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G24
| pdf edition | Wednesday August 15 2012 Sport
Downloaded 22:00 GMT
Manchester United set to complete deal
for Arsenal’s Robin van Persie
Arsenal have confirmed that terms have been agreed with
Manchester United for the sale of Robin van Persie subject to a
medical Page 2
Tottenham’s Luka Modric on way to Real
Madrid for £26m plus add-ons
Real Madrid expect to complete the signing of Luka Modric
imminently for rather less than Tottenham Hotspur’s £40m asking
price Page 3
Andrew Strauss: ‘I feel let down by Kevin
Pietersen, if I’m honest’
An abridged transcript of the press conference in which Andrew
Strauss spoke at length about the Kevin Pietersen affair Page 3
Jermain Defoe’s goal Kevin Pietersen US Paralympic cyclist London 2012
gives England victory furore could either Monica Bascio given authorities got cyber-
over Italy in Bern derail England or draw three-month doping attack warning on eve
Page 5 them together Page 6 ban Page 8 of Games Page 9
Paralympics 2012: San Francisco Giants’ Kevin Pietersen world Luca Cumani bidding
Spectacular torch Melky Cabrera Twenty20 hopes fade to win Arlington
relay will be started gets 50-game drug after Andrew Strauss Million again with
by scouts Page 6 suspension Page 7 warning Page 8 Afsare Page 10
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Registered in England and Wales. No. 908396. Registered office: PO Box 68164, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1P 2AP
Page 2 G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
Ferguson complained last Wednesday that United were
getting nowhere with Arsenal in their negotiations, although
Manchester United set to complete deal he added that they would “persevere and hope things come our
for Arsenal’s Robin van Persie way”. United returned to indicate that they would pay rather
more than their initial £15m bid.
• Arsenal confirm terms agreed for striker’s On Wednesday United posted a statement on their website
sale saying that “a further announcement will be made” once the
medical is completed and personal terms have been agreed.
• Dutchman will travel to Manchester for
It has helped United that Van Persie has been eager to join.
medical He is excited at the prospect of playing with Wayne Rooney,
David Hytner who has spoken of his admiration for Van Persie. “He’s a
fantastic player,” Rooney said. “He’s been amazing for Arsenal
over many years. If he does come here, he would be a great
additionto the squad.”
Van Persie, moreover, buys heavily into United’s tradition
and playing style, whereas he is less keen on how City have
spent lavishly to accumulate under the Abu Dhabi United
Group. He was receptive to the idea of going to Juventus,
although he had reservations about Serie A.
Arsenal may find it slightly easier to have sold their star
player this summer as they have already signed reinforcements.
The strikers Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud have arrived for
a combined £24m while the attacking midfielder Santi Cazorla
has been signed for £12m.
Ivan Gazidis, the Arsenal chief executive, described the
Robin van Persie is set to join Manchester United from
capture of Podolski as “critical” while Cazorla’s signing has
Arsenal. Photograph: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
created a buzz in the dressing room. Last summer the club did
Arsène Wenger has reluctantly agreed to sell Robin van Persie to not plan adequately for the departures of Cesc Fábregas and
Manchester United for £23m. Arsenal confirmed on Wednesday Samir Nasri and were forced into a late sweep of the market.
that a deal had been tied up between the clubs and that the Van Persie has trained with Arsenal this summer and he
striker will travel to Manchester for a medical and to agree played as a substitute in Sunday’s 4-0 friendly win away to FC
personal terms. Köln, even taking the captain’s armband when he came on. His
The clubs reopened negotiations over the striker on Tuesday involvement polarised debate among the travelling fans.
night, after which it was merely a question of when Van Persie He was in Brussels on Wednesday night for Holland’s
became a United player. Sir Alex Ferguson feels the 29-year-old friendly against Belgium.
could be the signing to help United wrest the Premier League
title back from Manchester City.
Wenger had done his best to persuade Van Persie to stay
and he was loth to sanction his release to United. But he has
*
admitted defeat as Van Persie has been adamant he wants to
leave.
