BOXING: The New Zealand government yesterday blocked former heavyweight boxing champion and convicted rapist Mike Tyson (picture) from entering the country for a second time in as many weeks. A visa allowing Tyson to attend a charity event in November was cancelled earlier this month after the show’s sponsor withdrew its support for the ex-fighter’s visit. Another charitable group, the Manukau Urban Maori Authority, then backed Tyson and lodged a second visa application. But Associate Immigration Minister Kate Wilkinson said that the bid had been unsuccessful.
GOLF: Justin Rose drew on memories of last month’s Ryder Cup singles defeat of Phil Mickelson to also defeat fellow England golfer Lee Westwood by a stroke and capture the World Golf Final in Turkey, yesterday. Rose shot a round of a five-under par 66 to defeat Westwood who birdied the last hole in a score of 67 on the Sultan Course at the Antalya Club. On Thursday, Rose had chipped in at the 17th to deny Tiger Woods a place in the final of the $5.2million event.
GAY CHAMPIONSHIPS: Australia yesterday won the right to host the world gay rugby championships in Sydney in 2014, with organisers hoping the event will help address homophobia in sport. The Sydney Convicts Rugby Club, Australia’s first gay Rugby Union team, said the International Gay Rugby Association and Board had announced it had the rights to host the seventh bi-annual Bingham Cup. The trophy is named after US gay rugby player Mark Bingham, who died on United Airlines Flight 93 when it crashed into a Pennsylvania field during the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States. The week-long event will see up to 40 teams in action.
RUGBY UNION: New Zealand’s All Blacks will emblazon a sponsor’s logo on their jerseys for only the second time in their 107-year history under a deal signed yesterday with US insurance giants AIG. The New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) said the famous black jersey would carry the AIG logo until mid-2018 under a sponsorship arrangement needed to boost cash reserves and put the Union on a sustainable footing. The only other time the All Blacks featured a corporate logo was when the team was sponsored by brewer Steinlager in the 1990s.