Sun Nov 18, 2012 2:49pm EST (Reuters) - Super Bowl winning coach and player Mike Ditka has been released from a Chicago hospital two days after suffering a mild stroke, ESPN reported on Sunday. The hugely popular Hall of Fame, 73, works as an analyst for the network. He plans on hosting his radio show again on Tuesday and hopes to return to ESPN's NFL shows soon,...

Sun Nov 18, 2012 11:29am EST (Reuters) - Sweden's Henrik Stenson claimed the South African Open at the Serengeti Golf and Wildlife Estate on Sunday, helping him to qualify for the lucrative DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. Heading into the event, Stenson was 59th in the Race to Dubai rankings and knew he could be in danger of missing out if he could not produ...

Sun Nov 18, 2012 9:50am EST FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The owner of Germany's Nuerburgring motor racing track has said the popular Formula One venue could still host the German Grand Prix next year despite uncertainty linked to the track's insolvency. The current operator NAG, which has leased the facilities from the owner, is in talks with F1 commercial boss Bernie E...

Sun Nov 18, 2012 8:29am EST (Reuters) - U.S. rapper Snoop Dogg says he would be ready to splash his cash and invest in Scottish soccer champions Celtic. The 41-year-old, who is as well known for his love of sport as he is his music and drugs busts, fell further in love with the Glasgow club after watching highlights of Celtic's heroic 2-1 victory over Barcelona i...

FANLING, Hong Kong | Sun Nov 18, 2012 5:08am EST FANLING, Hong Kong (Reuters) - Miguel Angel Jimenez fired a final round five-under 65 to become the oldest player to record a European Tour victory with a one-stroke triumph at the Hong Kong Open on Sunday. The Spaniard completed the tournament on 15 under par to edge out Sweden's Fredrik Andersson Hed, wh...

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE | Sun Nov 18, 2012 3:55am EST MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Local favorite Adam Scott cruised to a four-stroke victory in the $1 million Australian Masters on Sunday as Ian Poulter's title defense fizzled out with a bogey-strewn back nine at Melbourne's Kingston Heath Golf Club. The world number five Scott showed great composure o...

Sun Nov 18, 2012 12:22am EST (Reuters) - The Los Angeles Clippers have continued their impressive opening to the NBA season, matching their best start to a year in franchise history by thumping the Chicago Bulls 101-80 at Staples Center on Saturday. The victory was the fifth straight for the Clippers, who were led by big man Blake Griffin's double-double and Jama...

PRAGUE | Sun Nov 18, 2012 12:01am EST PRAGUE (Reuters) - Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek used a roaring home crowd to come back from a set down on Saturday, putting the Czech Republic 2-1 up over holders Spain and a win away from the Davis Cup title. The Czech pair looked tired from the opening singles matches that went late on Friday but triumphed 3-6 ...

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE | Sat Nov 17, 2012 11:37pm EST MELBOURNE (Reuters) - The desire to improve can drive professional athletes to distraction, but for Australian golfer Rika Batibasaga it became a dangerous obsession that saw him handcuffed and thrown into a Florida mental institution. In 2008, Batibasaga, whose father played international ru...

Sat Nov 17, 2012 7:49pm EST (Reuters) - National Hockey League (NHL) and players' union officials will meet again on Monday in New York in a bid to resolve the bitter two-month-old labor dispute, the league said on Saturday. Weekend discussions between NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly and NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) special counsel Steve Fehr led to the dec...

By Steve Keating AUSTIN, Texas | Sat Nov 17, 2012 4:06pm EST AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel roared to pole position at the U.S. Grand Prix on Saturday with the German perfectly placed to claim a third straight Formula One title in his milestone 100th race. Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, 10 points behind the championship leader ...

FANLING, Hong Kong | Sat Nov 17, 2012 5:23am EST FANLING, Hong Kong (Reuters) - Michael Campbell survived two major scares but the New Zealander remains on course to end a seven-year title drought at the Hong Kong Open. The 43-year-old started Saturday's third round with a one-stroke advantage and after scrambling to shoot a one-under-par 69, he was join...

By Mark Lamport-Stokes LOS ANGELES | Sat Nov 17, 2012 3:19am EST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers gave their fans a taste of the 'Showtime' basketball promised by their new coach Mike D'Antoni with a rousing 114-102 home win over the Phoenix Suns on Friday. Though D'Antoni was not courtside to take charge of his firs...

