■GOLF
Els takes one-stroke lead
South Africa’s Ernie Els held a one-stroke lead at the WGC-CA Championship after a six-under 66 in Friday’s rain-affected second round. Els, who has not won a tournament in two years, delivered a confident display that augurs well ahead of next month’s US Masters. Australian Robert Allenby, who started on the back nine, recorded a hole-in-one at the par-three 13th and an eagle on the first, but was in second place on nine-under 135 after another disappointing finish. He bogeyed his last four holes on Thursday, while on Friday he closed with bogeys on two of this final three holes. Overnight leader Charl Schwartzel eagled the par-five first, before he slipped back into a share of third place on seven-under after a double-bogey seven at the 12th. Schwartzel and Bill Haas of the US (66) were three shots behind Els, while Dane Soren Hansen (69) and Irishman Padraig Harrington (68) were a further stroke adrift.
■GOLF
Kendall leads rain-hit Open
Skip Kendall of the US fired an eagle and three birdies in his first 17 holes to seize the lead on Friday when darkness fell to halt the first round of the storm-hit US PGA Puerto Rico Open. Half the field of 132 players didn’t notch a score for any hole as the event endured another rainy day, before conditions relented and allowed play to begin late in the afternoon at the Trump International. Kendall was five-under at the turn to stand one stroke ahead of countryman Kevin Streelman, at four-under through seven holes, and Sweden’s Richard Johnson, who birdied four of his first eight.
■TENNIS
Greats play for Haiti relief
Tennis greats past and present teamed up on Friday in lighthearted doubles matches to aid a serious cause — earthquake relief efforts in Haiti. World No. 1 Roger Federer teamed up with Pete Sampras against Rafael Nadal and Andre Agassi in a men’s match, while a women’s match featured Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Lindsay Davenport and Justine Henin. Among them the participants boasted a staggering 94 Grand Slam singles titles and they drew a capacity crowd to the Indian Wells stadium. The event was sponsored by Oracle, whose founder Larry Ellison bought the Indian Wells tournament last December and at the conclusion of play, Ellison presented the Red Cross with a check for US$1 million.
■PARALYMPICS
Paralympics officially open
Spectators roared late on Friday as the Paralympic cauldron flared to light in Vancouver, marking the start of the Paralympic Winter Games. More than 500 athletes with disabilities from 45 countries started competing in alpine skiing, biathlon and cross-country skiing, wheelchair curling and ice sledge hockey yesterday. “I declare these Paralympics open, the first ever in Canada,” Governor General Michaelle Jean said.
■OLYMPICS
US spokesman settles bet
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs swallowed national pride and donned a Canadian hockey jersey on Friday, to settle a bet he lost when Canada beat the US for Olympic gold. Gibbs entered into the wager with a counterpart in Ottawa and was honor bound to appear on camera wearing the jersey after Canadian star Sidney Crosby potted the winning goal in overtime in the Olympic final. The red and white Team Canada jersey featured the distinctive maple leaf design on the front and had the name “Gibbs” printed on the back.
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
Forget Real Madrid, Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain, the world’s best soccer team — statistically speaking — might be a little-known outfit from the closed central Asian nation of Turkmenistan. Founded last year, Arkadag, named in honor of former Turkmen president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, have been unstoppable, notching up 36 consecutive domestic victories in a run still ongoing. The side have not lost a single competitive match and swept to a league and cup double in their inaugural season — success unthinkable almost anywhere else. However, in Turkmenistan, it could hardly have gone any other way. The energy-rich country is one of the most closed
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
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and