what is the most famous sport in mexico

The most popular sport in Mexico is soccer, in spanish is called "fÃºtbol", followed by boxing.[1][2] Baseball is the most popular sport in the northwest and southeast regions. Basketball, American football and bullfighting are also highly popular and appreciated.

Sport in Mexico

Mexico City hosted the 1968 Summer Olympics â€“ the first time the event was held in Latin America. Since then the continental region hadn't held another edition of the Olympic Games until 2016, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Mexico first participated at the Olympic Games in 1900 and has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Olympic Games since 1924. Mexico has also participated in several Winter Olympic Games since 1928. Mexico has performed best in athletics, boxing, equestrian, diving, and Swimming events, and more recently taekwondo and football.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Mexico finished in thirty-ninth place; the Mexico team brought home seven medals, including their first gold medal won in football, and the rest of the medals in archery, diving, and taekwondo.

The Pan American Games competition is held among athletes from nations of the Americas, every four years in the year before the Summer Olympic Games. Mexico Ranks 6th in the top ten nations all time at the Pan American Games (minus medals won at the Winter Pan American Games). Mexico and Canada have hosted three Pan American Games each, more than any other nation. Among cities, only Winnipeg and Mexico City have played host to the Pan American Games more than once, each holding that honor twice.

Similar to the Olympic flame, the Pan American Games flame is lit well before the Games are to commence. The flame was lit for the first games in Olympia, Greece. For subsequent games, the torch has been lit by Aztec people. in ancient temples, first in the Cerro de la Estrella and later in the Pyramid of the Sun at the Teotihuacan Pyramids. The only exception was for the São Paulo games in 1963, when the torch was lit in Brasília by the indigenous Guaraní people. An Aztec then lights the torch of the first relay bearer, thus initiating the Pan American Games torch relay that will carry the flame to the host city's main stadium, where it plays an important role in the opening ceremony.

Charreada is the national sport of Mexico, it dates back to the 16th century and consists of a series of Mexico-developed equestrian events. The most notable event is the charreada; a style of rodeo developed in Mexico in the interest of maintaining the traditions of the charro. A charro is a term referring to a traditional horseman or a cowboy of Mexico, originating in the state of Jalisco.

The Federación Mexicana de Charrería (Mexican Federation of Charreria) organizes charrería events. The most popular sport is football.

The Spanish colonization of Mexico introduced bullfighting into the country. The sport has been one of the most popular in the country for the last 400 years. One of the most prominent bullfighters of the 20th century in Mexico was Carlos Arruza. He was known as "El CiclÃ³n" ("The Cyclone").

Typically, a bullfight in Mexico includes a variety of rodeo events known as charreadas, and traditional folklorico dances. Thousands of bullfighting events occur in Mexico. In certain areas of the country, bullfighting generates a large amount of revenue from the local population, as well as visiting tourists. As evidence of the popularity of the sport, the largest bullring in the world is the Plaza Mexico, located in Mexico City. The anniversary of the opening of Plaza Mexico is celebrated annually with a special bullfight called the "Corrida de Aniversario".[3][4][5][6] The Plaza MÃ©xico has been host to many of the world's best and most famous bullfighters.

Basque Pelota is a name for a variety of court sports played with a ball using one's hand, a racket, a wooden bat, or a basket propulsor, against a wall. Since 1952, "The International Federation of Basque Pelota" has organized the World Championships of Basque Pelota every four years. Mexico hosted the world championships in 1982, 1998 and 2006. Mexico gave its best performance at the 2006 games when they led all nations with 6 gold medals.

Frontenis is a variation of the Basque pelota game, itself a derivation of real tennis. It was created in the year of 1916 in Mexico, when the idea of merging tennis and the traditional Basque pilota emerged. It is played in one of the largest courts in racquet sports with a tennis racquet that contains an optional custom double string called "doble encordado" and a tiny frontenis ball.

The Pre-Columbian people of Mesoamerica have played the Mesoamerican ball game for over 3,000 years. Archaeologists found the oldest ballcourt yet discovered – dated to approximately 1400 BC – at Paso de la Amada in Mexico.[7]

The exact rules of the traditional ballgame remain unknown. Researchers believe that the sport probably resembled racquetball or volleyball, where the object is to keep the ball in play.[8]

In their Post-Classical Era (1000â€“1697 CE), the Maya began placing vertical stone rings on each side of the court, with the object of passing the ball through one. Several of these were placed quite high, as at Chichen Itza, where they stand 6 meters from the ground. Players would strike the ball with their hips or forearms, or employed rackets, bats, or hand-stones.[9]

The ball was made of solid rubber and weighed up to 4Â kg or more, with sizes that differed greatly over time or according to the version played. Games took place between two individuals and between two teams of players. The ballgame played out within a large masonry structure which contained a long narrow playing alley flanked by walls with both horizontal and sloping (or, more rarely, vertical) surfaces. The walls were often plastered and brightly painted.[9] A version of the game called Ulama is still played in the Mexican state of Sinaloa.

Mexico's most popular team sport is association football. Football is widely followed and practiced all over the country and it is considered the most popular sport in most states. It is believed that football was introduced in Mexico by English miners at the end of the 19th century. By 1902 a five-team league emerged with a strong English influence. Football became a professional sport in 1943.

Mexico has hosted two World Cup tournaments (1970 and 1986). Many of the stadiums in use in the league have a World Cup history. Sites such as Estadio Jalisco in Guadalajara, and Estadio Azteca in Mexico City are renowned for their national and international history. The legendary Estadio Azteca, for example, is one of the only two stadiums in the world to have hosted two men's World Cup finals (the other being the Maracana) and is one of the highest capacity stadiums in the world. Mexican's biggest stadiums are Estadio Azteca, Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Estadio Jalisco and Estadio BBVA Bancomer.

The Mexico national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de México) represents Mexico in association football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation (FMF, from the native name of Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación), the governing body for football in Mexico. Mexico's home stadium is the Estadio Azteca and their head coach is Juan Carlos Osorio. The team is currently ranked 13th in the World Football Elo Ratings.

Mexico has qualified for fifteen FIFA World Cups and has qualified consecutively since 1994, making it one of six countries to do so. The Mexico national team, along with Brazil and Germany, are the only nations to make it out of the group stage over the last six World Cups.[citation needed] Mexico played France in the very first match of the first World Cup on July 13, 1930. Mexico's best progression was reaching the quarter-finals in the 1970 and 1986 World Cups, both of which were staged on Mexican soil.

The Mexico national football team won its first FIFA Confederations Cup in 1999, finished twice as runners-up at the Copa América, won the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship, and have reached the quarter finals twice at the World Cup. Recently, some players from Mexico have moved on to European clubs, including Rafael Márquez, Carlos Salcido, Ricardo Osorio, Pável Pardo, Andrés Guardado, Guillermo Franco, Carlos Vela, Giovani dos Santos, Omar Bravo, Aaron Galindo, Héctor Moreno, Francisco Javier Rodríguez and others.

Mexico is historically the most successful national team in the CONCACAF region, holding nine CONCACAF championships, including six CONCACAF Gold Cups, one North American Nations Cup and three NAFC Championships. Mexico is the only team from CONCACAF to have won an official FIFA competition, the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup. Although Mexico is under the jurisdiction of CONCACAF, the national football team has been regularly invited to compete in the Copa América since 1993 finishing as runner-up twice and obtaining the third place medal on three occasions.

The first Mexican club, C.F. Pachuca, survives. Since 1996, the country has played two split seasons instead of a traditional long season. There are two separate playoff and league divisions. This system is common throughout Latin America. After many years of calling the regular seasons as "Verano" (Summer) and "Invierno" (Winter); the top-level Liga MX, formerly the Primera DivisiÃ³n, has changed the names of the competition, and has opted for a traditional name of "Apertura" (opening) and "Clausura" (closing) events. The Apertura division begins in the middle of Mexico's summer and ends before the official start of winter. The Clausura division begins during the New Year, and concludes in the spring season.

Mexican football is divided into four divisions, beginning with Liga MX and followed by Ascenso MX, the Liga Premier, and Tercera División. The bottom two leagues translate literally as "Second Division" and "Third Division"; their names reflect their former positions in the league hierarchy before the Segunda División was split into two leagues, with the league now known as Ascenso MX becoming the new second level.

The teams are promoted and relegated by the FMF based on percentage calculations. Relegation is a common practice in Mexican football. There is a club exchange of each tier with the adjacent tiers so that a division's least successful team is relegated (transferred) to the next lower tier and the most successful club of the lower tier is promoted to the tier above. By the placement of each, the top tier cannot promote and the bottom tier cannot relegate.

The relegation system does not punish clubs for producing a single poor season. Mexican clubs are assessed on their previous five campaigns. Points are accumulated for five seasons, and are divided by the number of matches played. The club with the lowest percentage in the Apertura is relegated to a lower division. Each team must earn their promotions.

Since 1943, Mexico's five most successful clubs in Mexican football league system matches have been América, Chivas (12 championships), Toluca (10), Cruz Azul (8) and Pumas (7).[10] Chivas are renowned for using only Mexican players in their squad. Consequently, they have long fed players to the Mexico national football team.

Antonio Carbajal was the first player to appear in five World Cups, and Hugo Sánchez was named best CONCACAF player of the 20th century by IFFHS. Cuauhtémoc Blanco is the only Mexican football player to be presented with an award (Silver Ball and the Silver Shoe) in a major international FIFA competition (1999 FIFA Confederations Cup). He has been awarded the MVP of the México Primera División League five times. Claudio Suárez is the most capped player in the history of Mexico national team with 178 caps. Jared Borgetti is the México national team top scorer with 46 goals. As of 2006, it was estimated that Mexico has over 324,000 registered players and 8,155,000 unregistered players.

Beach football is a variant of the sport of association football which was invented in Brazil. It is played on beaches, and emphasizes skill, agility and goal scoring. The FIFA Beach Football World Cup has been held annually since 2005. Mexico finished as runners up to Brazil in its first appearance at the 2007 Beach Football World Cup.

Recently indoor association football has become a popular sport in Mexico, being included as part of the Universiada (University National Games) and the "CONADEIP" (Private School Tournament), which match University school teams from all over Mexico. In Mexico, "indoor" football fields are commonly built outdoors, and the sport is known as "fútbol rápido" (fast football).

The Mexican team Monterrey La Raza joined the Major Indoor football League in 2007 and finished the season in second place during its inaugural year. A previous version of Monterrey La Raza (1992–2001) won three championships in the now defunct organizations Continental Indoor Football League and World Indoor Football League.

Baseball has been traditionally known as the most popular sport in some regions of Mexico, mainly in Sonora and Sinaloa and arguably in Oaxaca, Yucatán, Campeche and Tabasco, where football is also widely followed. Other states where baseball has had some tradition include Baja California, Chihuahua, Durango, Coahuila, Veracruz, Puebla, Nuevo León and Quintana Roo, yet overshadowed by football in popularity. Nevertheless, Mexico has had relative success in the sport, probably just behind boxing and comparable to the success obtained in football.

Although there is some dispute about exactly when and where baseball started in Mexico, baseball has a long and colorful history in Mexico, particularly in the north, with historians placing its origin there as early as the 1840s. Today, baseball flourishes in Mexico, where it is played professionally in both summer and winter.

Over 100 Mexicans have played in the major leagues in the United States, including Cy Young Award winner Fernando Valenzuela, top 300 home run hitter Vinny Castilla, Gold Glove Award winner Aurelio Rodríguez, and AL batting champion Bobby Ávila. The first Mexican to play in Major League Baseball in the United States was Mel Almada, who participated with the Boston Red Sox in 1933.

The Mexican Baseball League ("Liga Mexicana de Béisbol" or "LMB") was founded in 1925, establishing six teams, and playing all their matches in Mexico City. In the 1930s and 1940s, African-Americans from the United States – who were still barred from Major League Baseball until Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947 – played alongside Mexicans and Cubans in the Mexican League. In 1937, legendary Negro Leagues' stars Satchel Paige and "Cool Papa Bell" left the Pittsburgh Crawfords to play in Latin America. After playing a year in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Paige and Bell joined the Mexican League.

In the 1940s, multi-millionaire Jorge Pasquel attempted to turn the Mexican League into a first-rate rival to the major leagues in the United States.[11] In 1946, Pasquel traveled north of the border to pursue the top players in the Negro and major leagues. Pasquel signed up close to twenty major leaguers, including such well known names as Mickey Owen and Sal Maglie, and a number of Negro league players. Ultimately, Pasquel's dream faded, as financial realities led to decreased salaries and his high-priced foreign stars returned home.

Currently, 16 teams divided into North and South Divisions play in the Mexican Baseball League in a summer season, which ends in a 7-game championship series between the winners of the two divisions. Since 1967, the league has been sanctioned as an AAA minor league, though no team has an affiliation with any team in the United States.

In the winter, eight teams play in the Mexican Pacific League ("Liga Mexicana del PacÃfico" or "LMP"), whose winner advances to the Caribbean Series against other Latin American champions. Although the Mexican League has a longer history, the Mexican Pacific League is the premier baseball league in Mexico today. It is played during the Major League Baseball (MLB) off-season, so many MLB players also compete in the LMP.

The Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame has inducted 167 players, consisting of 138 Mexicans, 16 Cubans, 12 from the United States, and one Puerto Rican.[12][13] Distinguished players include MLB stars Roy Campanella and Monte Irvin, who played in the Mexican League in the 1940s. Nicknamed "El Bambino Mexicano", or the Mexican Babe Ruth, Héctor Espino was inducted in the Mexican Hall of Fame in 1988, after playing with San Luis Potosí, and Tampico from 1962 to 1984. His 453 home runs remained the record until Nelson Barrera surpassed him in 2001. Espino still holds the all-time records in many offensive categories.

The Mexico national baseball team represents Mexico in international tournaments, most notably the World Baseball Classic.

Basketball is the third most popular team sport in Mexico. Mexico has a few professional basketball leagues, the top professional league is the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional where the Halcones UV Xalapa are the most successful team of the league, having won the competition four times. The best teams of the LNBP advances to the FIBA Americas League. In the northwestern states is the CIBACOPA competition, with professional basketball players from Mexico and U.S. universities. This regional league have a stake in the rest months of the LNBP.

Manuel Raga is the first and only Mexican inducted in the FIBA Hall of Fame. In 1996 Horacio Llamas made history by becoming the first Mexican to participate in an NBA game. Since then, several Mexicans followed, including Eduardo Nájera, Earl Watson, Gustavo Ayón and Jorge Gutiérrez; also, Manuel Raga and Gustavo Ayón had notable triumps in the European Basket, as the only Mexican winners in the EuroLeague.

The country's national team won the 2013 Americas Championship, qualified for the 2014 Basketball World Cup and won the hosting rights for the 2015 Americas Basketball Championship.

American football (gridiron) has been played in Mexico since the early 1920s, and is a strong minority sport at Mexican colleges and universities, mainly in Monterrey. American football is the fourth most popular team sport in Mexico. The maximum competition is the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional (LFA).[14] The Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional was founded in 2016[15] with initial 4 teams (Raptors, Eagles, Condors and Mayas), all based in Mexico City. There are plans to expand the league and increase the number of teams and the number of participating states. On February 21 it was held the first game and the championship game was held on April 10, leaving the Mayas as champions and the Raptors as runners-up.[16]

Before this professional league was founded, the maximum competition of American football in Mexico was in college level. American football has been played in Mexico since the early 1920s in different colleges and universities, mainly in Mexico City. In 1928 the first college championship was played, organized by Jorge Braniff. Over successive decades, more universities and colleges joined the championship, and four categories, called "Fuerzas", were created. The First Fuerza became the National League in 1970. In 1978, this was reorganized under the name "Organización Nacional Estudiantil de Fútbol Americano" (ONEFA).[17]

The Aztec Bowl is a NCAA sanctioned college division post-season bowl in which American Division III college All-stars face off against a team of Mexican all-stars.

The Mexico national American football team has competed in the IFAF World Cup, which has been held every four years since 1999. Mexico participated in 1999 and 2003; finishing second in both competitions.

Raul Allegre is a former football placekicker in the National Football League (NFL) he played for the Baltimore Colts, the Indianapolis Colts, the New York Giants, and the New York Jets.

Mexico's Estadio Azteca is also notable as being the venue of the NFL-game with the all-time record attendance of 103,467 on October 2, 2005

Rugby in Mexico has a long tradition dating back to the early 1900s when Europeans were migrating to Mexico. Though rugby has been a minor sport in Mexico, the Mexican Rugby Federation was established, and the sport has been steadily increasing in popularity, with around twelve teams competing in the top league. The Mexican national rugby sevens team have achieved some good results in international tournaments, including taking third place at the 2015 NACRA Sevens.

Polo was first popularized by the Escandon-Barron family in the late nineteenth century. Three members of the Escandon-Barron family would win a bronze medal at the 1900 Olympics. The Mexican polo team also won an Olympic bronze medal in 1936, the last Olympic Games which featured polo.

Mexico hosted the World Polo Championship in 2008. The World Polo Championship has been held every three years by the Federation of International Polo since 1987. Mexico's best finishes have been second place in 1987, and third place in 1995 and 2008.

The best Mexican polo player is Carlos Gracida, who is also considered to be one of the best polo players in the sport. He has accumulated more tournament wins than any other athlete in the history of the sport, winning the Abierto Argentino de Palermo tournament five times, the British Open Gold Cup ten times, and the US Open nine times. Carlos' brother, Memo Gracida, is a polo player of international renown as well and a member of the Polo Hall of Fame. The two have teamed together to win numerous tournaments worldwide.

Racquetball is a popular sport that is played in Mexico. The Racquetball World Championships were first held in 1981 and have been played every two years since 1984. San Luis Potosí hosted the championships in 1994 and 2000. Álvaro Beltrán was World Champion in 2000, and Mexican men have won the doubles titles four times: in 2000 (Luis Bustillos & Javier Moreno), 2002 (Polo Gutierrez & Gilberto Mejia), 2006 (Moreno & Beltran), and in 2012 (Moreno & Beltran).[18] while the Mexican teams have finished among the top three in men's and top four in women's since 1986.[19]

Paola Longoria was the #1 player on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization tour at the end of its 2008â€“2009 season, becoming the first woman not from Canada or the USA to do so. She also won gold at the 2009 and 2013 World Games, and again is the first non-American woman to do so. Additionally, in 2012, she became the first player to win both the singles and doubles Racquetball World Championship.

Racquetball will be included in the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara.

Although not a mainstream sport in Mexico, ice hockey is played in larger cities like Monterrey, Guadalajara, Villahermosa, Culiacán, León and Mexico City.

The Mexican Elite League is the top level of ice hockey in Mexico. The Mexican Elite League, was inaugurated on 2 October 2010 with the aim to establish Mexico as a high-level international competitor in ice hockey. Currently it has 4 professional teams and 17 associated equipment.

The "FederaciÃ³n Deportiva de Mexico de Hockey Sobre Hielo" (Mexico National Ice Hockey Federation) regulates all tournaments in Mexico. The Mexican hockey league includes 7 federation clubs and 8 independent clubs.[20] Mexico is also the only Latin American full member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and competes in international tournaments.[21]

Mexican sport is also known for its boxing tradition. Boxing is the most popular individual sport in Mexico. Mexico is also the second in total number of world champions produced, after the United States,[24] and has recently produced more World Champions in the last 30 years.[25] The first boxing champion Mexico produced was Battling Shaw when he became the Light Welterweight Champion by outpointing Johnny Jadick in 1933.

