CYCLING
Nike fights subpoenas
Athletic apparel giant Nike Inc is fighting subpoenas for documents and witness depositions in the US federal government’s lawsuit against former cyclist Lance Armstrong. Armstrong and the government have both subpoenaed Nike, which was one of Armstrong’s major sponsors until dropping him in 2012 after his use of performance enhancing drugs was exposed. The government is suing Armstrong to recover more than US$30 million the US Postal Service paid to sponsor his teams. Damages could reach US$100 million. The subpoenas seek Nike financial records and documents of any discussions about Armstrong’s doping. In a filing in Oregon federal court, Nike says its financial records are irrelevant to Armstrong’s Postal Service sponsorship. If ordered to provide documents, the company says trade secrets should be kept private by a court order.
ICE HOCKEY
Former Blackhawk dies
Ron “Chico” Maki, a member of the Chicago Blackhawks 1961 Stanley Cup champions, has died. He was 76. A notice on the Blackhawks’ Web site said that Maki died on Monday at his home in Port Dover, Ontario. The right wing spent 15 seasons with the Blackhawks (1961-1976), playing in three All-Star games. Maki had 143 goals and 292 assists in 841 regular-season NHL games. He had 17 goals and 53 points in 113 playoff games. Maki’s late brother Wayne played two seasons with the Blackhawks and also played for St Louis and Vancouver. Chico Maki played junior hockey with St Catharines, and was the captain of a Memorial Cup-winning team. A visitation is to be held today in Simcoe, Ontario, followed by a private family funeral tomorrow.
RUGBY LEAGUE
Billy Slater signs with Storm
Australia Test fullback Billy Slater is to join skipper Cameron Smith in playing out their National Rugby League careers with the Melbourne Storm after signing a new two-year deal yesterday. The contract will take 32-year-old Slater through to the end of the 2017 season, his 15th with the club he joined as a teenager.
SOCCER
Japan’s Inui to join Eibar
Japan midfielder Takashi Inui has requested to leave Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt for Spanish club Sociedad Deportiva Eibar, the German club announced on Wednesday. Eintracht, 12th in the Bundesliga after two games, said in a statement they had agreed to the 27-year-old’s request to cut short his contract, which runs until June next year. “I’ve had three wonderful seasons here. My time at Eintracht will always remain a wonderful memory,” Inui said.
SOCCER
Fans threaten boycott
Borussia Moenchengladbach fans are threatening to boycott the derby against Rhine rivals Cologne on Sept. 19 because of ticket purchase requirements imposed after incidents during the previous edition in February. Moenchengladbach fan groups are furious that they must now register their name, address and date of birth when they purchase a ticket. “In our view, it’s not right that we have to register weeks before a match and that all fans should be punished despite refusing to be drawn by the provocation” during the previous match against Cologne, a statement from one of the concerned fan clubs read. February’s game was overshadowed by numerous incidents with about 30 of Cologne’s extreme ultras fans invading the pitch at the end of the game to try and provoke rivals in their stands.
Freddie Freeman homered and drove in four runs, Shohei Ohtani also went deep and Roki Sasaki earned his first major league win as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 10-3 on Saturday night for their seventh straight victory. The Dodgers have won the first two games of the series to improve to 5-0 against Atlanta this year. Los Angeles’ three-game sweep at home early in the season left the Braves 0-7. Sasaki allowed three runs and six hits over five innings. The 23-year-old right-hander gave up a home run to Ozzie Albies, but received plenty of offensive support in his
FOCUS: ‘We came out here with a goal in mind ... to keep our foot on their throat and on their neck, and continue to play 48 minutes of basketball,’ Donovan Mitchell said The Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday thrashed the Miami Heat to cruise into the next round of the NBA playoffs as the Golden State Warriors battled past the Houston Rockets 109-106 to move to the brink of a series victory. After pounding Miami 124-87 in game three on Saturday, No.1 Eastern Conference seeds Cleveland once again piled on the misery for their outclassed opponents with a crushing 138-83 victory to complete a 4-0 series win. The 55-point drubbing was the largest series-clinching victory in NBA playoff history and sets up a series against either the Indiana Pacers or Milwaukee Bucks in
Bayern Munich on Sunday were crowned German champions for the 34th time, giving striker Harry Kane his first major trophy, after second-placed Bayer 04 Leverkusen drew 2-2 at SC Freiburg. Bayern’s 3-3 draw at RB Leipzig on Saturday, when the Bavarians came from two goals down to take the lead before conceding a stoppage-time equalizer, meant defending Bundesliga champions Leverkusen needed to win at Freiburg to delay the title party. Leverkusen were two goals down before scoring twice in the final 10 minutes, but Xabi Alonso’s side could not find a third, as Bayern reclaimed the title at the first attempt after
Shuttler Lin Chun-yi yesterday kept Taiwan on the board as they faced their first major challenge of the group stage after marching into the last eight at the Sudirman Cup Finals in Xiamen, China. Taiwan were losing 3-1 to South Korea as of press time last night, with only the men’s doubles match remaining. Taiwan and four-time champions South Korea have already progressed to the quarter-finals, after Taiwan on Monday blanked the Czech Republic 5-0 without giving up a single game. Before last night’s tie, Taiwan were undefeated in Group B, with a 9-1 match record, ahead of South Korea, who, although also
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