December 2013 – Page 5 – GREEK WORLD MEDIA

Αυστραλία: Πότε και γιατί έγινε ο πρώτος ελληνικός έρανος

O πρώτος έρανος που έγινε ποτέ στη Μελβούρνη από Έλληνες μετανάστες ήταν το 1896 και είχε ως σκοπό την υποστήριξη της Επανάστασης της Κρήτης.

Το ιστορικό αυτό στοιχείο ανέφερε σε ομιλία του ο πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Μελβούρνης, Βασίλης Παπαστεργιάδης σε εκδήλωση για τα 100 χρόνια της ένωσης της Κρήτης με την Ελλάδα.

Την ιστορική επέτειο γιόρτασαν οι Κρήτες της Μελβούρνης.

Την κοινή εκδήλωσή της τίμησαν με την παρουσία τους η Γενική Πρόξενος της Ελλάδας στη Μελβούρνη, Ελένη Λιανίδου, ο δήμαρχος Moreland, Λάμπρος Ταπεινός, οι πρόεδροι των κυπριακών σωματείων της πολιτείας και πλήθος άλλων προσκεκλημένων.

Στην ομιλία του ο κ. Παπαστεργιάδης είπε, μεταξύ άλλων:

«Αυτό όμως που ίσως πολλοί να μη γνωρίζουν είναι ότι ο πρώτος έρανος που έγινε ποτέ στην Μελβούρνη από Έλληνες μετανάστες το 1896 είχε ως σκοπό την υποστήριξη της Επανάστασης της Κρήτης. Τότε, το 1896, πάνω από 40 Έλληνες της Μελβούρνης έδωσαν οικονομική βοήθεια στον Κρητικό Αγώνα. Η πρώτη αυτή συγκέντρωση πρόσφερε και την ιδέα να ιδρυθεί κάποια Ελληνική Κοινότητα στην Μελβούρνη, έτσι μετά από έναν χρόνο ιδρύθηκε η Ελληνική Ορθόδοξη Κοινότητα της Μελβούρνης. Ο αγώνας της απελευθέρωσης της Κρήτης ήταν και αγώνας για όλους τους τότε Έλληνες της Διασποράς».

European Commission approves $4.1 billion in aid for building Greek highways

Source: timescolonist.com

The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, approved Monday 3 billion euros ($4.1 billion) in financial aid to help build four major highways in Greece.

Construction on the highways has been halted over the past few years as the country has grappled with a severe debt crisis that’s required big budget cutbacks.

Johannes Hahn, the commissioner for regional policy, said the investment is “central to the country’s economic recovery” and forecast that building the highway will create 6,000 jobs. Of those, 1,700 will be long-term involving the management of the highways once construction is finished by the end of 2015.

Hahn said the highways form part of a trans-European road network and are essential for creating a single market for European goods.

The EU decision follows a vote in Greece’s parliament last week to restart the four projects.

The new construction, mostly on the western Greek mainland and southern Peloponnese region, will link several more cities to the country’s highway system.

The government said the projects would be fully restarted early in the new year and would give a boost to the economy in 2014 — a year many economic forecasters will see the country return to growth following six years of savage recession.

Opposition parties in Greece have criticized the terms of the agreements as being too favourable to construction companies, arguing that the money spent by the Greek state should instead go to programs aimed at easing the country’s deepening poverty.

Greek Cyprus: No start to negotiations without preconditions

Source: todayszaman.com

Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades has stated that if Greek Cyprus’ preconditions are not met, starting negotiations with the Turkish Cypriots to solve the dispute on the east Mediterranean island of Cyprus will be out of the question.

“If the basic principles, such as living together in peace and free from occupation, are not … guarantee[d], it is out of [the] question to start an unfruitful dialogue,” Anastasiades said on Sunday.

Referring to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu’s remarks in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC) on Saturday, Anastasiades said the Greek Cypriot side was expecting promising remarks from Davutoğlu, but that those published in the media have led Greek Cyprus to lose good faith.

With long-awaited reunification negotiations between the Greek and Turkish sides on Cyprus expected to resume months ago, the Turkish Cypriots have come up with a new proposal that aims to revive stalled talks that would pave the way for the solution of the island dispute.

After the proposal was declared, Greek Cyprus stated on Saturday that breakaway Turkish Cypriots and the Turkish government have scuttled chances of restarting talks to reunify the island. Greek Cypriot government spokesman Christos Stylianides blamed Turkish Cypriots for “extreme and intransigent” positions, adding that Anastasiades was unwilling to now enter into talks “for the sake of talks.”

