■ Rugby Union
Sivivatu in for Hamilton
Winger Sitiveni Sivivatu has been added to the New Zealand All Blacks squad for Saturday's decisive Tri-Nations rugby test against Australia at Auckland. Sivivatu, who has been sidelined with injury, replaces Scott Hamilton in the only change to New Zealand's 30-man squad since its 13-9 win over Australia last month.
■ Athletics
Five Swedes detained
Five Swedish athletes, among them former high jump world record holder Patrik Sjoberg, were detained by police in Goteborg on Sunday on suspicion of narcotics. They were released after being interrogated and tested, Swedish news agency TT said. Police released three of the athletes' names. In addition to Sjoberg, they were former 400m hurdler Sven Nylander and Patrik Lovgren. No other details were available. Lovgren was a reserve on the Swedish 4x100 relay team at the European Championships that ended on Sunday.
■ Soccer
Seitaridis out injured
Defender Giourkas Seitaridis has been ruled out of Greece's friendly against England due to injury. Atletico Madrid said on Sunday that Seitaridis will be sidelined for two weeks after straining his left ankle during Saturday's 1-0 loss to AC Milan in a preseason tournament. Greece meets England on Wednesday at Old Trafford in Manchester, England. Seitaridis, who joined Atletico from Dynamo Moscow in May, is also doubtful for the start of the Spanish league season, which begins on Aug. 26.
■ Soccer
Ajax win Johan Cruyff Trophy
Ajax won the Johan Cruyff Trophy on Sunday, beating PSV Eindhoven 3-1 in the match that pits the Dutch league champion against the cup winner. Mauro Rosales, Kenneth Perez and Wesley Sneijder scored a goal each for Ajax, while PSV captain Philip Cocu scored for PSV. Rosales put Ajax ahead in the seventh minute, finishing a cross from Gabri de la Torre, who joined the team from FC Barcelona in the offseason. Cocu equalized for the defending league champions on a corner shortly after halftime. Perez later gave Ajax the lead in the 70th, following up a deflected shot by Jaap Stam, and Sneijder added insurance with a long-range blast 10 minutes later. The Dutch league's regular season kicks off on Friday.
■ Soccer
Corinthians coach quits
Geninho quit as Corinthians coach after the team's eighth loss in 10 Brazilian league matches. Geninho announced his decision on Saturday night after Corinthians' 3-1 loss to Figueirense at Pacaembu stadium in Sao Paulo. "I tried everything," Geninho said. "But unfortunately we couldn't get the results we needed." The defending champion has lost 11 of its 16 matches and is last in the 20-team standings with only 13 points. It has the most losses among all clubs. The team's only victory in the past 10 matches came on Aug. 5 against Atletico Paranaense.
■ Cricket
Bangladesh win series
An unbeaten 51-run stand between Mashrafe Mortaza and Abdur Razzak led Bangladesh to a two-wicket victory over Kenya and a historic series win in the second one-day cricket international in Nairobi on Sunday. Bangladesh wrapped up its first series win away from home, having also won the first one-dayer by six wickets.
■ Cricket
Monsoon halts one-dayer
Monsoon showers delayed the start of the limited-overs cricket tri-series opener between Sri Lanka and South Africa yesterday. Organizers worked hard to make the field fit for play after heavy morning rain left puddles of water on the outfield, even recruiting extra help in a bid to avoid having the match rescheduled to a reserve day. Umpires Billy Bowden and Asoka de Silva agreed to review the ground conditions at 4pm local time and then decide whether or not there will be any play.
■ Boxing
Thai olympian dies
Thailand's first-ever Olympic medalist, boxer Payao Poontarat, has died after a five-year battle with Lou Gehrig's disease, a hospital official said yesterday. He was 49. Payao garnered the kingdom's first Olympic medal, a bronze, at the age of 19, at Montreal in 1976. He later held the World Boxing Council's super flyweight crown. A native of Prachuab Kiri Khan Province, 300km south of Bangkok, Payao, a one-time flower seller, was celebrated as a national hero after his 1976 win. In 2001, he won a seat in parliament. About a year later, he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis -- commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. He died on Sunday afternoon at Bangkok's Siriraj Hospital.
■ Tennis
Zheng takes Nordic Open
Third-seeded Zheng Jie beat Anastasia Myskina 6-4, 6-1 on Sunday in the Nordic Light Open final that started outdoors and finished indoors. Tied 1-1 in the opening set at Olympic Stadium, the final was suspended because of rain for more than three hours and finally moved indoors to the nearby Royal Tennis Hall. For Zheng, it was her third career singles title. She won her first at Hobart, Australia, last year and another one at Estoril, Portugal, this year.
■ Basketball
Dickel in NZ squad
Point guard Mark Dickel was named to New Zealand's 12-man squad for the world basketball championships in Japan after completing a two-match ban for cannabis use. Dickel, a former University of Nevada player, missed New Zealand's warmup matches against Qatar on Friday and Sunday after testing positive for cannabis during an earlier, pre-championship series against Australia. Basketball New Zealand yesterday ruled that Dickel's two-match ban was sufficient punishment for his breach of drug regulations and team disciplinary protocols, clearing the way for coach Tab Baldwin to include him in his world championship squad.
■ Athletics
Radcliffe pans appointment
Marathon runner Paula Radcliffe criticized a decision to appoint former Olympic sprint champion Linford Christie as a "mentor" to future British track athletes. Christie, the 100m gold medalist at the 1992 Barcelona Games, tested positive for nandrolone seven years later when he was a coach. He served a two-year ban and Radcliffe believes that does not make him the ideal person for athletes to look up to during the buildup to the 2012 London Olympics. Last week, UK Athletics announced that Christie and two-time decathlon champion Daley Thompson will be joined by Olympic medalists Steve Backley and Katharine Merry in a ?50 million (US$95.3 million) performance initiative to boost the strength of British athletics. "We have to make sure that the people in that mentor role have an integrity and strong sense of ethics and morals," Radcliffe told BBC Radio.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely