MOTOR RACING
Hamilton wins ‘damaging’
Silverstone circuit bosses want to see Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton pushed harder by his rivals ahead of July’s British Grand Prix. Hamilton’s success this season, on the back of clinching his second title last year with Mercedes, has helped sell tickets for his home race, but there could be too much of a good thing. “My only concern is that if he wins everything by a country mile between now and July, if it becomes a procession, it damages the sport,” Silverstone’s new managing director Patrick Allen said at a media briefing on Tuesday. “So it would be great if Sebastian Vettel could stir things up a bit.” Hamilton has won three of the four races so far this year, with four-time world champion Vettel taking the other victory in Malaysia — only his second race for Ferrari since moving from Red Bull. Hamilton, who has started every grand prix from pole position so far this year, won 11 races last year.
ATHLETICS
Shobukhova hearing canceled
The Court of Arbitration for Sport says a hearing scheduled for yesterday in the doping case of three-time Chicago Marathon winner Liliya Shobukhova has been canceled. The court could not confirm why an appeal filed by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to double Shobukhova’s ban to four years would not take place. However, reports in Russia suggest the IAAF, the Russian athletics federation and the athlete reached an out-of-court settlement. If the hearing took place, the court panel’s published verdict could have addressed a German TV documentary’s allegations made in December last year. Broadcaster ARD alleged Shobukhova paid Russian officials to cover up her doping before she was banned for two years for suspicious blood values in her biological passport. The broadcaster linked a subsequent refund to Shobukhova to business associates of IAAF president Lamine Diack’s son.
BASEBALL
Kirk Gibson has Parkinson’s
Former Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Kirk Gibson, who won the World Series with both teams during the 1980s, on Tuesday said he has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. The 57-year-old, who retired from baseball in 1995 before later working as a manager and television analyst, said in a statement released by Fox Sports Detroit he is determined to battle his disease. “I have faced many different obstacles in my life, and have always maintained a strong belief that no matter the circumstances, I could overcome those obstacles,” Gibson said. “While this diagnosis poses a new kind of challenge for me, I intend to stay true to my beliefs. With the support of my family and friends, I will meet this challenge with the same determination and unwavering intensity that I have displayed in all of my endeavors in life. I look forward to being back at the ballpark as soon as possible.”
SWIMMING
Randy Bennett dies at 51
Longtime Canadian swim coach Randy Bennett has died at 51. Swimming Canada, the sport’s domestic governing body, said he died on Monday night. Bennett was recently diagnosed with skin cancer. Bennett was the national coach at the 2012 London Olympics and has coached Canada’s top senior teams at every major international competition since 2009. He helped Ryan Cochrane win a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Games and a silver in London, both in the 1,500m freestyle. He worked with 2013 world championship medalist Hilary Caldwell and 2012 Olympian Alec Page.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB