2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 4: vs. Washington Redskins
The Buccaneers allowed 160 rushing yards to the Redskins. This was the first time Tampa Bay allowed a 100-yard rushing performance to any team this season. The Buccaneers came back late in the 4th quarter leading 22–21. However, the Redskins scored the winning field goal to take the win 24–22.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Josh Freeman threw for 328 yards and three touchdown passes, as Tampa Bay routed the Kansas City Chiefs 38–10. Tampa Bay had 463 yards of total offense, which was third best for a home game in franchise history. Brady Quinn started at quarterback for Kansas City for the injured Matt Cassel, who suffered a concussion in the previous week's game against the Ravens. During the third quarter, Ronde Barber returned a 78-yard interception for a touchdown. Barber has 12 career return touchdowns, which is tied for third all-time in NFL history.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Barber now is the first player in NFL history with at least eight interceptions returned for touchdowns, four fumble recoveries returned for touchdowns and a punt return for a touchdown. Barber's eight career interceptions returned for touchdowns tied him for seventh in NFL history. Barber only needs one more return touchdown to tie Rod Woodson and Darren Sharper, who have 13 return touchdowns in their respected careers. Paul Gruber was inducted into Tampa Bay's Ring of Honor during halftime. Tampa Bay held the Chiefs to 80 rushing yards on 30 carries.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City came into the game averaging 180.8 rushing yards a game, which ranked second in the NFL. Jamaal Charles was the #1 rushing leader in the NFL with 551 rushing yards coming into the game, but the Tampa Bay defense held Charles to only 40 rushing yards during the entire game.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs. New Orleans Saints
Ronde Barber intercepted Drew Brees in the first quarter to record his 46th career interception. The Saints defense allowed over 500 offensive yards to the Buccaneers. Josh Freeman threw for a career-high 420 yards and 3 touchdowns. Tampa Bay defense held the Saints to 81 rushing yards. Vicent Jackson had 7 receptions for a franchise record 216 yards and a touchdown. Jackson had a 95-yard catch, but failed to score after Malcolm Jenkins tackled him from behind. Connor Barth missed a field goal. Trailing by a touchdown in the final two minutes, Freeman drove the Buccaneers to the endzone.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs. New Orleans Saints
On the final play of the game, Freeman threw a game-tying touchdown pass to Mike Williams in the back of the endzone as time expired. However, the touchdown did not count because he stepped out of bounds before making the catch. This was the first home game of the season that was not blacked out and televised locally, and the first Sunday afternoon game at home to not be blacked out since 2009.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Minnesota Vikings
at Mall of America Field at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Minnesota Vikings
This win snapped a nine-game away losing streak for Tampa Bay dating back to last season. The Buccaneers last road win was against the Vikings in Minnesota in week 2 when the Bucs came back and won 24–20 after trailing 17–0 in the third quarter. Doug Martin held the spotlight on this night. Martin ran the ball 29 times for 135 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Martin scored two touchdowns on this night and he had 100 rushing yards before halftime.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Minnesota Vikings
Adding to that, he caught three passes for 79 yards, in which he scored a 64-yard passing touchdown on a screen play. Martin's 214 total offensive yards is the 5th best single game total in Buccaneer history. Buccaneer QB Josh Freeman had his third consecutive game with three touchdown passes, in which is a new franchise record. Freeman threw for 262 yards and has a streak of consecutive games with a touchdown pass with 10. There were three takeaways in the game, all of them belonging to the Tampa Bay defense.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Minnesota Vikings
Ronde Barber and Michael Bennett forced fumbles, with the Bucs recovering both of them in the second quarter. Those turnovers were converted into points. This provided the difference in the Bucs 20–10 halftime lead over the Vikings. Leonard Johnson also ended Minnesota's last drive with an interception. Negative plays tackles behind the line of scrimmage have become the Buccaneers’ strength this season. They entered Week 8 leading the NFL in that category. The hits kept coming Thursday night as Tampa Bay had seven more tackles for loss, including three sacks.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Minnesota Vikings
The Tampa Bay defense allowed Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota offense to rush for 141 total rushing yards. The Vikings were the second team this season to rush over 100 yards as the Redskins were the first team to do so with Robert Griffen III. The Buc's offensive line only allowed 1 sack to Jared Allen and the defense. Doug Martin carried the load, becoming the first player in Buccaneers history with 135 rushing yards and 75 receiving yards in the same game. The Bucs finished with 416 yards of total offense.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Minnesota Vikings
They had 513 yards against New Orleans last Sunday and 463 yards against Kansas City the previous week before playing the Saints. That marks the first time in franchise history that the Bucs have had three straight games with over 400 yards of total offense. The Buccaneers won their sixth straight meeting against the Minnesota Vikings.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: at Oakland Raiders
Doug Martin rushed for 251 yards and four touchdowns. Martin became the only player in NFL history to have 250 rushing yards and four touchdowns in a single game. He also became the first player in NFL history to have rushing touchdowns of 70+, 65+, and 45+ yards in the same game. Martin's 251 yards rushing broke the franchise record previously held by James Wilder with 219 rushing yards in a single game. Martin's 251 rushing yards set a new franchise record. James Wilder had the previous record with a 219 rushing yard performance in 1983.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: at Oakland Raiders
Martin had 272 total yards in the game including the 21 yards from receptions. Martin's 251 rushing yards are tied for third-most by a rookie in NFL history. Adrian Peterson (296 yards in a 2007 game) and DeMarco Murray (253 yards in a game last year) are the only rookies to rush for more yards in a game than Martin. Martin's four rushing touchdowns was also a new franchise record. Martin became the first player in NFL history with three rushing touchdowns of 45 or more rushing yards in a game.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: at Oakland Raiders
Doug Martin and Mike Anderson are the only players ever to rush for 250 yards and four touchdowns in a single game. Josh Freeman passed for 247 yards and two touchdowns. He is the third quarterback in franchise history to throw for a touchdown pass in each of the first eight games of the season. Brad Johnson in 2003 and Doug Williams in 1979 were the other two. Tampa Bay's 515 yards from offense ranks second on the team's all-time list. The record is 573 in a 1980 game against Minnesota.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: at Oakland Raiders
LaVonte David set a Tampa Bay single-game rookie record with 16 tackles. Ahmad Black and E. J. Biggers both had an interception and a forced fumble in the game. Leonard Johnson had another interception, which was two consecutive games with interceptions. DaQuan Bowers and Michael Bennett each had a sack. The Buccaneers added six tackles for a loss which remains best in the NFL. The Tampa Bay defense held the Raiders rushing offense to 22 total rushing yards. This was the fourth game of the season in which the Buccaneers scored more than 30 points in a single game (Giants 34, Chiefs 38, Vikings 36, and Raiders 42). The victory was the first time the Bucs defeated the Raiders in Oakland.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 10: vs. San Diego Chargers
The Buccaneers scored a touchdown on offense, defense, and special teams. The last time the Buccaneers did this was on October 18, 2009, home against the Carolina Panthers when Cadillac Williams scored an offensive touchdown, Tanard Jackson returned an interception for a touchdown, and Sammie Stroughter returned a kick-off return for a touchdown. Josh Freeman threw for 210 yards and 2 touchdowns. Freeman completed 14 passes out 20 attempts. Freeman had another consecutive game without throwing an interception. Dallas Clark caught a three-yard touchdown. Tiquan Underwood caught a 15-yard touchdown. Rookie Leonard Johnson scored an 83-yard interception touchdown.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 10: vs. San Diego Chargers
This is the third consecutive game that Leonard Johnson had an interception. Adam Hayward recovered and returned a 29-yard touchdown of a punt that Dekoda Watson blocked. Daniel Te'o-Nesheim and Mason Foster each had a sack. LeQuan Lewis had an interception as well. Doug Martin had 68 rushing yards and 51 receiving yards which combined for a total of 119 total yards of offense. With this performance Martin broke the NFL record for most yards from scrimmage (605) in a 3-game span set by Walter Payton in 1977 (593). Rookie Lavonte David led the team in tackles with 13. Connor Barth scored 2 field goals. The Tampa Bay defense allowed San Diego to rush over 103 yards on offense. The Chargers were the third team this season to rush over 100 yards on the Tampa Bay defense. The Redskins and Vikings were the other two teams to do so.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 11: at Carolina Panthers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers walked out of Bank of America Stadium with perhaps one of the most impressive comeback wins in their franchise history. Quarterback Josh Freeman threw for 248 yards and 3 touchdowns. Freeman threw 2 interceptions in this game as well. Nate Byham caught a 3-yard pass for a touchdown for the Bucs in the first quarter. Connor Barth scored 2 field goals in this game. Late in the fourth quarter, Vincent Jackson caught a 24-yard pass for a touchdown with 12 seconds left. Jackson caught the two-point conversion to tie the game.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 11: at Carolina Panthers
Dallas Clark caught a 15-yard pass for a touchdown that won the game for the Buccaneers in overtime. Doug Martin rushed for 138 yards. Martin surpassed 1,000 rushing yards in 10 games as a rookie. Michael Bennett and Da'Quan Bowers each registered a sack. The Tampa Bay defense held Carolina to 97 rushing yards. The Buccaneers swept their division rival Carolina Panthers this season.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Josh Freeman threw for 256 yards and didn't throw an interception. Doug Martin had 50 rushing yards, but scored the only 2 offensive touchdowns for the Buccaneers. Ronde Barber intercepted Matt Ryan in the second quarter, his 47th career interceptions. Connor Barth made 3 out of 4 field goal attempts. Barth hit from 22, 42 and 48 yards out, missing a 56-yard try in the 4th quarter. E. J. Biggers sacked and forced Matt Ryan to fumble in the 4th quarter in which Gerald McCoy recovered. Biggers had the only sack for the Buccaneers defense. Defensively, Lavonte David again led the Buccaneers in tackles with eight total tackles. The Tampa Bay defense held the Falcons to only 79 rushing yards.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 13: at Denver Broncos
Josh Freeman threw for 242 yards and 2 touchdowns. Freeman threw an interception to Von Miller in the third quarter, in which he ran it back for a touchdown. Freeman fumbled once in which Von Miller forced. Connor Barth scored 3 field goals. Barth scored from 31, 50, and 55 yards. Doug Martin rushed for only 56 yards. Dallas Clark caught an 11-yard passing touchdown in the first quarter. Mike Williams caught a 5-yard passing touchdown in the fourth quarter. Rookie linebacker Lavonte David led the team once again in tackles and also intercepted Peyton Manning in the third quarter. The Tampa Bay defense held Denver to 91 rushing yards.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 14: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Super Bowl championship team reunited in attendance for the game. During halftime, a ceremony was held to honor the reunited 2002 Super Bowl team. More than 50 players and coaches from the 2002 Super Bowl team gathered to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' first ever Super Bowl Championship. Among those who attended the reunion were former head coach Jon Gruden, former defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, Derrick Brooks, John Lynch, Warren Sapp, Brad Johnson, Mike Alstott, and Keyshawn Johnson.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 14: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Ronde Barber was part of the 2002 Super Bowl team, but was playing on the field for Tampa Bay. Josh Freeman threw for 189 yards and 2 touchdowns. Doug Martin rushed for 128 yards and scored a rushing touchdown during the fourth quarter. Martin broke Cadillac William's rookie rushing yard record during the game. Vicent Jackson had 131 receiving yards. In the third quarter, Mike Williams caught a 1-yard pass from Freeman. In the fourth quarter, Jackson caught a 13-yard pass from Freeman. The Tampa Bay defense held the eagles offense to only 29 total rushing yards. The Tampa Bay defense had 6 sacks throughout the game. Lavonte David had a sack, Daniel Teo-nesheim had a sack, Michael Bennett had two sacks, and Gerald McCoy had two as well. Ronde Barber led the team in tackles.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: at New Orleans Saints
Josh Freeman threw for 279 yards, no touchdowns, and threw 4 interceptions. Doug Martin rushed for a season low 16 yards. On defense, Daquan Bowers had the only sack. Mark Barron led the team in tackles. The Tampa Bay defense allowed the Saints to rush for 149 yards. The Buccaneers were shut out throughout the entire game. The last shut out the Buccaneers had was during week 3 of the 2009 season, when the New York Giants beat the Buccaneers 24–0. More importantly the loss mathematically eliminated the Buccaneers from playoff contention.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 16: vs. St. Louis Rams
Josh Freeman threw for 372 yards, one touchdown, and four interceptions. Doug Martin rushed for 62 yards. Connor Barth scored two field goals throughout the game. Barth scored from 29 and 49 yards. Mike Williams scored the only touchdown in the third quarter in which he caught a pass for 61 yards. Mike Williams and Vicent Jackson both had 100 receiving yards throughout the game. On defense, Lavonte David led the team in tackles with 9 total tackles. Leonard Johnson forced a fumble. Danny Grorer had an interception. The Tampa Bay defense held the Rams offense to only 89 total rushing yards.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 17: at Atlanta Falcons
Josh Freeman threw for 222 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Freeman is the first ever quarterback in franchise history to throw for 4,000 yards in a season. Freeman ended the season with 27 passing touchdowns in a season which was another record in franchise history. Doug Martin rushed for 142 yards. Martin scored a 40-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter. Mike Williams caught an 8-yard pass from Freeman in the second quarter. Connor Barth scored 3 field goals throughout the game. Barth scored from 22, 42, and 48 yards.


