■ATHLETICS
Missing chips cost runners
Two Indian orphans lost out on a much-needed payday as they could not afford the US$4 for timing chips in their shoes, media reported yesterday. The 18-year-olds, Sunita Kanna and Savita Kamble, members of a local sports trust for orphans, came fourth and fifth in the Mumbai women’s half-marathon, the Hindustan Times said. Kanna would have won US$500 and Kamble US$400 if they had the chips embedded in their shoes. “In hindsight, we can think that we lost some money,” Kamble told the paper. “But that doesn’t matter. We enjoy running and next time we will have another shot at getting the prizemoney.” Their coach, Bhagwan Nagargoje, said the trust would have had to borrow money to buy the chips. “We came here to test waters and never expected anything. So we thought ‘why add to our expenses?’” he said. “It is my fault.” Race manager Homiyar Mistry confirmed the pair were recorded in the official finish list, but would not get the prize money.
■SOCCER
Fan shot in chest
A man was shot following a pre-season match between Penarol and Nacional in another bout of soccer violence in Uruguay, police said on Sunday. He was taken to hospital after being shot in the chest as rival fans clashed outside the Centenario stadium following Saturday’s game, police said. Media reports said the man, who has not been named, was in intensive care and that his condition was serious. Police added that 93 people were arrested before, during and after the match. The Uruguayan championship was suspended for two weeks in November after supporters fought on the pitch following a match between Danubio and Nacional. The tournament was again suspended last month after police declared Danubio’s stadium unsuitable to host Penarol.
■SOCCER
CFA names new head
Nan Yong was named to replace Xie Yalong as head of the struggling Chinese Football Association (CFA) yesterday. Xie has faced criticism for the poor performance of China’s men’s team, and the promotion of his deputy had been rumored for months. The CFA gave few details in announcing the change, although the Titan sports newspaper quoted a top-ranking official acknowledging the challenges. “Although right now Chinese football is not in good shape, I hope the new leaders can improve it,” Cui Dalin, deputy sports minister, told the Titan.
■SKIING
Pranger wins in Wengen
Austrian Manfred Pranger won the men’s World Cup slalom in Wengen, Switzerland, on Sunday to record his third career victory four years after his last win. The 30-year-old timed 1min 40.36sec over the two legs with his fellow Austrian Reinfried Herbst and Croatia’s Ivica Kostelic in second and third, 34 and 39 hundredths behind respectively. Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Grange could only finish sixth but still stays atop of the slalom standings.
■WINTER OLYMPICS
City receives cash boost
Canadian lawmakers gave Vancouver, host of next year’s games, the power on Sunday to borrow nearly C$500 million (US$400 million) to finish its Olympic Athlete’s Village. With just 13 months left before the games, the global financial crisis has threatened construction of the facility. The project’s New York lenders, Fortress Investment Group, cut off funding last fall to the private developer of the village, leaving Vancouver on the hook to guarantee the project.
■BASEBALL
Cubs give Orioles Pie
The Baltimore Orioles have acquired outfielder Felix Pie from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for pitcher Garrett Olson and a minor leaguer, the clubs said on Sunday. Pie, 23, batted .287 in 85 games with Class AAA Iowa and .241 in 43 games with the Cubs last season. A native of the Dominican Republic, Pie has appeared in 130 major league games over the last two years. Olson, 25, went 9-10 with a 6.65 ERA in 26 starts last year.
■BASEBALL
Wood says farewell
Kerry Wood, who spent 10 years as a Chicago Cubs pitcher before signing with the Cleveland Indians last month, took out a full-page newspaper advertisement on Sunday to say goodbye to loyal supporters. Wood, a fan favorite in five years as a starter for the Cubs, signed a two-year deal worth US$10 million with Cleveland last month. “Thank you Cubs fans, the greatest fans in all of baseball, for believing in me and supporting me over the years,” Wood said in the advertisement. “I will always be proud to have been a Chicago Cub. Although I’m a member of a new ‘Tribe,’ I will forever be a Chicagoan.”
