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UK COVID-19 variant has significantly higher death rate, study finds

LONDON — A highly infectious variant of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that has spread around the world since it was first discovered in Britain late last year is between 30% and 100% more deadly than previous dominant variants, researchers said on Wednesday.

In a study that compared death rates among people in Britain infected with the new SARS-CoV-2 variant — known as B.1.1.7 — against those infected with other variants of the COVID-19-causing virus, scientists said the new variant’s mortality rate was “significantly higher.”

The B.1.1.7 variant was first detected in Britain in Sept. 2020, and has since also been found in more than 100 other countries.

It has 23 mutations in its genetic code — a relatively high number — and some of them have made it far more easily spread. Scientists say it is about 40%-70% more transmissible than previous dominant variants that were circulating.

In the UK study, published in the British Medical Journal on Wednesday, infection with the new variant led to 227 deaths in a sample of 54,906 COVID-19 patients, compared with 141 among the same number of patients infected with other variants.

“Coupled with its ability to spread rapidly, this makes B.1.1.7 a threat that should be taken seriously,” said Robert Challen, a researcher at Exeter University who co-led the research.

Independent experts said this study’s findings add to previous preliminary evidence linking infection with the B.1.1.7 virus variant with an increased risk of dying from COVID-19.

Initial findings from the study were presented to the UK government earlier this year, along with other research, by experts on its New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group, or NERVTAG, panel.

Lawrence Young, a virologist and professor of molecular oncology at Warwick University, said the precise mechanisms behind the higher death rate of the B.1.1.7 variant were still not clear, but “could be related to higher levels of virus replication as well as increased transmissibility.”

He warned that the UK variant was likely fueling a recent surge in infections across Europe. — Reuters

Roblox creator’s wealth soars to $4.6B as shares rise

ROBLOX CORP.’s users can create virtual worlds to fend off zombies or scuba dive for hidden treasure, with makers of the most popular games earning enough to become millionaires.

Roblox co-founder David Baszucki — known on the site as “builderman” — has made the most from the online gaming platform. His stake in the company is now worth about $4.6 billion after the company’s shares soared more than 50% in their first day of trading.

“We love the direct listing for Roblox, because we’re all going to come together and that first trade is going to be at the same price for everyone,” Mr. Baszucki said Wednesday in an interview with Bloomberg Television.

Roblox’s user numbers have boomed during the pandemic, but the San Mateo, California-based company now faces an uncertain outlook as the children and teenagers who flocked to it while stuck at home return to school. That’s pushing Mr. Baszucki, Roblox’s chief executive officer, to transform the company into a social meeting place for kids and adults alike.

“Our vision of the future is really connecting the world on the Roblox platform, and allowing you to connect with people,” Mr. Baszucki, 58, said at the annual Roblox Developers Conference in July.

A Stanford University graduate with a degree in electrical engineering, Mr. Baszucki founded Roblox in 2004 with Erik Cassel after the pair developed educational software for teaching physics. Mr. Cassel died in 2013.

Mr. Baszucki participated in shares sales to third parties before Roblox’s listing that were potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Last year, he registered the Baszucki Family Office in California, which is managed by a trust that holds about half of his 12% stake in Roblox.

Mr. Baszucki will receive an additional 11.5 million shares of Roblox if the company meets certain long-term price targets, according to a filing. He won’t take any other cash or equity compensation for as long as seven years after the listing, and plans on using any net proceeds for philanthropy, a spokesperson for the firm said.

Roblox hosts millions of games that are built by users who then get a share of any related revenue. The company planned an initial public offering last year, but delayed it until 2021 and then switched to a direct listing, which typically doesn’t result in any new capital being raised.

The New York Stock Exchange set a share price of $45 for Roblox’s direct listing, which gave the company a market value of about $30 billion. The stock jumped 54% to close at $69.50 in New York.

In addition to Mr. Baszucki’s brother, Greg, other pre-listing investors include Chase Coleman’s Tiger Global Management, which first invested in Roblox in June 2018, when it was valued at about $2.4 billion.