2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 17: at Atlanta Falcons
On defense, Mason Foster led the team in tackles with 11 total tackles. Lavonte David had a sack and Daniel Te'o-Neshiem had a sack as well in the game. Dekoda Watson blocked a punt in the second quarter. The Tampa Bay defense held the Falcons offense to only 65 rushing yards. The Bucs finished 7–9 with the win, improving on their 4–12 record from 2011.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season
The Tampa Bay Rays 2012 season was the team's 15th season of baseball, and the fifth as the "Rays" (all at Tropicana Field). The Rays hoped to improve on their 91–71 record from 2011 and make the postseason for a franchise record third straight season. They finished the season 90–72, third place in the AL East, and third place in the AL Wild Card, missing the postseason for the first time since 2009.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
On November 27, 2011, the Rays traded catcher John Jaso to the Seattle Mariners for relief pitcher Josh Lueke, as well as a player to be named later or cash.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
The Rays signed catcher José Molina on November 28, 2011 to a one-year, $1.5 million contract with a $1.5 million club option for 2013, with a $300,000 buyout.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
On December 13, 2011, the Rays acquired relief pitcher Burke Badenhop from the Miami Marlins in exchange for minor league catcher Jake Jefferies. At midnight that night, Badenhop was one of six arbitration eligible players that were tendered by the Rays, along with outfielder B. J. Upton, starting pitchers Jeff Niemann and David Price, and relief pitchers J. P. Howell and Joel Peralta. Not tendered was relief pitcher and former starting pitcher for the Rays, Andy Sonnanstine.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
Relief pitcher Fernando Rodney was signed on January 5 to a one-year contract worth $1.75 million. The deal included a team option for 2013 worth $2.5 million or a $250,000 buyout. In 2009, while playing for the Detroit Tigers, Rodney made news at Tropicana Field when he threw a baseball into the stadium's press box from the field after converting a save. He was suspended for three games following the incident. After being signed by the Rays, he apologized for his actions.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
On January 11, the Rays signed Luke Scott to a one-year contract with an option for 2013. He is expected to be the team's designated hitter primarily, though he could also be used at first base.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
On January 20, the Rays signed Carlos Peña, bringing him back to the Rays for the 2012 season after just one season away with the Cubs. The contract is worth a year at $7.25 million. He is expected to be the everyday first baseman, as he was in his previous stint from 2007–2010. Outfielder Justin Ruggiano was designated for assignment on January 24 to make room on the 40-man roster.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Offseason
The Rays announced on February 15 that manager Joe Maddon was given a 3-year contract extension worth $6 million, which would last through the 2015 season.


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Batting
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases


2012 Tampa Bay Rays season, Pitching
Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season
The 2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season was the current Tampa Bay Rowdies' third season of existence, and second in the North American Soccer League. Including the original Rowdies franchise and the Tampa Bay Mutiny, this was the 25th season of a professional soccer team fielded in the Tampa Bay region.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Background
After their first season, the FC Tampa Bay Rowdies were forced by Classic Ink to discontinue use of the "Rowdies" name, resulting in their name being FC Tampa Bay. Before the 2012 season began, however, the team came to terms with Classic Ink to purchase the "Rowdies" name.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Background
In the previous season, the Rowdies rallied to a third-place finish before bowing out in a first-round playoff match against eventual NASL Champions NSC Minnesota Stars. In 2012, the Rowdies finished second in the league with a 12–9–7 record. In the 2012 playoffs, they first defeated Carolina RailHawks FC, 5–4, on aggregate in the semifinals to advance to the Soccer Bowl. There they avenged the previous season's playoff loss by defeating defending champion, Minnesota, in the NASL Championship Series.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Background
They won the title in dramatic fashion, 3–2, on penalty kicks, after making up a two-goal aggregate deficit in regulation, and then surviving 30 minutes of extra time while short-handed. For the region of Tampa Bay, it was the first North American Soccer League championship since the original Rowdies won Soccer Bowl '75.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Match results, North America Soccer League
All times from this point on are Eastern Daylight Time (UTC-04:00)


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Match results, North America Soccer League, Playoffs
Tampa Bay won 5–4 on aggregate and qualified for the NASL Championship Series.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Match results, North America Soccer League, Playoffs
3–3 on aggregate; Tampa Bay won the 2012 NASL Championship on penalty kicks.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Match results, U.S. Open Cup
Tampa Bay entered with the other U.S.-based teams from the NASL and USL Pro in the second round. The first two rounds were drawn on May 1, 2012.


2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season, Match results, Ponce De Leon Cup
The Ponce De Leon Cup was a fan-based derby and trophy that was created in 2006. Participants were originally United Soccer Leagues first division teams (later USSF-D2, then NASL teams) based in lands that Spanish explorer, Juan Ponce de León, had visited; namely Florida and Puerto Rico. It was awarded to the club with the best record in league games versus the other participants. The trophy itself was purported to have been destroyed in 2010 in a warehouse fire. 2012 was the final year that the cup was awarded, as the Puerto Rico Islanders ceased operation following the NASL season.


2012 Tampa Bay Storm season
The 2012 Tampa Bay Storm season was the 25th season for the franchise, and their 21st in the Tampa Bay area. The team was coached by Dave Ewart and played their home games at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. With a final record of 8–10, the Storm missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season. 2012, was the first season in which the Storm used their new logo and uniform colors.


2012 Tampa Bay Storm season, Schedule
The Storm began the season on the road against the Chicago Rush on March 10. They played the Spokane Shock in their final regular season game on July 21.


2012 Tampa Bay Storm season, Roster
Rookies in italics updated July 21, 201224 Active, 6 Inactive


2012 Tampere Open
The 2012 Tampere Open was a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It was the 31st edition of the tournament which was part of the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Tampere, Finland between 23 and 29 July 2012.


2012 Tampere Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2012 Tampere Open – Doubles
Jonathan Dasnières de Veigy and David Guez were the defending champions but decided not to participate. Michael Linzer and Gerald Melzer won the title, defeating Niels Desein and André Ghem 6–1, 7–6(7–3) in the final.


2012 Tampere Open – Singles
Éric Prodon is the defending champion. João Sousa won the title, defeating Prodon 7–6(7–5), 6–4 in the final.


2012 Tampines Rovers FC season
The 2012 Tampines Rovers FC season involves Tampines Rovers competing in the 2012 S.League. They are also competing in the 2012 AFC Cup after winning the 2011 S.League.


2012 Tamworth Borough Council election
The 2012 Tamworth Borough Council election was held on 3 May 2012 to elect members of the Tamworth Borough Council in England. This was on the same day as other 2012 United Kingdom local elections.


