Thu, Jul 05, 2012 page18

• SPORTS BRIEFS

  • Agencies
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  SOCCER

  Alba, Mata get Spain callup

  Left-back Jordi Alba and winger Juan Mata, both scorers in Spain’s 4-0 Euro 2012 final victory over Italy on Sunday, were called up to the Spanish squad for the London Olympics on Tuesday. Spain will bid to add the Olympic title to their collection after becoming the first side to successfully defend a European Championship title, as well as the first to win three consecutive major tournaments after Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup. Alba — who signed for Barcelona from Valencia at the end of last month and was one of the big revelations of the tournament — Chelsea’s Mata and Athletic Bilbao’s Javi Martinez are the only members of the Euro 2012 winning squad to feature in the Olympic list. Coach Luis Milla will trim the 22-man squad down to 18 names ahead of the July 26 to Aug. 11 Games, where Spain will bid for their second Olympic soccer title after their triumph in Barcelona in 1992.

  SOCCER

  Sturridge has meningitis

  Chelsea striker Daniel Sturridge has tested positive for meningitis, according to reports yesterday. The 22-year-old fell ill over the weekend and was admitted to St Mary’s hospital in Paddington for tests. Doctors suspected Sturridge might be suffering from the viral strain of the disease, whose symptoms are generally mild and which can be overcome without the need for medical treatment. Tests were run and returned positive. Although his condition is said to have improved over the past 48 hours, his place in the 23-man Great Britain soccer squad, named on Monday, is now in doubt. Stuart Pearce’s squad are set to meet at the Team GB holding camp in Loughborough next weekend, and Football Association (FA) medical staff will assess the results of tests before deciding if Sturridge can still play a part.

  BASKETBALL

  Odom leaves US squad

  The pool of players that the US will draw from to select their Olympic men’s basketball team shrunk further on Tuesday with the withdrawal of the Los Angeles Clippers’ Lamar Odom. Odom told USA Basketball men’s national team head coach Mike Krzyzewski that he will not be available to try out for the team this month. “While it is unfortunate to have lost the players we have, coach Krzyzewski and I remain extremely confident with the group of players we’ll have at our training camp in Las Vegas,” USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said. Seven players have been lost from the original set of Olympic hopefuls, leaving 15 others to fill 12 Olympic spots and a July 7 deadline for Krzyzewski to name a final roster.

  SECURITY

  Anger over defense plans

  Britain will deploy missile defense systems in residential areas of London, including on the roof of a block of apartments, to defend against an aircraft attack on the Olympic Games, the government confirmed on Tuesday. The plan has angered people leaving nearby who have launched legal action to block the move, which they say will endanger lives because of the possibility of accidents and the prospect that aircraft could be shot down over densely populated areas. “This is the biggest sporting event in the world, and with that comes the huge responsibility to deliver it safely and securely,” British Home Secretary Theresa May said. The anti-aircraft missile systems — one large and mounted on a trailer, the other handheld — will be deployed at six locations around the Olympic Park.

  SOCCER

  Villas-Boas lands Spurs job

  Andre Villas-Boas was given a chance to make amends for his first failed effort in English Premier League management after being named manager of Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday. The job represents a golden opportunity for Villas-Boas. A year ago he took over at London rivals Chelsea on a three-year deal, but he struggled at Stamford Bridge and left under a cloud nine months later amid media reports of dressing-room unrest. “Tottenham Hotspur are a great club with a strong tradition and fantastic support, both at home and throughout the world. I feel privileged to become coach,” the 34-year-old told the Spurs Web site. “This is a squad any coach would love to work with and together I believe we can bring success in the seasons ahead.” The Portuguese replaces Harry Redknapp, who was sacked last month after four years at the helm.

  FOOTBALL

  Bounty scandal appeals fail

  Jonathan Vilma’s appeal of the season-long ban he received for his role in the New Orleans Saints’ bounty scandal was denied along with three other players on Tuesday by the NFL. Defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove (now with the Green Bay Packers), Saints’ defensive end Will Smith and linebacker Scott Fujita (now with the Cleveland Browns), who all received smaller suspensions, also had their appeals denied. The players were punished in May when the NFL identified them as having leadership roles in a program that gave cash rewards for knocking opponents out of games from 2009 to last year. “Throughout this entire process, including your appeals, and despite repeated invitations and encouragement to do so, none of you has offered any evidence that would warrant reconsideration of your suspensions,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “Instead, you elected not to participate meaningfully in the appeal process.” Hargrove received an eight-game ban, Smith was hit with a four-game suspension, while Fujita got three games.

  RUGBY UNION

  Pocock, Beale out injured

  Wallabies David Pocock and Kurtley Beale have played their last games of Super Rugby for the season and may be in doubt for Australia’s back-to-back Tests against the All Blacks next month. Openside flanker Pocock was left out of the Western Force squad for their last two matches of the season in New Zealand because of a groin injury. Beale, who has played at fullback and flyhalf this season, sustained a rib injury in the Melbourne Rebels’ match against the Queensland Reds at the weekend and he will be out for up to six weeks. The 23-year-old, one of Australia’s most dangerous backs, missed three of his country’s four matches last month, returning for the third Test against Wales in Sydney.

  BOXING

  Pacquaio loss not illegal

  The Nevada State attorney general found nothing illegal or criminal in Manny Pacquiao’s controversial split-decision loss to Timothy Bradley in a welterweight title fight last month in Las Vegas, according to a letter made public on Tuesday. Interviews with the referee of the June 9 fight, two Nevada Gaming Control Board officials and state Athletic Commission director Keith Kizer turned up no evidence of wrongdoing, Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said in the letter to Top Rank chief executive Bob Arum. Arum manages both fighters. He sought an inquiry on June 11, telling Masto he hoped it would “show the world that there were no improprieties.”
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