■SOCCER
Blackburn beat Cottagers
Blackburn, battling for their English Premier League lives, bagged a precious three points with a come-from-behind 2-1 win at Fulham on Wednesday. Fulham went into an early lead through Clint Dempsey only for El Hadji Diouf to level in the 69th minute, with Jason Roberts producing the winner with five minutes left. Blackburn moved up from third from bottom to the relative safety of sixth from the foot of the tightly congested table, two points above the drop zone. Fulham are five places and four points above them. Fulham got a dream start when in the second minute Blackburn defender Ryan Nelsen was guilty of failing to keep tabs on Dempsey who latched on to a cross to score. Blackburn stepped up the pressure that paid off after the hour mark with Diouf prodding in from close range although he appeared to be offside before he scored. Then, with five minutes remaining, Pedersen knocked the ball into the box for Roberts to lash home after fending off the challenge of Toni Kallio.
■CRICKET
ICC recommends S Africa
The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday recommended South Africa as the venue to stage the biennial Champions Trophy this year. Also vying for the event had been venues in Australia, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates but the ICC Executives’ Committee said in a statement it had chosen South Africa pending confirmation of financial arrangements. The initial recommendation will now go before the ICC Board for consideration on Monday. The elite eight-nation event was moved out of Pakistan after South Africa refused to tour Pakistan, while Australia, England and New Zealand also voiced concerns over touring the troubled country. In addition, the March 3 attack in Lahore on the Sri Lankan team bus has further set back any chance of Pakistan hosting an event.
■ATHLETICS
Doubts raised over record
Doubts have been raised in Spain about the stunning 8.71m long jump by unheralded German Sebastian Bayer at last weekend’s European indoor championships in Turin, Italy. News reports on Wednesday quoted Spanish athletics chief Jose Maria Odriozola as saying that one judge may have made a wrong measurement. “I have the feeling that — apart from the advantage of the run-up track — a measuring error occurred,” Odriozola said. The official said that he was close to the long jump pit and said that one judge “had been measuring wrongly all day.” Bayer stunned the athletics world when he raised his personal best by a massive 54cm to the European indoor record 8.71m. The record was formerly owned by Spain’s Yago Lamego at 8.56m. The jump was just 8cm shy of Carl Lewis’ indoor world record of 8.79m. Bayer attributed the huge leap to “a perfect jump” and the favorable run-up track. Lamela was uncertain whether he may have lost the record due to an error. “Sometimes wrong measurement occur. But normally a second measurement takes place in the case of a record,” Lamela said.
■CRICKET
Sangakkara named captain
Kumar Sangakkara has been appointed Sri Lanka captain, selectors said on Wednesday. Sangakkara, 31, the vice-captain since 2006, replaces Mahela Jayawardene, who stepped down after the recent Pakistan tour. Off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan has been appointed as Sangakkara’s deputy. Sangakkara’s first tournament in charge will be the ICC World Twenty20 in England in June.
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
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely