Monday's Sports In Brief
By The Associated Press
Nov 10, 2009 - 10:45:41 CST
Here's a look at Monday's sports in brief around the world.
PRO FOOTBALL
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have run out of patience with Larry Johnson’s off-the-field problems and released the former Pro Bowl running back the day he was due to come back from his second suspension in a year.
Johnson, who turns 30 on Nov. 19, was just 75 yards away from breaking Priest Holmes’ team rushing record. A No. 1 draft choice out of Penn State in 2003, Johnson was one of the best running backs in the NFL in 2005 and 2006, rushing for more than 1,700 yards each year.
But he was dogged by controversy and frequently at odds with coaches and fans. On Oct. 25, in what turned out to be his final episode with the Chiefs, he posted on his Twitter account several insults to fans, questioned coach Todd Haley’s credentials and used a gay slur.
He repeated the slur the next day to reporters and was suspended for two weeks.
MIAMI (AP) — Former NFL star Lawrence Taylor was released on bond following his arrest in a Miami-area traffic accident.
Taylor was charged Sunday with leaving the scene of an accident with property damage, a second-degree misdemeanor. He was released on $500 bond later that night.
Taylor was involved in a hit-and-run crash Sunday in Hialeah. Taylor told investigators he thought he had hit a guard rail. No on was injured and troopers didn’t conduct a sobriety test.
Taylor played his entire career with the New York Giants, winning two Super Bowl titles as one of the league’s most dominant linebackers. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
UNDATED (AP) — Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount, who was suspended for the season after punching a Boise State player in the wake of the season opener, will rejoin the Ducks.
The university requested Blount’s reinstatement, which was approved by Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott. Blount will be able to play for the No. 14 Ducks on Saturday night when they host Arizona State. He missed eight games.
Blount punched Byron Hout following the nationally televised opener, bringing the Broncos’ defensive end to his knees. The next day he was suspended for the season by coach Chip Kelly, but he was allowed to keep his scholarship and practice with the team.
PRO BASKETBALL
UNDATED (AP) — Memphis Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley granted 10-time all-star Allen Iverson permission Saturday for an indefinite leave to deal with a personal matter and The Commercial Appeal newspaper reported that Iverson is contemplating retirement.
The 34-year-old Iverson, who signed a one-year deal in September, missed the preseason with a partially-torn left hamstring. He made his debut on the road a week ago in California, playing in three games at Sacramento, Golden State and in Los Angeles against the Lakers.
He averaged 22.3 minutes coming off the bench and scored 12.3 points per game — well below his career average of 27.0 points.
GOLF
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The size of the gallery at Kingston Heath was nothing new for Tiger Woods, who also played before some 7,000 people two days ago in China.
But that was the final round of a World Golf Championship.
This was merely a practice round for the Australia Masters, and it showed just what kind of buzz Woods has generated in his return to Australia for the first time in 11 years.
Woods is making his fourth appearance in Australia, which he described as one of his favorite spots in the world for golf, particularly the sandbelt courses around Melbourne.
He tied for fifth in the 1996 Australian Open at the end of his rookie season, then tied for eighth in Australian Masters early in 1997. His last appearance was the Presidents Cup in 1998.
SWIMMING
STOCKHOLM (AP) — Michael Phelps plans to wear the old-style swimsuit that will become the standard next year at the upcoming European World Cup meet.
The Olympic star will swim the 100-meter freestyle and backstroke plus the individual medley on Tuesday. He will also swim the 100 butterfly and 200 IM Wednesday.
Phelps, who broke Mark Spitz’s record by winning eight gold medals at last year’s Beijing Olympics, welcomed the ban on the high-tech bodysuits that helped rewrite swimming records the past two years.
The new rules, which limit men to old-style suits from the waist to just above the knees, don’t come into effect until January. But Phelps’ coach, Bob Bowman, wants the swimmer to use the suit now in the lead-up to the U.S. national championships next summer.
SOCCER
LONDON (AP) — World Cup organizers say there was never an emergency plan to move the 2010 tournament if South Africa were not ready.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter said the United States was among countries that could host at short notice. But World Cup organizer Danny Jordaan says the only way that could have happened was in the event of a natural disaster.
Jordaan says his country would never have agreed to invest $4.5 billion in infrastructure if soccer’s governing body imposed any other contingencies.
Concerns had been raised that South Africa would not be ready to host the competition after construction work on stadiums and transport infrastructure lagged behind schedule.