Arsenal’s manager, asked on Wednesday night on French TV
whether he would buy another striker, said: “We have already
replaced him in buying [Lukas] Podolski and [Olivier] Giroud.
We are sad to lose a player of his quality but he had one year left
on his contract so we had no choice.”
Van Persie made his intentions plain with a statement on
From Beirut to Big Brother,
4 July, when he said he wanted to win trophies and that he Murdoch to Millionaire,
and the club “in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal
FC should move forward”. He has forced the club’s hand by
discuss the hot topics in the
refusing to extend his contract, which has less than 12 months media on not one, but two blogs
to run. Arsenal did not want to lose him as a Bosman free agent.
The Arsenal statement said: “[We]can confirm that terms
Organ Grinder and Greenslade
have been agreed for the transfer of Robin van Persie to blogs.guardian.co.uk/
Manchester United. Van Persie will travel to Manchester in
order to agree personal terms and complete a medical ahead of
organgrinder/
the proposed move.” blogs.guardian.co.uk/
Arsenal have dug in to get their minimum £20m asking price. greenslade/
Before they departed for their pre-season tour of Asia on 21 July,
to which Van Persie did not travel, the club had received bids
from United, City and Juventus, none of which was for more
than £15m.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
prominent in his thoughts. Moutinho, though, may prove too
expensive at €30m (£23.5m). Tottenham have had a bid of £12m
Tottenham’s Luka Modric on way to turned down for M’Vila while they were unsuccessful with a
Real Madrid for £26m plus add-ons €16m (£12.5m) offer for the more attacking midfielder, Gastón
Ramírez, of Bologna.
• Daniel Levy still trying to hike up initial
fee
• Villas-Boas targeting Moutinho, Ramírez
Andrew Strauss: ‘I feel let down by
and M’Vila Kevin Pietersen, if I’m honest’
David Hytner
An abridged transcript of the press
conference in which England’s captain
spoke at length about the KP affair
Staff and agencies
Luka Modric has been trying to force Daniel Levy and
Tottenham Hotspur to let him go to Real Madrid all summer.
Photograph: Tony O’Brien/Action Images
Real Madrid scent victory in their summer-long pursuit of Luka
Modric and they not only expect to complete his signing in the The England captain Andrew Strauss speaks to the media
coming days but intend to do so for rather less than Tottenham ahead of the third Test against South Africa at Lord’s.
Hotspur’s £40m asking price. Photograph: Philip Brown/Reuters
José Mourinho, the Madrid manager, has grown frustrated It was hardly the way Andrew Strauss would have chosen to look
at his club’s inability to bring a swift conclusion to the affair, ahead to his 100th Test. In a press conference that was delayed
which would have allowed him to integrate Modric in his by almost an hour the England captain was questioned on the
preparations for the new season. latest developments in the Kevin Pietersen saga, shortly after his
But Madrid have finally made a break-through in the talks apology had been confirmed. Yet it allowed the 35-year-old to
with Tottenham that had long since felt entrenched, despite show the off-field qualities that have made him one of England’s
the London club being willing to sell Modric this summer at the most successful captains – a performance as impressive, in its own
right price. A year ago they refused to sanction his release under way, as the century he scored in the first Lord’s Test of the summer
any circumstances and rejected a package worth £40m from against West Indies in May, achieved after he had reacted with
Chelsea. similar honesty at a pre-match grilling over his poor recent
Modric’s disillusionment has reached new depths. He batting form. This is an abridged transcript of the event, held in a
refused to go on Tottenham’s pre-season tour of the United small lecture theatre in the Lord’s museum behind the pavilion.
States, a show of dissent for which he was fined and, such is his Can you give us your reaction to the situation now, where
state of mind, the manager, André Villas-Boas, has exiled him to Kevin has apologised of sorts, and where he now stands with
train away from the first-team squad. the England team and yourself?
