SOCCER
Espanyol, Levante draw 1-1
RCD Espanyol equalized in the second half to draw 1-1 with Levante UD in La Liga on Monday. Levante went ahead in the seventh minute when a defensive error by Enzo Roco gifted the ball to midfielder Jefferson Lerma, who blasted the ball past goalkeeper Pau Lopez. Gerard Moreno came on as a substitute at half-time and 12 minutes later scored from Victor Sanchez’s pinpoint pass after a quick counterattack started by Felipe Caicedo. Levante are 19th in the standings on 11 points after 14 rounds and Espanyol are 12th. Barcelona lead on 34 points, with Atletico Madrid second on 32 and Real Madrid are third on 30.
RUGBY UNION
Coles to captain Hurricanes
New Zealand international hooker Dane Coles is to captain the Wellington-based Hurricanes in Super XV rugby next season. Head coach Chris Boyd yesterday said he had consulted outgoing captain Conrad Smith before appointing Coles, who has had discipline issues on and off the field. Smith has left to take up a contract with the French club Pau. Boyd said Coles “is deeply respected by the players [and his] heart is totally committed to our club.” Coles said: “I had a few bumps on the road to get to where I am, but I have definitely learned from those lessons,” adding that he felt ready for the captaincy. Scrumhalf T.J. Perenara has been appointed vice-captain.
SOCCER
AZ Alkmaar sign Vlaar
Netherlands defender Ron Vlaar has returned to his first club AZ Alkmaar until the end of the season as a free agent, the Dutch top flight side said on Monday. The 30-year-old defender had been training with AZ after turning down a new contract with English Premier League club Aston Villa in the off-season before having a knee operation. “We are very pleased with the capture of Ron Vlaar. He gives our squad a huge boost of quality,” AZ sporting director Max Huiberts said on the club’s official Web site. AZ are 10th in the Eredivisie, 20 points behind leaders Ajax. “I do not need to explain what his strengths are, which everyone can see from the last few seasons,” Huiberts added. “Last year he was a driving force behind the success of [the Netherlands] at the World Cup.”
RUGBY UNION
Montpellier sign Mikautadze
Montpellier on Monday announced they have signed giant Georgia lock Konstantin Mikautadze on a two-year-deal from French Top 14 rivals Toulon. The 2m-tall 24-year-old is to join Montpellier at the end of the current campaign. Since returning from the Rugby World Cup, he has played five matches for Toulon this season, including two as a starter. Mikautadze joined Toulon in 2011, having previously played for the youth team at Agen, whom he joined from Armazi Tbilisi in 2009.
BASKETBALL
Colangelo joins 76ers
USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo, one of the sport’s most successful executives, is to be tackling a major challenge as he joins the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers as a special adviser and chairman of basketball operations. Hall of Famer Colangelo, who restructured the US Olympic basketball system and returned US hoopsters to dominance, comes to a Sixers team that tied the NBA record by starting this season 0-18, the club announced on Monday. “We are excited to add his five decades of knowledge, relationships and experience to help drive our organization forward,” Sixers co-managing owner Josh Harris said in a statement.
Spain are the favorites to win the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025, but star player Aitana Bonmati’s illness ahead of the tournament raises another question mark around a side which, despite their obvious quality, are not unstoppable. Having claimed the last two Ballon d’Or awards, Barcelona midfielder Bonmati is the game’s biggest star at present, so her absence in the final days before the start of Euro 2025 is a major setback. The 27-year-old came down with a fever in training last week, and was subsequently hospitalized and diagnosed with viral meningitis. Bonmati was discharged on Sunday and joined up with
HSIEH ADVANCES: In the women’s doubles, Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei was to play in the second round last night, but Taiwan’s Ray Ho exited in the men’s doubles It is more than 10 years since Grigor Dimitrov reached his sole Wimbledon semi-final and back then it still seemed a reasonable bet that the Bulgarian once dubbed “Baby Federer” would win a Grand Slam title. There were semi-final runs at the US Open and Australian Open after that, but it has never quite happened and despite him still being ranked No. 21, it most likely never will. Dimitrov, 34, remains one of the most stylish players on the circuit though, with his elegant single-handed backhand and smooth all-court game a rare reminder of how tennis was before the power merchants turned
TAIWANESE WIN: Chan Hao-ching and Wu Fang-hsien and their partners won their first-round matches in the women’s doubles at the All England Lawn Tennis Club Late-night finishes and five-set matches are becoming a habit for Taylor Fritz at Wimbledon this year. On Wednesday, he wrapped up his win over Gabriel Diallo before the match was suspended — making sure the fifth-seeded American would not have to come back on court for a fourth straight day. Fritz overcame a bloodied elbow to win 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/0), 4-6, 6-3 on No. 1 Court a day after he finished off another five-set win over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in a match that was halted on Monday at about 10:15pm after Fritz forced a fifth set with Wimbledon’s 11pm curfew looming. He
Real Madrid’s FIFA Club World Cup quarter-final against Borussia Dortmund had taken three crazy turns during nine minutes of second-half stoppage time when Marcel Sabitzer chested the ball and sent a right-footed volley toward Thibaut Courtois’ post. Courtois leapt to his right, extended the long arm on his 2m frame and just managed to get his gloved fingertips on the ball, knocking it down. Courtois hit the ground as the ball bounded up. He looked skyward, planted his right hand to regain his balance, grabbed the ball with both hands on the second bounce and fell onto it with his chest. Sabitzer turned
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