■FORMULA ONE
Villeneuve plans return
Jacques Villeneuve wants to return to Formula One as part of the expanded series from next year. The 1997 world champion last raced in F1 in 2006, pulling out after 12 rounds following his exit from BMW Sauber. The 38-year-old Villeneuve has attended recent grands prix and spoken to unnamed team principals about the possibility of a seat. “I’m a racing driver and I always will be,” Villeneuve told Autosprint. “That’s why I’m looking about myself for F1. Driving is the only thing that interests me, and all the mess that’s happened helps me.” Villeneuve has competed in various events in recent years, including NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck Series and last season’s Le Mans 24 Hours. “The human aspect is counting again, as it did in the past. The work is more like the way I remember it,” he said. “When I left, F1 wasn’t fun anymore. Or rather, driving still was, but the atmosphere outside was bad. You’d spend your half-hour with your race engineer, after which the computer would prepare your set-up, and they would tell you ‘Shut up and drive.’”
■ICE HOCKEY
Sakic looks likely to retire
Colorado Avalanche captain Joe Sakic will hold a news conference today and make an announcement regarding his career, the team said on Tuesday on its Web site, avalanche.nhl.com. The 40-year-old, who has played 20 seasons with the franchise including seven when they were the Quebec Nordiques, was expected to announce his retirement, Denver media reported. The future Hall of Famer led the Avalanche to Stanley Cup titles in 1996 and 2001 and helped Canada win the 2002 Olympic ice hockey gold medal.
■ICE HOCKEY
Pronger, Flyers sign deal
The Philadelphia Flyers have signed All-Star defenseman Chris Pronger to a multi-year contract extension, the team said on Tuesday. Pronger, 34, joined the Flyers from the Anaheim Ducks in a blockbuster multi-player trade at the NHL draft last month. The league MVP in 2000 registered 11 goals, 37 assists and 48 points for the Ducks last season.
■ICE HOCKEY
‘Monster’ signs with Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs signed coveted Swedish free agent goalie Jonas Gustavsson to a one-year contract on Tuesday. The 24-year-old netminder, nicknamed “The Monster,” was also heavily pursued by Dallas, San Jose and Colorado. “Jonas is considered by many to be the best goaltender not playing in the NHL today,” Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke said in a statement. Gustavsson played for Farjestad in the Swedish Elite League last season, registering four shutouts with a league-leading 1.96 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage in 42 games.
■BASKETBALL
NBA salary cap drops
The NBA salary cap has been set for next season at US$57.7 million, a decline from 2008-2009, allowing teams to begin signing players. The figure the league announced on Tuesday night was about US$1 million less than last season’s cap of US$58.68 million, even though league-wide revenue rose 2.5 percent. The number is expected to drop further next season when the full effect of the economic difficulties hit. The new salary cap went into effect at 12:01am EDT on Wednesday, ending the NBA’s moratorium period and allowing free agents to sign deals with teams. The luxury tax level also dropped to US$69.92 million. Any team whose salary exceeds that will have to pay US$1 for every US$1 it goes over.
■SOCCER
Drug tests negative: FIFA
Drug tests conducted on teams who participated in the Confederations Cup, a curtainraiser for next year’s World Cup, came out negative, soccer’s world governing body FIFA said in a statement on Tuesday. “A total of 131 urine and blood tests were conducted as part of the testing program,” said the statement. It said FIFA doping control officers visited all eight participating teams and performed unannounced out-of-competition tests two months before the competition. Eight players per team were drawn, which meant that a total of 64 players were tested out of competition. FIFA Medical officer, Professor Jiri Dvorak said: “Some players were surprised when we woke them up at 7am, but the cooperation of all teams was excellent.” During the tournament held from June 14 to June 28, two players per team were randomly selected for doping control at all 16 matches. “All the usual prohibited substances and methods were searched for in the urine and blood tests, including stimulants, anabolic steroids, diuretics and erythropoietin,” FIFA said.