The sticking point has been the fee, with the Tottenham It’s a step forward, it’s a step in the right direction. But this
chairman, Daniel Levy, holding out for as close to £40m as issue hasn’t just been about the text messages. There’s been
possible and Madrid refusing to go much higher than £30m. a bit more of a broader issue about trust and mutual respect
Madrid have attempted to offer players in part-exchange, and that issue I’m very keen to resolve. But it’s not going to be
including the Turkey midfielder Nuri Sahin, who is now close to resolved overnight. If we’re going to resolve those issues we
joining Liverpool on loan, but Tottenham said that they wanted need to do it face to face, away from the media spotlight and
cash only. away from PR companies and press releases. That’s not helping
The Madrid president, Florentino Pérez, has been confident any of us at this stage. For the next five or six days my focus has
throughout the summer that he would get his man and the got to be on the game of cricket that we’re playing this week.
indications from Spain on Wednesday were that the initial fee When you say it’s not just about texts but a wider issue,
could be as low as £26m, albeit before add-ons. Tottenham can how did this come about? Was there a particular moment when
be expected to insist on a greater sum. Kevin started to become disenfranchised from the team or was
Tottenham need the money to allow Villas-Boas to complete it a gradual process?
his squad. His priorities are a new striker and a replacement for I think the catalyst for all this was obviously Kevin’s press
Modric, with Porto’s João Moutinho and Yann M’Vila of Rennes
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
conference after the Headingley Test match because that’s criticism?
when the players first got involved in it, and actually to be I feel a little bit let down by Kevin, if I’m honest, but this
honest that’s when I first really got involved in it. Up ‘til then it isn’t an issue between me and Kevin. It’s a broader issue than
was a dispute between Kevin and the board over his availability that and it’s very important that I act in the best interests of
for the IPL and a number of other points. But once the players the England cricket team. It’s not a personal thing. I’ve actually
become involved in it I certainly become very protective about always got on very well with Kevin, which is why some of the
our environment … and I’m willing to remain vigilant about stuff has been quite surprising to me. We’re going to have to
that because I think it’s central to why we’ve become a very move on and we have to look at everything but we will do that
good side. So these are the issues that we can’t sweep under the after the Test match.
carpet, that we need to address and hopefully there is a way of Are you disappointed your milestone has been
addressing them. overshadowed?
He talked about politics in the dressing room, said it’s not I am determined to savour and enjoy it as much as possible.
easy being me. Do you know what he means by that? I’m proud of the longevity factor. I’ve been lucky enough to
Not entirely, no. But I think if we are going to resolve play for England in one of its best eras ever. I’ve had some
these issues, everyone’s got to take a bit of a long hard look at incredible highlights in and among those 100 Test matches
how things have developed over the last couple of weeks in and there have been some tough times as you might expect, I
particular and say, ‘Have we all done everything we can to avoid suppose. I’m still passionate and excited about representing
this happening?’ We’re all going to be required to look at it that my country, so it is a lovely milestone to achieve. But that’s it.
way. I can’t really think about it too much. If I am distracted by the
Do you expect him to be available for selection for the fact it is my 100th Test, match it is not going to help me play
World Twenty20 squad? well, just as much as what has gone on with Kevin. So all of us
I don’t know how and when this is going to be resolved. All need to put this to bed and concentrate on the preparations for
I know is that my particular focus is going to be on the game making sure we play as well as we can.
of cricket this week, as will the rest of the team’s. I personally Is your appetite for the captaincy as strong as it was?
think it’s not a process that can be finished overnight. Yes absolutely.
Is your gut feeling that you would like him to play for Would Pietersen have played in this Test even if he had
England again? apologised last weekend?
“I would like Kevin to play for England again but only if we I don’t know. Everything happened at a very frenetic pace.
resolve the issues that we need to resolve. So ifs and whys are irrelevant. This is the situation we are in and
Do you sense a hardening of the mood among the other this is what we have to deal with going forward.ends
players as a result of that Headingley press conference? Has he
alienated himself potentially irrevocably?
I wouldn’t say that. Cricketers are a pretty forgiving bunch.
