafi's Harem that Gaddafi had raped, tortured, performed urolagnia, and imprisoned hundreds or thousands of women, usually very young. Seham Sergewa stated that five of Gaddafi's female bodyguards had been raped by him and other senior officials.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, Post-war
After the civil war, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, prosecutor for the International Criminal Court, said there was evidence that Gaddafi told soldiers to rape women who had spoken out against his government.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, Post-war
In 2014, the new Libyan government said that compensation should be paid for the victims of rape during the war.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, Post-war
In 2016, there were reports that African women were being raped by the same Libyan rebels who overthrew Gadhafi. This is part of a larger picture of abuse of black Africans in Libya that is emerging in the wake of the rebel victory, born of allegations that Gadhafi often hired sub-Saharan Africans to fight for him.


2011 Libyan rape allegations, Post-war
In 2019, leaked phone calls by Gaddafi government officials were claimed by The Libya Observer as evidence that Baghdadi Mahmudi, prime minister of Libya from 2006 to 2011, had coordinated systematic rapes.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive
The 2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive was a major rebel offensive of the Libyan Civil War. It was mounted by anti-Gaddafi forces with the intention of cutting off the supply route from Tunisia for pro-Gaddafi loyalist forces in Tripoli.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Background
The offensive was launched by opposition forces based in the Nafusa Mountains who had managed to make a breakthrough in loyalist lines around the mountains just a few days before. Loyalists and rebels had been fighting for the mountain chain for over five months, often in back-and-forth battles. However, due to an intense NATO bombing campaign of loyalist forces, pro-Gaddafi troops had to pull back from the mountains. This gave a chance for the rebels to go on the offensive toward the coast west of Tripoli.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
The offensive started on 13 August 2011 with rebels advancing toward the oil refinery town of Zawiya supported by NATO air-strikes. The town revolted against Gaddafi governmental control in late February but the revolt was crushed by pro-Gaddafi forces in early March. There was a rebel raid against the city in June that was defeated by government troops. Holding Zawiya was a priority for the pro-Gaddafi forces, as the city lies on their coastal supply route and is a vital control city on the route from Tripoli to Tunisia. It is home to an important oil refinery, the only one in loyalist hands prior to the battle.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
During the attack, the rebels first advanced to a bridge on the southwestern outskirts before being hit by loyalist artillery fire. One group of rebels fought through loyalist defensive lines in the western sector of the town, overrunning it, and pushed into the city center. At the same time rebels entering the city were cheered by some residents, who came out of their homes to greet them shouting "God is great". Some joined the rebels as fighters. After the rebels reached the main square loyalist forces from the eastern part of Zawiya counter-attacked with a barrage of heavy weapons.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
By the evening, the Libyan government stated that a rebel force entered the city on a "suicide mission" but failed to take control of the town and that Zawiya was "totally" under government control. A rebel commander stated that opposition forces were almost 1 kilometre (0.62 miles) south of the city center on the western side of the main road, while loyalist troops were on the east side.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
During the night, reports surfaced of a rebel attempt at taking the border crossing of Ras Ajdir. Tunisian border guards stated that the loyalists brought up heavy weapons, including tanks, to defend it. By the next day it was reported that the rebel attack had been unsuccessful.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
On 14 August, fighting was still ongoing and the rebels had not taken the center of Zawiya. A rebel commander stated that they controlled the western and southern gate of Zawiya, after managing to push 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) into the city, while government forces were controlling the east and the center of the town. Later during the day, Al Jazeera English stated that the rebels had taken control of a key highway running through Zawiya, the one that links Tunisia to Tripoli.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
The same day rebels claimed that they captured the neighboring city of Sorman, just west of Zawiya, and that they suffered ten dead and 34 wounded in fighting there. Clashes were also claimed to be occurring in nearby Sabratha. Later, a rebel spokesman also announced the capture of Ajaylat.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
On 15 August, loyalist forces pushed back the rebels from the city center of Zawiya in a concentrated effort to block the rebel advance. However, by the evening, rebels claimed to hold 80 percent of Zawiya. They also arrested 15 people they said were African mercenaries and Libyan Army soldiers, though at least one alleged mercenary claimed he was an innocent Nigerian guest worker. Some fighters said they expected it would take some time to clear all the snipers from tall buildings inside the city. Some shelling continued, though rebel soldiers said fighting was getting closer to the loyalist-held oil facility.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
Al Jazeera reported the fall of Sabratha to rebel forces, with the exception of an army base west of the city, which had been besieged. As of 15 August, rebel forces stated that they were negotiating surrender terms with the remaining loyalist forces in Sabratha.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
On 16 August, government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim claimed that loyalist forces had retaken Sorman, confirming accounts that Sorman had earlier been captured by rebel forces. He also claimed that Gaddafi governmental forces were in full control of Zawiya, and that "they will soon retake Gharyan". NATO Colonel Roland Lavoie said on 16 August that "there is still some fighting reported" in the suburbs of Sorman, though he did not say who NATO believed was in control of the city proper. An eyewitness report by journalist Ann Marlowe confirmed that Sorman had been taken several days earlier, and confirmed that Sabratha had been taken by rebels on 15 August, after loyalist forces fled. However, the very next day, heavy fighting was reported to be still ongoing in Sabratha.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
On 18 August, rebels declared that after a four-day battle they had secured the city of Sabratha and defeated loyalist forces and were in control of 90 percent of the city, including the centre, after having overrun it with at least 200 fighters. The loyalists were defeated after NATO bombed a loyalist military base in the city allowing the rebels to storm the base and seize weapons left behind by Gaddafi's men. This victory was confirmed by a team of Reuters reporters, who witnessed the rebel fighters in control of the city center.


2011 Libyan rebel coastal offensive, Offensive
A rebel commander claimed that Zuwara was in rebel hands on 18 August, according to the AP news agency.