Two Korean clubs advance

Two of the four South Korean teams at Asia’s premier club competition have advanced to the knockout phase, hoping to maintain the country’s recent run of dominance at the annual tournament.FC Seoul and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors of the K League Classic are through to the round of 16 at the AFC Champions League. The group stage concluded earlier this week, and with FC Seoul having qualified for the next round a week earlier, Jeonbuk also made it to the knockout stage with a 0-0 draw against Guangzhou

SoccerMay 2, 2013

Bayern Munich lines up CL final with Dortmund

Barcelona star Lionel Messi watched from the sideline as Bayern Munich completed its dismantling of the Spanish side with a 3-0 win on Wednesday, lining up the first all-German Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund.With its all-time leading scorer out after he aggravated a right hamstring injury, Barcelona failed to seriously threaten Bayern's goal _ much less an epic comeback after its 4-0 first-leg defeat.Bayern, meanwhile, humbled a team that has been the envy of European football

SoccerMay 2, 2013

Two S. Korean clubs advance in AFC Champions League

Two of the four South Korean football teams at Asia's premier club competition have advanced to the knockout phase, hoping to maintain the country's recent run of dominance at the annual tournament.FC Seoul and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors of the K League Classic are through to the round of 16 at the AFC Champions League. The group stage concluded earlier this week, and with FC Seoul having qualified for the next round a week earlier, Jeonbuk also made it to the knockout stage with a 0-0 draw against

SoccerMay 2, 2013

Collins: Support after coming out ‘incredible’

Jason Collins said he has gotten “incredible” support since coming out as the first openly gay player in one of the four major U.S. pro sports leagues, and hopes he may have made the path easier for others to follow.Collins sat down for an interview that was aired by ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Tuesday, one day after the veteran NBA center revealed his sexuality in a first-person story posted on Sports Illustrated’s website.“I think, I know, in my personal life, I’m ready and I think the cou

More SportsMay 1, 2013

'Clumsy' Sepp Blatter cleared of any wrongdoing

Despite being labeled “clumsy” for his part in one of FIFA's biggest corruption scandals, Sepp Blatter was cleared of any criminal or unethical wrongdoing in a case involving millions of dollars in bribes for World Cup contracts.The reputation of Blatter's predecessor as FIFA president, Joao Havelange, was further damaged, however. The 96-year-old Brazilian, who led FIFA from 1974-98, was forced to step down as honorary president due to his involvement in the case.A report issued Tuesday by FIFA

SoccerMay 1, 2013

'Pyeongchang' picked as UNCBD host city

  The 12th Conference of the Parties to United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) will be held in South Korea's alpine city of Pyeongchang in September next year, the environment ministry said Tuesday.   The conference will be attended by 20,000 delegates from 193 countries, it said.   Ways to implement the so-called "Nagoya Protocol" will be discussed during the conference, the ministry said.   The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing

Olympic GamesApril 30, 2013

Psy to watch Ryu’s game

South Korean rapper Psy will attend a Los Angeles Dodgers game on Tuesday where his compatriot, Dodgers pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin, will take the mound against the Colorado Rockies, the rapper’s agency said.YG Entertainment said that Psy, whose latest single chases the success of his global megahit “Gangnam Style,” will watch the game at the L.A.’s Dodger Stadium at 7 p.m. local time.This is the first time the sun-glassed South Korean will attend a Dodgers game since August 2012, when he surprised spe

BaseballApril 30, 2013

Kuznetsova survives rough welcome at Portugal Open

OEIRAS, Portugal (AFP) ― Two-time grand slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova was forced to battle to a marathon 6-7 (7), 6-3, 6-2 first round win at the ATP/WTA Portugal Open on Monday.The Russian wild card, who won the 2004 French Open and the U.S. Open three years later, had to dig deep to see off American sixth seed Varvara Lepchenko. Kuznetsova, now ranked 45th in the world, is playing the event proper for the first time in her career but she did lose a qualifying match in her only previous vis

More SportsApril 30, 2013

Villa routs Sunderland 6-1 to close in on safety

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) ― Aston Villa moved closer to avoiding relegation from the Premier League after Christian Benteke scored a second-half hat trick in a 6-1 thrashing of Sunderland on Monday.The Belgian international scored in the 55th, 60th and 72nd minutes at Villa Park to tally 22 league goals and 27 in all competitions in his first season at the club.More importantly, Villa moved five points clear of Wigan in the final relegation place. Sunderland, Villa and Newcastle are all on 37 poi

SoccerApril 30, 2013

Gay athletes have come out while active or retired

Even before Jason Collins, plenty of other athletes around the world have come out as gay, either while still active or in retirement.From Martina Navratilova to Greg Louganis to Sheryl Swoopes, men and women from a variety of sports have openly acknowledged their sexuality, though many others are believed to still be reluctant to come forward.Collins, a 34-year-old NBA veteran, became the first active player in the four major American professional sports to come out as gay, writing a first-pers

More SportsApril 30, 2013

NBA veteran center Jason Collins comes out as gay

With the simplest of sentences, NBA veteran Jason Collins set aside years of worry and silence to become the first active player in one of four major U.S. professional sports leagues to come out as gay.In a first-person article posted Monday on Sports Illustrated's website, Collins begins: “I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay.”Collins has played for six teams in 12 seasons, most recently as a reserve with the Washington Wizards after a midseason trade from the Boston Celtics. He

More SportsApril 30, 2013