SOCCER
Roma reach semi-finals
Roma set up an Italian Cup semi-final against Inter after dispatching Juventus 2-0 on Thursday. Mirko Vucinic scored midway through the second half and Rodrigo Taddei volleyed a second in injury time. AC Milan will meet Palermo in the other semi-final. Vucinic scored in the 65th minute, cutting in from the left and whipping a curling shot past Juventus goalkeeper Marco Storari into the far corner. With the match almost over, Taddei spectacularly volleyed De Rossi’s free kick home to wrap up the victory.
SOCCER
Germany sign Barbie
The German Football Federation (DFB) is planning to cash in on hosting the Women’s World Cup in June with a soccer version of the children’s doll Barbie wearing the national team’s colors. The German team are bidding to win their third consecutive world title and a fussball edition of the toy is expected to hit the stores in Germany later this year. The Women’s World Cup kicks off on June 26, when the hosts face Canada in Berlin. “There will be a Football-Barbie wearing a Germany shirt,” Doris Fitschen, the general manager of the Germany team, told German weekly newspaper Die Zeit. “It will appear in the shops at the end of March and will be aimed at our target group. We are aiming to attract young girls who we can inspire to play football.”
SOCCER
Torres bid rejected: reports
Liverpool have turned down an audacious £35 million (US$56 million) bid by Chelsea for striker Fernando Torres, British media reports said yesterday. Chelsea have been firmly rebuffed by Liverpool, whose new owners are anxious to hold on to their star attacker, reports said. “Chelsea have made a bid for Fernando which has been turned down,” a Liverpool spokesman was quoted as saying by the Times. “The player is not for sale.” Torres, 26, is under contract at Liverpool until 2013. However he is widely reported to have a buy-out clause in his deal which will allow him to leave if another team matches his £50 million valuation. The clause was believed to have been inserted as a concession to Torres after Liverpool failed to qualify for the Champions League last season amid uncertainty over the club’s ownership. The fact that Torres would be eligible for Chelsea’s Champions League campaign this season may persuade the Blues to boost their bid to the £50 million mark.
RUGBY UNION
’Bok dope-case pair cleared
Springbok dope-case duo Bjorn Basson and Chiliboy Ralepelle were cleared to play again yesterday by a South African Rugby Union (SARU) judicial committee. Basson and Ralepelle were suspended in November after testing positive for banned stimulant methylhexaneamine during a tour of Ireland and Britain. A SARU statement said a committee comprising two lawyers and a doctor found the stimulant was in a supplement given to the Springboks ahead of a Test against Ireland in Dublin.
SOCCER
Diarra joins Monaco
Real Madrid have agreed to sell Mahamadou Diarra to French side Monaco, the Spanish club said on Thursday “Real Madrid and AS Monaco have agreed the transfer of the player Mahamadou Diarra,” Real said in a statement on its Web site. “The agreement is dependent of the player passing a medical exam, as well as the signing of the contract with his new club.” Diarra had struggled to make the first team this season.
FOOTBALL
Fisher, Titans part ways
Jeff Fisher, who is the longest serving NFL head coach, is stepping down after 16 seasons with the Tennessee Titans. The surprise move comes less than a month after NFL owner Bud Adams said Fisher would be back to coach the Titans another season. This marks the first coaching change for the franchise since it relocated from Houston, Texas, to Tennessee in 1997. Under Fisher’s guidance, the Titans finished with just six wins and 10 losses last season. Fisher had one year remaining on his contract.
BASKETBALL
Mayo suspended 10 games
Memphis Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo was suspended for 10 games after testing positive for a banned steroid, the NBA said on Thursday. Mayo, taken with the third overall pick in the 2008 draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves, said in a statement that the positive test was the result of taking an over-the-counter supplement that contained the banned steroid DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone). “I’m extremely disappointed that I’m going to miss the next 10 games, particularly as our club is making a push for the playoffs,” Mayo said in a statement. “I had no idea that the over-the-counter supplement that I took was a substance banned by the NBA. It was an honest mistake, but I take full responsibility for my actions.” Mayo, the runner-up to the Chicago Bulls’ Derrick Rose for the Rookie of the Year honors in 2009, has appeared in 45 games this season averaging 12.2 points.