2012 Tandridge District Council election
The 2012 Tandridge District Council election took place on 3 May 2012 to elect members of Tandridge District Council in Surrey, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.


2012 Tandridge District Council election, Background
14 seats were contested in 2012, with a total of 49 candidates standing for election. Before the election the Conservatives ran the council with 34 of the 42 seats, while the Liberal Democrats had 6 seats. Other parties standing at the election were the UK Independence Party with 13 candidates, the Labour Party with 6 candidates and 3 candidates from the Green Party.


2012 Tandridge District Council election, Background
Among the councillors who stood down at the election was the longest serving councillor Richard Butcher of Woldingham ward, after 39 years on the council.


2012 Tandridge District Council election, Election result
The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats finished with the same number seats, after each party gained a seat from the other. This left the Conservatives with 34 seats, the Liberal Democrats on 6 seats and there remained 2 Independent councillors. The Conservatives won 11 of the 14 seats contested, after gaining Whyteleafe from the Liberal Democrats by 81 votes, while the council leader Gordon Keymer was among those to hold their seats.


2012 Tandridge District Council election, Election result
However the Liberal Democrats won 3 seats and gained a seat from the Conservatives by 99 votes in Warlingham East, Chelsham and Farleigh, where Jeremy Pursehouse regaining a seat on the council he had lost at the 2008 election. Meanwhile, the UK Independence Party failed to win any seats, but did come second in three wards. Overall turnout at the election was 34.53%.


2012 Tandridge District Council election, By-elections between 2012 and 2014
A by-election was held in Burstow, Horne and Outwood on 2 May 2013 after the resignation of Conservative councillor Michael Keenan over the introduction of same-sex marriage. The seat was held for the Conservatives by Christopher Byrne with a majority of 151 votes over the UK Independence Party candidate Graham Bailey.


2012 Tanzania Music Awards
The 13th edition of the Tanzania Music Awards took place at the Mlimani City Conference Center in Dar es Salaam, on Saturday 14 April 2012. The event was anchored by Vanessa Mdee and Millard Ayo. The nominees were announced on 8 February 2012 with Bongo Flava artist Diamond topping the list with seven nominations. Two days after the list was released, four-time nominee Dully Sykes announced his withdrawal from the event. He stated 'it does not contribute to my growth whatsoever, and this contest is full of lies'. After leaving the 2011 Tanzania Music Awards empty-handed, Diamond made a return by winning three awards, including Best Male Artist and Best Video.


2012 Tarleton State Texans football team
The 2012 Tarleton State Texans football represents Tarleton State University in the 2012 NCAA Division II football season as a member of the Lone Star Conference.


2012 Tashkent Challenger
The 2012 Tashkent Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It was the fifth edition of the tournament which was part of the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan between 8 and 14 October 2012.


2012 Tashkent Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2012 Tashkent Challenger – Doubles
Harri Heliövaara and Denys Molchanov were the defending champions but Heliövaara decided not to participate. Molchanov played alongside Uladzimir Ignatik. Andre Begemann and Martin Emmrich won the title by defeating Rameez Junaid and Frank Moser 6–7(2–7), 7–6(7–2), [10–8] in the final.


2012 Tashkent Challenger – Singles
Denis Istomin was the defending champion but decided not to participate. Uladzimir Ignatik won the final 6–3, 7–6(7–3) against Lukáš Lacko.


2012 Tashkent Open
The 2012 Tashkent Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 14th edition of the Tashkent Open, and was part of the WTA International tournaments of the 2012 WTA Tour. It took place at the Tashkent Tennis Center in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, from September 10 through September 16, 2012.


2012 Tashkent Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2012 Tashkent Open, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2012 Tashkent Open – Doubles
Eleni Daniilidou and Vitalia Diatchenko were the defending champions, but decided not to defend their title together. Daniilidou played with Eva Birnerová, but lost in the first round to Lyudmyla Kichenok and Nadiya Kichenok. Diatchenko played alongside Akgul Amanmuradova, losing in the semifinals to Paula Kania and Polina Pekhova. They eventually won the title Anna Chakvetadze and Vesna Dolonc retired in the final after losing the first set 2–6.


2012 Tashkent Open – Singles
Ksenia Pervak was the defending champion, but decided not to participate.


2012 Tashkent Open – Singles
Irina-Camelia Begu won the title, defeating Donna Vekić in the final, 6–4, 6–4.


2012 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election
Periodic elections for the Tasmanian Legislative Council were held on 5 May 2012. The two seats up for election were Hobart, held by retiring Labor MLC Doug Parkinson, and Western Tiers, held by independent MLC Greg Hall. These seats were last contested (under different names) in 2006.


2012 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Hobart
The seat of Hobart, formerly known as Wellington, had been held by Doug Parkinson for the Labor Party since 1994; his retirement left Derwent MLC Craig Farrell as the only remaining Labor MLC. As his replacement Labor preselected Dean Winter, a party researcher and staffer for federal MP Julie Collins. His main competition was Rob Valentine, Lord Mayor of Hobart from 1999 to 2011, who was running as an independent candidate. Secondary school teacher Penelope Ann was selected by the Greens, while other independent candidates included engineering consultant James Sugden, former Liberal preselection candidate Paul Hiscutt (who contested Wellington in 2006, and whose father Hugh was an MLC from 1983 to 1995) and serial candidate John Forster.


2012 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Western Tiers
The seat of Western Tiers, renamed from Rowallan in 2006, had been held since 2001 by independent Greg Hall. His only opponent for re-election was another independent candidate, John Hawkins, an antiques dealer and environmental campaigner.


2012 Tatarstan Open
The 2012 Tatarstan Open was a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It was the third edition of the tournament and was part of the 2012 ITF Women's Circuit. It took place in Kazan, Russia between 13 and 19 August 2012.


2012 Tatarstan Open, WTA entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2012 Tatarstan Open, WTA entrants, Other Entrants
The following player received entry from a Special Ranking spot:


2012 Tatarstan Open – Doubles
Ekaterina Ivanova and Andreja Klepač were the defending champions, but neither chose to participate.


2012 Tatarstan Open – Doubles
In an all-Ukrainian final, the number two seeds, Valentyna Ivakhnenko and Kateryna Kozlova, defeated the top seeds, Lyudmyla Kichenok and Nadiya Kichenok to take the title, 6–4, 6–7(6–8), [10–4].


2012 Tatarstan Open – Singles
Yulia Putintseva was the defending champion, but chose not to participate.


2012 Tatarstan Open – Singles
Kateryna Kozlova won the title defeating Tara Moore in the final 6–3, 6–3.


2012 Taça da Liga Final
The 2012 Taça da Liga Final was the final match of the 2011–12 Taça da Liga, the 5th season of the Taça da Liga. It was played on 14 April 2012 at the Estádio Cidade de Coimbra in Coimbra, between Benfica and Gil Vicente. Benfica won 2–1 and claimed their fourth consecutive title. The winners also received €1 million in prize money, while the runners-up received €350,000.


2012 Taça da Liga Final
The competition involved the 32 clubs playing in the top two tiers of the Portuguese football league system – the Primeira Liga and the Segunda Liga – during the 2011–12 season. Benfica were the three-time defending champions and, as such, participated in their fourth consecutive final. In contrast, it was Gil Vicente's first-ever final in any national competition. Before this match, Benfica were on a 19-match unbeaten run in this competition, with their last defeat coming in a fourth round match against Vitória de Setúbal in October 2007.


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Background
Benfica will go into the match as the Taça da Liga title holder, having won the previous three finals, in 2009, 2010 and 2011. This will be the first ever appearance by Gil Vicente in any final. Both teams started at different stages in the competition. Gil started in the second round, having been promoted from the Liga de Honra the previous season. Benfica started in the third round as they finished in the top eight of the 2010–11 Primeira Liga.


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Background
Benfica topped Group B with three wins from three games. In the first game of the group stage, they beat Vitória de Guimarães 4–1 at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques. Their next two group stage games were at home; they beat Liga de Honra side Santa Clara 2–0 before also recording a 3–0 win against Marítimo. This qualified the team for the semi-final, in which they played at home against bitter rivals Porto. Benfica won the game 3–2. The semi-final is so far the most viewed program of the year in Portugal, with approximately 4.6 million viewers.


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Background
Gil Vicente started their Taça da Liga campaign back in October 2011 in the second round. They were drawn against Belenenses, where they overcame the Liga de Honra side in a two-legged fixture. Following a 2–1 away loss, Gil turned the deficit around with a 2–0 win over Lisbon side at the Estádio Cidade de Barcelos. In the third round, Gil were drawn in Group A against Moreirense, Rio Ave and Sporting CP. In their first group game, they defeated Moreirense 2–1. Their second group game saw them draw with fellow first division side Rio Ave 1–1. Their last group, a winner-takes all affair against Sporting CP at the Estádio José Alvalade, ended 1–0 to Gil. Gil Vicente topped Group A with seven points and progressed to the semi final stage, where they played Braga. Gil defeated Braga on penalties after a 2–2 draw.


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Route to the final
Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Match, Summary
Prior to the match, referee Jorge Sousa was awarded the right to officiate the final by the LPFP, the LPFP also selected fellow referees Pedro Garcia and Paulo Soares as the assistant referees, while Rui Costa was selected as the fourth official.


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Match, Summary
The match began with Benfica starting quickest in the starting blocks, in the opening 45 minutes Benfica dominated the ball possession creating several chances. Benfica scored after creating several changes thanks to an attack by Bruno César down the left wing in which he crossed in the box for Rodrigo to open the scoring 30 minutes into the game. Benfica went into the break leading 1–0 and came back into the second half dominating again as they did in the first half.


