■ Baseball
Hsieh comments on IOC
Premier Frank Hsieh said Friday that although baseball and softball have been eliminated from the Olympics by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Taiwan should not be discouraged. The premier made the remarks after the IOC made the decision during a special vote in Singapore on all 28 sports that make up the Olympic program. The decision will affect the 2012 Games just awarded to London. Hsieh said that it is a bit disappointing to learn that baseball and softball, in which Taiwan excels, will no longer be part of the Olympics, but he said that there are more than 10 sports that Taiwan has unlimited room for development. Chen Chuan-shou, chairman of the National Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, also said that the development of baseball will not be affected by the IOC's decision.
■ Basketball
Stotts to coach the Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks hired former assistant Terry Stotts as their new head coach on Friday. Stotts, an assistant with the Golden State Warriors last season, coached the Atlanta Hawks for 1 seasons. He went 52-85 in Atlanta after replacing Lon Kruger in 2002-2003. He also served under George Karl as an assistant for four seasons in Milwaukee. Stotts replaces Terry Porter, who was unexpectedly fired on June 22, days before the Bucks selected Australian Andrew Bogut with the top pick in the NBA draft. General manager Larry Harris said at the time that he wanted an experienced coach, and attention immediately focused on Flip Saunders and Doug Collins. Collins withdrew his name from consideration to stay in his television analyst job, and Saunders, who is due US$5.5 million from the Minnesota Timberwolves next season, apparently is waiting to see what happens with Larry Brown in Detroit
■ Auto Racing
Sperafico replaces Bremer
Ronnie Bremer was replaced by Brazilian driver Alex Sperafico in the HVM team on Friday despite finishing in the top 10 in three of his five Champ Car World Series races. Bremer couldn't produce any sponsorship money. Sperafico has competed in 10 Champ Car events, and earned his first top-10 finish at last year's Grand Prix of Toronto. His cousin, Ricardo, drives for the Dale Coyne team. "This is a fantastic opportunity for me," Sperafico said. "HVM is known for their professionalism, they consistently prepare fast and reliable race cars, and I am honored and excited to represent them in the Champ Car World Series. This is the best opportunity I have had in my professional racing career and I intend to maximize this chance."
■ Olympics
IOC elects new officials
Members from Greece and Japan won elections in Singapore on Saturday to become vice presidents of the International Olympic Committee, while Singapore's delegate made it onto the executive board. In a surprise, Greece's Lambis Nikolaou defeated senior Australian member Kevan Gosper in the final round 49-45 to win one of the four VP spots on the final day of the IOC's session in Singapore. Nikolaou's victory was seen as a gesture of gratitude for Greece's highly successful staging of the 2004 Olympics. "I'm overwhelmed," Nikolaou said, choking back tears. "This an honor for my country, Greece, which held exceptional games. We managed to produce dream games."
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