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Sports Briefs

■ SUMO

Four charged over beatings

Prosecutors yesterday charged a former sumo stable master and three wrestlers in the beating death of a teenage apprentice whose brutal hazing shocked Japan, reports said. Prosecutors in the central city of Nagoya indicted Junichi Yamamoto, 57, who ran the stable under the name Tokitsukaze, and three wrestlers in last June's death of 17-year-old Takashi Saito, Jiji Press said, quoting authorities. The four men were charged with injury resulting in death, Jiji said, citing authorities. The four men were arrested on Feb. 7 for repeatedly beating Saito, who collapsed and died during practice. The elder wrestlers -- aged 22, 24 and 25 -- allegedly beat the apprentice with a baseball bat. Saito had repeatedly tried to run away from the stable.



■ BOXING

Mom becomes oldest boxer

A 44-year-old mother of two has become Japan's oldest professional boxer after passing the Japanese board's license test. Kazumi Izaki, who has daughters aged 21 and 14 and herself turns 45 next week, laced up her first pair of boxing gloves in 2001. "She has passed," the Japan Boxing Commission (JBC) said yesterday. "This is first time she has held a JBC license and she is now Japan's oldest pro boxer." Under JBC rules, applicants for a license must be under 32 but Izaki was allowed permission to fight because she previously won a Japanese title, albeit one not recognized by the country's governing body. "I try not to think about my age," the former aerobics instructor told reporters. "I'm a mum but I'm going to give it everything I've got. I wanted to show my children that if you give up, then you're washed up!"



■ Baseball

Cardinals release Spiezio

The St Louis Cardinals have released Scott Spiezio just hours after an arrest warrant was issued for the utilityman on alcohol-related driving charges. Six charges, including driving under the influence and hit-and-run with property damage, were filed on Tuesday against Spiezio in Orange County, California and an arrest warrant was issued on Wednesday, the team said. Spiezio was already having off-the-field problems, having been placed on the restricted list by the Cardinals late last year to seek treatment for substance abuse issues. The warrant for Spiezio's arrest on Tuesday was rescinded after the infielder was represented by his attorneys late on Wednesday in Orange County, the Cardinals said. A 12-year major league veteran, Spiezio was a key member of the 2002 Anaheim Angels team that won the World Series.



■ Soccer

Becks gets HK thumbs-up

Hong Kong's soccer authorities confirmed yesterday that they had given the go-ahead for David Beckham's Los Angeles Galaxy to play in the city. LA Galaxy announced on Monday they would play an exhibition match on March 9 at Hong Kong Stadium, but the city's soccer authority said it had not approved the plan and the stadium was fully booked for that date. However, that has now changed. "The application was approved," Hong Kong Football Association Sunny Leung said yesterday. "We have all been making every last-minute effort to have them come, we were very keen to have them here." Leung said LA Galaxy would arrive on March 6 and hold a soccer clinic for youngsters before playing a South China invitation team on March 9.