WORLD CUP
Stadium worker killed
A worker died in an accident while working outside the World Cup stadium in the Brazilian city of Manaus on Friday, local authorities and the Brazilian Sports Ministry said. “Worker Antonio Jose Pita Martins, 55, died after an accident happened when he was dismantling a crane in the area outside the Amazonia Arena,” the Sports Ministry said. It added in a statement that the accident took place at 8am local time and Martins, a Portuguese national, was rushed to hospital. A hospital statement said Martins had died as a result of multiple head and chest injuries. He was the third person to die while working on or near the ground and the sixth to perish while preparing the 12 stadiums for this year’s tournament. The Amazonia Arena, which should have been completed in December according to FIFA’s original deadline, is behind schedule and workers were rushing to get the job finished.
FRANCE
‘Les Verts’ let chance slip
AS Saint-Etienne missed the chance to keep the pressure on LOSC Lille Metropole in their battle for third place when they were held to a 0-0 draw away to Toulouse on Friday. Although the point moves Saint-Etienne provisionally above Lille on goal difference, Lille can move three points ahead by beating relegation battlers Sochaux-Montbeliard at home. That game was to be played yesterday. In a dull game of few chances, winger Franck Tabanou found himself in a good position in the 52nd minute, but Toulouse goalkeeper Zacharie Boucher saved comfortably, and Saint-Etienne goalie Stephane Ruffier dived to keep out midfielder Oscar Trejo’s shot midway through the second half. League leader Paris Saint-Germain can move eight points clear at the top if they win at second-place Monaco today.
SPAIN
Espanyol win with 10
Hector Moreno’s late goal gave 10-man RCD Espanyol a 1-0 win at home over Granada in the Spanish league on Friday, as the Barcelona-based side ended a four-game winless run. Granada goalkeeper Roberto Fernandez saved Moreno’s first two headers from corner kicks taken by Sergio Garcia, but the defender beat him on his third try after Garcia found Moreno unmarked at the near post in the 78th minute. Espanyol’s Victor Alvarez saw a direct red for fouling Youssef El Arabi from behind with only the goalie to beat in the 29th. The hosts mustered more scoring chances through Garcia’s playmaking and stayed firm in defense. Espanyol provisionally moved into eighth place with their first win after losing in the last two rounds and in both legs of their Copa del Rey quarter-final with Real Madrid. Atletico Madrid leads the league by three points over Barcelona and Real.
SPAIN
Diamanti moving to China
Italy forward Alessandro Diamanti has signed a deal to join Asian champions Guangzhou Evergrande of China, bringing an end to his three-year stint at Bologna. The three-year contract with the 30-year-old is worth 6.9 million euros (US$9.40 million), the Chinese champions, coached by Italy’s World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi, said in a statement. Diamanti, capped 17 times by Italy, is set to join Evergrande in Spain, where the club is undergoing preseason training, once he completes his medical. Guangzhou became the first Chinese side to win Asia’s premier club tournament last season when they edged FC Seoul on away goals. They also won the domestic Chinese Super League for a third-straight season.
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
Playing soccer and competing for trophies is the best way that many transplanted Hong Kongers and Macanese have found to stay in touch, and to interact with Taiwanese society, said officials at the Taiwan-Hong Kong-Macau Football Friendship Cup, which was held on April 13. Twelve clubs, mostly of players and coaches originally from Hong Kong and Macau, took part in the tournament in New Taipei City. The event is sponsored by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and the Taiwan-Hong Kong Economic and Cultural Co-operation Council. Participating teams were from the wider Taipei area, Hsinchu, Taichung, Kaohsiung and other areas. They divided into two