Roblox has said it expects growth rates of more than 60% for the quarter ending Mar. 31, but the ensuing months may look markedly different as the world starts to emerge from the virus crisis.

“We headed into 2020 with strong organic growth, which was further bolstered by social-distancing restrictions,” Chief Financial Officer Michael Guthrie said in a recent statement. “As those restrictions ease, we expect the rates of growth in 2021 will be well below the rates in 2020.” — Bloomberg

Three teams make trade moves ahead of league rookie draft

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter

THREE Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) teams made trade moves ahead of the league rookie draft this weekend.

In an announcement on Thursday, the league said the NLEX Road Warriors, Blackwater Bossing and TNT Tropang GIGA figured in a three-way trade involving rookie picks and young veteran players.

The player swaps, which were approved by the PBA trade committee, have NLEX trading its number four pick in the first round of the rookie draft on March 14 to Blackwater in exchange for guard Roi Sumang, forward Don Trollano, center Maurice Shaw and the Bossing’s 2022 second-round draft pick.

Blackwater then sent the number four pick it got from the Road Warriors to TNT for guard Simon Enciso, power forward David Semerad and the Tropang GIGA’s 2023 first-round draft pick and 2024 second-round pick.

NLEX, which still has the number three pick for Sunday’s draft, got a collection of serviceable players from the deal which it hopes to tap to provide stability to the team in the coming PBA season.

Mr. Sumang was one of the bright lights for an otherwise rough campaign for Blackwater in the PBA “bubble” last year, averaging 10.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.1 steals. He further shores up the already-loaded guard rotation of NLEX which includes Kiefer Ravena, Kevin Alas, Jericho Cruz, and Mike Ayonayon.

Mr. Trollano, meanwhile, reunites with coach Yeng Guiao, who he played for in Rain or Shine. He was consistent for the Bossing last season, averaging 14.2 points and 8.5 rebounds. The same stability is something the Road Warriors are angling to get from him now that he is in their fold.

Big man Shaw did not get to play much in his rookie season with Blackwater last year because of injury, but NLEX will look to use his height and heft to fortify its frontcourt.

Blackwater, for its part, received veteran players who helped TNT in its solid run in the tournament bubble in 2020.

Mr. Enciso averaged 9.6 points and 2.8 assists for the Tropang GIGA, who reached the finals of the Philippine Cup, while Mr. Semerad was a steady defensive and physical presence.

TNT, meanwhile, is back in the first round of the draft after finding itself sans a pick because of prior deals it had.

At number four, the Tropang GIGA is in prime position to get a quality prospect in the draft.

Reports have it that the team is keenly eyeing Fil-foreign guard Mikey Williams and San Beda University standout Calvin Oftana for the pick.

The PBA rookie draft will be held virtually on Sunday at 4 p.m. It will be aired live on TV5 and One Sports with livestream over ESPN5.com.

Draft order has Terrafirma picking first, followed by Northport, NLEX, TNT, Rain or Shine, and Alaska.

The rest of the opening round has Phoenix Super LPG, Terrafirma, Meralco, Magnolia, NorthPort and Barangay Ginebra selecting.

Revamped The Nationals begins new season March 20

A REVAMPED The Nationals begins its new season next week, promising exciting action and new offering for the local esports community.

Now in their third year, organizers of the Philippines’ first franchise-based esports league have moved to expand their tournament reach, including amateurs and students this time around apart from showcasing the country’s best professional esports athletes.

The Nationals hopes that by doing so it will open more opportunities for aspiring professional esports players.

In Season 3 of the league, which begins on March 20, it will be having two new tournament divisions for every conference for aspiring amateur esports players, namely, The Challenger Series and the Academy Series.

The Nationals Challenger Series will have two standalone weekend tournaments open to everyone in the country, regardless of age and gender. It will be done fully online so as to accommodate more hopefuls.

Student-gamers, meanwhile, are targeted for The Nationals Academy Series, another standalone weekend tournament where only teams and/or players currently enrolled in school can join.

The league said it will not be charging anything for sign-ups on these tournaments.

Also on tap in Season 3 is The Nationals Draft Series, where the top teams and players in the Challenger Series and the Academy Series will be featured.

