Wed, Dec 30, 2015 page18

• SPORTS BRIEFS

  • Agencies
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  BASKETBALL

  Meadowlark Lemon dies

  Meadowlark Lemon, the “clown prince” of basketball’s barnstorming Harlem Globetrotters, whose blend of hook shots and humor brought joy to millions of fans around the world, has died. He was 83. Lemon’s wife and daughter confirmed to the team that he died on Sunday in Scottsdale, Arizona, Globetrotters spokesman Brett Meister said on Monday. Meister did not know the cause of death. Though skilled enough to play professionally, Lemon instead wanted to entertain, his dream of playing for the Globetrotters hatched after watching a newsreel of the all-black team at a cinema house when he was 11. Lemon ended up becoming arguably the team’s most popular player, a showman known as much for his confetti-in-the-water-bucket routine and slapstick comedy as his half-court hook shots and no-look, behind-the-back passes. In a sign of his crossover appeal, Lemon was inducted into both the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and the International Clown Hall of Fame. “My destiny was to make people happy,” Lemon said as he was inducted into the basketball hall as a contributor to the game in 2003. Lemon played for the Globetrotters during the team’s heyday from the mid-1950s to the late-1970s, delighting fans with his skills with a ball and a joke. Traveling by car, bus, train or plane nearly every night, Lemon covered nearly 6.4 million kilometers to play in more than 100 countries and in front of popes and presidents, kings and queens.

  SOCCER

  Barca hire, fire Guardiola

  Diehard Real Madrid fan Sergi Guardiola’s decision to write offensive tweets aimed at Barcelona came back to haunt him on Monday when he was hired and fired by the Spanish giants on the same day. The 24-year-old striker penned a deal with Barca’s B team, but was fired just a few hours later when angry fans of the Catalan club made officials aware of Guardiola’s Twitter tirade from 2013, www.lequipe.fr reported. His tweets had included “Allez Madrid” and “Fuck Catalans.” “FC Barcelona has decided to terminate the contract signed with Sergi Guardiola, after finding that he had published offensive tweets about the club and Catalonia,” a Barcelona statement said.

  SOCCER

  Real lose final appeal

  Real Madrid on Monday lost their appeal against being kicked out of the Copa del Rey, but said they would still fight the decision even if the country’s Administrative Tribunal for Sport (TAD) insisted it was final. The Spanish giants were thrown out of the competition for fielding an ineligible player, Denys Cheryshev, in their tie against third-tier side Cadiz earlier this month. Cheryshev not only started the match, but also opened the scoring in Madrid’s 3-1 win. However, he should not have been on the field because he was due to serve a one-match ban in the cup after picking up three yellow cards whilst on loan at Villarreal last season. “The club respects, but does not share this resolution by the Tribunal,” Real said in a brief statement. Real said that they would still pursue the matter in the courts and “other possible legal avenues are being examined.” However, TAD defended its decision. “Each club is responsible for verifying if their players are eligible for selection,” the committee said. TAD added that a register exists that lists all ineligible players and the sanctions available. “Real Madrid know of the existence of this register and did not consult it. So they are liable for this omission,” it said.
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