PELE will be "discharged from a Brazilian hospital on Tuesday after making a full recovery from a urinary tract infection." The 74-year-old has "spent the past two weeks in Sao Paulo's Albert Einstein hospital" (XINHUA, 12/8). ... Polish tennis player AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA has announced that MARTINA NAVRATILOVA is "joining her coaching team." Radwanska tweeted, "So happy to announce @Martina as the newest member of my coaching team!" (PA, 12/9). ... Ligue 1 side Bastia President PIERRE-MARIE GERONIMI has been "taken into custody as part of an inquiry into the club's finances." The investigation centers on the "funding of an artificial pitch installed at Bastia's youth training ground and payments made to club partners including a transport company" (PA, 12/9). ... FIFA President SEPP BLATTER will "step down" from the IOC in two years' time, with "one of the 40 new reform points in Agenda 2020 insisting on the retirement of any member over the age of 80." Blatter voted for the IOC age limit recommendation even though he did not "support it personally and believed it was 'discriminatory.'" Blatter: "I
am in the Olympic movement, in the Olympic committee. It
was the huge majority and especially the committee who have decided
that. So I agreed because I am a team player" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 12/10).
FILING AN APPEAL: South African
prosecutors appealed on Tuesday against the "culpable homicide verdict
and five-year prison term" imposed on athlete OSCAR PISTORIUS for the
killing of his girlfriend REEVA STEENKAMP, saying it was "shockingly
inappropriate." Pistorius, who was "not in court on Tuesday, and his legal team are opposing the appeal" (REUTERS, 12/9). ... Brazilian Ligue 1 side Bastia striker BRANDAO has "changed his legal representative and
appealed his one month prison sentence for head-butting an opponent," his
new lawyer YASSINE MAHARSI confirmed. In any case, he is "unlikely to serve any time behind bars as
French law allows for his sentence to be commuted to community service
or an increased fine," something the trial judge in Paris, YVES MADRE,
had emphasized at the time of sentencing (AFP, 12/9). ... GARY TEALE has been named interim Scottish Premiership side St. Mirren manager after TOMMY CRAIG left the club by “mutual consent.” Teale and fellow player/assistant coach JIM GOODWIN, who joined the management team under Craig during the summer, “took training at the dome at the St. Mirren Stadium” (Scotland DAILY RECORD, 12/9).
IOC HONORS WOMEN: The IOC honored six women for their contribution to women’s participation, both on the field of play and within sports administration. The World Trophy was awarded to MERIEM CHERNI MIZOUNI of Tunisia, a pioneer of women’s and girls’ sport in her country. Continental trophies were awarded to: AYA MAHMOUD MEDANY (Africa); NANCY HOGSHEAD-MAKAR (the Americas); CHEIKHA NAÏMA AL-SABAH (Asia); ANASTASIA DAVYDOVA (Europe) and SIÂN MULHOLLAND (Oceania) (IOC).