By Mark Lamport-Stokes LOS ANGELES | Sat Nov 17, 2012 2:49am EST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles Lakers point guard Steve Nash will be sidelined for "at least another week" because of a small fracture in his left leg, the National Basketball Association team said on Friday. The twice former Most Valuable Player has missed seven games, includi...

Sat Nov 17, 2012 1:18am EST (Reuters) - The New York Knicks became the last team to taste defeat this season with a 105-95 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies at the FedExForum in Tennessee on Friday. One day after manufacturing a fourth quarter comeback against San Antonio, the Knicks (6-1) were unable to repeat the feat as Memphis center Marc Gasol racked up 24 point...

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE | Sat Nov 17, 2012 12:11am EST MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Tiger Woods's taxpayer-funded visits Down Under did nothing to help Australia's ailing golf tour, which is stuck in a losing battle for relevance unless it does more to embrace Asia, according to five-times British Open champion Peter Thomson. Woods's tournament appearan...

By Mark Lamport-Stokes LOS ANGELES | Fri Nov 16, 2012 10:20pm EST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Six-time NBA champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was honored by the Los Angeles Lakers in a moving and often emotional ceremony on Friday when a bronze statue of the Hall of Famer was unveiled outside the Staples Center. Jabbar, the NBA's all-time leading scorer wi...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 10:13pm EST (Reuters) - Super Bowl winning player and coach Mike Ditka was taken to hospital after a minor stroke on Friday and will be rested from his usual weekend television commitments. Ditka, 73, was playing cards at a suburban country club when he noticed his hands "weren't working quite right" and then he had a problem speaking, the Chicag...

SYDNEY | Fri Nov 16, 2012 9:27pm EST SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia soccer chief David Gallop was not surprised David Beckham's management denied he had any interest in playing in the A-League but said that did not mean there was no possibility of it happening. Football Federation Australia (FFA) said on Friday they had been approached by the former Englan...

By Steve Keating AUSTIN, Texas | Fri Nov 16, 2012 7:20pm EST AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Once a Formula One wasteland, the United States is suddenly being viewed as a land of promise for the world's glamour circuit with F1 commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone calling for up to three races in the U.S. After a five-year hiatus, F1 makes its long-awai...

By Larry Fine NEW YORK | Fri Nov 16, 2012 6:40pm EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - A lawsuit brought by thousands of former NFL players against the league for allegedly denying any link of gridiron play to long-term brain damage may benefit from information in an investigative report on Friday. The National Football League's retirement board awarded disab...

By Jason Hovet PRAGUE | Fri Nov 16, 2012 6:29pm EST PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech Republic's Tomas Berdych brought the hosts level at 1-1 with holders Spain in the Davis Cup final with a battling five-set victory over Nicolas Almagro on Friday. The top Czech player, ranked sixth in the world, used his booming serve to good effect and drew inspirat...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 6:17pm EST (Reuters) - Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Terrance Knighton has been fined $25,000 by the National Football League for a severe hit on Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, the league said on Friday. Knighton was penalized for unnecessary roughness after making helmet-to-helmet contact with Luck, who was defenseless on th...

By Steve Keating AUSTIN, Texas | Fri Nov 16, 2012 6:14pm EST AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel dominated free practice at the U.S. Grand Prix on Friday as drivers got their first taste of Formula One's newest venue and gave it rave reviews up and down the paddock. Vettel, who can clinch his third straight drivers' title on Sun...

NEW YORK | Fri Nov 16, 2012 5:35pm EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - The bitter labor dispute between the National Hockey League (NHL) and the players' union shows no sign of thawing. Now, with Thanksgiving just days away and the North American winter rapidly approaching, time could be running out for the feuding sides to reach an agreement and save the season.No...

By Zoran Milosavljevic BELGRADE | Fri Nov 16, 2012 5:19pm EST BELGRADE (Reuters) - Former Euroleague champions Maccabi Tel Aviv and Zalgiris Kaunas saw their perfect starts end in a pulsating sixth round of the preliminary group stage while Fenerbahce were undone by a last-gasp shot at unfancied Khimki Moscow. Barcelona, the 2010 winners, remaine...

