EntertainmentVybz » Sports

Netherlands Hot in World Cup Action; Tiger Woods Pay $750 million settlement

Lady Mystery — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 16:15:57 +0000

The Netherlands just beat my team Brazil 2 – 1 and sent them packing. I can just guess the sweet taste on the lips of all the persons who actually bet that the Netherlands would beat Brazil. What an upset, who would have thought. Well I certainly don’t bet. All teams are there with one intention and that is to win. So who says Brazil is unbeatable. Congrats Netherlands, now that very important win should boost the teams ego to go all the way and win the finals. Okay let me wait and see.

Tiger Woods and wife Elin

In the meantime FOXNEWS is reporting that Tiger Woods is banned from letting girlfriends near his kids in a divorce deal netting his ex a record $750 million settlement, The Sun reported Wednesday.

The golfer agreed to keep single women away from daughter Sam, three, and son Charlie, one.

He can bring a new flame into their lives only if he marries her. In return, former wife Elin Nordegren ,30, gets the biggest payout ever seen in a celebrity divorce.

But she can never publicly speak out over his alleged flings with socialite Rachel Uchitel, reality star Jaimee Grubbs, porn queen Joslyn James and up to 17 others.

A pal said: “Elin is desperate to protect the children from the womanizing side of their father.

“Tiger’s main fear is her telling her story after he’s rebuilt his reputation, sending him back to the gutter.”

Swedish ex model Nordegren ended up with double the sum she originally sought, after her lawyers proved Woods, 34, was worth much more than the $1billion she thought.

Her friend explained: “Elin’s legal team have done a great job digging up all sorts of assets.

“The price of the huge sum is her silence: no interviews, tell-all books, or TV appearances about this for the rest of her life — even if Tiger dies first — or she’ll lose the lot.”

The friend said: “Everything’s signed. Elin is ready to file for divorce at Orlando County Court. She expects to in the next seven days.”

Nordegren gets sole physical custody of their kids but they will split legal custody.

That means Woods will share decisions about their future — so Nordegren will not be able to permanently relocate them to her native Sweden.

Woods — believed to be building a golf resort in Dubai and investing in the Bahamas — will be able to see the kids for up to half of each week.

He can renegotiate the custody agreement in five years.

The pal said: “Elin admits that despite everything, Tiger loves his kids and has been a decent dad.

“She is confident he will not pursue seeing the children that much, due to his work and lifestyle.”

Under the no-girlfriends deal, only married women not romantically linked to Woods will be allowed around the children — plus female members of staff known to Nordegren.

World Cup coverage expands on the Web, cell phones

Lady Mystery — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 14:01:32 +0000

NEW YORK AP – With games airing live on cell phones and computers, the World Cup will get more online coverage than any major sporting event yet. Watching highlights the next day on TV or YouTube will suddenly seem a downright ancient way to keep up with the action.

When the soccer tournament begins Friday, footy fans can follow the action from an array of mobile and Web applications and share in triumph and heartbreak across social media.

Walt Disney Co. networks ESPN and ABC, which are broadcasting the games in the U.S., will stream 54 games live on the newly launched ESPN3.com, formerly ESPN360. The games are free to those in the U.S. who get their Internet from a service provider affiliated with ESPN, including AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and many others. The 10 games that will air live on ABC won’t be available on ESPN3.com, but all 64 matches in the Cup will be available live on mobile devices to customers whose plans include TV on their phones.

Univision Communications has the Spanish-language broadcasting rights in the U.S., and it, too, will have games available on Univision.com and Univision Movil.

The digital coverage will be an especially important component for the World Cup because U.S. audiences will be watching many of the games — all being played in South Africa — during the day, possibly on their computers at work.

Comparing the digital experiences of the 2010 World Cup to the 2006 World Cup, Josh Kosner, senior vice president and general manager of ESPN Digital Media, said, “Things have changed utterly.”

“This is going to be the biggest and most powerful demonstration of this, and it’s just the start,” Kosner said. “It’s the play book, it’s the blueprint for what’s coming.”

