■ Auto Racing
Loeb leads in Cyprus
Sebastian Loeb, the defending World Rally champion, led at the end of the first of three days at the grueling Cyprus Rally. Driving a Citroen along the twisting, narrow dirt tracks of the Troodos Mountains, Loeb finished more than 2 minutes ahead of second-place teammate Manfred Stohl of Austria. Norway's Henning Solberg, in a Subaru, was a minute further back. "I've made a good start -- no punctures, no problems," Loeb said on Friday. "I just want to make sure that we keep going like this." Peugeot suffered a blow when Marcus Gronholm, who won last year's event before being disqualified, was forced to pull out with a broken cam belt. His withdrawal dents Peugeot's chances of defending its 11-point lead over Citroen in the manufacturers' standings.
■ Hockey
NHL players' won't meet
The NHL Players' Association will not hold a scheduled membership meeting at the end of the month because there has been little change in negotiations with the league on a new collective bargaining agreement. The decision was made on Friday after union leaders held a conference call with team representatives. "In early April, when we set the May 24-26 meeting dates, we thought these dates would work well to allow both North American and European based players to get together," said NHLPA president Trevor Linden of the Vancouver Canucks. "Since our late-February meeting with 156 players in Toronto, we decided there is not sufficient new information to justify another meeting at this time."
■ Rugby
World Cup bids entered
Japan, New Zealand and South Africa will bid for the right to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup, the International Rugby Board said in Dublin, Ireland on Friday. The IRB said it would visit the countries in June and July and will report its findings to Rugby World Cup Ltd. The IRB council selects the host in November 2005. "We have three bids of substance -- three excellent bids -- and we're very pleased," RWCL chairman Syd Millar said. South Africa hosted and won the 1995 World Cup. New Zealand hosted and won the inaugural World Cup in 1987 but was stripped of its status as co-host for 2003 after a row over the provision of space for corporate advertising.
■ Hockey
Germany to host event
Germany will host 2010 men's World Hockey Championship, the International Ice Hockey Federation announced in Vienna, Austria on Friday. The venues will be Cologne and Mannheim. Germany beat Belarus by 89 votes to 18 at the IIHF's annual conference. Slovakia withdrew from the contest before the congress, while Sweden withdrew before the vote. Both countries postponed their bids until next year, when the congress will allocate the 2011 championship. Germany has hosted the World Championship six times, most recently in 2001. It also hosted the 1936 Olympic hockey tournament that counted as a World Championship. The 2008 event will take place in Quebec City and Halifax, Canada, while Switzerland will host in 2009.
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
‘SOURCE OF PRIDE’: Newspapers rushed out special editions and the government sent their congratulations as Shohei Ohtani became the first player to enter the 50-50 club Japan reacted with incredulity and pride yesterday after Shohei Ohtani became the first player in Major League Baseball to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. The Los Angeles Dodgers star from Japan made history with a seventh-inning homer in a 20-4 victory over the Marlins in Miami. “We would like to congratulate him from the bottom of our heart,” top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “We sincerely hope Mr Ohtani, who has already accomplished feat after feat and carved out a new era, will thrive further,” he added. The landmark achievement dominated Japanese morning news
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or