2012 Taça da Liga Final, Match, Summary
In the 78th minute, Gil Vicente received a corner in which they capitalized from after several blocked attempts from Benfica's defence; Zé Luís put the ball in the back of the net, beating Benfica goalkeeper Eduardo. Six minutes later, the winning goal came from Benfica substitute Javier Saviola after Gil Vicente's goalkeeper blocked Axel Witsel's shot, which led to the ball falling to the Argentine in which he slotted the ball home into the opposition's empty goal. Benfica's Witsel was named man of the match.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final
The 2012 Taça de Portugal Final was the final match of the 2011–12 Taça de Portugal, the 72nd season of the Taça de Portugal, which is the main Portuguese football knockout competition organised by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). The final was played at the Estádio Nacional, Oeiras, on the 20 May 2012. The final was contested between two Primeira Liga teams, Académica and Sporting CP. Académica were appearing in their fifth final, whilst Sporting CP were appearing in their 26th final. In Portugal, the final was televised live in HD on Sport TV and RTP1. En route to the final, both sides progressed through six rounds to reach the final. Matches up to the semi-final were contested on a one-off basis with the exception of the semi-finals which were contested over two-legs, with a match at each team's home ground.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final
Académica defeated Sporting 1–0. Marinho's fourth-minute goal was enough for Académica to claim their second Taça de Portugal in their history after their first cup triumph came in the inaugural edition of the competition in 1939. As Académica won the cup competition, they went on to play Porto in the 2012 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira in August 2012. Académica would also guarantee European football were they qualified directly for the group stage of the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League by winning this competition.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Background
Académica were appearing in their fifth Taça de Portugal final. Académica had previously won one Taça de Portugal which was the inaugural cup final in 1939, and had previously lost three cup finals (1951, 1967 and 1969). Sporting CP were appearing in their twenty-sixth Taça de Portugal final. They had previously won the Taça de Portugal fifteen times (1941, 1945, 1946, 1948, 1954, 1963, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1995, 2002, 2007 and 2008), and had been beaten in the final ten times (1952, 1955, 1960, 1970, 1972, 1979, 1987, 1994, 1996 and 2000). Prior to this match, Académica de Coimbra and Sporting CP had previously met sixteen times in this competition. Académica de Coimbra had won four times whilst Sporting had won twelve.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Background
In Académica's and Sporting's entire history, both sides had met on 139 occasions, with Sporting winning 97 games, Académica winning 19 and the two drawing 23 times. The last meeting between these two sides in this competition was in the 2006–07 edition of the cup in a quarter-final tie in which Sporting defeated the Coimbra-based side 2–1. This was the first time that each side had met each other in a cup final. The last meeting between these two sides in domestic league action was on the 30 April, three weeks before their meeting at the Jamor. Sporting defeated the briosa 2–1 at the Estádio José Alvalade. Académica's last victory over Sporting was a league game fixture on the 6 February 2010, where the estudantes defeated the Lisbon side 2–1.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Académica
As a Primeira Liga team, Académica entered the 2011–12 Taça de Portugal in the third round, where they were drawn against Portuguese Second Division side Oriental at the Estádio Cidade de Coimbra. Académica defeated the lower league side 1–0, with a goal from central defender Markus Berger. The fourth round saw Académica pitted against cup holders Porto in a home tie. After an uneventful first half, the first goal of the game came just after the hour mark through Marinho.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Académica
As the game drew to a close with Académica in the lead, Porto's manager Vítor Pereira brought on two attacking-minded players in James Rodríguez and Kléber to try to get an equalizer for the visitors. Ten minutes from the end, Hélder Cabral skipped past Porto's Maicon on the left, who then picked out a cross for an unmarked Adrien Silva, who slotted the ball past Rafael Bracalli. Académica scored a third goal at eighty-nine minutes as Éder intercepted the ball in the center of the pitch and threaded the ball to Diogo Valente, who, one-on-one with the goalkeeper, slotted the ball to the 'keeper's left, which gave Académica a 3–0 win over a big three side.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Académica
Académica were drawn to play away against Leixões in the fifth round, defeating the club 5–2 over 120 minutes. Académica forced extra-time after Leixões had held the lead for the majority of the second half. Adrien Silva scored a decisive late goal to take the game into extra-time. In extra-time, Adrien Silva, Éder and Fábio Luís scored to grant the Briosa passage into the quarter-finals. The Briosa faced Liga de Honra side Desportivo das Aves in the quarter-finals. The match began with an early goal from Éder, which was cancelled out six minutes later as Jorge Pires equalized for Aves. Académica regained the lead just before the interval through Markus Berger. Central defender Abdoulaye Ba extended their lead in the second half before Amaury Bischoff scored a late consolation in injury time to make the final score 3–2.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Académica
For the semi-finals, Académica were drawn against the lowest ranked team still active in the competition, Oliveirense of the Liga de Honra. The semi-finals were played over two legs, with the first leg taking place at the Estádio Cidade de Coimbra. The Estudantes defeated Oliveirense 1–0 in the first leg, after Pape Sow scored an injury time winner to clinch the narrowest of margins for the Briosa going into the second leg. The second leg at the Estádio Carlos Osório saw Oliveirense score first through Paulo Clemente. Their lead would be cancelled out two minutes later as Marinho equalized. On 28 minutes, Adriano would convert from the penalty sport to give Oliveirense the lead again. In the second half, Marinho would score a brace and tie the game. The game ended tied and Académica progressed to the final for the first time since 1969.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Sporting CP
As a Primeira Liga team, Sporting entered the Taça de Portugal in the third round. They were drawn against Portuguese Second Division side Famalicão in an away tie. The game which took place at the Estádio Municipal 22 de Junho saw Sporting defeat the second division side comfortably with two goals from Dutch striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel. Fellow Primeira Liga side Braga were Sporting CP's opponents in the fourth round. The match, which took place at the Estádio José Alvalade, saw the lions defeat Braga 2–0. Diego Capel and Emiliano Insúa scored to guarantee Sporting CP passage into the fifth round. For the fifth round, Sporting CP faced Liga de Honra side Belenenses. Just like the previous rounds, Sporting defeated their opponents comfortably with goals from Van Wolfswinkel and Stijn Schaars.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Sporting CP
The quarter-finals saw another home tie for the lions as they were drawn against Marítimo. Sporting defeated the Verde-Rubros 3–0. Marítimo started stronger with the first major chance of the game falling to Baba Diawara, where on 22 minutes a Marítimo counterattack saw Diawara one on one with goalkeeper Rui Patrício, where his shot was parried wide. Following Marítimo's strong start, Sporting would dictate possession and create several goal scoring opportunities but would be unable to convert their chances in front of goal. Both sides went in at half time level. Following the break, Sporting took the lead.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Sporting CP
Diego Capel would be played the ball on the left hand side, who picked out a cross for an on-rushing André Carrillo who would head the ball past goalkeeper Ricardo. On 60 minutes, Sporting were awarded a penalty after Marítimo's Igor Rossi fouled Van Wolfswinkel in the box. Rossi would be red carded, and Van Wolfswinkel would convert from the penalty spot to double Sporting's lead. Emiliano Insúa would score in the 82nd minute to score Sporting's third goal.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Sporting CP
Fellow Primeira Liga side Nacional were the opponents in the semi-finals, which were played over two legs. The first leg took place at the Estádio José Alvalade. Nacional would score first, as Venezuelan striker Mario Rondón would score a header from a free kick to beat Rui Patrício. This would be the first time that Sporting would concede in the 2011–12 Taça de Portugal. Nacional would score again before the break, capitalizing from the momentum that the team got from their first goal. Daniel Candeias would capitalize after a Ânderson Polga mistake to double Nacional's lead.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Route to the final, Sporting CP
Following the break, André Carrillo and Diego Capel would come on for Sporting to provide more attacking threat for the Lisbon side. Sporting would score on 75 minutes through Elias. Sporting would tie the game in injury time after Stijn Schaars' free kick would be drilled across the box, where a slight deflection would take the ball into the net. The second leg would see Sporting defeat the alvinegros 3–1 at the Estádio da Madeira. Fabián Rinaudo would score first in the 12th minute. Sporting's lead would be cancelled out by Diego Barcelos in the second half. Ten minutes later, Ricky van Wolfswinkel would score Sporting's second. João Pereira would score Sporting's third in injury time to seal the win and take the Verde-e-Brancos to the final for the first time in four years.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Match, Officials
The match officials for the game were confirmed on the 16 May by the Portuguese Football Federation (PFF). Paulo Baptista of Portalegre was named as referee. This was the first time that Baptista had officiated a major final. For the final, Baptista was assisted by José Ramalho of Porto and Hernâni Fernandes of Setúbal, while the fourth official was Tomás Santos of Braga.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Match, Team selection
Académica went into the cup final with several players missing due to injury. For the final, Académica were missing defender Orlando and midfielders Diogo Gomes and Pape Sow. Orlando had sustained an injury at the beginning of the league season that would keep him out for the entire season. Both Diogo Gomes and Pape Sow missed the game due to sustaining injuries in the build-up to the match. Full back Reiner was an injury doubt going into the game.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Match, Team selection
Initially, Académica's David Simão was ineligible to play in the final due to picking a consecutive amount of yellow cards in domestic league action. His suspension, however, was later overturned, allowing him to play in the final. Pedro Emanuel's squad selection for the final saw him omit Reiner, as he did not recuperate from his injury in order to play in the final; Emanuel's lineup saw him include João Real in the starting eleven to replace Reiner. Académica's loan signings Abdoulaye Ba, Adrien Silva and Edinho.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Match, Team selection
Unlike their opponents, Sporting CP went into the cup final without any injury worries or doubts. Sporting's influential talisman Marat Izmailov recovered in time for the match after missing the last five domestic league games. Just like Académica's David Simão, Sporting's Daniel Carriço had his suspension overturned in order to play in the cup final. Sporting's starting lineup saw the surprise exclusion of Marat Izmailov, although he was used in the game as a substitute in the second half.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Match, Summary
The cup final started with an early goal on four minutes. Académica's Marinho scored the early goal to give the briosa the advantage. The goal came about as an unmarked Diogo Valente received the ball on the left hand side and crossed the ball into the box, where the ball fell to Marinho in the six-yard box, who headed the ball past Sporting goalkeeper Rui Patrício. Marinho's header saw him capitalize from Sporting's defensive mistake, as he was picked out unmarked in the box when the cross was delivered.


