Sharapova reaches Miami Masters final

Miami - Maria Sharapova fought back from one set down to reach the women's final at the WTA and ATP Masters hardcourt tournament on Thursday.

Third seed Roger Federer eased into the the men's semifinals thanks to French opponent Gilles Simon's retirement due to a stiff neck.

Sharapova, seeded 16th, overcame her slow start by winning 11 straight games en route to a 3-6, 6-0, 6-2 semifinal victory over Germany's Andrea Petkovic.

Sharapova will be seeking her first title since May 2010, and her first in Miami, playing against the winner of Thursday night's semifinal between third-seeded Russian Vera Zvonareva and 2009 Miami champion Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in Saturday's final.

Federer won 12 of the 15 points against Simon, who talked with a trainer during a changeover before conceding the match and shaking hands with Federer.

"He told me he woke up this morning with a stiff neck and couldn't move," Federer said. "It's obviously disappointing when it happens in front of an audience. You get booed off the court -- that's rough. It's not the way you want to move on, but look, I'll take those because they happen quite rarely."

Federer next faces either top-seeded Spaniard Rafael Nadal or seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych.

Federer beat Nadal for the title here in 2005, the last time they played each other in the United States.

Sharapova, who finished runner-up here in 2005 and 2006, missed the tournament from 2008-2010 because of injuries.

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Kenya's Olympic champion Jelimo makes a comeback

Nairobi - Olympic 800m champion Pamela Jelimo returned to competitive running on Friday but bit the dust as she came out second in the shorter 200m sprint at the second round of the Athletics Kenya track and field competition staged in Narok.

Her attempt to gauge her endurance over the 1,500m race ended prematurely as she was forced out with a lap to spare.

Over 1,500 elite athletes turned up for the event, which AK Public Relations Officer Peter Angwenyi said depicted the rich history and talent the country boost of.

Jelimo's performance in the 200m sprint was a proof she is on return to her former form and that she only need time and more races to get to her peak.

She held on tightly to finish second in 26.7, which is not bad for a two lap racer seeking to test her speed. She was beaten by her Kenya Police teammate Edna Kwamboka in 26.2 while Zipporah Nyasiguta from Kisii was third in 27.1.

In 1,500m women final, Jelimo had to drop out after her normal 800m in a race that was won by Helen Opili from the Armed Forces team.

Opili struck 4:30.1 to win, but had to contend with a late charge from 16 year-old Carolyne Chepkoech, the Africa cross country 6km champion, who was second in 4:35.5 while Nancy Gathure took the third position in 4:36.3.

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Ze Roberto sets Bundesliga foreigner record

Berlin - After helping his team tying 0-0 away against Hoffenheim on Saturday night, Hamburg's Brazil midfielder set a new record in Bundesliga as the most capped foreign player.

Jose Robert da Silva Jr., commonly known as Ze Roberto, has played in 331 Bundesliga matches, renewing the 330-match record set by Bosnia international Sergej Barbarez who retired in 2008.

"Holding this record for me is like winning an Oscar," said Ze Roberto, who won 84 caps for Brazil and scored 6 goals.

The 37-year-old stepped on the stage of Bundesliga in the summer of 1998 and spent four seasons in Bayer Leverkusen before transferring to German giants Bayern Munich in 2002.

Ze Roberto spent six seasons in two spells in Bayern Munich, winning four league titles and four German Cup finals, before signing with his current club Hamburg in 2009.

Ze Roberto's contract in Hamburg will expire at the end of the season but the midfielder has already expressed his will to keep playing until he is 40.

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Xavi thinks Cesc will arrive at Barca this summer

Barcelona midfielder Xavi is confident the Spanish giants will sign Cesc Fabregas from Arsenal this summer.

Barcelona have long been linked with a move for Fabregas but Arsenal have been determined to keep hold of the 23-year-old.

Xavi told Sport: “Yes, certainly. And it also has to be like this.

“Two years ago I said Cesc would end up playing for Barcelona and now I have it more clear than ever.

“He has also expressed publicly that he wants to come to Barcelona and when a player wants to move to some place he ends up going. It is clear that Cesc will come to Barcelona.”

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Mourinho Factor Can Fire Real Madrid To Glory

With the new 2010-11 La Liga season about to start this coming weekend, most of the attention has been focused on Jose Mourinho, the new manager of Real Madrid. With the beginning of a brand new season comes the release of new 2010-11 soccer jerseys, including the new Real Madrid home shirt. Real Madrid have not lived up to their usual expectations in recent years and considering how much money they spent on players last summer, many would say that they have failed in their quest so far.

The appointment of Jose Mourinho as manager is quite a different prospect, however. Mourinho has been successful at every single club he has managed, including Porto, Chelsea and Inter Milan. Those wearing the new Real Madrid shirt now have a real winner in their camp and no-one would bet against him making a massive difference to the team.

It’s no secret that Jose Mourinho wants to have full control over his team and that at Real Madrid, managers are not give this luxury. This season, however, it is believed that Mourinho will have full control over his team selections and signings, but only time will tell if this is true or not. He will want to ensure that each player wearing a Real Madrid shirt is a player he can trust in his squad.

There have been some changes to those wearing the new Real Madrid home jersey this coming season. Older and influential players such as Raul and Guti have left the club, which might actually work in Mourinho’s favour, as they would have had a lot of say in previous seasons with other managers; something The Special One may not have taken kindly to. Madrid have brought in four new players so far, including Mourinho’s old favourite at Porto and Chelsea, Ricardo Carvalho. Two of Germany’s young stars at the World Cup, Mesut Ozil and Sami Khedira, have signed and finally, Argentina’s Angel di Maria, has also joined.

This suggests that the manager wanted a bit more experience at the back, but also wanted to look to the future with his three other signings. When you consider these signings and the fact that the players who have left were no longer first team regulars, the Real Madrid squad has certainly improved. When you also consider that the club still has Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Xabi Alonso, Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema in the squad, there is no question that Real Madrid could in fact be a huge threat in both La Liga and in the Champions’ League this season. It would be harsh if Mourinho was not given time to improve the Madrid giants, but given his track record, will he even need much time?

Written by Danny Watson, a sports journalist who writes about football kits.

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Two RI vehicles to participate in Shell Eco Marathon 2011

Yogyakarta - Gadjah Mada University (UGM)`s Semar Team is to enter two energy-efficient vehicles in the Shell Eco Marathon 2011 to be held at Malaysia`s Sepang Circuit on July 6-9 2011.

"The two energy efficient vehicles are the Semar Prototype and the Semar Urban," said Jayan Sentanuhady, adviser of Gadjah Mada University`s Semar Team, here Thursday.

The Semar Team was aiming to achieve maximum fuel efficiency and riding distance, Jayan said.

The engines of the energy efficient vehicles were designed for heat efficiency and maximal volume under certain balanced conditions, Jayan said.

"They are long stroke engines with high torque characteristics on the low rev to lower fuel consumption," Jayan, who is also a lecturer of Machine and Industry Engineering of Engineering Faculty of UGM, said.

According to Jayan, the Semar Prototype could cover 280 kilometers on one liter of gasoline.

The Semar Prototype was 2.8 meters long, 0.65 meters high, one meter wide and had a 1.6-meter long wheel base.

The chassis wa made of fiberglass with 2 millimeter thickness, while the engine was a 25 cc four-stroke single cylinder able to take the vehicle to its maximum velocity of 45 km per hour.

Meanwhile, the Semar Urban, which was designed as an energy efficient city car , was now still in a finishing process.

The Semar Urban used a 125 cc four-stroke engine, had double spark plugs which were ignited sequentially using an Electronic Control Unit, and consumed number 95 octane gasoline, Jayan said.

The Semar Urban`s dimensions were 2.3 meter long, 1.3 meter high, and 1.3 meter wide.

To compete in the upcoming competition, the Semar Prototype`s engine, which was 25 cc, would be replaced with a 115 cc engine to gain more power on an uphill road, Jayan said.

The rear swing arm, rear seats and steering paddock would be made separately, Jayan said, adding that the wheel house would be made outside the chassis to maximize its steering wheel turning angle until 45 degree.

With such transformation, Jayan hoped Semar Team could compete and perform well and win the competition. (Uu.KR-AES/HAJM/A014)

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Can Shaolin temple save Chinese footbal?

Beijing - China`s celebrated Shaolin Temple is training young kungfu disciples to play football in the far-off hope of reversing the flagging fortunes of the national team, state media reported.

In a case of life imitates art the initiative will likely draw comparisons with hit 2001 Hong Kong comedy "Shaolin Soccer" about a group of washed-up monks from the temple who apply their superhuman moves on the soccer pitch.

The temple, in central China`s Henan province, which is famed for the acrobatic exploits of its warrior monks, opened a soccer training centre in October that has more than 40 martial arts students learning the "beautiful game," the official Xinhua news agency said late Thursday.

Shi Yanlu, head coach at the training base, said the discipline and ethos of kungfu can translate into effective football.

"Chinese football is in the doldrums, and when some elements of Shaolin kungfu, particularly its spirit, are integrated into soccer, we hope it will help improve the training level of football," he said in the report.

The legwork and physical coordination of kungfu could also help future Chinese footballers, he added.

China`s national football team is a laughing-stock at home and a source of anguish for fans frustrated by the inability of the world`s most populous country to succeed in the world`s most popular sport.

China failed to qualify for last year`s World Cup, has performed poorly in the Olympic Games and recently failed to reach the Asian Cup`s knockout stages.

China`s pro league also is reeling from a match-fixing, gambling and graft scandal that has resulted in the arrests of two former national football association heads and a number of lower-level officials.

The young recruits at the temple`s training centre -- all around 10 years old -- are being coached by Alphonse Tchami, a retired Cameroonian national footballer, the report said.

The temple plans to attract more recruits among the 2,000 disciples who train at Shaolin, it added. (U.C003/P003)

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