■SOCCER
Olivera scores winner
Juan Manuel Olivera scored the winner as Universidad de Chile beat Union Espanola 1-0 on Tuesday to claim the Chilean Football Championship in Santiago. Olivera scored in the 63rd minute with a header off a cross from Emilio Hernandez. This is Universidad de Chile’s first title in five years. The title marked the end of Uruguayan Sergio Markarian’s six-month tenure as coach of Universidad. Markarian terminated his contract and plans to leave Chile. The team’s next coach will be Argentinian Jose Basualdo. “I think we achieved everything we set out to do,” Markarian said.
■TENNIS
US Open prizes increased
The winners of the US Open men’s and women’s singles title will each receive a record US$1.6 million, a nearly 6 percent increase from last year. The total prize money will be a record US$21.6 million, the third consecutive year the purse has increased by US$1 million, the US Tennis Association announced on Tuesday. The top three men’s and women’s finishers in the US Open Series may earn up to an additional US$2.6 million in bonus money. The bonus prize money at the series has resulted in the largest paychecks in tennis history, when Roger Federer won a combined US$2.4 million in 2007 and Kim Clijsters won US$2.2 million in 2005.
■HORSE RACING
Dutrow banned for 30 days
Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes-winning trainer Rick Dutrow was suspended for 30 days on Tuesday for violating doping rules more than a year ago. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) issued the suspension after tests revealed that Salute the Count had an excessive amount of Clenbuterol in his blood after finishing second in a race at Churchill Downs the day before he won last year’s Kentucky Derby with Big Brown. Clenbuterol allows horses to breathe easier while exercising. It’s only legal at low dosages. Besides imposing the 30-day suspension, the KHRC ordered Dutrow to return the purse money won by the horse. In a rare split vote, the commission voted 6-5 to suspend Dutrow for 30 days moments after voting 6-5 against approving the 15-day ban proposed by both the stewards at Churchill and an officer who heard Dutrow’s appeal. That officer had initially rejected the suspension altogether because of questions about the drug testing that was used.
The New Taipei Kings claimed the inaugural Taiwan Professional Basketball League (TPBL) championship on Sunday, defeating the Kaohsiung FamilyMart Aquas 108-89 in the final. Playing at home, the Kings pulled ahead with Jeremy Lin’s (林書豪) clutch three-pointers, securing their victory over the Aquas in the TPBL final. The Kings came out strong in the first quarter, dominating to build a 35-18 lead. By halftime, they had stretched their advantage to 61-38. In the third quarter, the Aquas narrowed the deficit to 12 points, but Lin stepped up, sinking several tough three- pointers to extend the lead. In the final quarter, the Kings pushed the
In an unlikely Ethiopian outpost of one the most French of pastimes, four men are leaning over their petanque balls, arguing over who is winning. Petanque, the bowling game also known as boules, is more readily associated with French village squares where locals launch metal balls at a jack while enjoying an afternoon drink, but for decades, it has also been a beloved pastime for members of a club near the iconic Meskel Square in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. It was founded in the early 20th century to cater to French railway workers, who built a line connecting Addis Ababa
Taiwanese women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei and Australian teenager Maya Joint on Tuesday eased into the Eastbourne Open quarter-finals in England as Hsieh prepares for the Wimbledon Championships next week. Four-time Wimbledon women’s doubles champion Hsieh and 19-year-old Joint fired two aces and converted five of eight break points to defeat Japan’s Shuko Aoyama and Poland’s Katarzyna Piter 6-3, 6-3 in 58 minutes on the grass court. Hsieh and Joint are today to face fourth seeds Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, who advanced on Monday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Quinn Gleason of the US and
BEAT THE HEAT: A brutal heat wave in the US has made cooling breaks standard. Dortmund’s coach said the weather could shape the destiny of the tournament Chelsea on Tuesday beat Esperance of Tunisia 3-0 to set up a FIFA Club World Cup last-16 tie against SL Benfica, who earlier defeated Bayern Munich 1-0, as furnace-link heat and the threat of thunder and lightning wreak havoc at the tournament. Elsewhere, minnows Auckland City claimed a memorable draw against Boca Juniors, while Los Angeles bowed out of the tournament with a stalemate against Flamengo. In Charlotte, Andreas Schjelderup scored the only goal for Benfica in their Group C clash with Bayern in front of 33,287 fans, finishing first-time from a cutback by his fellow Norwegian Fredrik Aursnes in the 13th
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