The Caucasian Challenge

www.caucasianchallenge.com

A road trip in an old school Russian car from Budapest to Yerevan? This should be fun!!

site update

Good news... I've taken the sites off the market - my news stirred some conversation with a good friend and we've talked a good deal about what the sites need and what ideas we have for the sites. He has the perfect setup to give the sites a lot of dedicated attention. Keep your eyes peeled for lots of good things to come :-)

Farewell Blog

It's been quite a while since I last blogged here, and from the looks of things, Cilicia.com may be changing ownership at some point. Having read Raffi Kojian's cyber "for sale" sign on the Cilicia.com site, this may be as good a time as any to say goodbye to blogging.

So, I want to publicly thank Raffi K. for giving me the opportunity and forum to write whatever I wanted on this blog since June 2001. I've enjoyed sharing my thoughts and meeting others through the experience.

2008 has been an interesting turning point for me personally and professionally. I have jumped back into the corporate world while still maintaining Pomegranate and YerazArt projects. My wife and I are contemplating a move from Boston to a destination that I have always had a passion for in the United States. We'll see how that comes through. Thinking about becoming parents sometime soon. I haven't been to Armenia since 2006, although I try to keep up through the blogs and personal/professional contacts.

Nearing 40 in a few years, it's time to move on to the next stage in life. So, thanks again to the Cilicia.com bloggers and readers for your comments and input over the years. I hope to catch you at a concert sometime soon...- Raffi Meneshian

Photo: White Sands National Park- Alamagordo, New Mexico 2006

"Swedish" wrestler throws away his medal!

Speaking of wrestlers, this is hilarious! (And not just the part about Ara being "Swedish"!)

(CNN) -- Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian threw away the bronze medal he won in the Greco-Roman category in disgust in a protest over judging in his semifinal bout.

Abrahamian was beaten in the 84 kg class by eventual gold medal winner Andrea Minguzzi of Italy but was disgusted by the verdict, shouting at the referee before confronting the judges. The Athens silver medal winner had to be restrained by teammates and later went on to win a bronze medal match.

But the row continued at the medal ceremony as he only grudgingly mounted the podium and after receiving his medal made a point of taking it off and leaving it in the center of the competition mat.

Swedish fans in the arena disagreed strongly with the original decision, jeering the judges, while coach Leo Myllari also weighed in.

"It's all politics," he said.

The medal was later returned to the sport's governing body.

Armenia #1 in the Olympics!!

The LA Times has a good story about the top ranking countries in Olympic medals... per capita. I have thought before about how high Armenia would rank if only things were measured per capita (it would have won this year's Eurovision for example if Eurovision votes had been weighed in relation to the population of the countries voting).

So Armenia, with 4 bronze medals so far, comes in at #1 with a medal for every something like 750,000 people. Then comes Georgia, then Australia.

Not bad for such a little country. Anyone who gets a gold for Armenia will be given $766,000 in prizes by the Armenian government ($66,000) and Dodi Gago ($700,000).