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Miami's Shaq set to miss at least two weeks

MIAMI: Shaquille O'Neal will be out of action for at least the next two weeks, the Miami Heat said on Tuesday.

The Heat, who have lost their last 14 games, said an MRI test had found "acute inflammation" on his left hip and quadriceps and that he would be rested and treated until further tests in two weeks.

The first game O'Neal will miss is Thursday's home meeting with defending NBA champions, the San Antonio Spurs.

O'Neal picked up the hip injury against Utah on December 22 - the last time Miami won a game.

He missed eight games, returning to action on January 16, but struggled in Monday's loss to Cleveland when he was limping and had to have treatment on his hip.

Brazil's Dunga looks to new generation for Ireland friendly

RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazil will take a new generation of players to Dublin next month to meet Ireland in a friendly, coach Dunga said on Tuesday.

Ten of the 22-man squad are in the U-23 category, forming the core of the team that Dunga hopes will win gold at the Beijing Olympics later this year.

Alexandre Pato, the highly rated 18-year-old who scored on his debut for AC Milan this month, gets a first call-up while Manchester United's Anderson and Liverpool's Lucas Leiva are also on the squad.

Sao Paulo midfielder Richarlyson also wins a first call-up to the senior squad.

Dunga told a news conference the game would serve as vital preparation for the Olympics.

The squad also includes experienced players in Kaka, Robinho, Chelsea defender Alex and Real Madrid midfielder Julio Batista.

Seattle's Holmgren to stay for one more year

SEATTLE: Mike Holmgren has agreed to return as head coach of the Seattle Seahawks for one more season.

Holmgren took more than a week to decide whether to step down or return for another season after the Seahawks lost 42-20 to the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs.

"This will be my last year. We are going to make it the best ever," said Holmgren at a news conference. "We are going to go after it hard."

Holmgren, 59, has coached the Seahawks since 1999, leading the team to the playoffs in the last five seasons including a Super Bowl appearance in 2005. His career 170-110 record includes a Super Bowl win as Green Bay's head coach in 1996.

Gruden, Allen rewarded by Bucs for divisional title

TAMPA, Florida: Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden has been given a three-year contract extension after leading the team to its second divisional title in three years.

General manager Bruce Allen was also handed a three-year extension, the team said on its website (www.tampabaybuccaneers.com).

Anchored by the NFC's second-ranked defense, the Buccaneers won the South Division with a 9-7 record.

Tampa Bay lost 24-14 to the Super Bowl-bound New York Giants in the first round of the playoffs.

The 44-year-old Gruden has an 86-74 career record during 10 years as a coach with the Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders.

He arrived in Tampa Bay in 2002 after four years in Oakland and guided the Buccaneers to a 48-21 victory over the Raiders in the 2003 Super Bowl.

Injured Pedrosa to return home after breaking hand in test

MADRID: Spanish rider Dani Pedrosa fractured his right hand in a crash on the first day of the opening MotoGP test of the year in Malaysia on Tuesday and will return home.

The official MotoGP website (www.motogp.com) said the Honda rider, last season's overall runner-up behind Ducati's Australian Casey Stoner, had been ruled out of the rest of the test after being taken to hospital.

The Spaniard, whose bike burst into flames in his second crash of the day, still clocked the second quickest time in the session with French Honda LCR rider Randy De Puniet top of the timesheets at Sepang.

"I wasn't going so fast when the accident happened, but I lost grip with the rear end," Pedrosa told the Marca website (www.marca.com).

"It certainly gave me a pretty hard knock and the bike ended up in flames," he added.

Pedrosa's Repsol Honda will now shoulder the burden of testing with the Spaniard's return to action undecided.

(China Daily 01/24/2008 page22)