Fri, Mar 16, 2007 page22

• Sports Briefs

  • AGENCIES
  • • 
    • 
    • 

  ■ Baskerball
  Bogut fined US$25,000

  The NBA fined Milwaukee Bucks center Andrew Bogut US$25,000 on Wednesday for directing an obscene gesture toward fans. Bogut's outburst came near the end of Milwaukee's 108-93 loss at home to Toronto on Monday. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 draft was ejected after committing a flagrant foul against Toronto's Chris Bosh with 49 seconds remaining, then he directed an obscene hand gesture toward fans as he left the court.

  ■ Baseball

  Rose bet on Reds nightly

  Major League Baseball career hits leader Pete Rose said he bet on the Cincinnati Reds "every night" when he managed the club, a much wider admission than previously acknowledged. "I bet on my team every night. I didn't bet on my team four nights a week," Rose said on Wednesday on the ESPN Radio network. "I bet on my team to win every night because I love my team, I believe in my team," he said. "I did everything in my power every night to win that game," Rose said.

  ■ Basketball

  Coach slams `witch hunt'

  Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson accused the NBA of conducting a "witch hunt" on Kobe Bryant, who was disciplined for a third time in six weeks. On Monday, the NBA assessed Bryant a flagrant foul 1 penalty for elbowing Philadelphia's Kyle Korver in the jaw during last Friday's game. Bryant has served two one-game suspensions recently for hitting players in the face while shooting. "It shouldn't even have been a flagrant 1," Jackson said at the Lakers' El Segundo practice facility on Tuesday. "That's crazy. That's a vendetta. They have a witch hunt going on. It's nuts. Guys riding somebody. Everybody does that in this league," he said. Jackson, who was fined US$25,000 by the league this season for criticizing officiating, could be penalized again for the remarks.

  ■ Basketball

  Bucks fire coach

  Terry Stotts was fired on Wednesday as coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, who are struggling in the NBA after injuries to key players. An interim coach was not announced for yesterday's game against San Antonio, general manager Larry Harris said. "Terry has done the best he could in a difficult situation, especially with all of our injuries," Harris said of his coach for less than two seasons. "I felt it was in the best interest of our organization to make the decision now and move forward, rather than wait until the end of the regular season," he said. The news came as a surprise to players, who weren't informed after practice.

  ■ East Asian Games
  Taipei to bid for 2013 games

  Taipei will bid to host the 2013 East Asian Games, Taipei City Government officials said on Wednesday. The National Council on Physical Fitness and Sports approved the city's application to launch the bid after it was the only city to file an application. Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) said that the city government would mobilize all of its resources to ensure the success of the bid. The games are held every four years, with teams from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia, North Korea, Macao and Taiwan. Hong Kong will host the 2009 games. Since Taipei will be the host of the 2009 Deaflympics, Liang Yong-fei (梁永斐), director of Taipei Sports Office, said the facilities for that event could also be used for the 2013 East Asian Games.

  ■ Rugby Union

  Burke turns down Wallabies

  Former Wallabies fullback Matthew Burke, now captain of English club Newcastle, has rejected an offer which would have seen the 81-Test veteran return to play in Australia leading into this year's Rugby World Cup. Burke's management released a statement yesterday saying Burke, who played his last Test for Australia in 2004, appreciated an approach from Australia coach John Connolly to consider making himself available. Connolly said despite Burke's decision to decline the offer due to the conflict with the English domestic season, the door remained open for a possible World Cup return in September and October in France. It would be Burke's fourth World Cup. "You never know where things head in the future," Connolly said yesterday.

  ■ Table Tennis

  Tiananmen tourney in doubt

  Plans to invite 10,000 people to play table tennis on Tiananmen Square to mark the one-year countdown to next year's Olympics have been put on hold, the Beijing City Government said yesterday. Mass gatherings on the central square are considered sensitive for national security reasons and a city government official said the proposal was under review by "relevant authorities." Officials said last month they would set up 1,000 tables on the square on Aug. 8 -- one year from the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics -- as part of celebrations for the countdown. Table tennis is the national sport and Beijing Municipal Sports Bureau chief Sun Kanghui said recently he could think of no better way to launch the countdown than with a ping-pong festival on Tiananmen Square.

  ■ Cycling

  Kolobnev wins third stage

  Alexandr Kolobnev won the third stage of the Paris-Nice race on Wednesday and Franco Pellizotti kept the overall lead. Kolobnev finished 12 seconds ahead of Belgian sprinter Tom Boonen, who led the main pack in a sprint to the line. Wednesday's ride was the longest of the race and took the peleton over 215.5km from Limoges to Maurs la Jolie. Kolobnev finished in 4 hours, 59 minutes, 35 seconds, while Daniele Bennati of Italy matched Boonen's time. "It's my best win," Kolobnev said. "It was really a beautiful day for me. First with the breakaway where we all worked well and in the final [sprint], where I managed to get out and hold off the peleton.'' The Russian was among a quartet which broke away after just 2km. Kolobnev, Fabio Baldato, Heinrich Haussler and Nicolas Vogondy then rode ahead until the end.
• Most Popular

  • 1

    Eurovision Song Contest triggers surge in betting interest

  • 2

    Napoli close in on title despite Parma stalemate

  • 3

    Palau president in Taiwan for first time since start of second term

  • 4

    ‘Beitou Shilin’ announced as new Nvidia office site

  • 5

    Kevin de Bruyne bids Manchester City farewell