But we need to bring stuff out in the open, we can’t just have
it swept under the carpet and I’ve got no idea at this stage how
that’s going to work out. Once the Test match is over maybe the
dust will have settled a little bit and we can map out a pathway
forward. But at this stage that’s not something that I can afford
to be thinking about in too great a detail. I’m sure that people in
the ECB will be trying to think what the way forward is over the
next few days.
How have you been able to plan for this Test match? This
must be a huge distraction. People will say you haven’t got a
prayer in this Test match?
*
Well, people might say that, I would say those people are
misinformed or particularly pessimistic. I sensed with the
players when we met up on Monday night that they were very
relieved that the situation had been dealt with and that they
were particularly keen to get on with preparing for a Test match
and not having to worry about distractions. There’s been a lot of
stuff flying around, a lot of new developments on a day-by-day Compare and buy
basis, and it’s very hard for the players to not be involved in that Use our free independent
in some way. Once the decision’s been made it’s been a bit more
easy for the players to concentrate on the game at hand. comparison services to switch
So in that sense it’s better that Kevin Pietersen isn’t playing suppliers and save money on
this match, isn’t it?
From our point of view it wasn’t possible for him to play in all your household bills.
this Test match. That was the decision the selectors took and guardian.co.uk/money/
we are very comfortable with the side picked for this game and
we’ll see what happens.
compareandbuy
Do you wonder what you have you done to deserve Kevin’s
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
in a more advanced position, with Ashley Young and Adam
Johnson coming in from wide positions to support Andy
Jermain Defoe’s goal gives England Carroll, at the spearhead of the attack. At times, it worked; in
victory over Italy in Bern other moments all the old issues resurfaced and they were
undermined by not distributing the ball well enough.
Daniel Taylor At least this time it was not an object lesson in how to pass
the ball, as had been witnessed when these sides met in Kiev
seven and a half weeks ago. Yet England had a difficult start and
there were moments in the opening half an hour when Hodgson
– out of his dugout, hands firmly planted into his pockets – was
obviously agitated.
There was certainly not much in terms of penetration from
his attacking players during those early exchanges and it was
a soft goal to concede, too, and an unimpressive start from
Carrick given that he was the player De Rossi outjumped to
direct his header beyond Jack Butland.
Carrick’s return to the team, after a two-year absence,
was designed so England could start taking better care of
the ball, rather than because of his ability to make clearing
headers inside his own penalty area. All the same, it is part of a
England’s Jermain Defoe scores the goal that brought victory
midfielder’s job to do the muck-and-nettles stuff and Carrick,
over Italy, while Ignazio Abate looks on. Photograph: Michael
who is taller than De Rossi, will not enjoy the replays of what
Regan/Getty Images
happened after Alessandro Diamanti’s corner.
England’s first match since Euro 2012 did not quite amount to Italy will have similar complaints about Jagielka’s goal but
a brave new world but they can at least reflect on a satisfying the Everton defender deserves a lot of credit for the way he
evening’s work. Their debutants should be better for the attacked the ball and read the trajectory of Lampard’s corner.
experience and Roy Hodgson’s team, experimenting with a new Jagielka was simply quicker and more decisive than his nearest
formation, are entitled to enjoy beating the nation that had opponent, Federico Balzaretti, throwing himself at the ball to
outplayed them in the Euro 2012 quarter-final gu.com/p/38h72 . flash a diving header past Salvatore Sirigu, playing instead of
This was a far more gentle workout against what amounted Gianluigi Buffon in Italy’s goal.
to an Italy B team but England recovered well once Daniele That apart, England’s only first-half efforts from open play
de Rossi’s goal had threatened another ordeal. Phil Jagielka were from long range, courtesy of Johnson and Lampard. They
equalised after 27 minutes, emulating De Rossi by scoring with did, however, finish as the stronger team and Lampard came
a header straight from a corner, and England won the match close to giving them the lead with a curling free-kick onto the
with a wonderful strike from Jermain Defoe, one of six second- roof of the net.
