■ Shooting
China takes 25m gold
Ying Chen of China won gold on Friday in 25m pistol at the 49th World Shooting Championships. China also took gold as a team, with two of its members -- Chen with 792.8 points and Fengji Fei 2.4 points behind -- taking first and the second place. Gundegmaa Otryad of Mongolia won bronze with 785.2 points. In team's event, Belarus took silver with 1,735 points and Germany was third, five points behind.
■ Soccer
Zidane wanted in Chile
Zinedine Zidane has gone from head butter to headhunted with a Chilean team believing he is the man to knock over their mountain of debt. A group of businessmen said on Friday they hoped to convince the French icon to play a few minutes in a friendly match with first-division side University of Chile, with takings aimed at settling the club's dues of US$10 million. "Our idea is to invite him to Chile so that he can be honored for all that he brought to football," spokesman Marcos Kaplun said on Friday. "He could play a few minutes for the `U' during a friendly match."
■ Soccer
LuaLua going nowhere
Democratic Republic of Congo captain Lomana LuaLua signed a new three-year contract with English Premiership club Portsmouth on Friday. LuaLua, 25, had been linked with a move away from Fratton Park this summer but the striker will now stay with Portsmouth until 2009. He told Portsmouth's Web site: "There's been a lot of speculation about my future but I always wanted to remain with Pompey." LuaLua played a key role in Portsmouth's remarkable escape act last season as Harry Redknapp's side climbed clear of relegation in the final weeks of the campaign.
■ Hockey
Fingold to buy Penguins
Sam Fingold, a Hartford, Connecticut-based commercial real estate broker and longtime ice hockey fan, signed a letter of intent on Friday to purchase the Pittsburgh Penguins from Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux's group. A deal that is expected to be in the US$175 million range was announced after Fingold met with Lemieux, who bought the two-time Stanley Cup championship team in federal bankruptcy court nearly seven years ago -- partly to protect more than US$25 million in deferred salary owed him. Fingold, a Toronto native, has said he might be interested in moving the team to Kansas City. But on Friday night he said he now intends to keep them in Pittsburgh if a new stadium is built there.
■ Rugby Union
Fijian form a political issue
The Fiji government has joined an escalating row over the performance of the national rugby team, demanding a meeting with the sports administrators to discuss funding and future direction. The national coach, New Zealander Wayne Pivac, has been on leave since his team's 80-9 drubbing by Australia's second string lineup last weekend. Calls have increased for his dismissal and the appointment of a Fijian-born replacement. Rajesh Singh, Minister of Youth and Sports, is seeking a meeting with the FRU to discuss the national team's preparation for the 2007 World Cup. Singh said the Fijian team received the largest share of the island nation's annual sports budget and taxpayers had a right to know how that money was being spent.
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