■ SOCCER
Bosnians eye Matthaus
German legend Lothar Matthaus is among the candidates to coach the Bosnian national side, the country's soccer association said on Friday. Apart from the German World Cup-winning captain the association is talking with two more candidates -- former Croatia coach Zlatko Kranjcar and former Bosnian soccer star Meho Kodro -- a spokeswoman said. The new coach will be announced next Saturday spokeswoman Slavica Pecikoza said. He is to replace Fuad Muzurovic who was sacked on Dec. 17.
■ FOOTBALL
Sanders inks new Colts deal
Two-time NFL all-star safety Bob Sanders signed a five-year contract extension on Friday, a deal that will keep him with the Indianapolis Colts through 2012 and makes him one of the league's highest-paid players at his position. The deal is worth US$37.5 million and includes US$20 million in guarantees, a person familiar with the negotiations said on condition of anonymity because the deal had not been announced.
■ HORSE RACING
Star jockey loses license
Kentucky Derby winning jockey Patrick Valenzuela, whose career has been marred by a history of substance abuse and suspensions, has been stripped of his conditional jockey license after being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. A notice of the termination of Valenzuela's license was issued on Friday by the California Horse Racing Board. The 45-year-old jockey's conditional license ran from Nov. 14 to Dec. 31 next year. Valenzuela rode Sunday Silence to victory in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes in 1989.
■ BASEBALL
Ex-Yankee player arrested
Former New York Yankees player Jim Leyritz was arrested on charges of drink driving and manslaughter on Friday after a woman died in a Florida car crash. Fort Lauderdale Police Department said a preliminary investigation found that Leyritz had failed to obey a red light at an intersection and collided with another vehicle. The police said the driver of the vehicle, Fredia Ann Veitch, 30, of Plantation, Florida, died as a result of injuries sustained after being ejected from her car in the crash. Leyritz, who was 44 on Thursday, had initially refused to give a blood sample but after Veitch was reported dead, he was subjected to a test. The former catcher and infielder played for the Yankees between 1990 and 1996 and then again from 1999-2000.
■ TENNIS
US win Hopman Cup opener
Meghann Shaughnessy, filling in for Serena Williams, got the US off to a winning start and Mardy Fish clinched the win over India in the first match of the 20th Hopman Cup in Perth, Australia, yesterday. The No. 2-ranked US team led 2-0 ahead of the doubles in the international mixed team event. Shaughnessy ended the opening women's singles match against Sania Mirza by winning the last five games for a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 victory. Fish secured an unbeatable 2-0 lead with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Rohan Bopanna in the men's singles. Australia were due to play the Czech Republic later yesterday, with the top-seeded Serbia starting their campaign against Taiwan and France playing Argentina today. Serena Williams was expected to arrive in Perth on the weekend and replace Shaughnessy for the US' next match against the Czech Republic tomorrow.
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