International Boxing Hall of Fame members include, Julio César Chávez, Sr., Salvador Sánchez, Ricardo Lopez, José Nápoles, Rubén Olivares, Baby Arizmendi, Pipino Cuevas, Chiquita González, Sugar Ramos, Daniel Zaragoza, Miguel Canto, Vicente Saldivar, Carlos Palomino, and Carlos Zárate. Other prominent Mexican boxers include World Boxing Hall of Fame members, Kid Azteca, Jesús Pimentel, Lupe Pintor, Juan Zurita, and José Luis Ramírez. More recent champions include Canelo Álvarez, Julio César Chávez Jr., Marco Antonio Barrera, Érik Morales, Juan Manuel Márquez, Rafael Márquez, Israel Vázquez and Juan Francisco Estrada.

Mexico's biggest rival in the sport of boxing is Puerto Rico. There have been many classic match ups between the two such as Sánchez–Gómez Gómez–Zárate and many more. Other great match ups are between two Mexican fighters and Mexican vs. Mexican-American. Good examples of fighting between two Mexicans are Barrera vs Morales and Márquez vs Vázquez. A good example of a Mexican vs a Mexican-American are Bazooka Limon vs Chacon, Chiquita González vs Carbajal, Márquez vs Díaz, and Castillo vs Corrales.

The Abierto Mexicano Telcel is a tennis tournament held in Acapulco, Mexico. It is an event on both the ATP Tour (International Series Gold event) and the WTA Tour (Tier III).

Rafael Osuna is the best tennis player to come out of Mexico. He was ranked number one in 1963 when he won the U.S. Open Championship. Osuna led Mexico to the 1962 Davis Cup, becoming the first team from Latin America to compete for the trophy. Osuna would go on to win a Grandslam singles championship in 1963. He also won the U.S. Open Doubles Championship in 1962, the Wimbledon double's championship in 1960 and 1963, and a doubles tennis Olympic gold medal in 1968. Osuna was killed in a plane crash in 1969 at the age of 30. In 1969, the Intercollegiate Tennis College Association NCAA instituted "The Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award" in his honor. Later that year, the Chapultepec Club, renamed its stadium "Rafael Osuna Stadium". He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1979.

The most notable Mexican professional auto racers have been Pedro Rodríguez, who was the winner of the 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans, and his brother Ricardo Rodríguez, who at age 18 finished second at the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans, becoming the youngest ever to stand on the podium. He was also the youngest F1 driver at that time. They were both considered among the top drivers before their untimely deaths.

The Mexico City racetrack Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez ("Rodríguez Brothers Racetrack") was named in their honor. Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez has hosted several racing events including the Formula 1 (1962–1970 and 1986–1992), Champ Car World Series (1980–1981 and 2002–2007), World Sportscar Championship, Grand-Am, Trans-Am, IMSA, A1 Grand Prix, NASCAR Nationwide Series, Formula BMW World Finals, Champ Car Atlantic Series, Panam GP Series and NASCAR Mexico Corona Series.

More recently Sergio Pérez and Esteban Gutiérrez have re-established a Mexican presence in F1. Behind the scenes, Jo Ramírez worked for a number of F1 teams, most notably as team co-ordinator for McLaren in the 1980s and 1990s.

The A1 Team Mexico is the Mexican team of A1 Grand Prix, the World Cup of Motorsport; Salvador Durán has earned two victories for the team.

Adrián Fernández has become a popular driver in Mexico since the 1990s and reached his climax when he finished in second place during the 2000 CART season. Fernández co-founded the Fernández Racing with which he championed the American Le Mans Series and previously won in Champ Car, the IRL IndyCar Series, and Grand-Am.

Other auto racing events currently held in Mexico include the Baja 1000, the World's most important off-road race, taking place on Mexico's Baja California Peninsula and with the Mexicans normally winning various categories. Racing events formerly held in Mexico include the Tecate/Telmex Grand Prix of Monterrey and the Carrera Panamericana, which is now held as one of the premiere vintage racing events of the World. Rally Mexico is a round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Golf is a popular sport in Mexico.[26] There are over 150 golf courses in the country. Lorena Ochoa, who was the number-one-ranked female golf player in the world before abruptly retiring in 2010, has helped increase the popularity of golf in the country.

Professional golf tournaments held in Mexico includes, the Corona Championship, MasterCard Classic, Lorena Ochoa Invitational, Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancún, and the Mexican Open.

Taekwondo was introduced to Mexico in 1969 by Korean Mexican Dai Won Moon.[27] With over 1.5Â million taekwondo practitioners and 3,500 schools throughout the country, taekwondo is one of the most popular sports in the nation.[27] Mexico has also been competitive on the international level in the sport of taekwondo. Over forty Mexican taekwondo practitioners have medaled at the World Taekwondo Championships.[28]

Taekwondo made its official debut at the 2000 Summer Olympics and Mexican athletes have medaled in the sport in every Olympics since then. Mexican athletes won a bronze medal in taekwondo at the 2000 Summer Olympics, a silver and bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics, two gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics, a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics and a silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics. María Espinoza has medaled at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics. Mexico currently ranks 4th on the total medal count for taekwondo, its best performance for any Olympic sport.

The 400-meter event became popular when Ana Guevara became world champion in 2003.[citation needed]

Mexican professional wrestling, which is known as lucha libre, has been a popular spectacle in Mexico since 1933, when promoter Salvador Lutteroth Gonzales founded Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre. Like other forms of professional wrestling, it is not strictly a sport, but rather a form of sports entertainment, as matches usually have predetermined outcomes. Lucha libre is characterized by rapid sequences of holds and moves, as well as spectacular high-flying moves, many of which have been adopted in the United States.[29] The two most popular lucha libre promotions are Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), and Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA). Notable wrestling stars include El Santo, Blue Demon, and Mil Máscaras.


who drove the number 33 car in nascar

Harold Phil Gant[1] (born January 10, 1940), better known as "Handsome Harry", is a retired American racecar driver best known for driving the No. 33 Skoal Bandit car on the NASCAR Winston Cup (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) circuit during the 1980s and 1990s and his 4-race win streak in 1991.

Harry Gant

Gant gained a lot of nicknames throughout his racing career. He was known as "Handsome Harry Gant" due to his Hollywood-style good looks, the "Bandit" after his longtime sponsor Skoal Bandit, "Mr. September"[1] after winning four consecutive Winston Cup races and two Busch Series races in September 1991, and "High Groove Harry" after the high line he often took through the corner.

The North Carolina native began his racing career at the old dirt track in Hickory. He built a hobby class car with his friends, and took turns behind the wheel. Gant became the full-time driver and won the track championship.[2] Hickory Speedway was paved in 1967 after Ned Jarrett became the promoter.[2] Gant excelled on the asphalt, and won his first race in the sportsman division.

He won over 300 races with the car builder and crew chief Kenneth H. Sigmon, in the NASCAR Sportsman on his way to winning three national championships, in 1972, 1973, and 1974. He finished second three times in the NASCAR Late Model Sportsman (now Nationwide Series) in 1969, 1976, and 1977. He finished in the top 10 of the final points standing in several other years.

He sold half of his construction business in 1979 upon deciding to race full-time in the Winston Cup Series.[2]

Gant made his first Cup start in 1973 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, finishing eleventh in the No. 90 Truxmore Industries Ford. He made six starts over the next four years and had two top-ten finishes. His first full season in Winston Cup was in 1979. He competed for the rookie of the year honors against Dale Earnhardt and Terry Labonte. He finished fourth in the overall rookie battle in the No. 47 Race Hill Farm car for Jack Beebe. He split the next season between the No. 47 and the No. 75 RahMoc Enterprises entry, finishing 21st in points.

After starting out the 1981 season driving for various teams, he moved to the No. 33 Skoal Bandit Pontiac, which was owned by Hal Needham and Burt Reynolds, and Leo Jackson after 1988. Gant debuted with the team by placing second at Darlington Raceway, followed by five more second-place finishes and three poles, ending the season third in points standings.[3] He stayed with the team for the rest of his career.

Gant finished second 10 times before winning his first Winston Cup race, at Martinsville April 25, 1982, in the Virginia National Bank 500 and he would finish fourth in the final points standings. In 1983, Gant would only win once at Darlington in the Transouth 400 and collect 10 top 5's and 16 top ten finishes en route to seventh in the final points standings. In 1984, Harry Gant notched 3 poles, 15 top five finishes, and 23 top ten finishes and won at Pocono and Martinsville in the fall, he would end up finishing second to eventual Winston Cup champion Terry Labonte. In 1985, Gant would win at Martinsville in the spring, and at Dover and at North Wilkesboro in the fall, notching a career best for Gant up to that point. He would finish third in championship standings, 259 points behind eventual champion Darrell Waltrip. Gant would go winless for three years from 1986-1988 and in 1989, he would break a three year winless streak winning at Darlington in the spring which caused the veteran driver to exclaim "The Bandit is back" in victory lane.[4]. He would not win again in 1989 but he would finish seventh in the final points standings.

Gant won the International Race of Champions (IROC) championship in 1985.[5] He tied on points with Darrell Waltrip but was awarded the title on tiebreak by finishing higher in the final race: a photo-finish win over Labonte at Michigan International Speedway

Gant drove the No. 33 in the 1985 Talladega NASCAR race with the first telemetry data system ever installed on a race car. The data from the car was sent to the CBS television network and broadcast during the TV coverage of the race.