Meanwhile, Greek Cypriot politicians have criticized UN Special Envoy to Cyprus Alexander Downer for meeting with Davutoğlu on Saturday at the Turkish Embassy in Lefkoşa, where he took the Turkish Cypriots’ new proposal to convey to the Greek Cypriot side.

Cyprus has been divided between the Greek Cypriot south and the Turkish Cypriot north since 1974, when Turkey sent troops to the island following a Greek-inspired coup that sought to unite the island with Greece.

Ανακαλύφθηκε γονίδιο που «πυροδοτεί» το 1% των καρκίνων

Λονδίνο, Ηνωμένο Βασίλειο

Γονίδιο που «καθοδηγεί» την ανάπτυξη των καρκινικών όγκων στο 1% των ασθενών ανακάλυψαν επιστήμονες στη Μ. Βρετανία, σύμφωνα με στοιχεία που δημοσιεύθηκαν στο επιστημονικό έντυπο Nature Genetics.

Πρόκειται για την πρώτη φορά που το γονίδιο CUX1 διαπιστώνεται ότι εμπλέκεται στον καρκίνο και μελλοντικά θα μπορούσε να αποτελέσει ένα νέο στόχο των στοχευμένων φαρμακευτικών θεραπειών.

Η ερευνητική ομάδα, με επικεφαλής τον Δρ Ντέιβιντ Ανταμς του Ινστιτούτου Wellcome Trust Sanger, παρατήρησε ότι ο καρκίνος προκαλείται όχι όταν το γονίδιο είναι ενεργό, αλλά όταν αυτό απενεργοποιείται, οπότε πλέον «πυροδοτείται» η ανάπτυξη του καρκινικού όγκου. Σε όσους καρκινοπαθείς είναι ανενεργό, δηλαδή περίπου σε έναν στους 100, ενδεχομένως και αυτό να είναι η βασική γενετική αιτία για την ασθένειά τους.

Οι επιστήμονες ανέλυσαν γενετικά δεδομένα που αφορούσα περισσότερους από 7.600 πάσχοντες από καρκίνο και ανακάλυψαν ότι στο 1% περίπου συμβαίνει μια μετάλλαξη που απενεργοποιεί το γονίδιο CUC1, με συνέπεια να ευνοείται η ανάπτυξη του καρκίνου. Το συγκεκριμένο γονίδιο δεν μεταλλάσσεται συχνά, όμως η μετάλλαξή του συμβαίνει σε πολύ διαφορετικές μορφές καρκίνου.

Έως τώρα δεν είχε εντοπισθεί ως υπεύθυνο για τον καρκίνο, επειδή οι γενετικές μελέτες εστίαζαν την προσοχή τους κυρίως σε γονίδια που μεταλλάσσονται με μεγάλη συχνότητα σε επιμέρους είδη καρκίνου. Το CUX1 μεταλλάσσεται σχετικά πιο συχνά στους αιματολογικούς καρκίνους.

Οι ερευνητές έχουν εντοπίσει μερικές δεκάδες ακόμα γονίδια, τα οποία επίσης μεταλλάσσονται με χαμηλή συχνότητα και μπορεί να παίζουν καθοριστικό ρόλο στην ανάπτυξη καρκίνου. Σχεδιάζουν λοιπόν νέα πειράματα σε ποντίκια, ώστε να τα απενεργοποιήσουν ένα-ένα και να δουν κατά πόσο «πυροδοτείται» καρκίνος.

Αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι στην ερευνητική ομάδα συμμετείχαν και οι Κωνσταντίνος Αλιφραγκής, η Στέλλα Λεμπιδάκη και η Έλλη Παπαεμμανουήλ.

Ο Κωνσταντίνος Αλιφρανγκής σπούδασε Ιατρική στο Βασιλικό Κολέγιο του Λονδίνου και σήμερα εργάζεται στο Πρόγραμμα Γονιδιώματος Καρκίνου του Ινστιτούτου Wellcome Trust Sanger. Η Έλλη Παπαεμμανουήλ, σπούδασε Βιολογία στο Πανεπιστήμιο της Γλασκόβης και έκανε το διδακτορικό της στο Ίδρυμα Έρευνας κατά του Καρκίνου στο Λονδίνο, ενώ έκτοτε διεξάγει έρευνα στο Πρόγραμμα Γονιδιώματος Καρκίνου του Ινστιτούτου Wellcome Trust Sanger. Έγινε διεθνώς γνωστή το 2011, όταν ανακάλυψε γονίδιο που σχετίζεται με τον καρκίνο του αίματος. Η Στέλλα Λεμπιδάκη αποφοίτησε το 2009 από το Τμήμα Βιολογίας του Πανεπιστημίου Κρήτης και έκανε το διδακτορικό της στο Πανεπιστήμιο του Κέμπριτζ, όπου σήμερα πραγματοποιεί έρευνα στο Τμήμα Φυσιολογίας και Νευροεπιστήμης.

