TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2016 SPORTS

Alba doubtful Moussa Sissoko must Soviet legend for Clasico prove worth at Spurs Taimanov dies at 90

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino : Mark Taimanov, a chess who was BARCELONA: Barcelona suffered a fresh injury blow yesterday as left-back has warned French midfielder Moussa Sissoko he must raise ostracised by the Soviet authorities after losing to American Jordi Alba is a huge doubt for Saturday’s showdown clash his game if he wants to win a place in the first team. Sissoko during the Cold War, has died aged 90, Russia’s chess federation said yester- with Real Madrid after suffering knee and ankle joined Spurs from Newcastle United in a club record-equalling day. Taimanov was born in 1926 in , Ukraine, and moved knocks. Alba battled on to finish the 90 minutes in 30 million pounds ($37.3 million, 35.1 million euros) deal dur- to Leningrad, now Saint Petersburg, where he studied Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad despite suffer- ing the close season. But he has made only four Premier piano at the prestigious music conservatory. He became a ing the injuries before half-time. “The tests carried League starts this season and was left out of the squad for chess grandmaster at the age of 26, kicking off a career out this morning reveal that Jordi Alba has heavy Spurs’ last two league games, the latest of which was which flourished throughout the 1950s and 60s. In 1956 bruising on his right knee and a strain of his left Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Chelsea. “Football is not about mon- he became the Soviet champion, and participated in ankle,” Barca said in a statement. “How he evolves ey,” Pochettino said in comments published by British news- the Soviet championship some 23 times while continu- will determine his availability for the next few papers on Monday. “You show on the training ground you are ing a professional career as a concert pianist. Yet he is games.” Barca desperately need to end Madrid’s 31- better than another team-mate and you deserve to be best known for his stinging 0-6 loss to American grand- game unbeaten run at the Camp Nou after falling six involved. “I need to take a decision and I believe the players master Bobby Fischer in 1971 at the World points behind their eternal rivals at the top of La Liga. that start on the bench deserve to be involved in the game Championship Candidates match. Soviet Should Alba not recover in time, French interna- (against Chelsea). It is not another thing to focus on.” Sissoko authorities during the Cold War viewed the tional Lucas Digne will deputise at left-back. publicly contradicted Pochettino after Spurs’ Champions US-Soviet chess matches as holding sym- The Catalans also hope to recover Samuel League elimination by Monaco, saying the club should play bolic importance, and punished Taimanov Umtiti and captain Andres Iniesta from their Europa League games at White Hart Lane rather than for the embarrassing failure, suspecting injury in time for Madrid’s visit. — AFP their temporary European home of Wembley. —AFP that he had lost on purpose. —AFP Mercedes to confront Rosberg-Hamilton ‘anarchy’

ABU DHABI: Mercedes’ celebrations over Nico Rosberg’s first world title have been overshad- owed by “anarchy” between the world cham- pion and Lewis Hamilton. Some reports have said the team could even punish the Briton for slowing down the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday in the hope that arch-rival teammate Rosberg could be overtaken and lose the title. Hamilton twice rejected team instructions to speed up as Rosberg came under threat from Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. Mercedes chief Toto Wolff said “It’s very simple: anarchy does not work in any team and in any company. A precedent has been set.” “Undermining a structure in public means you are putting yourself before the team.” According to Wolff, Mercedes will “look at the overall situation and say ‘what does it mean?’ Everything is possible. “Maybe we want to give them more freedom next year, or go with the harsher side where we feel the values were not respected. I am not sure yet where my finger is going to point or the nee- dle is going to go.” TOKYO: Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike delivers a speech during the opening plenary ses- Hamilton has said Mercedes should have sion of the IOC Debriefing of the Olympic Games Rio 2016, in Tokyo, yesterday. The just let the teammates race out their rivalry. “I three-day IOC debriefing started yesterday to share knowledge and experiences don’t think I did anything dangerous, I don’t between the Rio Olympic Games organizers and future host cities, including Tokyo think I did anything unfair,” said Hamilton. “We which will host the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics. — AP were fighting for the championship, I was in the lead so I control the pace.” But Hamilton’s behaviour and future rela- IOC urges ‘unwavering tionship with Rosberg will be only one of a host of new challenges next season when commitment’ by Games hosts Formula One ushers in a raft of rule changes and faster cars. TOKYO: Tokyo and other upcoming “drawing on efforts in Rio as well as the With the sport now owned by US giant Olympic host cities must make an “unwa- IOC’s long experience, wisdom and Liberty Media, the prospect of its number one vering commitment” to achieving a suc- knowledge”. box office attraction leaving the champion cessful Games, the International Olympic The debriefing came as negotiations team is not likely. Committee (IOC) urged yesterday, as cost over options for moving some Tokyo overruns plague the run-up to Tokyo’s 2020 venues intensified. Tokyo is eyeing F1 Chicanery 2020 event. ways to save money after warnings that Wolff may be more worried by the In a video message to a debriefing in costs could hit an eye-watering $30 bil- prospect of a revived challenge from Red Bull the Japanese capital on the Rio lion-four times the initial estimate and and Ferrari after the rules are changed. Olympics, IOC chief Thomas Bach hailed almost triple that of the 2012 London Red Bull boss Christian Horner has made them as “marvellous games” held in a Olympics. clear he believes his team will mount a serious “marvellous city.” Options include relocating venues for title bid next year. “Organising the Olympic Games is an canoeing and rowing as well as volley- “It’s been an amazing season,” Horner said. intensive process that requires creativity, ball, and scaling back plans for a new “Our expectations at the beginning of the discipline and collaboration with many swimming venue. Koike and Bach agreed year were to get in the top-five so as to people and stakeholders,” he said. last month to set up a working group to emerge as the nearest challenger to “Most importantly, it requires unwa- try to control costs. Mercedes.” vering commitment.” The three-day IOC official Christophe Dubi said earli- Things went far better than that. The team debriefing has drawn senior officials er this month the rowing and canoeing ended “second in the constructors, won two from the IOC and Olympic organisers could take place in Miyagi prefecture, grands prix, in Barcelona, Max the youngest ABU DHABI: Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain, right, congratulates Mercedes driver from Rio and Tokyo as well as the hosts 250 miles (400 kilometres) north of ever winner in F1, Daniel achieving a one-two Nico Rosberg of Germany, left, during the podium ceremony after the Emirates Formula One of the Winter Games in 2018, South Tokyo, and the volleyball in Yokohama finish in Malaysia plus 14 other podiums, it’s Grand Prix at the Yas Marina racetrack in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Sunday. —AP Korea’s Pyeongchang, and 2022, which south of the capital, following recom- been an incredible year for us,” said Horner. are being held in Beijing. mendations from a Koike-appointed “There’s no guarantees, Mercedes will be tion when four-time champion Vettel won his Formula One ringmaster Bernie Ecclestone Among others taking part were Tokyo panel of experts. firmly the favourites next year, again, but titles. believes two shorter races should be consid- governor Yuriko Koike and Rio de Janeiro But Tokyo officials have faced resist- we’re hoping to close that gap down and Mercedes won 19 of this year’s record 21 ered as a replacement for one longer event, mayor Eduardo Paes. Bach has previously ance from 2020 organisers, who argue hopefully during the course of next year take races with Red Bull winning the other two following a spike in viewing for the Brazilian praised the Rio Games, which were gen- that moving some events to Miyagi, the challenge to them.” races, one by Dutch teenager Max Grand Prix. erally seen as successful despite Brazil’s which was badly hit by Japan’s 2011 The 2017 season will see heavier, faster Verstappen, who became the youngest race Horner, and others prefer a more tradi- political and economic crisis and security tsunami disaster, could actually cost cars, by up to five seconds a lap, with wider winner in history, and one from Australian tional approach. “I think there’s only one and attendance problems. more because the region lacks the prop- wings and tyres. Many paddock observers Daniel Ricciardo. Wimbledon final or one grand slam final. Two Koike, now spearheading a cost-cut- er infrastructure. believe this will give Red Bull’s highly-rated But at the end of the year, Red Bull were races, I don’t think is the way to go, you just ting fight, told the meeting that she Dubi said Sunday in Tokyo that designer Adrian Newey a chance to create nearly 300 points adrift of the dominant Silver need to make the one race a good one.” With wants to learn from Rio, where she said detailed options for moving some Tokyo another race-winning machine. Arrows - a result that hit hopes for a more Hamilton determined to get ahead of materials for some facilities were recy- venues would be presented at a meeting Horner believes the changes will up the competitive championship to stop the fall in Rosberg again, new rules, faster cars and cled to build a school. involving the IOC, Tokyo 2020 organisers, pressure on Mercedes, who have won the last television viewing figures. Official reports unrest about the sport’s structure, Formula Koike said that Tokyo wants to intro- the Tokyo metropolitan government and three drivers’ and constructors’ champi- indicate the sport has lost 200 million viewers One’s future may take many twists next duce a spirit of avoiding wastefulness by the Japanese government today. — AFP onships following an era of Red Bull domina- since 2008. season. — AFP Shiffrin continues to dominate W Cup slalom

KILLINGTON: Reigning Olympic Superstar Trail course.She is just points, as well as the overall champion Mikaela Shiffrin cap- two wins shy of matching standings with 325 points. tured her 10th straight slalom Switzerland’s Vreni Schneider Zuzulova had the second title by winning the World Cup for the women’s record of con- fastest time after the first slalom race on Sunday at the Killington secutive wins for a single disci- run but was unable to close the Resort in Vermont. The 21-year- pline. gap in the second run. old American clocked a com- Schneider won 12 straight Holdener posted her sixth bined time of one minute, 27.95 World Cup slaloms from 1988 to career podium finish in slalom. seconds to finish 0.73 seconds 1990. Sweden’s Ingemar “She [Shiffrin] is dominant and I ahead of runner-up Veronika Stenmark won 15 consecutive think the other girls and I are on Velez Zuzulova of Slovakia. men’s World Cup giant slaloms the right way to get closer. I Swiss Wendy Holdener was from 1978-1980. think it will get thrilling this sea- third in 1:28.81. Shiffrin can catch Schneider son,” Holdener said. “I put a lot of pressure on if she can win slalom races next The next stop for the ladies myself,” Shiffrin said. “Knowing month in Sestriere, Italy and on the World Cup circuit will that I’ve been performing so Semmering, Austria.If you count take place in Lake Louise, well in slalom, I really had a her two national championships Canada starting on Friday with great chance of winning the and the 2015 world champi- two downhills and a super-G slalom here.” onship then Shiffrin has won 13 scheduled for the weekend. Shiffrin has now won the last straight races she has competed Shiffrin’s American teammate 10 World Cup slaloms she has in. Last year Shiffrin missed five Lindsey Vonn will not compete competed in dating back to slalom races with a knee injury. in Lake Louise after suffering a 2015. The two-time reigning Shiffrin won the first slalom of serious arm injury during a World Cup slalom champion the season earlier this month in training run in Colorado. Vonn Shiffrin led by 0.65 seconds Levi, Finland and now leads the says she is hoping to return to after the first run on the slalom standings with 200 the World Cup in January. —AFP Mikaela Shiffrin