2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
The race's queen stage consisted of five categorised climbs over the 219 km (136.1 mi) parcours. Having commenced the stage with the second-category climb of the Passo del Tonale, the riders contended with a pair of contrasting third-category climbs; the Passo dell'Aprica, a shallow 16 km (9.9 mi) climb with an average gradient of just over 3%, and the Teglio, a near-6 km (3.7 mi) climb averaging 8%, although reaching 15% in places. Undulating roads set the course for the next hour of racing, up to the foot of the first-category Passo del Mortirolo.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
The Passo del Mortirolo, returning to the race after being absent in 2011, averages a gradient of in excess of 10% over its 11 km (6.8 mi) length, although the gradient reached 22% in places on the climb. Having descended from there, the riders headed towards Bormio and the start of the climb to the Cima Coppi – the highest point of the Giro d'Italia – of the Passo dello Stelvio. Although not as steep as the Passo del Mortirolo, the Passo dello Stelvio was a 22.4 km (13.9 mi) climb with an average gradient of only 7%, with the final 3 km (1.9 mi) being the steepest part of the climb, with 12% gradient recorded in certain areas.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
Another large breakaway group was formed on a mountain stage, as fourteen riders went clear, including the previous day's winner Roman Kreuziger (Astana), former young rider classification leader Damiano Caruso of the Liquigas–Cannondale team, and incumbent mountains classification leader Matteo Rabottini, looking to extend his advantage in that classification for Farnese Vini–Selle Italia. They held a lead of up to six minutes at one point in the early running of the stage, but as the group headed towards the foot of the Passo del Mortirolo, their advantage had been cut in half to around the three-minute mark.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
It was here that the group started to break apart, and it was an attack by Oliver Zaugg of RadioShack–Nissan that sent him up the road, having shaken off Matteo Carrara (Vacansoleil–DCM), who had bridged up to him on the climb. Carrara's team-mate Thomas De Gendt, ninth overall overnight, then attacked off the front of the peloton and caught up to Carrara, with both riders joined by Lampre–ISD's Damiano Cunego, who was just behind De Gendt in the general classification.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
Euskaltel–Euskadi then set their sights on getting riders up towards the front, with stage 16 winner Jon Izagirre and Mikel Nieve – winner of the stage to Val di Fassa in 2011 – making their way forward, and also in the process, brought Tanel Kangert of the Astana team into the group, making it a six-man group in chase of Zaugg. Zaugg was caught with around 30 km (18.6 mi) remaining on the stage, while Carrara was replaced in the lead group by another stage-winner from the race, Movistar Team's Andrey Amador.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
At this point, the group held a four-minute advantage over the reduced peloton, moving De Gendt and Cunego into contention of getting into the top three overall ahead of the time trial. De Gendt attacked again, which reduced the lead group yet further; once it had settled down once again, only De Gendt, Cunego and Nieve remained together. A third attack by De Gendt later followed and neither of his remaining breakaway companions could match his pace. With 10 km (6.2 mi) to go, De Gendt extended his advantage to five minutes over the Garmin–Barracuda-led peloton, putting overall leader Joaquim Rodríguez (Team Katusha) in a spot of danger, especially due to De Gendt's superior time trial capabilities.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
De Gendt started to tire during the climb of the Stelvio, and with John Gadret (Ag2r–La Mondiale) attacking from the main field, the gap that he had over the main field was reducing. Ryder Hesjedal lifted the pace in the peloton, reducing the group yet further – to himself, Rodríguez and Lampre–ISD's Michele Scarponi – inside the final 5 km (3.1 mi). As De Gendt won the stage, Scarponi launched forward, and was closely followed by Rodríguez, with no movement from Hesjedal.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 20
Cunego finished second ahead of Nieve, while Rodríguez managed to catch and pass Scarponi for fourth on the stage; this result also gave him the lead in the points classification, taking over from Mark Cavendish (Team Sky) by just one point. Hesjedal finished 14 seconds behind Rodríguez, to trail by 31 seconds going into the final 30.9 km (19.2 mi) time trial stage, while De Gendt moved up to fourth place, 2' 18" in arrears. Rodríguez's directeur sportif Valerio Piva later stated that it would be "difficult" for his rider to win the Giro, due to the close proximity of Hesjedal in the general classification.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
Originally scheduled for a distance of 30.9 km (19.2 mi), the time trial was reduced to a distance of 28.2 km (17.5 mi) on the morning of the stage due to road conditions in Milan. The parcours of the stage itself was almost completely pan-flat, with a maximum altitude gain of just 14 m (46 ft). As was customary of time trial stages, the riders set off in reverse order from where they were ranked in the general classification at the end of the previous stage.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
It was scheduled to be Farnese Vini–Selle Italia's Andrea Guardini, but he was disqualified the previous day – along with three other riders – for holding on to their respective team cars. Thus, Miguel Minguez of Euskaltel–Euskadi, who, in 157th place, trailed overall leader Joaquim Rodríguez (Team Katusha) by five hours, twenty-five minutes and one second, was the first rider to set off on the final stage. He was not the first rider to finish, as BMC Racing Team's Taylor Phinney passed both Minguez and his team-mate Adrián Sáez on the course, despite running off course after a mistake by the motorcycle in front of him, leaving Phinney frustrated at the finish.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
Phinney's time held for only a number of minutes as Alex Rasmussen, who was third in the opening stage time trial in Denmark, assumed top spot for Garmin–Barracuda in a time of 34' 06". Almost quarter of an hour passed before Rasmussen was moved from the top of the timesheets, as RadioShack–Nissan's Jesse Sergent was the first rider to break the 34-minute barrier as he recorded a time of 33' 59" for the course.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
Sergent's time stood for an hour before Team Sky rider Geraint Thomas bettered his time by a margin of 14 seconds, but just like the opening stage of the race, his time was eventually only good enough for a second place stage result. Again, Thomas was beaten by a BMC Racing Team rider, but on this occasion it was Marco Pinotti and not Phinney, that recorded the quickest time for the course. Pinotti passed the two riders that started before him on the course, and completed the course in a time of 33' 06 ", 39 seconds better than Thomas and good enough for the five-time Italian time trial champion to take the stage victory, bookending victories in the race for his team.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
The focus then shifted to the overall classification and the battle for the podium. Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin–Barracuda) was considered the favourite to take the final maglia rosa due to him being more proficient in the discipline than Rodríguez. Vacansoleil–DCM's Thomas De Gendt was also tipped to take at least third place, as he was in a similar situation to Hesjedal, against defending champion Michele Scarponi (Lampre–ISD).


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
De Gendt was first to take to the stage, recording a time of 34' 07" – good enough for a fifth-place finish – and was more than enough to move ahead of Scarponi, who recorded a time of exactly 35 minutes. Hesjedal had moved ahead of Rodríguez on time during the stage, and finished the course eight seconds slower than what De Gendt had achieved.


2012 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21, Stage 21
He sealed the Giro title – and the first Grand Tour overall victory for a Canadian rider – several minutes later as Rodríguez finished outside of the 31-second margin that he had held before the stage. Rodríguez – who crashed during a reconnaissance run of the course – finished the stage in 35' 02 ", meaning that he finished the Giro with just the points classification, as Mark Cavendish (Team Sky) was unable to finish the stage inside the top 15. De Gendt's third place meant that there was no Italian on the overall podium for the first time since 1995.


2012 Giro del Trentino
The 2012 Giro del Trentino was the 36th edition of the Giro del Trentino cycling stage race. It was held from 17–20 April 2011, and was rated as a 2.HC event on the 2012 UCI Europe Tour. It was won by Colnago–CSF Bardiani's rider Domenico Pozzovivo.


2012 Giro di Lombardia
The 2012 Giro di Lombardia or 2012 Il Lombardia was the 106th edition of the Giro di Lombardia single-day cycling race, often known as the Race of the Falling Leaves. It was held on 29 September 2012, over a distance of 251 km (156.0 mi), starting in Bergamo and ending in Lecco. It was the penultimate event of the season in the 2012 UCI World Tour. The very steep climb Muro di Sormano returned to the route during the 2012 edition after an absence of fifty years and was situated before the Madonna del Ghisallo climb. Joaquim Rodríguez (Team Katusha) won the race after a solo breakaway initiated on the final climb of the day. He became the first Spaniard to win this Classic.


2012 Giro di Lombardia, Teams
As the race was held under the auspices of the UCI World Tour, all eighteen ProTour teams were invited automatically. Seven additional wildcard invitations were given – Acqua & Sapone, Androni Giocattoli–Venezuela, Colnago–CSF Bardiani, Colombia–Coldeportes, Farnese Vini–Selle Italia, Argos–Shimano and Utensilnord–Named – to form the event's 25-team peloton.


2012 Giro di Lombardia, Race Summary
The race got underway in Bergamo under rain and fog with temperatures oscillating around 10 °C (50 °F). The weather conditions discouraged a lot of participants, since of the 197 riders who started the race, only 54 crossed the line as 143 competitors withdrew. The newly crowned World champion Philippe Gilbert of BMC Racing Team was among those who abandoned, as he crashed while trying to reel in the leading group on the descent after the Muro di Sormano. He later rated his 60 km/h (37 mph) crash as a "9.5 out of 10" and posted a picture of his bloodied jersey on Twitter.


2012 Giro di Lombardia, Race Summary
Romain Bardet (Ag2r–La Mondiale) was the sole survivor of an early breakaway to crest atop the Muro di Sormano in front of the favorites, shaking off Alberto Losada (Team Katusha) near the top. With Bardet still hanging on to a minute lead, Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin–Sharp) attacked with 60 kilometres (37 mi) to go, but the attempt failed. Bardet was caught and Omega Pharma–Quick-Step's Kevin De Weert broke free only to take a spill in a downhill turn. A couple more short-lived breaks ensued, including one by Portuguese Rui Costa (Movistar Team).


