ATHLETICS
Kipsang wins England Run
Wilson Kipsang defeated fellow Kenyan Micah Kogo in a sprint finish to win the Great North Run in northeast England on Sunday.
Kipsang, this year’s London Marathon winner and the 2012 Olympic Games bronze medalist over the distance outsprinted Kogo in the final 20m to win in a time of 59 minutes and six seconds in the half marathon. Ethiopia’s Imana Merga finished third. In the women’s race, his compatriot Tirunesh Dibaba powered to victory on her half marathon debut. The three-time Olympic champion and four-time world champion, who became the first athlete to retain the Olympic 10,000m title in London, defeated last year’s world marathon champion Edna Kiplagat and 2012 Olympic Games marathon champion Tiki Gelana for victory in a time of 67 minutes 35 seconds.
GOLF
Ballesteros takes Open
Javier Ballesteros, the son of Spanish golfing legend Seve, won the Madrid Open amateur title on Sunday and dedicated his victory to his father who died from cancer in May last year. The 22-year-old Ballesteros, a law student, finished the three-round tournament on six-under. “I thought about him [Seve] over the 18 holes and I dedicate this victory to him and to my mother,” Ballesteros told reporters. Seve Ballesteros won five majors in his career and played in eight Ryder Cups, captaining Europe to victory in 1997.
RALLYING
Finn claims Wales Rally
Finland’s Jari-Matti Latvala won the Wales Rally GB on Sunday, finishing 27.8 seconds clear of championship leader Sebastien Loeb to claim a second victory of the season. Loeb edged Petter Solberg to second place to take a 61-point lead in the overall standings, meaning the Citroen driver is likely to clinch a ninth straight title in his home French Rally at the start of next month. Latvala, driving a Ford, was not headed after taking the lead after Friday’s third stage, with Loeb and Solberg never threatening the 24.5-second advantage he held from Saturday.
SPEEDSKATING
US coach investigated
US speedskating coach Jae Su Chun was placed on administrative leave on Sunday, hours after his spokesman released a statement denying claims of verbal, physical and psychological abuse brought by current and former members of the national team, including five Olympic medalists. Nineteen short-track skaters filed a wide-ranging grievance against US Speedskating and 14 signed a code of conduct complaint with the US Olympic Committee on Aug. 30. A USOC spokesman confirmed Friday the organization is investigating charges that include accusations Chun slammed an athlete against a wall and repeatedly hit him, threw bottles and chairs at skaters, and repeatedly told female skaters they were “fat” and “disgusting.”
RUGBY UNION
Exiles clinch victory
London Welsh head coach Lyn Jones was delighted as the Exiles clinched their first English Premiership win with a nailbiting 25-24 victory over Exeter on Sunday. For the Exiles, playing at their new home of the Kassam Stadium in Oxford, this was their first win since clinching promotion and followed heavy defeats by Leicester and champions Harlequins. With less than two minutes left, No. 8 Ed Jackson rounded off a desperate surge by forcing his way over for a try, which replacement fly-half Seb Jewell converted to win the match.
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
Former Formosa Dreamers player Ilkan Karaman was killed in a traffic accident in Datca, Turkey, Turkish media reported yesterday. He was 34. The former Turkish national team player was reportedly hit by a car, the driver of which was allegedly drunk, while he was standing on a sidewalk, Turkish newspaper Sozcu reported. Karaman and his friends were on their way to the beach town of Dalaman to go scuba diving when they stopped at a gas station to buy gasoline, it reported. Karaman was hit by the car while waiting on a sidewalk as his friends were buying gasoline, it
ANKLE PROBLEM: Taiwan’s Ye Hong-wei and Lee Chia-hsin had a disappointing end to their tournament after an injury forced them out of their mixed doubles semi-final Taiwanese badminton ace Tai Tzu-ying on Friday was knocked out in the women’s singles quarter-finals at her last Taipei Open. The world No. 3 lost 21-18, 16-21, 22-24 to Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in a match that stretched 68 minutes at the Taipei Arena. Despite her higher ranking, Tai said she was not too sad about the loss, given her struggle with a lingering knee injury. “Wins and losses are just part of the game. Actually, I think I’m going to lose every single match considering my condition now,” said the five-time champion of the Super 300 event, who has announced plans
When details from a scientific experiment that could have helped clear Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva landed at the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the leader of the organization’s reaction was unequivocal: “We have to stop that urgently,” he wrote. No mention of the test ever became public and Valieva’s defense at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) went on without it. What effect the information could have had on Valieva’s case is unclear, but without it, the skater, then 15 years old, was eventually disqualified from the 2022 Winter Olympics after testing positive for a banned heart medication that would later
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