NBC’s online coverage of the last Winter Olympics — also an international, daytime event — was extensive, drawing 45 million video streams. Traffic to NBCOlympics.com more than tripled from the 2006 Winter Games, with 45.7 million total visits compared to 13.3 million in 2006. That happened even though NBC held a lot of the footage for its prime-time broadcasts. ESPN expects worldwide online traffic for the World Cup to double or triple that of 2006.

The World Cup, a mixture of global and niche audiences — where some games mean much more to citizens of Honduras, for example — is particularly suited to the Internet. ESPN3.com, for example, will have the option to watch some games in either Portuguese, Arabic, German, Japanese or Korean.

The actual games are only part of the experience. Many media outlets have launched mobile applications, most of which feature live scores, news updates and some integration with Facebook or Twitter. Among them are apps from Fox Soccer Channel, The Associated Press, Goal.com, Mundial and many others.

ESPN has several, including an ESPN Radio app that gives live play-by-play audio. Turner Sports’ SportsNow app promises direct linking to Facebook and Twitter to facilitate “trash-talk directly from the app.”

Online interest in the World Cup has been building. The elaborate Nike World Cup commercial directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu has been watched by more than 13 million on YouTube since debuting on May 17.

For the past year, Akamai Technologies Inc., which delivers about 20 percent of the world’s Internet traffic, has been building its capability in anticipation of the World Cup. It expects traffic to be two or three times as heavy as what was measured during President Barack Obama’s inauguration — thus far, the high point for traffic volume at about 1 terabit, or 1 trillion bits of data, per second. (Higher-quality video is also a major factor in boosting volume.)

“It could well be another watershed event in terms of people understanding what is now possible to do with video online,” Akamai Chief Scientist Tom Leighton said. “This will draw a lot of people at once and that will cause people to be aware en masse that, hey, you can do some very cool things with video online that you can’t even do with broadcast right now.”

The World Cup is also shaping up to be a benchmark in the evolution of mobile TV, which is common in South Korea, growing in the rest of Asia, Africa and South America, but nascent in the U.S. and Europe. ESPN has partnered with AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, FLO TV and MobiTV to bring games to cell phones.

Any surge in bandwidth for live video could test those networks, which are already clogged. Just last week, AT&T announced that to ease congestion on its network, it would no longer offer unlimited Internet data plans for new smart-phone customers.

ESPN’s Kosner acknowledged that those with live TV on their mobile phones are still a “relatively small audience,” but predicted that the World Cup will be “a galvanizing event” for the capability.

Of course, technology is also being used for more quirky ends.

If you hurry, you can catch the final ticks to the World Cup Countdown app, which has simply been counting down to kickoff in South Africa since last year.

The Drinksin Footy Pubs 2010 app lets U.K. fans know the nearest pubs carrying the games. LiveSoccerTV.com, similarly, offers “soccer friendly” bars in the U.S.

Technology truly meets soccer enthusiasm in South Korea, where a World Cup iPhone app from KT Corp. includes a “glow stick mode” that lights up the screen with fluorescent colors when the phone is shaken — perfect for exuberant waving in South Africa or anywhere near a screen playing the games.

That still leaves one, essential question: Where’s Becks?

Fear not. David Beckham, the dashing British wingman, has signed on with Yahoo Inc. as its “global football ambassador.” Along with its extensive Cup coverage (which includes a toolbar just for updates and scores), Yahoo will offer a Beckham channel to share the midfielder’s thoughts on the Cup.

___

Associated Press Writer Sangwon Yoon in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.

Reduced Hydel team to defend BIGGA/JISA Prep School Champs

Lady Mystery — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 15:59:17 +0000

The 33rd Bigga/JISA Inter Prep Schools Track & Field Championship runs off tomorrow at the National Stadium with the first event being the 400M Class 1 Boys at 8:30 am. The three-day meet will end on Saturday, June 5 with the 4x200M Open Boys. There will be three finals tomorrow High Jump CI and CII boys, and Long Jump CII girls.