2012 Taça de Portugal Final, Match, Summary
Following Académica's goal, Sporting began to dictate possession but found it difficult to create goal-scoring opportunities due to Académica's defensive approach. The first half ended with the advantage to estudantes. Following the break, the second half began with Sporting on the back foot following two clear-cut chances by Portuguese striker Edinho, who failed to beat Patrício one-on-one. Following these two chances, Sporting took control of the game which led to the creation of chances on goal. Their best chance of the game fell to Spanish winger Diego Capel, who could not beat Ricardo when the game was approaching its conclusion. Académica were able to close out the game and win their second-ever Taça de Portugal.


2012 Team Ice Racing World Championship
The 2012 FIM Team Ice Speedway Gladiators World Championship was the 34th edition and the 2011 version of FIM Team Ice Racing World Championship season. The Final will take place in Tolyatti, Russia on 25-26 February 2011. The championship was won by the defending champion Russia (59 points), who they beat Austria (44 pts) and Czech Republic (37 pts).


2012 Team Ice Racing World Championship, World Final, Heat details - Day One
m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fellns - non-starter • nc - non-classify


2012 Team Ice Racing World Championship, World Final, Heat details - Day Two
m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance •t - exclusion for touching the tapes •x - other exclusion •e - retired or mechanical failure •f - fellns - non-starter •nc - non-classify


2012 Team Katusha season
The 2012 season for Team Katusha began in January at the Tour Down Under. As a UCI ProTeam, they were automatically invited and obligated to send a squad to every event in the UCI World Tour.


2012 Team Katusha season
The team experienced a managerial change, as Andrei Tchmil left the post at the end of the 2011 season, with the intent to take a higher role within European cycling. He was replaced by former Gerolsteiner boss Hans-Michael Holczer.


2012 Team Long Track World Championship
The 2012 Team Long Track World Championship was the sixth annual FIM Team Long Track World Championship. The final took place on 23 June 2012 in Saint-Macaire, France.


2012 Team Skil–Argos season
The 2012 women's road cycling season was the second for Team Skil–Argos (started the season under the name Skil 1t4i, UCI code: SKI), which began as Team Skil-Argos in 2010.


2012 Team Skil–Argos season, UCI World Ranking
The team finished 14th in the UCI ranking for teams.


2012 Team Sky season
The 2012 season for Team Sky began in January at the Tour Down Under and ended in October at the Tour of Beijing. As a UCI ProTeam, they were automatically invited and obliged to send a squad to every event in the UCI World Tour. The team took a total of 47 victories in the season with the most notable being Bradley Wiggins' overall victory in the Tour de France. Wiggins (2), Mark Cavendish (3) and Chris Froome also took stage victories in the event, with Froome finishing second to Wiggins in the overall standings.


2012 Team Sky season, 2012 roster
At the end of the 2011 season Kurt Asle Arvesen, Kjell Carlström and Dario Cioni retired. Following the dispanding of the cycling team HTC-Highroad Sky signed four riders from the team including World Road Race Champion Mark Cavendish, Danny Pate, Kanstantsin Sivtsov and Bernhard Eisel.


2012 Team Sky season, One-day races, Spring classics
Despite being sick en route during the Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne Mark Cavendish won his first race for Sky.


2012 Team Sky season, Stage races
Mark Cavendish made his debut for the team at the Tour of Qatar; during the race he won his first stages for Sky as he took the third and fifth stage. Cavendish won a stage in the Tirreno–Adriatico. Cavendish won the overall title at the Ster ZLM Toer, his first general classification win. At the Tour of Britain Cavendish won stages three, four and eight and held the lead of the race. Luke Rowe additionally won the first stage for the team as Cavendish crashed.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
Mark Cavendish and Rigoberto Urán were seen as Sky's sprint and GC leaders at the Giro. They were joined by Uran's fellow Colombian Sergio Henao, who made his Grand Tour debut in the event, Bernhard Eisel, Juan Antonio Flecha, Ian Stannard, Jeremy Hunt, Geraint Thomas and Peter Kennaugh, the latter two using the event as preparation for the Olympic Team Pursuit. The race began in Herning, Denmark with an 8.7 km individual time trial, in which Thomas finished second behind Taylor Phinney.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
The following stage saw a sprint finish in the same city, with Cavendish taking has first grand tour stage victory for Sky, and his 8th in the Giro. Cavendish was in contention for victory on the following stage but in the sprint Roberto Ferrari aggressively switched lanes, clipping Cavendish and sending him to the ground and causing the whole field to stack up behind. Among other riders to fall was overall leader Phinney. Cavendish later tweeted that Ferrari should be "ashamed to take out Pink, Red & World Champ jerseys".


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
Cavendish was lucky to suffer only minor injuries, and recovered sufficiently on the following rest day to start Stage 4, a team time trial, where Sky recorded the ninth fastest time, 30 seconds down on the winners, Garmin. Despite his injuries, Cavendish took his second victory on Stage 5. The next stages were more hilly, and Uran rose to tenth place overall on Stage 10. Cavendish took his third stage win of the event on Stage 13 to extend his lead in the Points Classification.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
Stage 14 was the first categorised mountain stage of the race, and Uran took sixth place to rise to seventh place on the GC, and take the lead in the Young Rider's Classification. On the following stage however, Henao proved the stronger of the two Colombians, finishing fourth and taking the White Jersey from his teammate. On Stage 17, Uran finished fourth with the same time as winner Joaquim Rodríguez, and rose to fifth overall, re-claiming the white jersey from Henao, who now sat in 10th overall.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
Cavendish was beaten by Andrea Guardini in the sprint finish on Stage 18, but extended his Points Classification lead over Rodriguez to 29 points. On Stage 20, the queen stage of the race, finishing on the Stelvio Pass, Uran struggled on the final climb and was paced by Henao, with the pair dropping over a minute to Rodriguez and Ryder Hesjedal. The final Stage was a 28.2 km individual time trial in Milan.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Giro d'Italia
Geraint Thomas took second place behind Marco Pinotti on the stage, with Uran and Henao finishing seventh and ninth overall, 5 minutes 57 seconds and 7 minutes 50 seconds behind the winner, Ryder Hesjedal, respectively. Uran won the White Jersey, the first victory for Sky in a Grand Tour classification. Meanwhile, Rodriguez edged out Cavendish to win the Points Classification by a single point.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Bradley Wiggins led Sky at the Tour de France, and was considered the favourite for overall by victory by many, following his victories in Paris-Nice, the Tour de Romandie and the Criterium du Dauphine. He would be supported in the mountains by Chris Froome, Michael Rogers, Richie Porte, Konstantin Sivtsov, Christian Knees and Edvald Boasson Hagen, whilst World Champion Mark Cavendish and Bernhard Eisel were also selected to challenge in the sprints.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The race got off to an ideal start for Sky and Wiggins, as he finished second to Fabian Cancellara in the Prologue, meaning he took time out of all his GC rivals, without the team having to defend the Yellow Jersey from the start. Boasson Hagen also placed fifth in the Prologue. On Stage 1, Boasson Hagen finished third after bridging across to a late attack by Cancellara and Peter Sagan, only for Sagan to outsprint the pair. Chris Froome meanwhile suffered a flat tyre in the closing stages and lost over a minute to Sagan.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Stage 2 saw the first bunch sprint of the race, and Cavendish took a thrilling victory, edging out André Greipel, despite the lack of a lead out train. Stage 3 saw a hill top finish in Boulogne-sur-Mer, and Boasson Hagen finished second to Sagan. The team lost Sivtsov on the stage however, as he crashed out with a broken leg. Cavendish looked to be in contention for another sprint victory on Stage 4, but he and Eisel were taken out in a crash inside the last 3 km.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The pair were lucky to sustain only minor injuries, and started the following Stage, where Cavendish placed fifth. Sky were avoided disaster on Stage 6, with most of the team not being caught up in a crash which delayed most of the field, although Cavendish and Boasson Hagen lost time. The crash effectively removed Fränk Schleck, Alejandro Valverde, Pierre Rolland, and the entire Rabobank and Garmin teams from contention for overall victory.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Stage 7 saw the first summit finish of the Tour, on La Planche des Belles Filles. After Boasson Hagen, Rogers and Porte successively drove a hard tempo on the climb, only Cadel Evans, Vincenzo Nibali and Rein Taaramäe remained with Wiggins and Froome on the climb. Froome outsprinted Evans to take victory on the Stage, whilst Wiggins came in third to take the race lead. Stage 9 was a 41.5 km individual time trial, which Wiggins won by 35 seconds over Froome, who came second.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Wiggins now led the race by 1 minute, 53 seconds over Evans, with Froome now sitting third overall a further 14 seconds back, ahead of Nibali in fourth. On Stage 10, Nibali attacked on a descent with help from teammate Sagan, but was brought back by the efforts of Sky, and in particular Porte.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The second summit finish of the race came on Stage 11, to La Toussuire. On the stage, Evans and teammate Tejay van Garderen attempted a long range attack on the Col de la Croix de Fer, but could not gain a lead of more than 30 seconds over the Sky led peloton, before being brought back by Rogers.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
As the peloton reached the final climb, Nibali and Jurgen Van Den Broeck launched several attacks, the second of which Froome was forced to work hard to bring back, and appeared to be in difficulty at one stage, leaving Wiggins to set the pace, although Froome recovered. The pair rejoined Nibali and Jurgen Van Den Broeck, only for Froome to immediately attack, putting Wiggins in difficulty.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
He subsequently received the order from his team manager to hold back and wait for yellow jersey Wiggins, and the group remained together for the rest of the climb, with the exception of Evans who cracked and lost time, meaning Froome moved up to second overall, two minutes and five seconds behind Wiggins.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Boasson Hagen took third on Stage 13 after a surprising lead out by Wiggins. During stage 14, a mountain stage, a spectator threw carpet tacks onto the narrow road at the top of the Mur de Péguère climb. [ 156] Several riders suffered punctures, including Evans, who lost approximately two minutes while his team repaired his bicycle. Wiggins and his fellow members of Team Sky emerged without a puncture.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Believing that a puncture resulting from an unfortunate incident should not determine the fate of a competitor, Wiggins then had his teammates and the rest of the peloton slow down to allow Evans and other affected cyclists to catch up. Once they had done so, the peloton remained together for the rest of the race, resulting in little change to the general classification. It was perceived as a generous act of sportsmanship and Wiggins was called "Le Gentleman" as a result.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
On Stage 16, Wiggins and Froome were the only riders able to respond to an attack by Nibali on the final climb, and the three stayed together on the descent to finish with the same time. On the final summit finish on Stage 19, Wiggins and Froome dropped all of their rivals and attempted to catch Valverde, who was out in front.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
Ultimately, they came up short due to Froome having to wait three times for Wiggins as the race leader was several metres behind his domestique on certain parts of the climb, although they took second and third to extend their advantage over Nibali. Sky made a late call to chase down the day's breakaway on Stage 18, in the hope of giving Cavendish a stage victory to repay his work as a domestique. However, a late attack by Luis Leon Sanchez and Nicholas Roche looked set to be the winning move, only for Cavendish to sprint past the pair in the final 200 metres to take his second stage win of the race.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
The penultimate stage of the Tour was the final individual time trial into city of Chartres. Wiggins and Froome repeated the 1-2 of the Stage 9 time trial, all but sealing their 1st and 2nd places overall. The Tour concluded with the now-customary stage finish on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, where Sky chased down a late breakaway before Wiggins and Boasson Hagen led out Cavendish, winning the final stage for the fourth successive year, becoming the first incumbent world champion to win on the Champs-Élysées.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Tour de France
His 23rd stage victory[109] allowed him to move into fourth place on the all-time Tour stage wins list. Wiggins finished safely alongside Rogers to secure his overall victory, becoming the first British rider to win the event, and the first person in history to win the Paris-Nice, the Tour de Romandie, the Critérium du Dauphiné and the Tour de France in a single season. He was joined on the podium by Froome, who finished second overall, and Nibali in third.