Harry Gant entered the decade with a win at Pocono in the spring of 1990. He would finish 17th in the final points standings with 6 top 5's and 9 top 10's. In 1991, Gant would have a career year. He won the 1991 Winston 500 in the spring. He gambled on fuel mileage and won. Fellow competitor Rick Mast drafted behind Gant to give him a push the last few laps but let off in the final laps to preserve the victory. Gant earned the nickname "Mr. September" in 1991 after winning all four September Cup races (Darlington, Richmond, Dover and Martinsville) and two Busch races (Richmond and Dover) at age 51. His crew chief was Andy Petree.[6] The four consecutive cup victories tied the modern era record set in 1972. Dominating at the next race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, Gant had his brakes fail, ending his hopes of five consecutive victories[7]. Gant would get 5 victories in 1991, and would notch 15 top five finishes and 17 top tens and he would finish fourth in the final point standings. Gant would follow up 1991 with a strong 1992 and finish 4th in points again and was one of five drivers in contention for the championship but six finishes of 13th or worse in the final races doomed his championship hopes. Gant would win at Dover in the spring and he would get his last Cup victory on August 16, 1992, at the Champion Spark Plug 400 at Michigan International Speedway, gambling on fuel. This would also be the final victory for Oldsmobile in Cup competition. Harry Gant and the Leo Jackson team would switch to Chevrolets in 1993 and at the end of the season Gant announced that 1994 would be his last season. Gant finished his career with a pole and seven top ten finishes and finished 25th in the final point standings.

In 1996, Gant substituted for the injured Bill Elliott in the 1996 Winston Select, driving Elliott's No. 94 McDonald's Ford Thunderbird after Elliott's injuries at Talladega.[8] Gant also ran a partial season in the Craftsman Truck Series in 1996, driving his own No. 33 Westview Capital Chevrolet C/K. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame on April 27, 2006.

Currently, Gant continues to work on his 300-acre ranch in North Carolina and enjoys riding his motorcycle. In 2015, he was in attendance at Darlington for the Southern 500 to take part in the retro weekend. He also still works on roofs and carpentry in his spare time. Gant once admitted that he "was a good race car driver, but a great carpenter".

He holds the record as the oldest driver ever to win a Cup Series race (52 years, 219 days) and as the oldest driver ever to collect his first career Cup victory (42 years and 105 days). He is the second oldest driver to win in NASCAR's second-level circuit, now known as the Xfinity Series, after Dick Trickle[9] In his career he has collected 18 Cup wins and one runner-up finish in 1984 and third in 1981 and 1985, 21 Busch Series wins, and three runner-up finishes in the Busch Series championship (69, 76, and 77). In 1985 won the IROC title. He won four races in a row in 1991 tying a "new era" (1972–present) record and came in second in the fifth race. His five Winston Cup and five Busch Grand National wins in 1991 made him the only driver, at that time, to post the most wins in both series in the same year, although he tied with Davey Allison with five Cup wins (Allison also scored a victory in the non-points All-Star Race).

He appeared in the 1983 Burt Reynolds movie Stroker Ace. He also gave a short interview in the film Days of Thunder and was mentioned for spinning out in the Daytona 500 late in the movie (although it was actually the No. 26 of Brett Bodine). He also appeared as a mob henchman in the 1984 movie Cannonball Run II. His line in the film was "Better not let the boss hear you say that."

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

(key) (Bold – Pole position. * – Most laps led.)


where did latavius murray go to high school

Born in Titusville, Florida, Murray attended Natick High School in New York, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, basketball, and track. In football, Murray was All-league and All-Central New York selection in three straight seasons. In his sophomore year, he was third-team All-state honoree following a 1,609-yard, 14-touchdown season. He garnered first-team All-state honors as a junior, rushing for 2,030 yards and 30 touchdowns. In his final year, he was named the 2007 Gatorade Football Player of the Year in the state of New York after rushing for 2,194 yards with 28 touchdowns on offense, while also recording 78 tackles, three forced fumbles and two interceptions on defense.[1] He also was named as the Class D Player of the Year[1] and First-Team All-State by the NYSSWA.[2]

Latavius Murray

Latavius Murray (born January 18, 1990) is an American football running back for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Central Florida and was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL Draft.

Regarded as a three-star recruit, Murray was ranked as the No. 5 prospect in the state of Florida by Rivals.com, No. 6 according to Scout.com. He chose UCF over scholarship offers from Boston College, Maryland, and Syracuse, among others.[3]

Murray played his college ball at the University of Central Florida. Murray tore his ACL during the offseason after his freshman year while playing basketball.[4] In his redshirt sophomore season, he was named Conference USA Championship MVP and also was named AutoZone Liberty Bowl MVP for his performance against Georgia in which he rushed for 104 yards and scored the game-winning touchdown.[5][6] Following the conclusion of his junior season, he was selected as the team's MVP and offensive player of the year.[7] In his senior season, he was an All-C-USA First Team selection[8] and was named to Phil Steele's All-C-USA First Team.[9] He was named to the College Football Performance Awards All-Purpose Trophy Watch List[10] and also was selected to the College Football Performance Awards Special Teams Watch List.[10] He was named to the Doak Walker Award Watch List.[11] He finished his college career with a total of 2,424 rushing yards, 37 rushing touchdowns, 50 receptions, 524 receiving yards and 6 receiving touchdowns.[12]

Murray was regarded as a sixth to seventh round selection according to CBSSports.com.[13]

Murray was not invited to the NFL Combine, but garnered much attention with an impressive performance at Central Florida's Pro Day. Murray weighed in at 6-foot-2 5/8 and 223 pounds, ran the 40-yard dash in 4.4 and 4.38 seconds, registered a 10-foot-4 broad jump and a 36-inch vertical jump, ran 4.36 seconds in the short shuttle and 6.81 seconds in the 3-cone.[15]

Murray was selected by the Oakland Raiders with the 181st overall pick in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL Draft.[16]

The Oakland Raiders signed Murray to a four-year, $2.26 million contract on June 6, 2013. It also included $106,200 guaranteed and a signing bonus of $106,200.[17]

On August 27, 2013, before the start of the regular season, Murray was placed on injured reserve, ending his rookie season.[18]

After being third on the depth chart for the first half of the season behind veterans Darren McFadden and Maurice Jones-Drew, the Raiders turned to Murray in Week 11 to provide a spark after ineffectiveness by McFadden and Jones-Drew all year. He responded by totaling 59 yards on 7 touches against the San Diego Chargers.[19] On November 20, 2014, he finished with 4 carries for 112 rushing yards and 2 rushing touchdowns, marking his first career touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs. It also marked the first rushing touchdown the Chiefs defense allowed all season and his 90-yard touchdown marked the longest rush for the Raiders that year. The solid performance by Murray contributed to the Raiders' first victory of the 2014 season. After having success on his first three attempts, he suffered a concussion on his fourth carry and was taken out of the game.[20]

He returned to play against the San Francisco 49ers in week 14 and finished the game with 23 carries for 76 rushing yards. The next week, he earned his first career start against the Chiefs and had 12 rushing attempts for 59 yards. In week 16, he gained 86 yards on 16 carries and had his second consecutive start against the Buffalo Bills. He remained the starting running back for the last three games of the season and finished his first year with 82 carries, 424 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns in 15 games.

Murray entered the season as the Raiders' number one tailback and was expected by the Raiders to receive the majority of the carries after the retirement of Maurice Jones-Drew and the departure of Darren McFadden. As expected, he began the season as the Raiders' starting running back and had 11 attempts for 44 yards in the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals. In a week 3 contest, Murray finished the game with a career-high 139 yards on 26 carries and added a touchdown in a win over the Cleveland Browns.

On December 24, 2015, Murray became the first Raider to reach the 1,000-yard mark rushing, since Darren McFadden in 2010. His performance of 79 yards on 19 carries, 38 yards on 5 receptions and a rushing touchdown, helped edge a victory over the San Diego Chargers with a final score of 23â€“20 on a Thursday night in overtime.[21]

Murray finished the regular season playing in 14 games and rushing for 788 yards and a career-high 12 rushing touchdowns. Murrayâ€™s pass protecting ability was rated third best in the NFL among running backs.[22]

On March 16, 2017, Murray signed a three-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings.[23][24] In his opening statement to Vikings fans, Murray stated on his Instagram account: "There wasn't a thought in my mind to try and wear or ask for the No. 28. I have too much respect for Adrian Peterson and so much respect for what he's done and what he means to this organization."[25] During his first press conference as a Viking, Murray announced that he would be wearing No. 25 in honor of his best friend, who had died in 2016.[26] On March 22, 2017, it was revealed Murray underwent ankle surgery.[27]


where do the navy seals train in san diego

Naval Amphibious Base Coronado (NAB Coronado) is a naval installation located across the bay from San Diego, California. The base, situated on the Silver Strand, between San Diego Bay and the Pacific Ocean, is a major Navy shore command, supporting over 30 tenant commands, and is the West Coast focal point for special and expeditionary warfare training and operations. The onâ€‘base population is 5,000 military personnel and 7,000 students and reservists. The base is one of the eight components of Naval Base Coronado (NBC).

Naval Amphibious Base Coronado

Coordinates: 32°40′32″N 117°09′38″W / 32.67547°N 117.160649°W / 32.67547; -117.160649

Formally commissioned in January 1944,[1] Naval Amphibious Base (NAB), Coronado provides a shore base for the operations, training, and support of naval amphibious units on the West Coast. It is one of only two Navy amphibious training bases in the United States. NAB is approximately 1,000 acres (4 km²) in size and is composed of the Main Base, training beaches, California least tern preserve, recreational marina, enlisted family housing, and state park. State Highway 75 separates NAB into surfside (ocean) and bayside sections. The majority of the bayside is composed of fill materials dredged from San Diego Bay in the early 1940s. Amphibious training is conducted on both surfside and bayside beaches. To the south of the Main Base, the majority of amphibious training activities takes place on about 257 acres (1.0 km2) of ocean beachfront property, leased from the State of California. A least tern nesting preserve is located on North and South Delta Beach between the NAB Marina and Main Base. NAB is located within the city of Coronado, California, a community of approximately 30,000. The city of Coronado covers nearly 9 square miles (23 km2) of land, and NAB lies south of the main residential and commercial portions of the city. Another naval facility, Naval Air Station (NAS) North Island, is located northwest of the city of Coronado. South of NAB is the Silver Strand.