■ATHLETICS
Keflezighi wins Half
Meb Keflezighi, the 2004 Olympic marathon runner-up, surged to an early lead and captured the US Half Marathon Championship men’s title in Houston, Texas, on Sunday. Keflezighi, an American who was born in Eritrea, won in 1 hours, 1 minute, 25 seconds for his first national crown at the distance with 2008 Olympian Dathan Ritzenhein the runner-up, 10 seconds off the pace. Magdalena Lewy-Boulet, a Beijing Olympic marathoner, won the women’s title in 1:11:47.
■BIATHLON
Bjoerndalen is back
Norwegian biathlon star Ole Einar Bjoerndalen appears to be back to his best after collecting his second straight World Cup victory, winning Sunday’s 12.5km men’s pursuit race. Bjoerndalen, who has battled an illness during the season, had a 33-second lead going into Sunday’s race in Ruhpolding, Germany, and missed just one of 20 targets in finishing the course in 36 minutes, 17.4 seconds. Finishing second was Bjoerndalen’s former Norwegian protegee Emil Hegle Svendsen, who trailed by 34.4 seconds after one penalty lap. Third place went to Dominik Landertinger, who was 46.5 seconds behind after two misses. The 20-year-old Austrian took second place in Saturday’s sprint. Bjoerndalen’s victory brings him closer to the overall World Cup leader Svendsen, who improved to 460 points. The women’s 10k pursuit was won by Germany’s Magdalena Neuner, who also was victorious in Saturday’s sprint.
■SUMO
Hakuho maintains record
Grand champion Hakuho threw down sekiwake Baruto yesterday to maintain his perfect record and share the lead with Asashoryu at the New Year Sumo tournament. In the day’s final bout at Ryogoku Kokugikan, Hakuho, who saw his rival yokozuna win in a match just before him, unlocked Baruto’s persistent clinching, ending a minutes-long deadlock at the ring center and smashed him down with a powerful overarm throw. The Estonian slipped to 7-2. Hakuho improved to 9-0 and is tied with Asashoryu, who beat newly promoted ozeki Harumafuji, who fell to 6-3 and is still short of a winning record to maintain his ozeki status. In other major bouts, Bulgarian ozeki Kotooshu bulldozed out No.4 maegashira Wakanosato to stay on the heels of the two leaders at 8-1.
Although Shohei Ohtani’s first trip to the Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series is a global sports event, it is particularly big in Japan. Fans from Ohtani’s home nation bought more World Series tickets for the first two games than from anywhere outside North America, ticket broker StubHub said. Dodger Stadium was packed to the rafters on Friday night for the start of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ showdown with the New York Yankees. “Ohtani’s first season with the Dodgers drew big international appeal, especially from his home country of Japan,” StubHub spokesperson Adam Budelli said. “At the beginning of the season, buyers from
The Major League Baseball World Series trophy is headed to Los Angeles, but the party is extending all the way to Japan. People milled around local train stations yesterday morning in Tokyo as newspaper extras were ready to roll off the presses, proclaiming Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto as world champions along with their Dodgers teammates after a stirring Game 5 victory over the New York Yankees. The 30-year-old is a national hero in Japan whose face adorns billboards and TV adverts all over the country. Ohtani this year became the first player in history to hit 50 home runs and
STAR IN DOUBT: After partially dislocating his shoulder in a feetfirst slide into second base, the status of Japanese slugger Ohtani is uncertain for Game 3 as he undergoes tests Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Saturday walked back to his dugout and made the slightest tip of his cap to cheering fans. He left Japan for moments like this, an opportunity to put the Los Angeles Dodgers in control of the World Series. Yamamoto allowed one hit over 6-1/3 innings and Freddie Freeman homered for the second straight night as Los Angeles beat the New York Yankees 4-2 for a 2-0 Series lead. However, the Dodgers head to New York uncertain whether Shohei Ohtani can play after their biggest star partially dislocated his left shoulder on a slide at second base. “We’re going to get
Three-time reigning world champion Kaori Sakamoto on Saturday led a Japanese podium sweep at Skate Canada, locking up a second straight Canadian women’s title despite two falls in her free skate. Sakamoto, who led 19-year-old American Alysa Liu after the short program, looked a little tight during her jazzy free skate, falling on a Salchow jump and again on a triple flip while fighting to hang on to a few other moves. Her second-best free skate score of 126.24 was enough for gold in the second Grand Prix event of the season in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She finished with 201.21 points, well ahead
RSS