■ Soccer
Rooney accused of spitting
Everton and England striker Wayne Rooney has been accused of spitting in a woman's face at a Manchester nightclub, British media reported yesterday. The Sun newspaper reported the 18-year-old faced a police probe over the alleged incident which took place in the early hours of Sunday. Greater Manchester Police refused to confirm the names of those involved, and said an investigation into the incident was underway. "It is claimed that an 18-year-old man spat in the woman's face in a Manchester nightclub at around 3am on Sunday Feb. 8," a police spokesman said, adding the complaint was lodged by a 23-year-old woman. The player's agent Paul Stretford was quoted as saying by British media that a woman had spat at Rooney.
■ Soccer
Inter blasts ref
Inter Milan took aim at referee Emilio Pellegrino after their Italian Cup semifinal defeat on penalties by Juventus on Thursday. Juve, Inter's historic rivals, won 5-4 on penalties after the second leg ended 2-2 after extra-time. The first leg had also finished in a 2-2 draw. Inter had Colombian defender Ivan Cordoba sent off in the 67th minute for a crude late challenge on Juve's European Player of the Year Pavel Nedved and moments later were up in arms after a penalty claim was waved away by Pellegrino. "The refereeing tonight was unacceptable and after all we did in those two games we are out of the Cup," Inter president Giacinto Facchetti told reporters. "But I want to congratulate the referee for helping us find our spirit and determination after he left us to play with 10 men." Asked whether Inter would make a formal complaint about the officiating, Facchetti said: "There are institutions that need to control certain things."
■ Olympics
Kim indicted for corruption
International Olympic Committee vice president Kim Un-yong has been indicted on charges of taking bribes and embezzling funds from South Korean sports organizations, a prosecution official confirmed yesterday. Kim was indicted Thursday, according to prosecution spokesman Kook Min-soo, who could not provide details of the charges against the 72-year-old sports administrator, who was arrested on Jan. 28. South Korea's Yonhap news agency said Kim is charged with embezzling 3.84 billion won (US$3.28 million) in funds from the World Taekwondo Federation, the World Taekwondo Headquarters -- which issues taekwondo credentials -- as well as other sports organizations. Kim is also accused of receiving bribes of 810 million won (US$692,000) from businesses and a sports official in return for favors, Yonhap said.
■ Basketball
Yao signs burger deal
NBA star Yao Ming will be friends with Ronald McDonald after the Houston Rockets center signed a multiyear sponsorship deal with McDonald's. The contract was announced at a McDonald's outlet inside the Los Angeles Convention Center on Thursday. Yao was in town to play in tomorrow's NBA All-Star game at Staples Center. "I have always been a big fan of McDonald's ever since the first restaurant opened in China 10 years ago," Yao said. Yao replaces Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, whose three-year deal with the fast-food company expired on Dec. 31 and was not renewed. Bryant has lost other sponsors while his sexual assault case proceeds in Colorado. "His contract expired and we mutually determined under the circumstances it was best to not renew," said Larry Light, McDonald's global chief marketing officer.
Brice Turang and Pete Crow-Armstrong’s consecutive RBI singles proved to be the difference in the US’ 5-3 win over Canada in a World Baseball Classic (WBC) quarterfinal on Friday night in Houston. The US faces the Dominican Republic, which crushed South Korea 10-0 in seven innings in its quarter-final, in a semifinal Sunday in Miami for a spot in Tuesday’s championship. The Dominican team has won all five games in this WBC by a combined margin of 51-10. It appeared the US squad was headed toward a cozy victory when it built a 5-0 lead by the sixth inning. A first-inning RBI groundout
Wilyer Abreu watched the ball leave the park and tossed his bat high in the air. His Venezuela teammates streamed out of the dugout in celebration. The comeback was on and the win over the reigning World Baseball Classic (WBC) champion Japan was within reach. Japan, their 11-game WBC winning streak on the line, held a 5-4 lead in the sixth inning of Saturday’s thrilling quarter-final matchup when Abreu put his team ahead with the biggest swing of the game: a three-run shot off Hiromi Itoh that sent the loanDepot Park crowd into a passionate roar and helped seize Venezuela’s 8-5
A BREATHLESS BATTLE: France clinched the championship in a vicious back-and-forth match with England, denying Ireland the title by just a few points France won back-to-back Six Nations titles after beating England 48-46 on a last-second penalty-kick by Thomas Ramos in a thriller for the ages on Saturday. England scored their seventh try in the 77th minute and converted for 46-45. If the score held for a few more minutes, Ireland would have been crowned the champion. But France pressed yet again with 14 men, lost possession, regained it, and earned two simultaneous penalties after the fulltime siren. Captain Antoine Dupont debated with referee Nika Amashukeli where the penalty spots were. Ramos, who did not miss a goal-kick all night, finally lined up his seventh
Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions’ outfielder Chen Chieh-hsien, who fractured his left index finger earlier during the World Baseball Classic (WBC), is expected to be sidelined for four to six weeks. The Uni-Lions confirmed in a news statement on Friday that Chen had a distal fracture in his left index finger. The diagnosis followed X-ray and CT scans conducted at the Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital earlier that day. According to the club, the injury would require four to six weeks to heal. During this period, Chen must wear a protective splint but is permitted to engage in light, sport-specific training. The team plans to
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