Russia fails to Pay Capello again
Moscow: The Russian Football Union has failed to achieve its goal of paying national team coach Fabio Capello his unpaid wages by the end of the year. Capello has not received any of his reported $11 million-a-year salary since June amid financial problems at the RFU. The organization's president Nikolai Tolstykh said Monday he planned to resolve the issue by the end of 2014, but told local media Wednesday that was now impossible. With Russia gearing up for almost two weeks of public holidays and days off work, Tolstykh said it had been hard to find sources of funding to pay the veteran Italian coach. Unpaid wages were “not a topic for the New Year holidays,” he told the R-Sport agency, adding that talks would resume January 12.
Weightlifter banned for 10yrs
Moscow: Former European champion weightlifter Gevorik Poghosyan has been handed a 10-year ban for doping. The sanction is likely to effectively end the career of the 30-year-old Poghosyan, who had previously been banned for two years in 2011 after testing positive for the banned steroid oxandrolone. The latest ban comes after the Russian Anti-Doping Agency reported that Poghosyan tested positive for an unspecified "banned substance" while trying to resurrect his career at August's Russian national championships.
Football boss has sentence cut
Beijing: A corrupt Chinese football boss has had his prison sentence cut after back-heeling his former life into touch and remodelling himself as an inventor and writer in prison, media reported on Wednesday. Nan Yong, a former head of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), was last year banned from involvement in the sport and jailed for more than 10 years for taking bribes. Along with another former CFA chief, Xie Yalong, Nan was the highest profile name among more than 50 people banned after widespread match-fixing scandals that blighted the game in China. A Beijing court recently reduced his sentence by one year on the back of a recommendation by his prison who cited his "good behaviour", the China Daily said.
Govt funds Chennai open by `2 cr
Chennai: As part of its sports promotion activities, Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday sanctioned `2 crore for conducting the popular tennis tournament, Chennai Open here. This was in line with the former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's earlier announcement of sanctioning the amount annually for holding the tournament from 2014 to 2016, a government release here said. The Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu tennis stadium which hosts the premier event, has been given a facelift following a `4.50 crore upgradation initiative approved by Jayalalithaa last year, it said. The Chennai Open is scheduled here from January 5-11.
Marciello is Sauber's test driver
Hinwil (Switzerland): F1 team Sauber has announced 20-year-old Raffaele Marciello as its test and reserve driver for 2015 season. The Italian drove in GP2 series in 2014 finishing eighth having started his motor racing career in karting in 2005. He later progressed to Formula 3 championship in 2012 and was European F3 Champion in 2013. Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr are Sauber's race drivers for the season.
Ronaldo voted Europe's best
Montevideo (Uruguay): Portuguese football phenomenon Cristiano Ronaldo was voted by European sports reporters Europe's best football player for the second year in a row. The results of the survey, carried out by Uruguay's El Pais daily and released Tuesday, showed 89 of the 144 reporters queried named the Real Madrid forward as the region's top player, reports Xinhua. German goalie Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich) and Argentina's lionel Messi (Barcelona) came in distant second and third places, with 19 and 16 votes, respectively.
‘Will make hockey enjoyable in 2015’
New Delhi: As part of his new year resolution, Indian hockey captain Sardar Singh, who led the team to an Asian Games gold medal after a gap of 16 years and a silver medal in the Commonwealth Games this year, has vowed to make the national sport more enjoyable to watch in 2015. “My resolution (for 2015) is to maintain and improve my skills to help me be more beneficial to my teammates on the field,” the veteran centre-half said in an International Hockey Federation (FIH) release. “I want to make hockey, and Indian team's performance in particular, even more enjoyable to watch,” said the 29-year-old player.