■BOXING
Female fights ‘sicken’ champ
World heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko admitted on Sunday he is against women boxing at the Olympics, claiming the spectacle makes him sick. The International Olympic Committee announced last August that women’s boxing will be included on the list of events for London in 2012, but Klitschko said he will not be watching. “This sport is appropriate for men, but not for women,” the Ukrainian told Die Welt newspaper. “I hope that women will not take it badly, perhaps I am old or conservative, but I consider there are sports much more beautiful for women than boxing,” he said. “When I see two women face to face in a boxing ring, it makes me feel nausea. I am not really a fan of female boxing.”
■SOCCER
Bordeaux dig deep to win
Bordeaux bounced back from a goal down to beat 10-man Lille 3-1 on Sunday and re-establish their lead at the top of the French first division table. Laurent Blanc’s side lead the standings on goal difference from Montpellier, who defeated Valenciennes 2-1. Lyon, meanwhile, slumped to a 2-1 defeat at Marseille. Bordeaux fell behind in the 24th minute at the Stade Chaban-Delmas following an error from Michael Ciani. The center-back’s hesitant pass was intercepted by Florent Balmont and he set Eden Hazard free to fire through the legs of Cedric Carrasso to score. Ciani made amends five minutes before the change of ends with a crisp equalizing volley after Ricardo Costa’s defensive header fell to him 15m from goal. The game turned in the 65th minute when Costa dragged down Marouane Chamakh as he sought to capitalize on a rebound, prompting a red card for the defender and a penalty for Bordeaux. Jussie stroked his spotkick into the bottom-left corner. Yoann Gourcuff made the game safe 10 minutes later. Marseille opened the scoring in the 66th minute against Lyon through Charles Kabore, but the visitors were level 12 minutes later when Bafe Gomis headed in a free-kick by Kim Kallstrom. Taye Taiwo scored the winner for Marseille in the 80th minute.
■SOCCER
Schalke stumble in Hamburg
Schalke 04 were denied top spot in the Bundesliga when they were held 2-2 at Hamburg SV on Sunday after substitute Jonathan Pitroipa scored a late equalizer for the hosts. Needing a win to overtake leaders Bayern Munich, Schalke fell behind to an opportunist goal from Ruud van Nistelrooy five minutes before half-time, the Dutchman’s third in the Bundesliga since his move from Real Madrid. Kevin Kuranyi leveled just after the hour and Ivan Rakitic put Schalke ahead with a twice-taken penalty, only for Burkina Faso forward Pitroipa to level for sixth-placed Hamburg with 13 minutes left. Meanwhile, Theofanis Gekas scored a hat-trick and Adrian Ramos netted twice as bottom club Hertha Berlin rounded off the weekend with a stunning 5-1 win at defending champions VfL Wolfsburg.
■SOCCER
Fernandez new Israel coach
Former French international Luis Fernandez was on Sunday named Israel’s new national coach with the task of guiding the country to the Euro 2012 finals. “I am very happy to return to Israel,” said the 50-year-old Fernandez, who was coach of Israeli club side Betar Jerusalem in 2005-2006. “My objective is to qualify the team for the Euro 2012 finals. It’s a difficult mission but I believe it can be done,” he said. Fernandez coached Paris Saint Germain to the 1996 Cup Winners Cup, and was also in charge of Spanish sides Athletic Bilbao and Espanyol.
A runner who stopped during a marathon in China to pose doing the splits and another who hoarded energy gels have been banned for two years, the local athletics association said yesterday. The incidents happened during Sunday’s marathon in Sichuan Province’s Chengdu and were widely shared online. Videos showed a female runner stopping suddenly and dropping to the ground in the splits position, holding up her arms in a heart shape as she apparently posed for a photograph. She “committed obstructive fouls during the race, affecting the safe participation of other runners,” the Sichuan Athletics Association said in a statement, which identified
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
Workers are hammering, cranes are swinging and seats are being bolted into place — but the clock is ticking. Mexico City’s famous Azteca stadium, reborn as Estadio Banorte, is in a frantic race to be ready for its grand reopening on Saturday. Drone footage showed crews installing seats and attaching the new stadium name to the facade, with cranes looming overhead 48 hours before the gates are due to open for a high-profile friendly between Mexico and Portugal. For residents, the breakneck pace of construction has done little to inspire confidence. “I know they are working practically seven days a week, 24 hours
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