IN BRIEF (Page 22)

Snooker

Ding Junhui reaches UK quarterfinals

LONDON: China's Ding Junhui, the former United Kingdom champion, reached the last eight of this year's event with a 9-5 win over veteran Englishman Nigel Bond on Tuesday.

Ding, the 2005 UK champion, was level at 5-5 with Bond before pulling away at the Telford International Center in central England.

The 20-year-old reeled off breaks of 112, 58, 63, 56, 59, 80 and 100 to earn a quarterfinal meeting in snooker's second-most important event with 2005 world champion Shaun Murphy.

Also through was Wales' Mark Williams, another former world, and UK, champion. Williams, 5-3 down against Mark Allen, won 9-5.

In all, the world No 12, who now plays either Scotland's Stephen Maguire or Preston's Ian McCulloch, won eight straight frames to go through.

Soccer

Women's team completes competition for 2007

The last match of this year's women's soccer competition, the Yaoji Playing Cards Women's Super Cup, was held on Tuesday in Shantou of Guangdong Province.

The national champions from Dalian defeated last year's Super League winners Tianjin 4-1 in a penalty shootout after the two sides played to a goalless draw in regulation time.

Although the return of the national team players raised the level of play for Tianjin, the team failed to win its third straight title.

Individual honors for all five women's tournaments - the national championships, the Super League, the FA Cup, the North and South All-Star Game and the Super Cup - were also announced. Dalian's 36-year-old veteran Zheng Qin won the Most Valuable Player award, Tianjin's Zi Jingjing won the Best Shooter award, and Tianjin's Zhang Guilai the Best Coach.

Yao Wenchen, chairman of the board of the Shanghai Yaoji Playing Cards Co Ltd, the title sponsor of all five tournaments, was presented a special contribution award by the China Football Association.

Sina.com wins new-media rights for Euro 2008

European soccer's governing body UEFA and China's leading web portal sina.com inked a deal in Beijing on Tuesday, making the website the exclusive new-media provider for Euro 2008 on the Chinese mainland.

Michel Platini, President of UEFA announced that as the official internet broadcaster and the official mobile content provider, sina.com and Sina Mobile will provide live broadcasting services for all 31 matches of the competition, the first time that all European championship matches will be broadcast live over the Internet in China.

Apart from the live coverage of all 31 matches from one of the world's most popular soccer tournaments, Sina will also provide highlights including goals and items from the European Cup Magazine, UEFA's official publication for netizens.

(China Daily 12/13/2007 page22)