In June 1943, the Secretary of the Navy authorized the establishment of the Amphibious Training Base in the San Diego area to meet wartimes demands for trained landing craft crews. These crews were deployed to the South Pacific area of operations, where their successful and historical efforts were contributory to the conclusion of World War II. Training for infantry coordination with naval artillery and attack aircraft was provided at the Naval Gunfire Liaison School and Support Air Control School.[2] The streets of the base bear the names of those famous battles which led to the Empire of Japan's defeat: Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Tulagi, and Bougainville, to name a few.

The base has also provided training for Underwater Demolition Teams, United States Navy SEALs, brown-water Navy personnel, and Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps midshipmen.[3] In 1946, the base was renamed Naval Amphibious Base (NAB) Coronado and its primary mission was changed to that of providing major administrative and logistical support to the amphibious units which are located on the base. The base also conducts research and tests of newly developed amphibious equipment.[4]

NAB Coronado is the home to over 30 tenant commands with a population of approximately 5,000 personnel, including major commands such as Commander, Naval Surface Forces Pacific (COMNAVSURFPAC), Commander Naval Special Warfare (SPECWAR) Command and the Commander Expeditionary Warfare Training Group (EWTG) Pacific.

Buildings 320, 321, 322, and 323, at 32°40′36″N 117°09′30″W / 32.67657°N 117.15827°W / 32.67657; -117.15827, have a swastika-shaped plan view. This went unnoticed by the public from its construction in the 1960s until 2007 when it was spotted in aerial views on Google Earth,"[5] Although landscaping and architectural modifications were to be made to obscure the shape,[5] the June, 2017 imagery, the latest used by Google Earth, shows no substantive change.[6]


what congressional district is san jose ca in

California's 19th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California, currently represented by Democrat Zoe Lofgren. The district covers much of Santa Clara County, including most of the city of San Jose.

From 2003 to 2013, the district covered parts of Fresno, Madera, Mariposa, Tuolumne, and Stanislaus counties.

As of  AprilÂ 2015[update], there are four former members of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 19th congressional district that are currently living.


where did the mahna mahna song come from

"Mah Nà Mah Nà" is a popular song by Italian composer Piero Umiliani. It originally appeared in the Italian film Sweden: Heaven and Hell (Svezia, inferno e paradiso). It was a minor radio hit in the U.S. and in Britain, but became better known internationally for its use by The Muppets and on The Benny Hill Show.

Mah Nà Mah Nà

"Mah Nà Mah Nà" first gained popularity in English-speaking countries from its use in a recurring blackout sketch for the 1969-70 season of The Red Skelton Show first airing in October 1969.

Sesame Street producer Joan Ganz Cooney heard the track on the radio and decided both it and a shaggy puppeteer named Jim Henson would be perfect additions to the show. First performed by Jim Henson (Kermit et al.), Frank Oz (Fozzie Bear et al.) and Loretta Long (Susan) on the fourteenth episode of the long running children's show broadcast on November 27, 1969, the song entered the public consciousness of the latter half of Baby Boomer children. The following Sunday when Henson and His Muppets performed the song on the Ed Sullivan Show it became an instant classic. Seven years later the song would also be part of the premiere episode of The Muppet Show in 1976.

Starting in 1971, The Benny Hill Show -- in its second incarnation now at Thames Television where it launched in 1969 in color -- implemented "Mah Nà Mah Nà" as part of a comic background music medley that would run during their often filmed slapstick sketches. The medley became a Benny Hill Show tradition for the rest of its run.

"Mah Nà Mah Nà" debuted as part of Umiliani's soundtrack for the Italian mondo film Svezia, inferno e paradiso (Sweden: Heaven and Hell [lit. Hell and Heaven]) (1968), an exploitation documentary film about wild sexual activity and other behaviour in Sweden. The song accompanied a scene in the film set in a sauna which gave its original title "Viva la Sauna Svedese" (Hooray for the Swedish Sauna). It was performed by a band called Marc 4 (four session musicians from the RAI orchestra) and the lead part was sung by Italian singer/composer Alessandro Alessandroni and his wife Giulia.[1] The song also appeared on the 1968 soundtrack album released for the film.

"Mah Nà Mah Nà" was a hit in many countries in 1968–1969. In the U.S., it peaked at #55 in the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and #44 on the Cash Box magazine chart in October 1969. It also reached #12 on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart. In Canada the song reached #22 in the RPM Magazine charts.[2] The UK single release, on the Major Minor label, was credited to "The Great Unknowns", and featured Giorgio Moroder's "Doo-be-doo-be-do" on the B side (also sometimes featured in The Benny Hill Show).[3] Umiliani's own version reached number 8 in the UK in 1977. During its 1–15 September 1969 run on the WLS 890 Hit Parade, the surveys erroneously credited the record to someone named Pete Howard.[4] WPTR did much the same, except that the erroneous credit went to someone named J.W. Wagner.[5]

The song's lyrics contain no actual words, only iambic nonsense syllables resembling scat singing, and uses the musical technique of interpolation where melodies are abruptly cut off and replaced with new ones. One of the scatting melodies quoted is the first few bars of the "Swedish Rhapsody" by Hugo AlfvÃ©n. The Italian tune "Santa Lucia" is also quoted. In the movie soundtrack version, from which the record was edited, there is a quote of Army bugle call "Assembly", but this verse was omitted from the record which instead repeated the first three verses. The Muppets' version includes part of "Lullaby of Birdland" by George Shearing. It was originally taken from the French musical, "Me Noi Me Noi" (not me not me).

In 1969, Henri Salvador recorded a variation titled "Mais non, mais non" ("But No, But No" or "Of Course Not, Of Course Not"), with lyrics he had written in French to Umiliani's tune.

Giorgio Moroder released a version in 1968, as part of the album Giorgio.[11]

In 1969, the Dave Pell Singers recorded a version for Liberty Records which got considerable radio exposure.

In 1969, "Mah-Nà-Mah-Nà" was recorded in French by Midas (Roger Giguère).

During its 1969-70 season, The Red Skelton Show used the Umiliani recording as background music for a recurring blackout sketch. The otherwise silent bits featured Red and another performer, dressed as moon creatures, playing with equipment left behind by the Project Apollo astronauts.

The song is the title track of a 1970 LP on GRT Records (Cat No.: GRT 20003), released after the initial success of Sesame Street; it is purportedly sung by a fuzzy Muppet lookalike, who is pictured on the sleeve. Other songs on the album, including "Peg O' My Heart", "Zip A Dee Doo Dah", "Mississippi Mud", and "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town", are sung with the syllables "mah na mah na" filling in for the actual words of the song. Many tracks also feature kazoo accompaniment.

In 1971, a Hebrew version called "Para Para" ("cow by cow", slang for "one thing at a time") was released by the duo HaDudaim.

In 1971 it was recorded by Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops for Polydor Records.

In 1973, a rendition of "Mah Nà Mah Nà" on the Moog synthesizer was released on the album More Hot Butter (Musicor MS 3254) by Hot Butter, best known for the pop tune "Popcorn". It was re-released on CD in 2000.

In 1984, Odessa comic and pantomime group Maski debuted on television with their short theatrical performance "Vocal duet" (Russian: Вокальный дуэт) for Vokrug smekha comedy TV program. A Pierrot characters (Aleksandr Postolenko) spelling "mana mana", while his Harlequin partner (Georgiy Deliev) singing motive of the rest of the song.

American disco group Lipstique released a disco version of the song in 1978.

A heavy metal version was recorded by UK band Skin in 1996, for the "Perfect Day" single; a minor hit in the UK - No. 33. <http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/28249/skin/> The song is however titled "The Muppet Song (Mah Na Mah Na)"

The British pop group Vanilla also used the song as a basis for their first single "No Way, No Way" in 1997.

A Canadian Dunkin' Donuts commercial used the song to promote its "Mini Donuts" line in the early 1990s.

In 1999, the Brazilian band Pato Fu used samples of "Mah Nà Mah Nà" in the song "Made In Japan" on the album "Isopor".

A sketch in the final episode of Jam in 2000 features a scene where two strangely dressed characters, one carrying a clarinet, sing the song where and when police are trying to find a dead body. When the police find the corpse and are still examining it, the two characters continue to sing the song at the corpse, whilst the clarinet carrier puts the clarinet into the corpse's mouth, who "plays" it out of key.

The musical group Cake recorded a horn-driven version of this song featuring many different sounds. This version was recorded as a children's song and appears on an album called For the Kids, released in 2002, and on their compilation album, B-Sides and Rarities, released in 2007.

Surrounding Super Bowl XL in 2006, a version of the song was recorded for the Pittsburgh Steelers, replacing the title syllables with "Polamalu", the last name of the Steelers' star strong safety.

Since 2009, the Philadelphia Union's fan supporters, the Sons of Ben, have used the song, substituting the group's name in place of the song's title.

A version sung in Arabic was released by actor/singer Samir Ghanem using the words anam, anam (meaning "sleep, sleep").[citation needed]

In 2011, alternative rock band The Fray released a cover of the song on Muppets: The Green Album, though a remaster of the original version from The Muppet Show performance appears on the soundtrack from the 2011 film The Muppets.

The Mexican department store chain Sanborns used a version of this song for their animated commercials featuring the "Tecolotes" (Owl) family mascots.

A cover version of the song was made for the popular music/rhythm game Just Dance 2015.

Aside from its notoriety as the primary silent comedy sketch scene music for The Benny Hill Show,[citation needed] "Mahna Mahna" became familiar to many from its renditions by the Muppets on television. In 1969, the first season of Sesame Street featured a sketch featuring two Muppet girls voiced by Frank Oz and Loretta Long who are unsure of what to do, until they decide to sing a song, enter an unusual-looking short, shaggy-haired male Muppet character who begins singing "Mahna Mahna", prompting the girls to join him.[12] None of the characters had names at the time, but the male Muppet who led the "Mahna Mahna" call-and-response was eventually given the name Bip Bippadotta, so as to distinguish him from the official Mahna Mahna character that would be developed later on. The Muppet character called Mahna Mahna was originally performed by Muppets creator Jim Henson, and is now performed by Muppeteer veteran Bill Barretta.

