■ SUPERBIKES
Toseland stays in first place
James Toseland of Britain stayed in first place in the World Superbike standings on Sunday after winning his third race of the season. The Honda rider won Sunday's second race in Valencia, Spain, and has 151 points, 13 more than Italian rider Max Biaggi. Noriyuki Haga of Japan is third with 124 points. Spanish rider Ruben Xaus won the opening race on his Ducati, finishing ahead of Haga and Australian teammate Troy Bayliss. It was Xaus' first career podium finish and it moved him to seventh in the standings with 83 points. Toseland finished fifth.
■ BASEBALL
Matsui goes on disabled list
The Colorado Rockies placed Japanese infielder Kazuo Matsui on the 15-day disabled list because of back spasms on Sunday. Matsui left Saturday's game against Arizona in the bottom of the fifth inning. He had started the first 11 games of the season at second base. He was hitting .361 with three RBIs and had five stolen bases in five attempts. Matsui, who has had back problems in the past, was acquired by the Rockies from the New York Mets last June. He signed a one-year contract with Colorado in the offseason.
■ BASEBALL
US remembers Robinson
Sixty years after Jackie Robinson became the first black player in modern Major League Baseball, his legacy was honored at games across the US on Sunday. Robinson, whose number 42 was retired for all Major League Baseball clubs at ceremonies 10 years ago in New York, played for the Brooklyn Dodgers and was the National League's Rookie of the Year in 1947. He played his first game for the Dodgers on April 15, 1947, and 60 years on every member of the Los Angeles Dodgers donned No. 42 in his memory. Withstanding racial insults and slights in an era of discrimination, Robinson was a trail blazer for black rights and such modern-day stars as Derek Jeter, Barry Bonds and Ken Griffey Jnr.
■ SOCCER
Spurs' Lee needs surgery
Tottenham Hotspur defender Lee Young-pyo is to go undergo surgery in London later this week. The South Korean injured ligaments in his left knee in the first leg of Spurs' UEFA Cup quarter-final against Sevilla on April 5. The player's management company told media over the weekend that after examination of his injury, Lee and his club decided on a course of treatment that involves surgery. Recovery is expected to take about three months. The injury will not only keep Lee on the sidelines for the rest of the English season but also means he faces a race against time to be fit for the Asian Cup.
■ HORSE RACING
National start to be reviewed
The start of the Grand National steeplechase will be reviewed after delays caused Saturday's race to begin 10 minutes late. Horseracing Regulatory Authority spokesman Paul Struthers said on Sunday that organizers were unhappy with the delay. It took four attempts to get the 40 horses behind the tape to begin the four-mile, four-furlong race (7.2km), which was won by Silver Birch. "It didn't look good, did it?" Struthers told BBC Radio. "Our position is to ensure that all the jockeys get as fair a start as possible. The problem was that the horses' heads were on the line and when their heads are on the tape you can't let them go." Struthers said the start was briefly reviewed after the race and would be discussed again, but there was limited room for improvement.
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