■ICE HOCKEY
Coyotes’ chairman resigns
Jeff Shumway resigned as chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the financially troubled Phoenix Coyotes on Friday. Shumway had served as CEO of the Coyotes since April 2006. He was relinquishing his duties with the NHL team to manage other business ventures of team owner Jerry Moyes. “Jeff has done a great job in managing the team for me but right now I need him to focus on some of my other projects,” Moyes said in a statement. The 51-year-old Shumway’s resignation removes an upper layer of management for the team coached by Wayne Gretzky. Moyes will take over as the Coyotes’ governor on the NHL Board of Governors, and president Doug Moss and general manager Don Maloney will report directly to Moyes.
■ICE HOCKEY
Players decline agreement
The executive board of the NHL Players’ Association turned down an opportunity to reopen the collective bargaining agreement with the NHL on Friday, ensuring labor peace through the 2010-2011 season. The union had until May to decide, but chose to make the announcement early during NHL All-Star weekend. The players’ association can extend the deal, which ended the yearlong lockout in 2005, for another season if it chooses. That determination won’t have to be made until May 2011. The NHL held out to get a “cost-certainty” model and finally convinced the union to accept a salary cap system after the 2004-2005 season was canceled due to the lockout.
■BASKETBALL
Iavaroni fired by Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies announced the firing of coach Marc Iavaroni on Friday. The Grizzlies also said assistant coach Johnny Davis would take over the National Basketball Association team on an interim basis. In one-and-a-half seasons, Iavaroni compiled a 33-90 record. The Memphis Commercial Appeal is reporting that former Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, now an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks, will be eventually be named as Iavaroni’s replacement. The newspaper said that Hollins plans to bring with him former Philadelphia 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks and former Los Angeles Clippers coach Barry Heckler.
■ICE HOCKEY
Jazz owner has surgery
Utah Jazz owner Larry Miller, who suffers from diabetes, underwent double amputation surgery on Friday. As part of the operation, Miller’s lower legs were amputated 15cm below each knee. Miller has type two diabetes and the Jazz said his recovery could take months. “Larry is doing well and is expected to continue to recover in the coming weeks and months,” said Greg Miller, chief executive of the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies. The 64-year-old business tycoon Miller has owned the Jazz for 23 years.
■FOOTBALL
Chiefs’ head coach fired
Herm Edwards, the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs during the worst two-year span in team history, was fired on Friday. Edwards goes out with a three-year regular-season record of 15-33 and with one year remaining on a four-year, US$12 million contract. As head coach of the New York Jets in 2001-2005, he had a regular-season mark of 39-41 and was 2-3 in the playoffs. Edwards had been waiting to learn his fate since president and general manager Carl Peterson abruptly resigned on Dec. 15. When Scott Pioli was introduced as Peterson’s successor on Jan. 13, he was noncommittal and said only that he intended to speak with Edwards.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Marcus Rashford’s first goals for Aston Villa on Sunday inspired a 3-0 win against Preston North End that sent his side into the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 10 years. Rashford struck twice in the second half at Deepdale to end Preston’s stubborn resistance before Jacob Ramsey wrapped up Villa’s long-awaited return to the last four. Villa are to face Crystal Palace — 3-0 winners at Fulham on Saturday — in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium in London. Revitalized since joining Villa on loan from Manchester United during the January transfer window, Rashford is beginning to show the form that
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