■ICE HOCKEY
Grabovski iced for abuse
Toronto Maple Leafs center Mikhail Grabovski was suspended for three games without pay by the NHL on Friday for abuse of an official. Late in the third period of Thursday’s 6-2 loss to Montreal, Grabovski was wrestled to the ice by linesman Scott Cherrey, who was trying to separate him from Canadiens left wing Sergei Kostitsyn. Grabovski shoved the official and kicked his own helmet before gesturing to fans as he departed the ice. Grabovski will be eligible to return to action on January 16, when the Maple Leafs face the Atlanta Thrashers.
■FORMULA ONE
Buemi wins Toro Rosso seat
Sebastien Buemi, a 20-year-old Swiss driver, has won a Formula One seat with the Toro Rosso team. Buemi, who competed in the GP2 series last year, is expected to be the youngest driver on the F1 grid this year. Buemi was also a reserve driver last year for Toro Rosso’s sister team, Red Bull Racing. He came up through Red Bull’s junior driver program. “Being a Formula One driver has always been my target, since I first started racing,” Buemi said. “This year, I will do all I can to bring home the best possible results and to show Red Bull that the confidence it has shown in me is justified.” Buemi’s first official track outing will be at the test session at the Portimao Circuit in Portugal later this month. Toro Rosso must still decide on its other driver for this year, including whether to retain Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais.
■BASEBALL
Bloomquist signs with KC
Versatile Willie Bloomquist agreed on Friday to a US$3.1 million, two-year contract with the Kansas City Royals. Kansas City also agreed to a US$1.3 million, one-year contract with right-handed pitcher Kyle Davies, who had been eligible for salary arbitration. The 31-year-old Bloomquist spent all seven of his big league seasons with the Seattle Mariners, playing every position except pitcher and catcher.
■RUGBY UNION
Cueto impresses Johnson
Sale winger Mark Cueto reinforced his Six Nations credentials in front of England coach Martin Johnson when he scored his team’s only try in a 14-8 win over Premiership leaders London Irish on Friday. Cueto, one of the forgotten men of the England set-up having been axed after the 2007 World Cup, scored in the 57th minute of a bruising Edgeley Park encounter after being released by another international outcast, fly-half Charlie Hodgson who teamed well with replacement Mathew Tait. It was Cueto’s fourth try in his last three games. London Irish had led 8-6 at the interval with Topsy Ojo scoring a try for the Exiles in the 30th minute after impressive approach work by Shane Geraghty and Seilala Mapusua.
■SNOW SKIING
Injury to sideline Grugger
Austrian skier Hans Grugger’s surgery on his right knee yesterday is expected to sideline him for six months. Grugger, a speed specialist, tore cruciate ligaments and damaged a meniscus during downhill training in Wengen, Switzerland, on Wednesday, the Austrian ski federation said on Friday. He had just recovered from a bacterial inflammation in his left knee, which had kept him out since November. Grugger also missed the second part of last season recovering from surgery after tearing cartilage and ligaments in the left knee. The 27-year-old Grugger has four career World Cup victories — two in downhill and two in super-G.
■SOCCER
Galaxy acquire Miglioranzi
The Los Angeles Galaxy acquired Brazilian midfielder Stefani Miglioranzi from the Columbus Crew for a conditional fourth-round pick in next year’s MLS SuperDraft. Miglioranzi, 31, began his MLS career with the Galaxy in 2006, appearing in three games before being traded to Columbus after the season. He played in England with Portsmouth and Swindon Town for eight years before joining the Galaxy. Miglioranzi had three goals in 37 games over two seasons at Columbus.
