■HOCKEY
Ducks’ Niedermayer retires
Scott Niedermayer, who won four Stanley Cups and two Olympic gold medals, retired on Tuesday after an 18-season career in the National Hockey League. The 36-year-old, who was the third overall draft pick of the New Jersey Devils in 1991, won the James Norris Trophy in 2004 as the league’s best defenseman and the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2007 as the most valuable player in the playoffs. “It was a tough decision, but after plenty of reflection I am here to announce that I am going to retire from professional hockey,” the Anaheim Ducks captain told a news conference. “I will miss showing up at the rink each morning with a great group of guys that play this game that I have played and that has been a huge part of my life for a long time.”
■BASKETBALL
Bucks acquire Maggette
The Milwaukee Bucks have acquired forward Corey Maggette and a 2010 second-round draft pick from the Golden State Warriors in exchange for guard Charlie Bell and center Dan Gadzuric, the teams said on Tuesday. An 11-year NBA veteran, the 30-year-old Maggette averaged 19.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 70 games for Golden State last season. Bell, 31, played in 71 games for Milwaukee last season and averaged 6.5 points, while the 32-year-old Gadzuric appeared in 32 games and averaged 2.8 points and 2.9 rebounds.
■HOCKEY
Nabokov to leave Sharks
The San Jose Sharks will part ways with long-time goaltender and free agent-to-be Evgeni Nabokov due to salary cap restrictions, the team said on Tuesday. Nabokov, the Sharks’ top netminder since 2000, went 44-16-10 with a 2.43 goals-against average last season. The Russian will become a free agent next week and the Sharks will not offer him a contract. Letting Nabokov go gives San Jose room to deal with current players Patrick Marleau, Scott Nichol, Manny Malhotra, Joe Pavelski and others. Nabokov, 34, earned US$6 million last season the San Jose Mercury News said.
■HOCKEY
Renney replaces Quinn
Tom Renney, who last season served as the Edmonton Oilers’ associate coach, has been named the team’s head coach. Renney replaces Pat Quinn, who will become a senior adviser, the Oilers said on Tuesday on their Web site. “Tom Renney’s track record not only speaks for itself, but it also speaks volumes about what type of person he is,” Oilers general manager Steve Tambellini said in a statement.
■CYCLING
Kirchen out of coma
Kim Kirchen, who has been in hospital in Zurich since Friday, has emerged from a coma, his team Katusha announced on Tuesday. In a statement on its Web site, the Russian team said that the signs were encouraging and that Kirchen, 31, had immediately recognized his wife and his father. “He asked what had happened because he doesn’t remember anything,” the statement said. “For the moment, he hasn’t shown any cardiac or lung problems. He will have more tests to try and find out what caused the problem.” Kirchen had been competing in the Tour of Switzerland when he complained of a heart problem, and was hospitalized overnight on Friday. The Luxemburger, who finished seventh overall in the Tour de France in 2007 and 2008, was placed in an artificial coma so doctors could better evaluate his condition. Kirchen suffered respiratory problems in March.
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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