■ SOCCER
FIFA officials visit US
FIFA World Cup inspectors visited New York on Tuesday as part of a three-day, five-city US tour that includes breakfast at the White House. The six-man delegation is touring potential stadiums and facilities as part of the process in determining if the US is a suitable host for the FIFA World Cup in 2018 or 2022. The highlight of the tour for the group, which is led by Chile Football Federation president Harold Mayne-Nicholls, was to be breakfast at the White House yesterday morning. Former US president Bill Clinton attended World Cup matches in South Africa and is chairman of the US bid. The US is one of eight of nine stops on the FIFA world tour. FIFA’s executive committee votes on both event hosts Dec. 2.
■ BASEBALL
S Korea to target drug tests
South Korean baseball officials could introduce drastic anti-doping protocols next year with a plan to target specific players for drug tests. The Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) said players who showed marked statistical improvement would be targeted in a clampdown on drug cheats, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported yesterday. The KBO currently tests five local players randomly selected from each of the eight ballclubs, plus all foreign players. League officials said they would begin examining the new testing procedures at the end of the season, with players exceeding their career averages set to be selected for testing.
■ FIGURE SKATING
Kim Yu-na to train in LA
Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yu-na is set to train in Los Angeles, although for how long and under whose tutelage remain to be seen. Since splitting from her longtime coach Brian Orser in a public spat last month, Kim had remained coy on her future plans. Kim eliminated some of the mystery on Tuesday, confirming she would be moving her training base from Canada to Artesia on the outskirts of Los Angeles.
■ SWIMMING
Stephanie Rice sorry for slur
Triple Olympic swimming gold medalist Stephanie Rice made a tearful apology yesterday for a homophobic slur she posted on Saturday on Twitter. Rice twice broke down in tears at a news conference she called in Sydney where she asked for forgiveness for her “thoughtless and careless” comment. Rice, 22, tweeted the derogatory remark after Australia’s last-minute win over South Africa in a Rugby Union test match at Bloemfontein. Rice, who reportedly is dating Australia flyhalf Quade Cooper, later deleted the tweet and apologized, saying she didn’t mean to cause offense. She said she called Wednesday’s news conference because she felt a public apology was also necessary. “I owe it to those who I have offended to publicly say, I am sorry,” Rice said. Saturday’s tweet cost Rice an endorsement contract with luxury carmaker Jaguar.
■ FOOTBALL
Parcells gives up control
Miami Dolphins vice president Bill Parcells is handing over control of the team to general manager Jeff Ireland and will remain a daily consultant, the Dolphins said on Tuesday. “Effective immediately, Jeff Ireland will assume full control over all aspects and decisions in regard to the Miami Dolphins football team and support staff,” the team said in a statement. Parcells had named Ireland the Dolphins’ general manager in 2008. Prior to joining the Dolphins in December 2007, Parcells spent 19 years as an NFL head coach with the New York Giants, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys.
US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as AS Monaco on Friday won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes, and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the French Ligue 1 clash. Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious
Teenage star Lamine Yamal’s superbly-taken goal on Saturday earned Barcelona a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao in Spanish La Liga. The champions restored their four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid, who had on Friday temporarily closed the gap by beating Celta Vigo. Atletico Madrid tightened their grip on third with an entertaining 3-2 win over Real Sociedad. Yamal, 18, curled into the top corner after 68 minutes to split the sides at Athletic’s San Mames stadium. “We’re already seeing what Lamine can do — he puts it right in the top corner, and there’s nothing the keeper can do,” Barca
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
CHANCE TO QUALIFY: Both teams now have three points from two games, and Taiwan sit ahead of Vietnam and behind Japan, who last night beat India 11-0 Taiwan yesterday defeated Vietnam 1-0 to move into second place in Group C at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup with one match remaining. Su Yu-hsuan scored the decisive goal in the 26th minute after Taiwan midfielder Saki Matsunaga’s shot hit the crossbar, leaving Su to nod the rebound into an empty net for the team which won the last of their three Asian Cup titles in 1981. It was a deserved victory for Taiwan, 2-0 losers to Japan on Wednesday, who created several chances to extend their lead. Vietnam, the 2022 quarter-finalist, beat India in their opener, but struggled to
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