2012 Giro di Lombardia, Race Summary
Joaquim Rodríguez attacked on the final difficulty of the day, the Villa Vergano climb. He arrived at the top of the difficulty alone and descended to Lecco as the rain was pouring down heavily. Nobody could reach him and he crossed the line in joy, throwing a water bottle in the air. Rodriguez stated after the victory: "I was fighting for a double goal today, to win this prestigious competition and to take the lead in the UCI World Tour Ranking, and I managed both. So I'm really happy."


2012 Glasgow City Council election
Elections to Glasgow City Council were held on 3 May 2012, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections. The election was the second using 21 new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward elected three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation.


2012 Glasgow City Council election
The election in Glasgow attracted the most attention out of the local elections in Scotland as there were many predictions that the Scottish Labour Party would lose control of the council due to losses of seats to the Scottish National Party. The Labour administration had suffered from a number of defections of council members to the newly formed Glasgow First party and controversy surrounding Councillor's salaries and contracts. In the end, Labour remained in control, losing just 1 seat, while the SNP gained 5. The Scottish Liberal Democrats were reduced to holding just 1 seat on the Council, the same numbers as the Glasgow First party and the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party who retained their solitary seat. The Scottish Green Party retained 5 seats on the authority.


2012 Glasgow City Council election
After the elections Labour again formed a controlling administration on the City Council.


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Election result
Note: "Votes" are the first preference votes. The net gain/loss and percentage changes relate to the result of the previous Scottish local elections on 3 May 2007. This may differ from other published sources showing gain/loss relative to seats held at dissolution of Scotland's councils.


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 3: Greater Pollok
2007: 3xLab; 1xSNP2012: 2xLab; 2xSNP2007-2012 Change: SNP gain one seat from Lab


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 4: Craigton
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xSol 2012: 2xLab; 2xSNP 2007-2012 Change: SNP gain one seat from Sol


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 5: Govan
2007: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xGlasgowFirst 2007-2012 Change: GlasgowFirst gain one seat from Lab


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 6: Pollokshields
2007: 1xLab; 1xSNP; 1xCon 2012: 1xLab; 1xSNP; 1xCon 2007-2012 Change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 7: Langside
2007: 1xSNP; 1xLab; 1xLib Dem 2012: 1xSNP; 1xLab; 1xGreen 2007-2012 Change: Green gain one seat from Lib Dem


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 7: Langside, Recount
It was announced by Glasgow City Council on Thursday 10 May 2012 that Box 139, containing approximately 385 papers, was not counted in the vote despite them being registered and scanned. Permission was obtained from Glasgow Sheriff Court to examine the ballots and rerun the calculation. The two highest scoring candidates were mathematically assured of their place, however the third candidate, Liam Hainey, could have had his election overturned. After the ballots were rescanned on 16 May 2012 and the result recalculated, he retained his seat.


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 8: Southside Central
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xGRN2012: 2xLab; 2xSNP 2007-2012 Change: SNP gain one seat from Green


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 9: Calton
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 2xLab; 1xSNP 2007-2012 Change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 10: Anderston/City
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xGRN 2012: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xGRN 2007-2012 Change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 11: Hillhead
2007: 1xSNP; 1xGRN; 1xLib Dem; 1xLab 2012: 1xSNP; 1xGRN; 2xLab 2007-2012 change: Labour gain one seat from Lib Dem


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 12: Partick West
2007: 1xSNP; 1xLib Dem; 1xLab; 1xGRN 2012: 2xSNP; 1xLab; 1xGRN 2007-2012 change: SNP gain one seat from Lib Dem


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 13: Garscadden/Scotstounhill
2007: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 3xLab; 1xSNP  2007-2012 change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 15: Maryhill/Kelvin
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xLib Dem 2012: 2xLab; 2xSNP; 2007-2012 change: SNP gain one seat from Lib Dem


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 15: Maryhill/Kelvin
'* = Alex Dingwall was elected as an SNP councillor in 2007 but defected to the Liberal Democrats on 10 February 2010.


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 16: Canal
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xGRN 2012: 2xLab; 1xSNP; 1xGRN 2007-2012 change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 17: Springburn
2007: 2xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 2xLab; 1xSNP 2007-2012 Change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 18: East Centre
2007: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2007-2012 changes: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 19: Shettleston
2007: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2007-2012 Change: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 20: Baillieston
2007: 2xLab; 2xSNP 2012: 2xLab; 2xSNP 2007-2012 changes: No change


2012 Glasgow City Council election, Ward results, Ward 21: North East
2007: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2012: 3xLab; 1xSNP 2007-2012 changes: No change


2012 Glendale, Arizona mayoral election
The 2012 Glendale, Arizona mayoral election was held on August 28, 2012, to elect the mayor of Glendale, Arizona. It saw the election of Jerry Weiers.


2012 Global Champions Tour
The 2012 Global Champions Tour is the 7th edition of the Global Champions Tour (GCT), an important international show jumping competition series.


2012 Global Champions Tour, The series
The series is held mainly in Europe. The first and the last station is held in Arabia. In France and Germany two competitions of the GCT will be held.


2012 Global Champions Tour, The series
All competitions will be endowed at least €285,000. All GCT events will be held as CSI 5*.


2012 Global Champions Tour, The series
The competitions were held between April 5, 2012 and November 24, 2012. There was no final. At the end of the season the best 18 riders in the final overall standings had got a bonus prize money.


2012 Global Champions Tour, The series, Rule change
With 13 stations, the 2012 Global Champions Tour is the season with the highest number of competitions in the GCT history. Because of this high number of competitions and the early date of the 2012 Olympic Games the Equestrian Federations from Europe see a threat to the FEI Nations Cup competitions. The Nations Cup are crucial to remain show jumping at the future Olympic Games.


2012 Global Champions Tour, The series, Rule change
Because of this, the European Equestrian Federation called for a FEI rule change: important Nations Cups should not be held in future at the same weekend as GCT events or other CSI 5* horse shows. The International Jumping Rider Clubs decided at a poll, that only the ranking point of six or seven GCT events will into account for the final ranking of GCT. The FEI took on this decision, so only the ranking point of seven per rider GCT events count for the final ranking.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions
All competitions were held as competition over two rounds against the clock with one jump-off against the clock.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, First competition: Doha
April 5, 2012 to April 7, 2012 – Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club, Doha,  QatarCompetition: Saturday, April 7, 2012 – Start: 6:30 pm, prize money: €450,000


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, First competition: Doha
The jumping course in the round arena in Doha was built by Uliano Vezzani from Italy. In the first round of the competition, 15 riders had no faults, also one rider with one time fault and the two four-fault-riders with the fastest time qualified for the second round. In the second round, most of the riders had fewer problems with the obstacles, but the allowed time was difficult: three riders had one time fault with their horses, three more riders had also time faults. Seven riders had no faults with their horses in both rounds.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, First competition: Doha
In the jump-off, last year's GCT ranking winner, Edwina Tops-Alexander, rode a fast faultless round with her 16-year-old gelding, Itot du Château. Next Christian Ahlmann started in the jump-off: with a high speed he missed the right distance to the second obstacle. At the end he had a result of eight points with Codex One. Also, all other riders who started in this jump-off could not reach the result of Tops-Alexander, so she won the GCT Grand Prix of Qatar.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Second competition: Oliva
May 4, 2012 to May 6, 2012 – Oliva Nova Beach and Golf Resort, Oliva near Valencia,  Spain


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Second competition: Oliva
The Spanish Global Champions Tour event was held first time not in Valencia. The new location is a newly built equestrian facility at the Oliva Nova Beach and Golf Resort in Oliva, 80 miles from Valencia on the Mediterranean coast. The facility was opened in February and March of this year, with several CSI 2* tournaments called Mediterranean Equestrian Tour.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Second competition: Oliva
The CGI 5* GCT Grand Prix was held on May 5, 2012 at 4:45 pm local time. The course was created by Frank Rothenberger from Germany. In the first round the allowed time was the major problem for many riders. Only five of 40 riders had more the eight fault points in round one, three riders did not finish the round.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Second competition: Oliva
Qualified for round two were all riders without faults, riders with less than four fault points and Marcus Ehning as riders with the fastest four fault round. In the second round riders had again time faults beside obstacle faults. French rider, Kevin Staut could almost prevent his fall after a refusal, but his stirrup broke, so he retired.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Second competition: Oliva
Five riders were qualified for the jump-off. Here, first Michael Whitaker, then Ben Maher got in the lead. After Maher, no other rider had a faultless round in the jump-off.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Third competition: Hamburg
May 16, 2012 to May 20, 2012 – Hamburg (German show jumping and dressage derby),  GermanyCompetition: Saturday, May 19, 2012 – Start: 1:20 pm


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Third competition: Hamburg
The first GCT event in Germany in 2012 was held in Hamburg at the tradition-rich German show-jumping and dressage derby. The show jumping course was built by Frank Rothenberger, who built the courses also at this event in the last years.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Third competition: Hamburg
Round one of the competition was equitable challenging, all faultless riders and the three fastest four-fault riders were qualified for the second round. Also in the second round the allowed time was not the problem for the riders, but the course was more challenging in round two. Five of 18 riders qualified for the jump-off.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, Third competition: Hamburg
The jump-off had besides very long ways to gallop also some short cuts. All riders had ridden these short cuts, so it was a really fast jump-off. In this jump-off, only two riders had no faults: last year's winner Rolf-Göran Bengtsson and Nick Skelton, Skelton was with Big Star more than one second faster, so he won the Grand Prix of Hamburg.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 4th Competition: Wiesbaden
May 25, 2012 to May 28, 2012 – Wiesbaden (Pfingstturnier),  GermanyCompetition: Saturday, May 26, 2012 – Start: 4:30 pm


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 4th Competition: Wiesbaden
First time ever a GCT competition was held in 2012 at the "Pfingstturnier Wiesbaden" (Wiesbaden Pentecost horse show). The GCT competition at the 76th Pfingstturnier was held at Saturday, May 26, 2012. As already at the last two GCT competitions two course was designed by Frank Rothenberger.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 4th Competition: Wiesbaden
Besides all faultless competitors from the first round also one rider with two time faults and four riders with four faults from the first round were qualified for the second round. In this second round much of the remaining 18 starters had four faults, only two riders had no faults with their horses in the second round. As the first one of this two-time faultless riders Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum start in the jump-off. For her horse, Bella Donna it was the first competition on this very high competition level. The French rider Olivier Guillon with his much more experienced horse Lord de Theize was the second rider in the jump-off, with a fast faultless round Guillon win the competition.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 5th Competition: Cannes
June 14, 2012 to June 16, 2012 – Cannes,  France