Defending champion Hydel Prep with a reduced (over last year’s 68) contingent of 41 athletes are expected to retain their title in both the boys and girls categories but not without a fight from the other 51 schools who will battle them for top honours. IAAF Level 11 coach Corey Bennett – head coach at Hydel, was unsure about retaining the championship though. He said “Hopefully we will end up in the top two or three. We see this year as re-building year, added to the fact that our preparation was negatively affected by last week’s disturbances”. He however indicated the some of the athletes to look out for are Bejour Russell CII 100M and 150M; Chanice Ricketts CI 300M and 150M and Atatia Parkes CI 100M and Long Jump.

Last year’s second place school Vaz Prep boasts total of 60 athletes. Coach Carol Simpson is expecting the school to do well this year. Three athletes were singled out to deliver good performances, they are Vashon Lynch CI 300M; Yashawn Hamilton CII 100M and 80M; and Mario Heslop CII 100 and 80M.

Third place Lannaman’s Prep entered 55 athletes and are also looking to challenge the leaders this year. They are looking for their top athletes to do well on the track. The following were specially mentioned Rene Brown CI 100M and 150M; Aika Tomlinson CII 60M and 100M and; David Collins CII 100M and 150M.

The three new schools are Valley Christian Ministries Prep, Little Angels Child Development Centre Prep and Sacred Heart Academy. The total number of athletes who will take to the track during the championship amounts to 966 girls and 1,011 boys, for a combined total of 1,977 athletes.

There will be 34 events across all classes this year: 6 in Class III, 12 in Class II and 16 in Class I. The maximum number of events per athlete will be 4 while there will be only two individual events, therefore each athlete will be allowed to do a maximum of two individual events and two relays. There will be shuttle and baton relays. Electronic timing as well as photo finish will be used while the wind gage will be utilized in order to conform to international standards.

Competition director Bruce James announced at the launch on Tuesday that while the IAAF rules will apply, the no false start rule will not used at this year’s meet as the organizers feel that it’s more important for the athletes to participate in the meet than observe the rules at this time.

Coca-Cola and FIFA Give Teens Chance To Visit South Africa

Lady Mystery — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 23:28:06 +0000

Kingston, Jamaica (ACE Communications) — The 60-year-union between Coca-Cola and FIFA has been nothing short of creative and trailblazing since Coca-Cola ‘s days of merely advertising at every FIFA World Cup in 1950. So successful has it been, that their offsprings (football fans and Coca-Cola consumers), will benefit from the perfectly blissful union.

This year, the majestic duo has scored a landmark goal by embarking on a FIFA promotion that will leave Jamaican tongues wagging for months to come. As the longest-standing corporate partner of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), Coca-Cola has gained exclusive rights to retain 12 Jamaican students between the ages of 12-16 to travel to South Africa to become official flag bearers at the opening ceremony for the World Cup.

Unbelievable, but true. Teens can now step away from their Wii consuls and experience the action live in South Africa. The 12 lucky students will get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to explore the African Safari, play games, visit sites, and ofcourse be a flag bearer for one of his/her favourite football teams while millions look on and cheer – all for free. Again, incredible, but true. The four days and three nights will be nothing short of exciting for the young minds.

The trip which is endorsed by the Jamaican Ministry of Education is guaranteed to be a safe one for the students, so parents and guardians can rest assured that the children will be heavily supervised by chaperones and security at all times for the duration of their trip.

Chris Hardy, Coca-Cola ‘s Country Manager says, “We have referred to the Coca-Cola /FIFA experience as a union and our patrons and supporters as our children because that is how we feel. Coca-Cola has had a formal association with FIFA since 1974 until we officially started sponsoring the event in 1978 and I think being a part of a venture for more than half a century says something about our word being our bond and our dedication to our consumers.”

