■ SOCCER
Pele's arms stolen
Vandals sawed the arms off a statue of Pele in Salvador, Brazil, and police are scouring scrap metal yards and art workshops looking for them. A bronze replica of the World Cup trophy, which had been held above the statue's head, was also missing, officials said on Wednesday. "The destruction of a landmark like this is a condemnable act," said Raimundo Nonato, the head of the Bahia state sports affairs department. "It is a tragedy and we are indignant." Police discovered the statue's arms were missing on Saturday and believe they were taken on Friday night, the Bahia state public safety department said.
■ BASKETBALL
Panathinaikos clinch title
European champion Panathinaikos beat rival Olympiakos 89-76 on Wednesday to win its fifth straight Greek league basketball title. Lithuania forward Ramunas Siskauskas led Panathinaikos with 16 points. The Athens club, which has won nine titles in the last 10 years, won the best-of-five playoff series 3-2. "This is a great result and it was a great game," Panathinaikos captain Frangiskos Alvertis said. "All credit to Olympiakos. They played very well in all of the five games." Last month, Panathinaikos won its fourth European championship, beating defending champion CSKA Moscow in Athens. Police arrested five fans before Wednesday's match, and detained 71 other supporters who were later released.
■ SOCCER
Bogus bags of air banned
A Chinese firm which once tried to sell land on the moon has been banned from a more down-to-earth venture of selling bags of "World Cup air" to fans hoping to recreate the soccer tournament's atmosphere. Beijing Lunar Village Aeronautics Science and Technology lost a suit against the Beijing Administration for Industry and Commerce, which refused its application to sell "special air from a special place," Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday. A court last year ruled against the company's plan to sell green plastic bags full of air from stadiums that hosted matches in last year's soccer World Cup.
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