Manny Pacquiao remained steadfast on his demand not to be blood tested within 30 days of fighting Floyd Mayweather in a Web site statement on Saturday while rival promoters tried to save the fight.
The Filipino was set to meet Mayweather on March 13 but the doping test format threatens the showdown.
“I’m still willing to Fight Floyd Mayweather. I never said the fight was off or I do not want to fight him,” Pacquiao said in a blog posting on his official Web site.
Mayweather wanted US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) protocols, including random blood tests at any point before the fight, which was a deal-breaker to Pacquiao.
“The truth is taking blood out of my body does not seem natural to me and mentally I feel it will weaken me if blood is taken from me just days before the fight,” Pacquiao said. “That does not make sense to me, why anyone would do that.”
Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy Promotions chief executive, told ESPN on Saturday that he had backed off USADA rules but would insist upon testing within 30 days of the fight as representatives of rival promoters negotiated terms on Saturday.
“We know that 30 days before is not effective. At 30 days, we might as well not even do it,” Schaefer said. “It is a matter of the two sides working out the specifics of the cut off date to assure it will still be effective.”
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
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The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
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