■ Golf
Netherlands take the lead
Will Besseling shot a 7-under 65 on Saturday to help the Netherlands take a two-stroke lead over the US, Canada and Wales after the third round of the World Amateur Team Championship in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Joost Luiten added a 70 to give the Netherlands a 15-under 417 total. Tim Sluiter shot a 75, with only the top two scores counting in the team total. Chris Kirk and Trip Kuehne had 70s for the US, the three-time defending Eisenhower Trophy champion and 13-time winner overall. Jonathan Moore shot a 72.
■ Motorsport
Race driver shot dead
An amateur race car driver was shot dead at a track near the Colombian capital on Saturday minutes before taking his position at the starting line, the police said. Witnesses said German Neira's assailant entered the pits at a race track in Tocancipa, north of Bogota, and using a firearm equipped with a silencer shot Neira four times, in the head and back. The victim died shortly after being taken to a hospital, said Colonel Cesar Rojas, the local head of police. Police chased and captured the alleged assassin and an accomplice, both minors, but other men waiting for the two in a motorcycle and car escaped. "The assailant tried to escape through the back entrance of the race track, but an alarm call was immediately sounded and the police were able to detain him," Fernando Escobar, the manager of the track, told reporters.
■ Rugby Union
Umaga to retire next year
Former New Zealand captain Tana Umaga was to make his club debut for second division Toulon against Lyon yesterday. He is reported to be pocketing around 300,000 euros (US$382,374) for playing for Toulon until January, when he is to return home to play for the Wellington Hurricanes in the Super-14 tournament. Umaga, who was declared an honorary citizen and received a medal of honor on his arrival, said that he would play one more season in the Super 14 and then retire completely from rugby. "I'm very privileged and honored to be here, and a little bit embarrassed to be given this medal," Umaga said
■ Soccer
Matches rocked by violence
More violence accompanied German soccer matches over the weekend, with police on Saturday releasing injury and arrest totals from two separate incidents the previous day. Twenty-three police officers were injured, four of them requiring hospitalization, after they clashed with hundreds of Dresden fans at Friday's regional league game at Hertha Berlin II. Injuries ranged from bruised ribs, ankle and wrist injuries to suspected bone splinters. Reports said 15 fans were injured. In Augsburg, 56 fans were hospitalized on Friday after police also used pepper spray to halt rampaging 1860 Munich supporters at a second-division game against FC Augsburg. Augsburg police reported 21 arrests, while Berlin police said 22 Dresden fans were taken into custody.
■ Basketball
Celtics' Red Auerbach dies
Red Auerbach, who coached the Boston Celtics to nine NBA championships in the 1950s and 1960s, died on Saturday. He was 89. Auerbach won 938 games with the Celtics and was the coach with the most wins in NBA history until Lenny Wilkens overtook him in the 1994-1995 season. As general manager, the straight-talking Auerbach was also the architect of Celtics teams that won seven more titles in the 1970s and 1980s. He died of a heart attack, an NBA official said.
■ Baseball
Jones to play in Japan
Chicago Cubs outfielder Jacque Jones was added on Saturday to US Major League Baseball's roster for its All-Star tour of Japan, completing the 27-man squad. Jones hit .285 with 27 home runs and 81 RBIs this year, his first with the Cubs. The Japan All-Star Series 2006 will consist of five games in Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka from Nov. 3 to Nov. 8. The US MLB team also will face the Yomiuri Giants in Tokyo on Nov. 2. New San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy will manage the team.
■ Triathlon
Aussies dominate at Noosa
Australians Craig Walton and Felicity Abram won the Olympic-distance Noosa Triathlon in Australia yesterday while world and Commonwealth Games champion Emma Snowsill placed third despite an injury. Walton, who is recovering from glandular fever, led throughout the men's race to finish in a time of 1 hour, 47 minutes and 46 seconds for the 1,500m swim, 40km cycle and 10k run. New Zealanders Bevan Docherty and Kris Gemmell placed second and third. Australian Snowsill finished behind Abram -- the world bronze medalist who won Sunday in 2:00.23 -- and Australia's Annabel Luxford. Snowsill, who was trying to win her fourth Noosa title in a row, suffered a badly sprained ankle in a training run on Friday.
■ Hockey
Bomb threat halts game
Police stopped a game in Sweden's first-division ice hockey league during the third period and evacuated the packed arena after receiving a bomb threat. The game between Farjestad and Modo in Karlstad in southern Sweden was stopped with less than eight minutes to go in the third period with host Modo leading 2-0. Police said two bomb threats against the arena were called in during the game, which caused officials to stop play and evacuate the 8,250 people in Lofbergs Lila arena. "In this case, the threat was deemed serious," police spokesman Christer Loof said. It was unclear whether Modo would be awarded the win or if the game would resume at a later date. Police dogs were called in to search the arena during the evening, but no bomb was immediately found.
■ Boxing
Trevor Berbick found dead
Former heavyweight boxing champion Trevor Berbick was found dead in a church courtyard on Saturday with chop wounds to his head in a suspected homicide. Berbick, who was believed to be 52 and was beset by legal problems following his retirement from the ring, lost his heavyweight title to Mike Tyson and was the last boxer to fight Muhammad Ali. Berbick's body was discovered at about 6:30am in his hometown parish of Portland, Jamaica, constable Beverly Howell said. Police have arrested a man whom they are interrogating at the Port Antonio police station, Constable Sheldon Francis said.
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
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was