■ Soccer
Top ref to accept doctorate
PHOTO: AP
Just call him Dr. Collina. Pierluigi Collina, widely considered the world's No. 1 soccer referee, will be awarded an honorary doctorate by England's University of Hull. The Italian will be presented with an honorary Doctor of Science degree at Hull city hall in July 2004, recognizing his contributions to the game. Collina, who officiated the 2002 World Cup final in Yokohama, Japan, is easily recognizable for his shaved head and piercing stare.
■ Rugby Union
Wilkinson injured
England star Jonny Wilkinson is expected to overcome a shoulder injury and be ready for the Six Nations rugby championship. The fly-half was helped off the field on Sunday after attempting a tackle for his club team Newcastle, his first match since kicking the winning drop goal in England's victory over Australia in the World Cup final five weeks ago. Wilkinson kicked three penalties before leaving the match Sunday, which Newcastle won 23-19 over Northampton. An X-ray afterward showed no broken bones. "It's a bit early to say at this stage how long he will be out, probably the next 48 hours will tell," Newcastle director of rugby Rob Andrew said. "I don't expect him to miss the Six Nations. He may well not play next week, but we're talking a few weeks probably rather than anything serious."
■ Baseball
Steinbrenner doing fine
New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner was released from the hospital on Sunday, one day after he fainted at a memorial service, and his doctor described his health as excellent. The 73-year-old Steinbrenner was picked up by family members, hospital spokeswoman Lyn Cassan said. "He wanted to go home," Cassan said. "He wasn't very happy sitting in a hospital bed." Dr. Andrew Boyer, Steinbrenner's personal physician, said in a statement that Steinbrenner recovered in a few minutes after collapsing during the church service for football great Otto Graham. "He's doing well ever since," the doctor said. "To be sure that it was nothing more than a fainting spell he has had a very extensive cardiac and neurological work-up. All the diagnostic studies were normal," he added. "He's feeling well and his general health is excellent."
■ Olympics
S Korean official quizzed
Prosecutors questioned International Olympic Committee Vice President Kim Un-yong yesterday over allegations that he collected illicit money from former South Korean Olympic officials and embezzled funds from taekwondo organizations. "I will explain everything to prosecutors," Kim told reporters before entering the Seoul District Prosecutors' Office. Kim, the world's taekwondo chief, has been plagued by scandals involving him and his family. He has denied any wrongdoing. Earlier this month, South Korean prosecutors raided Kim's house and offices, seizing a private safe and documents. The move was highly unusual because Kim was a national legislator.
RECORD DEFEAT: The Shanghai-based ‘Oriental Sports Daily’ said the drubbing was so disastrous, and taste so bitter, that all that is left is ‘numbness’ Chinese soccer fans and media rounded on the national team yesterday after they experienced fresh humiliation in a 7-0 thrashing to rivals Japan in their opening Group C match in the third phase of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The humiliation in Saitama on Thursday against Asia’s top-ranked team was China’s worst defeat in World Cup qualifying and only a goal short of their record 8-0 loss to Brazil in 2012. Chinese President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China to host and even win the World Cup one day, but that ambition looked further away than ever after a
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
Former Formosa Dreamers player Ilkan Karaman was killed in a traffic accident in Datca, Turkey, Turkish media reported yesterday. He was 34. The former Turkish national team player was reportedly hit by a car, the driver of which was allegedly drunk, while he was standing on a sidewalk, Turkish newspaper Sozcu reported. Karaman and his friends were on their way to the beach town of Dalaman to go scuba diving when they stopped at a gas station to buy gasoline, it reported. Karaman was hit by the car while waiting on a sidewalk as his friends were buying gasoline, it
ANKLE PROBLEM: Taiwan’s Ye Hong-wei and Lee Chia-hsin had a disappointing end to their tournament after an injury forced them out of their mixed doubles semi-final Taiwanese badminton ace Tai Tzu-ying on Friday was knocked out in the women’s singles quarter-finals at her last Taipei Open. The world No. 3 lost 21-18, 16-21, 22-24 to Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in a match that stretched 68 minutes at the Taipei Arena. Despite her higher ranking, Tai said she was not too sad about the loss, given her struggle with a lingering knee injury. “Wins and losses are just part of the game. Actually, I think I’m going to lose every single match considering my condition now,” said the five-time champion of the Super 300 event, who has announced plans
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