SURFING
Shawn Dollar breaks neck
World record-holding big wave surfer Shawn Dollar was in hospital on Wednesday with a broken neck after an accident surfing in California, his management company said. In a statement posted on the Titans of Mavericks surfing contest’s Facebook page, Dollar was said to be in stable condition after breaking his neck in four places and suffering a concussion while surfing in large waves off of California’s central coast. “I’m so thankful I’m alive and present today,” Dollar said in the statement. “Being surrounded by my loved ones through this time has been paramount for me.” Dollar, 34, also thanked the fellow surfers who came to his aid “in my scariest and darkest hour.” “I’m thankful to learn that even with these severe injuries I will make a full recovery,” he said. According to the statement, Dollar was surfing on Monday when “a strong south swell reportedly produced strong waves with unfavorable mixed conditions.” Dollar was put “in a critical scenario that caused him to act accordingly to protect himself,” the statement said. The San Jose Mercury News reported that Dollar struck his head on a rock. Dollar was recognized by Guinness World Records after dropping in on a 19m wave at the Cortes Bank, 160km west of San Diego, on Dec. 21, 2012.
ATHLETICS
Tejeda stripped of medal
Peru’s Olympic Committee says 29-year-old distance runner Gladys Tejeda has been stripped of the gold medal she won in Toronto in July’s Pan American Games because of doping. The committee said in a statement on Wednesday that Tejeda had tested positive for furosemide, a diuretic on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned list because it is used to mask other drugs. Tejeda had set a games record of 2:33.03. The statement said that Tejeda would be temporarily suspended from international competition. A hero at home after the victory, Peru’s government had awarded her with a US$22,000 check. Tejeda was out of the country when the sanction was announced.
SOCCER
Delph injures hamstring
Manchester City midfielder Fabian Delph could miss up to nine games for club and country after he pulled up with a hamstring injury during England’s win over Switzerland in a Euro 2016 qualifier on Tuesday, British media reported. Delph has yet to start for his club since completing a controversial move from Aston Villa due to a hamstring injury he picked up in a pre-season friendly, although he has made two appearances for Manuel Pellegrini’s side off the bench. The 25-year-old was forced off within the first minute of England’s 2-0 win at Wembley and is expected to miss Champions League ties against Juventus and Borussia Moenchengladbach and a League Cup clash against Sunderland. He could also miss Premier League matches against Crystal Palace, West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United and England’s remaining Euro 2016 qualifiers against Estonia and Lithuania. On a more positive note for City, Brazilian midfielder Fernando is closing in on full fitness after recovering from a groin injury that he battled with for most of last season. The 28-year-old last featured for his club on May 10 and said he needed pain-killing injections before most of his 33 appearances. “I’ve been working hard to recover. I’m feeling much better now with no pain, so I will resume normal training this week and hopefully be available at some point within the next fortnight,” Fernando told the club Web site (www.mcfc.co.uk).
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two