■Soccer
Real Salt Lake go top
A scoreless draw at Seattle on Thursday was enough for reigning MLS champions Real Salt Lake to move top of this season’s standings. The point moved the Utah club above the Los Angeles Galaxy on goal difference atop the Western Conference standings, and likewise equal on points but with a better goal difference than Eastern Conference leaders Columbus. However, they have played one more game than both the Galaxy and the Crew. Real Salt Lake kept a clean sheet despite being without regular goalkeeper Nick Rimando (Achilles’ tendon) but his replacement Kyle Reynish had little to do, making only two saves. Real have not conceded in four games, extending their flawless record to 452 minutes. They are unbeaten in seven games. At the other end, veteran Seattle goalkeeper Kasey Keller, 40, saved a penalty from Robbie Findley in the 32nd minute.
■Rugby League
Defecating duo cause stink
Two rookie players have been sacked by their Sydney club after defecating on the floor and tables in their hotel rooms, in the latest scandal to hit the sport, reports said yesterday. The Sydney Roosters pair, named by the Daily Telegraph as Sam Brunton and Anthony Gelling, reportedly left their Townsville hotel rooms in a “disgusting” and “feral” state after last weekend’s game. The club, which did not name the men, said the incident began as a prank and did not relate to alcohol consumption. “However, the behavior was unacceptable and the club saw it fit to take the strongest possible action,” the Roosters said in a statement. The incident comes after the team were last year fined A$50,000 (US$46,235) and Queensland Origin star Nate Myles suspended for six games over drunken behavior which saw him defecate in the corridor of a luxury hotel. It follows former club coach Brad Fittler last year fining himself A$10,000 after he had too much to drink and found himself mistakenly trying to gain access to the wrong hotel room, wearing only shorts.
■Soccer
Serie A players to strike
Italy’s players’ association has announced a strike for the weekend of Sept. 25-Sept. 26 following a contract dispute. The dispute centers around a proposal by club presidents to limit players from refusing transfers, as defender Fabio Grosso recently did with Juventus following an offer from AC Milan. The clubs’ proposal stipulates that when a player has a year remaining on his contract, he must accept a transfer to another, equally competitive club that guarantees the same financial treatment and status. If the player doesn’t accept the transfer, he must come to a mutual contract resolution with the club, according to the proposal. The strike was announced with a statement read by Milan defender Massimo Oddo, signed by the captains and union representatives of all 20 Serie A clubs.
■Soccer
Museum marks landmark
A 25-year-old woman on Thursday became the 20 millionth visitor to FC Barcelona’s museum since it opened its doors in 1984, the Spanish club said. Monica Ruiz, who was wearing a jersey bearing the name of player Xavi, was given a giant ticket that credited her as visitor number 20 million when she arrived at the museum housed at Barcelona’s Camp Nou stadium. “It was quite a surprise,” she told reporters who had gathered to record the moment.
■BASKETBALL
Jordan case de-listed
The 1993 murder of James Jordan, father of NBA icon Michael Jordan, has been removed from a list of cases said to have been mis-handled by North Carolina’s State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI). Former Federal Bureau of Investigation assistant director Chris Swecker said Thursday the Jordan case was taken off the list after a second look at documents. James Jordan was shot as he slept in a car beside a North Carolina highway. Swecker’s independent review concluded last month that the North Carolina bureau failed to disclose details about inconclusive blood tests in the investigation. However, Swecker said on Thursday he had overlooked language in which the bureau did, in fact, refer to those results. The recent review of the NCSBI laboratory cited irregularities in 190 criminal cases in which analysts omitted, overstated or falsely reported blood evidence.
■BOXING
Mayweather Jr accused
Police said on Thursday they were seeking Floyd Mayweather Jr for questioning about a domestic battery report lodged by a former girlfriend who recanted a similar charge in 2005. “She alleges he hit her. We’re looking for him to get his side of the story,” said Officer Barbara Morgan, a Las Vegas Police spokeswoman. “We’re looking to talk to him as a potential suspect.” Morgan said no warrant had been immediately filed and no charges had been brought. Josie Harris, the mother of three of Mayweather’s children, alleged that Mayweather hit her during an argument, Morgan said. A lawyer for Mayweather said he had been in touch with police and that the fighter would cooperate with authorities.
■BASEBALL
Cook season may be cooked
Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Aaron Cook’s season is in jeopardy after breaking his leg, his agent said. “I would consider it a longshot that he’s back in the regular season,” agent Joe Bick told the Denver Post on Thursday. Cook fractured his right fibula when he was struck by a ball hit by Cincinnati batter Joey Votto during Wednesday’s game with the Reds, the Rockies Web site reported. Rockies officials were uncertain of Cook’s future this season.
■FOOTBALL
Austin agrees extension
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Miles Austin has agreed to a six-year contract extension, the team said on Thursday, adding that the deal added US$54 million to his current earnings. “It feels great to be wanted by this team because I want to be here,” Austin told the team’s Web site. A backup for three years, Austin burst onto the scene last season with a breakout campaign that included 81 catches for 1,320 yards and 11 touchdowns.
■FOOTBALL
Woodson stays in Green Bay
Green Bay on Thursday signed cornerback Charles Woodson to a contract extension through the 2014 NFL season, a move that will likely see the defensive standout retire as a Packer. “The mission at this point is to retire here,” Woodson said. “It’s a big deal.” Woodson also wants to bring a championship to Green Bay before that happens. “We’ve got the players to get it done. We’ve got the coaching staff to get it done,” he said. “It’s all going to rest on our shoulders.” Woodson, 33, signed a five-year contract. Financial details were not released, but reports put the value of the deal at as much as US$55 million.
The qualifying round of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) is to be held at the Taipei Dome between Feb. 21 and 25, Major League Baseball (MLB) announced today. Taiwan’s group also includes Spain, Nicaragua and South Africa, with two of the four teams advancing onto the 2026 WBC. Taiwan, currently ranked second in the world in the World Baseball Softball Confederation rankings, are favorites to come out of the group, the MLB said in an article announcing the matchups. Last year, Taiwan finished in a five-way tie in their group with two wins and two losses, but finished last on tiebreakers after giving
North Korea’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup-winning team on Saturday received a heroes’ welcome back in the capital, Pyongyang, with hundreds of people on the streets to celebrate their success. They had defeated Spain on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the U17 World Cup final in the Dominican Republic on Nov. 3. It was the second global title in two months for secretive North Korea — largely closed off to the outside world; they also lifted the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in September. Officials and players’ families gathered at Pyongyang International Airport to wave flowers and North Korea flags as the
For King Faisal, a 20-year-old winger from Ghana, the invitation to move to Brazil to play soccer “was a dream.” “I believed when I came here, it would help me change the life of my family and many other people,” he said in Sao Paulo. For the past year and a half, he has been playing on the under-20s squad for Sao Paulo FC, one of South America’s most prominent clubs. He and a small number of other Africans are tearing across pitches in a country known as the biggest producer and exporter of soccer stars in the world, from Pele to Neymar. For
Coco Gauff of the US on Friday defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 to set up a showdown with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the final of the WTA Finals, while in the doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching was eliminated. Gauff generated six break points to Belarusian Sabalenka’s four and built on early momentum in the opening set’s tiebreak that she carried through to the second set. She is the youngest player at 20 to make the final at the WTA Finals since Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. Zheng earlier defeated Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5 to book