SPORTS NEWS TUESDAY MARCH 14, 2012 E.M RM 2.00 W.M RM 3.00 Luiz not for sale at any price R oberto Di Matteo has warned Barcelona that Chelsea will not be bullied into sell- ing David Luiz. Barcelona are reportedly preparing a £30 million bid for the Bra- zil international, while Manchester City have denied rumours they are interested in the defender. While Premier League rivals Arsenal saw Alex Song depart for Camp Nou this week, Di Matteo insists they will not be selling Luiz at any price. ”Luiz is part of our future. It’s normal that he’ll get interest because he’s a Brazilian international centre back,” he said. “There have been no approaches for Luiz and he’s not for sale at any price. It doesn’t concern me, the player will be here for the long term. www.sportsnews.com.my Page 02 Mark Hughes ready to let Robert Green leave QPR in January Page 03 Zenit snap up Hulk Mardy Fish withdraws from U.S. Open Page 05 U.S. Open women’s final postponed Page 05
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SPORTSNEWSTUESDAY MARCH 14, 2012 E.M RM 2.00 W.M RM 3.00
Luiz not for sale at any priceRoberto Di Matteo has warned Barcelona that Chelsea will not be bullied into sell-
ing David Luiz. Barcelona are reportedly preparing a £30 million bid for the Bra-zil international, while Manchester City have denied rumours they are interested
in the defender. While Premier League rivals Arsenal saw Alex Song depart for Camp Nou this week, Di Matteo insists they will not be selling Luiz at any price. ”Luiz is part of our future. It’s normal that he’ll get interest because he’s a Brazilian international centre back,” he said. “There have been no approaches for Luiz and he’s not for sale at any price. It doesn’t concern me, the player will be here for the long term.
www.sportsnews.com.my
Page 02
Mark Hughes ready to let Robert Green leave QPR in January Page 03
Zenit snap up Hulk
Mardy Fish withdraws from U.S. Open Page 05
U.S. Open women’s final postponed Page 05
02sportNews ON THURSDAY
TRANSFER RUMUORSFOOTBALLMARCH 14, 2012
The 29-year-old has struggled to force his way into Roberto Di Matteo’s starting line-up so far this season after a summer of heavy investment at Stamford Bridge. Meireles only arrived at the club last summer from Liverpool under previous manager Andre Villas-Boas’ re-gime but has fallen down the pecking order in recent months, behind the likes of Frank Lam-pard, Ramires and John Obi Mikel.Having been capped 62 times at international level by Portugal, Meireles played in their FA Cup final victory over Kenny Dalglish’s side at Wembley last season as a substitute before sus-pension ruled him out of their historic Cham-pions League final triumph against Bayern Munich. He has been linked with moves away all summer, with a proposed move to Napoli failing to materialise and he has until midnight on September 5, when the Turkish transfer win-dow closes, to complete the move.
BRIEFSFENERBACHE IN TALKS TO SIGN CHELSEA MIDFIELDER MEIRELESS
GALATASARAY INTERESTED IN MANCHESTER CITY DEFENDER KOLO TOUREManchester City centre-back Kolo Toure has emerged as a transfer target for Turkish side Galatasaray, according to manager Fatih Terim. Despite the Premier League transfer window closing on August 31, clubs in Tur-key have until midnight on the September 5 to conclude all late deals. Galatasaray’s interest in the defender was sparked when stalwart Tomas Ujfalusi was ruled out for up to four months after collapsing during training, and Terim feels Toure’s former Arsenal team-mate Emmanuel Eboue, who currently plies his trade at Turk Telekom Arena, might be able to help them in their pursuit of the 31-year-old.
MOURINHO - KAKA IS NOT A DEAD WEIGHTJose Mourinho has stressed that Kaka still has a role to play at Real Madrid, and added that the attacking midfielder will get the chance to prove his worth at some point this season. The Brazil international was continually linked with a return to AC Milan throughout the sum-mer, but the move did not materialise because of financial reasons. “Neither Kaka nor anyone else is a dead weight,” Mourinho stated at a press conference. “Against Granada we went in another direction, [Karim] Benzema, [Jose] Callejon, and [Luka] Modric played and we also wanted to give some rest to those who played against Barca. “The three who were left out were the first choices, but there will be a time when Kaka will be an option once more.” The 30-year-old midfielder has yet to feature in an official game for Madrid this term. The Madrid coach has made it clear that the former AC Mi-lan star still has a future at the Liga champions, and will get playing time again in the future.
Zenit snap up HulkZenit St Petersburg have
announced the signing of Hulk from FC Porto, who
rejected a €50 million offer for the forward last week. Brazil interna-tional Hulk has signed a five-year deal, according to the Russian Premier League side’s website. The transfer fee is undisclosed but is believed to be an improve-ment on Zenit’s initial big-money offer. The forward had long been linked with a switch to Chelsea, and had also interested Totten-ham, but Porto’s asking price - in
excess of £40 million - proved a stumbling block. On Wednesday, Porto president Pinto da Costa reacted to reports that Zenit had pulled the plug on a deal to sign Hulk by claiming it was his club that had snubbed the Russians. “It was Porto who rejected €50 million for Hulk from Zenit,” Da Costa said. “I think it is ridiculous to hear that Zenit’s board did not sanction such an offer when two of their chiefs were here to pres-ent that exact bid for the player.” Hulk, 26, joined Porto from Japa-
nese side Tokyo Verdy and scored 54 goals in 103 league matches after signing in 2008. The 26-year-old Hulk will wear the No.29 shirt for Luciano Spalletti’s side, who currently sit top of the Rus-sian Premier League after seven games. Hours after announcing a deal for the Brazilian, Zenit also confirmed the signing of Belgian midfielder Witsel. “It’s now of-ficial. Both players had signed five-year deals,” Zenit spokesman Dmitry Tsimmerman was reported as saying by Rueters. Having cut his teeth in Japanese football with Kawasaki Fontale and Consadole Sapporo and Tokyo Verdy, Hulk moved to Os Dragoes in 2008 and helped the club to three league titles, three Tacas de Portugal and the Uefa Cup. He has won 13 Bra-zil caps since making his debut in 2009, and was part of the Selecao’s Olympic team that claimed silver in London. Witsel, meanwhile, had to Zenit. The St Petersburg club have been drawn against AC Milan, Anderlecht and Malaga in the Champions League.
Van Bommel: De Jong best AC Milan signing of the summerThe 35-year-old, who joined PSV in May has played alongside the midfielder for the national side and drew comparisons between himself and the Rossoneri’s new man. “De Jong plays almost the same way I do,” van Bommel compared to Milan Channel. “He was Milan’s best signing of the summer.” “He is also comparable to Gennaro Gattuso in the way he plays to aid both the strik-ers and the rearguard. I’m sure he’ll settle into Serie A quickly as Dutch players tend to do. “His tactical knowledge is an advantage, while his technique, which can be described as effective, make him an excellent signing for Milan.” De Jong will be hoping to make his debut against Bologna on Saturday night, as Massimiliano Al-legri’s men aim to make up for their opening day defeat to Sampdoria.
Ancelotti expects immi-nent Van der Wiel arrival
Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that Paris Saint-Germain are close to signing Gregory van der Wiel from Ajax. Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed
that Paris Saint-Germain are close to signing Gregory van der Wiel from Ajax. The Netherlands defender was linked with an exit from the Amsterdam Arena throughout the summer, and a deal taking him to the French capital now appears to be all but official. The Dutchman is set to round off a summer of heavy spending for the Qatari-owned club, with the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Thiago Silva having already joined PSG. “Van der Wiel’s signature shouldn’t take too long,” Ancelotti stated at a press conference.“Christophe [Jallet] was our only player who could play on the right side of defence. He’ll have to com-pete with Van er Wiel now, but I do not see that as a problem.” Ajax are reported to have received a sum of €5 million (£3.9m) for the full-back, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the season. Ancelotti’s charges face Lille on Saturday as they look to end a run of three straight draws in Ligue 1. Netherlands international Van der Wiel, who played in all three of the Dutch team’s matches at Euro 2012, has signed a four-year deal with the Ligue 1 club. The 24-year-old came through Ajax’s famed youth academy and had made 130 league appearances for his hometown club after making his debut FC Twente in 2007. The French transfer window closes on Tuesday night and Van der Wiel’s arrival will provide competition for Christophe Jallet. Speaking after PSG’s 2-1 win over Lille on Sunday, coach Carlo Ancelotti.
03sportNews ON THURSDAY
TRANSFER RUMUORSFOOTBALLMARCH 14, 2012
Mark Hughes ready to let Robert Green leave QPR in January
Queens Park Rangers boss Mark Hughes says he will not stand in Robert Green’s way if he chooses to leave the club in January.
BY ASYRAF [email protected] “If in the future any of my keepers came to me
and said they felt their future lay elsewhere then we can have a conversation about that and make a decision that benefited everyone. “But at the moment it’s early days and the challenge is there for all my keepers. “It’s a difficult situation for Rob but the opportunity to bring in Julio Cesar came very quickly and it’s one that we felt as a club we couldn’t ignore. “On a football level and a business level, we needed to do it because you don’t get opportunities like that very often.” Julio Cesar is set to make his QPR debut on their visit to the Etihad Stadium to face the Premier League champions Man-chester City. “But at the moment it’s early days and the challenge is there for all my keepers.
Lassana Diarra joins Anzhi on four-year dealThe Frenchman will continue his career with the ambitious Russian outfit after being told that his services were no longer needed in Spain, while Nikita Burmistov also arrives. The mid-fielder initially appeared to be heading to Russia on a season-long loan, but the cash-rich outfit have now confirmed that he has joined on a permanent switch, along with forward Nikita Burmistov from Amkar Perm. “The signings of these footballers totally correspond to the strategy of our club achieving top aims,” CEO Ayvaz Kaziakhmedov told the club’s.
Lahm and Neuer praise new Bayern signing Javi MartinezThe Spain international signed a five-year deal with Bayern earlier this week to complete his €40 million (£32m) move from Athletic Bilbao, and he has already impressed his new team-mate during his short time at the club. “I’ve seen a bit of him in the past, and I reckon he’s a very good footballer,” Lahm was quoted as saying on the club’s official website. “[Head coach Jupp] Heynckes introduced him to the rest of the team and then he went out and just played football. He fitted in straight away. My initial impression is that he’s quality. He’ll help us a lot.”Shot-stopper Manuel Neuer was equally pleased with the versa-tile midfielder’s arrival at the club, and stressed that Javi Marti-nez will need time to find his best form in his new surroundings. “It’s great that he’s here. He lost his first practice match, but he threw himself into it and won a lot of balls in the air. “He was very good, he’s still very young, and he’s starting out on a great career. There’s a lot coming at him from all directions, a new club, a move abroad. He’ll need time before we can say he’s really arrived. He’s not been signed just for one season, but for the long term.” The 24-year-old could make his official Bayern debut against Stuttgart on Sunday. The Spaniard impressed his new team-mates during his first practice, and the wing-back and goalkeeper are both confident he will make an impact at the Al-lianz Arena. Philipp Lahm has taken the time to praise Javi Mar-tinez in the wake of his first training session for Bayern Munich. Philipp Lahm has taken the time to praise Javi Martinez in the wake of his first training session for Bayern Munich.
The England international only joined the Loftus Road outfit this summer as a free agent, but his position as number one has quickly come under threat, following a couple of below par performances and the arrival of highly accomplished Inter stopper Julio Cesar. Hughes understands that 32-year-old Green may seek a move in search of first-team football, and while it may not be his direct concern at the moment, he said a move for the goalkeep-er may benefit both parties.He told Sky Sports News: “That isn’t my concern. That may concern Rob in terms of his international standing but from my
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05sportNews ON THURSDAYTENNIS
MARCH 14, 2012
Mardy Fish withdraws from U.S. OpenNEW YORK -- Mardy Fish pulled out of the U.S. Open hours before
his fourth-round match against Roger Federer on Monday, saying it was for “precautionary measures” on doctor’s advice. The 30-year-
old American, who was seeded 23rd at Flushing Meadows, missed about 2½ months this season because of an accelerated heartbeat and had a medical procedure in May. “We are not 100 percent sure what the issue is and if it is related to his previous issues,” Fish’s agent, John Tobias, wrote in an email to The Associated Press. “Mardy is fine and will return home to L.A. tomorrow. This was strictly precautionary and I anticipate that Mardy will play in Asia this fall.” Sources told ESPN.com’s Greg Garber that Fish was on site at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center being examined by doctors. Fish’s departure means 2003 champion Andy Roddick is the only American man left in the field. Roddick, who announced last week that he’ll retire after the U.S. Open, plays 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro in the fourth round Tuesday night. Fish’s third-round victory over Gilles Simon at the U.S. Open went five sets, lasting more than 3 hours and ending after 1 a.m. Sunday. Afterward, Fish did not attend a news conference; the tournament said he was getting medical treatment, but didn’t elaborate. In a statement released by the U.S. Tennis Association on Monday, Fish said he “was reluctant to” withdraw from the year’s last Grand Slam tournament but was “following medical advisement.” He added that he looks forward “to resuming my tournament schedule in the fall.” After losing a match at Key Biscayne, Fla., on March 29, Fish went to be checked by doctors because his heart started racing un-controllably that night. He pulled out of the U.S. Davis Cup team’s quarterfi-nal against France the following week.
Rafael Nadal has torn patella tendonNEW YORK -- Rafael Nadal has a partially torn patella tendon in his left knee and will be sidelined for at least the next two months, including Spain’s upcoming Davis Cup semifinal against the United States. “I have to recover and I’ll be back once the pain is gone,” Nadal said in a website posting linked to his Twitter feed. The 11-time Grand Slam champion has been out of action since losing in the sec-ond round of Wimbledon in late June. “I have missed the Olympics and the U.S. Open in the last few weeks, two of the most important tournaments of the year and that I really wanted to play,” Nadal said. “I really want to be back competing and enjoying the tennis tour, but I have many years in front of me and my knee needs some rest.” Originally, doctors told the Spaniard he had tendinitis in his left knee and needed to rest 15 days. Nadal’s statement said since the tear was diagnosed he has been receiving treat-ment that includes medi-cation, physical therapy and a rehabilitation program. “I feel better after the meeting with my doctors and happy knowing that the evolution of the past weeks has been positive and surgery has been avoided,” he said. This isn’t the first time Nadal’s knees have forced him to take a break. In 2009, he took a hiatus, recovered and came back stronger than ever. The season-ending ATP World Tour finals begin in London on Nov. 5. I have missed the Olympics and the U.S. Open in the last few weeks, two of the most important tournaments of the year and that I really wanted to play,” Nadal said. “I really want to be back competing and enjoying the tennis tour, but I have many years in front of me and my knee needs some rest.” Originally, doctors told the Spaniard he had tendinitis in his left knee and needed to rest 15 days. This isn’t the first time Nadal’s knees have forced him to take a break. In 2009, he took a hiatus, recovered and came back stronger than ever.
“I rally want to be back competing and enjoying the ten-nis tour, but I have many years in front of me and my knee needs
some rest.”--Rafael Nadal
Nikolay Davydenko wants equalityNEW YORK -- After blowing a two-set lead and losing to Mardy Fish in five at the U.S. Open on Thursday, Nikolay Davydenko offered a solution for avoiding that in the future: Men should play best-of-three-set matches at Grand Slam tournaments and in Davis Cup. Davydenko, a 31-year-old Russian, revived a familiar debate, too, by asking during a postmatch interview with The Associated Press, “Why (do) girls play best-of-three sets, and we should play best-of-five sets, and have the same prize money?” “Why are we playing five-set matches? We need to play best of three in Grand Slams. Everybody will support (that idea, even Roger) Federer. For Federer, it’s easy to win in one hour, two sets. No need to run (for) a third set,” Davydenko said.Against the 23rd-seeded Fish, Davydenko faded over the last three sets and lost their second-round match 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-1, 6-2.It was the tournament-record 10th time this year at Flushing Meadows that a man dropped the first two sets before coming back for a victory. And it’s only Day 4. “For sure, you need to be strong physically for long matches,” Davydenko said. He suggested that all men’s events, including Davis Cup, should be limited to three-set matches, the way most of the week-in, week-out ATP tournaments are. “In Davis Cup, there are matches Friday, Saturday, Sunday -- every day, five-set matches. Me? I am too tired for this,” Davydenko said. “Easier to be best of three every tournament.” “In Davis Cup, there are matches Friday, Saturday, Sunday -- every day, five-set matches.
06sportNews ON THURSDAYTENNIS
MARCH 14, 2012
Andy Murray into Open finalNEW YORK -- Dealing with
20 mph wind that blew a changeover chair onto
the U.S. Open court on one point and yanked his hat off during another, Andy Murray navigated his way into his fifth Grand Slam finalNow he’ll try to win his first Grand Slam title -- and first for any British man in 76 years. Adapting to the conditions far better than his oppo-nent did, Olympic cham-pion Murray came back to beat mistake-prone Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 5-7, 6-2, 6-1, 7-6 (7) in a rain-delayed and wind-swept U.S. Open semifinal Saturday. “It was brutal,” Murray said about his 3-hour, 58-minute victory. “Hard to describe. You had to focus for every single point. ... Some of the hardest conditions I’ve ever played in, for sure, and I come from Scotland, so that’s saying something.” De-fending champion Novak Djok-ovic and fourth-seeded David Ferrer saw their match sus-pended in the first set with Ferrer ahead, 5-2. They will resume play at 11 a.m. ET Sunday, and the men’s final will be played on Monday -- something that has happened at every U.S. Open since 2008. Tournament referee Brian Earley came out on court and told the players and the chair umpire that they needed to stop. As some spectators at Arthur
Ashe Stadium booed or whistled, an announcement over the loud-speakers said: “At this time, we ask you to please make your way out of the stadium in an orderly fashion.” “I would say we’re get-ting very tired of having Monday finals,” tournament director Da-vid Brewer said. Unlike at Wim-bledon and the Australian Open,
the U.S. Open does not have a roof to protect any court used for tournament matches. It’s also the only Grand Slam tournament that schedules two men’s semi-finals on Saturday, which leaves less room for scheduling flex-ibility when there is disruptive weather. Next year, for the first time, a day off will be inserted between the semifinals and final, either by shifting the semis to Friday or by changing the title match to Monday.Brewer said he did consider moving the Ferrer-Djokovic match to another court
and playing it at the same time as Murray-Berdych, but “we thought the only way to go was to keep them back-to-back” in Ashe out of deference to ticket-holders, TV partners and viewers around the world. This event is the first major since the 2004 French Open with neither Roger Federer nor Rafael Nadal in the
semifinals. Federer was beaten by Berdych the quarterfinals, while Nadal did not enter the field, sidelined by a partially torn tendon in his left knee. Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have com-bined to win 29 of the last 30 major titles, a stretch that began at the 2005 French Open. The third-seeded Murray will get yet another chance to put his name on that list. That means the men’s final can’t be played until Monday That means the men’s each of the past four years in New York.
Andy Murray defeats Tomas Berdych in four sets to advance to the U.S. Open final
NEWPORT, R.I. -- Five-time major champion Martina Hingis, 1991 Wimbledon winner Michael Stich and doubles star Helena Sukova are among the nominees for the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Hingis, the youngest woman to be ranked No. 1, retired for the second time in 2007, when she was given a two-year suspension for testing positive for cocaine at Wimbledon. Hingis denied taking the drug but did not appeal the ruling. Others nominees for the hall’s class of 2013 announced Thursday are Thelma Coyne Long, a Grand Slam champion in the 1930s to 1950s, and three nominees in the contributor category: ESPN broadcaster Cliff Drysdale, Charlie Pasarell and Ion Tiriac.Voting for the hall’s class of 2013 will take place over the next several months. The induction ceremony is July 13.
Martina Hingis nominated for Hall
U.S. Open women’s final postponedThe U.S. Open wom-en’s singles final has been postponed until Sunday because of rain in the forecast. The match between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka was originally scheduled for Saturday night, when the National Weather Service is pre-dicting an 80 percent chance of rain. Tourna-ment officials will an-nounce Sunday’s match time by 7 p.m. ET Satur-day. Weather permitting, this will mark the fourth time in the last five years the women’s final has
been played on Sunday, with 2010 the only year in that stretch the cham-pionship was decided on its originally scheduled day. All of which is fine for Williams, who has been in the mix for three
of those finals, and said she’s become much bet-ter at going with the flow over the years. “I have really gotten out of being so into routines because it can really drive some-one bananas,” Williams
said. “I’ve been on the verge of going bananas because I have to have this, this, this. It wasn’t helping me win. It wasn’t helping me lose. It has nothing to do with that. I have kind of chilled off on that.” Andy Mur-ray and Tomas Berdych started play in the men’s semifinals more than an hour late Saturday, after heavy rain and a torna-do warning. A storm hit Flushing Meadows at about 10 a.m., dumping showers that continued past 11 a.m and 2010 supposed to be on court.
Unseeded pair wins mixed doublesNEW YORK -- A last-second addition to the U.S. Open mixed doubles field, Ekaterina Makarova and Bruno Soares are now Grand Slam champions. The unseeded duo beat Kveta Peschke and Marcin Matkowski 6-7 (8), 6-1, 12-10 tiebreak in Thursday’s final. Soares, a 30-year-old Brazilian doubles specialist, had turned down Ma-karova before the Open because he was set to play with his regular partner, Australian Jarmila Gajdosova. But with the minutes ticking down to sign up for the tourna-ment, he realized they didn’t have a good enough rank-ing to get in. If he teamed with Makarova, with whom he had played a couple of times before, they’d get in.Soares sent his coach scrambling to try to find the Rus-sian on the practice courts.“ He went running all the way over there and talked to her and called me like 30 seconds to go and said, ‘You can sign,’” Soares recalled. “So very last minute, 11:59, I signed us in. I guess it work out.” In the first round, they upset the second-seeded team of Lisa Raymond and Mike Bryan. In the second round, they eliminated the other Bryan brother, Bob, and ended Kim Clijsters’ career.
David Savic banned for match-fixingLAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Serbian tennis player David Savic was found guilty of match-fixing and had his life ban confirmed by world sport’s highest court on Thurs-day. The Court of Arbitration for Sport said its panel found it was proven that Savic “made invitations to another tennis player to fix the outcome” of matches.
Tourist arrested at U.S. OpenNEW YORK -- An Ecuadorean tourist who stormed a U.S. Open court in search of an autograph following a match between defending champion Novak Djok-ovic and Stanislas Wawrinka was arrested, authorities said Thursday. Damian Proano, of Quito, was awaiting arraignment Thursday in criminal court on charges of wrongly being on a playing area of a major venue sport-ing event, Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said. Proano raced onto the court at the Louis Arm-strong Stadium on Wednesday evening just after the match had ended and while Djokovic, the tournament favorite, and Wawrinka were still there, prosecutors said. He was grabbed by security and was arrested, they said. No information was available on whether Proano had an attorney, and there was no telephone number associated with his address in Quito. Brown said that it was possible Proano, 40, was just an overzealous fan but it’s important to be cautious, recalling how in 1993 tennis pro Monica Seles was stabbed in the back by a spectator during a match in Hamburg, Germany.
07sportNews ON THURSDAYOLYMPIC
MARCH 14, 2012
Sprinter Allyson Felix enjoys slow time
Sept. 4 was the last big day in a long summer of big days for American sprinter Allyson Fe-
lix. On Tuesday morning, Felix was named a finalist for the Women’s Sports Foundation’s Sportswoman of the Year award, along with ten-nis star Serena Williams, swimmer Missy Franklin, gymnast Gabrielle Douglas and skier Lindsey Vonn. On Tuesday afternoon, she won her final 200-meter race of the sea-son, running a meet-record 22.35 seconds at the IAAF World Chal-lenge in Zagreb, Croatia, to defeat Jamaica’s Aleen Bailey and fellow American Charonda Williams. All this following the 26-year-old’s standout performance at the London Olympics, where she finished as the Games’ most decorated women’s track and field athlete, with golds in the 200, the 4x100 relay and the 4x400 relay. When Felix returns home to Los Angeles from Croatia, she will begin a full month away
from training. It is a well-earned respite that Felix looks forward to at the end of each season. “Once our season is over, there is a month where I totally stay away from the track and the gym,” she said. “I might ride my bike by the beach or play tennis or Rollerblade, but I do nothing sport-specific and no weights for a whole month.” To understand why Felix is so excited about lying low, you have to under-stand how hard she works during the other 11 months of the year. “Normally, I spend five hours a day training,” said Felix, who works out primarily at UCLA. “An hour of warm-up, then two hours of speed or endurance work on the track, then a break before going into the gym for the last two hours.” On the track, her workouts are specific to her goals. With the Olympics in the rearview mirror, her focus will be on the world championships, and she will be targeting specific times.
Allyson Felix, who captured gold in the 200 meters and in two relays in London, normally trains five hours a day
Felix is also focused on winning world titles in the 100 and 400 races, which she has yet to do. “My career has been a lot about being a versatile sprinter,” Felix said. “While we always work from a base of conditioning, training for the 100-meter focuses on speed, and training for the 400-meter focuses on endurance. I just want to run faster and continue to progress.” Felix also
works toward those goals in the gym. She is particularly fond of plyometrics (explosive movements, such as box jumps, used to increase speed, quick-ness and power) and the Olympic lifts (the snatch and the clean and jerk). Felix gets two days “off” per week; on Wednesdays, for example, she does a 30-minute run to boost recovery. she always keeps healthy snacks handy.
Allyson Felix, who captured gold in the 200 meters and in two relays in London, nor-mally trains five hours a day.
Oscar Pistorius stunned in 200 finalLONDON -- A month after his groundbreaking Olympic debut, Os-car Pistorius was reeling from a stun-ning upset Sunday in the London Paralympics.The “Blade Runner” had never been beaten over 200 me-ters until Brazilian sprinter Alan Ol-iveira came storming down the home straight to win by 0.07 seconds and dethrone the icon of the Paralympics. Pistorius later accused Oliveira of bending the rules. Having won his own legal battle to compete wear-ing carbon-fiber blades alongside able-bodied rivals, Pistorius sug-gested that Oliveira ran with longer prosthetics than should be allowed. Oliveira won in 21.45 seconds af-ter overtaking Pistorius at the line at Olympic Stadium in front of a capac-ity 80,000-strong crowd. “Not taking away from Alan’s performance -- he’s a great athlete -- but these guys are a lot taller and you can’t compete (with the) stride length,” Pistorius said in a broadcast interview. “You saw how far he came back. We aren’t racing a fair race. I gave it my best. The IPC (International Paralympic Committee) have their regulations. The regulations (allow) that athletes can make themselves unbelievably high. “We’ve tried to address the issue with them in the weeks up to this and it’s just been falling on deaf ears.” For Pistorius, it is “ridiculous” that Oliveira could win after being
meters adrift at the 100-meter mark. “He’s never run a 21-second race and I don’t think he’s a 21-second ath-lete,” Pistorius said. “I’ve never lost a 200-meter race in my career.”Oliveira insisted he had not broken the rules, and expressed disappoint-ment with Pistorius’ criticism. “He is a really great idol, and to listen to that coming from a really great ath-lete is really difficult,” Oliveira said through a translator. “I don’t know who he’s picking a fight with, it’s not with me.” Oliveira was backed by Paralympic leaders. IPC officials met with Pistorius after the race. The sec-ond half of Pistorius’ year in London is not running to script.
Badminton pair banned 4 monthsJAKARTA, Indonesia -- Indonesia’s leading women’s badminton pair was banned for four months by the national association on Wednesday for their involvement in the play-to-lose scandal at the London Olympics. Greysia Polii and Meiliana Jauhari were disqualified from the games along with the Chinese world champions and two South Korean teams for trying to deliberately
lose group matches to gain an easier path through the knockout stages. Yacob Rusdi-anto, secretary gen-eral of the association, known as PBSI, said the same ban was given to coach Paulus Firman.
They are banned from participating in all na-tional and international tournaments until Dec. 3. Polii also will miss this month’s National Sports Games where she was to have repre-sented Jakarta province.
Usain Bolt may get shot in friendlySir Alex Ferguson might not be signing Usain Bolt, but he is ready to let the sprinting superstar loose on Real Madrid. Ferguson told Inside United magazine on Wednesday that he would consider inviting Bolt to play in next year’s Real Madrid Leg-ends match. A lifelong Manchester United fan, Bolt has already been to Old Trafford since his triple gold medal-winning exploits, telling the crowd ahead of last month’s 3-2 win over Fulham that they needed to per-suade Ferguson to sign him. “He’s been to Carrington a couple of times and he did help Ronaldo with his sprinting,” Ferguson told Inside United. “He’s a bit of a character and a big United fan. “But it’s interesting he says he would like to play in a charity game.
08sportNews ON THURSDAYOLYMPIC
MARCH 14, 2012
Alex Zanardi wins Paralympics goldLONDON -- Alex Zanardi just loves to race. But what he really likes to do is win. The former Formula One driver took the Paralympic gold medal Wednesday in paracycling -- a hand cycle powered by the arms -- at the Brands Hatch race track, posting a time of 24 minutes, 50.22 seconds. The victory capped an incredible jour-ney for the 45-year-old who almost died in a horrific ac-
cident at a 2001 CART race in Germany. “It’s an amazing feeling,” a clearly exuberant Zanardi said. “I’m really, re-ally happy for the result.”Zanardi celebrated by sliding out of his cycle and lifting it over his head with one hand and raising his other arm, fist clenched, to the sky. It was unusual. It was on purpose.“I’m Alex Zanardi,” he said with a huge grin, his Ital-ian accent dragging each
syllable. “I always have to come up with something. I have a little bit of a big head.” Zanardi’s journey to the Paralympics began at the American Memorial 500 on Sept. 15, 2001, at the Euro-speedway Lausitz in Ger-many -- the only American-based series to go forward on the weekend after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Zanardi, a former two-time CART champion, had had a difficult
season. He started 22nd in a field of 27, but the car was responding well. He was enjoying the drive, passing one car after another, until with 13 laps to go he was in the lead. Zanardi went into his final pit stop and the crew chief waved him off urging him to “Go, go, go!” But as he built up speed to get back into the race, the car spun out of control and he veered onto the track. Canadian driver
Alex Tagliani, traveling at close to 200 mph (320 kph), could not avoid him. The re-inforced carbon fiber cone of Tagliani’s car sliced through the area beside Zanardi’s left front wheel and cockpit, the weakest part of the vehicle. On the track, Dr. Terry Tram-mel slipped and fell as he raced to the wreckage. He thought he had fallen in oil, but it was Zanardi’s blood.
Tianna Madison sued by parentsCLEVELAND -- The Ohio parents of Olympic gold medalist Tianna Madison have sued her, saying she spread stories they had been selfish and bullying and cheated her finan-cially. Elyria residents Robert and Jo Ann Madison filed the libel, slander and defamation lawsuit Thursday in Cuy-ahoga County Common Pleas Court in Cleveland. They say they’ve been loving, supportive and generous parents. Tianna Madison was on the winning 4x100-meter relay track team at the Summer Olympics in London. She won the gold with Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight and Carmelita Jeter in world-record time. The lawsuit also names her husband, John Bartoletta. The Tampa, Fla., couple have an unpublished phone number and couldn’t be reached for comment Friday. The lawsuit doesn’t mention an attorney representing them. The parents’ lawsuit seeks more than $25,000 each in compensatory and punitive damages.
Lance Armstrong can’t run in ChicagoCHICAGO -- Lance Armstrong’s lifetime ban by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency will keep him from running next month’s Chicago Marathon. Marathon officials said Friday that Armstrong never formally registered for the Oct. 7 race. But he was considering running with Livestrong’s charity team, runners who do the marathon as a fund-raiser for the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Preventing Armstrong from running with them is “frustrating and unfortunate,” foundation president and CEO Doug Ul-man said, and could harm the group’s fundraising efforts. The marathon is sanctioned by USA Track and Field, and Armstrong’s ban prevents him from entering any events organized, authorized or sanctioned by federations that follow the World Anti-Doping Agency’s rules. Ironman France barred Armstrong for similar reasons after USADA filed doping charges against him in June. “The code is very clear regarding the ineligibility of sanctioned athletes to compete in other sports,” USATF spokeswoman Jill Geer said in an email. “USATF is a signatory to the WADA code, and we confirmed with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency that Mr. Armstrong’s ban extends to track and field, road running and all of our sport’s disciplines.” USATF sanction-ing is important for the race beyond increasing its pres-tige. It guarantees that race results are formally recog-nized around the world, including records. Armstrong has long denied doping, but chose last month not to fight the USADA charges. USADA wiped out 14 years of his results -- including his record seven Tour de France titles -- and barred him for life after concluding he used banned sub-stances. One accolade Armstrong may be able to keep is his bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Games.
Navy lieutenant wins Paralympic goldLONDON -- Exactly a year after losing his sight while on military service in Af-ghanistan, American Brad Snyder captured swimming gold at the London Paralym-pics by winning the 400-meter freestyle. Snyder won his second gold of the Games in convincing style, beating Enhamed En-hamed of Spain by nearly six seconds in a time of 4 minutes, 32.41 seconds in front of many of the Navy lieutenant’s U.S. servicemen friends. “It’s really great that they were able to make it today and be with me,” the 28-year-old
Snyder said. “The crowd is so emotional, it’s hard to put that out of my mind. “But after the military, I am conditioned to do that quite well.” Snyder was blinded by a blast after he stepped
on an improvised explosive device laid by Taliban while on duty in Kandahar. Sny-der, of St. Petersburg, Fla., is one of many servicemen
in London using sports to aid their recovery after be-ing injured on the front lines of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. “This was a whim of a dream last February so for it to come true, it is very,
very exciting,” said Snyder, who has also won gold in the 100 freestyle and silver in the 50. “I am abso-lutely elated with the outcome.” Also Fri-day, Esther Vergeer of the Netherlands won her fourth straight Paralympics title in the wheelchair ten-nis women’s singles
with a 6-0, 6-3 victory over compatriot Aniek van Koot, taking her remarkable nine-year winning streak to 470 matches.
Alberto Contador on verge of titleMADRID -- Alberto Conta-dor kept the overall leader’s red jersey and is closing in on his second Span-ish Vuelta title after Denis Menchov won Saturday’s punishing 20th stage. Ale-jandro Valverde and Joaquin Rodriguez, Contador’s closest pursuers in the gen-eral classification, finished ahead of the Spanish leader but the difference wasn’t enough to close the gap. Contador finished 4 minutes, 15 seconds behind Menchov to run his overall time to 82:14:52, which was 1:16 quicker than Valverde and 1:37 ahead of Rodriguez before Sunday’s last stage, a largely proces-sional 71-mile ride into Madrid. Contador is on the verge of a fifth major victory to go with a pair of Tour de France titles and the 2008 Giro d’Italia, which he won before his first Vuelta victory later that same year.
“Yes, now the Vuelta is practi-cally won,” the Madrid native said. “It has been very difficult and we’ve had to hold our head high and our legs strong.” On the bending climb to the weather station atop the Bola del Mundo, Contador was just in front of Valverde and Rodriguez as the peloton eased from smooth pavement to an uneven surface as throngs of fans choked the
road. Rodriguez made a late dash as the rid-ers dug in and the peloton slowed to a crawl at times while navigating the 23 percent angled climb to the finish. With Rodriguez ahead of Contador, Valverde also put to-gether a push and finished behind Rodriguez but the difference was minimal and the pair failed to make a significant dent in Conta-dor’s advantage. Kevin de Weert of Belgium was 42 seconds behind Menchov in third ahead of Sweden’s Fredrik Kessiakoff.
09sportNews ON THURSDAYGOLF
MARCH 14, 2012
Rory McIlroy rises to top at BMWRory Wins 2nd Straight FedEx Event
CARMEL, Ind. -- Rory McIl-roy faced the strongest col-lection of contenders at any golf tournament this year Sunday at the BMW Cham-pionship. It was no contest. McIlroy fine-tuned his swing and missed only one fairway at soggy Crooked Stick, pow-ering his way to a 5-under 67 to win his second straight Fe-dEx Cup playoff event. They followed a record win at the PGA Championship, giving him three wins in his last four starts to establish himself as the dominant player in golf. He became the first player since Tiger Woods in 2009 to win in consecutive weeks on the PGA Tour, and with his sixth career tour win, he joined Woods and Jack Nick-laus as the only players to win that many at age 23. “The more you put yourself in this position, and the more you win and the more you pick up trophies, it becomes normal,” McIlroy said after his two-shot
win over Phil Mickelson and Lee Westwood. “And it feels like this is what you’re sup-posed to do.” For the longest time, this was what Woods used to do. Even more dis-
concerting for everyone else, Boy Wonder was expecting to win all along. “I don’t think I’m quite there yet,” McIlroy said. “But I’m getting to that stage where I’m thinking,
‘This is what I should be do-ing. I should be lifting a tro-phy at the end of the week.’ It’s been great. The last four, five weeks have been incredi-ble, some of the best golf that I’ve ever played. I’m going to try and keep the run going for as long as possible.” Never mind that Mickelson and Vi-jay Singh -- Hall of Famers with 74 tour wins and seven majors between them -- were one shot ahead. Or that West-wood, a former world No. 1, was playing alongside. Or that Woods was right behind. McIlroy made back-to-back birdies around the turn to emerge from a four-way tie, and he turned back one last challenge from Westwood and Mickelson with clutch pars. The 23-year-old from Northern Ireland didn’t make a bogey until the 18th hole.“By that time, I had sort of done enough,” he said. Mick-elson and Westwood tried to chase him down on the back
nine at Crooked Stick, only to make mistakes when they couldn’t afford any. West-wood, who lost to McIlroy in the semifinals of the Match Play Championship in Febru-ary, caught him with a birdie on the par-3 13th. But the weak area of his game showed up at the wrong time -- a poor chip on the 14th for bogey, another pedestrian chip on the par-5 15th that led to par. He wound up with a 69. “I played with him when he was 13, and you could see it then,” West-wood said. “He’s just matur-ing all the time, as he will do. And he’s a very, very good player.” Mickelson, tied for the lead going into the final round, was one shot behind when his approach flew the green on No. 12 and he had to scramble for bogey. Mickel-son made back-to-back bird-ies late in the round to get within two shots of the lead, but he badly missed a 3-foot.
Rory McIlroy faced the strongest collection of contend-ers at any golf tournament this year Sunday at the BMW Championship.
off the Crooked Stick course on Thursday feeling pretty good about his eagle-birdie fin-
ish at the BMW Championship. He walked out of the scoring trailer moments later not in as good of a mood. McDowell, the 2010 U.S. Open champion, was the victim of golf’s precarious rules, incurring a two-stroke penalty on his final hole (the par-5 ninth) because he grazed a leaf while addressing his ball in a bunker. It is the same rule that snagged Carl Pettersson during the final round of the PGA Championship last month. “It’s a very unusual situ-ation when I’ve got a small branch behind my ball with a leaf attached to it, and in the process of ad-dressing my golf ball, I grazed the top of the leaf,” McDowell said. “I’m deemed to have touched a loose impediment in a hazard, which is a two-shot penalty. “Despite the fact that nothing moved, the lie hasn’t improved, I just didn’t give the branch enough respect. I’ve never seen that scenario be-
fore.” It happened to Pettersson on the first hole of the final round during the PGA at Kiawah, where he was in contention. During his backswing, with his ball in a hazard, he moved a leaf, putting him in violation of Rule 13-4c. Technically, he moved a loose impediment in a hazard. The penalty cost Pet-tersson two shots and was the difference between him finishing second behind Rory McIlroy and tied for third. McDowell had just holed a fairway shot for an eagle at the par-4 eight hole Thursday, then hit his second shot into a bunker at the ninth. He blasted out and made the putt for what he thought was a birdie and a 6-under 66. “Getting into that bunker, my caddie (Ken Comboy) said to me, ‘You know you can’t touch that branch, right?’ “ Mc-Dowell said. “I thought he meant of course I can’t remove that branch. I just didn’t give it enough respect, and the second that I grazed it, we both knew perhaps we might be in trouble. “It was just one of those moments where I’ve never seen that
scenario before. It’s a tough lesson.” Instead of a 66, McDowell consulted with officials in the scor-ing tent and signed for a 68. He is four strokes be-hind tournament leaders McIlroy, Webb Simpson, Bo Van Pelt and Graham DeLaet. McDowell was involved in another rules situation earlier this year at a different tournament sponsored by BMW, the European Tour’s flagship PGA Championship at Wentworth. His drive on the final hole of the first round came to rest on a bed of leaves. While trying to get to his ball to identify it, from a distance of 10 feet away, McDowell was deemed to have made the ball move while stepping on leaves. The ball barely moved, but it was phoned in by a television viewer, and after McDowell and officials reviewed, it was determined he was in violation. McDowell was penalized one stroke because the ball moved -- and another because he did not move it back. “The rules are there for everyone’s protection,” McDow-ell said. “But it’s a harsh one.”