■SOCCER
Snowfall interrupts practice
A rare, heavy snowfall in central Spain forced Real Madrid to cancel a training session on Friday. “Snow has paralyzed Madrid ... and Real Madrid,” the Spanish champions said on their Web site. Several players, employees and soccer journalists could not get to the Valdebebas training ground northwest of the city as many roads were closed. “The white blanket covered Valdebebas and forced [coach] Juande Ramos to cancel Friday’s session and press conference. The last workout of the week is still scheduled for Saturday,” the club said. Real, third in the Primera Liga 12 points behind leaders Barcelona, play at Real Mallorca today.
■SOCCER
Fans fret over sticker
Obsessed fans were in a panic that the David Beckham sticker for the Panini albums would not be freely available, Ansa reported on Friday. The sticker will only be sold on request rather than in the usual packets, leading Panini commercial director Antonio Allegra to describe the response as a real “panic.” “It’s a real obsession. Since early this morning, we have been submerged by telephone calls and e-mails. I think we have had a 1,000 in a single day,” Allegra said. “I could never have imagined something like this. Even after 6pm when our offices closed, the telephone was still ringing.”
■BIATHLON
Iourieva wins 7.5km sprint
Ekaterina Iourieva of Russia won Friday’s 7.5km sprint race in Oberhof, Germany, to claim her first biathlon World Cup victory of the season. Iourieva shrugged off one penalty and completed the Oberhof course in 22 minutes, 9.7 seconds to edge Germany’s Andrea Henkel, who shot clean to finish 2.4 seconds behind. Sweden’s Helena Jonsson was third, 19.6 seconds back, also without missing a shot. It was Iourieva’s fourth podium finish of the season and she remains second in the overall World Cup standings with 337 points, 24 behind fellow Russian Svetlana Sleptsova.
■SWIMMING
Phelps returns to China
Michael Phelps is back in the city where he made Olympic history. The record-breaking swimmer left the US on Friday for Beijing, a trip tied to a sponsorship deal with Mazda that is billed as China’s largest ever for a foreign celebrity. “The guy is a folk hero in mainland China,” said Chris Fenton, general manager of DMG North America, which brokered the deal. “Even though he is not Chinese and the eight gold medals were not won by a Chinese athlete, it was such an incredible story, such an incredible feat, that the Chinese, like the rest of the world, saw him as a wonder.” While specific financial terms were not released, Phelps will receive “well into the seven figures per year” to exclusively endorse the new Mazda 6 model in a Chinese advertising campaign that includes TV commercials, billboards, newspaper and magazine ads and personal appearances. Phelps will be in Beijing through Thursday.
Taiwan’s top women’s badminton doubles duo, Hsieh Pei-shan (謝沛珊) and Hung En-tzu (洪恩慈), achieved a straight-sets victory over Japan’s Kaho Osawa and Mayui Tanabe at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 Macau Open on Sunday. The Taiwanese pair won the final 21-18, 21-12, marking the duo’s second title this year after their win at the BWF Super 300 Taipei Open in May. The match on Sunday was their first encounter with the Japanese duo, ranked No. 63 in the world. Hsieh and Hung, ranked No. 12, began the opening game well. Hung, who plays left-handed, performed strongly at both the net and the
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Jobe Bellingham on Tuesday admitted to having “anxieties” on following in brother Jude’s footsteps after joining Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Jobe Bellingham, 19, is two years younger than Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in 2023 after three years at Dortmund. A centerpiece of the England national team, Jude Bellingham has emerged as one of the best players in the world in recent seasons. The younger Jobe Bellingham joined Dortmund in June from Sunderland after their promotion to the English Premier League. He admitted he understood what the perception would be ahead of the move to Germany. “It’s something you do think about.
Before Tuesday’s 7-2 win at the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy suggested “most people couldn’t tell you five players on our team.” A look at the standings would indicate more Brewers players soon will be recognized by more fans. After all, it is difficult to overlook a team that not only continues to extend their lead in the National League Central, but also boasts the best record in the majors. “What we’re doing in here right now is special,” right-handed pitcher Freddy Peralta said after allowing only four hits and one run in five innings, while setting a career high with
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