■ MARATHON
Ndereba, Tola win in NYC
Kenya’s Catherine Ndereba won the New York Half-Marathon women’s crown on Sunday, solidifying her favorite status for the Beijing Olympics marathon, while Ethiopia’s Tadesse Tola took the men’s title. Ndereba, the 2004 Olympic marathon runner-up, won the inaugural womnen’s race here in 2006 and made her move in the final mile to win the 13.1-mile race in 1hr 10mins 19secs. Mexico’s Madai Perez, 28, was second, seven seconds back, and Japan’s Yuri Kano, 29, was third, 12 seconds off the winning pace. Ndereba joined leaders Kano and Perez with four miles to go and surged ahead late.
■ ATHLETICS
Cyclist takes last spot
Nineteen-year-old road cyclist Feng Chun-kai was admitted on Thursday as the last and 80th athlete making up Taiwan’s team for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Feng, who graduated from high school only last month, will be taking part in the Olympic road cycling events as a wild card, since he has not made the International Cycling Union list of road cyclists that was finalized in April. Although a wild card, Feng has performed outstandingly in many international road cycling competitions. He won the Asian Road Cycling Championship held in Thailand in September last year and was a runner up at the World Road Cycling Championship held in Manchester, England in March, said Feng’s coach, Hsu Jui-teh.
■ BADMINTON
Gold medalist falls ill
Defending Olympic badminton champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia has been hospitalized with dengue fever and is not certain to defend his title at next month’s Beijing Games. “I’m still sick, please ask the doctor,” Taufik said by telephone yesterday when asked whether he would be able to play. His manager said the 26-year-old Taufik should still make it to Beijing. “His condition now is weak but he’s getting better,” said Mulyo Handoyo. Taufik, known for his fiery outbursts on court, skipped the Indonesian national sports week this month in a bid to avoid injuries before the Olympics, which start on Aug. 8.
■ OLYMPICS
Aussies free to withdraw
Australian athletes will be allowed to withdraw from their events at the Beijing Olympic Games if pollution poses a threat to their health and safety, the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) said yesterday. AOC vice president Peter Montgomery said athletes had the freedom to pull out of events if pollution levels remained high but doubted whether anyone would withdraw from their events. “For us the athlete’s attitude to the event is paramount,” he told reporters. “If they don’t want to compete that is fine. They will be under absolutely no pressure to compete if they feel uneasy or don’t want to compete — we won’t be demanding that they still compete.
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