Judo: Japanese women’s judo coach Ryuji Sonoda said he would resign yesterday after the country’s sports minister called for a fresh inquiry into accusations of physical abuse against female judokas. Local media reported that 15 athletes had sent a joint letter of complaint to the JOC after claiming they had been subjected to harassment and violence by head coach Ryuji Sonoda and his staff in the build-up to the 2012 London Games. The athletes complained of being slapped, shoved and beaten with bamboo.
Formula One: The Ferrari Formula One team announced their first Chinese sponsor yesterday, a maker of components for heavy industrial vehicles a world away from the glamour of the Italian company’s supercars. Ferrari said that the deal with Weichai Power would run to the end of the 2016 season. China is a major market for Ferrari, who have had a presence there for more than 20 years.
Tennis: Australian Open runner-up Li Na (picture) will visit doctors in Germany next week for treatment on her sore left ankle and is hopeful of returning to action in a fortnight, the Chinese world number five said. Li rolled her ankle twice in losing the final of the women’s singles at Melbourne Park to world number one Victoria Azarenka on Saturday. “It’s sore, so (I) will see doctor on Monday,” Li told reporters. She has been recuperating at home in China and visiting family since her near-miss at the year’s first grand slam
Athletics: Controversial 400 metre runner John Steffensen has been given a six-month suspension by Athletics Australia (AA) for bringing the sport into disrepute after an independent investigation dismissed his claims of racial vilification. The suspension will run until Aug. 1 meaning the 30-year-old will miss the chance to qualify for the World Championships in Moscow.
Swimming: Frenchwoman Laure Manaudou, the 2004 Olympic 400 metres freestyle champion, announced she had retired from swimming and drawn the curtain on a colourful career. “I quit. I took the decision a long time ago,” the 26-year-old Manaudou, who added she is expecting a second child, told the French television channel Canal Plus. “I am three months pregnant. I have stopped swimming for two months and I’m fine with it. I want to meet new people. I will not come back this time.”