11. Malaysia will serve as the first Asian host of the Commonwealth Games, which kick off next week after months of preparations and billions of dollars spent. 12. Malaysia will be the first Asian host to the Commonwealth Games next September. 13. Stanford sought to be the first U.S. host of the bid. 14. Stanford aims to be the first U.S. city to stage the event, while Helsinki wants to be the first two-time host. 15. Sydney will be the first Olympic host to enforce the new rules. 16. The race to be the first Asian host of the World Cup is the latest battleground. 17. He said the pressure on the team to avoid becoming the first World Cup hosts eliminated in the first round could have a positive side. 18. And it helped South Koreans avoid the unhappy distinction of becoming the first World Cup hosts to lose their opening match. 19. Avoiding being the first host ever to be knocked out in the first round was the priority, but now, they believe, anything is possible. 20. Both Japan and South Korea are desperately aiming to avoid being the first World Cup hosts to fail to qualify for the second round. |