2012 Team Sky season, Grand Tours, Vuelta a España
Juan Antonio Flecha, Chris Froome, Sergio Henao, Danny Pate, Richie Porte, Ian Stannard, Ben Swift, Rigoberto Uran and Xabier Zandio lined up to start the Vuelta a Espana. Froome was designated the team leader, while Swift was the squads sprinter. Sky finished fifth in the time trial on the first stage. Ben Swift finished in second place on stage 18 and third on the second stage. Chris Froome finished second on stage six. Richie Porte finished second on stage 20.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season
The 2012 season was the tenth for the  Specialized–lululemon cycling team, which began as the T-Mobile team in 2003. After the men's team HTC-Highroad stopped, Kristy Scrymgeour convinced manufacturer Specialized and sports apparel company Lululemon Athletica to perpetuate the women's team in this Olympic year. The team changed slightly: Clara Hughes and Trixi Worrack were the main new recruits, while Judith Arndt, team leader since 2006, joined GreenEdge-AIS. The team had a great year. Ina-Yoko Teutenberg won numerous sprints and finished fourth in the road race of the Olympic Games.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season
Evelyn Stevens had an excellent season by winning at the world cup race La Flèche Wallonne Féminine, she won a prestigious stage of the Giro d'Italia Femminile and finished on the podium in the end and she won the general classification of the La Route de France. At the end of the season she was in fourth place in the UCI World Ranking. Ellen van Dijk won the general classification of the Lotto-Decca Tour, the Omloop van Borsele and several stage races. The team dominated especially in the team time trials.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season
Ellen van Dijk together with Stevens, Hughes, Amber Neben and Trixi Worrack or Teutenberg were consistent and undefeated the whole year. At the end of the season the team won the first team time trial at the world championship which was a main goal for the team this year. The team finished second in the UCI World Ranking.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, January - February
As part of the national selection Chloe Hosking and Loren Rowney started the year with success in the Jayco Bay Series in Australia in January.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, January - February
The team started the season in early February in the Ladies Tour of Qatar, where Trixi Worrack finished second in the general classification after winning the second stage. Loren Rowney, riding for the American national team, won the second stage of the Women's Tour of New Zealand. Evelyn Stevens, also riding for the American national team, won the general classificationl.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, March - April
In March, in the Omloop het Nieuwsblad, Ellen van Dijk rode solo to the leader in the race Loes Gunnewijk. Van Dijk lost the sprint from her and finished second. Worrack won the bunch sprint behind them. At the same time Ina-Yoko Teutenberg won the Merco Cycling Classic in the United States. A few days later, Chloe Hosking wins sprint of the Drentse 8 beating Marianne Vos and Giorgia Bronzini. In Argentina the day afterwards, Amber Neben won the time trial at the Pan American Championship which was an important step towards the Olympics.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, March - April
In the Ronde van Drenthe the team did not play an important role, except for Trixi Worrack who finished fifth. Rowney won a stage in the Redlands Bicycle Classic. In the second world cup race Trofeo Alfredo Binda Evelyn Stevens chased successfully Marianne Vos, but did not see a bend and fell off her bike. Worrack finished third.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, March - April
In the Tour of Flanders Stevens escaped with Andrea Dvorak on the Kruisberg, but at the foot of the old Kwaremont, two former members of the team, Judith Arndt and Kristin Armstrong were able to pull them back and rode away in the ascent. Ultimately Ellen van Dijk took the sixth place in the sprint of the chasing group.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, March - April
The team rode very well in the Energiewacht Tour. Clara Hughes finished second in the first stage, an individual time trial. Ina Teutenberg won the second and third stage and the team won stage 4a, a team time trial. Overall Teutenberg won the general classification with Ellen van Dijk in second place. In mid April Hosking won in a sprint Halle-Buizingen.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, March - April
Evelyn Stevens booked the first major victory of the season in the Fleche Wallone World Cup race. She beat Marianne Vos on the line who won the four previous World Cup races. She took profit of the strategy of her team. Clara Huges was in an early breakaway and the Rabobank Women Cycling Team  had to chase her. On the last climb, on top of the Mur de Hoy, Stevens was able to beat Vos.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, End of April - May
Ellen van Dijk won the time trial of the Omloop van Borsele, Hughes finished third and Teutenberg fourth. The day afterwards Van Dijk won also the road race of the Omloop van Borsele. At the Gracia-Orlova the team showed again its superiority in the time trial. Ellen van Dijk won the prologue, with Trixi Worrack, Evelyn Stevens and Katie Colclough finishing second, fourth and sixth. Two days later Van Dijk also won the time trial, two seconds ahead of Stevens. The team dominated the stage race and won all the stages, and Ellen van Dijk won the general classification. At the time trial of the Chrono Gatineau the team had a podium sweep. Hughes won ahead of Stevens and Neben and Teutenberg took the fifth place. Teutenberg later on won the road race in Gatineau.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, End of April - May
The fifth World Cup Race, the Tour of Chongming Island, ended like the other years in a bunch sprint where Hosking finished fourth. The team performed really well in The Exergy Tour. Amber Neben won the second stage, an individual time trial and Teutenberg the queen stage. Neben, Stevens and Hughes finished first, second and third in the general classification and besides of that the team won the points, mountain and team classification.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, End of April - May
The team was really confident with the results in the first half of the season.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, June
Ina Teutenberg won the sprint of the first stage of the Emakumeen Euskal Bira.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, June
At the national championships, Ellen van Dijk won the 2012 Dutch Time Trial Championships and Clara Hughes won the title in Canada. In Germany Worrack, Teutenberg and Becker finished respectively second, third and fourth at the German time trial championships behind winner Judith Arndt. In the road race Becker finished second and Worrack third over twelve minutes behind Arndt. Finally in the United States, Amber Neben won the time trial one second ahead of team mate Evelyn Stevens. So they switched positions compared to the 2011 edition.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, July
Evelyn Stevens won the third stage of the Giro d'Italia Femminile, and took the pink leaders jersey. However, Marianne Vos dominated the stage race by winning five stages and the general classification. Stevens was second in the general classification until the last stage. Due to a mistake she lost some time and finished in the end third behind Emma Pooley.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, July
Teutenberg won the first two stages of the Thüringen Rundfahrt der Frauen. Trixi Worrack won the third and fourth stage. The one second margin in the time trial of stage 4 between Worrack and Arndt was not enough to win the overall classification and so Worrack finished second overall.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, Olympic Games (end July, begin August)
Eight members of the team participated at the 2012 Summer Olympics : Chloe Hosking, Clara Hughes, Ina Teutenberg, Trixi Worrack, Ellen van Dijk, Emilia Fahlin, Amber Neben and Evelyn Stevens. They participated in the individual time trial and the road race with their national selection. Ellen van Dijk also participated on the track. In the time trial, Clara Hughes finished 5th, Amber Neben 7th, Ellen van Dijk 8th and Trixi Worrack 9th. In the road race Ina Teutenberg won the bunchsprint and finished in 4th place.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, Olympic Games (end July, begin August)
Ellen van Dijk helped Marianne Vos winning the gold medal and attacked multiple times during the race. Evelyn Stevens also attacked once during the race. Ellen van Dijk participated on the track in the team pursuit. She rode with the Dutch team a national record in the first round and finished in 6th place.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, August
Hosking won the fifth stage of La Route de France and Rowney the sixth. The day afterwards Evelyn Stevens won with a large margin on the Planche des Belles Filles and took the leaders jersey. She also won the ninth stage and the overall general classification.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, August
At the Open de Suede Vargarda TTT world cup race, Team Specialized–lululemon won the team time trial with the squad: Stevens, Teutenberg, Worrack, Neben, van Dijk and Becker. In the road race of the Open de Suède Vargarda, Trixi Worrack finished fifth.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, August
At the end of August Ellen van Dijk won the last stage in Geraardsbergen  and the general classification of the Lotto-Decca Tour, also known as the Tour of Belgium. Stevens finishes fifth in the world cup race GP de Plouay.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, September: Holland Ladies Tour and World Championships
Two weeks before the 2012 UCI Road World Championships the team won the team time trial stage of the Holland Ladies Tour with the squad: Van Dijk, Becker, Stevens, Worrack and Teutenberg. Worrack also won a stage in the same tour a few days afterwards.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, September: Holland Ladies Tour and World Championships
The team won the team time trial at the World Championships with a 24 seconds gap over Green-Edge with Judith Arndt and Linda Villumsen who were part of the team for two years. The sqad of the team was: Neben, Stevens, Van Dijk, Becker, Worrack and Teutenberg. And so the team was undefeated in the Team Time Trial in 2012. At the individual time trial at the World Championships, Evelyn Stevens won the silver medal, Ellen van Dijk finished in fifth place, Teutenberg finished sixth, Neben seventh and Worrack eighth.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Season, September: Holland Ladies Tour and World Championships
The team was less successful in the road race at the World Championships. Ellen van Dijk was involved in a large crash. After cycling a few laps on her own, she could not reach the bunch again and had to abandon the race. Amber Neben was the most successful rider finishing in fourth place. All the other riders finished somewhere in the back.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Results in major races, Single day races
At the 2012 UCI Women's Road World Cup, Evelyn Stevens finished 3rd in the final classification and Trixi Worrack 4th. The team finished 3rd in the teams standing.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, Other achievements, Dutch national record, team pursuit
Ellen van Dijk, as part of the national team, broke together with Kirsten Wild and Vera Koedooder the Dutch team pursuit record at the 2012 Summer Olympics.


