ATHLETICS
Injured Liu to miss season
Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang is likely to miss this season as he recovers from the injury that dramatically ended his bid to win back the Olympic title in London last year, a report said yesterday. Liu’s coach, Sun Haiping, said the 29-year-old, Olympic champion in the 110m in 2004 and one of China’s biggest stars, would make a “full recovery” from his ruptured Achilles tendon, but would probably not be in action this year. Last year in London, Liu clattered into the first hurdle in his opening heat and after being helped up, he hopped the length of the track before symbolically kissing the last barrier and exiting the Olympic arena.
BASKETBALL
‘Kekua’ predicts NCAA
A business analyst from Virginia beat out 8.15 million other entries to win ESPN’s annual prediction contest for the NCAA basketball championship — but has gained more attention for the handle he created than his powers of prognostication. Craig Gilmore, inspired by several pints of beer and using the name Lannay Kekua, won the contest, accurately picking Louisville to defeat Michigan in Monday night’s college basketball championship game before the 64-team tournament began. Lannay Kekua was the name an apparent hoaxster created to fool Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o, leading the football player to think he had an online and telephonic relationship with a woman who in reality never existed. Reports of her death during the season became a touching story until it unraveled as an embarrassing hoax. Gilmore said he chose the name to tease two of his buddies, who are Notre Dame graduates. ESPN says the winner will “have a chance” to win the grand prize of a US$10,000 gift card for electronics retailer Best Buy.
BASKETBALL
Chinese firm sues Jordan
A Chinese sportswear firm sued by Michael Jordan for the unauthorized use of his name has counter-sued the retired NBA superstar for US$8 million for hurting its reputation, Chinese state media said yesterday. Jordan’s lawsuit against Qiaodan Sports Co last year alleged that the firm deliberately misled Chinese consumers about its ties to him. Jordan has been known in China by the Chinese name “Qiaodan” since he became a star in the 1980s. Qiaodan’s products also carry a silhouette of a leaping basketball player, which bears a resemblance to the “Jumpman” logo used by Nike’s Jordan brand. Qiaodan said Jordan misled the public with his lawsuit, the China Daily said.
BASEBALL
Broad face benefits baseball
The shape of a man’s face can help predict his sporting acumen, a study revealed yesterday, after finding that Japanese baseball players whose faces are relatively broad instead of long were most likely to hit a home run. University of London psychologists measured the facial width-to-height ratio (fWHR), of 104 batters in Japan’s professional Central League Pennant who played in the 2011 season and last year. In both seasons, the players who scored the most home runs had the highest fWHR, said the study, which was published in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters. Previous research has found a link between face ratio and competitiveness among politicians and financial success among corporate executives, but this work had focused only on Caucasian subjects, not Asians. The new data suggests the association “may be generalizable across cultures,” the paper said, although why facial bulk appears to be so important in sporting success is unclear.
Twelve days after winning her second Grand Slam title at the French Open, Coco Gauff fell at the first hurdle on grass in Berlin on Thursday as beaten Paris finalist Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the quarter-finals. Recipient of a first round bye, American Gauff lost 6-3, 6-3 to Chinese qualifier Wang Xinyu as world number one Sabalenka beat Rebeka Masarova 6-2, 7-6 (8/6) in her second round tie. Winner of 10 main tour titles, including the US Open in 2023 and the WTA Finals last year, Gauff has yet to lift a trophy in a grass-court tournament. “After I won the first
Sergio Ramos on Tuesday outfoxed two Inter players and artfully headed home the first goal for Monterrey at the FIFA Club World Cup. The 39-year-old Ramos slipped through the penalty area for the score just as he did for so many years in the shirts of Real Madrid and Spain’s national team, with whom he combined smarts, timing and physicality. Ramos’ clever goal and his overall defensive play at the Rose Bowl were major factors in Monterrey’s impressive 1-1 draw against the UEFA Champions League finalists in the clubs’ first match of the tournament. “There is always a joy to contribute to the
While British star Jack Draper spent the past week trying to find rhythm and comfort in his first grass tournament of the season at the Queen’s Club Championships in London, Jiri Lehecka on Saturday bulldozed everything in his path. After more than two furious hours of battle, their form was reflected in the final scoreline as Lehecka toppled a frustrated Draper, the second seed, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 to reach the biggest final of his career, against Carlos Alcaraz. Lehecka is also the first Czech to reach the men’s title match at Queen’s since Ivan Lendl lifted the trophy in 1990. Draper, who
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka staged a “crazy comeback,” saving four match points before beating Elena Rybakina 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (6) in the quarter-finals of the Berlin Open on Friday. Sabalenka was 6-2 down in the final-set tie-breaker, but won six straight points to reach her eighth semi-final of the season. “Elena is a great player and we’ve had a lot of tough battles,” Sabalenka said. “I have no idea how I was able to win those last points. I think I just got lucky.” “I remember a long time ago when I was just starting, I won a lot of matches being down
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