■ Athletics
Gatlin only equaled record
Justin Gatlin equaled but did not break the 100m world record at the Qatar Grand Prix last week, the sport's governing body said in Monte Carlo yesterday. The International Association of Athletics Federations said a timing error in Doha gave Gatlin a time of 9.76 seconds, which was one-hundredth of a second below Asafa Powell's world mark of 9.77. The IAAF said Gatlin's time was actually 9.766 seconds, and that should have been manually rounded up to 9.77. The time has now been adjusted to 9.77 and, pending ratification, will equal the record set by Powell in Athens, Greece, last June, the IAAF said.
■ Soccer
Libor Sionko now a Ranger
Czech midfielder Libor Sionko passed a physical examination in Glasgow on Tuesday, completing his move to Rangers from the club Austria Vienna. Sionko signed a three-year deal and becomes the second signing of new Rangers manager Paul Le Guen, who signed Dean Furman last week from Chelsea. "It is a great privilege to join Rangers and I am eager to begin my new life in Scotland," Sionko told Rangers' Web site. "I know I have signed for a massive club with many supporters and I can't wait to play in front of them at Ibrox next season." Sionko could be named to the Czech World Cup squad to replace Vladimir Smicer. Smicer has a knee injury and has not played in three months.
■ Basketball
Ralph Sampson enters plea
Former NBA star Ralph Sampson pleaded not guilty in Richmond, Virginia, on Tuesday to charges of lying to federal authorities about his finances in a child support case. His trial was scheduled for July 17. Sampson waived the reading of the indictment and answered routine questions during a 10-minute court appearance. He is charged with perjury, making a false claim, mail fraud and making a false statement. If convicted in the nonjury trial, he faces a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of US$250,000 on each count, federal prosecutor Sara Flannery said. He remains free on bond with travel restrictions. Sampson was drafted No. 1 overall by the Houston Rockets in 1983.
‘AWFUL PERFORMANCE’: Golden State were always chasing the game after failing to threaten from long range, making just eight of 33 three-point attempts Aaron Gordon on Monday scored 38 points as the Denver Nuggets shrugged off the absence of Nikola Jokic to halt the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak with a 114-105 victory over their Western Conference rivals. A dazzling display from Gordon inspired what was ultimately a comfortable win for Denver, who were missing regular starters Jokic and Jamal Murray from their lineup. The absentees were barely felt by Denver, who startled the Warriors early at San Francisco’s Chase Center and led for most of the game. The Warriors threatened to stage a late rally after slashing the Nuggets’ fourth-quarter lead from 15 points
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scored twice on Sunday to help secure a late 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid in a pulsating La Liga clash that took the Catalan side back to the top of the table. Barca have 60 points and a game in hand after last week’s postponement of their home game with CA Osasuna. They are level on points with Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday. “I am happy and proud of this team,” Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick told a news conference. “They never give up... It’s a great three points and we are happy to
Chris Wood has fired Nottingham Forest into surprise UEFA Champions League contention and now the striker wants to score the goals to help New Zealand make history at the FIFA World Cup. New Zealand are strong favorites to qualify out of the Oceania region over the next week and reach the World Cup for only the third time. At the country’s two previous appearances at the finals, in 1982 and 2010, they have failed to win a match in six attempts. With Wood captaining the side and leading from the front, he told local media yesterday that the current squad can finally deliver
Paolo Banchero on Sunday scored 24 points as the Orlando Magic overturned a 13-point deficit to end the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 16-game unbeaten streak with a gutsy 108-103 road victory. Cleveland, the runaway Eastern Conference leaders, had looked poised to extend their franchise-record winning run after surging clear of Orlando early in the third quarter, but after a season where they have staged hefty winning comebacks of their own, the tables turned on Cleveland in the face of a furious burst of Orlando scoring. The Magic outscored Cleveland 35-23 in the third quarter, with Franz Wagner leading the charge with nine points and
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