CYCLING
Quintana wins stage
Colombian Nairo Quintana, riding for Katusha, won the fourth stage of the Tour of the Basque Country on Thursday, seeing off compatriot Sergio Luis Henao of the Sky team in cold and rainy conditions. Henao nonetheless retained the overall leader’s jersey following the 151.6km stage between Trapagaran and Arrate, which Quintana took in three hours 58 minutes and 52 seconds. He crossed the line first after negotiating a furious sprint finish over the final few hundred meters following a stage comprising two first category and three second category climbs.
CRICKET
Kiwis call up former Aussie
Former Australian wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi was yesterday named in the 15-man New Zealand one-day squad for their upcoming tour to England and the Champions Trophy. Ronchi is the only player who has not previously represented New Zealand in the side that also sees the return of spinner Daniel Vettori, who has been sidelined for eight months with an ankle injury. The touring Test squad sees recalls for Martin Guptill and Mark Gillespie, who are added to the list of players who featured in the squads for the recent drawn three-Test home series against England. The 31-year-old Ronchi is New Zealand born, but was raised in Australia where he played four one-day internationals and three Twenty20 internationals from 2008 to 2009 before returning to his country of birth.
GOLF
Tomasulo leads Texas Open
Peter Tomasulo’s birdie-birdie finish completed a bogey-free five-under par 67 on Thursday and vaulted him into a tie for the lead with Matt Bettencourt at the US PGA Tour Texas Open. The US duo had a one-stroke lead over Ireland’s Padraig Harrington and Americans Billy Horschel, Bryce Molder and Harris English, who all finished a windy day at TPC San Antonio on four-under 68. A group of 10 players on 69 included England’s Brian Davis, Australians Nathan Green, Alistair Presnell and Steven Bowditch, as well as Argentina’s Andres Romero. Tomasulo, making just his sixth start of the season on the PGA Tour and trying to regain full playing privileges after battling a rib injury two years ago, played in the last group of the day. He drained a 10-foot birdie putt at 18 for his share of the lead, and said playing late was an advantage on a day of gusty winds. “I just played a solid round of golf to go around here with no bogeys,” Tomasulo said. “We got a good end of the draw, I think, with the weather calming down late in the day.”
GOLF
Wie says Sorenstam sorry
Michelle Wie said Annika Sorenstam apologized to her for comments she made in an interview with Golf Magazine. “She actually reached out to me last night, said a couple of things got misquoted,” Wie said on Thursday. Sorenstam’s comments appear in a question-and-answer story in the magazine’s May edition. “I didn’t read it, so I don’t know what she said,” Wie said when asked how Sorenstam could be misquoted in a question-and-answer format. The former child prodigy, now 23, has mostly struggled since winning the 2010 Canadian Women’s Open for the second of her two LPGA Tour titles. “What I see now is that the talent that we all thought would be there is not there,” Sorenstam is quoted as saying in the magazine article. The Hall of Famer also pointed at Wie’s appearances in men’s tournaments as a possible reason for some of her struggles. “I don’t think it helped her career,” Sorenstam said.
China wants to unite its 1.4 billion people through soccer, while also using the sport as “a bridge to work with the rest of the world,” Chinese Football Association secretary-general Liu Yi told reporters in an interview published yesterday. Liu spoke about what lies behind the country’s push to become a major soccer power by 2050. Under Chinese President Xi Jinping — who is described by state media as an “avid soccer fan” — the world’s most populous country has grand plans to host and even one day win a World Cup. Liu spoke about “using football to motivate the whole nation.” “Football is
‘JOB NOT DONE’: The outfielder, who hit a homer and stole two bases, said that players ‘have to be good at all aspects of game all the time and not take plays off’ Los Angeles outfielder Mookie Betts put himself in rarefied company with a standout performance in the Dodgers’ Game 1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in the 116th World Series on Tuesday. Betts sparked the Dodgers’ four-run fifth inning with a walk and two stolen bases, joining Babe Ruth as the only players in World Series history to record such an inning. After walking to lead off the inning, Betts stole second base. After Corey Seager walked, Betts reached third on a double steal, giving the Dodgers runners on second and third with one out. Betts took an aggressive stance off the bag
TENNIS Federer eyes Australia Roger Federer is practicing pain-free after undergoing two knee surgeries this year and said that he expects to return to the circuit at the Australian Open in January. The 39-year-old Swiss reached the semi-finals at Melbourne Park at the start of the year, but missed the rest of the season after undergoing a second arthroscopic procedure on his right knee. “I’m on the right track,” he told German-language magazine Schweizer Illustrierte. “I’m gradually coming back, but I’m going to take my time and don’t want to put any pressure on myself. I will only take part in a
Marcus Rashford once again sank Paris Saint-Germain after netting the decisive goal in a 2-1 Champions League win in the French capital. Rashford, who scored the winning spot-kick when United knocked PSG out two seasons ago, drilled home a low shot three minutes from the end, which won a thrilling Group H contest at a near-empty Parc des Princes. United had taken the lead in the 23rd minute when Bruno Fernandes slotted home from the spot at the second attempt, but Anthony Martial inexplicably headed Neymar’s corner into his own net 10 minutes after the break. The rest of the match was an
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