Source: health.in.gr, ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ

Greece’s former king Constantine II goes home after 46-year exile

Source: guardian

Constantine II stuns Greeks by moving back to his crisis-plagued homeland with his wife Anne-Marie.

Greeks who have the means may be leaving in droves, but after 46 years in exile the former king, Constantine II, has moved back to his crisis-plagued homeland.
The deposed monarch, who was forced to flee Athens shortly after the seizure of power by a group of army officers in 1967, has stunned Greeks – and most of his relatives in the royal households of Europe – by resettling in the capital where he was born and schooled.
“He and Anne-Marie have decided to move here permanently,” said a member of Greece’s small circle of royalists, referring to Constantine’s Danish-born wife. “His son Prince Nikolaos and his wife Princess Tatiana made the same move a few months back.”
Soaring property prices in London apparently spurred the move. But Constantine, who was dethroned by referendum on the return of democracy in 1974 and stripped of his Greek citizenship by the then socialist government 20 years later, is known to have been homesick.
More than a decade ago he told a Greek newspaper: “No one can keep me away. For so many years I have lived through my own Golgotha, now I am ready to return.”
The 73-year-old, a first cousin of the Duke of Edinburgh and Prince William’s godfather, faced the double whammy of not only being unwanted in his country but also being financially constricted: in 1994 he suffered the humiliating blow of also seeing his palaces and other royal estates expropriated in a nation where republicanism runs deep. The European court of human rights, to which the monarch was subsequently forced to resort, did little to alleviate his plight when, more than a decade later, it ruled that the Greek state compensate Constantine for a fraction of the £320m he had originally sought in damages.
Earlier this year, however, Constantine struck lucky when he sold his north London mansion, his home for the past 30 years, for £9.5m. By contrast, property prices in Athens have plummeted to the point where real estate can be acquired for a song: studio flats, should the ex-king want one, are selling for as little as €6,000 (£5,000) in the city centre.
“From that point of view it was considered the very best time for his majesty to not only downsize but return,” said another insider, adding that the royal was sending out scouts to scour the property market with a view to buying a permanent residence in Athens.
With Greece mired in a sixth straight year of recession and unemployment at record heights, an estimated 300,000 Greeks – the vast majority highly qualified professionals – have left the country since the eruption of its debt crisis. The reversal of that trend by Constantine, who has still not been forgiven for the support he initially gave the colonels – the junior army officers who threw the country into seven harsh years of military rule – is unlikely to be received lightly on the left.
The former monarch, who in recent months has been spotted cane in hand walking the streets of Athens, has repeatedly denied political ambitions. Instead he has long maintained that his former subjects have been “deliberately misinformed”.
Constantine’s treatment by his homeland has been an ongoing source of grievance for the British royal family with the Duke of Edinburgh, who was born on the island of Corfu, expressing fury at the way his cousin has been dealt with.
But the new generation of Greek royals appear to have forgotten the past. Prince Nikolaos, it is said, is now renting the apartment of the daughter of Andreas Papandreou, the late socialist leader who gave his father so much grief.

Senator Arthur Sinodinos has launched a discussion paper that explores the disclosure issue

Funds face anxious wait for super review

Systems refresh projects hang in the balance.

The Australian Government has hinted that it may ease some of the technology cost burdens on Australia’s $1.7 trillion superannuation industry, by softening legislation that had aimed to offer transparency to regulators and consumers.

Under an exposure draft of rules the former ALP government released for consultation earlier this year, registered super entities faced portfolio disclosure obligations requiring investment in costly and sophisticated reporting systems.

The proposal was one of number derived from the Cooper review of Australia’s savings retirement industry, which recommended that consumers and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) be given better visibility of super fund assets.

However, under a series of proposals being considered by the newly-crowned assistant treasurer Senator Arthur Sinodinos, these reporting requirements could be scaled back dramatically.

