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Fri/Sat/Sun December 8~10, 2017

THE Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said Tuesday it had registered appeals by 22 Russian athletes against their disqualifications from the 2014 Sochi Olympics for doping.

CAS said the athletes had requested verdicts before the Pyeongchang Games open Feb. 9.

The appeals were confirmed one day after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned the Russian Olympic committee from sending a team to Pyeongchang.

Instead, an IOC panel will invite some Russian athletes who were never banned for doping and have undergone stricter testing controls since April.

The 22 athletes are also challenging their life bans from the Olympics.

They include Sochi gold medalists Alexander Zubkov, Alexander Legkov and Alek-sander Tretiakov.

(SD-Agencies)

Russian athletes take dopingcases to CAS

FORMULA One races in Bahrain and China will swap places early in the season as initially planned following approval of the 2018 F1 calendar Wednesday.

Motor sport’s governing body FIA confi rmed the proposed switch, with Bahrain taking place at the Sakhir circuit April 8 and the Chinese GP in Shanghai a week later.

As usual, the F1 season begins with the Australian GP in Mel-bourne March 25.

All the other races in the 21-race calendar were confi rmed from the original plan set out in June, with the exception of the United States GP in Austin on Oct. 21 being subject to confi rmation. Brazil (Nov. 11 at Interlagos) and Abu Dhabi (Nov. 25 at Yas Marina) are the last two races.

Questions were raised about the Brazilian GP being held next year in Sao Paulo after serious security scares last month.

Members of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes team were robbed at gunpoint in their minivan while leaving the track. Valuables were stolen but there were no injuries reported.

Street crime is endemic in Brazil, which has been battered in the last several years by its worst recession in memory. Thieves at the F1 race often target cars stuck in traffi c jams at the exit of the circuit located about 30 kilometers south of Sao Paulo city center.

At this year’s race, FIA spokesman Matteo Bonciani said the car in which he was leaving the track was assaulted by gun-wielding assailants who attempted to smash in the bullet-proof windows with the vehicle stuck in traffi c.

In response to these latest incidents, new security measures were proposed Wednesday.

The FIA directly urged that the race promoter uses an “independent security expert to evaluate and advise on security plans,” while implementing a police reporting hub at the circuit and improving “overall communication between the promoter’s security, police and F1 stakeholders.”

The French GP, meanwhile, returns after a 10-year absence and will be hosted at the iconic Paul Ricard circuit, also known as Le Castellet, in southern France on June 24.

Paul Ricard last hosted the French GP in 1990. The race was then organized at Magny-Cours from 1991-2008 but was dropped from the calendar in 2008 because of fi nancial issues.

The German GP, which has struggled with attendances and track fees, was scrapped this year but will return at Hockenheim on July 22.

The Azerbaijan GP has been moved forward to April 29, making it the fourth race of the season. (SD-Agencies)

F1 calendar approved

LEBRON JAMES drained a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left and fi nished with 32 points as the Cavaliers tied a franchise record with their 13th straight win, 101-95 over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.

James, who changed his sneakers three times, also had 11 rebounds and nine assists, helping the Cavs rally from a 14-point defi cit in the third quarter to remain unbeaten since Nov. 11.

His decisive 3-pointer in the fi nal minute over JaKarr Samp-son came after James went to the bench during a timeout and told coach Tyronn Lue to run a play for him.

“Was going to run a different play and then Bron said, ‘I want Chicago.’ So I said, ‘OK,’” Lue said, referring to the name of the play.

After catching the inbounds pass, James took a dribble to his left and then stepped behind the line and knocked down his fi fth 3-pointer.

“It felt good,” said James, who fi nished 12 of 18 from the fl oor. “I was able to get the laces where I wanted them and I got enough space, I created enough

LeBron scores 32 as Cavaliers win 13th straight

space with the step-back away from JaKarr and I was able to let it go. It felt good the whole time.”

Cleveland, which also won 13 straight in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons, will try to break the team record Friday at Indiana.

This one wasn’t easy. The Kings gave the Cavs everything they had, but couldn’t contain James in the clutch.

That’s been the case for nearly every team that has faced the

three-time champion, who is shooting with a confi dence rarely seen in his career.

“He’s amazing,” said Kyle Korver, who opened the fourth quarter with three straight 3-pointers to give Cleveland the lead. “He’s just demanding the ball. He’s like, ‘Give me the ball, we’re about to win.’ And, I’ve been around some guys who’ve had amazing years. I’ve been playing with him and Derrick Rose when he was MVP.”

(SD-Agencies)

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (L) drives against Sacramento Kings forward JaKarr Sampson in the fi rst quarter at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland on Wednesday. SD-Agencies

CRISTIANO RONALDO has set yet another Champions League record, scoring in Real Madrid’s 3-2 win over Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday to become the fi rst player to fi nd the net in all six group-stage matches.

Madrid had already guaran-teed second place behind Group H winner Tottenham, which defeated APOEL 3-0 at Wembley Stadium to reach 16 points.

Madrid ended with 13 points, and Dortmund and Cypriot club APOEL fi nished with two points each. The German club fi nished third because of a better goal dif-ference and will now play in the Europa League.

Madrid led 2-0 after Borja Mayoral opened the scoring and Ronaldo netted his ninth group-stage goal this season. Dortmund equalized with two goals by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, one in each half, but Lucas Vazquez got the winner in the 81st minute at the Santiago Ber-nabeu Stadium.

Ronaldo, the all-time leading scorer in the Champions League with 115 goals, netted with a well-placed shot from outside the area after a pass by Mateo Kovacic in the 12th minute, curling the ball into the top corner by the far post.

“We wanted to fi nish the group stage well, with a win, and we did so,” Ronaldo told UEFA.com. “I scored, I helped the side win. It’s a nice goal and the record is important, too. I’m delighted.”

Ronaldo had scored 11 group-stage goals two seasons ago, the most ever in the competition. He also holds the record for more Champions League goals in a season after scoring 17 in 2013-

Ronaldo sets record as Madrid wins

14. Earlier this year he became the player with the most penalty kick goals in Champions League history, with 12, one more than Lionel Messi.

“Any football fan enjoys watching players like Ronaldo,” Dortmund coach Peter Bosz said. “His presence and desire to score is so great. He’s aggressive. It’s brilliant for any football fan to watch.”

Ronaldo had several other chances to score a second goal and had a strike disallowed for offside near the end of the game.

The Portugal forward has been struggling in the Span-

ish league, with only two goals in 10 matches, but has scored nine times in his six Champions League games.

Madrid was in control throughout the match Wednes-day, but Dortmund threatened in counterattacks with its speedy forwards.

Mayoral put the hosts ahead eight minutes into the match with a close-range shot after a move that started with a pass by Ronaldo to Isco inside the area.

After Ronaldo had doubled Madrid’s lead, Dortmund pulled a goal back just before halftime with a diving header by Aubameyang following a cross

from the left by captain Marcel Schmelzer.

Meanwhile, Shakhtar Donetsk advanced to the knockout stage with a 2-1 victory over Manches-ter City on Wednesday.

In freezing temperatures against a Shakhtar team that only needed a draw to be sure of qualifying, City struggled to cope with rapid counterattacks by the Ukrainian side’s Brazil-ian forwards.

Defeat means City, which had already qualifi ed as Group F winner, failed to become only the seventh club in Champions League history to win every game in the group stage. (SD-Agencies)

Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo (2nd R) in action with Borussia Dortmund’s Neven Subotic (R) during their match in Madrid, Spain, on Wednesday. SD-Agencies