Top Stories

Uralican Dot-Com Stocks Explode

YEKATERINBURG - Just three days after Uralica got its first home-based internet servers, Uralican "dot-com" companies are already making waves in the Uralican stock market. UMSX reports that the largest jumps on the market at yesterday's close were UralTek, Uralika Telekom, ChristWeb, Techheadz, and Tsunami, all internet service providers (with the first two also providing service in other areas such as mobile and landline services).

To avoid any confusion as far as government sites were concerned, the movement of government sites to the new high-speed servers from secure out-of-country servers within the CCC (which will Uralica $34.95 per 100 gigabytes bandwidth per month) was not done all at once, but in waves. There was an unfortunate server glitch with www.arkhsev.unau.gov, the website of the Arkhangel'sk-Severodvinsk Unitary Authority, which caused some trouble with the move, however, the runner of the site, Mr. Ilya Serebrennikov, made the smart move of backing everything up offline before trying to move the site directly, so the site was re-uploaded within the day.

In the meantime, Dr. Esa Miettinen, Dean of Business and Chair of the Department of Economics at Uralikan Yliopisto, says he expects internet business to continue to surge for the next three or four months, and that this growth may push UralTek past Bolak Corp. as Uralica's most valuable company in terms of K$ value. He does point out, however, that Bolak's position within Uralica as a major employer will keep them close to the top if not on top for a "very long time."

Uralican News

Recent War Has Uralicans Thinking

SYKTYVKAR - in a recent poll done on the war involving Polaris and \m/, it seems Uralicans are pondering war more frequently.

Naturally, as an ex-CCC nation whose armed forces were taught largely by Polar officials, including Kunnianmitali winner KingRich, the vast majority of the people were in favour of Polaris' reasons (83.48%) and those not in favour voted "Get back to me on that," which accounts to an abstention.

However, the nation is also concerned about the safety of civilians in this time of battle, and 95.79% of Uralican citizens said that they have been more pensive about war in general, and 94% said they would be in favour of expanding the ERHDC (Emergency Relief and Human Development Corps) to assist civilians of more friendly and enemy nations during wartime.

Sports

Malakhov Mops Up On Ski Tracks

CHEREPOVETS - Dmitry Malakhov was a force to be reckon with on the cross-country tracks in Murmansk last week, winning five individual events and being part of four further winning team events in the Uralican Nordic Skiing Championships.

This was spread out between the cross-country and biathlon events.

INDIVIDUAL

*30 km pursuit

*15 km classical

*individual pursuit

*20 km Individual Biathlon

*12.5 km Biathlon Pursuit

TEAM

*Combined pursuit (he did the 15km section, Tauno Ristonen did the 10km section)

*Mixed Team Sprint (with wife Yevgeniya Malakhova)

*4X10km Relay

*4X7.5km Biathlon Relay

(OOC: times will come later.)

Already in Cherepovets, he has also won the 15km classical, however he came in second in the individual pursuit to Daniil Filipov.

Successful Nelonen Integration Means Larger 'Kilpi - Farkas

SYKTYVKAR - The Kanslerinkilpi will have two more rounds than Uralikan Palloliitto president Attila Farkas initially expected. These will take place in Uralica's retractable-roof stadiums starting in February, with the draw for the cup's qualifying round to take place on Saturday, according to the same in an interview yesterday.

"The incorporation of the Nelonen into the Liiga system has been so successful that these teams are ready to jump right in and play their first matches this season," Farkas said. "So we will include them in the Kanslerinkilpi this season, and re-do the qualifying round draw. All reserve teams and certain other teams will be included in a 288-team draw, which is necessary to whittle the number down from 656 to 512. Since the Nelonen has 384 teams, 96 teams - that is, six from each regional division - will be exempted from this draw and be permitted to start right in the first round proper. These teams will be picked soon."

These exempt teams were picked today before press time.

From Division A1 (Karelia): Dinamo Kostomuksha, Louhin Salamat, Rapid Sorokka, Spartak Aunus, Spartak Lahdenpohju, Zheleznik Segezha

From Division A2 (Sapmi): Dynamo Hiipinä, Montsan Palloklubi 2010, Rapid Kuálõk, Sapmi Käddluhtt, Spartak Kovdor, Zenit Polyarny

From Division B1 (Western Uralica): Dinamo Kharovsk, Nikol Nikolsk, Spartak Krasavino, Sporting Kimcheng, Totimaa Blues, Vychegda Irta

From Division B2 (Northwestern Uralica): Byelomorye Mezen, FK Tsiglomen', Mirnyy SK, Promyshlennik Isagorka, Spartak Kargopol, Yagry FK

From Division C1 (Southern Uralica): Dinamo Lashma, FK Torpoi, FK Vurnary, Torpedo Shumerlya, Torpedo Yavas, Zheleznik Insar

From Division C2 (Mari El): FK Ilet', FK Morki, FK Torjal, FK Turek, Lokomotiv Paranga, Sokol Medvedevo

From Divison D1 (Kirovski Rayon): Dinamo Käkshär, FK Sosnovka, FK Strizhi, Gornyak Belaya Kholunitsa, Transit Omutninsk, Transit Ürzhüm

From Division D2 (Komi-Menno): Dinamit Ezhva, FK Mikun, FK Yarega, Kortkeros Town, Northbank United, Torpedo Aykino

From Division E1 (Udmurtiya North): Fakel Town, FK Karsovay, FK Kilmez, FK Yashkur-Bodya, FK Zura, Novyy Town