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 5th Competition: Cannes
The first GCT event in France this season was held from June 14 to June 16, 2012 at the Jumping Cannes horse show. This event was held at the Stade des Hespérides in Cannes.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 5th Competition: Cannes
The Grand Prix de la Ville de Cannes, the Cannes GCT competition, was held at Saturday evening under floodlight. The show jumping course was designed by Uliano Vezzani. The first round was challenging, 13 of 46 riders had 12 or more penalty points.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 5th Competition: Cannes
In the second competition, which includes three double combinations, seven riders had no faults. In the addition of both rounds three riders with their horses had no penalty points, they were qualified for the jump-off. As first rider, Rolf-Göran Bengtsson got in the lead. Gerco Schröder was the next, he was 16 hundredths of a second faster than Bengtsson. As last competitor the winner of the last two years in this competition, Edwina Tops-Alexander, started in the jump-off. She also had a fast time with her horse Itot du Château, but Bengtsson and Schröder was faster than Tops-Alexander.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 6th Competition: Monaco
June 28, 2012 to June 30, 2012 – shore at the marina Port Hercule, Monte Carlo, Monaco


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 6th Competition: Monaco
The GCT horse show of Monaco was held at the shore of the Boulevard Albert 1er at the Port Hercule. The events were held on a provisionally show jumping arena. As two weeks previously, also the GCT competition of Monaco was held under floodlight.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 6th Competition: Monaco
The course was built on a small showground (approximately 30 meters wide and 70 meters long) again by Uliano Vezzani from Italy. The competition (Grand Prix du Prince de Monaco) is named after Prince Albert II, which also undertook the award ceremony together with his niece Charlotte Casiraghi.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 6th Competition: Monaco
From the first round all (nine) riders with four penalty points, two riders with one time fault and seven faultless riders were qualified for the second round. In this second round, seven riders had no faults, four riders had no faults in both rounds.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 6th Competition: Monaco
As first rider Christina Liebherr from Switzerland start in the jump-off. She had one obstacle fault and was fourth in the final result. The surprise of the competition was Abdelkebir Ouaddar from Morocco, who started for the first time in a GCT competition. Ouaddar was with the nine-year-old gelding Porche du Fruitier (owned by Mohammed VI of Morocco) in the second competition in the jump-off. He was placed third in the final result. After him, Hans-Dieter Dreher and Kevin Staut started in the jump-off, both had no faults but not a better time than Ouaddar. Staut won the competition with Reveur de Hurtebise, a gelding from Belgium.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 7th Competition: Estoril
July 13, 2012 to July 14, 2012 – Hipódromo Manuel Possolo, Cascais near Estoril, Portugal


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 7th Competition: Estoril
The Grande Prémio Turismo de Portugal, GCT competition of Portugal, was held on July 14, 2012 at 7:00 pm. The show jumping course was built by Frank Rothenberger. Many riders, which are nominated for the 2012 Olympic Games, had started not with their best horse; other riders start with their number one horses in this competition.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 7th Competition: Estoril
The first round was no problem for many riders, 20 riders had no faults - they were qualified for the second round. The second round had a much higher level of difficulty. Six of 20 competitions had again a faultless round.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 7th Competition: Estoril
As one of the first of the six riders in the jump-off, Philipp Weishaupt ride with the stallion Leoville. Weishaupt and Leoville had a faultless and very fast round, they got in the lead. The following riders had all slower times than Weishaupt, so he won the competition.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 8th Competition: Chantilly
July 20, 2012 to July 22, 2012 – Chantilly Racecourse, Chantilly,  France


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 8th Competition: Chantilly
The GCT competition of Chantilly was held on July 21 at 3:30 pm. Course designer was Uliano Vezzani. Just one week ago, 20 riders were faultless in a GCT competition, in Chantilly the first round of the competition was much more difficult. Only five riders had no faults in round one, so all riders with four and five penalty points were qualified for the second round.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 8th Competition: Chantilly
In the second round, much more riders had no faults, 13 of 18 riders had no faults with their horses in the second round. Three riders had no faults in both rounds. Beezie Madden was the first one to start in the jump off. She was fast with her horse Simon and had a time of 39.15 seconds. Karim El Zoghby, who was underdog in this jump-off, had a jumping fault early in the jump-off. As last rider Hans-Dieter Dreher with the stallion Magnus Romeo going into the jump-off. He was also very fast, so he won the competition with a lead of three tenths of a second.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 9th Competition: Valkenswaard
August 17, 2012 to August 19, 2012 – Valkenswaard,  Netherlands


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 9th Competition: Valkenswaard
The first GCT competition after the Olympic Games was held in Valkenswaard, home of GCT founder Jan Tops. The competition was held on August 18,2012 at 2:30 pm. The jumping courses was created by Uliano Vezzani. Twelve of 48 riders had no faults in the first round of the competition. These riders, three riders with one faults and the fastest three riders with four faults were qualified for the second round. For a long time, no rider in the second competition had a faultless round. As first one German Philipp Weishaupt and Catoki had no faults at the fences, but they had (as in the first round) one time fault.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 9th Competition: Valkenswaard
50 percent of the riders, which were faultless in the first round, were also faultless in round two. These six riders were qualified for the jump-off. The first three riders in the jump-off had no faults, Ludger Beerbaum was the fastest of the three riders. The next three riders in the jump-off had faults at the fences, so Beerbaum won the competition.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 10th Competition: Lausanne
September 14, 2012 to September 16, 2012 – Place de Bellerive, Lausanne,   Switzerland


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 10th Competition: Lausanne
For the first time, a GCT competition was held in 2012 in Switzerland, in Lausanne. The GCT competition was held at 6:00 pm on September 15. The course of the Grand Prix of Switzerland was designed by Swiss Rolf Lüdi. 18 competitions (the number of riders, who qualified for the second round) had no faults at the fences in the first round, one of them had one time fault. No competitor from Switzerland was qualified for the second round, the best rider from Switzerland was Janika Sprunger with Palloubet d'Halong on the 25th place.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 10th Competition: Lausanne
In the second round, one third of the 18 competitions again had no faults. These six riders were qualified for the jump-off. In the jump-off, only two riders were faultless for a third time, the fastest one was Laura Kraut with her grey gelding Cedric.


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 11th Competition: Vienna
September 20, 2012 to September 23, 2012 – Rathausplatz, Vienna,  Austria


2012 Global Champions Tour, Competitions, 12th Competition: Abu Dhabi
November 22, 2012 to November 24, 2012 –  Al-Forsan International Sports Resort, Abu Dhabi,  United Arab Emirates


2012 Global RallyCross Championship
The 2012 Global RallyCross Championship was the second season of this championship. The season was composed by 6 rounds, including one round in the X Games. Tanner Foust was crowned champion for the second time, beating teammate Brian Deegan.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
GRC opened its season on a Saturday night at Charlotte with a 17-car field and two sets of heat races, and it was clear from the first practice session that the two drivers to beat were going to be Marcus Grönholm and Tanner Foust of Olsbergs MSE. After qualifying 1–2, each driver won both of their heat races to advance to the final. But a handful of big names wouldn't have such an easy time advancing. Ken Block suffered a spectacular accident in his first heat race, effectively ending his night before it got started.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Fellow Olsbergs driver Brian Deegan won his first heat race, but a burnt-out clutch prevented him from finishing the second or making it to the last chance qualifier. Travis Pastrana also had an incident in his first heat, but won the second to advance to the final. From there, it was more of the same up front, with Gronholm and Foust coming home 1–2. Stephan Verdier, in his first race with Rhys Millen Racing, rounded out the podium. Meanwhile, Toomas Heikkinen's aggressive driving in the final earned him a disqualification and the ire of his competitors, including Pastrana and Dave Mirra.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Texas marked the debut of the 70-foot metal gap jump, which proved an obstacle to most drivers at first; Travis Pastrana spent most of practice in his teammate's car after breaking his in jump practice. But drivers figured out the jump in time for qualifying, where once again, Marcus Grönholm and Tanner Foust placed first and second. In a sign of things to come for much of the season, Gronholm, Foust, Brian Deegan, and Samuel Hubinette would win the four heat races.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
But it was the second of two last chance qualifiers that may have proved most exciting, as Bucky Lasek drove sideways off of the jump and onto a barrier, and other drivers were eliminated one by one until Stephan Verdier was the only one left and thus advanced to the final. Ford and Olsbergs MSE would dominate the final, scoring four of the top five positions as Gronholm, Foust, and Deegan came home 1-2-3 and David Binks finished fifth. Meanwhile, the top 12 drivers in points earned automatic qualifying berths for X Games, held in Los Angeles the next month.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
At X Games, two spectacular crashes in practice for Olsbergs MSE teammates Toomas Heikkinen and Marcus Grönholm caused both drivers would miss the race due to injury. Meanwhile, GRC officials nixed the joker lap that ran between the gap in favor of a tabletop jump and no joker lap for Sunday's race. After being challenged by Travis Pastrana, legendary rally driver Sébastien Loeb took a European-honed Citroen to the States to try and conquer his first X Games. It didn't take long for him to establish himself as the man to beat when he won his heat race.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Unfortunately, Pastrana's rough season would continue after he suffered terminal damage in the first corner of his heat after an accident with Andy Scott, and was not allowed to replace teammate Bryce Menzies in the other car. For the second race in a row, the ten drivers in the main event would require three attempts to get it right.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Loeb would cruise to an easy victory in the valid final, with Ken Block putting in a heroic drive for second on a punctured tire and Brian Deegan winning a medal for the second year in a row by coming in third. Rhys Millen would finish fourth, while Liam Doran, who had taken a surprise gold medal in 2011's head-to-head competition, rounded out the top five.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
The absences of Marcus Grönholm, Toomas Heikkinen, and Rhys Millen meant that the series would see a short field of 14 cars and only three heat races at New Hampshire. That entry list might have shrunk even further when Ken Block rolled off of the elevated hairpin in qualifying, necessitating a long night of repairs for his team. Drivers would face the figure eight track on Saturday, adjusting to a longer joker lap and the addition for dirt for the first time on a paved oval.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Tanner Foust and Brian Deegan both won their heat races, as expected, but after three straight races of futility, it was Travis Pastrana's time to run up front as well. He and Samuel Hubinette battled fearlessly for the lead in their heat race, with Pastrana eventually earning the advantage. In the final, Foust looked to win his first race of the season and establish himself as the new championship favorite, but after stalling on the elevated hairpin, both Pastrana and Hubinette muscled by, and Deegan would eventually get by as well to take the third step on the podium. Even so, Foust would take a 12-point lead over Hubinette into the final two races of the season.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Tanner Foust and Brian Deegan had both pride and $25,000 on the line in Las Vegas, as both fought for the Discount Tire/America's Tire Cup awarded to the top driver at this race, Texas, and New Hampshire. Foust asserted himself as the man to beat in qualifying, beating Ken Block, Travis Pastrana, and a fully recovered Toomas Heikkinen. Deegan would qualify seventh, while Olsbergs MSE team owner Andreas Eriksson, substituting for Marcus Grönholm, would qualify eighth.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
The first heat would see a scary accident, as Richard Burton slid sideways off of the jump and into the landing pad, totaling his car and injuring his back in the process. In the second heat, Eriksson would toss away a victory by spinning in the final corner, doing donuts to entertain the fans as Block and Rhys Millen took the two transfer spots. Pastrana also goofed in the third heat by taking the shortcut twice, but both he and Eriksson would advance in the last chance qualifier.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Block and Eriksson made contact in the first corner of the final, as Foust, Deegan, and Heikkinen attempted to give Olsbergs its second podium sweep of the year. Subaru's Sverre Isachsen would sneak by Heikkinen for third, earning them their first podium of the season, while Foust would hold off Deegan for the race win and $25,000 prize. They would enter the season finale as the only drivers eligible for the title, as Samuel Hubinette missed the main event.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Facing a six-point deficit to Olsbergs MSE teammate Tanner Foust in the championship standings, Brian Deegan would need a lot of luck at SEMA to steal the GRC title. The track, constructed in a parking lot outside of the Las Vegas Convention Center, featured significantly more dirt than most others, and opened up the cars to put on the best show of the season.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
Foust and Deegan would each win their heat race on the first day, but while Foust backed it up with another win on Tuesday, Deegan would fall to the last chance qualifier after suffering a puncture in his second heat race. Despite his crew racing against the clock, Deegan would make it to the grid in time for the last chance qualifier and advance to the main event. Ken Block had been the man to beat all week, pacing the field through qualifying and his heat races and looking to win his first race of the season in the finale.


