SOCCER
Traumatized star quits Japan
Brazilian striker Marquinhos has walked out on his J-League club Vegalta Sendai, blaming emotional stress from last month’s deadly earthquake and tsunami, the club said yesterday. The 35-year-old’s contract will be terminated less than three months after he joined Sendai. “Having seen the damage caused by the disaster, Marquinhos has suffered psychological shock and has decided it would be difficult to continue playing under these circumstances,” Vegalta said on their Web site. Marquinhos helped Kashima Antlers to a hat-trick of Japanese championships from 2007 to 2009, winning the golden boot in 2008, and has scored 109 goals in 230 J-League appearances. Sendai was one of the worst-hit areas following the quake on March 11, although it largely survived the enormous tsunami that followed.
SOCCER
Frankfurt and Bremen draw
Martin Fenin’s 83rd-minute header snatched Eintracht Frankfurt a 1-1 draw to ruin a sparkling display by Werder Bremen goalkeeper Tim Wiese on Friday. Germany international Wiese frustrated the hosts with a string of spectacular saves after Halil Altintop’s own-goal had gifted Werder the lead. Wiese denied Eintracht forward Fanis Gekas at point-blank range four times in the second half alone. The result left Werder 12th in the Bundesliga on 34 points, one ahead of Eintracht. Werder looked dangerous at the start and had their first chance after 10 minutes but Sandro Wagner hit the post. The visitors went close early in the second half through Marko Marin and Claudio Pizarro before Altintop, trying to clear a cross, headed the ball into his own net in the 58th minute. Eintracht, with coach Christoph Daum taking charge of his first home game, pushed forward in the second half and Wiese palmed away a Gekas shot before tipping a header from the striker on to the bar. The goalkeeper also stopped another close-range effort from Gekas, leaving the Greek forward shaking his head in disbelief.
SOCCER
FA charges Cole over tweets
West Ham striker Carlton Cole has been charged with improper conduct by England’s Football Association over tweets about Ghana fans made during England’s friendly against the African side. Around 20,000 Ghana fans were in Wembley Stadium to see the 1-1 draw on March 29. Cole wrote on Twitter during the game: “Immigration has surrounded the wembley premises! I knew it was a trap! Hahahaha. The only way to get out safely is to wear an England jersey and paint your face w/ the St. George’s flag!” Cole, who made the last of seven England appearances in March last year, quickly apologized and tweeted: “It was a joke & its not even racist.”
GOLF
Lahiri wins Panasonic Open
India’s Anirban Lahiri won the Panasonic Open (India) in a dramatic three-way play-off yesterday against Singapore’s Mardan Mamat and compatriot Manav Jaini after they tied on 13-under-275. Lahiri, who posted a final round one-under-par 71, secured his maiden title with a birdie on the 18th play-off hole as Mardan and Jaini only managed to make par. He was clearly delighted with his career breakthrough as he has a poor record at the Delhi Golf Club. “This is really a special feeling for me. Somebody once told me that if I could win at the Delhi Golf Club, I would probably be laughing as I have had such a bad record here. I guess the joke is on them now,” Lahiri said
ICE HOCKEY
Foote announces retirement
Colorado Avalanche captain Adam Foote will retire at the end of the NHL season, bringing down the curtain on a 20-year career that included two Stanley Cups and an Olympic gold medal, the team said on Friday. Selected in the first round of the 1989 NHL Draft by the Quebec Nordiques, the defenseman followed the team to Denver when it relocated and spent 17 of his 19 seasons with Colorado. “Like every boy’s dream growing up in Canada, my goal was to play one game in the National Hockey League,” Foote, who will retire after Colorado’s season-ending game today against the visiting Edmonton Oilers, said in a statement. During 19 seasons, Foote has amassed 308 points, including 66 goals, 1,534 penalty minutes in 1,153 career games.
TENNIS
Montanes into Hassan semis
Top-seeded Albert Montanes of Spain defeated Fabio Fognini of Italy 7-6 (7/1), 6-1 on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the Grand Prix Hassan II. Montanes struggled on his first serve, but converted three of his four break points to set up a semi-final match against fellow Spaniard Pablo Andujar. Fifth-seeded Potito Starace of Italy upset No. 3 Gilles Simon 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 and will face eighth-seeded Victor Hanescu of Romania in the other semi-final at the clay-court tournament. Simon served four double faults and was broken five times as he lost for the first time in three matches against Starace, who reached the semis for the second year in a row. Andujar advanced with a 6-2, 6-2 win over another Spaniard Pere Riba. Andujar won 83 percent of the points on his first serve and broke his opponent five times to progress to his first semi-final on the ATP tour since losing in the final of the BCR Open Romania in September last year. Hanescu rallied to beat qualifier Andrey Kuznetsov of Russia, 6-7 (1/7), 7-5, 6-2.
TENNIS
Safina out at Andalucia
Top-seeded Victoria Azarenka reached the semi-finals of the Andalucia Tennis Experience after Dinara Safina retired with an injury. Azarenka was leading 3-1 in the first set when Safina first had treatment on her lower back. The injury eventually forced her to quit the match while trailing 5-1. Azarenka will next face eighth-seeded Sara Errani after the Italian beat Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania 6-2, 6-2. Svetlana Kuznetsova easily advanced by beating Lara Arruabarrena-Vecino 6-1, 6-2. The second-seeded Russian plays Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania, who defeated Klara Zakopalova 6-3, 6-3.
CYCLING
Freire stripped of stage win
Italy’s Francesco Gavazzi was declared the winner of the fifth stage of the Tour of the Basque Country on Friday after Spain’s Oscar Freire again suffered the anguish of being relegated from first place. Triple world champion Freire won a bunch sprint at Zalla, but race judges relegated him and his teammate Luis Leon Sanchez, who was judged to have given Freire a helpful push in the final 200m of the stage. Both were demoted to the last positions of the first peloton of riders and handed fines of 200 Swiss francs (US$220). Spain’s Joaquim Rodriguez remained the overall leader with one day to go, but that was completely overshadowed by the controversial end to the fifth stage. Freire, who was also relegated from first place in the opening stage of last year’s edition for blocking another rider, vented his anger while speaking to journalists as Gavazzi sprayed champagne at the fans just a few yards away. “I asked him [Gavazzi] if he didn’t feel ashamed to go up there on the podium,” a grim-faced Freire said.
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