■ Swimming
Phelps caught driving drunk
Michael Phelps, the American swimming phenomenon who won six gold medals at the Athens Olympics, has been arrested and charged with drunk driving. Police said Phelps, 19, was arrested last week in Salisbury, Maryland, after running a stop sign and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and drinking under the legal age of 21. "I made a mistake," Phelps said Monday night. "Getting into a car with anything to drink is wrong, dangerous and unacceptable. I'm 19, but no matter how old you are, you should take responsibility for your actions, which I will do. I'm extremely sorry." If convicted of the charge of driving under the influence, Phelps faces a year in jail and a US$1,000 fine. Phelps, who also won two bronze medals this summer in Athens, returned home to multimillion-dollar endorsement deals for numerous companies, which his arrest might put in jeopardy.
■ Soccer
Greece players vie for award
Six Greek players have been named in an initial list of 50 for the European Footballer of the Year award, sports daily L'Equipe reported on its Web site on Monday. Traianos Dellas, Angelos Charisteas, Michalis Kapsis, Antonis Nikopolidis, Yourkas Seitaridis and Theodoros Zagorakis are in line for the prestigious continental award after Greece made history with their Euro 2004 triumph in Portugal in June. Six French players, including Real Madrid's Zinedine Zidane and the Arsenal duo Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira, are also in the running for the award, along with seven Brazilians. The winner of the Golden Ball as the European Footballer of the Year is decided by a poll of European soccer journalists from 52 countries.
■ Golf
China to host Johnnie Walker
China will host the US$2.3 million Johnnie Walker Classic next year, organizers announced on Tuesday, the richest golf tournament ever to be staged in the world's most populous nation. The prestigious tri-sanctioned event featuring the best players from the European, Asian and Australasian tours will be staged at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Pine Valley Course in Beijing from April 21 to April 24. It is the first time in the 14-year history of one of Asia's biggest golf tournaments that the event has been held in China. The Johnnie Walker was first staged in Hong Kong in 1990. Over the past 14 years, the event has been played in eight different Asian cities on over 10 different golf courses. Past winners of the event include some of the best known names in international golf, with Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Nick Faldo and Greg Norman all getting their names on the trophy.
Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke, 29, has died, the NBA team said in a statement on Tuesday, while the family of Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to play in a major US pro sports league, announced the former Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets player had died after a battle with brain cancer. “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of Brandon Clarke,” the Grizzlies said in a statement posted on social media. “Brandon was an outstanding teammate and an even better person whose impact on the organization and the greater Memphis community will not be forgotten.” The statement did not provide
Mathys Tel was hero and villain as Tottenham drew 1-1 at home to Leeds United on Monday — a result that leaves their English Premier League future hanging in the balance. The Frenchman broke the deadlock early in the second half to ease the tension at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but then gave away a penalty with a reckless attempted clearance. In the dying minutes, Spurs were grateful to Antonin Kinsky, who produced an astonishing save to deny the visitors a win. Tottenham are now two points clear of 18th-placed West Ham United with just two games left this season. The
Houston Astros right-hander Teng Kai-wei, the only active Taiwanese pitcher in MLB, on Sunday suffered his third loss of the season, throwing a season-high 63 pitches in his second start of the year. Teng allowed three earned runs over three innings on five hits in the Astros’ 5-0 road loss to the Cincinnati Reds. He struck out one, walked one, and hit one batter among the 15 hitters he faced, raising his earned run average to 3.12. It was the Astros’ second attempt to use the 27-year-old Taiwanese as a starter, after he had established himself as a reliable bullpen
‘DONE IT ALL’: LeBron James is now out of contract with the Lakers and would head into the off season as a free agent with uncertainty swirling around his future LeBron James on Monday said he would take time to consider his future after the Los Angeles Lakers were swept out of the NBA playoffs by the Oklahoma City Thunder in what could turn out to be the final game of his career. James, 41, delivered a typically defiant performance with 24 points and 12 rebounds, but it was not enough to prevent the Lakers from falling 115-110 as the Thunder completed a 4-0 sweep in the Western Conference semi-finals series. The four-time NBA champion is now out of contract with the Lakers and would head into the off season
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