■ENGLAND
Former star hurt in crash
Former England striker Mick Channon was in stable condition on Thursday after being seriously injured in a car crash that killed one of his friends. Channon, 59, suffered a punctured lung, broken ribs, a fractured jaw and a broken arm in Wednesday’s crash on the M1 motorway in Leicestershire. He was to undergo surgery yesterday to pin bones in his arm and have his jaw wired, his son Michael said. Channon, who is now a race horse trainer, was traveling with racing agent Tim Corby, 63, who was killed in the crash. Channon’s 15-year-old son Jack was also in the car, but was not seriously hurt. Corby was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics, after the Mercedes he was driving went off the road and hit a concrete pillar, Leicestershire police said.Channon, who played 46 times for England in the 1970s before embarking on a highly successful career in horse racing, was taken to the Queen’s Medical Centre by helicopter.
■ENGLAND
Wright-Phillips rejoins City
England winger Shaun Wright-Phillips rejoined Manchester City on a four-year deal on Thursday in a bid to revive his career after three faltering years at Chelsea. After switching to Stamford Bridge in 2005, the 26-year-old Wright-Phillips struggled to command a place in the Chelsea team, starting just 43 matches. Chelsea, who signed him for £21 million (US$36.8 million), are thought to have recouped less than half that amount, although deals were not disclosed. The signing will help allay fears that City owner Thaksin Shinawatra’s spending power has been blunted since seeking refuge in Britain earlier this month to avoid pending corruption charges in Thailand, where the former prime minister was ousted from power in a 2006 coup.
■ENGLAND
Keane vows to help striker
Sunderland manager Roy Keane has promised to help striker Michael Chopra as he “deals with some personal problems.” Reports in England on Thursday claimed that Chopra had gone into rehab at the Sporting Chance clinic. The clinic, founded by former Arsenal star Tony Adams, aims to help sportsmen and women deal with addictions. Chopra, 24, has played once this season, coming on as a substitute against Liverpool, and it has been reported that the former Newcastle player recently split with his wife after being married for one month. Keane is determined to help him get back on track. “We are helping Michael as he deals with some personal issues and he has the full support of everyone at the club,” Keane said.
■FRANCE
Wiltord in war of words
The lawyer of former France star Sylvain Wiltord said on Thursday his client did not wish to leave top flight side Rennes. “I deny that Sylvain wants to leave — I find it shocking that they should say that. He has never wanted out,” Fabrice Henon-Hilaire said. Rennes suspended Wiltord for criticizing club coach Guy Lacombe in sports daily l’Equipe earlier this month. “Lacombe talks too much”, the former Arsenal striker told l’Equipe. “It’s no longer a footballing issue — it has become personal.” Wiltord reacted after Lacombe told him he could not be sure of a place in the first-team after just six goals last season for Rennes following his move from Lyon. Lacombe has since brought the veteran back into the fold but he was not in the team to face Stabaek of Norway in the UEFA Cup on Thursday and the coach maintained that “he wants to leave.”
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
HSIEH MAKES QUARTERS: Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens of Belgium won in the women’s doubles and face Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sofia Kenin of the US Top-ranked Iga Swiatek and US Open champion Coco Gauff were knocked out of the women’s singles at the Miami Open on Monday, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced in the women’s doubles. Swiatek lost to Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4, 6-2, hours after third seed Gauff fell in three sets to No. 23 Caroline Garcia 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. Alexandrova beat a top-ranked player for the first time and advanced to face Jessica Pegula, a 7-6 (7/1), 6-3 winner over Emma Navarro, in the quarter-finals. Alexandrova recorded her second win over Swiatek, following a 2021 victory in Melbourne. Swiatek had won their three matches since. “We played quite