■ BASKETBALL
Ref described as gambler
Disgraced NBA referee Tim Donaghy was a compulsive gambler whose road to professional and personal ruin began on the golf course, where he bet up to US$500 a hole, according to an evaluation filed on the eve of his sentencing. “In short, he could not stop himself from gambling,” wrote Stephen Block, a longtime New York-based gambling treatment counselor. Donaghy, 41, faces up to 33 months in prison at his sentencing yesterday in federal court in Brooklyn after pleading guilty last year to taking thousands of dollars in payoffs from a professional gambler for inside betting tips.
■ SOCCER
Fans arrested for murder
Colombian police said on Monday they had arrested five soccer fans on suspicion of beating to death a rival supporter who got on their bus by mistake after a match in Bogota. Police said fans of America, who had just defeated Independiente Santa Fe 2-1, got on the Santa Fe supporters’ bus believing it was their own bus. Santa Fe fans attacked the group, lashing out and throwing stones at them. “Three managed to get away but one of them fell and was beaten up, bringing about his death,” a police spokesman said. Last month, a supporter of Santa Fe was killed in another skirmish with an America fan.
■ SOCCER
Kenyon: no “gimmicks”
Manchester United and other English clubs might have Asians in their squads but you won’t find one at Chelsea with chief executive Peter Kenyon ruling out “gimmick” players. The Blues were to conclude their three-leg Asian pre-season tour yesterday and while Kenyon admits it is a huge market they are keen to tap, he is not interested in hiring players unless they are good enough. “Our view is that the selection of our players is the ability to be in the Chelsea team,” he told AFP. “We are not interested in gimmicks. We are not interested having say an American or an Asian in the team because it represents another revenue stream,” he said.
■ BASEBALL
Catcher to have surgery
New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada will have season-ending surgery on his injured right shoulder, the major league baseball team said on Monday. Posada, 36, has been troubled by pain in the shoulder all season. He was placed on the disabled list last Monday, and had an MRI the next day to determine how to proceed with the injury. Posada, who is in the first year of a four-year, US$52 million contract, has played in just 51 games this season due to the injury. The five-time All-Star previously had contemplated delaying the surgery until the offseason.
■ SHOOTING
Kiwi readies for Beijing haze
While New Zealand’s 183 Olympic athletes are getting masks to combat Beijing’s feared pollution, trap shooter Graeme Ede is taking special measures against the haze. For a sport which requires exceptional eyesight, he has been deliberately training in poor visibility to prepare himself for expected hazy conditions. During a World Cup event at the Beijing Shooting Range in April, Ede found the clay targets increasingly harder to see as they whizzed up to 75m into the distance. Ede, the Commonwealth Games champion, said concerns about poor visibility had forced him to adopt an unconventional training method. “Training in poor light conditions has probably helped me,” he 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
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and