TOUCH
Hulks lead Taipei league
The Taipei Hulks Touch team won their first two games in the Brass Monkey Taipei Touch League yesterday, downing Mr Sausage’s Kitchen 4-1 and newcomers Galaxy 8-0 to lead the table on points difference. The other unbeaten side were the Taipei Beasts, who beat the Kitcheners 3-1 and the Taipei Baboons 4-3. KGB had an easy win over Galaxy and a draw against the Taipei Celts, who lost to the Baboons in their other game. The league is on hiatus next weekend as the Taipei 10s Rugby tournament is to be played in Banciao. Round two is scheduled for May 31 at the Bailing Rugby fields in Shilin.
GOLF
Adam Scott marries
World No. 2 golfer Adam Scott has tied the knot with long-time girlfriend Marie Kojzar in a small ceremony in the Bahamas. “It’s official. I am a settled down man and very happy,” Scott told the Australian Associated Press (AAP). The wedding, attended by close friends and family, was at Scott’s Bahamas residence on April 17. Kojzar and Scott, 33, dated some years ago and got back together before he claimed the Masters last year, AAP said.
ICE HOCKEY
France beat Canada
France produced a stunning 3-2 shootout victory over Olympic champions Canada thanks to a goal from Pierre-Edouard Bellemare as the ice hockey world championship began in Belarus on Friday. Bellemare was the only scorer in the shootout after the preliminary round Group A game was tied at 2-2 following overtime at the Chizhovka Arenawere in Minsk. It was only the second time France had beaten Canada at the worlds since the event began in 1931, after their first victory over Canada at the 1995 tournament. Stephane da Costa struck two powerplay goals for France, while Brayden Schenn and Erik Gudbranson scored for Canada. The jubilant France were also indebted to former Montreal Canadiens goaltender Cristobal Huet, who stopped 34 of 36 shots and all three shootout attempts by Canada. In Group B, the US coasted to a 6-1 win over hosts Belarus, while Russia beat Switzerland 5-0. The Czech Republic defeated Slovakia 3-2 in Friday’s other Group A game.
CRICKET
Pakistan defend coach move
Pakistan cricket heads on Friday defended their decision to appoint fast bowling legend Waqar Younis as head coach, after former interim coach Mohsin Khan lashed out at the decision. The Pakistan Cricket Board had on Tuesday handed Waqar a two-year contract for a second stint in the top job — without interviewing the other six applicants, including Khan.
CRICKET
Darren Sammy retires
Darren Sammy retired from Test cricket on Friday just hours after being replaced by Denesh Ramdin as West Indies captain. Sammy, 30, had been in charge of the Test team since October 2010. The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) said that he will remain in charge of the Twenty20 international squad. Sammy played in 38 Tests, captaining in 30 of those appearances. “Darren Sammy has formally notified the West Indies Cricket Board of his decision to retire from Test cricket,” a WICB statement said. “Sammy has also informed the Board of his decision to continue to make himself available for selection for the other formats of the game.” Wicketkeeper/batsman Ramdin, 29, has played 56 Tests, in addition to 109 one-day internationals and 46 Twenty20 internationals.
RECORD DEFEAT: The Shanghai-based ‘Oriental Sports Daily’ said the drubbing was so disastrous, and taste so bitter, that all that is left is ‘numbness’ Chinese soccer fans and media rounded on the national team yesterday after they experienced fresh humiliation in a 7-0 thrashing to rivals Japan in their opening Group C match in the third phase of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The humiliation in Saitama on Thursday against Asia’s top-ranked team was China’s worst defeat in World Cup qualifying and only a goal short of their record 8-0 loss to Brazil in 2012. Chinese President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China to host and even win the World Cup one day, but that ambition looked further away than ever after a
‘KHELIFMANIA’: In the weeks since the Algerian boxer won gold in Paris, national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women In the weeks since Algeria’s Imane Khelif won an Olympic gold medal in women’s boxing, athletes and coaches in the North African nation say national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women. Khelif’s image is practically everywhere, featured in advertisements at airports, on highway billboards and in boxing gyms. The 25-year-old welterweight’s success in Paris has vaulted her to national hero status, especially after Algerians rallied behind her in the face of uninformed speculation about her gender and eligibility to compete. Amateur boxer Zougar Amina, a medical student who has been practicing for a year, called Khelif an
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
GOING GLOBAL: The regular season fixture is part of the football league’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the sport to international destinations The US National Football League (NFL) breaks new ground in its global expansion strategy tomorrow when the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers face off in the first-ever grid-iron game staged in Brazil. For one night only, the land of Pele and ‘The Beautiful Game’ will get a rare glimpse into the bone-crunching world of American football as the Packers and Eagles collide at Sao Paulo’s Neo Quimica Arena, the 46,000-seat home of soccer club Corinthians. The regular season fixture is part of the NFL’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the US’ most popular sport to new territories following previous international fixtures
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