■SOCCER
Grieving Palacios flies home
Wilson Palacios has flown home to Honduras after being told that police there have found the body of his younger brother Edwin, who was abducted in 2007. The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder was in Liverpool for his club’s Premier League match at Everton when he heard the news. “I got a phone call from him at seven o’clock this morning,” Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp said after the match. “The kid heard last night at one o’clock in the morning that they had found his brother’s body and they had caught some of the gang that had murdered him.” Edwin Palacios had been missing since October 2007, when he was kidnapped at his home by assailants who demanded a ransom from the family. He was 16 at the time and his elder brother had just signed for his first English club, Birmingham City. Wilson Palacios subsequently moved to Wigan Athletic, before joining Spurs in January.
■SOCCER
Ledley King arrested
England and Tottenham Hotspur defender Ledley King has been arrested outside a nightclub over an alleged assault. The Spurs captain is being questioned by police on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm early yesterday to another man in London’s Soho district. King was detained at around 2:30am after officers on a routine patrol were flagged down by members of the public. The victim did not require medical treatment.
■CYCLING
Boonen admits to problem
Belgium’s Tom Boonen admitted on Saturday that he “must have taken something” during a drunken night out, as he sought to explain why he tested positive for cocaine after a drug test last month. The cyclist, currently suspended by his Quick Step team, admitted on Belgian TV show Sporza that he had a problem with alcohol and would “now seek help.” “The night before the drug test, I went out,” the recent winner of the Paris-Roubaix said. “I stayed for a while and I drank. At some stage I must have taken something. Then I had a blackout. I think I have a problem. After spending three to four months working, when I go out, I probably over-step the mark and I become someone else. For 364 days a year, it’s perfect. I try to be an exemplary citizen. But the day that I drink too much, something that I don’t do often, I change. I will now seek help.”
■RUGBY UNION
London Irish make final
London Irish will face Leicester in the English Premiership final after sealing a comfortable 17-0 victory over Harlequins in Saturday’s semi-final at the Twickenham Stoop. After 42 minutes, six missed penalties and two changes of kicker, it was Irish who finally took control when Delon Armitage booted them ahead. Substitute second row James Hudson crossed to put the Exiles in the driving seat and when Mike Catt added the second in a dominant final quarter it was all over.
■SWIMMING
Irie smashes world record
Japan’s Ryosuke Irie set a world record in the men’s 200m backstroke at a “Duel in the Pool” meet against Australia yesterday. Irie set a time of 1 minute, 52.86 seconds, beating the previous record, held by Ryan Lochte of the US, by 1.08 seconds. Lochte set the previous mark of 1 minute, 53.94 seconds while winning the gold medal over the distance at last year’s Beijing Olympics. Irie wore an Arena brand swimsuit, which is undergoing independent testing by world governing body FINA, which still has to verify the record.
■BASKETBALL
Yao Ming to miss playoffs
Houston Rockets center Yao Ming will miss the remainder of the NBA playoffs with a broken left foot, the team said on Saturday. An examination revealed a hairline fracture in the foot. Although no surgery is needed, Yao is expected to require eight to 12 weeks to recover, the Rockets said. “In order for the bone to heal properly, Yao will need to immobilize the foot by wearing a walking boot,” Tom Clanton, the Rockets’ team physician, said in a statement on the team’s Web site. “He should be able to resume his regular workout routine some time between the next eight to 12 weeks,” Clanton said. Yao was originally thought to have sprained his left ankle in an 108-94 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in Game Three of their Western Conference semi-finals on Friday. Yao’s injury will come as a blow to the Rockets who trail 2-1 in their best-of-seven series.
■BASEBALL
Mets manager suspended
New York Mets manager Jerry Manuel was suspended for one game by Major League Baseball on Saturday for physically clashing with an umpire during a game on Thursday against World Series champion Philadelphia. Manuel, who missed the Mets’ game on Saturday against Pittsburgh, brushed the bill of his cap against that of first-base umpire Bill Welke while he was yelling into his face. Manuel argued with Welke three times during the Mets’ 7-5 victory over the Phillies before being ejected by Welke in the eighth inning after an obstruction call on Jose Reyes. That decision by Welke allowed runner Shane Victorino to escape being tagged out in a rundown.
■ATHLETICS
Wariner easily wins 400m
American world champion Jeremy Wariner coasted to an easy victory in the men’s 400m at the Japan Grand Prix on Saturday, the fourth leg of the 14-round IAAF Grand Prix series. Wariner, who had to be satisfied with the silver medal in the Beijing Olympics last year, clocked 44.69 seconds to beat Yuzo Kanemaru of Japan into second and Sean Wroe of Australia into third. “I ran a good race today, got a good time. I think it’s number two in the world, so I’m happy with the way I ran,” Wariner said. Japan’s Naoki Tsukahara won the men’s 100m, while Sally McLellan emerged victorious in the women’s 100m with a time of 11.46 to beat Japanese rivals Chisato Fukushima and Momoko Takahashi. Tsukahara marked a personal best of 10.13, beating Rodney Martin of the US and Brian Dzingai of Zimbabwe. Martin saved some face by winning the 200m in 20.30. Other world champions Kerron Clement of the US and Donald Thomas of Bahamas duly won the 400m hurdles and the high jump with 48.60 seconds and 2.28m respectively, while Olympic silver medalist David Payne withdrew from the competition. Other winners included Lachlan Renshaw of Australia in the 800m and Shamar Sands of Bahamas in the 110m hurdles.
■DIVING
Teen wins platform final
British teen Thomas Daley won gold in the men’s platform final at the USA Diving Grand Prix in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Saturday. The 14-year-old scored perfect 10s from the seven judges on his fifth dive — a backward three-and-a-half tuck with a 3.3 degree of difficulty. Daley scored 554.9 points to beat Sascha Klein of Germany with 552.15 and Zhou Luxin of China, who won the silver medal in platform at the Beijing Games, with 549.7. Troy Dumais picked up his second gold of the meet with 512 points in the 3m springboard event.
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