RUGBY UNION
Munster down Toulon
Munster bounced back from their opening European Cup loss to London Irish by scoring a thrilling bonus-point win over Toulon at Thomond Park on Saturday. The Irish side recovered from a try conceded after just 56 seconds to touch down six of their own for a 45-18 success that puts them top of Pool 3 with a one-point advantage over Ospreys. Meanwhile, rugby league convert Stephen Myler seized a rare starting chance with both hands earlier on Saturday when he kicked 16 points in Northampton’s thrilling 31-27 victory over Edinburgh. In Pool 2, Racing Metro bounced back from their opening humbling by Leinster to defeat French rivals Clermont 16-9 and record their second successive win over them this season. Leinster enjoyed a crucial 25-23 win over Saracens at Wembley — with Jonathan Sexton scoring all of the Irish side’s points. In Pool 4, English side Bath won 22-6 at Italian club Aironi to take the provisional lead at the top of the standings. Cup holders Toulouse, meanwhile, enjoyed a 40-19 win at Newport Gwent Dragons.
GOLF
Mediate eagles again
Rocco Mediate holed out with a pitching wedge from 111 yards on the par-five 15th on Saturday, his third eagle of the week helping him maintain a three-shot lead at the Frys.com Open. Mediate, 47, carded a four-under 67 for a 17-under total of 196 at CordeValle Golf Club. He became the first USPGA Tour player to make three eagles in a tournament since Tiger Woods accomplished the feat in the 1998 Sprint International. Mediate had a hole-in-one on the par-three third on Thursday and holed out from 160 yards on Friday at the par-four fourth. He had a three-shot lead over Bo Van Pelt, who carded a 65 for 199. Rookie Alex Prugh (66) and Japan’s Ryuji Imada (69) shared third on 201.
GOLF
Martin leads by three shots
Pablo Martin took a three-shot lead into the final round of the Portugal Masters after a 10-under 62 in Saturday’s third round. Tied for second are England’s Oliver Wilson, who followed up Friday’s 66 with a bogey-free 65 that included a birdie on the par-three sixth, and Jeppe Huldahl. Huldahl was in scintillating form with a round of 61, equaling the European Tour record for birdies in a single round with 12, as he surged to 15-under. South Africa’s Thomas Aiken and Finn Mikko Ilonen share fourth on 14-under.
CRICKET
Bangladesh complete sweep
Rubel Hossain grabbed four wickets as Bangladesh completed a sweep with a thrilling three-run victory over New Zealand in the fifth and final one-day international yesterday. The fast bowler finished with 4-25 off 9.3 sharp overs as New Zealand, chasing a 175-run target, were bowled out for 171 in the last over. Bangladesh clinched the series 4-0, their first sweep against a major team. New Zealand needed eight runs to win in the final over with just one wicket in hand, but Rubel sparked celebrations in Bangladesh’s camp when he bowled Kyle Mills (33).
MOTOGP
Stoner wins home GP
Australia’s Casey Stoner beat newly crowned world champion Jorge Lorenzo of Spain by almost nine seconds yesterday to claim his fourth straight Australian Grand Prix. Stoner, who turned 25 on Saturday, started from pole position after dominating qualifying and rode his Ducati to an emphatic win over Yamaha’s Lorenzo, while Valentino Rossi, also on a Yamaha, finished third.
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