■ BRAZIL
Ref changed for big match
The referee for yesterday’s decisive Brazilian championship match between Goias and Sao Paulo was changed after the country’s soccer federation (CBF) said it had been told of a plot to try and fix the result. The CBF said it trusted Wagner Tardelli, the official originally selected to take charge of the match on the last day of the season, but had decided to appoint a new official as a precaution. It did not give any details as to who might have been behind the attempted bribery or how the situation came to light. “On Saturday morning, the CBF received an alert that an attempt was being made to manipulate the result of the Sao Paulo-Goias game,” the CBF said on its Web site. “A new draw was made for the match in question, despite recognizing the honesty and good character of referee Wagner Tardelli, who in 20 years of refereeing has always demonstrated the most correct behavior and conduct.”
■JAMAICA
Cuba through to semis
Cuba beat Antigua and Barbuda 3-0 to become the first team to reach the Caribbean championship semi-finals at Trelawny Stadium on Saturday. Meanwhile, Guadeloupe beat Haiti 3-2 to put the champions’ title defense at risk. Yenier Marquez (7th minute), Roberto Linares (20th minute) and Jaine Colome with a 35th minute penalty led Cuba’s first-half dominance. Antigua, handed six yellow cards, finished with 10 men when Ranja Christian was sent off 10 minutes from time. Cuba, who had beaten Guadeloupe in their opening game, had a maximum six points in Group B, followed by Guadeloupe on three, and Antigua and Barbuda and Haiti with one each.
■NETHERLANDS
Victorious Alkmaar stay top
Ari and Mounir El Hamdaoui scored for AZ Alkmaar to beat Heracles Almelo 2-0 and remain top of the Dutch league on Saturday. Australia midfielder Brett Holman set up Ari for the opening goal in the 19th minute and El Hamdaoui increased the lead in the 85th minute with his 14th league goal. Substitute Otman Bakkal scored twice to help defending champions PSV Eindhoven to a 4-2 comeback win over FC Groningen. Marcus Berg and Goran Lovre scored to give Groningen a 2-0 lead, before Bakkal pulled one back. Captain Timmy Simons fed Bakkal for the equalizer in the 57th minute and Danko Lazovic added goals in the 60th and 69th minutes. Steven McClaren’s Twente followed their midweek UEFA Cup win over Schalke with a 6-2 routing of Sparta Rotterdam. Twente’s Blaise N’Kufo scored in the 30th and 38th minutes after teammate Kenneth Perez found the net in the 22nd minute. Sparta’s Donovan Slijngard scored an own-goal in the 43rd minute. Marko Arnautovic and Youssouf Hersi also scored for Twente, while Rydell Poepon and Arne Slot replied for Sparta.
■PORTUGAL
Porto win to keep in touch
FC Porto beat Setubal 3-0 to get back in touch with the Portuguese league leaders on Saturday. Three second-half goals allowed the three-time defending champions to collect their third straight win and improve to 20 points with a game in hand. Leixoes lead with 23 points. Bruno Alves opened the scoring two minutes before Freddy Guarin scored in the 68th minute, while Lucho Gonzalez capped the scoring in the 80th minute. Nene scored twice as Nacional joined Porto on 20 points following a 4-2 victory over Belenenses. Nene has seven goals and only trails Pacos Ferreira striker William, who scored in a 2-1 loss to Academica, who snapped a seven-match winless run.
A runner who stopped during a marathon in China to pose doing the splits and another who hoarded energy gels have been banned for two years, the local athletics association said yesterday. The incidents happened during Sunday’s marathon in Sichuan Province’s Chengdu and were widely shared online. Videos showed a female runner stopping suddenly and dropping to the ground in the splits position, holding up her arms in a heart shape as she apparently posed for a photograph. She “committed obstructive fouls during the race, affecting the safe participation of other runners,” the Sichuan Athletics Association said in a statement, which identified
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
Workers are hammering, cranes are swinging and seats are being bolted into place — but the clock is ticking. Mexico City’s famous Azteca stadium, reborn as Estadio Banorte, is in a frantic race to be ready for its grand reopening on Saturday. Drone footage showed crews installing seats and attaching the new stadium name to the facade, with cranes looming overhead 48 hours before the gates are due to open for a high-profile friendly between Mexico and Portugal. For residents, the breakneck pace of construction has done little to inspire confidence. “I know they are working practically seven days a week, 24 hours
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