2012 Global RallyCross Championship, Season summary
He might have done so if not for an exhaust fire two laps into the main event that limited his driving, enabled Foust to pass him, and eventually put him out of the race with two laps to go, forcing a restart. It couldn't have been more fortunate for Deegan, who had been a non-factor in the first attempt and seized his second chance. He jumped from the back of the grid to the front by braking late in the first corner and began to work on chasing down Foust. But the race win and championship slipped out of reach as the laps wound down; Foust would take his second race win and championship in a row over Deegan and Rhys Millen, who earned his first career GRC podium and tied Hubinette for third in points.


2012 Gloucester City Council election
The 2012 Gloucester City Council local elections took place on 3 May 2012 to elect members of Gloucester City Council in Gloucester, England. This was on the same day as other United Kingdom local elections were taking place across the country. At the previous Gloucester local elections in 2011, the first after the 2010 general election, of which the result was a hung parliament and subsequently, a Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government was formed, both parties shared similar success, winning 9 out of the total 11 seats available (the Conservatives with 6 seats, the Liberal Democrats with 3).


2012 Gloucester City Council election
Turnout for the election was 32%, down 7% from the previous year. 7 wards from the 2011 elections were contested once more in the 2012 elections. Out of these 7 wards, only 1 gain was made, with Labour gaining control of the Barton and Tredworth seat from the Conservative incumbent.


2012 Glynhill Ladies International
The 2012 Glynhill Ladies International was held from January 20 to 22 at the Braehead Curling Rink in Glasgow, Scotland as part of the 2011–12 World Curling Tour. The purse for the event was GBP£8,000, and the winner, Mirjam Ott, received GBP£2,500. The event was held in a round robin format with a consolation round and playoffs.


2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl
The 2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl the thirteenth edition of the GoDaddy.com Bowl, an American college football bowl game. Part of the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and one of the 2011–12 NCAA football bowl games, it took place on January 8, 2012, at Ladd–Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. The Northern Illinois Huskies from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) defeated the Arkansas State Red Wolves from the Sun Belt Conference, 38–20.


2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl
The first quarter saw the Red Wolves build up a 13–0 lead, but then the Huskies scored 31 unanswered points to put the game away in the second half.


2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl, Teams, Arkansas State
ASU completed its best regular season since 1975 by winning 10 games and extending its overall winning streak to 9 games. The Red Wolves were led by junior quarterback Ryan Aplin (605 rushing yds., 9 TDs, 3,235 passing yards) who was the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and senior defensive lineman Brandon Joiner, the Defensive Player of the Year.


2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl, Teams, Northern Illinois
Northern Illinois defeated Ohio, 23-20, in the 2011 Marathon MAC Championship game at Ford Field in Detroit, MI, which was led offensively by QB Chandler Harnish (1,382 rushing yds., 11 TDs; 2,942 passing yards, 26 TDs), WR Nathan Palmer (683 receiving yds., 7 TDs); and defensively by LB Pat Schiller (108 tackles), DE Sean Progar (5.5 sacks), and DB Rashaan Melvin (2 INT).


2012 GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma
The  GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma was an open-wheel IndyCar motor race and held as the fourteenth and penultimate round of the 2012 IndyCar Series season. It took place on Sunday, August 26, 2012. The race was contested over 85 laps at the 2.303-mile (3.706 km) at Sonoma Raceway, California, United States.


2012 GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma
The race was won by Australian racer Ryan Briscoe racing for Team Penske. Briscoe finished 0.4 seconds ahead of Australian team mate Will Power with British driver Dario Franchitti finishing third for Chip Ganassi Racing. It was Briscoe's first win since the 2010 Firestone 550. Brazilian driver and Formula One veteran Rubens Barrichello finished fourth in his best result since joining IndyCar. Power's second place, coupled with Ryan Hunter-Reay finishing 18th expanded Power's lead in the championship. Power led Hunter-Reay by 36 points.


2012 GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma
The event marked a notable change in the course layout. The cars used the inner loop at the back hairpin instead of the outer loop in order to open a passing zone. The exit of the bus stop was widened to allow for more room. Another passing zone was established by using a part of the hairpin instead of cutting it off altogether.


2012 GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma, Classification, Race results
Points include 1 point for pole position and 2 points for most laps led.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election
The Goa legislative assembly election was held on 3 March 2012, to select the 40 members of the Vidhan Sabha.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election
The result was announced on 6 March. The Bharatiya Janata Party-Maharashtrawadi Gomantak alliance defeated the incumbent Indian National Congress government in Goa led by Chief Minister Digambar Kamat with 24 seats in the 40-seat assembly. The Bharatiya Janata Party won 21 seats, while the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party won 3 seats. The MLA with the biggest margin of victory was the incumbent MLA Frances D'Souza of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Former chief minister Manohar Parrikar was sworn in as the new chief minister on 9 March.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Parties
The Indian National Congress (INC), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are the national political parties in the fray. Other regional parties include the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak, Goa Vikas Party, United Goans Democratic Party and Go Su-raj Party.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Issues
The issue of the cultural identity of Goa has also come to the fore in the past few years. The population of Goa has rapidly swelled due to increasing migration levels from neighboring Karnataka and Maharashtra, as well as from further afield such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Issues, Corruption
Following the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement several allegations of corruption have been made on the incumbent government going to elections this year.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Issues, Corruption
Nepotism was also an issue. Former CM and current head of the Goa TMC Wilfred de Souza accused the INC of perpetrating a "Family Raj" in its allotment of tickets for the election to relatives of INC leaders from such families as the Naiks, Alemaos, Ranes, and Monserrates. He also cited the denial of an electoral ticket to his son-in-law Tulio D’Souza in Saligao (Goa Assembly constituency) despite the INC also denying him a ticket.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Issues, Corruption
He also criticized the inability of incumbent CM Digambar Kamat to have stopped illegal mining while he was the minister of mining and finance minister in the previous government. He cited a report by a commission led by Justice M. B. Shah to investigate illegal mining in the country that suggested potential revenue of US$423 million was lost through illegal ore exports after he said he had seen a "leaked" version of the report.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Results
The following is the list of winning MLAs in the election.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Results, By-election
Shortly after the election, the Cortalim seat was opened for a by-election following the death of the incumbent, Matanhy Saldanha, as a result of a heart attack. His wife, Alina Saldanha, was originally scheduled to run against Raymond D’Sa of the INC and independent candidate Ramakant Borkar, though the latter two soon withdrew from the race and she was elected unopposed on 25 May. She was given her husband's ministerial portfolio as forest minister. She immediately said that she would not allow mining on forest land.


2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, Analysis
The Daily Pioneer called this election "the first time that the BJP has stamped its success in so many of those constituencies that have a significant population of the minority community."