“When we came up with this promotion we explored it from every angle and we have made sure that everything will be in place the moment the teens step on the plane to the moment they return to the island. In fact, I think we have gone a bit overboard with the chaperones and security, but we want to ensure that our students are safe. That’s top priority for us, though we also want them to learn, have fun and be a part of the International Coca-Cola and World Cup experience in Africa,” concluded Hardy.

All the students, ages 12-16 years old will need to do is purchase either a Coca-Cola Classic, Coke Zero or Coke Light and write their name, age, school and the name of the host country on the back of the label(s), then drop them off at any of the selected locations across the island. It’s that simple. The students are allowed to enter as many times as they wish, and all expenses for the trip will be taken care of by Coca-Cola . The draw takes place April 27.

ESPN reporter’s stalker gets 30 months in prison

Lady Mystery — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:29:20 +0000

Michael David Barrett,

LOS ANGELES – ESPN reporter Erin Andrews says her ordeal at the hands of a video stalker still haunts her every time she steps into a hotel room, wondering if someone is in the next room waiting to invade her privacy with a hidden camera.

Andrews spoke Monday just after the Illinois insurance executive who acknowledged shooting videos of her naked through hotel peepholes received a 2 1/2 year federal prison sentence.

“I’m at the angry stage. I’m mad,” a tearful Andrews told reporters outside court. “Thirty months isn’t enough.”

Michael David Barrett, 48, pleaded guilty in December to interstate stalking in the case. Prosecutors had accused him of following Andrews to at least three cities and then posting the videos of her on the Internet.

U.S. District Judge Manuel Real, who sentenced Barrett, gave him a longer term than the 27 months agreed to in a plea bargain. He said 30 months was the maximum he could impose under court guidelines.

“The victim, Andrews, will be suffering with this problem for the rest of her life,” Real said. “There is no life sentence that can be imposed upon him, except his own guilt.”

Her lawyer, Marshall Grossman, said there could be more charges forthcoming in other districts involving additional women who were stalked by Barrett. He gave no specific details.

A sentencing memo filed last month in federal court says Barrett uploaded videos of 16 other women to an online account.

Barrett also allegedly conducted 30 Internet background checks that can produce birthdays and home addresses, the document said. The filing did not name the other alleged victims or say what information he obtained or how he may have used it.

The scene in court was emotional with both defendant and victim in tears as they made separate speeches. Barrett apologized and Andrews scoffed at the apology.

“He’s tremendously remorseful and broken by what he’s done,” said Barrett’s attorney, David Willingham. He said Barrett has sought psychological treatment and is trying to get back on the right path.

“There are no words to tell Ms. Andrews how sorry I am for what I’ve done to her,” Barrett said. “I hope someday she can forgive me.”

Willingham said Barrett has lost his career, his fiancee and his life savings.

“There’s the public humiliation he suffered and yes, he brought that on himself.”

Andrews shot back: “He says he’s suffering public humiliation? I’m suffering public humiliation.”

She added that her body is on display on the Internet, where Barrett’s video clips have been posted and have made her a victim day after day.

“This will never be over for me,” she said.

She turned to Barrett and said, “You violated me and you violated all women. You are a sexual predator, a sexual deviant and they should lock you up.”

Her father, Steve Andrews, who could not be in court, sent a letter which was read to the judge by her lawyer.

Andrews said his entire family had suffered the ordeal and that Erin’s sense of security was destroyed. Barrett deserves to be locked up for as long as the video run on the Internet, he said.

“He hunted and terrorized her,” Andrews said. “His behavior forced Erin into a virtual state of hiding for eight months. She has lived as a virtual recluse.”

Grossman said he is having success trying to stop the video from further dissemination but said it will never be totally eradicated.

Outside court, Andrews said that in spite of the strain, she never missed a day of work as a sports sideline reporter for ESPN. She recently signed up to compete on the TV show, “Dancing With the Stars.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said of her decision to do the show. “I want to smile and live my life.”

She said she had been contacted about the show before the stalking occurred, but declined until the case was completed.

