Hobbies of World Leaders

by **Sepka** » Fri Jun 30, 2006 4:31 am

<a href="http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/6/story.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10388995">www.nzherald.co.nz/sectio...d=10388995</a> Not especially relevant to anything in particular, but I thought it was interesting in a background sort of way, given how often these individuals are discussed here: <blockquote>Quote:<hr>Closet hobbies of world leaders past and present Friday June 30, 2006 Japan's Prime Minister, Junichiro Koizumi, is in Graceland to pay homage to his hero Elvis. We lay bare the closet hobbies of world leaders past and present. From pitchers to crooners, auteurs to mimics, these are politicians with hidden passions Jacques Chirac: Sumo wrestling If he had not been a politician, Jacques Chirac would like to have been a sumo wrestler. The French President is a big fan of the ancient form of wrestling. He has tapes sent from Japan and often watches them in the Elysee Palace while drinking - one of his other unlikely passions - Mexican beer. He once told the L'Equipe that he would love to have been a sumo in another life. As a politician famed for his ability to trip up opponents and friends alike, Chiraco san is evidently a sumo champion manque. Hugo Chavez: Baseball Contrary to popular belief, Hugo Chavez didn't join the Army to launch his political career, or gain an education, he did it to further his baseball. His greatest dream, he said was to play for the San Francisco Giants. Once in Caracas, his hopes of catching the eye of a scout failed to materialise. The Venezuelan President turned out to be more interested in running the country than home runs. However, the leader recently captained a national all-star team in a match with fellow lefty Fidel Castro. Junichiro Koizumi: Elvis Presley For years, Junichiro Koizumi was known in Japan's sclerotic political world as "henjin", or weirdo - an eccentric with unpopular ideas, suspiciously dapper good looks and that expensively coiffed grey perm. So when he became Prime Minister in April 2001, Koizumi did what any conservative Japanese politician worried about his odd image would: he released a collection of Elvis tunes. The CD, featuring 25 hits and carrying a grinning Koizumi on the cover with Elvis in his 1950s prime, was put together by the new PM who gushed about his love for "the King". "I never get tired of listening to his songs no matter how many times I hear them," he said. Koizumi shares his birthday with Elvis - January 8 - and can warble passable English versions of most of the CD (which sold 200,000 copies). Last year, he sang a duet of I Can't Help Falling in Love with You with the Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer in Sydney. Koizumi's aides have told reporters that when their boss has had a drink he can bore for Japan with Elvis trivia. Indeed, Elvis is thought to be one of the reasons why Koizumi has bonded so strongly with President George W. Bush, who is scheduled to take him on a pilgrimage to Graceland today. Bush is unlikely to indulge in the great Japanese tradition of drunken karaoke, but don't expect similar favours from the Japanese Prime Minister. Last year he serenaded the President with I Want You, I Need You, I Love You at Bush's birthday party. Silvio Berlusconi: Music, song and dance Silvio Berlusconi may no longer be Italy's Prime Minister since losing the general election in April, but his devotion to his hobbies far outstrips that of the man he sneeringly described as "that nice cyclist", Romano Prodi. The pastime for which he is best known is music: accomplished at piano, guitar and double bass, he claims to have paid his way through university by singing and strumming on cruise ships. He has written the lyrics for a CD of Neapolitan-style love songs and jams with friends during summer holidays at his enormous Villa Certosa in Sardinia. Kim Jong Il: The cinema buff North Korea's Dear Leader has a love of cinema that borders on the pathological. He is said to have collected more than 10,000 films (his favourites include the Godfather series, James Bond, Daffy Duck cartoons and horror films) and to have bought every Oscar-winner. Elizabeth Taylor is, reportedly, his much-loved pin-up. This fascination with collecting cinema memorabilia has even extended to people - in 1978, the South Korean actress Choi Eun Hee was grabbed and taken to Pyongyang, where the Dear Leader was waiting. Her husband, Shin Sang Ok, a producer and director, was kidnapped when he went to look for her in Hong Kong. They were held separately for five years before being reunited at a banquet. They said afterwards that Kim had apologised and asked them to make films for him. They made seven before escaping to the West in 1986. Kim has produced a patriotic 100-part serial on North Korean history and written a book on cinema theory. He also created a private dance troupe, which broke the mould on the traditional Communist model. King Abdullah II: Adrenalin junkie If there's a car worth driving at breakneck speed or a plane flying high enough to jump from, there's a fair chance Jordan's King Abdullah II will do it. The former commander of the Jordanian special forces has a passion for almost any hobby that involves high levels of adrenalin and danger. The qualified frogman once flew attack helicopters and has made numerous parachute jumps. He was once a rally champion and often races wearing a T-shirt with 99 printed on it - his late father's favourite number. Thabo Mbeki : Cyber geek Mbeki writes a detailed blog and is renowned for his love of the internet. He regularly quotes at length from the often obscure web pages he has been trawling the night before. One of his most controversial moments in politics stemmed from his prolific internet use. In April 2000, Mbeki defended a small group of dissident online scientists who claimed that the HIV virus did not cause Aids. Against the backdrop of South Africa's epidemic, Mbeki's critics seized on his internet use as alleged proof of ignorance. Ferenc Gyurcsany: Hugh Grant wannabe It was bizarre enough watching Hugh Grant strut his stuff to Jump! by the Pointer Sisters in Downing Street in the 2003 film Love Actually. Imagine, then, the shock Hungarians got when they were confronted with a home video of their real-life Prime Minister recreating the role of the floppy-haired fop. Ferenc Gyurcsany recorded the clip as a wedding gift, but his clowning soon found its way on to the internet. Gyurcsany, 44, said: "It has been a habit for a few years that we watch a Hugh Grant film on New Year's Eve." Saddam Hussein: Thinker, writer, do-er The former dictator likes nothing better than curling up with a copy of Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, from which he draws inspiration. His first novel, Zabiba and the King, published in 2002, was an instant bestseller and made part of the school curriculum. His nom de plume - "He who writes" - was exposed in 2004, when a journalist revealed that Saddam's writing process only goes as far as a few notes. One of his ghostwriters died in mysterious circumstances in 2003. <hr></blockquote> -Sepka the Space Weasel

Hobbies of World Leaders

Hobbies of World Leaders

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