■ATHLETICS
Olympian shot dead
David Laut, who won a bronze medal for the US in the shot put at the 1984 Olympics, was shot to death after confronting intruders outside his California home, authorities said on Saturday. He was 52. Laut was gunned down early on Friday when he went outside to check on a noise in the yard, Oxnard Police Sergeant Ken Klopman said. Police on Saturday hadn’t made any arrests or identified suspects. Laut also won a gold medal at the 1979 Pan American Games. He was favored to win the gold medal at the Los Angeles Olympics after throwing 21.59m at the US Olympic trials. He won the bronze instead with a mark of 20.97 on his final attempt at the Los Angeles Coliseum. In 1985, he was ranked the No. 7 shot-putter in the world and the No. 1 American. But his career nearly ended the following year when he tore tendons in both knees during an agility test to become a fireman.
■ALPINE SKIING
Toni Sailer laid to rest
Austria on Saturday said goodbye to three-time Olympic alpine ski champion Toni Sailer who passed away after a lengthy illness. The 73-year-old was buried in his home town of Kitzbuehel after a two-hour long mass attended by several hundred mourners. Sailer’s coffin was covered in white and red flowers and a photograph of him during his heyday as a successful champion stood among the flowers. Sailer, who is considered as one of the best-ever alpine skiers, won three Olympic gold medals and seven world titles between 1946 and 1958 and became a successful actor and singer after his active skiing career.
■CYCLING
Cancellara wins first stage
Switzerland’s Fabian Cancellara clocked 5 minutes 20 seconds on Saturday to win the 4.8km opening stage of the Spanish Vuelta. Belgium’s Tom Boonen finished nine seconds behind at the Assen MotoGP circuit to take second place, while American Tyler Farrar was third, 12 seconds adrift. Alexandre Vinokourov, back after serving a ban for blood doping during the 2007 Tour de France, finished seventh, 18 seconds behind Cancellara. Defending champion Alberto Contador skipped the race after winning this year’s Tour, and rival Lance Armstrong, third in the Tour, also withdrew.
■MARATHON
Shimahara wins in Hokkaido
Asian Games silver medalist Kiyoko Shimahara of Japan won the Hokkaido marathon yesterday, with Kenya’s Daniel Njenga taking the men’s title. Shimahara, whose previous best finishes were second in the 2004 Tokyo and 2005 Hokkaido marathons, pulled away from teammate Akemi Ozaki at the 12km mark and crossed the finishing line in two hours 25 minutes, 10 seconds. Ozaki was never in a position to challenge Shimahara’s lead and had to settle for second place in 2:27:23, ahead of Satoko Uetani in 2:33:55.
■VOLLEYBALL
Japan wins third of three
Japan saw off South Korea yesterday for a third win out of three to advance with Iran to the world men’s volleyball championships. The Japanese, who finished eighth in the 2006 championships, coasted to a 25-23, 25-16, 25-22 victory to finish top in the four-team round robin competition. Earlier in the day, Iran defeated Kazakhstan 25-18, 25-14, 23-25, 25-16 for a second win against one defeat, and then waited for the outcome of the Japan-South Korea clash to ensure they were through. South Korea ended third with a 1-2 win-loss record, ahead of winless Kazakhstan.
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
“Please love us. Please cheer us on. We have been working hard. Do not give up on us.” Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien’s heartfelt plea echoed across the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 tournament after a historic victory. Rather than boasting, Chen was making an earnest appeal after leading Taiwan to a 4-0 victory over Japan to claim their first major international baseball title at the senior level. Chen’s decisive three-run homer in the fifth inning and his Premier12 leading .632 batting average secured him the Premier12’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) title. He was also named one of the tournament’s outstanding defensive players
WELL-AGED: Although the youngest team in the tournament, Taiwan featured several veteran stars, including Sunday’s home-run hero Chen Chieh-hsien “I will never forget today,” veteran Taiwanese pitcher Chen Kuan-yu said after Taiwan on Sunday night blanked Japan to secure their first ever gold in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 championship. Chen, who at 34 is the oldest member on the team, said Taiwan “made every difficult step to come to today’s victory. I will never forget today.” Taiwan made history when they won their first gold medal of the Premier12 tournament, beating Japan in a 4-0 shutout victory in the final at the Tokyo Dome. It was a jaw-dropping victory for many baseball commentators who went into the game with
Nikola Jokic on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to spark the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102, continuing their dominance of the NBA rivalry, while Scotty Pippen Jr scored a career-best 30 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Chicago Bulls, 142-131. The Nuggets won for the 13th time in the past 14 contests against the Lakers, including ousting the Lakers in the playoffs the past two seasons. Serbian star Jokic failed to achieve his sixth consecutive triple-double, managing only eight assists, but his effort was plenty as Michael Porter Jr added 24 points and 11
RSS