Russia first

THE NINTH finswimming long distance championship ended in Alexandria on Saturday with Russia coming out on top with six gold medals, two silver and one bronze. The Ukraine finished second with two golds, three silver and two bronze. In third place came Italy after it net one gold, three silver and two bronze, while France won one gold to take fourth place.

Egypt, the host country, finished fifth after collecting just one silver medal in the 20k boys and one bronze by Faris Aba Zaid in the men's event.

Mini-victory

EGYPT won the futsal, or five-a-side football, Arab police championship after beating Kuwait 21-8 in the final. En route to the final Egypt crushed Sudan 20-1, Somalia 25-0 and Palestine 14-3 before cruising past Tunisia in the semi-final 16-1. Tunisia came in third and Sudan fourth.

Held from 15 to 22 September under the auspices of the Arab Police Federation, the championship had Qatar, Bahrain, Somalia, Sudan, Palestine, Tunisia, Kuwait and Egypt.

Junior sweep

EGYPT's Ahmed Shebl won the tennis singles title in an international juniors tournament held in Cairo last week. Shebl beat German's Omar Altmann in the final 6-3, 5-7, 6-4. In the women's event, Egypt's Magi Aziz took the singles title, beating Mirai Isaaq 6-4, 6-3.

In doubles, Egyptians Ali El-Sherbini and Hassan Abdel-Fattah took home the trophy after beating Omar Khalil and Omar Altmann 6-4, 6-3.

Med bodies

TWELVE countries have entered the Mediterranean bodybuilding championship starting on 4 October at the Mubarak International Hall in Damanhour. The tournament, which ends 7 October, will be attended by the secretary-general of the International Federation of Bodybuilders, Rafael Santonja, and the presidents of the Arab and Asian federations.

Eight Egyptian players are taking part: El-Shahhat Mabrouk, Anwar El-Amawi, Tarek Sotouhi -- all defending champions -- Yassin El-Toukhi, Ahmed Abdel-Salam, Sherif El-Shewi, Mohamed Katkout and Mahmoud Fadali.

Shooting in Scotland

THE SHOOTING Club's synchronised swimming team, the defending champions, will be in the Scotland Open Championship next week. The squad, consisting of 15 swimmers from three age groups, is coached by Lamia' Mokhtar.

On the brink

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER turned in a virtuoso display at the US Grand Prix to put himself on the brink of winning a record sixth world title. Ferrari's defending champion adapted best to treacherous weather conditions, which fluctuated between sunshine and heavy rain at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

And his stunning victory, assisted at crucial times by the superior performance of Bridgestone's wet weather tyres, means that just one point at next month's Japan Grand Prix will assure him of the drivers' title.

Finland's Kimi Raikkonen is now the only man who can stop Schumacher, having battled back to finish second.

Marathon record

KENYA's Paul Tergat set a new world's best time for the marathon in Berlin on Sunday. Tergat won in two hours four minutes 55 seconds, beating Khalid Khannouchi's previous mark set in London in 2002 by 43 seconds.

The win, in cool and cloudy conditions, was the 34- year-old's first marathon win in six attempts. And the record came despite Tergat losing several seconds in front of the Brandenburg Gate trying to figure out which of the towering pillars he was to run through.

It was a thrilling sprint finish as Tergat battled with his pacemaker and fellow Kenyan Sammy Korir. Tergat held off Korir's strong challenge, but the pacemaker also smashed Khannouchi's old mark, finishing one second behind his compatriot in 2:04:56.

Tergat's time was the fourth world best recorded in Berlin in the past five years. But the Kenyan has often been the runner-up in big races, holding two Olympic silver medals and finishing second to Khannouchi when the American set his mark. Tergat also holds the world half-marathon record of 59:17. Yasuko Hashimoto made it four wins in a row for Japanese runners in the women's race when she won in 2.26.32.

Tennis pioneer dies

FORMER Wimbledon winner Althea Gibson has died at the age of 76. The tennis star, who helped to break down colour barriers in sport, was the first black woman to compete at the US Open, in 1950, and at Wimbledon in 1951.

And she went on to win both titles in 1957 and 1958, also adding a French Open to her list of honours.

Gibson had been seriously ill for years and died at East Orange General Hospital in New Jersey.

She was responsible for raising the profile of black athletes at a time when prejudice was common.

Gibson won her first tournament at 15, becoming the New York State black girls' singles tennis champion. After her ground-breaking appearances at the US Open and Wimbledon, she was almost driven out of the game due to a loss of form.

But in 1956 she took her first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros, also winning 13 other tournaments that year. She won two more Grand Slams in each of the following two seasons, being afforded the rare privilege of a ticker-tape parade in New York.

An all-round sporting talent, Gibson took up golf in 1960, becoming the first black woman on the LPGA tour in 1962. But she failed to match her success in tennis, failing to win a tournament.

Rivaldo wants Chelsea

BRAZIL star Rivaldo wants to move to Chelsea after terminating his contract with AC Milan last week.

The 31-year-old is desperate to hold on to his place on the national side and reveals there has already been interest from MIddlesbrough and Newcastle.

But Rivaldo believes Stamford Bridge would be the best place to resurrect his career. "At Chelsea it would be very easy for me to fit in quickly because there are already so many stars, some of whom I know directly," he said. "Perhaps that would make it the easiest choice for me because if I have good partners who know how I play then I could, literally, guarantee success.

"So Chelsea is interesting to me but I cannot say more specifically at the moment. I have to take in other factors. However, I think that England is the logical destination for me because I've had so many offers from there that it would be the easiest place to go and succeed.

"I'm going to have a close look now at four or five of the 12 strong proposals from France, England, Spain and Brazil which I have received since the summer and then I will choose which one suits me best."

Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 2 - 8 October 2003 (Issue No. 658)
Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/658/sp3.htm