Senator Sinodinos has launched a discussion paper that explores the disclosure issue, as part of a wide-ranging review of the current super regulation scheme.

In it, the federal treasury made note of “submissions from across industry” that “raised various concerns”, particularly around the requirements to disclose commercial-in-confidence and market sensitive information, the degree of look through involved and the requirement to disclose disaggregated data.

William Fraser, head of esolutions for investor services at J.P. Morgan, welcomed the government’s new approach.

“The practicality of it is part of what this review is trying to look at, because just providing information for information’s sake puts a tremendous amount of cost and burden on the various providers and it needs to have an outcome that’s going to deliver value.

“That’s what’s really driving this – let’s not disclose data for data’s sake, let’s look at the value and what the purpose of this is going to be,” Mr Fraser said.

Mr Fraser said that under one of the previous scenarios being considered, the industry faced obligations to report up to 10,000 lines of data. This, he said, was “just silly, because no-one is going to get value from that”.

Under current legislation trustees are only required to disclose details of investments valued in excess of five percent of their total assets.

Under the proposal favoured by the former Labor government, super funds and their custodians were facing highly granular portfolio disclosure rules including reporting on assets they did not own directly, such as collective investment vehicles. Had the rules been accepted they would have been in place from July 1, 2014.

Rhys Octigan, head of business development for superannuation technology specialist DST Global Solutions said that full portfolio disclosure became complicated once offshore fund managers became involved.

“Where that information is offshore with an international fund manager, that fund manager is not subject to the same regulations as Australian fund managers and it’s more difficult to get,” Mr Octigan said.

A materiality threshold is one of the proposals now on the table for consideration.

David Haynes, executive manager of policy and research at the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees said that the materiality threshold was an area in which the super industry needed clarity to avoid over-investing in technology.

“Government needs to provide some level of certainty so that funds don’t put together unnecessary systems which then aren’t required to be put in place.

“There are costs involved with building systems to disclose each and every discrete element in your holdings,” he said. “If there is a materiality threshold in place – so that you only need to disclose holdings worth more than say, a million dollars or one percent of your holdings – that might be a completely different solution.”

Senator Xenophon challenged Mr Joyce to show one dollar of profit since setting up Jetstar Asia and other offshoots

Souce: BusinessSpectator.com.au

Abbott to mull Qantas proposals

The Australian government will consider any proposal the nation’s struggling airline puts on the table but has stopped short of meeting calls to change foreign-ownership laws.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott says it is important for Qantas, including staff, management and shareholders, to fight its own battle.

Qantas, facing a sinking share price and plans for 1000 job cuts, has appealed to the Commonwealth to ease the 1992 Qantas Sale Act.

The act limits foreign ownership in the airline to 49 per cent.

According to media reports on Sunday, a Qantas pilot is considering an employee bid for up to 25 per cent in the iconic airline, known as “the flying kangaroo”, to keep it viable.

Meanwhile, The Australian Financial Review has reported that a government guarantee is under serious consideration, which would involve a fee of around 1.5 per cent for the provision of a standby debt facility.

Mr Abbott said staff and shareholders “should fight for survival and prosperity of the business”.

“We are perfectly prepared to consider whatever proposals Qantas puts to us,” he told reporters in Sydney on Sunday.

“But in the end there is no proposal that government will successfully implement if Qantas is not prepared to fight for it.

“We need to see Qantas staff, management and shareholders doing everything they humanly can to get Qantas’ house in order so this great and iconic Australian business can have the kind of flourish and future we all want for it.”

He denied he was critical of the airline’s management.

“I am not critical of Qantas management or staff. I am just saying that no one will fight harder for the survival of Qantas than its managers, its workers and its shareholders,” he said.

However, Mr Abbott told the Australian Financial Review at the weekend that Qantas’s desire for easing of the Qantas Sale Act was not “unreasonable”.

Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce had said the airline was not competing on a level playing field, with competitor Virgin receiving a $350 million injection from its foreign owners Etihad, Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines.

But independent Senator Nick Xenophon said it was not the Qantas legislation which needed to be changed but the management and board.

Senator Xenophon challenged Mr Joyce to show one dollar of profit since setting up Jetstar Asia and other offshoots.

“If the CEO Alan Joyce and the chairman Lee Clifford go, that will transform the airline because they have presided over monumental strategic mistakes including the failed Jetstar experiment in Asia where they have burned hundreds of millions,” he told AAP.

