■BOXING
Flyweight falls to his death
Former Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation flyweight champion Noriyuki Komatsu has been found dead after falling from a waterfall, Japanese media reported yesterday. The 29-year-old is believed to have accidentally fallen into the pool below while carrying out ascetic training after visiting a Kyoto temple for meditation courses. Komatsu, who made a failed attempt to win the WBC world flyweight title in 2005, had a professional record of 24 wins, six defeats and six draws.
■ATHLETICS
Bolt denies marijuana use
Three-time Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt says he doesn’t use marijuana. On Sunday, the Jamaican sprinter was quoted in a German newspaper as saying he smoked marijuana when he was very young and learned how to roll a joint. Bolt released a statement on Monday through his manager admitting he tried marijuana at a “tender age,” but saying he had not used it again since. He also apologized for suggesting all young Jamaicans roll joints and urged young athletes not to do drugs of any kind.
■BOXING
Valuev in Chagaev rematch
Russia’s WBA heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev was on Monday given the opportunity to avenge his sole professional defeat by Ruslan Chagaev as the Team Sauerland promotion group won the purse bid for the bout. Chris Meyer, part of Team Sauerland, said their intention was to hold the title fight in Helsinki on May 30. Chagaev is officially recognized as “champion in recess” after he failed because of injury to defend his title on two occasions against the present incumbent. Valuev suffered the only loss of his career in April 2007 when Ruslan Chagaev clinched a close majority decision in Stuttgart, Germany. However, Valuev regained his crown once Chagaev was named “champion in recess” when he beat John Ruiz in August last year. Valuev expressed his delight at the chance to gain revenge. “I have been waiting for this day for two years,” he said from his training camp in Japan. “I will finally make amends for the only loss of my career.”
■RUGBY UNION
Botha to miss three matches
Northern Bulls lock Bakkies Botha has been suspended for three Super 14 matches over an incident in the weekend game against the NSW Waratahs in Sydney, officials said on Monday. The Springbok forward was charged with striking and appeared before judicial officer Dennis Wheelahan along with members of the Bulls’ team management and legal representatives. Wheelahan categorized the offense as mid-range, which could incur a five-week penalty, SANZAR, the ruling body for rugby union in the southern hemisphere, said in a statement. But after taking into account mitigating circumstances, the suspension was reduced to three weeks.
■SOCCER
Anorthosis’ Ketsbaia quits
Temuri Ketsbaia on Monday resigned from his position as manager of Cypriot champions Anorthosis Famagusta only months after taking them to the Champions League group stage, the club said. A statement from the club said the 40-year-old Georgian had handed in his resignation to the board during a routine meeting on Monday evening. Ketsbaia told the board the decision came after much “soul searching,” but was done for the “best interests of Anorthosis.”
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
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB