BADMINTON
‘Legend’ buried by partner
The funeral of South Korea’s Chung Jae-sung took place yesterday, with his former doubles partner Lee Yong-dae helping to carry the coffin after the Olympic badminton medalist, 35, died of a suspected heart attack. Chung was on Friday morning found dead by his wife in their living room, but the exact cause of his death is under investigation. He was diagnosed with the heart condition arrhythmia three years ago and complained of occasional chest pains, Yonhap reported, citing family members. Chung in January had participated in the torch relay for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics as one of the bearers. Chung and Lee won bronze in the men’s doubles at the 2012 London Olympics — Chung’s final tournament before retiring. The pair also lifted two prestigious All-England Crowns in 2008 and 2012, reaching the world No. 1 ranking in January 2009.
BADMINTON
Rule a tall order: players
A controversial new rule that might have put many of its taller players at a disadvantage has been panned by some of the sport’s greats, Malaysian media reported. The rule — which says a shuttlecock shall be held less than 1.15m from a court’s surface before serving — is to be tried out at the All England Open in Birmingham from Wednesday to Sunday. World No. 2 Lee Chong Wei criticized the rule, which took effect on March 1. “The Badminton World Federation should have opted for small tournaments to test it,” Lee was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times on Friday last week. Lee, who is to be playing in the All England Open, said he would have to make adjustments to his game. “If I make a mistake with my serve during the All England, I will ask the umpire the proper way to execute it,” the Malaysian star said. Lee is 1.72m tall, shorter than several other top 10 players. In January, world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen — 1.94m tall — was quoted by Malaysian daily the Star as calling the new rule “ridiculous.” In a YouTube video published in April last year, Axelson was seen mocking the rule by squatting and kneeling while serving at a training session.
GOLF
Woods one behind leader
Tiger Woods on Saturday moved within one stroke of third-round leader Corey Conners at the Valspar Championship in Florida, as his comeback gathered more steam. In just his fourth official start since spinal fusion surgery in April last year, the former world No. 1 carded an assured four-under-par 67 in front of a huge and supportive gallery. Woods ended the round equal second with fellow American Brandt Snedeker (67) and Englishman Justin Rose (66). However, Canadian surprise package Conners continued to lead, posting a 68 for a nine-under 204 total with one round left. Woods has won 79 times on the PGA Tour. Victory would bring him within two of all-time leader Sam Snead. Whatever the outcome, Woods has left no doubt in his past two events that he is destined for further glory, as long as his body holds up. Swinging with a club head speed measured by laser as the fastest in the field on Saturday, he mixed power with precision on a day conducive to low scores. “I’ve played myself right there into contention, so it should be a fun Sunday,” he said. “The people of Tampa are really into it. It’s been incredible.”
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