SOCCER
FIFA defends pitch decision
International governing body FIFA said it rejected informal offers it received to lay down real grass for the Women’s World Cup in part because the proposals did not include the practice fields. In a statement on Monday, FIFA said that the artificial turf to be used for the upcoming event in Canada meets its highest standards. Regulations stipulate that teams play and train on a consistent surface. The artificial turf fields that will be used in the World Cup have been a contentious issue with some players, who say forcing the women to play on fake grass amounts to discrimination because their male counterparts play soccer’s premier tournament on grass.
BASKETBALL
Pelicans fire coach Williams
Monty Williams, who guided New Orleans to a pair of playoff appearances in five seasons as coach, was fired by the Pelicans on Tuesday. The Pelicans were 45-37 this NBA season and qualified for the playoffs as the eighth seed in the Western Conference on the final day of the season before being swept by top-seeded Golden State Warriors in the opening round. “Making a decision like this is never easy and is never done hastily, especially when you are dealing with a person of Monty Williams’ character,” Pelicans vice president Mickey Loomis said. “We thanked Monty for the tremendous work and commitment he made to our organization and the development of our young players.” Williams took over as New Orleans coach in June 2010 and finished with an overall record of 173-221.
GOLF
Courses look to save water
California golf courses are teeing up on water conservation measures as the state enters its fourth bone-dry summer. More than 860 golf courses statewide are waiting to see exactly what the recent mandate to cut overall potable water consumption by 25 percent will mean for them. However, many courses are not waiting to make savings. Dozens have signed up for turf reduction rebate programs that offer up to US$3 per square foot to rip out grass. The average 18-hole golf course in California conservatively uses almost 300 million liters of water a year. Courses are also installing wireless moisture probes that can “talk” to each other and tell groundskeepers exactly where and how much to water.
GOLF
Woods backs bullied boy
A boy who was bullied for stuttering received strong encouragement from someone else who once struggled with his speech — Tiger Woods. Golf Digest published a letter from Woods on its Web site on Tuesday. “I know what it’s like to be different and to sometimes not fit in,” Woods wrote. “I also stuttered as a child and I would talk to my dog and he would sit there and listen until he fell asleep. I also took a class for two years to help me, and I finally learned to stop.”
ICE HOCKEY
Canada maintain record
Canada kept a perfect record at the world championships as they swept Austria in the last group game on Tuesday to face Belarus in today’s quarter-finals in Prague. Dallas forward Jason Spezza and Colorado forward Matt Duchene had two goals and two assists each as Canada humiliated Austria 10-1 in Group A played in Prague, outshooting the minnows 46-15. The US won Group B and face Switzerland in the eastern Czech city of Ostrava today, while defending champions Russia take on Sweden in Ostrava and Finland face hosts the Czech Republic in Prague.
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
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