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Romario named as Vasco's interim coach

RIO DE JANEIRO: Former Brazil striker Romario, who has still not officially retired from playing, was named as interim coach of his club Vasco da Gama on Monday.

Romario, 41, was given the job hours after Celso Roth was fired following the team's slide down the Brazilian championship table.

"Vasco have only taken five points out of the last 30 so I had to do something," club president Eurico Miranda said in a radio interview. "I spoke to Romario and he accepted the responsibility."

Romario will take charge of Wednesday's match at home to Mexico's America in a Copa Sudamericana quarterfinal second leg.

It was not immediately clear whether Romario, who this year scored what he claimed to be his 1,000th career goal, would pick himself for the game.

La Russa signs two-year deal to stay with Cardinals

CHICAGO: Manager Tony La Russa signed a two-year contract to stay with the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday, removing his name from a list of possible candidates to replace Joe Torre at the New York Yankees.

The third most successful manager in Major League history, La Russa had been mentioned as a potential replacement for Torre, who turned down the Yankees one-year $5 million offer last week.

Following a disappointing 78-84 season, there had been speculation that La Russa was considering leaving St. Louis but he decided to remain with the Cardinals after taking a few weeks off.

In 12 years as Cardinals' manager, La Russa has posted a record of 1,055 wins and 887 losses and sits third on Major League Baseball's all-timer managerial win list with 2,375.

Australia would consider White for Wallabies job - O'Neill

BRISBANE, Australia: South Africa's World Cup winning coach Jake White would be considered for the vacant Wallabies job if he applied for it, Australian Rugby Union (ARU) chief John O'Neill said yesterday.

O'Neill told reporters in Sydney that interviews with candidates to replace John Connolly were scheduled for November 9, with the ARU board due to meet on November 16 to discuss the applications.

"In the real world, you'd like the person to be Australian. (But) the priority for us is to get the best person for the job," O'Neill said.

"If Jake White is an applicant, we'd certainly consider his application."

Candidates for the position include New South Wales coach Ewen McKenzie, Laurie Fisher of the ACT Brumbies, Wallabies assistant coaches John Muggleton and Scott Johnson, David Nucifora of the Auckland Blues and Robbie Deans from the Canterbury Crusaders.

UEFA appeals body cuts Dida ban to one game

MILAN: AC Milan goalkeeper Dida's two-match Champions League ban for feigning injury against Celtic was reduced to one game on Monday.

A statement on Milan's website (www.acmilan.com) said the club's appeal had been partially upheld and the player would only miss Wednesday's home fixture with Shakhtar Donetsk.

Dida fell dramatically to the ground after chasing a Celtic fan, who had run on to the pitch to celebrate his team's late winner in a 2-1 victory on October 3 and appeared to make light contact as he slapped the Brazilian round the neck.

UEFA's disciplinary committee banned Dida for two games and fined Celtic $57,000, half of which will be suspended for two years, for failing to keep the fan off the pitch.

Milan immediately indicated it would appeal, saying the ban was excessive and the real villain was the fan.

Mayo says 'B' test for EPO proved negative

MADRID: Spanish rider Iban Mayo said on Monday that the 'B' analysis for his positive test for the banned blood booster erythropoietin (EPO) during this year's Tour de France has proved to be negative.

"It was a very bad experience because I didn't understand what was happening.... but everything has turned out as I expected," Mayo was quoted as saying on the Web site of Spanish sports daily Marca.

The Saunier Duval rider, who was subsequently suspended by his team, failed the test on the July 24 rest day of this year's Tour. He finished the race in 16th place overall.

"It doesn't seem logical nor credible," he said. "I've spent many years cycling and I can't chuck it all in but sometimes you feel like it because there are so many injustices.

"The fans who like cycling don't want to see this sort of thing. Cycling is a spectacle that involves sacrifice if not you don't get the results."

(China Daily 10/24/2007 page23)