While it is a tournament by itself, it serves more like a combine for the players to exhibit their skills and talent. It will be an opportunity for them to impress scouts, which may lead to a steady career in esports.

A draft will happen not long after the tournament. Only players 15 years old and above from the draft series are eligible. Each franchise will be required to pick at least one player, with the drafting order being determined by their finish from the previous conference.

Once a player is drafted and signed, they will become full-fledged team members of the franchise teams. With the league’s changes in the minimum number of games per player, any drafted player is guaranteed to see action in the upcoming Pro League.

“As we head over to our third season, we took a look at what we can improve for our players and our fans. We wanted to create a better player ecosystem, which is why we are changing our format into having an inclusive and full path to pro series. With whatever game we have, we are providing a clear opportunity to be a pro player,” said The Nationals Commissioner Ren Vitug of the changes they incorporated.

FOUR CONFERENCES
Meanwhile, The Nationals said that for its third season, the target for the three conferences are Tekken 7, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, and DotA 2.

A fourth conference is also set to happen later this year, which can be a repeat of the year’s most successful conference or will feature a new game.

The Nationals Season 3 kicks off with the Tekken 7 Challenger Series on March 20. Registration for the tournament is now ongoing. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

San Juan happy to reach another MPBL national finals

WHILE they were given virtually a free pass to the national finals of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL), defending champions San Juan-Go for Gold Knights are still happy and proud to be back in the Big Dance regardless of how they were able to achieve it.

The Knights booked a spot in the MPBL Lakan Season national finals after defeating greatly undermanned Makati-Super Crunch, 131-54, in their North Division finals rubber match on Wednesday at the Subic Bay Gymnasium.

Makati only paraded five players in the win-or-go home match after disputes between management and players prevented the squad to have a full complement for the MPBL “bubble.”

That gave the Knights a huge advantage in the contest which they used to the hilt.

The team opened the game with a 15-0 run and never looked back from there.

“I just told the players not to be complacent despite the advantage that we had. And they responded well. They did not relax. They put in the effort needed to show that we deserve to win and be in the national finals,” said San Juan coach Randy Alcantara in Filipino after the game.

San Juan veteran John Wilson top-scored for his team with 22 markers followed by Jhonard Clarito with 20 points on top of 13 boards.

Philippine Basketball Association player Mike Ayonayon, who is honoring his commitment with San Juan, the team he played for before being drafted in the PBA, tallied his first triple-double in the league with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists.

San Juan is now awaiting the winner of the Davao Occidental-Basilan knockout match in the Southern Division finals. The contest, originally set for Wednesday as well, was postponed over health and safety protocols after a Basilan player tested positive for the coronavirus.

The match is slated to be played on March 17 if the Basilan team tests negative in its next swab test.

The MPBL Lakan Season National Finals will be a best-of-five affair.

The MPBL was cleared to resume its stalled Lakan Season last week through new protocols set by the government. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Volleyball NSA appoints national team coaches

THE national team landscape under the newly recognized Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) took further form on Thursday after the National Sports Association (NSA) named the coaches who will handle the country’s squads.

PNVF President Ramon Suzara introduced the national team coaches and their staff following weeks of evaluation and discussion.

Odjie Mamon and Dante Alinsunurin were named national women’s and men’s volleyball coaches, respectively. Also appointed were national beach volleyball coaches Rhovyl Verayo (men) and Paul John Doloiras (women).

“After careful and stringent deliberation and evaluation, the federation selected coaches Odjie and Dante, both of who bring with them impressive and credible credentials,” said Mr. Suzara in a statement.

Said coaches will be tasked to focus on the country’s campaign in the Hanoi 31st Southeast Asian (SEA) Games later this year where the men’s team hopes to improve on its silver from the 2019 SEA Games and the women’s team targeting a podium finish.

The National Team Commission headed by Tonyboy Liao and National Coaches Commission under Jerry Yee made the recommendation to the PNVF board on the composition of the national coaching staff.

Mr. Mamon has more than two decades of coaching experience in various local leagues. He was coach of the women’s team, which won bronze in the 2001 SEA Games and part of the coaching staff for the 2003 edition of the biennial sporting meet.

