■TENNIS
Taiwanese duo loses final
Japanese duo Kimiko Date-Krumm and Rika Fukiwara defeated Taiwan’s Chan Chin-wei and Chen Yi in straight sets to claim the doubles title at the women’s hardcourt tournament in Tokyo yesterday. The No. 3 seeds won 7-5, 6-3 against 23-year-old Chan and 21-year-old Chen, who were the top seeds. Ayumi Morita of Japan defeated Slovakia’s Jarmila Gajdosova 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 to claim the singles title. The No. 3 seed outlasted the winner of last month’s OEC Taipei Ladies Open title to earn her first singles title of the year.
■SOCCER
Nationalism fuels violence
More than 50 people were injured in nationalistic-fueled violence at a match in southwestern Slovakia. Thirty-one people were arrested in Saturday’s rioting — 18 fans for the home team in Dunajska Streda, one of the most important centers for Slovakia’s ethnic Hungarian minority, and 13 from the away team from Bratislava, a police spokeswoman said. Violence had been feared ahead of the championship game between AC Dunajska Streda and Slovan Bratislava as hundreds of hooligans and neo-Nazis from Hungary were expected to travel to the match. Nationalistic tensions have intensified between Hungary and Slovakia recently and have been fuelled by nationalists from both sides through provocative public statements. Police numbers were increased to provide security for the match, that Bratislava won 4-0, but violence broke out between both sets of fans and with the police. A police spokeswoman said that fans from the home team had hurled stones while internet forums accused police of targeting Hungarian fans. The most serious injuries occurred in a crush of Hungarian fans that developed after a police intervention, television reports said.
■RALLYING
Loeb clinches record title
Citroen’s Sebastien Loeb clinched a record fifth world title in a row after surviving a late spin to finish third in the Japan Rally yesterday. Rival Mikko Hirvonen led Jari-Matti Latvala in a Ford one-two but it was not enough to keep the title race alive. A spin on the penultimate stage almost cost the Frenchman third place and his hopes of glory in Sapporo as torrential rain made conditions treacherous. Hirvonen won by 31.1 seconds from fellow Finn Latvala. The Frenchman had wanted to secure the title in Japan in order to drive flat-out in the last race in Britain later this month in a bid to break his own record of 10 wins in a season.
■SOCCER
River horror run continues
Titleholders River Plate slumped to a 2-0 defeat at Lanus on Saturday, extending their winless domestic run to an unprecedented 11 games. The defeat guaranteed beleaguered coach Diego Simeone’s team, who have nine points from their 13 games, would finish the weekend bottom of the Apertura championship. Simeone made nine changes from the team that drew 1-1 with Newell’s Old Boys on Wednesday but saw his side fall behind after only five minutes to a goal from Diego Lagos. Maximiliano Velasquez added a second early in the second half to lift Lanus to fourth in the table. River’s next match is a Copa Sudamericana quarter-final second leg tie away to Mexican side Guadalajara on Thursday and Simeone is expected to face the sack if his side fail to overturn their 1-0 deficit. The only consolation for River, one of Argentina’s biggest clubs, is that they are in no danger of relegation, which is decided over three seasons.
Fenerbahce on Thursday earned a rare 2-1 win in England, but were still knocked out of the UEFA Europa League by Nottingham Forest in the playoffs. Forest entered the second leg with a healthy 3-0 lead from the opener in Istanbul — where Vitor Pereira made an impact in his first game in charge — and that proved enough to advance to the round-of-16 with a 4-2 aggregate score. The result was a boost for Forest, struggling at 17th place in the Premier League, in their return to Europe after three decades. They next face Real Betis Balompie or Kerem Akturkoglu gave Fenerbahce
Soccer officials yesterday offered “full support and assistance” to the Iranian team in Australia for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup after the US and Israel launched massive attacks on their homeland. Iran’s 26-strong squad arrived on the Gold Coast days before the strikes on Saturday killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Washington and Tel Aviv seek to topple the Islamic republic. They are due to open their tournament today against South Korea. The AFC in a statement said it “continues to closely monitor the recent developments in the Middle East during this challenging period.” “The AFC’s foremost priority remains the welfare, safety and
ROAD RASH: Marc Marquez retired after a crash, marking the first time after 88 consecutive races stretching back to 2021 that a Ducati bike failed to make the podium Marco Bezzecchi yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening grand prix in Thailand from pole position as defending world champion Marc Marquez retired late with a buckled wheel. Aprilia’s Bezzecchi led from start to finish to top the podium in Buriram, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta second and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez third. Ducati’s Marquez is chasing a record-equaling eighth world title this season, but he exited the race in dramatic fashion while in fourth place with five laps to go. The Spaniard, who started from second on the grid, took a corner wide, with the jolt to his bike dislodging the rear tire, badly damaging his
EVERY DAY A VICTORY: Players on the women’s team faced pressure from society just getting out onto the field as they prepare for their first Women’s Asian Cup game today Bangladesh’s national soccer team face daunting odds at their first-ever Women’s Asian Cup, but have already scored a major victory by qualifying. In the South Asian nation of 170 million, social stigma, family expectations, poverty and religious hardliners have long relegated women and girls to sports sidelines. The first women’s soccer league matches took place in 2011 and the squad, known to fans as the Red and Green, have kept pressing forward despite deeply embedded prejudices. “Many more girls would have joined us if the community had been even slightly supportive,” captain Afeida Khandaker told AFP ahead of her side’s March 3
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