Top shot
Ochoa pockets 4th title in a row
ORLANDO, Florida: World No 1 Lorena Ochoa matched an LPGA record with her fourth consecutive victory by capturing the $2.6 million Ginn Open on Sunday by three strokes over Taiwan's Yani Tseng.
Ochoa fired a final-round three-under par 69 to finish 72 holes on 19-under par 269, giving the Mexican star her fifth win in six events this year, while 19-year-old Tseng struggled down the back nine to finish with a 71 and on 272.
Tseng opened with back-to-back birdies and another at the fifth hole but followed with a bogey at the sixth while Ochoa, who began with a one-shot lead, birdied the third hole and began a run of three birdies in a row at the eighth.
Tseng eagled the 10th to keep the pressure upon Ochoa but was undone by birdies at 13, 15 and 17. Ochoa finished with seven pars and a bogey at the 15th, holding on for the triumph.
Ochoa won last week's Corona Championship in her homeland by an astonishing 11 strokes and followed up by taking her 22nd career title. She has not blown a lead entering the final round since last year.
Dane Jonassen ends long wait
COPENHAGEN: Dane Kenneth Jonassen ended a long wait for his first European men's badminton singles title on Sunday as Denmark dominated the championships, winning four gold medals from the six on offer.
The 33-year-old top seed, four times a runner-up, thoroughly outplayed team mate Joachim Persson in Herning in western Denmark to win the final 21-13, 21-16.
Earlier in the day, Danish duo Kamilla Rytter Juhl and Lena Frier Kristiansen beat favorites Gail Emms and Donna Kellogg from Britain 21-18 21-18 to take the women's doubles gold.
Denmark, who won the European team championships on Tuesday, secured their fourth gold in the men's doubles final when top seeds Lars Paaske and Jonas Rasmussen beat countrymen and second seeds Jens Eriksen and Martin Lundgaard Hansen 21-19 21-16.
The Danish dominance was dented by Germany's Xu Huaiwen, who inflicted a stunning defeat on All England champion Tine Rasmussen.
Schumacher's son in kart races
MADRID: The nine-year-old son of seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher is competing in a karting championship in Spain, a Spanish newspaper said on Monday.
Schumacher enrolled his son, Mick, in the RACC Open in the northeastern region of Catalonia, the sports newspaper AS said.
It said he chose to have his son compete in Spain to protect him from publicity in his native Germany.
Mick Schumacher is racing under his mother's maiden name and is being accompanied by his grandfather, AS said.
He finished 10th and 8th on the Sils circuit at the weekend. He is to take part in three more races.
Swimmer still hopeful of Games
MELBOURNE: Dumped swimmer Nick D'Arcy is focused on competing at the Beijing Olympics and is still training toward the August Games, he told reporters yesterday.
D'Arcy was kicked off the Australian Olympic squad on Friday by Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) chairman John Coates for bringing the team into disrepute after being charged with assault stemming from an incident in a Sydney nightclub last month.
He appeared in a Sydney court on Monday, where prosecutors withdrew one charge of assault against him.
He is now facing just one charge of recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm during the incident in which Commonwealth swimming champion Simon Cowley was punched, allegedly by D'Arcy.
The 20-year-old butterfly specialist has appealed the AOC's decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and told reporters outside the Sydney court that he remained hopeful of a positive hearing from the Lausanne-based organisation.
(China Daily 04/22/2008 page22)
