■OLYMPICS
Brazilian horse fails test
Rufus became the sixth horse to test positive for doping during the Beijing Olympics, equestrian’s governing body said on Monday. The Brazilian horse, ridden by Rodrigo Pessoa, tested positive on Aug. 23 for nonivamide, a substance prohibited for its pain-relieving properties, the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) said. Pessoa was fifth in the individual jumping final. The FEI said it suspended him on Friday after an initial hearing, and added that the backup “B” sample was to be tested yesterday in Hong Kong.
■SOCCER
Thousands back Casillas
More than 10,000 people as of Monday signed a petition calling on the European Footballer of the Year award to be awarded to Real Madrid keeper Iker Casillas. Esteban Parro, the mayor of Mostoles, the city on the outskirts of Madrid where the 27-year-old player grew up, told reporters that 10,458 people had signed the online petition since he launched it on Aug. 25. The supporters of Casillas have till Oct. 31 to sign. It will then be sent to France Football magazine, which has awarded the Ballon d’Or, one of soccer’s top prizes, each year since 1956. The Spain captain became a national hero after he saved two penalty kicks in the quarter-finals as Spain beat Italy 4-2 in a shootout after a 0-0 draw.
■FOOTBALL
NFL players to wear patch
NFL players will wear a uniform patch this season to honor NFL Players’ Association leader Gene Upshaw, who died on Aug. 20. The league announced on Monday that the patch would have the initials “GU” and the number 63, which he wore while playing for the Oakland Raiders. Upshaw died of pancreatic cancer just three days after he was diagnosed. When the New York Giants and Washington Redskins open the season tomorrow, Upshaw’s wife, Terri, and his three sons will participate in the coin toss.
Upshaw made the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987 as the first player to play guard exclusively. He won two Super Bowls and made seven Pro Bowls in his 307-game NFL career.
■SOCCER
LA Galaxy to return to NZ
David Beckham’s LA Galaxy team will return to New Zealand in December for an exhibition match in Auckland, officials said yesterday. The US Major League Soccer team and its English celebrity skipper played the Wellington Phoenix in an exhibition late last year and will return for a match against an Oceania All Stars team.
■SOCCER
Dead fans can support team
Former Liverpool manager Bill Shankly once famously declared soccer isn’t a matter of life and death — it is far more important than that. And like-minded fans of Bundesliga club Hamburg will soon be able to support their team from beyond the grave. Next Tuesday, Hamburg will become the first soccer team in Europe whose fans can be buried in the club’s official section of a cemetery within a goal-kick of the stadium in the city’s western suburbs. When the area is officially opened, Hamburg fans can be buried close to their beloved team’s home stadium in a coffin bearing the club’s logo and in the traditional blue-and-white colors. They can also choose to have their ashes buried in an official club urn. But devotion comes at a price — an official Hamburg coffin costs 2,350 euros (US$3,500), while a blue-and-white urn decorated in silver will cost 390 euros.
Shohei Ohtani and his wife arrived in South Korea with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates yesterday ahead of their season-opening games with the San Diego Padres next week. Ohtani, wearing a black training suit and a cap backwards, was the first Dodgers player who showed up at the arrival gate of Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. His wife, Mamiko Tanaka, walked several steps behind him. As a crowd of fans, many wearing Dodgers jerseys, shouted his name and cheered slogans, Ohtani briefly waved his hand, but did not say anything before he entered a limousine bus with his wife. Fans held placards
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals at the All England Open, beating Kim Ga-eun of South Korea 21-17, 21-15. With the win, Tai earned a semi-final against China’s He Bingjiao, who beat Michelle Li of Canada 21-9, 21-9. Defending champion An Se-young defeated India’s P.V. Sindhu 21-19, 21-11. An on Wednesday cruised into the second round, unlike last year’s men’s winner, Li Shifeng, who suffered a shock defeat. South Korea’s An, the world No. 1, overcame Taiwan’s Hsu Wen-chi 21-17, 21-16 to set up the match against Sindhu. In other women’s singles matches, Taiwan’s Sung Shuo-yun lost 21-18, 24-22 against Carolina Marin of
EYEING TOP SPOT: A victory in today’s final against Storm Hunter and Katerina Siniakova would return 38-year-old Hsieh Su-wei to the world No. 1 ranking Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens on Thursday secured a spot in the women’s doubles finals at the BNP Paribas Open after dispatching Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) at Indian Wells. Hsieh and her Belgian partner Mertens, who won the Australian Open in late January, coasted through the first set after breaking their opponents’ serve twice, but found the going tougher in the second. Both pairs could only muster one break point over 12 games, neither of which were converted, leaving the set to be decided by a tiebreaker. Hsieh and Mertens took a 6-3 lead,
DOUBLES PAYBACK: Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Martens avenged their defeat in the quarters at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open against Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. Hsieh and partner Elise Mertens of Belgium dispatched Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani 6-1, 6-4 to set up a clash against Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez for a spot in the final of the WTA 1000 tournament. Hsieh and Martens made a blistering start to their rematch after they lost to Schuurs and Stefani in the quarter-finals at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open last month, winning three games without reply at the start of the first set