■SPEEDSKATING
Champ berated by state
Olympic champion short track speedskater Zhou Yang has been chided by China’s deputy sports minister for thanking her parents but not her country after winning gold at the Vancouver Games last month. The 18-year-old, who won gold in the 1,500m and as part of the 3,000m relay team, said in Canada that she hoped her achievements would make life easier for her unemployed parents. “It is OK to thank your parents, but firstly you should thank the motherland. You should put the motherland first, not only thank your parents,” Chinese Vice Sports Minister Yu Zaiqing told the Southern Metropolis Daily. Her parents were awarded a 94m² apartment valued at 300,000 yuan (US$44,000) by the local government in their home city of Changchun after Zhou’s 1,500m triumph.
■GOLF
Couples wins Newport title
Fred Couples won his second straight Champions Tour title, shooting a six-under 65 for a four-stroke victory on Sunday in the Toshiba Classic. Couples, making his third start on the 50-and-over tour, had an 18-under 195 total on the Newport Beach Country Club course. Couples earned US$255,000 to push his tour-leading total to US$691,000. Ronnie Black (65) finished second. Tom Lehman (69) and Taiwan’s Lu Chien-soon (69) tied for third at 12-under.
■SWIMMING
Phelps breaks own record
Olympic star Michael Phelps broke his own US record in the 200-yard butterfly on Sunday, winning in 1 minute, 39.65 seconds at the Maryland State Championships at the US Naval Academy. Phelps set the old mark of 1 minute, 39.7 seconds in 2006 at Austin, Texas. He looked back to see his split times from four years ago and entered the race with a goal of breaking his US mark. “I wanted to try and go out and take a shot at it,” he said. “Coming off the last turn, I wanted to stay under as long as I could. That was clearly the difference.”
■HORSE RACING
Vodka forced to retire
Japan’s back-to-back horse of the year Vodka has been forced to retire after suffering a nosebleed in a warm-up race for this month’s Dubai World Cup. The Japan Racing Association described the six-year-old mare as a “jewel for Japanese and world horse racing” yesterday after hearing of the shock decision to end her racing career. “When we saw she had a nosebleed again after the race the owner [Yuzo Tanimizu] and I decided to retire her,” Vodka’s trainer Katsuhiko Sumii told reporters. Vodka, who captured public imagination in 2007 by becoming the first filly to win the Japan Derby in 64 years, also bled when winning the Japan Cup last November. She will now be bred to last year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Sea the Stars in Ireland.
■CYCLING
Rabon prevails in Murcia
Czech rider Frantisek Rabon held off a determined challenge from last year’s winner Denis Menchov of Russia to take the overall title in the Tour of Murcia on Sunday. Rabon — who had set up overall victory in Saturday’s time-trial when he won it — had Menchov back in second 38 seconds adrift, with British hope Bradley Wiggins third overall 53 seconds behind. US seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong finished seventh overall, over seven minutes off the pace. Sunday’s fifth and final stage was won by Dutchman Theo Bos.
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
FAST AND LOOSE: Despite command struggles, Ohtani has pitched his way out of trouble after falling behind in counts, which manager Roberts credited to his velocity Shohei Ohtani on Wednesday night tossed six innings of no-hit ball, gave himself an early lead with a home run and still was not satisfied with his performance. The Los Angeles Dodgers’ two-way superstar dropped some expletives that were picked up by the on-field mic as he struggled with his command in a 4-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. He struck out seven, walked four and gave up an earned run in the fourth inning while visibly fuming on the mound. Ohtani (5-2) earned his third consecutive victory. “Just command was off, and I just felt like I was battling the lack of
Taiwanese sprinter Chen Yi-cen on Friday won the silver medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, with a time of 53.16 seconds. Chen, 15, was the youngest among the eight finalists, and her performance also met the qualifying standard of 53.50 seconds for the Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September and October. Chen first made her mark at the National Games in Tainan in 2023, at the age of 13, winning the women’s 400m final in 55.55 seconds to become the youngest gold medalist in the history of the event. Meanwhile,
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