Infostrada Databox: July 2007  

Tour de France

> The Tour de France (pictured right courtesy of Getty Images Sport/Dominique Faget/AFP), is the world’s most prestigious cycling race and takes place each year in July.
> The inaugural Tour de France was staged in 1903 and was won by Frenchman Maurice Garin.
> Holland’s Joop Zoetemelk holds the record for most Tour starts and finishes at 16.
> In 2005, the US’ Lance Armstrong won a record seventh Tour de France.
> 189 riders started the 2007 Tour that takes the pack through England, Belgium, France and Spain.

Croke Park

> Croke Park is the largest stadium in Ireland with a capacity of 82,500.
> It is primarily used for Gaelic sports such as Gaelic Football and Hurling.
> In 1920, the stadium was the scene of a massacre which left 14 people dead.
> British Army auxiliaries shot indiscriminately into the crowd during a Gaelic football match.
> In March 2007, Ireland beat Wales 1-0 in the first ever football [soccer] match at Croke Park.

Rugby World Cup

> The 2007 Rugby [Union] World Cup will be the sixth edition of the competition.
> Australia (1991, 1999) is the only country to have won the Rugby World Cup more than once.
> New Zealand (1987), South Africa (1995) and England (2003) are the other winners.
> The last three World Cup finals have all been lost by the team scoring first.
> Australia’s 142-0 victory against Namibia in 2003 is the biggest World Cup victory.

LA Galaxy

> The Los Angeles Galaxy is a professional soccer club and is a part of the USA’s Major League Soccer.
> The Galaxy was among the 10 founding members of the league that kicked off in 1996.
> The team plays its home matches at The Home Depot Center, which has a 27,000 capacity.
> The Galaxy has been crowned league champion twice, in 2002 and 2005.
> In 2007, David Beckham (pictured right courtesy of Getty Images Sport/Shaun Botterill), signed with the LA Galaxy after a four season spell at Real Madrid.

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