BASKETBALL
Former referee out on bail
A former NBA referee charged with attacking Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins as he worked as a TV commentator at a Hawks game was freed on bond on Thursday, Atlanta police said. Police spokesman Carlos Campos says 36-year-old Rashan Michel was released early on Thursday on US$1,000 cash bond after being charged with two counts of simple battery. Police said Michel was angry with the former player over a clothing bill. Campos said Michel confronted the former NBA star as Wilkins was conducting a live broadcast after Atlanta’s 85-82 win over Orlando. Wilkins stepped away from his seat on press row and was attacked by Michel, who claims Wilkins owes him between US$15,000 and US$17,000 for suits. Wilkins was not injured. A police booking photograph shows Michel with a welt under his left eye.
HOCKEY
Senators ink coveted player
France’s Stephane Da Costa, one of the most sought after college ice hockey free agents, has signed a contract with the Ottawa Senators. The 21-year-old forward from Paris inked a two-year contract with the NHL team on Thursday, becoming the first Frenchman to sign with the Senators. More than 20 NHL clubs had expressed an interest in Da Costa before he chose the Senators. In two seasons with the Merrimack College Warriors of the US’ NCAA collegiate system, Da Costa had 30 goals and 90 points, leading his team in scoring both seasons. Some reports have Da Costa making his NHL debut as early as this weekend. Da Costa, who won last year’s Hockey East rookie of the year award, represented France at last year’s world championships.
HOCKEY
Crosby skates with team
Canadian Olympic hero Sidney Crosby, sidelined for almost three months with a concussion, said Thursday’s return to skating with his Penguins teammates was a “small step” in his recovery. Crosby last played in an NHL game on Jan.y 5. He participated in Pittsburgh’s no-contact skate on Thursday as the team prepared for their game against Tampa Bay. “It was a lot of fun to be back out there,” Crosby said. “It’s just a small step, with a lot to go.” Crosby has not yet been cleared for full practice and the Penguins have said they do not expect him back in the NHL regular season. A return to competiton in time for the Stanley Cup playoffs has not been ruled out. Crosby, who scored the gold-medal goal for Canada in over-time against the United States in last year’s Vancouver Winter Olympics, resumed individual workouts on March 14 and said he hasn’t had any setbacks. Crosby took a blind-side hit to the head from the Washington’s David Steckel during the Winter Classic outdoor game on Jan. 1.
FOOTBALL
Pennington blows out knee
The injury jinx has struck again for NFL quarterback Chad Pennington, who tore a knee ligament in a recreational basketball game and will have surgery next week. Pennington’s agent, Tom Condon, said at a news release on Thursday that doctor James Andrews will perform the operation to repair an anterior cruciate ligament on Thursday. The former Jets and Dolphins quarterback is now a free agent. Pennington, 34, has twice earned the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year award. However, he took part in just two plays last season for the Dolphins before hurting his right shoulder again. He had surgery on it for the fourth time, but had said he wants to try to return to the NFL this season.
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
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but
Taiwanese gymnast Lee Chih-kai failed to secure an Olympic berth in the pommel horse following a second-place finish at the last qualifier in Doha on Friday, a performance that Lee and his coach called “unconvincing.” The Tokyo Olympics silver medalist finished runner-up in the final after scoring 6.6 for degree of difficulty and 8.800 for execution for a combined score of 15.400. That was just 0.100 short of Jordan’s Ahmad Abu Al Soud, who had qualified for the event in Paris before the Apparatus World Cup series in Qatar’s capital. After missing the final rounds in the first two of four qualifier