■DOPING
Three Brazilians banned
Three Brazilian athletes have been suspended for two years after testing positive for a banned substance, the Brazilian Athletics Confederation said on Thursday. Sprinters Bruno Tenorio and Jorge Celio Sena and heptathlete Lucimara Silvestre, who tested positive for recombinant EPO, waived their right to have their B samples examined to avoid a possibly more stringent punishment, the confederation said on its Web site, www.cbat.org.br. The suspension runs until June 2011.
■SWIMMING
Hardy sets world record
American Jessica Hardy set a world record of 29.95 seconds in the 50m breaststroke at the US Open Championship in Federal Way, Washington, on Thursday, setting the mark as a split time in the 100m breaststroke. Hardy broke the prior mark of 30.09 seconds set by Russia’s Yuliya Efimova last Sunday at the World Championships in Rome. Canada’s Amanda Reason had just in July trimmed the world mark of 30.31 by Australian Jade Edmistone from 2006. Hardy withdrew from last year’s US Olympic swimming trials after a positive drug test and was banned from competing for one year by a US arbitration panel. The International Swimming Federation and the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport seeking to double Hardy’s ban to two years. CAS has said it would rule before the end of next month.
■CYCLING
Ballan takes lead in Poland
Italy’s Allesandro Ballan of the Lampre team won a sprint finish for the fifth stage of the Tour of Poland in the rain on Thursday. Ballan’s success on the 163km stage from Strzyzow to Krynica Zdroj also gave him possession of the race leader’s yellow jersey. The world champion finished ahead of Spaniard Daniel Moreno and Dutch rider Pieter Weening, who are second and third in the overall standings respectively.
■FORMULA ONE
Schumacher keeps karting
Michael Schumacher continued preparing for his return to Formula One with a second day of kart racing in northern Italy on Thursday. “We had two very good karting days,” the seven-time world champion said on his Web site, www.michael-schumacher.de. “Arms, upper body, shoulders, neck — an excellent practice indeed.” The 40-year-old German is coming out of retirement to fill in at Ferrari while Brazilian Felipe Massa recovers from injuries sustained in a nasty accident in qualifying at last month’s Hungarian Grand Prix. Schumacher is not allowed to use Ferrari’s F60 car before the European Grand Prix in Valencia on Aug. 23 because the sport’s regulations ban track testing during the season.
■FOOTBALL
Snoop hangs with Ravens
Rap star Snoop Dogg joined the Baltimore Ravens at training camp practice on Thursday, watching from the sideline before ending practice by leading a chant within the team huddle. Snoop Dogg arrived at practice in Westminster, Maryland, with an entourage that included someone who held an umbrella over the star’s head. Snoop made himself comfortable on the sideline and watched for about an hour before joining the team in the middle of the field at the end of the session. After Snoop Dogg led the Ravens through a chant taught to him by linebacker Ray Lewis, practice ended with a whoop from the players — several of whom posed for pictures with the rapper.
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen has become the first female player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after the Golden State Valkyries selected her in the third and final round of the league’s draft on Monday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship earlier this month. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament’s most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen (陳凱玲) has become the first player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after being selected by the Golden State Valkyries in the third and final round of the league's draft yesterday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship on April 6. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament's most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as a
Japan yesterday secured a second consecutive Billie Jean King Cup finals appearance with a 2-1 win over 2023 champions Canada, thanks to Ena Shibahara and Shuko Aoyama’s 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 win over Kayla Cross and Rebecca Marino in the qualifying doubles decider. Shibahara and Aoyama powered through the opening set 6-3, breaking twice for a quick 3-0 lead. Cross and Marino hit back in the second, edging it 7-5 to level the match, before the Japanese pair regained control in the third. Canada’s 18-year-old Victoria Mboko edged Shibahara 6-4, 6-7 (8/10), 7-5 in a marathon opening clash. Mboko fired eight aces to
DAY OF BLOWOUTS: Elsewhere, the Lakers clinched the third seed in the Western Conference with a 140-109 pounding of the under-strength Houston Rockets The Denver Nuggets on Friday improved their playoff position, with a triple double from Nikola Jokic helping them to a 117-109 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. The Serbian put up 26 points, 13 assists and 16 rebounds. The triple-double performance, his 34th this season, ensured that he will finish the regular season as just the third NBA player to average a triple double across an entire season. The win meant the Nuggets improved to 49-32 on the season and gave them a real chance of grabbing fourth place and home-court advantage in the playoffs. Aaron Gordon top scored with 33 points for Denver,
RSS