Peter Hanson wins KLM OpenHILVERSUM, Netherlands -- Peter Hanson of Sweden eagled the final hole to win the KLM Open, his fifth European Tour victory. Hanson holed a 35-footer on the 18th green Sun-day for a final-round 67 to win by two strokes with a 14-under 266 on the Hilversumsche course. Spain’s Pablo Larrazabal (70) and Scotland’s Richie Ramsay (67) shared second place on 12 under. An emotional Hanson dedicated his victory to his young son, Tim, who turns 2 in November and was hospitalized on Friday with respiratory problems. The Swede was on the verge of with-drawing from the event, but doctors advised him that he would be better off remaining in the Netherlands. “It
has been an up and down week with my little son ill in hospital, so it just puts golf in to perspective. You also don’t think straight when a family may be ill, as they are the most im-portant thing,” Hanson said. “I had been on the phone every hour to my wife, and she was the one convincing me to stay. “But hopefully now when I get home to Orlando, Tim will be a little better and also out of hospi-tal and back home.” Hanson moved four places to eighth on the Race to Dubai money list. The victory is the fifth for a member of the Euro-pean Ryder Cup team on either the European Tour or PGA Tour since qualifying ended last month. Paul Lawrie secured his place in the team
with victory in the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles, while Sergio Garcia claimed the Wynd-ham Championship. Rory McIlroy then won for a third time this year on the PGA Tour at the Deutsche Bank Championship. “I have been watching the golf from the States in the evenings and Lee (Westwood) is playing well, Rory (McIlroy) has been playing fantastic, Ian (Poulter) and Graeme (McDowell) and Sergio (Garcia) also winning has been good for the team,” Hanson said. “So it feels like the team is playing well and everyone is trying to peak for the Ryder Cup.” Ramsay, who recently won in Switzerland, will return to his Atlanta home later this week.
The 29-year old from Scotland, who will be married in less than two weeks, has risen to 17th on the Race to Dubai money list. Richard Finch improved 36 places to share eighth place after holing his second shot for an albatross at No. 18. The English-man hit a 6-iron from 213 yards out in a round of a 64. “I have been watching the golf from the States in the evenings and Lee (Westwood) is playing well, Rory (McIlroy) has been playing fantastic, Ian (Poulter) and Graeme (McDowell) and Sergio (Garcia) also winning has been good for the team,” Hanson said. “So it feels like the team is playing well and everyone is trying to peak for the Ryder Cup.”
Olazabal expected Hunter MahanHILVERSUM, Netherlands -- Hunter Mahan’s ab-sence from the U.S. Ryder Cup team surprised European captain Jose Maria Olazabal. Olazabal, in Hilversum getting ready for this week’s Dutch Open, was sure Steve Strick-er and Jim Furyk would receive wild cards. U.S. captain Davis Love III gave the other two to Dustin Johnson and Brandt Snedeker, pass-ing over Mahan, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour this year and part of the last five Ryder Cup teams. “They are very solid picks,” Olazabal said Wednesday. “All the American players from nine to 14 on the list were all very solid and Davis could have picked any four. “Snedeker has pretty much been play-ing well from the start of the summer and all the way to the FedEx Series. However, Mahan has not been playing all that well, so (Love) went for form and in that regard he has my respect.”The Ryder Cup is Sept. 28-30 at Medinah out-side Chicago. Olazabal, who announced his team last week, will compete with two.
11sportNews ON THURSDAYA HEAD OF THE GAME
MARCH 14, 2012
DeMarco fells Molina in 44 secondsLightweight titlist gets to challenger quickly for a TKO, another dramatic end
OAKLAND, Calif. -- In HBO’s perfect world, the winner of the fight between lightweight titlist
Antonio DeMarco and mandatory chal-lenger John Molina would come out of Saturday’s fight in good shape, with no bumps or bruises, able to get back in the ring Nov. 3 to defend against Adrien Broner, who has a date from the network but no opponent. DeMarco made that possible in emphatic fashion, stopping Molina in just 44 seconds at the Oracle Arena on the Andre Ward-Chad Dawson undercard. What many considered to be an evenly matched, potentially exciting fight was over just like that. DeMarco, making his second title defense, rocked Molina with a straight left hand almost immediately, sending him staggering into the ropes. Molina covered up in the corner and tried to avoid the shots by bending over, but DeMarco continued to fire with abandon. He landed more than a dozen unanswered blows, forc-ing referee Jack Reiss to step in and stop the fight. “I’ve been working on this for a long time. We’ve been working very hard,” DeMarco said. “Molina is a very
strong man. I am a totally different man inside the ring. I hurt people, and I jump on them.” It was a stunning end for Mo-lina (24-2, 19 KOs), 29, of Covina, Ca-lif., whose six-fight winning streak came to an end without a sweat being broken. “He got caught in the first round with a left. He got buzzed,” said Joe Goos-sen, Molina’s trainer. “Then DeMarco threw a lot of punches. John should have taken a knee, but it’s hard to think when you’re in a position like that.” DeMarco (28-2-1, 21 KOs), 26, of Mexico, dis-pensed with the drama that he needed to win the title. He won his 135-pound belt in comeback fashion in October when, trailing widely on the scorecards through 10 rounds, he rallied to stop a badly bleeding Jorge Linares for the upset vic-tory. He made his first defense in March, at home in Mexico, scoring a fifth-round knockout of Miguel Roman. “I am very willing to fight Broner,” DeMarco said. “That will be a great fight. I’ll fight him tomorrow if he wants.” HBO senior vice president Kery Davis said he would try to finalize the DeMarco-Broner fight with the promoters as soon as possible.
Antonio DeMarco made very quick work of John Molina on Satur-day in Oakland, Calif., stopping him 44 seconds into Round 1.
B.J. Upton’s three HRs back James Shields in Rays’ victoryST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- B.J. Up-ton’s power display overshadowed a tremendous pitching performance by teammate James Shields. Upton hit three home runs, Shields threw a two-hitter and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Texas Rangers 6-0 on Sunday. “You kind of dream about doing things like that and they don’t happen very often,” Up-ton said. “And to do that against a Ranger ballclub that pitches pretty well is a great feeling.” Upton hit solo homers in the first, fourth and sixth innings. He struck out in sec-ond, and received a standing ova-tion before hitting a broken-bat grounder to third in the eighth.“They were talking to me about (hitting a fourth home run) in the
dugout, but I wasn’t trying to do that,” Upton said. “I broke that bat and I wasn’t too happy about that.” Upton joined Evan Longoria (2008) and Jonny Gomes (2005) as the only Tampa Bay players with three-homer games. “He’s player of the game as far as I’m concerned,” Shields said. “Three home runs in one game ... it’s prob-ably the first time he’s ever done that in a game. He’s really locked in right now. He’s one of the guys that, I told everyone this year, he’s my pick to click and he’s really showing it down the stretch here.”ampa Bay took two of three in the weekend series against the AL West leaders. The first two games went extra innings.
