CYCLING
Tinkoff-Saxo lose sponsor
Two-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador’s elite cycling team Tinkoff-Saxo have lost their sponsor Saxo Bank, as the Danish online traders announced they would sever ties on Thursday. The team also features crowd-pleasing superstar Peter Sagan, who is the world road race champion, but with the firing of Danish team manager Bjarne Riis in March, fears Saxo Bank would end its sponsorship developed into reality. “It has been a privilege working with the team over the past eight seasons and we are extremely proud of the numerous successes we have achieved together during this time,” co-chief executives Lars Seier Christensen and Kim Fournais said in a statement.
FOOTBALL
Derrick Coleman arrested
Seattle Seahawks running back Derrick Coleman, who helped the team’s Super Bowl title run last year, was on Thursday arrested for vehicular assault and hit-and-run, and suspended by the NFL club. The 24-year-old fullback, the first legally deaf player in the NFL who uses hearing aids and reads lips to compete, was being held at King County Jail after being booked at 1:20am by police in suburban Bellevue. “The Seattle Seahawks have suspended Derrick Coleman indefinitely pending further information,” the team said in a statement. Coleman has played 22 games for the Seahawks since arriving in 2013, with two of his six starts coming this season after missing the final 11 games of last season with a broken foot. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said Coleman embodies his “no excuses” approach to NFL coaching by not letting his hearing impairment keep him from playing in the league.
OLYMPICS
Kofi Annan honored
Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan has received the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) highest award. Annan was presented with the Olympic Order in Gold on Thursday by IOC president Thomas Bach. Annan was announced as a recipient of the order in 2007, but was unable to attend an award ceremony until now. He said during the presentation that “the Olympic spirit is something that has been with me for a long time.” Annan, who served as UN secretary-general from 1997 to 2006, attended several Olympics during that time. Bach thanked Annan for his “many years of service to sport and for championing the unifying power of sport through the Kofi Annan Foundation.” The IOC has enjoyed UN observer status since 2009. The UN traditionally passes a resolution calling for the observance of an “Olympic Truce” before each Games.
SOCCER
Mouriho hits out at FA
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has criticized the Football Association (FA) after he was fined over comments made toward match officials. Mourinho used his book launch on Thursday to respond to the FA’s decision on Wednesday to fine him ￡50,000 (US$77,400) fine and a suspended one-match stadium ban. He said that officials were “afraid” to award his side a penalty following a 3-1 home defeat to Southampton in the Premier League at the start of the month. “50,000 is a disgrace. The possibility of getting a stadium ban is astonishing,” Mourinho said at his book signing. The Blues boss was aggrieved after referee Robert Madley refused to point to the spot following a challenge by Saints goalkeeper Martin Stekelenburg on striker Radamel Falcao in the penalty area.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
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
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