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Milan confirms Flamini deal

MILAN: Arsenal midfielder Mathieu Flamini will join AC Milan on a four-year deal, the Serie A club said on Monday. The 24-year-old Frenchman, who signed for Arsenal from Olympique Marseille in 2004, will move on a free transfer with his contract at the Premier League club soon expiring.

A statement on the club website (www.acmilan.com) said Flamini, who underwent a medical on Monday, would join on July 1 with the deal running out on June 30, 2012.

"I am very happy, thank you very much," he told reporters.

The hard-working midfielder, who played as a emergency left back in Arsenal's run to the Champions League final in 2006, was also courted by Juventus.

Gascogine taken to hospital

LONDON: Former England midfielder Paul Gascoigne was taken to hospital after an incident at a London hotel on Sunday, police sources said on Monday.

Ambulance crews and police were called to the hotel on Sunday and Gascoigne voluntarily went to hospital where he was being assessed.

No offense was reported and no further action was taken, police said.

"A man was causing concern in a hotel ...," police said in a statement."He was tended to by an ambulance crew and taken to hospital voluntarily."

The 40-year-old former Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has long battled with alcohol and personal problems.

Flanagan eyes options

PALO ALTO, California: Shalane Flanagan, who smashed the American record at 10,000 m, said Monday she is now divided over whether to run the 5,000 or 10,000 at next month's US Olympic Track and Field Trials.

Flanagan made an impressive 10,000m debut on Sunday, clocking 30min 34.49sec to win at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational meet with Kim Smith second in 30:35.54, slicing 45 seconds off her New Zealand record set here last year.

With August's Beijing Olympics looming, Flanagan has erased Deena Kastor's old American mark of 30:50.32. But she might run the 5,000 as planned earlier.

"I really enjoy the 5k," Flanagan said. "We'll have to sit down and look at where my best chances to medal are. They are very different races."

Petacchi to miss Tour de France

MILAN: Italy's Alessandro Petacchi will miss this year's Tour de France after the Court of Arbitration (CAS) for Sport banned him until Aug. 31 for testing positive for excess salbutamol in the Giro d'Italia last year.

In a statement, CAS said it had imposed a one-year ban but had backdated the start to November 2007 and had also taken into account two months in which he did not race following the test.

Top sprinter Petacchi, who had a medical certificate to use a set amount of salbutamol in his asthma inhaler, will skip this month's Giro in any case because of bronchitis but will miss July's Tour de France and August's Beijing Olympics.

The Italian Olympic Committee's (CONI) anti-doping prosecutor charged Petacchi with doping in July but the 34-year-old argued that any overuse of salbutamol during the Giro had been human error.

The Italian Cycling Federation backed Petacchi's stance and refused the prosecutor's request for a one-year ban, meaning the case went to CAS.

Mauresmo out of German Open

BERLIN: Amelie Mauresmo of France pulled out of the German Open on Monday because of a rib injury.

The former world No 1 had been due to play a first-round match against compatriot Aravane Rezai on Tuesday.

She was replaced in the main draw by Akgul Amanmuradova of Uzbekistan.

The claycourt tournament started with a surprise on Monday when unseeded German Sabine Lisicki beat 14th seed Shahar Peer of Israel 7-5, 6-1 in the first match on the Steffi Graf Stadium court.

The top eight seeds have byes through to the second round of the $1.3 million tournament, which runs until Sunday.

Justine Henin and Ana Ivanovic are the top two seeds in a strong field.

(China Daily 05/07/2008 page22)