Top shot

Schumacher turns taxi driver to catch his flight

BERLIN: Michael Schumacher can add the unofficial title of Germany's fastest taxi driver to his other achievements after taking over behind the wheel to get his family to the airport on time.

The retired Formula One champion drove the cab back to the airport himself after a trip out to the village of Gehuelz, near Coburg in southern Germany, left the family short of time to make their flight home, the Muenchner Abendzeitung newspaper reported.

"It was crazy having Schumi driving, with me in the passenger seat," the taxi driver was quoted as saying.

The seven-time world champion, who stopped racing last year but is still involved in the sport as an occasional tester for Ferrari, gave the driver a 100 euro ($146.6) tip on top of the 60 euro fare, the newspaper said.

Nationals agree to terms with All-Star catcher Lo Duca

WASHINGTON: The Washington Nationals continued their offseason makeover on Tuesday by agreeing a one-year contract with free-agent catcher Paul Lo Duca.

Lo Duca, 35, is a career .288 hitter with 80 home runs and 466 RBI with three teams over 10 seasons.

A four-times National League All-Star, Lo Duca hit .272 with nine home runs and 54 RBI with the New York Mets last season. He is one of just eight active catchers with at least 1,000 hits.

Lo Duca, who was New York's catcher for two years, will replace Brian Schneider, whom the Mets acquired from the Nationals two weeks ago for outfielder Lastings Milledge.

The Nationals have also signed free-agent infielder Aaron Boone and acquired Tampa Bay outfielder Elijah Dukes in recent weeks in hopes of improving on last year's 73-89 record.

Petrino quits as Falcons coach

ATLANTA: Bobby Petrino resigned as Atlanta Falcons coach on Tuesday with the team mired in last place in the NFC South Division with a 3-10 record, the Falcons said on their website.

The 46-year-old Petrino stepped aside after less than one year at the helm to take the head coaching job at the University of Arkansas, local media reported.

He had signed a 10-year, $25 million contract extension with the University of Louisville before agreeing to a five-year $24 million deal with the Falcons.

The Falcons' plans for the season were thrown into disarray in July when three-time All-Pro quarterback Michael Vick was indicted on charges of operating a dog fighting venture at his home in rural Virginia.

Vick did not play this season and was sentenced to 23 months in prison after pleading guilty to bankrolling the dog fighting enterprise.

Inter denies link with Mourinho

LONDON: Inter Milan have refuted a Gazzetta dello Sport story which said president Massimo Moratti had held talks with former Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho.

"The news is false and is considered a serious disturbance to the club," a statement read on Inter's Website (www.inter.it).

Coach Roberto Mancini led Inter to the title last season and the club is unbeaten at the top of Serie A this term. Mourinho, also linked with AC Milan in the media, turned down the chance of managing England on Monday.

Bayern suspends Kahn for disciplinary reasons

BERLIN: Bayern Munich suspended goalkeeper Oliver Kahn for one game and fined him 25,000 euros ($36,660) on Tuesday for an unspecified breach of club discipline.

Bayern said in a statement that Kahn, the club captain, would be sidelined for Saturday's Bundesliga clash away to Hertha Berlin "for disciplinary reasons".

The club gave no details as to why coach Ottmar Hitzfeld decided to take such action.

Bayern leads the standings by two points from Werder Bremen, with just Saturday's game to go before the long mid-season break.

(China Daily 12/13/2007 page23)