2012 Team Specialized–lululemon season, UCI World Ranking
The team finished second in the UCI ranking for teams.


2012 Team Speedway Junior European Championship
The 2012 Team Speedway Junior European Championship was the fifth UEM Team Speedway Junior European Championship season. The Final will be place on September 8 2012 in Landshut, Germany. Defending Champion are Russia team. The champion title was won by Poland team (48 points) who beat Denmark (41 pts), Ukraine (19 pts) and a Germany (11 pts).


2012 Team Speedway Junior European Championship, Heat details, Semifinal 1
M - exclusion for exceeding two-minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Team Speedway Junior European Championship, Heat details, Semifinal 2
M - exclusion for exceeding two-minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Team Speedway Junior European Championship, Heat details, Final
M - exclusion for exceeding two-minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship
The 2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship was the eighth FIM Team Under-21 World Championship season. The final took place on 1 September, 2012 in Poland.


2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship, Results
In the 2012 Final will be the host team Poland. Another finalist will be determined in two Semi-Finals in May.


2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship, Heat details, Qualifying Round
M - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship, Heat details, Semifinal 1
M - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship, Heat details, Semifinal 2
M - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Team Speedway Junior World Championship, Heat details, World Final
M - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • T - exclusion for touching the tapes • X - other exclusion • E - retired or mechanical failure • F - fell


2012 Teen Choice Awards
The 2012 Teen Choice Awards ceremony, hosted by Demi Lovato and Kevin McHale, was held on July 22, 2012, at the Gibson Amphitheatre, Universal City, California. The awards celebrated the year's achievements in music, film, television, sports, fashion, comedy, and the Internet, and were voted on by teenage viewers aged 13 through 19. Over 134 million votes were cast.


2012 Teen Choice Awards
Taylor Swift had the most individual wins with five, including Choice Female Artist and Female Country Artist. Kristen Stewart obtained three awards, including the "Ultimate Choice" award which she shared with Twilight co-stars Taylor Lautner and Robert Pattinson. Although the actors received most awards, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 won four out of 11 nominations as a whole, including the "Ultimate Choice", bringing the entire series' Teen Choice Award totals to 41. The Hunger Games won seven of its eight nominations, including Choice Book, Sci-Fi/Fantasy Movie, and Sci-Fi/Fantasy Movie Actor, for Josh Hutcherson's work. The Vampire Diaries won six of its eight nominations, including Choice Fantasy/Sci-Fi TV Show, Actor: Fantasy/Sci-Fi TV Show and Male Hottie for its star, Ian Somerhalder. Pretty Little Liars won all five of their nominations, including Choice TV Drama.


2012 Teen Choice Awards, Television ratings
The 2012 Teen Choice Awards received a 1.0 rating, a 3 share among viewers aged 18–49 and was watched by 3.02 million viewers.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing
The 2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing was a mass-injury terror attack carried out on November 21, 2012, on a crowded passenger bus driving in the center of Tel Aviv's business district. The attack was carried out by an Israeli citizen of Arab descent, who remotely detonated an explosive device, which he had hid on the bus in advance. Twenty-eight civilians were injured in the attack, among them three who were injured seriously. The attack was carried out on the 8th and last day of Operation Pillar of Defense, only a few hours before the ceasefire was reached.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing
The attack was the first mass-injury terror attack in Tel Aviv since the 2006 Tel Aviv shawarma restaurant bombing, in which 11 people were killed and 70 were injured.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Attack
At around noon, on November 21, an explosive device was detonated on a crowded passenger bus at the heart of Tel Aviv's business district. The attack was carried out on Dan commuter bus No. 142, as the bus was passing through Shaul Hamelech Street.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Attack
The explosive device contained a large quantity of metal shrapnel designed to cause maximum casualties. At least 28 people were injured in the attack, including three people who were injured severely.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Attack
At Gaza's main hospital, which had seen many wounded people from Operation Pillar of Cloud, sweet cakes were distributed in celebration. The bus bombing was lauded from a Gaza mosque's loudspeakers and celebratory gunfire was heard when news of the bombing was reported.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
Two days after the attack, in a joint operation carried out by the Shin Bet, the Israel Police, and the IDF, Muhammad Mafarji, 18, of Tayibe, a West Bank-born Palestinian originally from Beit Liqya who had received Israeli citizenship for family reunification purposes, was arrested. Mafarji confessed to carrying out the attack and to having prepared the explosive device, chosen the target of the attack, and purchased a mobile phone which he used to remotely activate the explosive device.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
According to Israeli security officials, Mafarji was a member of a Palestinian militant cell based in the West Bank town of Beit Liqya, which has links to Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Khaled Mashal, leader of Hamas, categorically rejected that Hamas had any connection with the bombing.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
According to papers filed in court, the suspects include Ahmad Salah Ahmad Musa, a 25-year-old resident of Beit Liqya; Fuad Rabah Shukri Atzi, 27, of Beit Liqya; and Muhammed Mahfud Said Damra, a 25-year-old resident of Kfar Mazra near Ramallah. Musa was reported as being the head of the militant cell.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
According to investigators, Mafaraji had returned to the West Bank to study at Birzeit University, and in the two months prior to the attack, he had been living at his uncle's house in Beit Liqya studying at Birzeit and regularly commuting to Israel to work at the McDonald's at a mall in the Israeli city of Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut, close to the Israel-West Bank border. According to Israeli officials, during the sixth day of Operation Pillar of Defense, Mafaraji was shopping at a West Bank grocery store owned by Musa, and expressed his desire to fight alongside Hamas.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
Musa then asked him to return later to discuss the matter further. When he returned, Musa asked him to place a bag on a bus as a test run, which he successfully completed. The two then began planning an attack. Moussa prepared a bomb that could be detonated by cell phone and hid it in a bag of clothes, then took Mafaraji to the Harbata checkpoint, where he crossed into Israel to meet with the manager of the McDonald's where he worked.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
As the manager was driving him to his job, Mafaraji faked a phone call and claimed to have learned that his mother was ill, and that he needed to go back to her. After leaving the vehicle, he took a bus to Tel Aviv, where he boarded the No. 142 bus, armed the bomb, and planted it under a seat. When the bus reached the planned destination point, Mafaraji got off and called Musa to tell him the bomb was in place, at which point Musa detonated the bomb with his cell phone. Mafaraji then walked to the Tel Aviv Savidor Central Railway Station, took a train to Modi'in, and went to the McDonald's where he worked to begin his afternoon shift. He was arrested four and a half hours after the attack.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Perpetrators
On December 19, 2012, Muhammad Mafaraji was charged in the Tel Aviv District Court with attempted murder, aiding the enemy during wartime, and conspiracy to commit a crime. The most serious charge of aiding the enemy carried the possibility of a life sentence. In December 2013, he reached a plea bargain with prosecutors, under which he pleaded guilty to attempted murder and aiding the enemy in exchange for the prosecution not seeking a sentence greater than 25 years. On March 10, 2014, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Official reactions
Palestine: Hamas praised the attack, without claiming direct responsibility for it, calling it the "natural response to the occupation crimes and ongoing massacres against civilians in the Gaza Strip", and said that the organisation "blesses" the attack. Khaled Mashal, leader of Hamas, categorically rejected any connection of the bombing to his group.


2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing, Aftermath
On October 22, 2013, Shin Bet announced that Mohammed Assi, an Islamic Jihad member, died in a firefight in Bilin with forces that had come to arrest him on suspicion of his involvement in the bombing.


2012 Telangana protests
The 2012 Telangana protests were a chain of protests which were part of the Telangana movement. The Bharatiya Janata Party, led by state-party president Kishan Reddy, began the 22-day Telangana "Poru Yatra" – a 3,500-kilometre (2,200 mi) journey through 986 villages and 88 assembly constituencies stressing the need for a stance on Telangana stance – on 19 January. Although the tour was successful in reiterating the party's pro-Telangana stance, it did not gain the hoped-for support because of the indifferent attitude of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and Telangana Joint Action Committee.


