IN BRIEF (Page 24)
Soccer
Last gasp Juventus clings onto top position
ROME: A last minute goal from Giorgio Chiellini earnt Juventus a 3-2 win at Cagliari and allowed the disgraced former champion to hold onto top spot in Serie A on Sunday.
Juve is back in the top flight after romping to the Serie B title last season following its demotion, and points deduction, for match-fixing. It was also stripped of its two titles in 2005 and 2006 for the offence.
But despite the victory in Sardinia, Juve's former Chelsea and Valencia coach Claudio Ranieri was far from happy.
"We still need to improve. We are under construction at the moment with a new squad, a new tactician and I cannot even say how long it will take to reach the full potential of this side," he said. "I can only say we still have to do better. I'm not happy yet and the players know that."
Boca goes top in Argentina as Independiente slips
BUENOS AIRES: Boca Juniors ascended to top of the Argentine championship on Sunday, beating Huracan 1-0 to overhaul Independiente, who lost to Gimnasia-La Plata.
Midfielder Pablo Ledesma scored the only goal for South American champion Boca, converting a 76th-minute penalty to end newly promoted Huracan's unbeaten record and take his personal tally to five.
Boca, who notched its fourth win in a row, lead the Apertura championship with 13 points from six matches, one ahead of Independiente.
Independiente, who won its first four games before losing to Boca in midweek, was beaten for the second time in four days as it lost at Gimnasia.
Basketball
James scores record 31 points as US beats Argentina
LAS VEGAS: LeBron James scored a team-record 31 points, and the United States beat Argentina 118-81 on Sunday to win the Americas basketball championship.
Dwight Howard made all seven of his shots and scored 20 points, and Carmelo Anthony added 16 points for the Americans, who were never challenged while winning 10 games in 12 days and will head to Beijing next summer as one of the gold medal favorites.
The Americans averaged 116.7 points in the tournament.
The game was largely meaningless, because both teams had already clinched spots in the Beijing field by winning semifinal games Saturday. But the Americans didn't let up, remaining perfect in four Olympic qualifers, including 7-0 against Argentina.
Puerto Rico beat Brazil 111-107 earlier Sunday in the third-place game.
Olympics
Pyeongchang not giving up on Winter Games dream
SEOUL: South Korea's Pyeongchang is undeterred by two failed Olympic bids and hopes to make it third time lucky by bidding to host the 2018 Winter Games.
The South Korean town, which lost to Vancouver by three votes for the 2010 Winter Games and suffered a second round loss to Russia's Sochi for the 2014 event, has not given up on its dream of hosting a Winter Olympics, the bid committee said on Monday.
"Citizens in Gangwon province and people in (South) Korea still have a strong desire for the Olympics in their hearts," Kim Jin-sun, governor of the eastern province, said in a statement.
More than three-quarters of Gangwon residents and close to 90 percent of South Koreans favoured a third bid according to an opinion poll taken after the July loss, the committee said.
(China Daily 09/04/2007 page24)
