Todd Smith NY

Football: Real march on as AC Milan slump

2009-09-30 18:46:45Sports

Real Madrid’s big summer spendings continue their scoring spree in a 3-0 Champions League win over Marseille but fellow European giants AC Milan suffer a shock 1-0 home defeat to Swiss minnows FC Zurich.

In the central plaza, there was once an orgy of music, street dancing and revelry unmatched by any other nation in the Americas, Haitians say.

Football: Man Utd recover to beat Wolfsburg

2009-09-30 18:46:45Sports

Manchester United came a goal behind and shrugged off the early loss of Michael Owen to injury to beat German champions Wolfsburg 2-1 for their second victory in Champions League Group B.

Simon Katich missed out on a century by single run as he helped put Australia in a commanding position after the first day of the third Test against the West Indies.

Diego Maradona has threatened to quit as Argentina coach next week unless certain terms and conditions are met.

F1: Alonso joins Ferrari on three-year deal

2009-09-30 18:46:45Sports

Spain’s Fernando Alonso signs for Ferrari on a three-year deal, the Formula One giants announce on Wednesday. He will replace 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen from next season.

Former world number one Justine Henin won an all-Belgian clash with Yanina Wickmayer to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open on a day in which second and third seeds Dinara Safina and Svetlana Kuznetsova fell by the wayside.

A giant leap of 146.5m from Gregor Schlierenzauer gives Austria a sensational Olympic gold in the men’s team ski jumping competition on Monday.

Alonso joins Ferrari on three-year deal

2009-09-30 13:39:00Sports

Spain’s Fernando Alonso signs for Ferrari on a three-year deal, the Formula One giants announce on Wednesday. He will replace 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen from next season.

One phone call brought the 41-year-old memory back to George Hopkins instantly, flooding him with the terror of having a .38-caliber pistol jabbed into his face.

Tiger Woods’ mother-in-law has been admitted to hospital in Florida in another twist in a saga which began when the superstar golfer crashed his car into a fire hyrdrant near his home on November 27.

F1: Massa takes the wheel after horror crash

2009-09-30 13:39:00Sports

Felipe Massa is back in the fast lane after his life-threatening crash at the Hungarian Grand Prix just nine weeks ago which placed his Formula One future in doubt.

The draw for the 2010 World Cup finals is complete with host nation South Africa facing Mexico, Uruguay and France, while holders Italy must play New Zealand, Paraguay and Slovakia.

Ten-man Germany score the winning goal in the second minute of injury time to beat Nigeria 3-2 and secure a quarterfinal showdown with Brazil at the under-20 World Cup in Egypt.

Cricket: Australia win thriller to reach semis

2009-09-30 13:39:00Sports

Australia scored a dramatic two-wicket win over Pakistan off the last ball of their match at Centurion Park on Wednesday to reach the semifinals of the Champions Trophy.

England captain John Terry braves the public eye despite continuing revelations about his private life, but his table-topping Chelsea team are held to a shock 1-1 draw at relegation-threatened Hull City.

Togo, which pulled out of the Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition after a terrorist attack on their team bus, have been suspended from taking part in the next two competitions.

Tennis: Sharapova reaches Tokyo quarters

2009-09-30 13:39:00Sports

Maria Sharapova stays on course for her first tournament victory since returning to the WTA Tour with a battling three-sets victory over Alisa Kleybanova in the Toray Pan Pacific Open on Wednesday.

A lawyer who left a videotape saying Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom would be responsible if anything happened to him masterminded his own death last year, a special United Nations commission said Tuesday after an eight-month investigation.

Manchester City are up to fifth place in the English Premier League table after a comfortable 2-0 home win over Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday.

Battling Sharapova reaches Tokyo quarters

2009-09-30 07:53:46Sports

Maria Sharapova stays on course for her first tournament victory since returning to the WTA Tour with a battling three-sets victory over Alisa Kleybanova in the Toray Pan Pacific Open on Wednesday.

A sweet sadness blankets Hector Mendez’s face, appropriate, perhaps, for a middle-aged man who has seen suffering and miracles at once.

BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica is confirmed as Renault’s new F1 driver from 2010 as a direct replacement for Ferrari-bound former world champion Fernando Alonso.

Golf: Harrington targets top spot in Europe

2009-09-30 07:53:46Sports

Padraig Harrington goes into Thursday’s Dunhill Links championship in Scotland still aiming to end the season as European number one.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon vowed Wednesday that his government “will act to the maximum of our capabilities” to restore order to the violent border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

Pakistan cricket is embroiled in a new controversy after the national team were accused of deliberately losing two games at the Champions Trophy by a government official, and the future of captain Younis Khan, above, is now in doubt.

Football: Jovetic double sinks Liverpool

2009-09-30 07:53:46Sports

Liverpool’s Champions League hopes take a blow as teenage Montenegro international Stevan Jovetic (left) scores both goals to give Italian side Fiorentina a deserved 2-0 Group E victory on Tuesday.

Second seed Serena Williams, above, storms into the semifinals of the season-ending WTA Championships in Doha, while sister and defending champion Venus keeps her slim hopes alive.

Barclays have agreed a new three-year title sponsorship deal with the English Premier League which will be worth around $135million to top-flight clubs.