IN BRIEF (Page 19)
Tennis
Wimbledon hawk could clip Sharapova's wings
LONDON: Playing in a dress that looks like a swan could be Maria Sharapova's downfall at Wimbledon this year - if the All England Club's hawk mistakes her for the real thing.
A hawk is released to fly around the grounds every morning during the championships to frighten off any pigeons.
"Does the hawk usually bite the swan? Jesus, I might have to cut those pleats away," the 2004 champion joked at a news conference on Tuesday.
Sharapova has been sporting a white dress with frills on the bottom and wing-like ones down the back, the latest in a series of creative outfits the keen designer has worn on court.
Soccer
Keeper Abbiati leaves Milan for Atletico Madrid
MILAN: AC Milan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati has joined Atletico Madrid on loan for one year, the Serie A team said on their website.
Abbiati, 29, has been with Milan since 1996 but is second choice behind Brazilian international Dida.
He has spent the last two seasons on loan, first at Juventus and then with Torino.
Tevez targets move from West Ham to Inter Milan
ROME: West Ham United striker Carlos Tevez has put Italian Serie A champions Inter Milan at the top of his list of possible transfer destinations.
"Real Madrid want me but I've decided: I'd rather go to Inter than to Real," Tevez told Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview published on Tuesday.
The 23-year-old Argentine international, who was a key figure in West Ham's drive to avoid relegation last season, has also been linked with a move to Premier League rivals Arsenal as a replacement for Thierry Henry.
Tevez joined West Ham last August along with fellow Argentine Javier Mascherano who subsequently moved to Liverpool.
However, the transfers breached Premier League rules which subsequently cost West Ham a 5.5 million pounds ($11 million) fine but the club were not docked points because they pleaded guilty.
Messina's Caglioni banned for two years for cocaine test
ROME: Messina goalkeeper Nicholas Caglioni was banned for two years by the disciplinary committee of the Italian Football League on Tuesday after testing positive for cocaine.
Caglioni tested positive following the 1-1 draw with Serie A rivals Catania on Feb. 11.
He was suspended in March and will not be able to play again until March 2009.
Caglioni is the second player in five days to receive a two-year ban for cocaine. Last week Sampdoria striker Francesco Flachi received the same punishment.
Messina were relegated after finishing bottom of Serie A last season.
Boxing
Ibragimov to face Chagaev in heavyweight unification bout
MOSCOW: World Boxing Organisation (WBO) heavyweight champion Sultan Ibragimov will take on World Boxing Association (WBA) title holder Ruslan Chagaev in a unification bout in Moscow in October, fight promoters said on Tuesday.
Ibragimov won the WBO version of the fragmented heavyweight division with a unanimous decision over American Shannon Briggs in Atlantic City earlier this month.
The 32-year-old Russian said he was now ready to fight Uzbekistan's Chagaev, who upset defending champion Nikolai Valuev of Russia in Stuttgart in April to grab the WBA title.
It will be the second heavyweight title fight staged in the Russian capital in less than a year.
GOLF
Wie wants to keep on battling the men
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina: American Michelle Wie said her recent struggles in the women's game hasn't dampened her desire to continue competing on the men's PGA Tour.
"I definitely want to play in men's events in the future," she said Tuesday as she prepared for this week's US Women's Open at Pine Needles.
After weeks of bad publicity, Wie withdrew from next month's John Deere Classic on the PGA Tour, admitting that her game wasn't in shape to compete against the men, due to an undisclosed wrist injury that still seems to be troubling her.
(China Daily 06/28/2007 page19)