2012 Goiânia mayoral election
The Goiânia mayoral election of 2012 was held on 7 October as part of the municipal elections in Brazil. Then incumbent mayor, Paulo Garcia, elected as the running mate of Iris Rezende in the previous election, ran against seven other candidates and was re-elected with more than 57% of the valid votes. On the same date, voters also chose their 35 representatives for the Municipal Chamber (Câmara Municipal). The elected mayor, deputy-mayor and aldermen will serve from 1 January 2013 until 31 December 2016, when their terms will officially expire.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election
Although he faced seven contestants, Garcia found no major problems in being re-elected in the first round. He took advantage from the outcome of the Monte Carlo Operation, led by the Federal Police (Polícia Federal – PF) on early 2012. Until then, the candidate backed by Governor Marconi Perillo, then-Senator Demóstenes Torres, was the favorite in the opinion polls. PF's investigations, however, revealed that Perillo was an accessary to mobster Carlinhos Cachoeira and that Torres lobbied on his behalf at the Senate.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election
Allegations of corruption undermined the intention of Perillo's Brazilian Social Democracy Party (Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira – PSDB) to launch Congressman Leonardo Vilela, also associated with Cachoeira, or to support Torres, which was later impeached for his affiliation with the offender. Therefore, Perillo decided to support Congressman Jovair Arantes, that was hampered by the unpopularity of the latter.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Electorate
In the 2012 election, 850,777 people were eligible to vote in Goiânia, which corresponded to 64.5% of the city's population, according to estimates from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística – IBGE). The city is divided into ten precincts – organized similarly to the city's official subdivision –, 2,909 voting rooms and 359 polling places. In 2012, biometric voting machines – which identifies voters by their fingerprints – were introduced in Goiânia.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Electorate
From 11 April 2011 to 23 March 2012, voters were called upon by the Regional Electoral Court (Tribunal Regional Eleitoral de Goiás – TRE) to register their fingerprints. By the end of the period, more than 80% of voters had made the registration. The deadline was later extended until 9 May 2012. The refusal to register resulted in the cancellation of the voter registration card and in a fine ranging from 3% to 10% of the minimum wage.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Electorate
Without the card, a regular Brazilian is unable to get a passport, to retire from the Social Security, to enroll in public schools or universities, to obtain a loan from state-run banks or to become a civil servant. According to TRE-GO, 123,000 voter cards were canceled in Goiânia due to the lack of fingerprint registration.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
On 6 October 2008, then mayor and former Governor Iris Rezende, of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (Partido do Movimento Democrático Brasileiro – PMDB) was re-elected with 74% of the valid votes. His approval rating was of 81% at the time and he became the first mayor of Goiânia to be re-elected. On 1 April 2010, Rezende resigned from the office in order to run for Governor at the 2010 elections.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
Deputy-mayor Paulo Garcia, of the Workers' Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores – PT), – a party opposed to irismo until they reconciled to form Rezende's electoral coalition in 2008 – took office. Rezende lost the gubernatorial race to former Governor and then-Senator Marconi Perillo, of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira – PSDB), elected on the second round with 53% of the valid votes.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
Shortly before the definition of candidates for mayor, on 29 February 2012, criminal offender Carlinhos Cachoeira, which profited between 1 and 3 million reais (around 0.5 to 1.5 million dollars) per month through the illegal jogo do bicho was arrested in Goiânia as a result of the Monte Carlo Operation, led by the Federal Police (Polícia Federal – PF). Wiretaps revealed close ties between Cachoeira and then-Senator Demóstenes Torres, from the Democrats (Democratas – DEM). Torres lobbied in Cachoeira's behalf at the National Congress. In order to avoid an expulsion from his party, Torres asked to be disaffiliated from DEM.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
Before the outbreak of the scandal, he was the favorite candidate of the population of Goiânia for mayor, with 43.4% of the voting intention. Two weeks prior to the Monte Carlo Operation, Torres announced that he would not run in order not to undermine the opposition to Dilma Rousseff's administration in the Congress. Torres later became the second member in the history of the Senate to be impeached, becoming ineligible until 2027.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
Another pre-candidate harmed by his relationship with Cachoeira was alderman Elias Vaz, from the far-left Socialism and Liberty Party (Partido Socialismo e Liberdade – PSOL), which had between 14% and 18% of the voting intention. In one of the wiretaps, he calls Cachoeira "my comrade". In late June, Vaz announced that he would not run for mayor in order to try to keep his seat at the Municipal Chamber.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
In addition to local and federal lawmakers, wiretaps also revealed Cachoeira's influence in the state government of Goiás. The offender paid the expenses of Marconi Perillo's gubernatorial campaign and bought a house that belonged to the latter (the same place where he was arrested by the PF), arranging for the purchase money to be delivered at the Emerald Palace (Palácio das Esmeraldas), seat of the state government.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
There is also evidence that Eliane Pinheiro, former chief of staff to the governor, has delivered classified information to Cachoeira's group and that Edivaldo Cardoso de Paula, former president of the State Traffic Department of Goiás (Departamento Estadual de Trânsito – Detran-GO), was nominated to the position at Cachoeira's request. After the media disclosed the ties between Perillo and Cachoeira, the Governor faced several protests in the streets of Goiânia and reached high levels of unpopularity, facing a disapproval rating of 74.4% in Goiânia on late July. According to Serpes institute, 26% of voters would consider the scandal when choosing their mayoral candidate.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
Federal deputy, Jovair Arantes, of the Brazilian Labour Party (Partido Trabalhista Brasileiro – PTB), which was cited by members of Cachoeira's group in wiretaps, was chosen as the candidate of the Marconists and had the highest rejection rate throughout the campaign. When asked by the press about his relationship with Cachoeira, Arantes replied: "I asked for a donation for my campaign; if he has committed a crime, it's not of my business". Cornered by the accusations, Marconists reacted.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
They launched an investigative committee at the Legislative Assembly (Assembleia Legislativa de Goiás – Alego) in order to investigate the relations between municipal politicians and the offender. It approved disclosing the banking, income tax and telephone data of mayor Garcia and former mayor Rezende, while it refused to summon both Perillo and Cachoeira. According to political analyst Vassil Oliveira, their strategy was to use the investigative committee to wear out Paulo and, thus, consolidate Arantes.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Context
Nevertheless, Garcia and Rezende filed a collective lawsuit against Alego; they claimed that it does not compete to the Assembly the investigation of contracts which are not funded by the state of Goiás. A week after the election, judge Luis Eduardo de Souza granted an injunction overturning Alego's intention of disclosing the personal data of both Garcia and Rezende.


2012 Goiânia mayoral election, Candidates
The 2012 election was contested by eight candidates, tying with 2004 as the election with the largest number of candidates in the history of Goiânia. The candidates were: incumbent mayor Paulo Garcia of the centre-left coalition Goiânia, Sustainable City; federal deputy Jovair Arantes of the centre-right Marconist coalition; state deputy Isaura Lemos; state deputy and TV and radio presenter Elias Júnior; alderman Simeyzon Silveira; business manager José Netho; lawyer Rubens Donizzeti; and history teacher Reinaldo Pantaleão. All of them, with the exception of José Netho and Isaura Lemos, have higher education diploma.


2012 Gold Coast Sevens
The 2012 Gold Coast Sevens was the first tournament of the 2012-2013 Sevens World Series. It was held over the weekend of 13–14 October 2012 at Robina Stadium (known for sponsorship reasons as Skilled Park) in Queensland, Australia, and was the tenth edition of the Australian Sevens tournament.


2012 Gold Coast Sevens
Fiji defeated New Zealand 32–14 in the final to successfully defend their title.


2012 Gold Coast Sevens, Format
The teams were drawn into four pools of four teams each. Each team played everyone in their pool one time. The top two teams from each pool advanced to the Cup/Plate brackets. The bottom two teams from each group went to the Bowl/Shield brackets.


2012 Gold Coast Sevens, Teams
The participating teams and schedule were announced on 17 September 2012.


2012 Gold Coast Suns season
The 2012 AFL season is the Gold Coast Suns' second season in the Australian Football League (AFL). The Gold Coast Suns reserves team also competed in the NEAFL.


2012 Gold Coast Suns season, Draft picks
The mini-draft allowed teams to pre-list players for the following season.


2012 Gold Coast Titans season
The 2012 Gold Coast Titans season was the 6th in the club's history. Coached by John Cartwright and captained by Scott Prince they competed in the National Rugby League's 2012 Telstra Premiership. They finished the regular season 11th (out of 16), failing to make the finals for the second consecutive year. Nate Myles was named the club's player of the year.


2012 Gold Coast Titans season, Season summary
After their worst ever season which ended in their winning the wooden spoon in 2011, the Titans underwent significant player turnover, which included the signings of Nate Myles, Phil Graham and Jamal Idris amongst others.


2012 Gold Coast Titans season, Season summary
On 26 July, The Titans announced changes to its management team including the appointment of a new CEO and new investors. David May, the former CMO of iSelect was named the new CEO of the Titans replacing Michael Searle who stood down as managing director to become executive director of football.


2012 Gold Coast Titans season, Season summary
At the end of the season the Paul Broughton Medal for player of the year went to second-rower Nate Myles.


2012 Golden Globes (Portugal)
The 2012 Golden Globes (Portugal) was held on 20 May 2012 and broadcast by SIC and presented by Bárbara Guimarães.


2012 Golden Icons Academy Movie Awards
The 2012 Golden Icons Academy Movie Awards was the maiden edition of the ceremony to reward excellence in African cinema. It was hosted by Jim Iyke.


2012 Golden Spin of Zagreb
The 2012 Golden Spin of Zagreb (Croatian: Zlatna pirueta Zagreba) was the 45th edition of the annual senior-level international figure skating competition held in Zagreb, Croatia. It was held at the Dom sportova on December 13–16, 2012. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing.


2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic
The 2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the fourth edition of the tournament which was part of the 2012 ITF Women's Circuit. It took place in Phoenix, Arizona, on November 5–11, 2012.


2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic, WTA entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic – Doubles
Jamie Hampton and Ajla Tomljanović were the defending champions, but neither took part in 2012.


2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic – Doubles
Jacqueline Cako and Natalie Pluskota won the title, defeating Eugenie Bouchard and Ulrikke Eikeri in the final, 6–3, 2–6, [10–4].


