Soccer Show Will Go On in Colombia
Copa America will be held as originally scheduled in Colombia from Wednesday through July 29, soccer officials said Thursday, reversing an earlier decision to postpone the soccer tournament until next year because of security concerns in the war-ravaged nation.
Nicolas Leoz, president of the South American Soccer Confederation, said that for the moment Argentina has said it will not participate in the three-week tournament, soccer’s oldest international championship.
“The Copa will be played in Colombia and this is good news for South Americans,” Leoz said. “I congratulate all Colombians.”
The decision was announced less than an hour after Leoz had said there were no new developments after a meeting of South American soccer officials who reportedly were under pressure from sponsors and Colombian officials to hold the tournament this year.
Police in Buenos Aires suspended ticket sales for the final of the World Youth Championship after they lost control of a crowd of about 20,000 that had come in hope of securing seats for Sunday’s final pitting host Argentina against Ghana.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter declared the world soccer body financially sound and united following an executive committee meeting in Buenos Aires in which he had been expected to be questioned over his management and the organization’s financial troubles.
In other news, FIFA decided to give $750,000 to each of the 12 teams that had been scheduled to play in the canceled World Club Championship in Spain, including the Galaxy. Each team already has received $500,000.
Jurisprudence
Miami Dolphin cornerback Ben Kelly was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after striking a parked Miami-Dade County police car along a state highway.
Kelly was arrested Wednesday after his sport utility vehicle hit the cruiser at 6:30 a.m. on the southbound side of the Palmetto Expressway, police spokeswoman Nelda Fonticiella said.
Utah Jazz rookie DeShawn Stevenson is scheduled to be arraigned today in Fresno on statutory rape charges after allegedly admitting he had sex with a 14-year-old girl. Stevenson, 20, faces up to three years in state prison if convicted of the felony.
Don King, the promoter for heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman, accused Lennox Lewis of trying to manipulate a federal judge’s order “for your own selfish interest” in a U.S. District courtroom in Manhattan. Lewis representative Adrian Ogun said he should be able to have an interim match before fighting Rahman.
Arkansas football player Lawrence Richardson and a former teammate, Lee Hayes, were sentenced to 10 months of probation for shoplifting from a Fayetteville department store.
Miscellany
Greg Page, the 42-year-old former World Boxing Assn. heavyweight champion who spent nearly a week in a coma after being knocked out by Dale Crowe in March, was released from Frazier Rehab Institute in Louisville, Ky., after 13 weeks of intensive physical therapy.
Kentucky Derby winner Monarchos has a broken bone in his right knee and could be out of training for up to 60 days. The 3-year-old colt still may race in the Breeders’ Cup at Belmont Park on Oct. 27.
Philippe Kahn’s Pegasus dropped from first place to third among Division I boats in the 41st Transpacific Yacht Race from Los Angeles to Hawaii. Seth Radow’s Division IV entry, Bull, from Marina del Rey, took the overall lead on corrected time.
Ticket sales for an outdoor hockey game at East Lansing, Mich., between Michigan State and Michigan have reached 56,100, already eclipsing the world record for attendance at a hockey game, Michigan State officials said.
DeSagana Diop, one of four high school players selected among the first eight picks of last week’s NBA draft, became the first first-rounder to sign in agreeing to terms with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Under the rookie salary scale, the 7-foot, 315-pound center will receive within 20% of $4.95 million over three seasons.
Duke star Alana Beard scored 20 points for the second consecutive game to lead the U.S. to a 95-52 victory over Japan in the USA Basketball Junior International Invitational at Fairfax, Va.
