IN BRIEF (Page 24)
Soccer
Spurs bash final nail in Charlton's relegation coffin
LONDON: Charlton were relegated from the Premier League after losing 2-0 at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Monday. They follow already-relegated Watford through the trap door to the second division, leaving West Ham United, Wigan Athletic and Sheffield United to scrap it out to avoid joining them.
Tottenham's win lifted them into sixth place and into a UEFA Cup place, which they have a good chance of securing since they have a game in hand on the other contenders for Europe.
Charlton remain on 33 points with one game left. In the three-way fight to avoid the other relegation place, Wigan are on 35 with a game remaining. West Ham and Sheffield United both have 38, also with one game to play.
Cup hopefuls must get government support - AFC
KUALA LUMPUR: Countries bidding to host the 2011 Asian Cup must guarantee government support or face swift elimination, Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Mohamed Bin Hammam said.
Qatar, Iran and India are seeking the right to stage the 2011 event, with the winner to be announced on July 28, the day before the 2007 Asian Cup final in Jakarta.
"We have three candidates and definitely we have certain criteria and standards that must be met," Hammam told Reuters. "And this is a must. If any country cannot meet these requirements we would have no hesitation in eliminating them.
"They need to guarantee government support of the event as well as ensure proper infrastructure and security. The country's national association must also show an eagerness to organise the tournament efficiently."
Baseball
Reliever Salas suspended 50 games for doping
NEW YORK: Tampa Bay Devil Rays reliever Juan Salas has been suspended for 50 games for testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance, the commissioner's office announced on Monday.
The suspension took effect yesterday for Tampa Bay's next scheduled game when the Devil Rays played at Baltimore.
Salas, 28, had a 1-1 record with a 3.95 earned run average in 15 appearances this season for the Devil Rays.
The commissioner's office also announced a 50-game suspension for Houston Astros minor leaguer Louis Santangelo for using a performance-enhancing substance.
Under terms of the Drug Prevention and Treatment Program the nature of an abuse is kept confidential.
Cricket
Australia govt in call to scrap Zimbabwe tour
SYDNEY: The Australian government has called on the national cricket team to cancel their planned tour of Zimbabwe for later this year.
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said he would meet Cricket Australia officials this week in the hope of persuading them to scrap the three-one-dayers scheduled for September.
"My view is that the tour shouldn't go ahead," Downer told reporters on Monday.
"If it were to go ahead then Australia, which is after all the world championship team, would give Zimbabwe's regime and its president, who has been the patron of Zimbabwe Cricket Association, a propaganda victory," Downer said.
"We shouldn't do that - this is a horrific regime in Zimbabwe and we should take a stand against it."
The ICC said in a statement on its position later on Monday that where any goverment refused approval of a tour or imposed restrictions or prohibition, that amounted to "acceptable non-compliance" and teams would not have to tour.
(China Daily 05/09/2007 page24)