“The airline is now vulnerable to a private equity takeover because the share price is so low. The private equity buccaneers are now circling the airline.”

Meanwhile, Labor remains unconvinced about the need to alter legislation, with MP Matt Thistlethwaite saying the restrictions in the Qantas Sale Act existed for a good reason.

“Given what happened to private equity in the global financial crisis you could probably fairly say if we didn’t have the Qantas Sale Act…..Qantas would not be here today,” he told Sky News.

Liberal Josh Frydenberg said Qantas was an iconic Australian brand which should survive and proper.

“It would be negligent of us not to investigate the various ways we could help Qantas to survive and prosper,” he told Sky News.

“Ultimately if you were to change the ownership restrictions, that would be an issue for the Australian parliament.”

A spokesman for Qantas welcomed the acknowledgment of an uneven playing field.

He said the company was in ongoing talks with the government about how it could be levelled.

“But we’re not in a position to comment on those discussions other than to say we’re certainly not looking for a handout from taxpayers,” he said.

The spokesman said Qantas had previously called for review of the legislative framework distorting the Australian aviation market.

“Access to foreign capital has become a major factor in this market and Qantas is denied the same access as its competitors. But ultimately, the Qantas Sale Act is a matter for Parliament,” he said.

Alex Perry dumped from David Jones

Source:

Alex Perry dumped from David Jones

DAVID Jones has celebrated the signing of designer Martin Grant after having “deleted” high-profile designer Alex Perry.

David Jones has held an intimate fashion parade at its Elizabeth Street Sydney flagship store, showcasing a collection of elegant, black outfits and modern geometric patterned dresses, created by Melbourne-born Paris-based designer Martin Grant.

Outfits by Martin Grant, who designed the new Qantas uniforms, will be available at the department store from February, while the Alex Perry brand will be “exited” from August.

Alex Perry joined David Jones after defecting from Myer in 2007, but a David Jones spokeswoman said sales of the brand have declined over the past three years.

“The deletion of this brand enables David Jones to reallocate this floorspace to new brand Martin Grant and to high performing brands such as Camilla World and Rachel Gilbert,” group executive merchandise Donna Player said on Monday.

Meanwhile, Martin Grant, who attended the launch event, said he was honoured to have secured representation in his home market, adding that he is “excited that my collections will be available locally in Australia.”

Martin Grant’s designs are worn by actors and celebrities, such as Cate Blanchett, Juliette Binoche, Blake Lively and Kate Hudson and are stocked in high-end department stores around the world, including US stores Barneys and Saks Fifth Avenue.

The King of Colour Napoleon Perdis conquers Myer

by Napoleon Perdis

Live makeup installations, Greek dancing, and a tank? That’s right! The King of Colour arrived on a military-style tank in a bright blue suit designed by Gypsy Taylor for the launch of his makeup collection in MYER.

Guests enjoyed lunch while five models were transformed into couture makeup looks by the Napoleon Perdis Creative Team.

In the style of a proper emperor, as his name suggests, the official launch of makeup maestro Napoleon Perdis’ collection at Melbourne’s Myer last Tuesday was an epic one, as he entered Bourke Street perched on an ex-military tank.
Joining the King of Colours’ grand entrance to the Myer store, that blocked traffic and saw thousands of shoppers join the spectacle, was former Miss Universe and face of Myer Jennifer Hawkins.

Between a four course meal that included lipstick and eye shadow-like garnish, Napoleon, dressed in a metallic blue leather suit, celebrated the launch of his collection in Myer like a proper Greek son.
To the rhythms of DJ Krazy Kon, Napoleon, his wife Soula-Marie and model Jennifer Hawkins led a Zorba dance around the tables, joined by VIPs and media heavyweights as Greek music filled the retail giant’s Mural Hall in Bourke Street.
Born to Sydney immigrant parents and takeaway food store owners John and Liana Perdis, Napoleon Perdis built his $100 million worth cosmetic empire from scratch.
Today, his cosmetics are sold in 23 countries, in some of the world’s best retailers, including Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman.
In Australia, his brand was available only at David Jones where it was the top selling cosmetics brand. In July, the retailer’s exclusive contract with Napoleon Perdis ended, as the makeup king decided not to renew the agreement. That’s when Myer’s management took over – and with Tuesday’s epic launch of the Perdis collection, the rest is history.
At the launch, Myer CEO Bernie Brooks said $10 million had been allocated to get the Napoleon brand rolling at Myer, and counters are now in 61 Myer stores.

