Dhankuta win opener

LALITPUR:

Dhankuta defeated Kathmandu 3-2 in the inaugural match of the U-14 Tribhuvan Memorial Inter-DDC Chairman Cup Football Tournament, which has been organised by All Nepal Football Association, here at ANFA Complex today. In other first-day matches, Palpa beat Saptari 5-2; Ilam beat Nawalparasi 7-3; and Rupandehi beat Dhanusha 1-0. At Jawalakhel Youth Club ground, Nuwakot beat Bhaktapur 2-1; Surkhet beat Udaypur 7-0; and Jhapa beat Baglung 3-2. At Buddhi Bikash Mandal ground, Parsa beat Mahottari 4-2 in tie breaker. — HNS

Khadga Devi Club win DHADING: On the occasion of the Maghi festival, Satish Youth Club organised an Inter-club Volleyball Competition in Salang VDC. Khadga Devi Youth Club won the tournament followed by Satish Youth Club and Mankamana Youth Club. In all, 10 teams participated in the competition. — RSS

Sugut wins marathon

MUMBAI:

Julius Sugut of Kenya won the second Standard Chartered Mumbai International Marathon here on Sunday as India’s financial and movie capital plunged heartily into the fun fiesta. Sugut clocked two hours, 13 minutes and 20 seconds to take the top spot and $30,000. Tanzanian Christopher Isegwe finished second, while Ethiopian Malese Gashaw took the third spot. Seboka Mulu of Ethiopia won the women’s marathon with a time of 2:35:03 and picked up $20,000 in prize money. Over 5,000 runners from 25 countries took part in the run. — HNS

Gayle under injury cloud

SYDNEY:

West Indian opener Chris Gayle is in doubt for Wednesday’s tri-series match against Pakistan in Brisbane because of a shoulder injury. The left-handed batsman inflamed tendons in his right shoulder throwing a ball from the outfield during Australia’s 116-run victory on Friday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. On a positive note, left-arm paceman Pedro Collins has fully recovered from a thigh strain and will be a welcome addition to the injury-hit squad at the Gabba ground in Brisbane. — AFP

N Korea boycott media

TOKYO:

North Korea’s national team is excluding Japanese media from its training sesssions at a Chinese resort before a World Cup qualifier next month and amid political tensions. “The Japanese press corps expelled,” declared the front-page headline in the Nikkan Sports newspaper. North Korean team officials on Saturday started chasing away Japanese media people, particularly television crews, from a soccer field which they had been using. — AFP

Sao Paulo sign Luizao

SAO PAULO:

Three-time Brazilian champion Sao Paulo signed 2002 World Cup champion Luizao for the 2005 season. Luizao, Ronaldo’s backup in Brazil’s squad that won the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, was without a team after playing most of last year with Rio de Janeiro’s Botafogo. Last March, Luizao was released from Germany’s Hertha Berlin after three disappointing seasons in the Bundesliga. He had previously played for Spain’s Deportivo la Coruna and Brazil’s Corinthians, Palmeiras, Gremio and Vasco da Gama. — AP