Copyright ©
Pulitzer Missouri Newspapers. All rights reserved.
http://www.dailyjournalonline.com/articles/2009/12/01/sports/doc4af9919e3ad4b392953751.txt
PRO FOOTBALL
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have run out of patience with Larry Johnson’s off-the-field problems and released the former Pro Bowl running back the day he was due to come back from his second suspension in a year.
Johnson, who turns 30 on Nov. 19, was just 75 yards away from breaking Priest Holmes’ team rushing record. A No. 1 draft choice out of Penn State in 2003, Johnson was one of the best running backs in the NFL in 2005 and 2006, rushing for more than 1,700 yards each year.
But he was dogged by controversy and frequently at odds with coaches and fans. On Oct. 25, in what turned out to be his final episode with the Chiefs, he posted on his Twitter account several insults to fans, questioned coach Todd Haley’s credentials and used a gay slur.
He repeated the slur the next day to reporters and was suspended for two weeks.
MIAMI (AP) — Former NFL star Lawrence Taylor was released on bond following his arrest in a Miami-area traffic accident.
Taylor was charged Sunday with leaving the scene of an accident with property damage, a second-degree misdemeanor. He was released on $500 bond later that night.
Taylor was involved in a hit-and-run crash Sunday in Hialeah. Taylor told investigators he thought he had hit a guard rail. No on was injured and troopers didn’t conduct a sobriety test.
Taylor played his entire career with the New York Giants, winning two Super Bowl titles as one of the league’s most dominant linebackers. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
UNDATED (AP) — Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount, who was suspended for the season after punching a Boise State player in the wake of the season opener, will rejoin the Ducks.
The university requested Blount’s reinstatement, which was approved by Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott. Blount will be able to play for the No. 14 Ducks on Saturday night when they host Arizona State. He missed eight games.
Blount punched Byron Hout following the nationally televised opener, bringing the Broncos’ defensive end to his knees. The next day he was suspended for the season by coach Chip Kelly, but he was allowed to keep his scholarship and practice with the team.
PRO BASKETBALL
UNDATED (AP) — Memphis Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley granted 10-time all-star Allen Iverson permission Saturday for an indefinite leave to deal with a personal matter and The Commercial Appeal newspaper reported that Iverson is contemplating retirement.
The 34-year-old Iverson, who signed a one-year deal in September, missed the preseason with a partially-torn left hamstring. He made his debut on the road a week ago in California, playing in three games at Sacramento, Golden State and in Los Angeles against the Lakers.
He averaged 22.3 minutes coming off the bench and scored 12.3 points per game — well below his career average of 27.0 points.
GOLF
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The size of the gallery at Kingston Heath was nothing new for Tiger Woods, who also played before some 7,000 people two days ago in China.
But that was the final round of a World Golf Championship.
This was merely a practice round for the Australia Masters, and it showed just what kind of buzz Woods has generated in his return to Australia for the first time in 11 years.
Woods is making his fourth appearance in Australia, which he described as one of his favorite spots in the world for golf, particularly the sandbelt courses around Melbourne.
He tied for fifth in the 1996 Australian Open at the end of his rookie season, then tied for eighth in Australian Masters early in 1997. His last appearance was the Presidents Cup in 1998.
SWIMMING
STOCKHOLM (AP) — Michael Phelps plans to wear the old-style swimsuit that will become the standard next year at the upcoming European World Cup meet.
The Olympic star will swim the 100-meter freestyle and backstroke plus the individual medley on Tuesday. He will also swim the 100 butterfly and 200 IM Wednesday.
Phelps, who broke Mark Spitz’s record by winning eight gold medals at last year’s Beijing Olympics, welcomed the ban on the high-tech bodysuits that helped rewrite swimming records the past two years.
The new rules, which limit men to old-style suits from the waist to just above the knees, don’t come into effect until January. But Phelps’ coach, Bob Bowman, wants the swimmer to use the suit now in the lead-up to the U.S. national championships next summer.
SOCCER
LONDON (AP) — World Cup organizers say there was never an emergency plan to move the 2010 tournament if South Africa were not ready.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter said the United States was among countries that could host at short notice. But World Cup organizer Danny Jordaan says the only way that could have happened was in the event of a natural disaster.
Jordaan says his country would never have agreed to invest $4.5 billion in infrastructure if soccer’s governing body imposed any other contingencies.
Concerns had been raised that South Africa would not be ready to host the competition after construction work on stadiums and transport infrastructure lagged behind schedule.