Print

Mail

wiki links

Sports Briefs

■ ATHLETICS

Gatlin loses Olympic appeal

Banned sprinter Justin Gatlin lost his appeal to run in the US Olympic athletics trials on Thursday and said he would end that effort rather than take the case to the US Supreme Court. In a briefly worded decision, the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta ruled Gatlin hasn’t shown he meets the “applicable standard for such an injunction.” Earlier this month, the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld a four-year ban against Gatlin for doping violations, but the defending Olympic 100m champion went to the US civilian courts seeking to run in trials starting today.



■ SWIMMING

China bans top backstroker

China’s top backstroke swimmer Ouyang Kunpeng has been banned for life for doping, officials confirmed yesterday, dealing the host nation an embarrassing blow just 42 days before the start of the Beijing Olympics. Ouyang tested positive for the anabolic steroid clenbuterol, said Zhao Jian, head of the anti-doping office at the Chinese Olympic Committee. The 25-year-old Ouyang won three individual silver medals at the 2006 Asian Games and three golds at the 2003 world university games. “The swimmer Ouyang Kunpeng tested positive in an out-of-competition test on May 1,” read an official Chinese Swimming Association notice posted on the Web site of the official China Sports Daily paper. His coach Feng Shangbao has also been banned for life, the notice said.



■ SOCCER

Tottenham ink Gomes deal

English Premier League club Tottenham have agreed a deal with Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven for the transfer of Brazilian goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes. The deal is contingent on the 27-year-old’s personal terms, a medical and a work permit. Gomes, a fan favorite at PSV, had requested a transfer shortly after the club claimed their 21st league title last season, citing differences with managing director Jan Reker. Gomes, who made his name at Cruzeiro, was ever-present in PSV’s title-winning campaign, conceding only 24 goals in 34 league games. It was his fourth successive Dutch league win since joining the club in 2004.



■ SOCCER

Weiss snubs Hearts for SFZ

The Slovak Football Association (SFZ) yesterday confirmed the appointment of Vladimir Weiss, manager of the current league champions Artmedia, as its new national manager. The 43-year-old former Czechoslovak international had been in negotiations to take over at Scottish Premier League side Hearts. “We will sign the contract next week,” after Weiss returns from pre-season training in Austria, SFZ general secretary Milos Tomas said. Weiss piloted Artmedia to the league title and also into the Champions League in 2005. From 2006 to last year, Weiss managed Russian outfit Saturn Ramenskoye.



■ BADMINTON

S Korea coach in graft probe

South Korea’s hopes of badminton gold at the Beijing Olympics suffered a blow yesterday when the head coach of the national badminton team was suspended amid a police investigation into allegations of embezzlement. The Korean Badminton Association said it had suspended head coach Kim Jung-soo, who is being investigated on allegations of misappropriation of public funds at a regional badminton organization where he is an executive. “We are worried about a coaching vacuum,” a spokesman for the association said by telephone. “But at the moment we don’t have any plan to choose someone to replace Kim.”
This story has been viewed 671 times.