Associated Press
LAUSANNE, Switzerland ó Double-amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius won his appeal and can compete for a place in the Beijing Olympics.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the 21-year-old South African is eligible to race against able-bodied athletes, overturning a ban imposed by the International Association of Athletics Federations.
CAS said the unanimous ruling goes into effect immediately. Pistorius still must reach a qualifying time to run in the individual 400 meters at the Aug. 8-24 Beijing Games. However, he can be picked for the South African relay squad without qualifying.
– WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. ó Olympic gold medalist Tim Montgomery was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for dealing in bad checks.
GOLF
CLIFTON, N.J. ó Lorena Ochoa said her own little goodbye to Annika Sorenstam.
The two-time defending champion shot a 5-under 67 and left the retiring Sorenstam in her wake after two rounds of the rain-shorted Sybase Classic on Saturday.
Ochoa, seeking her sixth win of the year, Ochoa has won 16 of 23 LPGA events in which she has taken the lead into the final round, including all five this year and six in a row dating to last year.
– DULUTH, Ga. ó Charles Howell III shot a 5-under to take a one-stroke lead over Kenny Perry after the third round of the AT&T Classic.
– HOOVER, Ala. ó Andy Bean birdied the final hole to take a one-shot lead over Mike Goodes into the final round of the Champions Tour’s Regions Charity Classic.
WNBA
PHOENIX ó Candace Parker had some jitters in her WNBA debut. It sure didn’t show.
Parker scored 34 points, the most in a WNBA debut, and added 12 rebounds to help the Los Angeles Sparks beat the defending champion Phoenix Mercury 99-94 on Saturday.
The previous high in a WNBA debut was 25 points by Cynthia Cooper in 1997.NFL
BOSTON ó New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick lashed out at the team’s former video assistant, saying in a televised interview that Matt Walsh was a low-level staffer who was fired for “poor job performance”
Belichick acknowledged that he violated NFL rules prohibiting filming opponents signals but insisted there was no intent to hide what he was doing.
– CLEVELAND ó Cleveland Browns offensive lineman Ryan Tucker broke his hip during practice this week and will miss at least two months.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
INDIANAPOLIS ó For Graham Rahal, driving in the Indianapolis 500 has been an almost lifelong ambition.
The son of 1986 Indy winner and IRL IndyCar Series team owner Bobby Rahal has been coming to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since he was a small child, and he has visualized himself in a car on the famed 21/2-mile oval many, many times.If finally happened this year, thanks to the unification of the two American open-wheel series, and the 19-year-old Rahal has taken full advantage.
He was among 22 drivers who qualified Saturday, filling the 33-car field for the May 25 race.
TYSON
CANNES, France ó Mike Tyson considers it a miracle that he lived to tell his tale. And he’s telling it ó in graphic detail ó in a new documentary at the Cannes Film Festival.
“I lived a wild and extreme life,” the former heavyweight champion told reporters Saturday. “I used drugs. I had altercations with dangerous people. I slept with guys’ wives that wanted to kill me. I’m just happy to be here, you know. It’s just a miracle.”
The 41-year-old former boxer got a prolonged ovation at the Cannes screening for “Tyson,” directed by his old friend James Toback (“Fingers”).
TENNIS
ROME ó Maria Sharapova pulled out of the Italian Open semifinals because of a strained left calf Saturday, two days before she is to assume the No. 1 ranking following Justine Henin’s retirement.
Sharapova said the injury would not affect her preparations for the French Open, which begins next weekend.
– HAMBURG, Germany ó Rafael Nadal fought off a challenge from Novak Djokovic 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 Saturday to set up another final against defending champion Roger Federer at the Hamburg Masters.