■ Cricket
Sydney umpires back Hair
Sydney cricket umpires will wear black ribbons in support of dumped ICC umpire Darrell Hair in this weekend's club matches, their organization said yesterday. The NSW Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association (NSWCUSA) has pledged to continue its support for Hair, a life member and former president of the association, with all umpires at club matches asked to wear the ribbons on Saturday. Hair was dumped from the International Cricket Council (ICC) Elite Panel of umpires after Pakistan lodged a complaint against him for his role in the historic forfeited Oval Test against England in August and demanded an inquiry into his conduct. A statement from the NSWCUSA said the decision to wear black ribbons was aimed at not just showing support, but also "to express concern at a total lack of respect for the role of the umpire by the ICC along with a demise in the idea of playing by the laws."
■ Baseball
Yankees win Igawa bid
The New York Yankees won the Major League Baseball bidding process for Japanese pitcher Kei Igawa when the Hanshin Tigers accepted their offer of slightly more than US$26 million on Tuesday. After the bidding closed on Monday, the Tigers were informed of the amount of the high bid, but not which team made it. The New York Mets bid about US$15 million for Igawa, an MLB official said on condition of anonymity because the amounts of losing bids are not disclosed. The Yankees have until midnight New York time on Dec. 28 to negotiate a contract with the 27-year-old left-hander. Igawa is represented by Arn Tellem, also the agent for Yankees left fielder Hideki Matsui.
■ Soccer
Chelsea go Chinese
English Premiership champions Chelsea on Tuesday announced that they will launch a new Chinese-language Web site next year as they look to expand their marketing in Asia. Chelsea has signed a deal with China's biggest Internet service, SINA.com to set up the Chinese-language site through their redesigned Web site, www.chelseafc.com. Chelsea's popularity has grown in China since they won their first title in 50 years last year, and they successfully defended it last season. Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon said: "China is a key market for us but our philosophy is to help Chinese football, as well as our own business, and our partnership with SINA will reflect that." Business affairs director Paul Smith added: "This partnership marks the next stage of Chelsea's development in China. Clearly we are becoming more popular and this is the right time to take that to the next level." The club is ranked fourth of all foreign clubs in terms of popularity in China narrowly behind Manchester United and ahead of Barcelona and Real Madrid.
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
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and