From Division E2 (Udmurtiya South): Dinamo Oktyabrsky, FK Grakhovo, FK Nylga, Neftçi Ägerce, Torpedo Kiyasovo, Uva Hotspur

From Division F1 (Permski Rayon North): FK Krasnovishersk, FK Rodniki, Kama Usolye, Torpedo Gremyachinsk, Velocitas Dobryanka, Zavod Gornozavodsk

From Division F2 (Permski Rayon South): FK Barda, FK Kukushtan, FK Kuyeda, FK Suksin, Metallurg Osa, UB Chernushka

From Division G1 (Southeast Uralica East/Yekaterinburg): Asbest City, Fakel-Log United, FK Tugulym, Luch Zarechnyy, Transit Talitsa, Tura Turinsk

From Division G2 (Southeast Uralica West/Nizhny Tagil): FK Arti, FK Polevskoy, FK Sysert, FK Verkhny Tagil, Spartak Degtyarsk, Torpedo Novouralsk

From Division H1 (Ural West Slope): Dinamo Usinsk, FK Severouralsk, Neftekhimik Parma, Spartak Serov, Sporting Volchansk, Troitsko-Pechorskye Lesniki

From Division H2 (Yamalia/Yugra): Bumazhnik Pyt-Yakh, FK Langepas, Lyantor Town, Mansi SKFK (Nyagan), Spartak Urai, SPKFK Salyakharad

Preliminary draw will be done Saturday, followed by the main draw on Monday.

Tourism

Uralica Lauded For Being "Most Tourist-Friendly Nation In TOOL"

SYKTYVKAR - you can bet that the Uralican Tourism Board all had smiles on their faces this morning. Yesterday, TOOL Tourism dubbed their nation the "most tourist-friendly" in that alliance.

"It's really a great honour," said Jarkko Salomäki. "It also shows we've been doing the right things in the tourism sector and in general. The people here try to treat all foreigners with the same respect that they'd treat fellow Uralicans with, plus if you speak a major language of the world, there's a pretty good chance there's someone in the country that can translate stuff for you."

There are a few reasons Uralica got this prize from TOOL Tourism.

"First of all, there are so many things to see and do in Uralica, to list them would take thousands of pages of documentation," said the head of the TOOL Tourism board. "They've made a point of making sure that the older architecture that remains is kept up well, plus there are the newer buildings like the Kuik Tower at the Uralican World Trade Centre, the Kirovski Bashnya, the USMX building in Yekaterinburg, and Bolak Terminal at Kirov International Airport. The people are friendly and like to get you involved in their activities, especially where music is concerned. They have TOOL's best soccer league system. They have TOOL's best Olympic handball league system. They have TOOL's only single-nation Nordic Skiing tour. And some of the music bands and symphony orchestras there would blow your mind.

Second, their hospitality industry is amazing, and because hotels are subsidised in the country, they can offer lower prices for all hotels. Their 5-star and 4-star hotels are among the cheapest I've ever seen. It'll still set you back a fair bit, but it's maybe half of what I've seen in some nations.

I've heard from footy fans from both TOOL and other alliances that some hotels in the big soccer cities, like Syktyvkar, Y-Burg, Kirov, or Arkhangel'sk, offer free shuttle service to games.

Finally, the country has a lot of natural beauty to it, especially in the north and east of the nation. I was taken on a tour to the Virgin Komi Forests, and I was just in awe. I would recommend to any nature lover to go there, or at least up in Western Yugra where they have some superb national parks and nature preserves."

When asked what cities he would recommend visiting, he gave us a top ten.

"Okay, most large Uralican cities and a fair few of the smaller ones have something to do, but there are ten cities that you gotta go see.

1. Syktyvkar - the city just drips with culture. What isn't there to see in the nation's capital?

2. Viipuri - for you Finns, Estonians, and Russians, this one would be very convenient because it's right there. It's got so much Neo-Classical architecture that you won't know where to start scoping it all out.

3. Yekaterinburg - Uralica's largest and most modern city. They've done with it like they've done with Kirov, except Y-Burg is bigger, so it has more stuff to scope out.

4. Kirov - You arrive in this city and it's like stepping into something out of a science fiction movie or a futuristic video game. The industry there is some of the cleanest and most hi-tech stuff you'll ever see in a country like this. Plus the Kirov Square and the symphony orchestra alone are worth it.

5. Naryan-Mar - it might seem daunting to people who don't like the cold, but trust me, it's worth it. The Pechora Delta and the Polar Bear Tours are definitely worth the long trip.

6. Perm' - it's amazing what the Uralicans did with this city. It was analagous to turning a rotting corpse into the most beautiful person on the planet. The city was actually nearly abandoned after Great War III, but a project with literally half of Uralica working on it restored it to its former glory.

7. Hiipinä - If you like to ski, this city is for you. It offers every type of skiing imaginable.

8. Cheboksary - Ever been to The Zaliv? You should go in the summertime. It's really a great place to hang out, suntan, mingle, play a little frisbee or volleyball... it's a summer nut's paradise!

9. Chaykovsky - Beaches and Twinkies. 'Nuff said.

10. Nizhny Tagil - This city is called the "Technology Capital Of Uralica" for good reason - a lot of neat stuff is made here. UralTek Games HQ, though, is where the fun really is. If you're in Uralica and you're a hardcore gamer, visit Nizhny Tagil. You'll have a blast!"