■ Cycling
Former Olympian killed
Australian Olympic cyclist Damian McDonald, who won a Commonwealth Games gold medal at Victoria, Canada, in 1994, was one of three people killed when several cars and trucks collided in a Melbourne tunnel on Friday, police said yesterday. McDonald, 34, won an Australian road championship and also competed at the 1996 Olympics, where he finished 65th in the road race. He was married to Bree McDonald, a team manager for the Melbourne Phoenix professional netball team, and the couple had a new baby.
■ Soccer
Japan see off Peru
Japan coach Ivica Osim's decision to call up Europe-based players for the first time proved successful in a weekend win over Peru, but he now wants more from them in the run-up to their Asian Cup defense. Celtic midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura set up goals by Seiichiro Maki and Frankfurt striker Naohiro Takahara, leading Japan to a 2-0 victory over Peru on Saturday. It was the first time that Osim called up Europe-based players since his appointment last July, which came after Japan ended a disappointing World Cup campaign in Germany with one draw and two losses. Saturday's win marked the first time Japan had beaten Peru in four tries, after two losses and one draw.
■ Soccer
Socceroos sink China
Palermo midfielder Mark Bresciano scored a goal and made another for Brett Holman to give Australia a 2-0 victory over China in a friendly in Guangzhou on Saturday. Both goals came in the opening half an hour as Australia, without a handful of their top players, made a good start to preparations for their Asian Cup debut. The Socceroos took the lead in the eighth minute when Bresciano beat two hesitant Chinese defenders to the ball out on the left and raced towards the penalty box, his square pass leaving Holman with the simple task of beating China's keeper.
■ Rugby Union
Portugal qualify for Cup
Portugal qualified for its first rugby World Cup after losing to Uruguay 18-12 but winning 24-23 on aggregate on Saturday. The Lobos won the first leg 12-5 in Lisbon two weeks ago, then succeeded in Uruguay, where the Teros had lost only two qualifiers in 14 years. Portugal filled the 20th and last berth for the World Cup in France in September, joining Pool C with New Zealand, Scotland, Italy and Romania. Uruguay's hopes of reaching a third World Cup were handicapped after only two minutes, when lock Juan Bado was sent off for foul play at Parque Central.
■ Cricket
Police quiz Pakistanis
Three members of the Pakistani cricket World Cup team were briefly questioned by Jamaican police investigating the murder of coach Bob Woolmer, but then were allowed to leave the island with the rest of the team late on Saturday. Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, team manager Talat Ali and assistant coach Mushtaq Ahmed were asked by Jamaican investigators to detail their activities before Woolmer's strangling in his Kingston hotel room, squad spokesman Pervez Jamil Mir told reporters. Mir said investigators probing the murder asked "general questions about their movements, what they were doing and what time they went to bed" on the night before Pakistan's national coach was found dead.
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
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but