“It’s a call to duty for the national colors and you can’t decline once the country asks for your service,” said Mr. Mamon, who will be assisted by Grace Antigua and former Ateneo de Manila University coach Tai Bundit of Thailand.

Mr. Alinsunurin, meanwhile, steered the men’s team to a spirited silver medal finish in the 2019 SEA Games held here.

He admitted that challenges lay ahead for them amid the pandemic, but vowed to do everything they can to have the best possible team represent the country.

“Everybody is affected by the pandemic, but we are hoping to maintain our finish in the last SEA Games. We have to work really, really hard if we want to win a gold medal,” said Mr. Alinsunurin, who will have Ariel dela Cruz and Sherwin Meneses as assistants. — MASM

LaMarcus Aldridge, San Antonio Spurs agree to part ways — Popovich

LAMARCUS Aldridge and the San Antonio Spurs have agreed to part ways, with the announcement coming from Spurs’ coach Gregg Popovich in his pregame media availability prior to Wednesday’s game against the Mavericks in Dallas.

Aldridge, a seven-time All-Star in his sixth season with San Antonio, has missed eight of the Spurs’ past 11 games with a hip injury and then a stomach ailment. The 35-year-old center/forward is in his 15th NBA season, with the first nine in Portland.

Aldridge is still on the Spurs roster. The team said it will use the next two weeks leading up to the March 25 trade deadline to allow Aldridge to “work on some opportunities elsewhere,” according to Popovich. He is in the final year of a contract with a $24-million annual salary.

“We just think this is a win-win for both LaMarcus and the club,” Popovich said. “When an opportunity arises, that’ll be up to management, his agent and that sort of thing, and we’ll all move forward. — Reuters

Tertiary sports development center of PSC-CHEd partnership

WITH the common vision of growing sports development at the tertiary level in the country, the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) recently forged a partnership to collaborate on various programs.

The memorandum of agreement (MOA) on the development of tertiary sports was made formal in a signing ceremony held on Wednesday at the CHEd Auditorium in Diliman, Quezon City, with officials of both agencies expressing hope that it will be the start of more productive efforts between the groups moving forward.

“I am so happy for this new forged partnership with CHEd. They have been a brother to the PSC because as a small agency, we cannot be effective and succeed without the help of other agencies,” said PSC Chairman William Ramirez during the signing ceremony.

“This gives us the missing link in providing a professional development in continuous sports education…” he added.

Among the objectives of the MOA is to maximize the engagement and collaboration of both parties in the formulation of a unified tertiary school sports development program to ensure that the Higher Education Institution’s Sports Development Plans are aligned with the national agenda and of the highest international standards.

PSC and CHEd also commit to work hand in hand in providing training for student-athletes, coaches and sports officials on Higher Education through Professional Development and continuing education to ensure that the highest coaching and training skills will be provided to tertiary athletes as the country strives to produce elite athletes for world-class performances.

In addition, the ongoing National Sports Coaching Certification Course will now fall under this partnership, effectively institutionalizing this continuing education initiative of the PSC.

For CHEd Chairman J. Prospero de Vera III, the partnership is a welcome development considering how it will allow both parties to effectively collaborate on various programs, which proved to be tricky in the past, he admitted, as the agencies had their own procedures on going about things.

“We welcome this memorandum of agreement as it will allow us to join forces with the PSC in joint projects that we can initiate. We commit the support of CHEd in all the undertakings on higher education sports development and wellness,” said Mr. De Vera.

Also present at the MOA signing ceremony were PSC Commissioner Celia Kiram, and Chief of Staff and PSI National Training Director Marc Velasco. For the CHEd side were CHEd Office of the Executive Director OIC Atty. Ryan Estevez and Office of the Deputy Executive Director OIC Atty. Lily Milla.

The PSC said the MOA will be discussed in the ongoing National Sports Summit 2021. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

PSG bury Barcelona demons to reach last eight

PARIS — Paris St. Germain buried the ghosts of their embarrassing 2017 exit as they drew 1-1 at home with Barcelona on Wednesday to complete a 5-2 aggregate victory that sent them into the Champions League quarter-finals.

