Somerset County Cricket Club player PETER TREGO said that the abuse directed at players in T20 cricket has reached "football hooligan levels." The 36-year-old said that he received "foul" abusive messages after Somerset lost to Glamorgan by one run on Sunday. He believes that the shorter form of cricket is to blame for "bringing a lot of idiots to the game" (BBC, 8/18). ... Nippon Professional Baseball club Yomiuri Giants pitcher SHUN YAMAGUCHI was "suspended for the remainder of the season on Friday after charges against the 30-year-old were referred to prosecutors over an incident last month." Yamaguchi, who joined the Tokyo team in the offseason, is "accused of causing bodily harm and property damage at a hospital in the Japanese capital's Meguro ward" (KYODO, 8/18). ... Australian track cycling coach GARY WEST died after "losing his battle with motor neurone disease." West, the "long-time" coach of Olympic cyclist ANNA MEARES, passed away in Adelaide at the age of 57. Last year, he was "still coaching the national sprint team at the Rio Olympics but stepped down from the role after returning home to deal with his diagnosis" on Sept. 5 (THE ADVERTISER, 8/20). ... Bulgarian former European weightlifting champion VELICHKO CHOLAKOV, who served a four-year ban for doping, died on Sunday, aged 35. A hospital official in Smolyan, Bulgaria, confirmed Cholakov’s death and said that the cause "would only be known after an autopsy" (REUTERS, 8/20). ... ADRIAN GARD, the security consultant at the center of the All Blacks bugging case, "had his public mischief charge dismissed by a Sydney court on Friday," state media reported. Gard was "accused of making a false statement to police about a listening device found in the All Blacks' hotel meeting room" before the Aug. '16 match against Australia in Sydney. Gard was "found guilty of a second charge relating to carrying out a security operation without a licence" (REUTERS, 8/18).
LEGEND: Former All Black COLIN MEADS, who was named New Zealand's best rugby player of the 20th Century, died of pancreatic cancer, aged 81. The former second row played 55 Tests within 133 games for the All Blacks between '57 and '71. He was diagnosed with cancer in '16 and his wife, VERNA, said on Saturday that he "was seriously ill." New Zealand PM BILL ENGLISH said, "This is a sad day for New Zealand rugby and for New Zealand" (BBC, 8/20).
