■Baseball
World Cup considered
Major league baseball's staff made a presentation Tuesday on a proposed World Cup that could start before the 2005 season. The proposal was very broad and there are many details still to be determined. While commissioner Bud Selig has said he is in favor of a World Cup, major league baseball has not made any decisions on whether to proceed with a tournament, how many nations to include and where to play the games. The presentation was made to the task force Selig appointed in January, which is called "Major League Baseball in the 21st century."
■ Boxing
Bruno applies for license
Former WBC world heavyweight champion Frank Bruno has made an official application for the return of his boxing license at age 41 although an eye problem could well lead to rejection. Bruno has not fought since losing his title in two rounds to Mike Tyson in Las Vegas more than seven years ago and has since discovered that he has a damaged retina. But the Southern Area Council confirmed on Tuesday he had applied for his license back with a view to a big money fight with former Olympic superheavyweight champion Audley Harrison who has won his 10 fights as a pro.
■ Extreme sports
Winter X goes to Aspen
The Winter X Games are headed back to Aspen. The games will take place in Aspen-Snowmass for the third straight year. The eighth version of Winter X will be staged Jan. 22 to Jan. 25. About 250 athletes are expected to compete moto X, skiing, snowboarding and snowmobile events. Last year's games drew more than 48,000 to the slopes of Buttermilk Mountain in three days. The X Games were created in 1995 by ESPN. Winter X started two years later at Big Bear Lake, California. The X Games are scheduled Aug. 14 to Aug. 17 in Los Angeles.
■ Rugby
Controversial player fined
Australian rugby league international John Hopoate, who was banned in 2001 for poking his fingers up the backsides of opposition players, was fined by his club on Wednesday after admitting to playing under a false name in a rugby union match. Hopoate received a 12-match ban in 2001 for his crude tactics while playing for Australia National Rugby League (NRL) club Wests Tigers, who sacked him. The 106kg winger, who has returned to his original NRL club Manly, was fined A$5,000 (US$3,350) after admitting he had breached his contract by playing in a fifth-grade rugby union match in Sydney on June 9.
Agencies
EVERY DAY A VICTORY: Players on the women’s team faced pressure from society just getting out onto the field as they prepare for their first Women’s Asian Cup game today Bangladesh’s national soccer team face daunting odds at their first-ever Women’s Asian Cup, but have already scored a major victory by qualifying. In the South Asian nation of 170 million, social stigma, family expectations, poverty and religious hardliners have long relegated women and girls to sports sidelines. The first women’s soccer league matches took place in 2011 and the squad, known to fans as the Red and Green, have kept pressing forward despite deeply embedded prejudices. “Many more girls would have joined us if the community had been even slightly supportive,” captain Afeida Khandaker told AFP ahead of her side’s March 3
Soccer officials yesterday offered “full support and assistance” to the Iranian team in Australia for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup after the US and Israel launched massive attacks on their homeland. Iran’s 26-strong squad arrived on the Gold Coast days before the strikes on Saturday killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Washington and Tel Aviv seek to topple the Islamic republic. They are due to open their tournament today against South Korea. The AFC in a statement said it “continues to closely monitor the recent developments in the Middle East during this challenging period.” “The AFC’s foremost priority remains the welfare, safety and
ROAD RASH: Marc Marquez retired after a crash, marking the first time after 88 consecutive races stretching back to 2021 that a Ducati bike failed to make the podium Marco Bezzecchi yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening grand prix in Thailand from pole position as defending world champion Marc Marquez retired late with a buckled wheel. Aprilia’s Bezzecchi led from start to finish to top the podium in Buriram, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta second and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez third. Ducati’s Marquez is chasing a record-equaling eighth world title this season, but he exited the race in dramatic fashion while in fourth place with five laps to go. The Spaniard, who started from second on the grid, took a corner wide, with the jolt to his bike dislodging the rear tire, badly damaging his
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
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