■SOCCER
Banfield look for first title
Banfield can become Argentine champions today for the first time in their 113-year history, needing a victory over Boca Juniors to guarantee the title. Banfield can even clinch the championship with a loss, provided nearest rivals Newell’s Old Boys, who are two points behind, fail to win against San Lorenzo. Banfield and Newell’s — both established by English families who emigrated to Argentina — are the only teams that can claim the Apertura title, while big-name clubs like River Plate and Boca are way out of contention. Banfield go into the match on 41 points, with Newell’s on 39 points. If they finish level on points the title will be decided in a playoff on Wednesday at a neutral venue.
■SOCCER
Ajax defeat NFC Nijmegen
Ajax striker Luis Suarez took his league tally for the season to 18 with a goal in a 3-0 home victory over NEC Nijmegen on Friday. Jan Vertonghen set up Uruguayan Suarez seconds before the interval to open the scoring, with Siem de Jong and Mitchell Donald adding second-half goals. Twente Enschede, in action at home to NAC Breda this weekend, top the Dutch championship with 44 points after 16 matches, two more than PSV Eindhoven. Ajax remain third with 38 points from 17 matches.
■RUGBY UNION
Munster go four points clear
Munster moved four points clear at the top of their pool with a gutsy 24-23 Group 1 win over French champions Perpignan at Thonond Park on Friday. The French looked to have snatched the contest after South African replacement Philip Burger went over for a superb 70th-minute try, but visiting flanker Bertrand Guiry’s late high tackle allowed Ronan O’Gara to kick a match-winning penalty and ensure that the quarter-finals loom once again for Munster, who have at least made that stage for the past 11 seasons. Also on Friday, Glasgow saw off Gloucester 33-11 to keep their slender hopes of advancing from Pool 2 alive with tries by Max Evans and Bernardo Stortoni, while Dan Parks booted seven penalties and a conversion to see the hosts leapfrog their opponents in the table.
■SPEEDSKATING
Davis, Wolf set new records
Shani Davis of the US shattered his own 1,500m world record and Germany’s Jenny Wolf broke her own 500m world record to win World Cup speedskating races on Friday at the 2002 Olympic Oval. In the final World Cup stop before the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, World Cup season points leader Davis made it clear he is the man to beat by winning in 1 minute, 41.04 seconds, with countryman Chad Hedrick second in 1 minute, 42.19 seconds. Davis, who lost to Hedrick last week at a 1,500m World Cup race in Calgary, set the old mark of 1 minute, 41.80 seconds on the same ice surface on March 6. Wolf won the women’s 500m title in 37.00 seconds. Wolf broke the old mark of 37.02 seconds.
■POWERBOAT RACING
Two die in high-speed crash
A French and an Emirati pilot of the Dubai Victory Team were killed on Friday when their boat overturned in a Class 1 World Powerboat Championship race off the Gulf emirate, organizers announced. Mohammed al-Mehairi of the United Arab Emirates and France’s Jean-Marc Sanchez were involved in a high-speed crash during the early stages of the race at the Dubai International Marine Club. “Safety personnel attended to both pilots at the scene. They were subsequently airlifted to a local hospital, where all efforts to resuscitate them were in vain,” the organizers said.
Japan’s Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball “superhuman” following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to US sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady. Not since Ruth a century ago has there been a baseball player capable of both pitching and hitting at the top level. The 30-year-old’s performances with the Los Angeles Dodgers have consolidated his position as a baseball legend in the making, and a national icon in his native Japan. He continues to find new ways to amaze, this year becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
Zhang Shuai yesterday said that she nearly quit after losing 24 matches in a row — now the world No. 595 is into the quarter-finals of her home China Open. The 35-year-old is to face Spain’s Paula Badosa as the lowest-ranked player to reach this stage in the history of the tournament after Badosa reeled off 11 of the last 12 games in a 6-4, 6-0 victory over US Open finalist Jessica Pegula. Zhang went into Beijing on a barren run lasting more than 600 days and her string of singles defeats was the second-longest on the WTA Tour Open era, which
Francesco Bagnaia yesterday profited from a mistake by rookie Pedro Acosta to win the Japan MotoGP sprint and close the gap on overall championship leader, Jorge Martin. Spaniard Acosta crashed with four laps to go while leading the field at Motegi, allowing defending world champion Bagnaia to take first ahead of Enea Bastianini and Marc Marquez. Spain’s Martin finished fourth and saw his overall lead over Italian Bagnaia in the championship standings cut to 15 points. “I am very happy because with these conditions, it’s not very easy to win and gain points,” Bagnaia said after a sprint race that took place under