2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic – Singles
Sesil Karatantcheva was the defending champion, but lost to Shelby Rogers in the first round.


2012 Goldwater Women's Tennis Classic – Singles
Madison Keys won the title, defeating Maria Sanchez in the final, 6–3, 7–6(7–1).


2012 Gomelsky Cup
The 2012 Gomelsky Cup was a European basketball competition that happened between September 29 and September 30 in Moscow. CSKA Moscow was the champion.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500
The 2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on October 7, 2012 at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama, United States. Contested over 188 laps on the 2.66-mile (4.3 km) asphalt tri-oval, it was the thirtieth race of the 2012 Sprint Cup Series season, as well as the fourth race in the ten-race Chase for the Sprint Cup, which ends the season.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500
Matt Kenseth of Roush Fenway Racing won the race, his second of the season, and snapped a twenty-nine race winless streak extending back to the Daytona 500; while Jeff Gordon finished second and Kyle Busch finished third. The Big One hit the field on the final lap, collecting 25 cars in turn four, with Tony Stewart flying in the air after being accidentally tagged by Michael Waltrip, who in turn was being pushed by Casey Mears.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Background
Talladega Superspeedway is one of six superspeedways to hold NASCAR races; the others are Daytona International Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Pocono Raceway and Michigan International Speedway. The standard track at the speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.66 miles (4.28 km) long. The track's turns are banked at thirty-three degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 16.5 degrees. The back stretch has a two-degree banking. Talladega Superspeedway can seat up to 143,231 people.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Background
Before the race, Brad Keselowski led the Drivers' Championship with 2,142 points, and Jimmie Johnson stood in second with 2,137 points. Denny Hamlin followed in third with 2,126 points, nine points ahead of Clint Bowyer and sixteen ahead of Tony Stewart in fourth and fifth. Kasey Kahne with 2,110 was seven points ahead of Dale Earnhardt, Jr., as Martin Truex, Jr. with 2,100 points, was four points ahead of Kevin Harvick, and six in front of Jeff Gordon. Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth was eleventh and twelfth with 2,091 and 2,070 points, respectively.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Background
In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 197 points, twenty-five points ahead of Toyota. Ford, with 138 points, was seven points ahead of Dodge in the battle for third. Clint Bowyer is the race's defending champion after winning the event in 2011.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
To begin pre-race ceremonies, Billy Irvin, a volunteer with Alabama Raceway Ministries and director of ministry relations with FAITH Radio in Montgomery, Alabama, delivered the invocation. Then, singer Raelynn performed the National anthem. At 2:11 PM, actor Kevin James gave the command to start engines.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
At the drop of the green flag, Kasey Kahne led, and continued to lead for the first ten laps. On lap 11, Trevor Bayne took the lead with drafting help from Clint Bowyer. Three laps later, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. claimed the lead. Earnhardt, Jr. led for two laps before being passed by Kyle Busch.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
On lap 17, the first caution came out for a three car crash in turn 4 that eliminated Carl Edwards and Cole Whitt from contention, and also gave some heavy damage to Joey Logano. Kyle Busch continued to lead the field when the green flag waved on lap 22. Two laps later, Matt Kenseth passed Busch to lead. Kenseth led for ten laps, before Earnhardt, Jr. passed him. On lap 35, Denny Hamlin reported a loose rearview mirror in his car. Earnhardt, Jr. led for seven laps before being repassed by Kenseth on lap 41.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
One lap later, Kenseth got loose off of Greg Biffle's bumper, and he went from 1st to 31st place in a matter of seconds, while Earnhardt, Jr. received the lead. On lap 50, Casey Mears received the lead. A lap later, Mears was passed by Jeff Burton, who led for two laps before Bayne received the lead.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
By lap 58, Mears had re-received the lead. From lap 60 to lap 62, the field was cycled through green-flag pit stops. Earnhardt, Jr, Bayne, Kyle Busch, and others received speeding penalties. These penalties ultimately resulted in Earnhardt, Jr. and Busch being trapped a lap down for a significant chunk of the mid-portion of the race. On lap 64, Jimmie Johnson took the lead. On lap 73, Jeff Gordon passed Johnson with drafting help from Kenseth. By lap 83, Jamie McMurray had taken the lead.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
On lap 90, Kurt Busch, in his last start for Phoenix Racing, received the lead. Five laps later, Kenseth took the lead. He led for two laps before Busch repassed him. Two laps after that, the second caution of the race waved when Kasey Kahne ran out of fuel, and simultaneously, Busch was spun out on the back straightaway by Jamie McMurray. Although the car took damage from hitting the inside wall, Busch was able to refire the engine, after the emergency crews had already reached him. A medical bag that was sitting on top of the car was subsequently thrown from the back decklid. NASCAR parked Busch for pulling away and trying to drive back to the garage despite the fact that his car was shedding debris.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
On the restart at lap 104, Marcos Ambrose was the leader, but was passed during the next lap by Kenseth. On lap 121, Kyle Busch got onto the tail end of the lead lap, being pushed by Mears. On lap 127, Greg Biffle assumed the lead for one lap before being repassed by Kenseth. Four laps after that, Biffle pushed McMurray into the lead. Busch was shuffled back during this green flag run.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
On lap 139, the third caution flag of the race was waved for debris. Earnhardt, Jr. got back on the lead lap and Kyle Busch returned to the lead lap with a free pass. At the restart on lap 143, Casey Mears was leading again. Laps later, Biffle passed him. On lap 151, McMurray received the lead. A lap later, Biffle repassed him. On lap 155, Kevin Harvick gave McMurray a shove to reclaim the lead for two laps. On lap 168, Harvick became the leader. He led for three laps before Mears assumed the lead.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Race
On lap 173, the lead returned to McMurray. On lap 182, Kenseth claimed the lead, and the fourth caution came out as McMurray spun out in the tri-oval off of Harvick's bumper. Under the caution, 11 drivers did not pit, so Clint Bowyer led the field at the restart on lap 187.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Final lap and repercussions
Coming to the white flag, Tony Stewart claimed the lead as Kenseth made a charge on the outside down the back straightaway. Entering turn three, Kenseth was leading the high lane and much of the field was bunched up behind him and Stewart. In turn four, Casey Mears started pushing Michael Waltrip and the pair made a move on the inside of Stewart. As Stewart tried to block, he was turned sideways by Waltrip's car and spun into the pack. Waltrip just clipped Kevin Harvick's car and then hit the outside wall, collecting 25 cars in all.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Final lap and repercussions
Stewart's car went airborne and was upside down on top of several cars, including Kasey Kahne, Clint Bowyer, and Paul Menard. Kenseth was the only one in front of the crash and he made it to the finish line to win the race followed by Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch, who got through by going down to the apron. Greg Biffle and Ryan Newman, who were on the outside back of the four-wide pack before the crash, managed to avoid it by slowing down and weaving through out-of-control cars to finish in sixth and ninth place respectively.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Report, Final lap and repercussions
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. contacted a neurosurgeon following headaches from the crash two days later, and a day later, the neurosurgeon medically disqualified Earnhardt following a concussion from being part of this crash. The next day, Earnhardt admitted in a press conference he had been concussed in an August 29 tire test at Kansas after a tire failure at speeds exceeding 300 km/h in Turn 1, and hired Regan Smith in the #88 until he was cleared. This eventually led to an official concussion protocol by NASCAR that would be in full effect by the 2014 season, including a new Chase format that would fit with the protocol.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Results, Race results
Note: Cars that finished the final lap, despite being involved in the crash, are scored as having completed all 189 laps.


2012 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500, Results, Race results
The lead changed 54 times, the 39th time a race at Talladega had broken 40 official lead changes.


2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500
The 2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on April 1, 2012 at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. Contested over 500 laps, it was the sixth race of the 2012 season. Ryan Newman of Stewart-Haas Racing took his first win of the season, A. J. Allmendinger finished second and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finished third.


2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500, Report, Background
Martinsville Speedway is one of five short tracks to hold NASCAR races. The standard track at Martinsville Speedway is a four-turn short track oval that is 0.526 miles (0.847 km) long. The track's turns are banked at eleven degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at zero degrees. The back stretch also has a zero degree banking. The racetrack has seats for 63,000 spectators.


2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500, Report, Background
Before the race, Greg Biffle led the Drivers' Championship with 195 points, and Kevin Harvick stood in second with 188. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. followed in third with 178 points, one ahead of Tony Stewart and three ahead of Martin Truex, Jr. in fourth and fifth. Matt Kenseth, with 173, was two points ahead of Denny Hamlin in seventh. Clint Bowyer, with 157 points, was one point ahead of Jimmie Johnson and two ahead of Ryan Newman in ninth and tenth. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 33 points, four points ahead of Ford. Toyota, with 27 points, was six points ahead of Dodge in the battle for third. Harvick is the race's defending race winner after winning it in 2011.


2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500, Report, Practice and qualifying
Two practice sessions were held before the race on Friday, both lasting 90 minutes each. Jeff Gordon was quickest with a time of 19.512 seconds in the first session, less than two-hundredths of a second faster than Kyle Busch. Hamlin was just off Burton's pace, followed by Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Newman, and Martin Truex, Jr. Stewart was seventh, still within two-tenths of a second of Gordon's time. In the second and final practice session, Gordon was quickest with a time of 19.516 seconds. Kurt Busch followed in the second position, ahead of Brad Keselowski, Newman, and David Stremme. Landon Cassill was sixth after posting a time of 19.844 seconds, while Josh Wise and Juan Pablo Montoya followed in seventh and eighth. Scott Riggs and Aric Almirola rounded out the first ten positions.


