Rs 50,000 for Bharati

KATHMANDU: Athlete Nirmala Bharati was awarded a cash prize of Rs 50,000 for her tremendous performance in the Vattenfall Berlin half Marathon in Germany on April 2. Bharati finished sixth with the timing of 1:18:46 and broke her own previous national record. The cash prize was announced by Dr Janardan Subedi, who has been living in the United States for the last 23 years. National Sports Council member secretary Kishor Bahadur Singh presented the cash prize to Bharati and letter of appreciation to Subedi and coach Sushil Narsingh Rana on the occasion. —HNS

Atapattu sidelined

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka suffered a severe setback ahead of their England tour when captain Marvan Atapattu was sidelined with a recurring back injury. Atapattu, who was picked in the 16-man squad, was ruled out by Sri Lankas medical staff for the three-Test series. Jehan Mubarak will replace Atapattu, but Sri Lanka will have an inexperienced pair at the top of the order with veteran opener Sanath Jayasuriya too having retired from Test cricket. Mahela Jayawardene will lead the side. — AFP

Chelsea to help China

SHANGHAI: English champion Chelsea will lend China its state-of-the-art training complex to prepare for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, newspapers reported on Monday. Chelsea CEO Peter Kenyon extended the offer in meetings last week with Chinese soccer association officials in Beijing, Titan Sports reported. “What we’re looking for is a broader cooperation with China and a bigger space in the market,” Kenyon was quoted as saying. Titan said that, under the training agreement, Chelsea will also provide China with nutritionists and physical therapists, Titan said.No details of the timing or financial terms of the agreement were available. —AP

Romario injured

MIAMI: A calf injury kept Brazilian soccer legend Romario from making his debut on Sunday for Miami FC in a preseason friendly against Jamaican club Portmore United. Romario, who injured his left calf during training on Friday. He planned to fly to Brazil on Monday to work with his personal trainer and return to the United States on Thursday for the April 23 US second-division United Soccer League opener against the Montreal Impact. Romario, Brazil’s 1994 World Cup hero, left Brazilian club Vasco da Gama two weeks ago to sign with Miami FC. — AP

King ruled out

LONDON: England and Tottenham defender Ledley King was ruled out for a month with a broken foot on Monday. King was injured in his team’s 1-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park on Saturday and now faces a struggle to be fit be for the World Cup. England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson is due to name his squad on May 8 and must submit it to FIFA by May 15. “Ledley King has suffered a stress fracture to the fourth metatarsal of his left foot,” said a statement on Tottenham’s official Web site. “Early indications are that his recovery will take three to four weeks.” — AP