Barrett, who has until May 3 to surrender, was ordered to have supervised probation for three years after his release. He is prohibited from contacting Andrews, her family or friends and will not be allowed to stay in a hotel without approval of a probation officer. If he accepts employment somewhere, Andrews will be notified.

Barrett was also ordered to pay $5,000 in fines and $7,366 in restitution, but the judge said further restitution may be imposed to compensate ESPN.

Grossman said the network spent between $300,000 and $400,000 on lawyers and security guards for Andrews.

4th MILO Central Champs runs off tomorrow

Lady Mystery — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:24:16 +0000

by: Trudy Williams

The 4th MILO Central Champs runs off tomorrow at the GC Foster College in St. Catherine with a record forty (40) schools including two new ones (Ascott High and Hydel High). The two day meet – Thursday and Friday, March 11 and 12 – will begin at 9:30 am each day and will feature defending champions Holmwood Technical (girls) and St. Jago High (boys).

The top five schools last year were: Girls – Holmwood, Vere Technical, Edwin Allen, Manchester High and Bellfield while the top five boys schools were: St. Jago, Holmwood, Claude McKay, Edwin Allen and Vere Technical.

Jerry Holness, meet director and coach of Manchester High indicated that this year’s championship will see high quality competition as the top five girls schools nationally all hail from the central region. In the boys section, St. Jago is expected to be the runaway winner based on their current form and the fact the last year they won by a big margin over second place Holmwood last year.

He also mentioned some of the young athletes to look out for this year including Jenieve Russell and Chris-Ann Gordon from Holmwood; Shericka Jackson from Vere; sisters Nikita and Ristananna Tracey and from Edwin Allen; Natoya Goule and Sandrae Farquharson from Manchester High; Kemoy Campbell from Bellfield High and Kemar Bailey-Cole from Old Harbour High.

The first event on the track on day one will be the 400M Hurdles Open for boys and girls while the meet will end with the 4x400M Relays for boys and girls.

MILO Central Champs 2010 launched

Lady Mystery — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 22:11:01 +0000

The 4th staging of MILO Central Champs was launched today (Thursday, March 4) at the Tropics View Hotel in Mandeville. Meet organizer Jerry Holness announced that the meet will be held at GC Foster College next Thursday and Friday (March 11 and 12) beginning at 9:30 am each day. He spoke about the importance of staging MILO Central Champs to the region and that it represents a good indication of how the girls’ teams will perform at Champs.

He also spoke about the continuing domination of the central region in the girl’s category at Champs and that it will be no different at ‘Champs 100’ later this month. To support his point, Holness pointed to the fact that schools in the central region won Girls Champs a total of 37 times – more than any other region, with Vere Technical – 23 times and 15 straight wins, Holmwood – seven times (straight wins), St. Jago High – four times and Manchester High – 3 times.

He also said that the region had produced more national representatives the any other region. This year the entire team to the NACAC Cross Country Championship in Trinidad that left the island today come out of the central region. Additionally the technical leader (Jerry Holness) and about half of the team to the IAAF Indoor Championship in Doha next week is made up of central region athletes.

Looking to this year’s championship Holness mentioned some of the young athletes to look out for this year including Jenieve Russell and Chris-Ann Gordon from Holmwood; Shericka Jackson from Vere; sisters Nikita and Ristananna Tracey and from Edwin Allen; Natoya Goule and Sandrae Farquharson from Manchester High; Kemoy Campbell from Bellfield High and Kemar Bailey-Cole from Old Harbour High.

Holmwood and St. Jago are the defending champions in the girl’s and boy’s sections respectively. The championship is expected to be highly contested once more with the top five girls schools nationally who all hail from the region, namely Holmwood, Vere, Edwin Allen, Manchester High and St. Jago. In the boys section, St. Jago is expected to be the runaway winner based on their current form and the fact the last year they won by a big margin over second place Holmwood last year.

Forty schools will contest the championship this year with Ascott and Hydel being the new schools.