2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500, Report, Practice and qualifying
Forty-six cars are entered for qualifying, but only forty-three raced because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes
The Gorno-Badakhshan clashes consisted of fighting between Tajik government forces and an armed group led by Tolib Ayombekov in Tajikistan's semi-autonomous Gorno-Badakhshan province in late July 2012. The Western media described the fighting as the worst in Tajikistan since 2010 or the 1992–1997 civil war.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes, Background
On 21 July 2012, Major-General Abdullo Nazarov, head of the Tajik intelligence agency's branch in Gorno-Badakhshan, was fatally stabbed in Ishkashim after being dragged out of his car. The Tajik government accused the forces of Tolib Ayombekov, a former warlord, of responsibility. Ayombekov had been a warlord during the Tajik Civil War between the United Tajik Opposition and the government as led by President Emomali Rakhmon. He was given a government post in a subsequent peace deal. However, Ayombekov and other warlords were gradually driven out as Rakhmon again centralised power. Rakhmon's government had also accused Ayombekov of tobacco smuggling.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes, Background
Ayombekov denied any responsibility for Nazarov's death, stating that the general had been killed in a simple bar fight after he fell and struck his head on a rock.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes, Clashes
After the government announced that "Ayombekov and his accomplices have declined to face justice," phone and internet communications were cut off to the Gorno-Badakhshan capital of Khorog. Tajikistan's most popular news website was also shut down and the personnel of international aid groups were evacuated. Roadblocks were erected on roads leading into the area.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes, Clashes
Tajik military forces then moved into the province after which "heavy fighting" ensued on 24 July with militants loyal to Ayombekov in the streets of Khorog. Ayombekov estimated in an interview that 800 Tajik soldiers had been deployed to the area. Residents reported seeing armored vehicles and helicopter gunships.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes, Clashes
State-owned television reported that 23 soldiers had been wounded, but no soldiers or civilians had been killed. Initial casualty reports varied. BBC News reported at least 12 soldiers and 30 militants had been killed, but also spoke with a hospital source who reported more than 100 military personnel and 100 civilians dead. The Associated Press cited an unnamed government source as stating that at least twenty soldiers had been killed, while the chief military prosecutor, Khairullo Saidov, suffered a foot injury. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that snipers had killed at least six civilians, including children. Al Jazeera reported 12 dead soldiers and 30 dead rebels, as well as more than 20 wounded soldiers.


2012 Gorno-Badakhshan clashes, Clashes
President Rakhmon ordered a halt to operations the following day, stating that rebel commanders had agreed to make "concessions," and called on all Gorno-Badakhshan militant groups to disarm. Reuters reported that Defence Minister Sherali Khairulloyev had traveled to the area to offer amnesty to all militant leaders who surrendered.


2012 Gosport Borough Council election
The 2012 Gosport Council election was held on 3 May 2012 to elect members of the Gosport Council in England. This was the same day as other 2012 United Kingdom local elections. The Conservatives gained three seats from the Liberal Democrats, whilst Labour gained one seat each from the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. Both Labour and the Conservatives saw an increased vote share, whilst the Liberal Democrats' vote share fell.


2012 Governor General's Awards
The shortlisted nominees for the 2012 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit were announced on October 11, and the winners were announced on November 13.


2012 Gracia-Orlová
The 2012 Gracia-Orlová was the 26th edition of the Gracia-Orlová, a women's cycling stage race. It was an UCI 2.2 category race, and was held between 25 and 29 April 2012 in the Czech Republic and Poland.


2012 Grambling State Tigers football team
The 2012 Grambling State Tigers football team represented Grambling State University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Doug Williams in the second season of his second tenure as head coach and eighth overall after coaching the Tigers from 1998 to 2003. They played their home games at Eddie Robinson Stadium. They were a member of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and finished the season with an overall record of one win and ten losses (1–10, 0–9 SWAC).


2012 Gran Piemonte
The 2012 Gran Piemonte was the 98th edition of the Gran Piemonte (known as Giro del Piemonte until 2009) single-day cycling race. It was held on 27 September 2012, over a distance of 188 km, starting in Fossano and ending in Biella.


2012 Gran Piemonte
The race was won by Rigoberto Urán, Colombian rider of Team Sky. Luca Paolini of Team Katusha was runner-up (he was third in the 2011 edition) and Euskaltel–Euskadi's Gorka Verdugo was third-placed.


2012 Gran Piemonte, Teams
The start list included 18 teams, with 11 ProTour teams, and more than 150 riders. Among them, the 2008 World Champion Alessandro Ballan, the 2012 Giro d'Italia winner Ryder Hesjedal, the 2006 Milano-Sanremo winner Filippo Pozzato, and the 2008 Olympic Champion Samuel Sánchez.


2012 Grand National
The 2012 Grand National (officially known as the John Smith's Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 165th annual renewal of the Grand National horse race at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. The showpiece steeplechase, which concluded a three-day meeting which is one of only four held at Aintree throughout the year, took place on 14 April 2012. The maximum permitted field of 40 runners ran the last 4 miles 856 yards (7.220 km) of Aintree's National Course featuring 30 fences, competing for record prize money of £975,000, making it the highest-valued National Hunt race in the United Kingdom.


2012 Grand National
Aintree had made a number of safety changes in the months leading up to the race, following the deaths of two horses in the previous year's National. The changes included reducing the severity of some of the fences, raising the minimum age of participating horses from six to seven years old, and requiring all runners to have previously been placed in a recognised steeplechase of at least three miles.


2012 Grand National
Neptune Collonges, ridden by Daryl Jacob, won the race, beating Sunnyhillboy in a photo finish and the closest ever finish to a Grand National. Neptune Collonges became only the third grey horse to win the 173-year-old chase, and the first since 1961. Joint-favourite Seabass finished third, which resulted in Katie Walsh, in her first outing in the race, scoring the best result ever for a female jockey in the Grand National. Synchronised, the 2012 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner and an early favourite for the National, and According to Pete both were euthanised after suffering leg fractures during the race. One fence was omitted on the second circuit as medics treated jockey Noel Fehily, who broke a leg in a fall on the first circuit.


2012 Grand National
The race was televised live on the BBC for the last time, having broadcast every running since 1960. The rights to broadcast the next four renewals had been won by Channel 4. The BBC's relationship with the race did continue however through its live radio broadcast rights, which it had held since being first aired in 1927.


2012 Grand National, Safety changes
In 2011, Aintree announced some modifications to the format of the race and to the National Course in time for the 2012 Grand National. The changes followed a review of the 2011 race in which two horses suffered highly publicised fatal falls. A review conducted by the racecourse authorities, and the British Horseracing Authority, in consultation with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and World Horse Welfare, recommended the following amendments to the course:


2012 Grand National, Safety changes
Other recommendations were made to improve the safety of race participants, including:


2012 Grand National, Race card
Entries for the race had to be submitted by 31 January 2012. On 1 February, Aintree announced that 82 horses had been entered for consideration in the 2012 Grand National, including the previous year's winner Ballabriggs and 2009's outside winner Mon Mome. Ballabriggs was bidding to become the first horse to win back-to-back Nationals since Red Rum in 1973 and 1974, who incidentally was trained by Ginger McCain, the father of Ballabriggs' trainer Donald McCain, Jr.


2012 Grand National, Race card
Among the early favourites for the race – alongside Ballabriggs – were Junior (trained by 2008's winning trainer David Pipe), Synchronised (the winner of the Lexus Chase on 28 December 2011 and later the 2012 Cheltenham Gold Cup), Weird Al (winner in the October 2011 Charlie Hall Chase), and Midnight Chase (first in the Cotswold Chase on 4 February 2012). Synchronised was attempting to become the first horse since Golden Miller in 1934 to win both the Gold Cup and Grand National in the same year.


2012 Grand National, Race card
Handicap weights were announced by the British Horseracing Authority in London on 14 February. The top weight of 11 stone 10 lb was allocated to the nine-year-old Sychronised. Ballabriggs was allotted 11 stone 9 lb, and 11 stone 8 lb to both Weird Al and Midnight Chase. The remaining entries were allotted a range of handicaps down to 9 stone.


2012 Grand National, Race card
After a first scratchings deadline on 28 February, five entries were taken out. Following a second round of scratchings on 20 March 59 horses remained entered. At a five-day confirmation stage on 9 April a further 11 entrants were withdrawn, leaving 48 potential runners. Among those were 2012 Thyestes Chase winner On His Own, and West End Rocker who finished a comfortable first in the Becher Chase in December 2011.


2012 Grand National, Race card
Other trainers returning to the race included Kim Bailey, who had success with Mr. Frisk in the 1990 National, with ten-year-old Midnight Haze; Gordon Elliott, who trained the 2007 winner Silver Birch, with the grey Chicago Grey; and Ted Walsh, responsible for Papillon's victory in 2000 (his son Ruby took that ride), with Seabass who was ridden by his daughter Katie in her first Grand National. With both Katie Walsh and Nina Carberry in the line-up, 2012 marked the first time since 1988 that more than one female jockey participated in the same National.


2012 Grand National, Race card
Jockey Tony McCoy rode Synchronised and was aiming for his second Grand National success in 17 attempts. Niall Madden (on In Compliance) was another seeking a second win after guiding Numbersixvalverde to victory in 2006, while 2003 winning jockey Barry Geraghty returned to ride Shakalakaboomboom. Paul Carberry took the ride of Chicago Grey and Ballabriggs defended his title under the jockeyship once again of Jason Maguire, while Timmy Murphy was a sixth and final jockey aiming for another National win, having ridden Comply or Die in 2008.


2012 Grand National, Race card
On 12 April a final declaration of runners was made and the maximum field of 40 competitors plus four reserves was announced. Any withdrawals before 9 am on 13 April would have been replaced by a reserve. However, no reserves were needed as all 40 went forward on the morning before the race.