By Mark Lamport-Stokes LOS ANGELES | Fri Nov 16, 2012 4:09pm EST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Los Angeles Lakers will not have their new coach on the sidelines for Friday's home game against the Phoenix Suns but Mike D'Antoni's players have enthusiastically embraced the up-tempo style he has promised. Renowned for the offense-minded approach he ad...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 4:02pm EST (Reuters) - The Toronto Blue Jays, awaiting official approval on a massive 12-player deal with Miami, may have added another key piece by coming to terms with free-agent outfielder Melky Cabrera, according to multiple reports on Friday. Cabrera would earn $16 million in the two-year deal for the former San Francisco Giants slugger, who...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 3:30pm EST (Reuters) - The Oakland A's sent pitcher Tyson Ross and minor league slugger A.J. Kirby-Jones to the San Diego Padres for infielder Andy Parrino and left-hander Andrew Werner, the Major League Baseball website (mlb.com) said on Friday. The hard-throwing Ross, who was in the process of transitioning from starter to reliever with the A's...

PRAGUE | Fri Nov 16, 2012 1:36pm EST PRAGUE (Reuters) - David Ferrer gave Spain a 1-0 lead over the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup final by beating Radek Stepanek 6-3 6-4 6-4 after a hard-fought match on Friday. "It wasn't a stroll by any means, it cost me a lot of effort. Above all it was hard for me to finish off the points," Ferrer, Spain's top playe...

The tricks and acrobatics on a bicycle or a skateboard are being transmitted by radio through the bilingual program “Cultura Alternativa” (Alternative Culture). The program is dedicated to sharing experiences about these extreme sports, interviewing the big national and international stars of skateboarding and BMX and listening to the best hip-hop. The programming is being overseen by Nicoyan L...

By Simon Evans MIAMI | Fri Nov 16, 2012 9:51am EST MIAMI (Reuters) - The league's finest young quarterback takes on one of the masters of the trade when rookie Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts face Tom Brady and the Patriots in New England on Sunday. Luck came into the league this year as the number one draft pick and with a stellar reputat...

By Simon Evans MIAMI | Fri Nov 16, 2012 9:51am EST MIAMI (Reuters) - The league's finest young quarterback takes on one of the masters of the trade when rookie Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts face Tom Brady and the Patriots in New England on Sunday. Luck came into the league this year as the number one draft pick and with a stellar reputat...

FANLING, Hong Kong | Fri Nov 16, 2012 5:55am EST FANLING, Hong Kong (Reuters) - World number one and defending champion Rory McIlroy missed the cut at the Hong Kong Open on Friday after he suffered a nightmare with the putter and double bogeyed his final hole. The U.S. PGA champion four-putted the 10th green, his last of the tournament, to cap a frustrat...

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE | Fri Nov 16, 2012 3:30am EST MELBOURNE (Reuters) - World number five Adam Scott held firm in blustery conditions to finish three strokes back of journeyman Matthew Guyatt after the second round of their home Australian Masters on Friday. Joint-second overnight, Scott grinded his way through a gusty afternoon to card a two...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 3:29am EST (Reuters) - The defending champion Miami Heat claimed a rare road win over the Denver Nuggets 98-93 on Thursday despite being without the services of eight-times All-Star Dwayne Wade. The Heat led throughout but needed to survive a late Nuggets rally to claim a first victory in Denver since January 2002.Despite trailing by as many as 1...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 2:49am EST (Reuters) - David Beckham could be set to move to the A-League after Football Federation Australia (FFA) said on Friday they had been approached by the former England captain's management. According to FFA officials, the approach was made in relation to Beckham playing in the A-League during the current 2012-13 season."The approach fro...

Fri Nov 16, 2012 2:12am EST (Reuters) - Miami Dolphins' rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill threw two late interceptions as the Buffalo Bills held on for a 19-14 win in the AFC East divisional clash on Thursday. Miami suffered their third consecutive loss and slipped to 4-6 in the division with their playoff hopes becoming increasingly marginal."We had a couple of ...

By Larry Fine NEW YORK | Fri Nov 16, 2012 12:48am EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants added to a career's worth of accomplishments by winning the National League Most Valuable Player award on Thursday in just his third season. Yet the humble, 25-year-old catcher said what he took away from the 2012 season was a heart...

By Larry Fine NEW YORK | Fri Nov 16, 2012 12:23am EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers, the first player to win the Triple Crown in 45 years, added the American League's Most Valuable Player award on Thursday for the 2012 Major League Baseball season. Cabrera became the first player since Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Re...