■ BIATHLON
Bjoerndalen dominates
Five-time Olympic champion Ole Einar Bjoerndalen of Norway blew away his rivals by claiming his 78th career success in the World Cup men's biathlon mass start event on Sunday. Despite two penalties for missed targets the 33-year-old Bjoerndalen finished 34 seconds ahead of Russian Nikolay Kruglov (1 penalty) with Norway's Emil Hegle Svendsen picking up three penalties to finish at 54 seconds. Four-time World Cup winner Bjoerndalen has dominated in Oberhof, Germany, winning Friday's relay and finishing second in Saturday's sprint. He consolidates his overall World Cup lead with a 40 point advantage on Russia's Dmitri Yaroshenko, who finished fourth on Sunday.
■ SNOWBOARDING
Gimpl wins World Cup event
Stefan Gimpl won his second straight Big Air snowboarding World Cup event on Saturday to take the lead in the discipline standings. The 28-year-old Austrian, who also won last month in Sofia, earned his third career World Cup win by beating Matti Kinnunen of Finland in the final at the Messegelaende Graz, Austria. Gimpl earned 25.6 points for his two final jumps, while Kinnunen's efforts were rewarded with 16.4 points. Finland's Petja Piiroinen beat Kim-Andre Eliasen of Norway in the small final to take third.
■ BIATHLON
Neuner records first win
Germany's triple world champion Magdalena Neuner won the women's mass start World Cup biathlon race in Oberhof, Germany, on Sunday to record her first victory of what had been a disappointing start to the season. The 20-year-old warmed up the 80,000 spectators on her home turf to beat home Russian duo Olga Anasimova and Tatiana Moiseeva and hand out a warning to her rivals that she is approaching top form just a month away from the world championships in Oestersund, Sweden. Neuner's compatriot Martina Glagow retained the overall lead despite finishing a lowly 12th, while Neuner moved into third, 26 points adrift.
■ LUGE
Huefner extends win streak
Tatjana Huefner led a top-four sweep for Germany in the women's luge on Saturday and claimed a fourth straight World Cup win. Huefner finished in 1 minute, 34.662 seconds, setting a track-record 47.262 seconds in the second heat to beat 19-year-old Natalie Geisenberger by 0.134 seconds and deny her a first World Cup triumph. "I have a little time left," Geisenberger said. "Sometime I'll get that first World Cup win." Silke Kraushaar-Pielach was third in 1 minute, 34.980 seconds, while Anke Wischnewski took fourth in 1 minute, 35.405 seconds.
■ OLYMPICS
Blast furnace shut down
Beijing's biggest steel company has shut down another blast furnace in an effort to clean up the city before the Olympics, state media said on Sunday. The Beijing Shougang Group, one of the capital city's major polluters, on Saturday extinguished the fire in its No. 4 blast furnace which has been working for 35 years, the official Xinhua News Agency said. The No. 5 furnace was closed several months ago. Air quality has been a major concern and shutting down the blast furnaces is expected to help reduce the amount of sulfur dioxide, dust and soot by about half. The No. 2 furnace will be shut down by March and operations at No. 3 will be suspended during the games, Xinhua said.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
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
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely