FOOTBALL
Rodgers out for season
Aaron Rodgers was on Tuesday placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the season by the Green Bay Packers a day after they were eliminated from the playoff hunt. Rodgers returned from an eight-week absence with a broken right collarbone on Sunday in a 31-24 loss to Carolina, being struck seven times and sacked three times. The Packers (7-7) were eliminated from playoff contention when Atlanta edged Tampa Bay 24-21 on Monday.
TENNIS
Bartoli to return next year
Former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli on Tuesday announced that she would return to professional tennis next year after more than four years in retirement. The Frenchwoman shocked the tennis world when she quit the sport in 2013, a little more than a month after winning her maiden Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, saying her body could no longer keep up with the demands of the sport.
SOCCER
Romario eyes CBF term
Former Brazil striker and 1994 World Cup champion Romario on Tuesday said he plans to run for president of the scandal-plagued Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) on an anti-corruption platform. Romario, 51, now a senator who has led congressional investigations into corruption in Brazilian soccer, announced his intention four days after CBF president Marco Polo del Nero was suspended for 90 days by FIFA for alleged unethical conduct. “No one has fought so vigorously against that gang than me and so I am a legitimate candidate,” Romario said on Instagram. He blamed former FIFA president Joao Havelange for installing a “system” of graft in Brazilian soccer and beyond.
FOOTBALL
Pro Bowl to have 8 Steelers
Star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, top receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le’Veon Bell were among an NFL-high eight Pittsburgh Steelers named on Tuesday for next year’s Pro Bowl. Joining the three will be offensive linemen Alejandro Villanueva, David DeCastro and Maurkice Pouncey, plus kicker Chris Boswell and linebacker Ryan Shazier, who had a season-ending spinal injury earlier this month. They are set to star for the American Conference against their rivals from the National Conference in the matchup, set for Jan. 28 in Orlando, Florida.
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
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
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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