■ ATHLETICS
Amputee could ‘pose risk’
South Africa’s Oscar Pistorius, the double amputee who is hoping to run alongside able-bodied competitors at the Beijing Olympics, was branded a potential danger to other athletes on Monday. Pierre Weiss, the general secretary of the sport’s governing body, the IAAF, believes that if Pistorius, who runs on carbon fibre blades, takes part in the 4x400m relay, he could be a risk to other runners once they are bunched on the track. “The decision by CAS (the Court of Arbitration in Sport which allowed Pistorius to compete with able-bodied runners) applies to all athletics events. But if he runs in the pack, there’s a risk that he or another athlete will fall.”
■ BASEBALL
Hamilton steals show
With a dazzling display of power on Monday night, Josh Hamilton hit a record 28 homers in the first round of the All-Star Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium before he was beaten out by Minnesota’s Justin Morneau in the finals. Morneau topped a tired Hamilton 5-3 in the last round, giving him the derby title. But the night belonged to Texas Ranger Hamilton. Back from drug and alcohol addiction that derailed his career, Hamilton broke Bobby Abreu’s mark for one round. Abreu hit 24 home runs in the first round in 2005 at Detroit’s Comerica Park. “I was lucky that we got reset,” Morneau said. “This was his show. He deserved to win it. That was one of the best performances I’ve ever seen.”
■ SOCCER
Porto wins arbitration
Sport’s highest court says FC Porto will play in the Champions League after all.The Portuguese champion’s participation in Europe’s top club competition has been in doubt after its domestic league convicted Porto of attempting to bribe referees during the 2003-2004 season. UEFA rules state that clubs must have a clean record to play in the Champions League. But UEFA did a U-turn last month just days after banning Porto from the competition. UEFA said legal procedures in Portugal must be completed before it could act. Portuguese clubs Benfica and Guimaraes stood to gain from Porto’s ban. They went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Monday to restore the original UEFA punishment. But the court ruled in favor of Porto.
■ TENNIS
Nadal stardom goes galactic
Rafael Nadal’s dazzling career reached new heights this week when an asteroid was named after him following his epic Wimbledon victory. The request to name the lump of rock after the man who ended Roger Federer’s five-year reign as Wimbledon champion came from an astronomical observatory on Nadal’s home island of Majorca and was approved by the International Astronomical Union. Star gazers can find Nadal’s asteroid between Mars and Jupiter and the 22-year-old has himself been invited to the Majorcan observatory to view it himself. According to the web site of men’s governing body the ATP, the asteroid was discovered five years ago just before Nadal burst on to the scene. It is 4km in diameter and speeds through space at 20km per second. The Astronomical Observatory of Mallorca said it was a tribute to “one of the greatest tennis players of all time.” Nadal beat Federer in five sets in one of the greatest matches ever witnessed in this year’s final. The four-time French Open champion is now setting his sights on gold at next month’s Beijing Olympics.
Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev was the only athlete to “beat” a world record on Sunday at the Enhanced Games, winning the men’s 50m freestyle at the divisive competition where athletes were free to take performance-enhancing substances. His time of 20.81 seconds — which is not considered official — came in the final event of the night in Las Vegas, sparing the blushes of organizers who made claims that multiple world records would be surpassed due to a sophisticated doping regime. Gkolomeev, who was wearing a synthetic “supersuit” long banned at events such as the Olympics, outpaced Australia’s Cameron McEvoy’s 20.88 set in
The manager of the Yomiuri Giants, one of Japan’s most popular baseball teams, resigned yesterday after he was arrested for allegedly physically attacking his teenage daughter. Shinnosuke Abe allegedly grabbed the 18-year-old and forced her to the floor at their home in central Tokyo on Monday evening, reported national broadcaster NHK and Kyodo News, citing unnamed police sources. “Leaving like this really means I’m causing you a lot of trouble, and I feel truly sorry about that,” Abe told a hastily arranged news conference, his eyes red with tears. The former star catcher, who is among baseball-obsessed Japan’s most recognized sports figures,
For some, Cristiano Ronaldo remains the essential spearhead for Portugal’s FIFA World Cup bid, while others believe his presence would prevent Roberto Martinez’s strong side from flourishing. The debate around the five-time Ballon d’Or winner rages on, as it did at UEFA Euro 2024 and four years ago in Qatar — yet Ronaldo endures, ready to play in a record sixth World Cup. The 41-year-old remains a global superstar despite swapping the European elite for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr, and is the leading men’s international goalscorer with 143 strikes. With 25 of those coming in 30 games under Martinez, the coach
Taiwanese tennis star Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the second round of the mixed doubles at the French Open, after she and German partner Mark Wallner defeated Slovenian Andreja Klepac and Briton Lloyd Glasspool in straight sets, despite temperatures exceeding 32°C in Paris, while Taiwan’s top men’s doubles player Ray Ho also reached the second round. Hsieh, who made it to the semi-finals in the mixed doubles at Roland Garros in 2024, and Wallner defeated Klepac and Glasspool 6-3, 7-5 in just more than an hour, converting three of five break points, while holding their opponents to just one conversion
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