The first event on the track on day one will be the 400M Hurdles Open for boys and girls while the meet will end with the 4x400M Relays for boys and girls.

Suzanne Wilson-Wong, Consumer Marketing Manager at Nestle with responsibility for MILO announced that MILO will again sponsor MILO Central Champs this year. She said that the sponsorship covers a direct cash payment to the organizers plus purchase of all the medals, the launch as well as the cost to promote the championship among other costs such as gift baskets to all winners. Additionally, she confirmed that MILO will continue to sponsor the event as it represents the company’s commitment to the region dubbed the ‘powerhouse region of athletics in Jamaica’.

Immediately following the launch, MILO hosted a MILO Sports Nutrition & Lifestyle Clinic which focused on the importance of good nutrition to the desired performance by athletes on the track.

Hilary Duff engaged to NHL player

Lady Mystery — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 15:28:49 +0000

EDMONTON, Alberta – Actress and singer Hilary Duff, who had a recurring guest role on the popular CW series last season, is engaged to Edmonton Oilers forward Mike Comrie.

Publicist Nanci Ryder says the two were engaged last weekend while vacationing in Hawaii. She says in an e-mail distributed by the Oilers on Friday that the two “are very excited to share this happy news.”

The proposal comes during the NHL’s two-week break for the Olympics.

The 22-year-old Duff and 29-year-old Comrie had been dating for over two years.

Katy Perry found out about Russell Brand’s proposal on Google

Bolt Pens £2-m book deal

Lady Mystery — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 14:59:30 +0000

JAMAICA’S triple Olympic and World Championships gold medallist Usain Bolt has inked a book deal with HarperSport, valued at a whopping £2 million. According to a report published by insidethegames, the two-book deal, which was announced yesterday, will include an autobiography shortly after the London 2012 Games.

Jonathan Taylor, the publishing director of Harper NonFiction, bought world rights in a deal brokered with Bolt’s representatives by Chris Nathaniel of NVA Management.

“Welcoming Usain into the HarperSport fold is a huge thrill and a real privilege. He is the most iconic sports star on the planet and our global publishing plans for him are exciting and extensive,” Taylor said.

The first book will be an illustrated title, due to be published in October 2010.

Described as “an illustrative narrative celebration”, it will look at Bolt’s record-breaking career to date, his Caribbean roots and what inspires and motivates him.

The second book will be a full-length autobiography, which will be published in autumn 2012, shortly after London, where he is set to be the star of the Games.

The back-to-back 2008 and 2009 IAAF Male Athlete of the Year burst onto the scene at the 2002 World Junior Championships in Kingston when he became the youngest ever winner of the 200 metres. He was 15.

But it was at 2008 Beijing Olympics where Bolt really made his mark, claiming gold medals in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m, setting worlds record in all three events.

At last summer’s World Championships in Berlin, the tall sprinter improved his marks in the 100 and 200m, setting times of 9.58sec and 19.19sec, respectively.

The 23-year-old was also a member of the Jamaican 4x100m relay team that won the gold medal.

Bolt, who opened his 2010 season last Saturday at the sixth Camperdown Classic with 45.87 in the 400m, was happy with the deal.

“I’m delighted to be publishing my two books with the guys at HarperCollins and I’m determined to give my fans all over the world a great insight into me and my life,” Bolt said.

Source: Jamaica Observer

Tiger Woods emotionally apologises for infidelity

Lady Mystery — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 00:03:58 +0000

Tiger Woods and wife Elin

BBC SPORTS A tearful Tiger Woods has made a frank apology for cheating on his wife.

The world number one golfer was talking publicly for the first time since the scandal surrounding his private life erupted in late November last year.

“I was unfaithful, I had affairs and I cheated. What I did was unacceptable,” said the 14-time major winner.

The 34-year-old added: “I hurt my wife, my kids, my mother, my wife’s family, my friends, my foundation and kids all around the world who admired me.”

Woods said he did not rule out returning to golf this year but indicated he did not as yet have a date, adding he would be undergoing further therapy for his problems on Saturday.

