■BOXING
Diaconu dealt first defeat
Jean Pascal dealt Adrian Diaconu his first defeat on Friday, seizing the World Boxing Council light heavyweight title with a unanimous 12-round decision. Pascal knocked down Diaconu in the fifth round of an action-packed bout as he triumphed in a battle over Romanian-born Diaconu in a battle of Quebec-based fighters in front of 13,659 fans at the Bell Center. Judge Maximo de Luca scored the bout 115-112, John Keane scored it 116-112 and Jack Woodburn saw it 116-111 for Pascal, who improved to 23-1 with 15 knockouts.
■ATHLETICS
Gay to run first 100m
Treble world champion Tyson Gay will run his first 100m this year at the US athletics championships as he prepares for the World Championships in Berlin in August. The US championships, which start next Thursday in Eugene, Oregon, are the selection meeting for the world meet. As defending world champion Gay has a bye from the IAAF in both the 100m and 200m, but plans to race at least a single, high-intensity, first-round heat in Eugene to gauge his 100m fitness, a statement from USA Track and Field said on Friday. According to USATF, Gay hasn’t ruled out the possibility of running all three rounds of the 100m in Eugene. In his only race this year, Gay won the 200m at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York on May 30 in 19.58 seconds, the third-fastest time ever.
■MARTIAL ARTS
Iraqi karate coach killed
The coach of the Iraqi national karate team was killed on Friday by gunmen in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, a police source said. The source said that the gunmen escaped right after they shot Ezzat Abdullah to death when he was near his house in al-Zohour district, eastern Mosul. Mosul and its environs, roughly 400km north of Baghdad, is among the most ethnically and religiously diverse areas of Iraq. Despite successive security pushes that police say have netted hundreds of suspected insurgents, the city and the surrounding countryside continue to see deadly, near-daily attacks against civilians and Iraqi security forces.
■BASEBALL
Glavine plans to ‘hang out’
Star pitcher Tom Glavine plans to “hang out” for the rest of the summer but is not announcing his retirement. The Atlanta Braves released the 43-year-old Glavine on June 3 after he finished rehabilitation from offseason surgery on his left elbow and shoulder. Glavine sent a text message on Friday saying he wouldn’t pitch this year. He said he would “evaluate things at the end of the season.” The two-time pitcher of the year’s career record of 305-203 includes five 20-win seasons.
■ATHLETICS
Trinidad cancels games
Trinidadian authorities canceled next month’s inaugural Caribbean Games, saying there was too great a risk of spreading swine flu by hosting the region’s athletes and supporters. Minister of Health Jerry Narace said on Friday he recommended rescheduling the week-long event until the flu threat subsides, but officials determined it would be too difficult to find another date this year so “postponement will mean cancellation.” At least a dozen participants in a volleyball tournament, including players from the Trinidad and Suriname teams, tested positive for (A)H1N1 influenza after a tournament in Trinidad last week. Narace said the fact that athletes and their delegations had to share rooms was a factor in the spread of the virus.
■GOLF
Ormsby grabs one-shot lead
An eagle on the final hole allowed Australia’s Wade Ormsby to record a round of 65 and seize a one-shot lead at the halfway stage of the Saint Omer Open on Friday. The 29-year-old started the day on one-under, five strokes behind Swedish overnight leader Fredrik Andersson Hed, but he braved windy conditions to storm to the top of the leaderboard. Orsmby’s 65 took him to seven-under, one shot ahead of England’s James Morrison, who produced a 69 to follow his opening round of 67. Christian Nilsson of Sweden sits on five-under after a 69, while his compatriot Andersson Hed will begin day three on four-under after carding a two-over 73.
■SOCCER
Setanta loses EPL matches
The English Premier League said on Friday it had terminated its contract with troubled Irish broadcaster Setanta and would sell off the broadcaster’s 46 live matches for next season. The pay-TV company failed to make a scheduled payment of £30 million (US$49 million) to the Premier League by an evening deadline. Last-ditch efforts by Setanta to put together a rescue package were unsuccessful. The Premier League was now expected to announce early next week who has won the rights to show the matches.
■SOCCER
Egypt players robbed
About US$2,300 was stolen from the hotel rooms of Egypt’s soccer team while they were beating Italy 1-0 at the Confederations Cup, Beeld newspaper reported yesterday. The money was stolen from the rooms of five players during Thursday’s game. Another US$860 was burgled from a room of a representative from sports clothing manufacturer Puma. Egypt representative Inas Mazhar told Beeld the team was celebrating the upset victory when it realized the money was missing. “We are disappointed, but it’s their own fault,” Mazhar was quoted as saying. “There are safes, but they left the money outside. It’s over now. This can happen anywhere. This will not spoil our experience.”
■SOCCER
David Villa not for sale
Spanish Primera Liga side Valencia on Friday insisted that star striker David Villa was “not for sale,” despite earlier reports that he was on the brink of a transfer to Real Madrid. The decision, if confirmed, could force Real to look for other forwards, with Spanish media pinpointing France international Karim Benzema of Lyon or Atletico Madrid’s Uruguayan star Diego Forlan as possible alternatives. Real were hoping to capture Villa for a fee in the region of 40 million euros (US$56 million). Real Madrid president Florentino Perez had said on Thursday that the completion of a deal between the clubs was “a matter of time,” but Valencia’s new president, Manuel Llorente, said on Friday that Villa “is not for sale, he is the best striker in Europe and we want him to continue with us.”
■RUGBY LEAGUE
Drunken coach fines himself
Brad Fittler, a former Australia rugby league Test captain and coach of the Sydney Roosters club, fined himself A$10,000 (US$8,102) yesterday after drunkenly trying to get into a woman’s hotel room. Fittler, who played 14 Tests for Australia from 1991 to 2001, was found wearing only shorts and heavily intoxicated early on Friday by police after the female occupant of the room made a complaint. “I take this opportunity to apologize for my behavior on Thursday night, I brought embarrassment to the club, myself and my family,” Fittler said yesterday.
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
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was