■ Soccer
Anelka seeks France talks
Nicolas Anelka says he wants to talk to France coach Jacques Santini about an eventual return to the squad aiming to defend its European title at Euro 2004 this summer. The stormy Anelka walked out on Les Bleus in November 2002, saying Santini did not believe in him as a player and that he could not play under his command. But the Manchester City striker told L'Equipe newspaper that he now wants his France shirt back -- if Santini will have him. "I want to come back, to be an international again," he said.
■ Soccer
Qaddafi's dope ban to end
Saadi Qaddafi's three-month doping ban from Italy's top soccer league was due to expire yesterday. The son of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi was suspended in November after testing positive for a performance-enhancing steroid in an Oct. 5 match. He signed with the Perugia club in June and was sitting on the bench in the match in which he was found to be doping. Qaddafi will be eligible to make his Serie A debut in Perugia's match against European champion AC Milan tomorrow at San Siro. On Thursday, Qaddafi played in the second half of Perugia's 16-0 win against semiprofessional squad Collepepe in a friendly match. The Libyan forward scored twice, once with a penalty shot. The Italian league ruled last week that Qaddafi could play in friendly matches while serving his ban so he could keep in form. Qaddafi denies intentionally doping and says medicine he took for back pain probably caused the positive result.
■ Soccer
Cameroon in kit trouble
Cameroon are hoping to continue using their one-piece kit at the African Nations Cup finals despite the threat of FIFA sanctions. Cameroon Football Federation president Iya Mohamed said on Thursday he had received a letter from FIFA, adding: "They have told us that if we continue we stand the risk of having to appear before FIFA's disciplinary structures." Cameroon have defied FIFA president Sepp Blatter by wearing the new design in their first three matches in Tunisia. Blatter said on the eve of the tournament that the design infringed the laws of the game. But Mohamed said Puma, the equipment supplier, was still arguing its case with FIFA. "As things stand at the moment, we are awaiting a decision. The equipment supplier has not given up." On Wednesday, French sports newspaper L'Equipe reported that Puma was considering legal action against FIFA, arguing there was no law against shirts and shorts being sewn together. Mohamed said Cameroon had an alternative kit if required.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
If all goes well when the biggest marathon field ever gathered in Australia races 42km through the streets of Sydney on Sunday, World Marathon Majors (WMM) will soon add a seventh race to the elite series. The Sydney Marathon is to become the first race since Tokyo in 2013 to join long-established majors in New York, London, Boston, Berlin and Chicago if it passes the WMM assessment criteria for the second straight year. “We’re really excited for Sunday to arrive,” race director Wayne Larden told a news conference in Sydney yesterday. “We’re prepared, we’re ready. All of our plans look good on
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
When details from a scientific experiment that could have helped clear Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva landed at the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the leader of the organization’s reaction was unequivocal: “We have to stop that urgently,” he wrote. No mention of the test ever became public and Valieva’s defense at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) went on without it. What effect the information could have had on Valieva’s case is unclear, but without it, the skater, then 15 years old, was eventually disqualified from the 2022 Winter Olympics after testing positive for a banned heart medication that would later