Mark Teixeira out at least four gamesBALTIMORE -- Mark Teixeira will miss at least four games due to his injured left calf and won’t return to the New York Yankees’ lineup un-til Friday at the earliest. Yankees manager Joe Girardi said Teixeira will have an MRI on Monday and acknowledged his concern that the star first baseman could be done for the rest of the regular season. “There is part of me that wonders that,” Girardi said of Teixeira’s set-back resulting in a prolonged ab-sence. “There is basically 3½ weeks left. If it does go back to square one, then I’d really wonder.” Teix-eira was optimistic that he would play again this year. “That would be the worse-, worse-case scenar-io,” Teixeira said on the possibil-ity of being done for the season.Teixeira missed 10 games with the calf injury before starting Saturday night against the Baltimore Ori-oles. New York trailed by one run with runners on first and third and
one out in the ninth inning when Teixeira busted it down the line to try to beat a game-ending double play. Teixeira was called out, but replays clearly showed that his headfirst slide beat the relay throw. “I think that is when he really felt it,” Girardi said. “He talked about really feeling it. He busted his rear end to get down there. It is unfor-tunate.” After the 5-4 loss, Teixeira said he knew he had hurt the calf again. Teixeira also questioned the integrity of the umpires, saying that they might have made some calls because they wanted the game to end instead of a prolonged come-back. Teixeira said he expected to be fined for his comments. “There is frustration,” Girardi said. “I don’t worry about that.” In Teix-eira’s absence, Girardi expects to shift Nick Swisher from right field to first base. Steve Pearce is ex-pected to start occasionally against left-handed pitching.
Winner: Tampa Bay Rays’ pitching staff. The Rays completed a vital six-game homestand against the Yankees and Rangers by taking two of three from each team. Against the Rangers, the Rays held the ma-jors’ highest-scoring offense to five runs in 30 innings and a .141 average over three games. James Shields threw the two-hit shutout gem in Sunday’s 6-0 victory, walking nobody and striking out eight. When Shields is on, he can be as tough as any pitcher in the game. His outing works out to a Game Score of 91, just the 16th start of 2012 of 90-plus, and Shields owns two of those 16 starts. “Obviously, Sep-tember baseball is huge, and getting any kind of win is big,” Shields told MLB.com. “But against that lineup, as far as I’m concerned, that’s the best hitting lineup in the big
leagues, one through nine. Not to men-tion they have a lot of guys on the bench who can swing it, too. That’s a good hitting team over there. They can do some damage any time.” Loser: Chicago White Sox. A 3-3 week at home against the Twins and Royals is not the way to go about winning a division title. The White Sox are 4-9 over their past 13 games but still hold a 2-game lead over Detroit.
It’s still Chicago’s divi-sion to lose, but maybe not for long: They host the Tigers for four games beginning Monday. Pay attention to Thursday’s marquee matchup: Ver-lander versus Chris Sale. To make matters worse, it was Teixeira’s first game back since injuring his calf on Aug. 27 and he sat out Sunday’s game.
Winners and losers of the weekend
12sportNews ON THURSDAY MARCH 14, 2012
SPORTS
NEWS
>DeMarco fells Molina in 44 seconds
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> Rory McIlroy rises to top at BMW
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> Rory McIlroy rises to top at BMW
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Gabi hails Falcao as world’s best !Atletico Madrid
captain Gabi has de-scribed Radamel Fal-
cao as “the best No. 9 in the world” and said the striker can achieve all his ambitions without leaving the club. Falcao, 26, is valued at €60 million and has been linked with moves to Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester City in recent weeks. He was on the scoresheet as Colombia beat Uruguay 4-0 in World Cup qualifying on Friday. Gabi, speaking to Spanish daily AS, said Falcao had no intention of leaving the Vicente Calderon, adding: “He is the best No. 9 in the world and everyone wants to sign him. “I have spent lots of time with him - he is my room-mate. He is very ambitious and knows he can achieve things here. He is delighted to continue with Atletico... he is very happy to stay with us.” Falcao has
started the new season with a bang, scoring a hat-trickw against Athletic Bilbao in La Liga and Chelsea in the Eu-ropean Supercup. Gabi said Atletico had found a style of play that suited both the player and his team-mates, adding: “His confidence is sky high at the moment. “He has found his best style of play - moving around the penalty area, not coming deep to receive the ball as much. The team works a lot so that he is happy and gets the ball.” Former Atletico youth-teamer Gabi, 29, who often takes set-pieces for his club, said the players were working on capitalising on Falcao’s ability in the air even more. “His aerial power is brutal,” he said. “He is the best header of the ball in the world, well ahead of everyone else. We try to take advantage of that, to look for him.”
Radamel Falcao as “the best No. 9 in the world”
Khedira looking to show his worthReal Madrid star Sami Khedira does not believe the arrival of Michael Essien is a sign that Jose Mourinho has lost faith in his ability. Essien was a surprise arrival at the Bernabeu when he joined on a season-long loan from Chelsea, but Khedira says the Ghanaian was a replacement for Lassana Diarra, who has joined Anzhi Makhachkala.“Lassana Diarra has been sold,” Khedira told kicker. “You have not read much about that. The fact is we have had four or five defensive midfielders over the past few years. This year we have Xabi Alonso, Michael Essien and me.” The Germany internation-al said he wanted to show Mourinho he was “a man he can rely on” and added: “I want to try to exert more influence on the game and to make use of my attacking quali-ties.” The 25-year-old scored four times as Madrid clinched the title last season, and said: “Those four
goals last season were better than the zero goals I scored in my first season for Real, but I believe I have not reached the end of my devel-opment.” Khedira expects a tough campaign, with the pressure on the club to become champions of Eu-rope for a tenth time. “The tasks are getting bigger every year,” he said. “If you win something with Real,
the fans expect even more the fol-lowing year. Now they say: ‘You have won the league. Prove that you are a great player’. “Lifting the Supercup over two matches against Barcelona was a good sign, but the league is a different competition and we have fallen behind already. “Fans and the club are hungry for that tenth Champions League title, and that title was always my goal, but it would be presumptuous to stake everything on that. Defend-ing our league title is a big task as well.” Madrid have been handed a difficult draw in the Champions League as they face Manchester City, Ajax and Borussia Dortmund in the group stage - but Khedira said he was relishing the challenge. “I was happy with the draw. It is great to compete against strong op-ponents. Manchester City is a top international team, Dortmund will not want to suffer another disap-pointing campaign and we have had our experience with Ajax,” he said. “I like playing those teams in the group stage more than playing Nicosia in the quarter-finals.” He added: “It is our duty to make it out of the group.” Sami Khedira Real Madrid.