Four years after Barça claimed a memorable 6-1 win to overturn a 4-0 first-leg deficit in the last 16, PSG lacked inspiration but their 4-1 advantage from the first game in Spain was sufficient this time.

Kylian Mbappé, who scored a hat-trick at the Nou Camp, opened the scoring with a penalty against the run of play before Lionel Messi levelled with a superb long-range goal, but the Argentine had a spot-kick saved by Keylor Navas on the stroke of half time.

The French champions were on the back foot in the second half as Barça piled on the pressure, but Barça exited the competition before the semi-finals for the second year in a row.

Barça’s exit ensured it will be the first time since 2005 that neither Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo will be in the Champions League quarterfinals after Juventus were also knocked out in the last 16 on Tuesday.

“We suffered a lot in the first half, and psychologically it was a test for us. I gathered that the past was something that was talked about a lot here,” PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino said.

“We were better in the second half, we were more competitive.”

Barça coach Ronald Koeman tried to remain upbeat.

“We are departing this Champions League in a very different manner from the way we did last season. In this game, we hit our level and that’s the road we have to follow,” said Koeman, referring to the team’s 8-2 aggregate defeat in the quarterfinals by Bayern Munich last year.

PSG, without injured forward Neymar, looked nothing like the team who reached last year’s final or hammered Barcelona three weeks ago, but they did keep their composure at the back.

Barcelona stamped their authority early on, finding space for Ousmane Dembélé, but the Frenchman was twice denied by Navas and he skied an effort over the crossbar in the opening 20 minutes.

Sergino Dest went close for Barça with a powerful angled shot that Navas deflected on to his left-hand post and Dembélé broke down the left flank, but his cross just evaded a sliding Messi.

It was PSG, however, who went ahead on 31 minutes as Mbappé converted a penalty awarded following a VAR review after Clement Lenglet appeared to step onto Mauro Icardi’s heel.

Six minutes later, Messi unleashed a 25-meter missile that flew into the top corner to equalize in style with his 120th goal in the Champions League.

The Argentine had a chance to put the visitors in front just before the break when Barça won a penalty following a Layvin Kurzawa foul on Antoine Griezmann, but Navas deflected the Argentine’s spot-kick onto the bar and away.

Barça were still all over PSG in the second half and it took a desperate tackle by Marquinhos to prevent Messi scoring from point blank range before Navas cleared a Sergio Busquets header.

Barcelona gradually ran out of steam, however, and must now turn to their bid to win the La Liga title, where they trail leaders Atletico Madrid by six points. — Reuters

Luka Dončić’s triple-double propels Mavs past Spurs

LUKA Dončić scored 22 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and distributed 12 assists as the Dallas Mavericks earned a 115-104 win over the visiting San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday in the first game after the All-Star break for both teams.

The triple-double was Dončić’s eighth of the season and the 33rd of his career. Kristaps Porziņģis added 28 points and 14 rebounds for the Mavericks, who have won four games in a row and 11 of their past 14.

Josh Richardson scored 12 points for Dallas while Maxi Kleber had 11 and Willie Cauley-Stein added 10 points.

DeMar DeRozan led all scorers with 30 points and added 11 assists for San Antonio. Patty Mills hit for 14 points, Rudy Gay added 13, Lonnie Walker IV and Keldon Johnson tallied 12 each and Dejounte Murray contributed 11.

The Spurs missed 11 consecutive shots in the final eight minutes before getting a garbage-time bucket.

The game was tied at 95 after two free throws by San Antonio’s Derrick White with 7:56 to play. The Mavericks ran off the next seven points, with Porzingis scoring on the dunk and then a 3-pointer to cap the run, and the Spurs never threatened again.

The first half went back and forth, with seven ties and seven lead changes before San Antonio took a 59-52 lead to the break. DeRozan led all scorers with 14 points in the half while Gay, in his first game back after missing three weeks due to COVID-19 protocols, pouring in 11 off the San Antonio bench.

Cauley-Stein paced the Mavericks with just eight points at half time. Dallas had 12 first-half turnovers that led to 10 points for the Spurs.

