International sport briefs
Valcke to make another trip to Brazil
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — FIFA yesterday said Secretary General Jerome Valcke will return to Brazil next week to visit three World Cup host cities — Manaus, Brasilia and Porto Alegre.
Valcke will make his latest trip to the host nation from Sunday-Tuesday and be accompanied by Brazilian Minister of Sport, Aldo Rebelo, deputy minister of sport, Luis Fernandes and Local Organizing Committee (LOC) head Ricardo Trade.
He will start out at the Arena Amazonia in Manaus, where last Friday a construction worker was killed in the third fatal accident to hit the venue.
Afterwards, Valcke will go on to the capital Brasilia, before heading south to Porto Alegre.
Thereafter, he will transfer to the southeastern city of Florianapolis to attend a pre-World Cup workshop for the 32 teams ahead of an LOC Board meeting on Friday.
Severe winds force postponement of BPL matches
MANCHESTER, United Kingdom (AFP) — Severe wind and rain affecting the north-west of England saw the Premier League matches at Manchester City and Everton due to take place yesterday both postponed.
Title contenders City were set to face Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium while, in nearby Liverpool, Everton were due to play Crystal Palace at Goodison Park.
But both matches were called off shortly before they were each due to start at 7:45 pm local time (1945GMT) as conditions deteriorated.
Following leaders Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday, City — three points off top spot — could have replaced the Blues at the top of the table had they beaten relegation-threatened Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium and other results gone in their favour.
However, Chelsea could still find themselves dropping down the table if second-placed Arsenal, currently two points adrift, defeat visitors Manchester United in yesterday’s match at the north London club’s Emirates Stadium.
Russian ski jumper injured in training fall
KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — Russian ski jumper Mikhail Maksimochkin was carried off the hill by paramedics yesterday night after falling during a landing while training for the individual large hill event at the Sochi Olympics.
Paramedics immobilised Maksimochkin with a neck and back brace and strapped him down on a stretcher before taking him away.
He was later taken from the RusSki Gorki Jumping Centre in an ambulance escorted by a police car. His condition was not immediately known.
Maksimochkin attempted to stand up after falling, his skis separated by at least 10 metres. He then collapsed on the icy landing area, and medical officials rushed to his aid.
The incident came after high winds delayed the start of the first round of training and forced the cancellation of a third round.
The training jumps continued after Maksimochkin was taken from the hill. He was the 37th of 70 scheduled jumpers in the round.
Russian pair claims second gold in Sochi
SOCHI, Russia (AFP) — World champions Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov claimed a second gold for themselves and the Olympic hosts last night as they led a Russian 1-2 in pairs figure skating.
Already team gold medallists they led all the way to seal the title ahead of teammates Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov with Germany’s Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy taking their second Olympic bronze.
Trankov, 30, fell to his knees with his fists clinched above his head and kissed the ice after their performance to the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar as Volosozhar, 27, buried her face in her hands with tears in her eyes.
They became the first couple to win on home ice since 1936.
Two-time winners Ludmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov, who won the first Olympic pairs title for the former Soviet Union in 1964 at Innsbruck, were in the crowd and rose to their feet to give the pairs a standing ovation.
The married pair defected to Switzerland in 1979.
Pistorius settles in alleged assault case
CENTURION, South Africa (AP) — Oscar Pistorius reached a settlement with a woman over an alleged assault case from 2009 because his lawyers advised him he could not fight civil and criminal legal battles at the same time, the spokeswoman for the Olympic athlete said yesterday.
Double-amputee runner Pistorius, who goes on trial on a murder charge next month, was arrested and accused of causing an injury to a guest at a party at his house five years ago after allegedly slamming a door and then punching it.
Pistorius family spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess said the settlement agreement was finalised late last year with Cassidy Taylor-Memmory. She accused Pistorius of assault in the September 2009 incident. Taylor-Memmory was reportedly injured in the leg when the door broke.
Burgess did not give any details of the settlement.
Pistorius will go on trial from March 3 on a charge of premeditated murder for the killing of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his home last February 14, and also faces other firearm-related charges at the trial at a high court in the South African capital, Pretoria. He denies murder and claims he shot Steenkamp by mistake after believing she was a dangerous nighttime intruder in his bathroom.