“I do plan to return to golf one day,” said the American. “I just don’t know when that day will be.

“I don’t rule out that it will be this year. When I do return I need to make my behaviour more respectful to the game.”

Friday’s media event at PGA Tour headquarters at the TPC Sawgrass clubhouse in Florida was tightly controlled, with only a few journalists allowed access.

Woods spoke for more than 13 minutes, addressing about 40 people in the room, including his mother, friends, colleagues and close associates. His wife, Elin, was not present.

Addressing his personal issues, Woods said: “I am the only person to blame. I stopped living by the core values I was taught to believe in.

“I knew my actions were wrong but I convinced myself that normal rules didn’t apply. I never thought about who I was hurting, instead I thought only about myself. I ran straight through the boundaries a married couple should live by.

“I thought I could get away with whatever I wanted to. I felt that I had worked hard my entire life and deserved to enjoy all the temptations around me. I felt I was entitled, and thanks to money and fame, I didn’t have to go far to find them.

“I was wrong and I was foolish.”

Woods claimed therapy had helped him start to deal with his problems and vowed there would be no repeat of his infidelities.

“I’ve had a lot of time to think about what I’ve done,” he continued.

“My failures have made me look at myself in a way I’ve never wanted to before. It’s now up to me to make amends. And that starts by never repeating the mistakes I’ve made.

“It’s up to me to start living a life of integrity. It’s hard to admit that I need help but I do.

“For 45 days from the end of December to early February I was in in-patient therapy receiving guidance for the issues I’m facing. I have a long way to go. I have taken my first steps in the right direction.”

Woods said he and his wife were attempting to work through their problems and made an appeal for privacy.

“I know people want to find out how I could be so selfish and so foolish,” he continued.

“People want to know how I could have done these things to my wife, Elin, and to my children. And, while I have always tried to be a private person, there are some things I want to say.

“Elin and I have started the process of discussing the damage caused by my behaviour. We have a lot to discuss and what we say to each other will remain between the two of us.”

Woods also vehemently denied allegations his car crash was caused after Elin attempted to attack him with a golf club following revelations about his affairs.

“I have a lot to atone for but there’s one issue I really want to discuss,” he said. “Some people have speculated that Elin somehow hurt or attacked me on Thanksgiving night.

“It angers me that people would fabricate a story like that. Elin never hit me that night or any other night. There has never been an episode of domestic violence in our marriage.

“Elin has shown enormous grace and poise throughout this ordeal. Elin deserves praise not blame.”

Woods also expressed his gratitude for the messages of support he and his wife have received.

“In recent weeks I have received many thousands of emails, letters and phone calls from people expressing good wishes,” he said.

“To everyone who has reached out to me and my family, thank you. Your encouragement means the world to Elin and me.

“I want to thank the PGA Tour, commissioner (Tim) Finchem and the players for their patience and understanding while I work on my private life. I look forward to seeing my fellow players on the course.

“Finally, there are many people in this room and there are many people at home who believed in me. I want to ask for your help. I ask you to find room in your heart to one day believe in me again.”

Woods then embraced his mother as he left the stage.

Shocking revelations about his infidelity were triggered after he was injured when he crashed his car into a fire hydrant and a tree near his Florida home on 27 November.

Two days later, he released a statement in which he said the issue involved was “private … and I want to keep it that way”.

After missing his own tournament, the Chevron World Challenge, he released a statement following persistent allegations over extra-marital affairs.

At the time a statement to his website read: “I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart.”

Amid continued allegations of affairs, several high-profile sponsors announced they were ending their links with Woods.

A further statement in which he admitted his “infidelity” followed but this month speculation of his return to golf heightened ahead of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Arizona.

On Tuesday, it was announced Woods would make a statement on Friday but the timing – during a tournament backed by one of his former sponsors – was criticised by several leading figures in the game, among them Ernie Els and Sergio Garcia.

Woods said, however, that the timing of his apology was to allow him to return to therapy on Saturday.