The third quarter had four more ties and five more lead changes before the Mavericks took an 87-86 advantage to the final 12 minutes. Doncic scored 11 points in the period for Dallas.

The Spurs announced before the game that LaMarcus Aldridge was not with the team after both parties decided to part ways.

Aldridge, a seven-time All-Star in his 15th year in the league, had missed eight of San Antonio’s previous 11 games with a hip injury and then a stomach ailment. He is on the final year of a contract that pays him $24 million annually. — Reuters

MVP race

The All-Star break has led to a relative dearth of news on the pro hoops front. Naturally, discussions in the absence of relevant updates have focused on the race for the Most Valuable Player award. Terming the process a “race” is, to be sure, erroneous at best. Even though speculation from all and sundry on the award is fueled from the get-go (and even before the season starts), the more proper assessment is done just before a given campaign ends. No supposed frontrunner gets a leg up early on, and any so-called lead is immediately erased in the face of narrative-driven perspectives.

Take, for example, Luka Dončić’s status as preseason favorite for the accolade. Once competition actually got under way, he wound up being on the fringes of pundits’ supposedly legitimate candidates’ lists, his outstanding efforts pulled down by the Mavericks’ underwhelming slate. Meanwhile, LeBron James’ own run gained enough momentum to install him as the seeming pacesetter; following fellow All-Star Anthony Davis’ sidelining due to injury, however, he found himself hard-pressed to keep the Lakers at the top of standings. They took him down in their ensuing tumble, and Las Vegas oddsmakers now peg him second.

Provisionally, the distinction of having the best vantage point on the Maurice Podoloff Trophy belongs to Joel Embiid, whose traditional and advanced stats underscore how much of a leap he has made under new head coach Doc Rivers. Needless to say, his position is owed in large part to the Sixers’ ascendancy in the East — again fueling the notion that team results should go hand in hand with personal advancement. It’s also why Nikola Jokić’s own bid for the hard has been stunted; the Nuggets have been on a roller-coaster ride from the outset.

Interestingly, Giannis Antetokounmpo has all but been written off for the award, never mind that it remains his to defend, and that his production hasn’t really tapered off. Again, narratives play a big part in shaping and framing voters’ minds. Which, in the final analysis, boils down to this: The “race,” if that, is a marathon, not a sprint, and one that is best viewed close to the end. Anything before falls in the realm of conjecture, good only to while the time away when there is practically nothing else to consider.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Startup monitors electricity consumption, helps users to improve energy efficiency

SmarterMeter, a platform that monitors electricity consumption via Wi-Fi, allows consumers to track their usage prior to receiving their official bill. The collected data—said to be 96% to 99% accurate—can be used to double-check kilowatt-hour (kWh) readings from an electricity provider.

Founded in May 2019 as a spinoff project from an electronics engineering undergraduate thesis, it consists of an electricity meter installed onto a household circuit panel and an electricity management platform capable of comparing consumption results, generating user-friendly charts, and sending notifications when a user is about to exceed a set electricity budget. 

 A performance report is also sent via e-mail every other week, along with feedback aimed at  improving energy efficiency. 

“We believe that real energy efficiency comes from a community of informed smarter consumers,” said Reinelle Jan C. Bugnot, founder and CEO of SmarterMeter Inc.

“We plan to partner with condominiums, housing developers, or subdivisions to launch multiple SmarterMeter units at scale to produce localized communities of Smarter consumers, which then yields a culture of energy efficiency,” he added.

SmarterMeter won the Blue Legacy Innovation competition last year, which provided the company enough funding to have it incorporated in the Securities and Exchange Commission in November 2020.

Three- to 12-month subscription plans, starting at P375 per month, are available. A bond fee is collected at the start of subscription as insurance for the device installed in the subscriber’s home, which will be returned in full upon device retrieval at the end of subscription. 

SmarterMeter participated in QBO Innovation Hub’s incubation program. Launched in 2020 in partnership with the US Embassy in the Philippines, the program provides financial support in the form of grants, loans, and fundraising opportunities, and mentorship to startups. — Patricia B. Mirasol