2012 Telangana protests
The TRS' failure to support Reddy's yatra has resulted in increasing differences between the parties. Two assembly by-elections were held that year, the first in March, and the second in June; the BJP won the first, and the YSR Congress Party the second. Protests resumed in August, when K. Chandrashekar Rao gave the centre a two-week deadline to declare statehood.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
By-elections were held on 18 March in six Telangana assembly districts. Five seats were vacant due to MLA retirements in the YSR Congress and Telugu Desam parties, citing the unwillingness of their parties' leadership to take a stand on Telangana; the Mahbubnagar seat was vacant after the death of an independent MLA. Telangana Rashtra Samithi won four of five seats it contested, with majorities ranging from 15,024 to 44,465 votes.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
In two of the four seats won by TRS (Kamareddy and Adilabad), the TRS candidates received fewer votes than they did in the 2009 assembly elections (when they stood as candidates from TDP, which was allied with TRS). Former TDP MLA Nagam Janardhan Reddy won the Nagarkurnool seat as an independent with TJAC support. Congress lost its deposit in one constituency, and TDP lost its deposits in three.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
In Mahbubnagar (part of the parliamentary constituency represented by Rao, known as KCR), TRS lost to TJAC partner BJP by 1,897 votes. Congress was in third place, with 12,000 fewer votes than the BJP; TDP, in fourth place, lost its deposit. In the run-up to the election, TRS did not yield to a BJP request and fielded a Muslim candidate. While campaigning, KCR expressed confidence that his party's candidate would win and the election would be a formality. The BJP candidate received a show-cause notice for inflaming up community passions in his campaign speech.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
In response to the BJP's victory, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) legislative assembly leader Akbaruddin Owaisi said that the result vindicated his party's stand on Telangana. Owaisi reiterated that MIM would aggressively raise its voice for a united Andhra Pradesh to protect minorities. After clashes in Sangareddy and Hyderabad, Muslim Forum for Telangana head Lateef Mohammad Khan said that Muslims would prefer the state's remaining united to a separate Telangana controlled by factions.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
After the new MLAs were sworn in, there were reports of attempted or completed suicides protesting the delay in forming a separate state. Police later found possible links between the suicides and personal problems. The suicides prompted violent protests by T activists. A bandh was called across the region by TRS to mourn the suicides. The bandh had minimal effect on Hyderabad city including areas near Osmania University. TRS and BJP members carried party flags in one procession, which was criticised by other parties as encouraging suicide.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
None of the major parties supporting a Telangana state produced accurate data to substantiate their claims of the number of suicides. Claims varied from 315 (the official figure) to 850 people. A senior minister from the Telangana region said that even if facts were known, they probably would not be publicised due to the delicacy of the issue.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
On 4 April, the Supreme Court reprimanded the state government for not responding to its notice about the state's failure to rein in Telangana agitators who indulged in "sheer goondaism and vandalism" in the Andhra Pradesh High Court in September 2010: This was in response to a plea filed by an advocate who alleged that during the agitation, irate lawyers entered the courtroom, threatened the judge and committed vandalism:


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, March
By not filing affidavits, are you supporting the vandalism in the High Court? This is sheer goondaism in the court rooms, throwing chairs, breaking glass and switching off lights. It could have harmed the judges. They even could have killed the judge and the State was watching.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, June 2012
By-elections were held for 18 assembly seats and one parliamentary seat on 12 June. Seventeen MLAs (including the MLA from Parkal) and one MP were disqualified after they supported the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP). Another seat became vacant when Chiranjeevi joined the Rajya Sabha.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, June 2012
During the run-up to the Parkal election, TRS said that the YSR Congress and TDP were anti-Telangana and would be routed at the polls. The BJP campaigned aggressively in the district, deploying several of its national leaders and CMs of other states to boost support for a Telangana state. YSRCP said that their candidate had resigned for the Telangana cause, they respected Telanganan sentiment and did not oppose the state. TDP leaders said that their party would present a letter to the central government supporting Telangana after the elections. Some Congress leaders campaigned in the Seema-Andhra region that if the YSR Congress party won the elections, Telangana state will be formed.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, June 2012
The YSRCP won 15 assembly seats and the parliamentary seat in the Seema-Andhra region. TRS's candidate won the Parkal seat by 1,562 votes over YSRCP candidate Konda Surekha. TDP finished third, receiving 30,000 votes and retaining its deposit, and the BJP and Congress lost their deposits. TRS leaders unhappy with the slim majority blamed it on the split of pro-Telangana votes and the electoral symbol – auto and hat – of some independents, which they said resembled theirs (a car). They alleged that their rivals spent large amounts of money and distributed liquor and cotton seeds. The BJP also attributed their defeat to YSRCP and TRS' wooing of voters with gold coins, liquor and cotton seeds. According to Congress observer Vayalar Ravi, TRS' poor result raised questions about Telangana sentiment.


2012 Telangana protests, Assembly by-elections, June 2012
Reacting to the results, Telangana Congress MPs said that their party would not campaign in Telangana due to its anti-Telangana stance. TRS leader Vinod Kumar said that all the votes cast in Parkal favoured Telangana, and reiterated that the Congress must realise that it was losing its base in the state. TDP Telangana Forum convenor Errabelli Dayakar Rao said that the Parkal result was a "slap" to TRS, and the people of Telangana had realised that the party was cheating them.


2012 Telangana protests, Protests
On 14 August, KCR gave the central government a two-week deadline to declare statehood promised to launch another round of agitation if the government did not meet the deadline. He later said that he had received feelers that a positive announcement would be made by Eid al-Fitr. In an interview after Eid, KCR said that Sonia Gandhi had always favoured Telangana and the central government would call his party for discussions in "few weeks or so". On 6 September, KCR left for Delhi and announced that the issue would be resolved by the end of the month. After 23 days in the capital, KCR returned to Hyderabad hoping that a final round of talks with the Congress leadership would be held soon on the issue. He said that his discussions with several leaders were productive.


2012 Telangana protests, Protests
According to his son (and Sircilla legislator) K. T. Rama Rao, Telangana would become a reality before the 2014 Indian general election. Reacting to this, TRS leader (and KCR's nephew) T. Harish Rao announced that his party was ready to merge with Congress at the grant of a separate state – a merger which would only benefit the latter – and threatened Congress leaders with an "action plan" if the parties did not merge.


2012 Telangana protests, Protests
The Hindu reported on 1 September that the BJP and the Telangana people wanted the issue resolved as soon as possible, since delays and long-lasting protests had cost the region dearly. Later that day, the BJP announced that they would begin campaigning for Telangana on 3 September. BJP state-unit president Kishan Reddy announced that he would lead a three-day hunger strike at Delhi's Jantar Mantar in support of statehood.


2012 Telangana protests, Protests
That month, incoming home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said that the Telangana demand must be handled carefully since similarly carved smaller states had increased Naxalite problems. Addressing a public meeting in Nizamabad district, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi reaffirmed his party's stance that a separate Telangana state was impossible and Muslims would not accept a separate state.


2012 Telangana protests, Protests
Telangana activists desecrated the statue of former chief minister Kasu Brahmananda Reddy outside the Kasu Brahmananda Reddy National Park. A home guard and constable were injured by the protesters, and Telangana United Front (TUF) pamphlets were found at the site. TUF leader Vimalakka was arrested under sections 147, 148, 149, 332, 335 and 425 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property (PDPP) Act after she admitted her involvement in the protest, and she was later released on bail.


2012 Telangana protests, Telangana March, Preparations
After setting 30 September as the deadline for the central government to announce the formation of Telangana, the TJAC threatened to organise a Telangana March in Hyderabad similar to Mahatma Gandhi's Salt March. Anticipating violence and property damage, police initially denied permission for the march (which was scheduled near Ganesh Nimmajjan on 29 September and the UN biodiversity conference, which began on 1 October). Police began checking buses and trains entering the city, and students trying to enter the city to participate in the protest were sent back. They identified activists, arresting pro-Telangana activists throughout the region.


2012 Telangana protests, Telangana March, Preparations
According to police, intelligence reported that protestors might attack property throughout Andhra Pradesh. Congress MP Madhu Yaskhi Goud said that people supporting a united Andhra should not live in the Telangana region, and wanted protestors to attack the property of Andhra Pradesh MPs during the march. He was later gheraoed by pro-Telangana activists in his Lok Sabha constituency of Nizamabad, who called him the "Telangana Betrayer" and demanded that he resign to demonstrate his commitment to the issue.


2012 Telangana protests, Telangana March, Preparations
All pro-Telangana parties pledged their support of the march. Prominent Telangana residents wrote a letter to the president of India asking permission for the march and expressed concern that preventive detention of activists would lead to more violence by protestors.


2012 Telangana protests, Telangana March, Preparations
On 28 September, after long discussions between TJAC leaders and ministers from the Telangana region, the state government (ignoring warnings about a possible breakdown in law and order) gave permission for the march. The TJAC leaders promised the government in writing that the demonstration would be conducted in a peaceful, "Gandhian" manner from 3 to 7 pm on 30 September on Necklace Road, at the edge of the Hussain Sagar lake. Indian Railways cancelled several express and passenger trains and all local and suburban trains in Hyderabad, reportedly on police advice.


2012 Telangana protests, Telangana March, Preparations
Although TJAC leaders alleged mass arrests of Telangana supporters (preventing their travel to Necklace Road), police said that they had made no new arrests and all who had been arrested before the march was permitted were released. They allowed entry to Necklace Road on three designated routes, but pro-Telangana groups demanded access on all routes. Police also said that no permission had been granted for any other rallies in the city.


2012 Telangana protests, Telangana March, Demonstration
On 30 September, the day of the march, police closed the gates and blocked students at the Osmania University gate and other protestors at several places in the city when they were proceeding in groups towards the march. When they were stopped from breaking through barricades and trying to proceed through prohibited areas (such as Raj Bhavan), protestors threw stones at police. The police responded with a lathi charge, water cannons and tear gas. Congress MPs from Telangana were arrested in front of the chief minister's office when they staged a dharna because they had been forbidden to meet with him about the detention of party supporters, who were prevented from demonstrating.