2012 Grand National, Race card
* Ruby Walsh was due to ride On His Own but was stood down after suffering a concussion in a fall during the Aintree Hurdle before the Grand National. Paul Townend took over the ride of On His Own, with Andrew Tinkler coming in to replace Townend on The Midnight Club.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
The start of the race was delayed after Synchronised unseated his rider, Tony McCoy during the warm-up and got loose on the racecourse. After the horse was caught and brought back to the start by McCoy, there were further delays caused by overly-keen riders and horses breaching the starting tape twice.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
Eventually, starter Hugh Barclay got all 40 runners away. As the field charged down toward the first fence, Giles Cross and Becauseicouldntsee were amongst the early leaders, and Viking Blond became the race's first faller. His jockey Brian Hughes suffered a suspected broken cheekbone in the fall. West End Rocker and Junior, both 16/1 shots, fell at the second fence. By the fourth, Shakalakaboomboom had taken up a prominent position just ahead of the remainder of the field.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
The fifth fence claimed three runners: State of Play unseated his rider Noel Fehily and Chicago Grey and Rare Bob were brought down. Fehily suffered a broken leg and a screen was soon erected around him as he was treated by medics, while course officials prepared for the fence to be bypassed on the second circuit.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
Becher's Brook, the sixth obstacle, saw the well-backed Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Synchronised fall. McCoy suffered a soft-tissue injury but Synchronised did not appear to suffer serious injury, and he continued running riderless until the 11th fence where he fell again, fracturing his right-hind tibia and fibula; racecourse vets had to euthanise him.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
Outsider Alfa Beat was a faller at the Foinavon fence after Becher's, and the next obstacle, the Canal Turn, saw five runners exit the race. Black Apalachi fell while the riders of Organisedconfusion, Tatenen, Killyglen and Becauseicouldntsee were all unseated.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
Over the tenth, joint-favourite Shaklakaboomboom continued to lead from Planet of Sound and Seabass, ridden by Katie Walsh. Always Right and Hello Bud also held prominent positions. Treacle fell at the tenth and jockey Mark Walsh was unseated from 100/1-rated Arbor Supreme. Giles Cross was pulled up.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
As the field crossed the Melling Road, Planet of Sound, who had been jumping well, led from Shakalakaboomboom, Seabass and Always Right. But three fences later, at The Chair, Always Right unseated rider James Reveley.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
On the second circuit, Planet of Sound extended his lead over Shakalakaboomboom and the 14-year-old Hello Bud to three lengths. Quiscover Fontaine from the mid-division fell at the 17th, Deep Purple was pulled up after the 18th, and 80/1 shot Vic Venturi refused to jump the 19th. The field was diverted around the 21st fence as medics attended to Noel Fehily who fell from his mount on the first circuit and broke a leg. This was the third time a fence was omitted on the second circuit of a Grand National, with the 20th and 22nd having been bypassed in 2011 due to equine fatalities. Fehily was later taken to Fazakerley hospital in Liverpool.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
On His Own was fifth going towards Becher's Brook for the second time, but he fell at the fence, bringing down According to Pete, who was also struck by the passing Weird Al. According to Pete incurred a fracture to his left-fore humerus and had to be euthanised. Towards the back of the field, Mon Mome, who went off at odds of 50/1 and won in 2009 at odds of 100/1, was pulled up with Postmaster.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
Over the second Canal Turn, Cappa Bleu and 100/1-rated In Compliance started emerging towards the front of the field, still led by Planet of Sound and Shakalakaboomboom. Over Valentine's, Neptune Collonges and Sunnyhillboy also began making notable progress, drawing close to Seabass and Hello Bud. Weird Al was the last faller of the race, at the 27th fence.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
With only two left to jump, any one of a pack of eight horses appeared in with a chance of securing a place. Seabass and Sunnyhillboy touched down first over the final fence, followed closely by Shakalakaboomboom, In Compliance and Neptune Collonges. On the 494-yard run-in to home, Shakalakaboomboom, Ballabriggs and In Compliance began to lose ground and the trio of Sunnyhillboy from Seabass and Neptune Collonges charged into a tight race for the win.


2012 Grand National, Race overview
One hundred yards from the finishing post, Sunnyhillboy held a one-length lead over his nearest rival, Neptune Collonges, but the 33/1 grey caught up and at the line nothing separated the pair to the naked eye. Jockeys, trainers, viewers and spectators waited for one-and-a-half minutes to hear the judge's official announcement over the Tannoy that Neptune Collonges had snatched victory by a nose. The winner completed the course in 9 minutes 5.1 seconds and earned over £540,000 in prize money.


2012 Grand National, Colours
The colours carried by each runner, as declared by the BBC broadcast of the race.


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Neptune Collonges' jockey Daryl Jacob dedicated the win to his friend and former colleague Kieran Kelly who died in a fall in 2003, adding: "I will treasure this day for the rest of my life. I didn't know where the winning post was so just kept on riding for all I was worth. This horse has a heart of gold. He's a real stayer and a class horse and he just stayed on the whole way to the line. We were reeling them in all the time." For trainer Paul Nicholls, Neptune Collonges was his 53rd runner in 20 Grand Nationals and his first ever win, which secured Nicholls his seventh consecutive trainers' championship.


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Winning owner John Hales announced 11-year-old Neptune Collonges' immediate retirement from racing after the victory. Hales told how he and his family were sceptical about entering the horse in the National, after his best horse, One Man, died in a fall at Aintree in 1998. Hales said: "My thought after he jumped the last was just 'thank God', he's home and well. I have nothing against Aintree but after what happened here in 1998 with One Man the place has owed me that one, so thank you Aintree. My family was split about running here, my wife was 50/50 about coming here and my daughter Lisa is showjumping in south Wales although I think she might have jumped off when she hears what has happened!"


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Following the deaths of Synchronised and According to Pete, and the bypassing of the 21st fence while medics treated jockey Noel Fehily's broken leg, much of the media attention again focused on the safety of horses and riders in the steeplechase. Aintree Racecourse released a statement in which managing director Julian Thick said: "We are desperately sad at these two accidents and our sympathies are with the connections of both horses.


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Safety is the first priority for the organisers of the Grand National and we make every effort to ensure that everyone involved in the event is able to participate in safety. Horseracing is a sport that is very carefully regulated and monitored, but risk can never be completely removed. All horses and riders in the Grand National have to meet very high standards set by an independent panel of experts. After today, we will, as always, be looking at all aspects of this year's race to see how we can improve safety further."


2012 Grand National, Reactions
The British Horseracing Authority's director of equine science and welfare said : "[The Grand National] has inherent risks, but, working closely with Aintree and other stakeholders, we do all we can to minimise these risks while maintaining the unique character of the race. The key data from these accidents will be collated... the BHA and Aintree review all incidents which occur during the Grand National meeting and consider what measures can be taken to address the risk of a repeat in the future. We consult and work with recognised welfare organisations such as the RSPCA, SSPCA and World Horse Welfare. It is our stated objective to continue to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities which occur in racing."


2012 Grand National, Reactions
David Muir, from the RSPCA, said that the improvements to Becher's Brook were "a work in progress." Addressing the question of whether too many runners took part in the race he said, "I didn't see a lot of jostling, bumping and boring, but I want to look at it again." Muir added: "We need to reduce risk levels and see more finishers. We've had three days' racing and one horse that died on the flat and now two in the Grand National. The faller rate is too high and has to be addressed. Is the race cruel? No one put a horse into this race to see it suffer or die for their own gratification. That would be a definition of the word 'cruel'."


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Roly Owers, chief executive of World Horse Welfare, said : "Over the coming days, it will be important to establish the facts. We won't know what if any changes will need to be made until we know the exact circumstances of their falls. No race, especially the Grand National, can be without risks but there is a balance between acceptable and unacceptable risk and we need to strive to get that balance right."


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Winning trainer Nicholls, who also lost Ornais in a fatal fall in the 2011 Grand National, told the BBC that "no stone is left unturned" in the attempt to minimise the risk to participants in the race. Veteran jockey Richard Pitman gave his view "that things will have to be changed and I don't agree with the fences being smaller. That encourages horses to go faster. But I think the number of runners should be cut."


2012 Grand National, Reactions
The size of the field was also an area of concern raised by the RSPCA's chief executive, Gavin Grant, who added: "We need to look at the landing areas. Some improvements have been made there, but when you've got a drop on the other side of the fence [as with Becher's Brook] a horse isn't expecting that."


2012 Grand National, Reactions
Speaking several weeks after the race, Sychronised's jockey Tony McCoy said that he had been "trying to forget" about the National but that "Synchronised is a horse that I won't ever forget... its one of those terrible things that you wish will never happen."


2012 Grand National, Broadcasting
BBC commentator Jim McGrath describes the climax of the race.


2012 Grand National, Broadcasting
As the Grand National is accorded the status of an event of national interest in the United Kingdom and is listed on the Ofcom Code on Sports and Other Listed and Designated Events, it is always shown on free-to-air terrestrial television in the UK. The rights to broadcast the race were held by the BBC and the National, along with several other races during the day, was shown on BBC One and the BBC HD channel. This was the 53rd consecutive year the BBC has televised the Grand National and the last time before Channel 4 took over broadcasting rights for a four-year period from 2013.


2012 Grand National, Broadcasting
Clare Balding presented the BBC's television coverage, supported by Rishi Persad and retired jockeys Richard Pitman and Richard Dunwoody. Betting updates were provided by Gary Wiltshire and John Parrott.


2012 Grand National, Broadcasting
The television commentary team consisted of Ian Bartlett, Darren Owen, and Jim McGrath who called the winner home for the 15th time. The race was aired on BBC Radio for the 80th successive year, and was also covered by Racing UK into bookmakers' outlets using alternative camera shots from the BBC with their own commentary team. An alternative commentary was also given by James May, shared with professional horse racing commentator Lee McKenzie, on the BBC Red Button service, for his TV show James May's Man Lab.


2012 Grand National, Subsequent review
The British Horseracing Authority conducted its usual review of the Grand National in the weeks following the 2012 race, and it found that the deaths of Synchronised and According to Pete could have been neither "foreseen nor prevented". It posted letters to all 40 jockeys expressing disappointment at their conduct at the start line, where there were two false starts and some did not comply with starter Hugh Barclay's instructions on lining up.


2012 Grand National, Subsequent review
The start of the chase had been delayed by eight minutes after Synchronised unseated his rider, Tony McCoy, and got loose on the course. Once caught, he was examined by a vet who found his heartbeat normal and "barely above a normal resting rate". The BHA's report confirmed that although Synchronised fell at Becher's Brook, unshipping McCoy, he continued running riderless until he fell five fences later, fracturing his right-hind tibia and fibula.