■ AUTO RACING
Abu Dhabi wants best circuit
The Persian Gulf state of Abu Dhabi has set out to build the perfect Formula One circuit. The city is to host an F1 race in 2009 for the first time. "We will not only meet expectations, but exceed them without a doubt," said Ahmad Hussain, deputy director-general of Abu Dhabi's Tourism Authority. The US$40 billion project on Yas Island will have part of the circuit on the streets and lots of space for yachts to get a view of the action from the sea. Construction began in January on the 2,550-hectare site off the United Arab Emirates' east coast, and only 5 percent of the 5.5km track is complete. It is expected to seat 200,000 spectators.
■ HORSE RACING
Mare sets losing record
A Puerto Rican horse that can't win a race at least now has a claim to fame. Dona Chepa, a nine-year-old brown mare, finished last in a six-horse field at Camarero Racetrack in eastern Puerto Rico on Wednesday, a 125th consecutive loss that is believed to be the longest in history. Track spokesman Joe Bruno said Wednesday's loss surpasses an equine losing record of 0-124 set by Australian horse Ouroene, who raced from 1976 to 1983. There is no world governing body that tracks lack of success for horses. Dona Chepa, which comes from a distinguished line of champion racers, began her woeful ways on Valentine's Day in 2001. The closest she came to victory was in May 2003, when she finished second, Bruno said.
■ SOCCER
Seongnam Ilhwa gain edge
Kim Min-ho and Son Dae-ho scored 90 seconds apart midway through the second half and Seongnam Ilhwa beat Al Karama 2-1 in Seongnam, South Korea, on Wednesday in the first leg of the Asian Champions League quarter-finals. The victory gives the seven-time K-League champion the advantage heading into next week's second leg at Homs, Syria. Japan's Urawa Reds also won 2-1 at home, beating South Korean side and defending champion Jeonbuk Motors, while fellow Japanese side Kawasaki Frontale held Sepahan to a 0-0 draw in Esfahan, Iran. In the late quarter-final, two-time champion Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia held Al Wahda to a 0-0 draw in the United Arab Emirates.
■ CYCLING
Bennati wins second stage
Lampre rider Daniele Bennati won his second stage of the Spanish Vuelta on Wednesday, outracing Paolo Bettini and Alessandro Petacchi in the final meters. The Italian finished the 180km 17th stage to Talavera de la Reina, Spain, in three hours, 56 minutes, 58 seconds. Denis Menchov of Russia retains an overall 2:01 lead over fellow countryman Vladimir Efimkin.
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
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
Taiwanese gymnast Lee Chih-kai failed to secure an Olympic berth in the pommel horse following a second-place finish at the last qualifier in Doha on Friday, a performance that Lee and his coach called “unconvincing.” The Tokyo Olympics silver medalist finished runner-up in the final after scoring 6.6 for degree of difficulty and 8.800 for execution for a combined score of 15.400. That was just 0.100 short of Jordan’s Ahmad Abu Al Soud, who had qualified for the event in Paris before the Apparatus World Cup series in Qatar’s capital. After missing the final rounds in the first two of four qualifier