International Sport
Basketball - Bryant matches milestone
Kobe Bryant became the first player in more than 41 years to score 45 or more points in four consecutive games in guiding the Los Angeles Lakers to a 96-90 win over the Indiana Pacers at the Staples Center on Monday.
Bryant has been on a dazzling run and registered 45, 48 and 50-point performances in his three games leading up to Monday's clash and reached the 45-point plateau again when he nailed two free-throws with 10 seconds left on the clock.
The NBA scoring leader becomes the first player since Wilt Chamberlain in November 1964 to string together four consecutive 45-point games.
Rugby - Umaga quits international game
New Zealand captain Tana Umaga announced his retirement from international rugby yesterday, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family. The 32-year-old said he would continue playing at provincial and club level but the time had come for him to step down from international competitions.
"I sacrificed a lot of the time with my family to wear the black jersey and I did that willingly and always wanted to do it. But now I believe it's time for me to sacrifice something and give back to my family," he said.
Umaga played 74 tests for New Zealand between 1997 and 2005.
Athletics - US $1.5 million indoors
American athletes will compete for more than $1.5 million in prize and promotional money during a four-meeting indoor series that will conclude with next month's US championships in Boston.
USA Track & Field (USATF) announced yesterday that the series will begin on January 28 with the Boston Indoor Games and will include the February 3 Millrose Games at New York's Madison Square Garden and February 10 Fayetteville Invitational in Arkansas.
The US championships in Boston on February 24-26 will conclude the series with the first two finishers in the meeting qualifying for the IAAF world indoor championships on March 10-12 in Moscow.
Motoring - Yamaha stay with tobacco
World champion Valentino Rossi's Yamaha MotoGP team will continue with tobacco branding this year after announcing Camel as their new title sponsor. The Japan Tobacco International brand had previously sponsored Spanish-based Honda Pons, who have pulled out of the 2006 season due to a lack of funding as a result of the agreement ending.
Yamaha last month announced the end of a partnership with Altadis/Seita, who own the Fortuna and Gauloises brands and had been title sponsors for the past three years.