On 30 November 1969, "Mahna Mahna" was performed on The Ed Sullivan Show by three new and more fully detailed Muppet characters. The male Muppet character was purple with wild, orange hair and a furry, green tunic, while the female Muppet characters were two identical pink alien creatures with horns and cone-like mouths (with yellow lips) that always remained open. At this point the male Muppet was given the name Mahna Mahna and the female alien creatures were called the Snowths[13] (as a portmanteau of "snout" and "mouth" since their mouth also served as their noses), both performed by Muppeteer veteran Frank Oz. The song "Mahna Mahna" was played at a slower tempo and given a more playful, quintessential "children's"-style arrangement as opposed to the previous arrangement which was slightly reminiscent of the early 1960s Calypso.

In 1976, on the first episode of The Muppet Show to be recorded (featuring Juliet Prowse), the 1969 "Mahna Mahna" routine from The Ed Sullivan Show was reworked and used as the first sketch with the same characters and a new recording of the last musical arrangement. The Muppet Show became an immediate hit and "Mahna Mahna" was the highlight of that episode. During the sketch, Mahna Mahna managed to dance his way backstage and out of the Muppet Theater, phoning the Snowths after exiting. At the end of the episode, he managed to enter Statler and Waldorf's box.

As a result, the original Piero Umiliani recording finally became a hit in the UK (#8 in the UK charts in May 1977), where the Muppet Show soundtrack album featuring the Muppets' version went to number one.[14] It was at that point that the name "Mahna Mahna and The Snouths" was given the incorrect credit of "Mahna Mahna and The Snowths," which has served as the definitive spelling ever since then. The single from the album 'Halfway down the stairs" reached the top Ten in the UK charts – and its B side was Mah Na Mah Na – making the song appear three times in the charts at the same time,albeit as a B side,the Piero Umiliani version and also a track on the album.

Later on in that same episode, a snippet of the song "Lullaby of Birdland" is 'hummed' during one of the improvisational passages, as part of a running gag involving "Mahna Mahna".

The later Muppet TV series Muppets Tonight (1996â€“1998) revisited it in a sketch with Sandra Bullock where Kermit the Frog visits a doctor to complain about weird things that happen to him whenever he says the word phenomena, namely the Snouths suddenly appear with musical accompaniment to sing their part of the song.

In the Muppets version of "Bohemian Rhapsody"[15] at 00:02:25, the Snouths make a cameo appearance, singing the titular lyric.

The song is performed in the 2011 Muppets film, where various celebrities sing with the Snowths in the end credits.[16]

In 1969, British comedian Benny Hill switched from BBC Television to Thames Television. This move also marked the major start of color television in the United Kingdom. As part of the new format by Benny Hill, many risque jokes and sketches were featured. As with the signature Yakety Sax instrumental on the end of each show, the implementation of "Mah Na Mah Na" on Benny Hill was used to great effect to reflect the comedy action of particular sketches -- notably the ones providing the backdrop of the story of the moment, most often sped up and (mostly) with no audible dialogue.

On the new Thames incarnation of The Benny Hill Show, "Mah Na Mah Na" was part of an organized, horn-driven, four-song instrumental comic medley, starting off with a percussion tapping beat of the track leading into a rendition of "Doo-Bee-Doo-Bee-Doo", a very early track written by famed record producer Giorgio Moroder, which in itself was loosely based on and, as a result, bears a tightly similar rhythm and style to "Mah Na Mah Na". The four-song medley then continues with a rendition of "Fur Elise" (which is always heard with the accompaniment of a flute and a muted trumpet), then "Mah Na Mah Na", finally finishing with "Gimme Dat Ding", then looping back to the start of the progression.

This medley was first used on Thames Episode 10, which was first screened on British television on November the 24th, 1971. The original recordings of the instrumental medley often featured vocals by Benny Hill's backing chorus, The Ladybirds. However, as there were numerous recordings and renditions of the "Benny Hill Medley" throughout the entire Thames run, some versions featured other female vocalists (after The Ladybirds departed the show) while the rest of them were otherwise completely instrumental.

The Muppets filmed a new version of the song in 2005, for a New Zealand charity called CanTeen. In the ad, an updated version of the Mahna Mahna puppet was puppeteered and voiced by Bill Barretta, and the lyrics were changed to "Bandanana", supporting CanTeen's "Bandana Week".

It was featured in the 2005 pilot of the sitcom Committed where Marni attempted to get her date to sing a duet with her in a restaurant, and continued to appear in the background in later episodes as her ringtone.

In the 2011 episode "The Firefly" of Fringe, the song was playing on a record player in Walter Bishop's home while he was creating a formula to restore the missing pieces of his brain —– pieces which were surgically removed years before in an agreement with William Bell.

In "This Is My House, This Is My Home," the (2011) season eight finale of One Tree Hill, Nathan Scott performs this song with his daughter, Lydia, as wife Haley James Scott watches.

At the BBC's Children in Need 2011 telethon, Kermit and Miss Piggy introduced a performance of the song, which featured many stars of British television, including Harry Hill, Noel Edmonds and Gary Lineker.

Cee Lo Green samples the song in his original Christmas song "All I Need Is Love" which features guest vocals by The Muppets for his 2012 holiday album Cee Lo's Magic Moment.

A modified version of the song featured in adverts for the BN Biscuit in the United Kingdom, which referenced the biscuits name.

The Australian sunscreen company Banana Boat used a version of the song with lyrics as a jingle.[17]

In 2007, it was used for a Saturn Aura commercial.

In 2017, it served as the soundtrack for a Ford Explorer commercial, "For What Matters Most," in which a father and daughter make repeated trips to a hardware store while building a "Pinewood derby" car.[18]


who proclaimed brazil's independence from portuguese control

It is celebrated on 7 September, the anniversary of the date in 1822 that prince regent Dom Pedro declared Brazil's independence from Portugal. Formal recognition came with a treaty signed by both Brazil and Portugal in late 1825.

Independence of Brazil

The Independence of Brazil comprised a series of political and military events that occurred in 1821â€“1824, most of which involved disputes between Brazil and Portugal regarding the call for independence presented by the Brazilian Empire.

The land now called Brazil was claimed by Portugal in April 1500, on the arrival of the Portuguese fleet commanded by Pedro Álvares Cabral. The Portuguese encountered Indigenous nations divided into several tribes, most of whom shared the same Tupi-Guaraní language family, and shared and disputed the territory.[citation needed]

Though the first settlement was founded in 1532, colonization was effectively started in 1534 when King John III divided the territory into fifteen hereditary captaincies. This arrangement proved problematic, however, and in 1549 the king assigned a Governor-General to administer the entire colony. The Portuguese assimilated some of the native tribes while others slowly disappeared in long wars or by European diseases to which they had no immunity..[citation needed]

By the mid-16th century, sugar had become Brazil's most important export due to the increasing international demand for sugar. To profit from the situation, by 1700 over 963,000 African slaves had been brought across the Atlantic to work in Brazil. More Africans were brought to Brazil up until that date than to all the other places in the Americas combined.[1]

Through wars against the French, the Portuguese slowly expanded their territory to the southeast, taking Rio de Janeiro in 1567, and to the northwest, taking São Luís in 1615. They sent military expeditions to the Amazon rainforest and conquered English and Dutch strongholds, founding villages and forts from 1669. In 1680 they reached the far south and founded Sacramento on the bank of the Rio de la Plata, in the Banda Oriental region (present-day Uruguay).[citation needed]

At the end of the 17th century, sugar exports started to decline but beginning in the 1690s, the discovery of gold by explorers in the region that would later be called Minas Gerais (General Mines) in current Mato Grosso, Goiás and the state of Minas Gerais, saved the colony from imminent collapse. From all over Brazil, as well as from Portugal, thousands of immigrants came to the mines.[citation needed]

The Spanish tried to prevent Portuguese expansion into the territory that belonged to them according to the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas, and succeeded in conquering the Banda Oriental in 1777. However, this was in vain as the Treaty of San Ildefonso, signed in the same year, confirmed Portuguese sovereignty over all lands proceeding from its territorial expansion, thus creating most of the current Brazilian border.[citation needed]

During the invasion of Portugal (1807), the Portuguese royal family fled to Brazil, establishing Rio de Janeiro as the de facto capital of Portugal. This had the side effect of creating within Brazil many of the institutions required to exist as an independent state; most importantly, it freed Brazil to trade with other nations at will.[citation needed]

After Napoleon's army was finally defeated in 1815, in order to maintain the capital in Brazil and allay Brazilian fears of being returned to colonial status, King John VI of Portugal raised the de jure status of Brazil to an equal, integral part of a United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves, rather than a mere colony, a status which it enjoyed for the next seven years.