See below for a glimpse into the magnificent event, and be sure to check out our Facebook Album for even more behind the scenes photos.

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The grand entrance!

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MYER CEO Bernie Brookes, The makeup master, and Jennifer Hawkins.

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Makeup as art at the MYER launch.

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Not your typical media lunch! Napoleon and Jennifer Hawkins leading a Greek dance.

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Bernard Tomic, Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis ready to dominate tennis after the Australian Open final

Source: Couriermail.com.au

Australian tennis prodigies Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios after the Australian Open final. Source: News Limited

IT HAS been seven long years since an Australian man was in the world top 10.

But the boss of tennis in this country can see three of them on the horizon.

Bernard Tomic, the world No.51, you know about.

Nick Kyrgios, the 18-year-old Victorian who won the Australian Open juniors last summer and has since turned heads at the French and US Opens, has blown his cover through performances this year which have him ranked No.182.

Thanasi Kokkinakis, a 17-year-old from Adelaide, was runner-up of the Australian and US Open juniors in a year in which he needed time off due to stress fractures of his back.

Kyrgios has been given a wildcard into the main draw of the Brisbane International, which starts on December 29, and with the urgency of youth says he relishes the idea of a draw to play one of his heroes, Roger Federer.

It was June 2006 when Lleyton Hewitt last checked out of the top 10. His Newcombe Medal win this month as the year’s most outstanding player, at the age of 32, has been used by many as the latest stick to bash Australian tennis over the head for its ability to generate top players.

Nick Kyrgios is one of the top ranked juniors in world tennis. Source: News Limited

Craig Tiley, the Tennis Australia chief executive who was TA’s director of tennis prior to his promotion in October, knows the statistics say only one player, Sam Stosur, is in the men’s or women’s top 50.

But he insists programs for young professionals are making progress, with changes made over the past five years.

“Kyrgios and Kokkinakis are the two best players under the age of 20 in the world,” Tiley said.

“I say that for a number of reasons, including the respect I have for the comments of people like Pat Rafter, John McEnroe, Brad Gilbert and Paul Annacone about them.

“Nick’s coach Simon Rea has done a magnificent job with him. He has jumped like 600 places this year.

“They are both tall, very athletic, love playing tennis, want to compete and have each other to compete against. There are other Australian players who are pushing them as well.

“Everyone is in place. They may make big jumps early.

Thanasi Kokkinakis showed rapid improvement during 2013. Source: News Limited

“They have to be healthy, keep improving, keep having a good attitude. That’s up to them, but based on where they are, they are tracking to be future stars of the sport if they do the hard work.”

While Australia has a history of producing Grand Slam winners and runners-up in juniors, supporting those teenagers through to ATP Tour careers has been much more difficult. That battle has led to several changes in elite squad programs over the past 15 years.

Tomic, at No.51, is the highest ranked male player in the world under the age of 22.

While Spain, the nation with the most depth in the past decade, has 14 men in the top 100, only one is under the age of 25.

The 190cm Kyrgios, ranked No.1 in world juniors during the year, possesses the requisite weapons of a big serve and big forehand.

Of Greek-Malaysian extraction, he was more keen on basketball until settling finally on tennis at age 14.

Bernard Tomic and his sister Sara are both seen as the future of Australian tennis. Source: News Limited

Kyrgios was a late withdrawal from this week’s Australian Open playoff series in Melbourne Park with an elbow injury, but it is not expected to prevent his Brisbane appearance.

In his Davis Cup debut in Poland in September, Kyrgios teamed with Chris Guccione in a five-set doubles loss to Poland before he notched a first win in a dead fifth rubber when Pole Michal Przysiezny retired.

“Talent wise, he’s up there. It’s fantastic,” Rafter said.

“We’ve got one of the great Davis Cup players coming up right now.”

Rafter said with Tomic to be joined by “Nick and Thanasi, the next three or four years, it’s going to be a really strong team”.

A Challenger title win in Sydney in March and his French Open first round win over the crafty Radek Stepanek won the attention of top coach Gilbert.

“Any time a 17-year-old wins a challenger you take notice. This young Aussie has a big game and he showed it,” Gilbert tweeted after the Sydney win.

Tiley said statistically it took three times as many years for a top-100 male player to reach that milestone than it required 10 years ago, and the average tenure was double what it was then.

“We’ve realised it does take a long time and you cannot let politics get caught up in the decision-making, which has to be long term,” Tiley said.