BASEBALL
Athletics sign Matsui
The Oakland Athletics and free agent slugger Hideki Matsui finalized a US$4.25 million, one-year contract on Tuesday after he passed a physical. The sides had agreed to terms during the weekend. Oakland formally introduced Matsui on Tuesday afternoon in a news conference attended by more than 100 media members — mostly Japanese — and featuring 17 television cameras. The 36-year-old Matsui batted .274 with 21 home runs and 84 RBIs last season with the Los Angeles Angels, the Athletics’ American League West rival.
FOOTBALL
Vikings go ‘alfresco’
The Minnesota Vikings said they would host the Chicago Bears on Monday in the great outdoors after finding their indoor Metrodome home would not be ready after a snowstorm caused a rip in the inflatable roof. An inspection on Tuesday ruled out the Metrodome and the NFL team announced their Monday night game next week would be shifted to the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium. “We are committed to playing Monday night’s game in Minnesota in front of our fans,” the Vikings said in a statement posted on their Web site. “We appreciate the tremendous cooperation of the University of Minnesota and look forward to completing preparations for the game and turning this into a memorable experience for the State of Minnesota and Vikings fans.”
TENNIS
Parents duke it out
One man was arrested and paramedics were called after a dispute over a line call in a junior tennis match sparked a fight between parents in Melbourne, Australia. Tennis Australia condemned the incident, which left one man needing hospital treatment for cuts and grazes. Police spokeswoman Sharna Roberts said officers responded to a call to Melbourne Park — home of the Australian Open — on Tuesday after a fight involving a 48-year-old and a 51-year-old man. One man was charged with assault.
SWIMMING
Lochte goes Phelpsian
Having surpassed Michael Phelps as the top all-around swimmer this year, Ryan Lochte hopes to punctuate the fact with a Phelpsian performance this week. Lochte wants to swim eight events over five days at the short-course world championships which began yesterday in Dubai. If he wins them all, he’ll match the record eight golds Phelps won at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lochte is listed to swim five individual events — the 100m, 200m and 400m individual medleys, plus the 200m freestyle and 200m backstroke. He’ll also take part in the 400m and 800m free relays. The only question in his program is whether he’ll race in the 400m medley relay.
SWIMMING
2010 going record-less
The clock is ticking very slowly in swimming these days. For the first time in more than a century, the sport risks ending the year without a single world record established in the pool. By outlawing the rubberized suits that rewrote the record book in 2008 and last year, swimming governing body FINA has turned back the clock so far that most swimmers are no longer anywhere close to their best times. This year’s record book has already been closed on long-course events without a single entry and this week’s short-course world championships in Dubai present the final chance to make some history.
AGENCIES
SOCCER
Miners inspired United win
Watching soccer while trapped underground gave the trapped miners in Chile hope during their 69-day ordeal this year and their experience helped inspire Manchester United to beat Arsenal on Monday. Some of the 33 miners rescued in October were at Old Trafford to watch Alex Ferguson’s team go top of the Premier League with a 1-0 win over one of their main title rivals. “You played a part in that great win over Arsenal last night because Alex referred to your story in his team talk before the game and used the motivation from that to galvanize the players,” club chief executive David Gill told them on Tuesday. Wearing United scarves and clutching bulging bags of souvenirs from the club shop, the miners were attending a champagne and canapes reception for them at Old Trafford. Some brushed away tears as a video of their rescue was shown, while others cheered and laughed as they saw themselves sharing passionate kisses with their loved ones.
SOCCER
Tevez reports for training
Want-away Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez returned to the club’s training ground on Tuesday as scheduled, Britain’s Press Association reported. Tevez was scheduled to take part in a training session on Tuesday following a four-day break in Tenerife. The Argentina striker sat out the weekend victory against West Ham United, which emphasized City’s title credentials, as he was banned, but following the win, it was revealed Tevez had handed in a written transfer request that has been rejected by the club. It is understood he was unlikely to travel to Turin yesterday with the squad ahead of their Europa League match against Juventus. Manager Roberto Mancini apparently made that decision before the weekend, knowing the team is already through to the next stage of the tournament.
SOCCER
Three injured in bus attack
Three people were injured on Tuesday when a group, believed to be Dinamo Zagreb fans, stoned and threw torches at a bus carrying VIP guests of Greek side PAOK ahead of their Europa League match, police said. Several dozen people attacked the police-escorted bus that was carrying about 40 guests of the Greek team on the outskirts of Zagreb, police said in a statement. Three people were injured and treated in the hospital, while seven more refused medical help, police added. Attackers pelted the bus with stones and after breaking its windows, they threw torches into it. Several perpetrators were detained, while a car that was passing nearby was also damaged, police said. Local media reported that firefighters managed to immediately extinguish the fire in the bus.
RUGBY UNION
Banned physio appeals
A former rugby physiotherapist who was stripped of his license because of his involvement in the faking of blood injuries has launched an appeal in one of Britain’s senior courts. The lawyer acting for Steph Brennan says the sanction imposed by the Health Professions Council in September is too severe. Paul Harris told London’s High Court that “it couldn’t possibly have been proportionate for the conduct committee to have effectively adopted a ‘one strike and you are out for good’ approach.” Brennan admitted to a total of five instances of faking blood injuries, a practice brought to light by a high-profile case involving Harlequins winger Tom Williams in a Heineken Cup quarter-final against Leinster in April last year.
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