SNOOKER
Williams sorry for nap
Triple world champion Mark Williams has apologized to snooker fans for falling asleep during his own match at the UK Championship, blaming the after-effects of COVID-19. The 46-year-old “Welsh Potting Machine” lost 6-5 in the second round to Anthony Hamilton in York, England, on Sunday evening and revealed afterward that he had nodded off in his chair while leading. Williams apologized on Twitter and said his slumbers had nothing to do with his opponent’s style of play. “After 30 years as a pro, that’s the first time I have fallen asleep during a match,” he told the World Snooker Tour Web site. “The score was 3-2 and I was sitting in my chair, then I was out like a light,” he said. “My head dropped down, which woke me up, and for about five seconds I had no idea where I was... It’s been a few weeks since I had COVID and I am feeling better, but I still get very tired. It was a good match though, we both made some good breaks.”
SOCCER
Rangnick new United boss
As the pioneer of a high-intensity pressing game adopted widely across Germany, Ralf Rangnick was an inspiration for coaches like Juergen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel who have gone on to be successful at two of England’s biggest soccer teams. At the age of 63, Rangnick is heading to the English game himself, ready to take on his countrymen as manager of Manchester United. Rangnick was on Monday hired to lead United until the end of the season, an appointment that is likely to shake up the playing style and management structure of an English Premier League giant seeking to return to the top after nearly a decade of underachievement. United are planning to hire a permanent manager in the off-season. Rangnick would then take up a “consultancy role for a further two years,” the club said.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
HSIEH MAKES QUARTERS: Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens of Belgium won in the women’s doubles and face Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sofia Kenin of the US Top-ranked Iga Swiatek and US Open champion Coco Gauff were knocked out of the women’s singles at the Miami Open on Monday, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced in the women’s doubles. Swiatek lost to Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4, 6-2, hours after third seed Gauff fell in three sets to No. 23 Caroline Garcia 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. Alexandrova beat a top-ranked player for the first time and advanced to face Jessica Pegula, a 7-6 (7/1), 6-3 winner over Emma Navarro, in the quarter-finals. Alexandrova recorded her second win over Swiatek, following a 2021 victory in Melbourne. Swiatek had won their three matches since. “We played quite