Bulgaria's Pironkova serves up surprise at Wimbledon

28/06/2006

Tzvetana Pironkova, 18, upset Germany's Anna-Lena Groenefeld at the Wimbledon tournament and moves to the second round. Also in cultural and sports news: a historic mosque is being rebuilt in Banja Luka, ancient and modern sculpture goes display in Greece, and Turkish pop star Tarkan plans a show in Romania.

Tzvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria battles Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany during day two of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships in London. [Getty Images]

Tzvetana Pironkova, the 18-year-old tennis sensation from Bulgaria, pulled off an upset in the first round of Wimbledon, defeating Germany's Anna-Lena Groenefeld. Despite losing the first set, Pironkova turned things around and ultimately won the match (3-6, 6-3, 6-1). She now faces Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.

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Albanian and Italian archaeologists will start excavation work this week at the ancient Roman amphitheatre in Durres, Albania, with the goal of uncovering the entire structure. The dig is part of a 25,000-euro project to establish an archaeological park at the site.

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Republika Srpska Minister for Refugees and Displaced Persons Omer Brankovic said reconstruction work has begun at Banja Luka's Ferhadija mosque, which was destroyed during the Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) conflict. The mosque, dating back to the 16th century, is listed as a national monument of BiH.

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A new permanent exhibition of Greek and foreign sculpture art opened at the National Glyptotheque of Greece in Athens. Visitors can view over 150 works of Greek sculpture from the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as works by contemporary artists such as Santiago Calatrava and Rene Magritte.

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Turkish pop star Tarkan plans a concert in Bucharest on 12 July. The show is part of a regional tour promoting his third album, "Come Closer". Tarkan's previous album, "Aacayipsin", sold two million copies in Turkey and abroad.

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The 12th INFANT Festival of Alternative and New Theatre started in Novi Sad, Serbia on 24 June and will continue through the end of the month. Ten theatre troupes from Belgium, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Serbia and South Korea are participating.

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Turkish designer Umit Unal presented his latest collection, "Karl Valentin" (Autumn-Winter 07), in Sofia on 22 June. Marking the occasion, Bulgarian models took part in an avant-garde show held at a studio in the capital.

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Shooting of the short film "Most" ("Bridge") by the young Bosnian director and actor Haris Bilajbegovic began on 23 June. The movie looks back at events in May 1992, when 13 Bosniak civilians -- including the director's grandfather -- were shot dead by the Serb military. The film is being co produced by two Austrian companies, Illuminati Film and Filmhaus Wien, with the support of the Sanski Most municipality.

(Various sources – 21/06/06-28/06/06)