BASKETBALL
Rose blames spicy food
Chicago Bulls scoring leader Derrick Rose is blaming too much spicy food for stomach ulcers that have made it difficult for him to eat, drink or swallow, but he hoped to play against Orlando yesterday. The NBA point guard said he felt tired, but when it came to facing the Magic in Chicago yesterday, he said: “I should be all right.” Rose said he remained uncertain of the exact reason for two ulcers discovered during medical examinations on Wednesday after he began having heartburn symptoms on Monday and thought he had the flu. However, he blamed the internal troubles on spicy food. “That’s the thing I’m going with,” Rose said. Rose is averaging team highs of 24.6 points and 8.1 assists as well as 4.6 rebounds a game for the Bulls, who at 31-14 lead the Central Division by 13 games over Milwaukee, the largest margin by any division leader in the NBA.
FORMULA ONE
Sauber trains on waterfall
Mexican rookie Sergio Perez has been getting in shape for his first Formula One race by climbing a frozen waterfall with his Sauber teammates. The Swiss-based team said on Thursday that the unusual activity formed part of a four-day pre-season fitness camp at a sports facility above Walensee Lake, Switzerland. Perez, who celebrated his 21st birthday on Wednesday, took part in a range of activities with Japanese teammate Kamui Kobayashi and new Mexican test and reserve driver Esteban Gutierrez. “We did a lot of work and I’m quite happy with the shape I am in,” Perez said. “I enjoyed every exercise with my favorites being climbing in a frozen waterfall, followed by cross country skiing. It was also very important and a really nice experience to spend time with my new teammates and build up relationships with them.” The team said the drivers were put through various performance tests at the Swiss Olympic Medical Center to determine their levels of endurance, strength and coordination and to improve reaction times. The activities included bowling and pistol shooting, Kobayashi’s favorite.
Shaquille O’Neal is staying with TNT Sports on a new contract worth more than US$15 million per year, Front Office Sports reported on Friday. The news means the cast of Inside the NBA is staying together even as TNT is set to license out the show to ESPN starting next season. TNT was the odd network out in the NBA’s recent TV rights negotiations, as NBC and Amazon joined previous rightsholder ESPN in inking deals for basketball games. That left TNT without a need for pregame and postgame NBA shows. In a trade with ESPN, TNT is licensing Inside the NBA to the
Juventus on Sunday stopped Inter from replacing SSC Napoli at the top of Serie A by beating their fierce rivals 1-0 and moving into the UEFA Champions League positions. Francisco Conceicao made sure that Napoli would stay two points ahead of reigning champions Inter by classily tucking home the winning goal 16 minutes before the end of an entertaining contest in Turin. Portugal attacker Conceicao netted his fourth goal of the season in all competitions after brilliant work from Randal Kolo Muani to give Juve a third straight league win. Juve are in fourth place on 46 points, ahead on goal-difference from SS
Eugenie Bouchard already has her own signature pickleball paddle. She is No. 17 in the pickleball rankings and constantly appears on the main court at events because she is always a big draw. However, just to be absolutely clear, she is not retired from tennis. The 2014 Wimbledon finalist still practices on the tennis court, still competes at tennis events and still has a Women’s Tennis Association ranking (No. 1,288). The Canadian standout just has a new sport that has caught her attention. Bouchard is one of several familiar tennis names — like Jack Sock and Donald Young — crossing over to
Stephen Curry and Jayson Tatum on Sunday combined for 27 points as Shaquille O’Neal’s “Team Shaq” cruised to victory in the new-look NBA All-Star game in San Francisco. Curry, playing on his home court at Golden State’s Chase Center, reeled off a string of trademark three-pointers to help his star-studded lineup coast to a 41-25 victory over Charles Barkley’s “Team Chuck.” Boston Celtics star Tatum finished with 15 points after delivering a dominant performance in a starting lineup that also included Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard and James Harden. Team Shaq’s preparations for the game had been dealt a blow shortly before tip-off when