In 1820 the Constitutionalist Revolution erupted in Portugal. The movement initiated by the liberal constitutionalists resulted in the meeting of the Cortes (or Constituent Assembly), that would have to create the kingdom's first constitution.[2][3] The Cortes at the same time demanded the return of King Dom John VI, who had been living in Brazil since 1808, who elevated Brazil to a kingdom as part of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves in 1815 and who nominated his son and heir prince Dom Pedro as regent, to govern Brazil in his place on 7 March 1821.[4][5] The king left for Europe on 26 April, while Dom Pedro remained in Brazil governing it with the aid of the ministers of the Kingdom (Interior) and Foreign Affairs, of War, of Navy and of Finance.[6][7]

The Portuguese military officers headquartered in Brazil were completely sympathetic to the Constitutionalist movement in Portugal.[8] The main leader of the Portuguese officers, General Jorge de Avilez Zuzarte de Sousa Tavares forced the prince to dismiss and banish from the country the ministers of Kingdom and Finance. Both were loyal allies of Pedro, who had become a pawn in the hands of the military.[9] The humiliation suffered by the prince, who swore he would never yield to the pressure of the military again, would have a decisive influence on his abdication ten years later.[10] Meanwhile, on 30 September 1821, the Cortes approved a decree that subordinated the governments of the Brazilian provinces directly to Portugal. Prince Pedro became for all purposes only the governor of the Rio de Janeiro Province.[11][12] Other decrees that came after ordered his return to Europe and also extinguished the judicial courts created by JoÃ£o VI in 1808.[13][14]

Dissatisfaction over the Cortes measures among most residents in Brazil (both Brazilian-born and Portuguese-born) rose to a point that it soon became publicly known.[11] Two groups that opposed the Cortes' actions to gradually undermine the Brazilian sovereignty appeared: Liberals led by Joaquim Gonçalves Ledo (which had the support of the Freemasons) and the Bonifacians led by José Bonifácio de Andrada. Both factions had nothing in common in their goals for Brazil, with the sole exception of their desire to keep the country united with Portugal as a sovereign monarchy.[15]

The Portuguese deputies of the Cortes showed no respect towards the prince and openly mocked him.[16] And so the loyalty that Pedro had shown towards the Cortes gradually shifted to the Brazilian cause.[13] His wife, princess Leopoldina of Habsburg, favoured the Brazilian side and encouraged him to remain in the country[17] while the Liberals and Bonifacians made open representations. Pedro's reply came on 9 January 1822, who, according to newspapers, spoke: "As it is for the good of all and for the nation's general happiness, I am ready: Tell the people that I will stay".[18]

After Pedro's decision to defy the Cortes, around 2,000 men led by Jorge Avilez rioted before concentrating on mount Castelo, which was soon surrounded by 10,000 armed Brazilians, led by the Royal Police Guard.[19] Dom Pedro then "dismissed" the Portuguese commanding general and ordered him to remove his soldiers across the bay to Niterói, where they would await transport to Portugal.[20]

Jose Bonifácio was nominated minister of Kingdom and Foreign Affairs on 18 January 1822.[21] Bonifácio soon established a fatherlike relationship with Pedro, who began to consider the experienced statesman his greatest ally.[22] Gonçalves Ledo and the liberals tried to minimize the close relationship between Bonifácio and Pedro offering to the prince the title of Perpetual Defender of Brazil.[23][24] For the liberals, the meeting of a Constituent Assembly for Brazil was necessary, while the Bonifacians preferred that Pedro grant the constitution himself to avoid the possibility of similar anarchy to the one that occurred during the first years of the French Revolution.[23]

The prince acquiesced to the liberalsâ€™ desires and signed a decree on 3 June 1822 calling for the election of the deputies that would gather in the Constituent and Legislative General Assembly in Brazil.[24][25]

Pedro departed to São Paulo Province to secure the province's loyalty to the Brazilian cause. He reached its capital on 25 August and remained there until 5 September. While on his way back to Rio de Janeiro on 7 September he received mail from José Bonifácio and his wife, Leopoldina.[citation needed] The letter told him that the Cortes had annulled all acts from the Bonifácio cabinet, removed Pedro's remaining powers and ordered him to return to Portugal. It was clear that independence was the only option left. Pedro turned to his companions that included his Guard of Honor and spoke: "Friends, the Portuguese Cortes want to enslave and pursue us. From today on our relations are broken. No ties can unite us anymore" and continued after he pulled out his blue-white armband that symbolized Portugal: "Armbands off, soldiers. Hail to the independence, to freedom and to the separation of Brazil from Portugal!" He unsheathed his sword affirming that "For my blood, my honor, my God, I swear to give Brazil freedom," and later cried out: "Brazilians, Independence or death!". This event is remembered as "Cry of Ipiranga".[26]

Returning to the city of São Paulo on the night of 7 September 1822, Pedro and his companions announced the news of Brazilian independence from Portugal. The Prince was received with great popular celebration and was called not only "King of Brazil" but also "Emperor of Brazil".[27][28]

Pedro returned to Rio de Janeiro on 14 September and in the following days the liberals had spread pamphlets (written by Joaquim Gonçalves Ledo) that suggested the idea that the Prince should be acclaimed Constitutional Emperor.[27] On 17 September the President of the Municipal Chamber of Rio de Janeiro, Josė Clemente Pereira, sent to the other Chambers of the country the news that the Acclamation would occur in the anniversary of Pedro on 12 October.[29]

The official separation would only occur on 22 September 1822 in a letter written by Pedro to João VI. In it, Pedro still calls himself Prince Regent and his father is considered the King of the independent Brazil.[30][31] On 12 October 1822, in the Field of Santana (later known as Field of the Acclamation) Prince Pedro was acclaimed Dom Pedro I, Constitutional Emperor and Perpetual Defender of Brazil. It was at the same time the beginning of Pedro's reign and also of the Empire of Brazil.[32] However, the Emperor made it clear that although he accepted the emperorship, if João VI returned to Brazil he would step down from the throne in favor of his father.[33]

The reason for the imperial title was that the title of king would symbolically mean a continuation of the Portuguese dynastic tradition and perhaps of the feared absolutism, while the title of emperor derived from popular acclamation as in Ancient Rome or at least reigning through popular sanction as in the case of Napoleon. [34][35] On 1 December 1822, Pedro I was crowned and consecrated.[36]

But in spite of these fine words, the new flag and the Acclamation of Pedro as Constitutional Emperor, the authority of the new regime only extended to Rio de Janeiro, SÃ£o Paulo and the adjacent provinces. The rest of Brazil remained firmly under the control of Portuguese juntas and garrisons. It would take a war to put the whole of Brazil under Pedro's control. The fighting began with skirmishes between rival militias in 1822 and lasted until January 1824, when the last Portuguese garrisons and naval units surrendered or left the country.

Meanwhile the Imperial government had to create a regular Army and Navy. Forced enlistment was widespread, extending to foreign immigrants, and Brazil made use of slaves in militias, as well as freeing slaves to enlist them in army and navy. The campaigns on land and sea covered the vast territories of Bahia, Montevideo and Cisplatina, Grão-Pará. Maranhão, Pernambuco, Ceará and Piauí.

By 1822, Brazilian forces were firmly in control of Rio de Janeiro and the central area of Brazil. Loyal militias began insurrections in the aforementioned territories, but strong, and regularly reinforced Portuguese garrisons in the port cities of Salvador, Montevideo, São Luís and Belém continued to dominate the adjacent areas and to pose the threat of a reconquest that the irregular Brazilian militias and guerrilla forces, which were loosely besieging them by land supported by newly created units of the Brazilian army, would be unable to prevent.

For the Brazilians, the answer to this stalemate was to seize control of the sea. Fortunately, 11 former Portuguese warships, great and small, had fallen into Brazilian hands in Rio de Janeiro and these formed the basis of a new navy. The problem was manpower. The crews of these ships were largely Portuguese who were openly mutinous, and although many Portuguese naval officers had declared allegiance to Brazil their loyalty could not be relied on. The Brazilian Government solved the problem by recruiting 50 officers and 500 seamen in secret in London and Liverpool, many of them veterans of the Napoleonic Wars, and appointed the Thomas Cochrane as commander-in-chief.[37] On 1 April 1823, a Brazilian squadron 6 of ships sailed for Bahia. After an initial disappointing engagement with a superior Portuguese fleet, Cochrane blockaded Salvador. Deprived now of supplies and reinforcements by sea and besieged by the Brazilian army on land, on 2 July the Portuguese forces abandoned Bahia in a convoy of 90 ships. Leaving the frigate ‘Niteroi’ under Captain John Taylor to harry them to the coasts of Europe, Cochrane then sailed north to San Luis. There he tricked the Portuguese garrison into evacuating Maranhão by pretending that a huge Brazilian fleet and army were over the horizon. He then sent Captain John Pascoe Grenfell to play the same trick on the Portuguese in Belem do Para at the mouth of the Amazon. [38] By November 1823, the whole of the north of Brazil was under Brazilian control, and the following month, the demoralized Portuguese also evacuated Montevideo and the Cisplatine Province. By 1824, Brazil was free of all enemy troops and was ‘de facto’ independent. [39]

There are still today no reliable statistics[40] related to the numbers of, for example, the total of the war casualties. However based upon historical registration and contemporary reports of some battles of this war as well as upon the admitted numbers in similar fights that happened in these times around the globe, and considering how long the Brazilian independence war lasted (22 months), estimates of all killed in action on both sides are placed from around 5,700 to 6,200.

The last Portuguese soldiers left Brazil in 1824. A peace treaty recognizing Brazil's independence was drafted in summer 1825, and signed by Brazil and Portugal that autumn.


who played the little girl in all in the family

Stephanie Mills (born around 1969) was a character on the 1970s American television situation comedy All in the Family and the follow-up series, Archie Bunker's Place. She was portrayed by child actress Danielle Brisebois, who joined All in the Family in 1978. Brisebois continued in the role until Archie Bunker's Place ended its run in 1983.[citation needed]

Stephanie Mills (All in the Family)

Stephanie was introduced in the All in the Family's ninth-season premiere as the 9-year-old niece of Archie and Edith Bunker (although she was actually the daughter of Edith's step-cousin). Stephanie was abandoned at the doorstep of the Bunkers' home by her father Floyd Mills, a chronic alcoholic. Floyd was Edith's step-cousin from her aunt's second marriage. Stephanie's mother — Floyd's wife, Marilyn — had died some time earlier in a car accident.[citation needed]

Edith is more than delighted to take in Stephanie, but Archie is decidedly less so, especially since he was finally looking forward to some peace and quiet after his daughter and son-in-law, Gloria and Mike "Meathead" Stivic, moved to California. Eventually, Stephanie wins over Archie, and he grows to love her as his own daughter. She also appeared to hold liberal views in contrast with the conservative Archie. Shortly after moving in with the Bunkers, Stephanie reveals herself to be Jewish, something that at first upsets Archie. While he learns to live with Stephanie's religious beliefs, Archie was not stopped from making his usual bigoted remarks against Judaism from time to time. She eventually becomes a member of the Temple Beth Shalom.[[1]]  & Archie eventually joins the Temple just to help her and buys her a Star of David necklace.

