RUGBY UNION
S Africa teams face cull
South Africa on July 7 is to announce which two of its six Super Rugby franchises are to be dumped from next year’s competition. The Central Cheetahs from Bloemfontein and the Southern Kings from Port Elizabeth are the media favorites for the chop. That would leave Coastal Sharks from Durban, the Golden Lions from Johannesburg, the Northern Bulls from Pretoria and the Western Stormers from Cape Town as the South Africa-based contenders next season. The decision is to be made after the South African Rugby Union has evaluated the on and off-field strengths and weaknesses of the six franchises.
CYCLING
Ex-UCI president dies
Former International Cycling Union (UCI) president Hein Verbruggen, who oversaw the worldwide spread of a sport often tainted by doping, has died. He was 75. The UCI and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) both reacted to the news on Wednesday, underscoring the Dutchman’s clout within both organizations. The IOC flew its flag at half staff and Dutch King Willem-Alexander, a former IOC member, called him “a man with a big heart for the Olympic movement, for cycling and those close to him.” Dutch cycling association spokesman Kevin Leenheers confirmed the death, saying Verbruggen died on Tuesday night. Critics said Verbruggen was too close to those involved in doping. He was often confronted for his relationship with Lance Armstrong of the US, who was the face of cycling with his seven Tour de France victories before he came to embody the abuse of performance-enhancing drugs. Verbruggen faced accusers saying he was colluding with dopers instead of countering them. He proclaimed his innocence until his death.
SOCCER
Referees’ powers boosted
Referees at this year’s Confederations Cup in Russia are to have the power to abandon games over discriminatory behavior by fans as part of a three-step procedure to promote fair play during the tournament, governing body FIFA said. The procedure allows referees to halt the match and make a public announcement over discriminatory fan behavior, temporarily suspend the game if the problem persists and completely stop the match if the behavior does not stop. The governing body also introduced an initiative to deploy antidiscrimination officials into the crowd to detect and report abusive behavior.
SOCCER
South Korea sack coach
South Korea yesterday axed coach Uli Stielike after a shock defeat to Qatar left their World Cup qualification hanging in the balance. Germany’s Stielike, who has been in charge since 2014, paid the price for a poor run of results, including qualifying defeats to China and Iran. Tuesday’s 3-2 reverse was South Korea’s first loss to Qatar in 32 years and left them in danger of missing direct qualification for Russia next year. Lee Yong-soo, chairman of the Korean Football Association (KFA), also resigned in a shake-up ahead of their final two qualifying games. “As the results of the final World Cup qualification round did not meet our expectation, the KFA and coach Stielike decided to end Stielike’s contract under mutual agreement,” Lee said after a meeting in Seoul.
Former world No. 2 Paula Badosa has withdrawn from this week’s Wuhan Open, organizers said on Tuesday, amid a racism row over an online photograph. Tournament organizers said the Spaniard had pulled out of the WTA 1000 tournament, citing a gastrointestinal illness, hours before her first-round match against Australian Ajla Tomljanovic. News outlets including Britain’s the Telegraph earlier reported that Badosa had posted a photo on Instagram in which she appeared to imitate a Chinese face by placing chopsticks on the corners of her eyes. The photo was taken last week in a restaurant in Beijing, where she reached the semi-finals of the
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
Italian defender Marco Curto has been banned for 10 matches for racially abusing South Korean forward Hwang Hee-chan while playing for Como 1907 against Wolverhampton Wanderers in a pre-season friendly in July. Curto, who is on loan from Como to Serie B club Cesena, would serve half of the punishment immediately with the other half suspended for two years. “The player Marco Curto was found responsible for discriminatory behavior and sanctioned with a 10-match suspension,” a FIFA spokesperson said. “The player is ordered to render community services and undergo training and education with an organization approved by FIFA.” Wolves said the club would
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