■ Speedskating
Klassen wins 1,500m title
Cindy Klassen of Canada snapped Anni Friesinger's streak of three straight titles in the women's 1,500m race Thursday at the speedskating world championships in Inzell, Germany. Klassen soared around the track in 1 minute, 58.49 seconds to take gold at the individual distances worlds. The German finished second in 1:58.73 and Jennifer Rodriguez of the US was third in 1:59.44. "I'm satisfied with silver. I expected Cindy to be my hardest competition right from the start," said Friesinger, the Olympic champion in the 1,500m. Klassen was a bronze medalist in the 3,000m at the Salt Lake City Olympics and was World Cup champion in the 1,500m in 2003. She beat the German in her home town. All over Inzell, storefronts were plastered with pictures of Friesinger, wishing her luck. "That's definitely a disadvantage -- everyone is expecting medals and titles from me," said Friesinger, who has captured 10 world championship golds.
■ Boxing
Reformers face Congress
Boxing needs the US government to step in and protect the sport, reformers told Congress on Thursday. A key Republican said he was wary of making bureaucrats act as referees.
A stalled bill to create a US Boxing Commission brought a hearing in a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee, where lawmakers are trying to forge a compromise with a Senate effort championed by Senator John McCain. House lawmakers grappled on Thursday with a host of boxing issues -- fighters risking their health, lack of financial support for run-down boxers, the confusing contractual battles involving promoters, TV networks, and big-name boxers. "The problem that we have is we don't have any enforcement mechanism," said Ron Scott Stevens, chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission.
Yu Yao-hsing on Tuesday nabbed Taiwan’s only goal in the final round of qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, as they fell 3-1 to Sri Lanka at Taipei Municipal Stadium. Early goals from Sri Lanka in the first half left Taiwan struggling to get on the board, and Christopher Tiao’s own goal at 53 minutes sealed the team’s fate in the third round of qualifiers. While acknowledging that the defeat, Taiwan’s sixth in Group D, was disappointing, head coach Matt Ross said he saw reasons to stay positive about the team’s development. “There were lots of positive signs in terms of the
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
INDIGESTION: Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive time after a 4-1 defeat to Bosnia on penalties in a loss Gattuso said was ‘difficult to digest’ Coach Graham Arnold on Tuesday challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico, as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Sweden and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) also secured their places at the finals. Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and are to play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway. Goals from Ali al-Hamadi
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
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