Stephanie proved to be very talented as a singer and dancer, showcasing her talents on several episodes of All in the Family and Archie Bunker's Place. She once applied to a fine arts school (despite Archie's decidedly reluctant support), but she was turned down because of her less-than-stellar grades.[citation needed]

On several occasions, Stephanie's relatives tried to take Stephanie away from the Bunkers. Not long after Edith died, Stephanie's wealthy grandmother Estelle Harris (portrayed by Celeste Holm) sued Archie for custody, citing his bigoted attitudes and blue collar background. A judge sides with Archie, but grants Estelle liberal visitation rights. Stephanie's father Floyd (Ben Slack) also re-appears on occasion, asking to take his daughter back (in once instance, extorting money from Archie and Edith in exchange for allowing them to keep Stephanie); however, the Bunkers manage to foil him each time.[citation needed]

Stephanie first attended an unnamed elementary school and later Ditmars Junior High School. Her best friend (and sometimes rival) was classmate Amy Bloom (played by Seven Anne MacDonald).[citation needed]

In the latter years of Archie Bunker's Place, Stephanie would be one of two teenaged girls living under Archie's roof, the other being Archie's 18-year-old niece Barbara Lee "Billie" Bunker (portrayed by Denise Miller). Stephanie would also make fewer appearances during the final two seasons of the series.[citation needed]


who was elected president of chile in january 2006

A presidential election took place in Chile on Sunday, December 11, 2005. None of the four candidates received an absolute majority, thus a runoff election among the top two candidates —Michelle Bachelet from the Coalition of Parties for Democracy and Sebastián Piñera from National Renewal— was held on Sunday, January 15, 2006. Bachelet was victorious with 53.49% of the vote. She succeeded President Ricardo Lagos on March 11, 2006 for a period of four years, after Congress reformed the Constitution in September 2005 and reduced the term from six years.

Chilean presidential election, 2005–06

Ricardo Lagos
For Democracy

Michelle Bachelet
Socialist

The 2005 Chilean parliamentary election was held in conjunction with the presidential election.

Bachelet, who led in every major poll, served as Health Minister before President Lagos named her as Chile's first female Defense Minister in 2002. She was supported by the Coalition of Parties for Democracy, which has governed Chile since 1990. The coalition groups four parties: the Christian Democratic Party (PDC), the Party for Democracy (PPD), the Socialist Party (PS), and the Social Democrat Radical Party (PRSD).

Up until May 2005 two candidates vied for the coalition's nomination: Soledad Alvear (PDC) and Michelle Bachelet (PS). A primary was scheduled to be held on July 31, 2005 to choose the nominee. Political polls in Chile indicated that either candidate would trounce the right-wing Alliance nominee Joaquín Lavín in a two-person race. The political atmosphere changed, however, when another Alianza candidate came to the scene: businessman Sebastián Piñera from the center-right National Renewal. This led, among other reasons, to the withdrawal of Soledad Alvear from the Concertación nomination on May 24, 2005.

Hirsch, a Humanist, ran as his party's nominee for President for 1999 obtaining 0.5%. On this election he ran with the support of the political pact Together We Can Do More, which is made up mainly of the legally constituted Communist and Humanist parties plus other political groups and social organizations. In previous elections the candidates presented independently by the pact's parties were consistently in third place, behind the two major coalitions, and holding poll numbers in the single-digit level.

To elect a single candidate a national public survey was held on May 28, 2005. On June 5, 2005 an assembly elected Humanist Tomás Hirsch as their final candidate. Other pre-candidates included: Julián Alcayaga (Committee for the Defense of Copper) and Nicolás García (Block for Socialism). Two candidates withdrew before the survey and gave their support to Hirsch: Tomás Moulian (Communist) and Manuel Jacques (Christian Left). One candidate withdrew before the assembly: Jorge Pavez (Social Force).

Lavín ran as the Alliance's nominee for president in 1999, losing in a tight 2000 runoff to Lagos. Considered for a long time prior to the 2005 election as the Alliance's unique candidate, as the contest drew nearer, however, his public persona began to lose credibility, perhaps due to a mediocre mayorship of the Santiago municipality the previous years and his candidacy began to lose steam, to the point it was called into question. RN, the Alliance's other party decided to compete with Lavín with a candidate of their own (Piñera), breaking up the Alliance's unity in the election.

Piñera was proclaimed a candidate by its party on May 14, 2005. His nomination caused discomfort within the Independent Democratic Union (UDI—its fellow coalition party member), as both parties were supposed to support Lavín as the single coalition candidate. A primary proposed by UDI to elect a single candidate representing the Alliance was rejected by RN. Piñera's nomination was welcomed by the public and won quick support in opinion polls.

The independent Mapuche candidate Aucán Huilcamán registered his nomination on September 12, but it was rejected three days later by the Electoral Commission (Servicio Electoral) due to his failure to obtain the minimum number of signatures required by law for an independent candidacy. Huilcamán appealed using the argument that in the past parliamentary election there was a law created specifically to help the candidates of the Christian Democracy Party re-register their candidacies. After the support given to Huilcamán by other candidates, the government sent a bill to Congress, with immediate discussion, to extend the time of registration; a bill that would have also helped 17 other candidacies that were rejected by the Electoral Service. Nonetheless the bill was rejected by a lack of quorum, denying Huilcamán a possible place in the ballot.

Opinion polls released after Sebastián Piñera's entrance and Soledad Alvear's withdrawal showed Michelle Bachelet leading the right-wing candidates (Piñera and Joaquín Lavín) by a wide margin, but below the 50% plus 1 vote needed to win the election, a situation that would lead to a runoff in which, according to the same polls, she would comfortably defeat any of the two right-wing candidates. Some analysts commented that in some of these polls Bachelet would indeed have obtained an absolute majority in the first round, if blanks were discarded and undecided votes were evenly distributed among candidates. However, later opinion polls released nearer the election showed a decline of Bachelet in favor of Piñera and Tomás Hirsch, showing more clearly that the election would be decided in a runoff.

There were two scheduled debates, both including all four candidates. A third televised debate was dismissed by the respective campaign teams. However, during the second debate, TomÃ¡s Hirsch said he was open to a third debate.

The first debate, titled Foro Presidencial: Chile 2005, organized by the Latin American station CNN en Español and the local Canal 13, took place on October 19, at 10 p.m., at Espacio Riesco in Santiago. It ran for one hour, giving each candidate ten minutes to answer seven questions, giving priority to national issues. There was no studio audience. It was hosted by Glenda Umaña (CNN en Español) and Constanza Santa María (Canal 13).

The second debate took place on November 16, at 10 p.m., at the CasaPiedra venue in Santiago. It was organized by Anatel (National Television Association), and was broadcast by Canal 13, TVN, Megavisi贸n and Chilevisi贸n, with TVN in charge of production. Running for one hour and 40 minutes, a question was asked to each candidate by a panel of four journalists. The four candidates were seated behind desks on stage, instead of standing at podiums as they had done in the first debate.

The first government announcement regarding election results came at 6:30 p.m. local time (21:30 GMT), and included information from around 12% of polling stations counted. Subsequent preliminary results were announced during the day by the Interior Ministry undersecretary and published on a special Internet site. These results indicated that the election was to be decided in a runoff on January 15, 2006, in which Michelle Bachelet would face Sebastián Piñera. Official and final results, validated by the Electoral Tribunal (Tricel), were published on the Diario Oficial (official gazette) on December 27, 2005 and made the runoff election official.

On election day, at 9:30 p.m. local time, before the third preliminary results were announced, Joaquín Lavín conceded a second-place defeat in the election and said he would support Sebastián Piñera in the runoff election. Later in the day, JPM candidate Tomás Hirsch said he would nullify his vote in the upcoming runoff; an opinion which was objected by the pact's Communist wing, which said they would support Bachelet if five proposals delivered to her were accepted and incorporated into the candidate's government program; these proposals dealt with changing the electoral system and granting workers more rights.

Official and final results.

Source: Tricel (alternative source)

The first opinion poll released after the first-round, published by El Mercurio-Opina on December 18, had Bachelet with 42.8%, Piñera with 37.5% and 19.7% undecided. Later opinion polls showed similar results, except for one poll showing Piñera above Bachelet by 1%. The polls released showed on average that Bachelet maintained an advantage over Piñera above 5%, but with a large number of voters (18%) still undecided or that would not declare a preference. If this last percentage was removed from the vote, then Bachelet, the polls showed, would have won the presidency by a margin above 7%, which was accurate with the final results of the election.

Bachelet and Piñera held a televised debate on January 4, 2006, which was organized by Anatel and broadcast by the four main over-the-air television channels. A Time Research poll showed that Bachelet was the winner of the debate with 49%, against 41% for Piñera. On the other hand, another poll, by El Mercurio-Opina, showed that Piñera won the debate with 43.3% of the preferences against 42.9% for Bachelet.

Piñera offered Bachelet to hold a second debate before the election, to discuss regional issues, but this was rejected by Bachelet's campaign team. Bachelet also turned down a radio debate with Piñera.

The runoff election between Michelle Bachelet and Sebastián Piñera took place on January 15, 2006.

Final results were announced on January 30, 2006 by the Electoral Tribunal. They indicated that Michelle Bachelet won the presidency with 53.49% of the votes classified as valid, 51.98% of the total votes cast, and 45.28% support of registered voters.

Sebastián Piñera conceded defeat immediately following a government announcement made on election day that included results from 97.52% of polling stations counted.

Official and final results.

Source: Tricel (alternative source)