Former Ligue 2 side RC Strasbourg President PATRICK PROISY, former club GM CLAUDE LE ROY and players’ agent NICOLAS GEIGER “were sentenced on Tuesday by the Strasbourg court for fraudulent player transfers.” Proisy was sentenced to 10 months in prison with a €25,000 ($28,080) fine. Le Roy was fined €15,000 ($16,850), and Geiger was fined €40,000 ($45,000) (DERNIÈRES NOUVELLES D’ALSACE, 9/13). ... Former Ligue 1 side Caen Manager FRANCK DUMAS was “sentenced to three years of prison” on Tuesday. Dumas was found guilty of financial fraud, having “declared lower income than he received” between ’11 and ’13. He must also repay the €557,496 ($626,207) that he owes (L’ÉQUIPE, 9/13). ... The Court of Arbitration for Sport said that MARIA SHARAPOVA will find out in the first week of October "if her two-year doping ban will be overturned." The five-time Grand Slam winner was banned by the Int'l Tennis Federation "after testing positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open." The Russian, 29, who said that she had been taking the drug since '06 for health problems, "appealed against the ban" (BBC, 9/13). ... The IOC sanctioned four Russian Olympians who competed at the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Games for "failing drug tests," including Silver Medalist MARIA ABAKUMOVA. Abakumova, who placed second in the javelin at the 2008 Games, was "stripped of her medal after a re-analysis of stored samples resulted in a positive test for the banned substance dehydrochlormethyltestosterone, or turinabol." The other athletes disqualified following re-testing are 10,000m runner INGA ABITOVA and 400m runner DENIS ALEXEEV, who "both competed in Beijing, and track cyclist EKATERINA GNIDENKO, who competed in London" (REUTERS, 9/13). ... Former Hull City footballer DANIEL WILKINSON, 26, “has died in hospital after suffering a suspected heart attack” during a game on Monday. He was playing for Shaw Lane AFC in an Integro Doodson League Cup clash against Brighouse Town when he collapsed on the pitch (London DAILY MIRROR, 9/13). ... SHOHEI OTANI, the fastest pitcher recorded in Japan, “rewrote his own record on Tuesday, when one of his pitches was clocked” at 164km per hour. The 22-year-old Nippon Ham Fighters ace, who has “repeatedly touched 163 kph this season, established a new high in the third inning at Sapporo Dome against the Orix Buffaloes” (KYODO, 9/13). ... South Africa's top court “has dismissed an application” by disgraced former grand slam doubles champion BOB HEWITT to “challenge his conviction for rape and sexual assault.” The Constitutional Court rejected Hewitt's challenge on the grounds that "it lacks prospects of success,” meaning that he has “exhausted all legal avenues of appeal.” He was convicted in May last year “after being found guilty of two counts of rape and a charge of sexual assault of minors” (REUTERS, 9/12). ... World Wrestling Entertainment announced the signing of seven new recruits from China. They include: GAO LEI, GU GUANGMING, BIG BOA, ZHAO XIA, WANG XIAOLONG, YIFENG and CHENG YUXIANG. After participating in a week of tryouts, the successful seven were chosen from a pool of 34 candidates (WWE).
