BASEBALL
Matty Alou dies aged 72
Matty Alou, once part of an all-Alou outfield for the San Francisco Giants with brothers Felipe and Jesus, died on Thursday in his native Dominican Republic. He was 72. He died of diabetes complications, according to his former Dominican Republic teammate, Leones del Escogido. The Giants also confirmed his death and said Alou had been sick for several years with a variety of health issues. A two-time All-Star, Alou became the 1966 National League batting champion with Pittsburgh when he hit .342. He spent his first six years with San Francisco from 1960 to 1965 and he also played for St Louis, Oakland, the New York Yankees and San Diego. Alou was a career .307 hitter with 31 home runs, 427 RBIs, 1,777 hits and 236 doubles in 15 seasons. The Alou brothers made history in 1963 when they appeared in the same outfield for several games.
SOCCER
Teens arrested for tweet
British police have arrested two teenagers over a racist tweet sent to Newcastle United striker Sammy Ameobi. The 19-year-old, who broke into the first team at the end of last season, re-tweeted the abuse he received and his attacker’s account was closed down. Police said “two young men, both aged 17, [were arrested] on suspicion of malicious communication. The arrests come after reports of a racist tweet being sent to one of the region’s professional sportsmen.” Newcastle manager Alan Pardew said: “When something like this happens, we have to react strongly.” Pardew claimed that “with the austerity measures and everybody feeling a bit tight, everybody is feeling a bit narrow-minded and racism is coming to the fore, so maybe [the arrests] is not a bad thing.”
RUGBY UNION
Ospreys ban spray tans
Welsh rugby side Ospreys have banned players from having spray tans and wearing colored boots as the club attempts to shed its tag of being “Galacticos,” it was reported on Thursday. The Daily Telegraph said Ospreys’ management were seeking to use the departure of high-profile players Gavin Henson and James Hook to mark the start of a new era at the Swansea-based side. “The fake tan and the colored boots, and the Galacticos label doesn’t interest us really,” Ospreys coach Sean Holley told the Telegraph. “We’ve banned the tan. It’s real tan only and you are only allowed to wear colored boots if you’ve played over 50 times for the Ospreys or over 15 times for your country. We feel that you have to earn the respect, you have to earn the right to do something.” The sober approach appears to have reaped dividends for Ospreys so far this season — they have won six of their seven Celtic League fixtures.
ATHLETICS
Miner to run marathon
Edison Pena, one of the 33 miners pulled out alive after 69 days underground in Chile, will run in the New York City Marathon tomorrow, hoping the feat will help him overcome drug problems. “Last year has been very difficult,” Pena told reporters on Thursday, admitting to “many mistakes” that led him to seek help for drug addiction at a clinic. “I didn’t want to speak about this. I got help from a specialist clinic and a team of therapists has me in its hands, and now I am very well.” Pena became famous as “The Runner” last year when he kept up his jogging routine while trapped underground in a mine, awaiting rescue in a life-or-death saga. He became an instant celebrity at last year’s New York Marathon and also took part in the Tokyo Marathon in February.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
NO DOUBT: Spurs star Wembanyama was unanimously selected as NBA Rookie of the Year, winning all 99 votes to become the first Frenchman to capture the honor The Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night produced a dominant defensive display to seize a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series against the Denver Nuggets with a 106-80 road victory. The third-seeded Timberwolves harassed Denver relentlessly to claim a second straight win over the NBA champions as the series heads back to Minneapolis for Game 3 on Friday. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards scored 27 points apiece, but the star of the show was Minnesota’s suffocating defensive effort, which knocked Denver out of their stride almost from the tip-off. The Timberwolves finished with 11 steals and 12 blocks, in sharp contrast to
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at
One of Malaysia’s top soccer clubs has pulled out of today’s season-opening Charity Shield after a spate of assaults, including an acid attack, on players in the country. It leaves the kickoff of Malaysia’s season this weekend under a cloud following the unprecedented acts of violence against players, which have left the country shocked and angry. Authorities said they have imposed tighter security, but Selangor said that they would not play in the showpiece curtain-raiser against Malaysian Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) citing “a series of criminal incidents and recent threats.” Selangor and Malaysia winger Faisal Halim is in intensive care