half substitutes. Carroll’s contribution was only peripheral before he was
Another, Ryan Bertrand, had saved England from going substituted at half-time, replaced by a more agile striker in
behind with a goal-line clearance only seconds before and this the shape of Jermain Defoe. Ruddy was also brought on and,
was also a good night for the other four players making their after 55 minutes, the Norwich City goalkeeper produced
first appearances in a senior England team. Jack Butland and the outstanding save of the match, diving to his right to keep
Tom Cleverley were both in the starting line-up and John Ruddy out Mattia Destro’s low shot despite seeing the ball late. Shortly
and Jake Livermore won their first caps as substitutes. afterwards Antonio Nocerino split the England defence to send
The goal was almost of the blue, Defoe ending a smart the substitute Federico Peluso running clear through the inside-
break by turning on the ball to elude Ignazio Abate and firing left channel. His shot went into the side netting and, once
a diagonal shot from 25 yards into the top corner, via Sirigu’s again, there was the sense that Italy had started the half as the
fingertips. more accomplished side.
An international friendly three days before the start of the For the most part though, it was an evenly contested game
new Premier League season is never going to be remembered played with the feel of a pre-season encounter. Carrick looked
with any great fondness, particularly one that is staged in a nice on the ball, as he always does, but did not particularly
two-thirds empty stadium in Switzerland, but this was a night impose himself on the match. Lampard played well and there
that did at least show Hodgson is not as set in his ways as had were brief flashes of Johnson’s ability on the wing. But the
perhaps been perceived. frequency of the second-half substitutions did not help the flow
The clearest indication was in the formation he deployed of the game and England might have carried more threat going
from the start, abandoning the 4-4-2 system that can seem forwards if Kyle Walker and Leighton Baines had been more
so outdated in the modern game and trying to find greater willing to break forward from their full-back positions, as they
fluidity with a new-look 4-2-3-1. England have taken their time do for their clubs. Another mild criticism is that the crossing
catching up with most of the successful teams in Europe but it was sometimes poor from decent positions.
is encouraging, all the same, even if it is a work in progress and
there remains plenty of room for improvement.
Hodgson had Frank Lampard and Michael Carrick as deep-
lying midfielders, collecting the ball from the defence and
trying to set some kind of tempo. Tom Cleverley was playing
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
Paralympics 2012: Spectacular torch Kevin Pietersen furore could either
relay will be started by scouts derail England or draw them together
• Organisers reveal first details of the • England’s No1 Test status rests on
Paralympic torch relay outcome of Lord’s Test
• Begins with scouts lighting flames on top • Graeme Swann likely to replace Steve
of mountains Finn in XI
Associated Press Mike Selvey
The 2012 Paralympic Games torch relay will feature 580 Andrew Strauss, who is set to play his 100th Test match for
torchbearers. Photograph: Lewis Stickley/PA England, trains at Lord’s on Wednesday. Photograph: Philip
Four Paralympic flames will be created on the summits of Brown/Reuters
the highest peaks of the home nations, London 2012 have Whichever player is first into the England dressing room on
announced. Thursday might want to run his fingertips along a window ledge
Groups of young disabled and non-disabled scouts will be to see how much dust has settled after one of the most trying
given the honour of striking the fire-starting rods that will spark weeks that they, not to mention their supporters, have suffered
the flames on Scafell Pike in England, Snowdon in Wales, Ben in recent memory.
Nevis in Scotland and Northern Ireland’s Slieve Donard on 22 These five days will go a long way towards seeing how
August. much Andrew Strauss’s unity of purpose, as he plays out his
The flames will then be united at Stoke Mandeville, the 100th Test match, will go towards offsetting the loss – whether
spiritual home of the Paralympic movement, during a special temporary or permanent is yet to be thrashed out – of the
ceremony on 28 August. unique batting talent that is Kevin Pietersen in what is the most
The result of that ceremony – the London 2012 Paralympic important Test match they have played since the Sydney Test,
Flame – will then be carried on a 24-hour, 92-mile relay tinyurl. the final game of the last Ashes series.
com/chn9363 by 580 torchbearers working in teams of five from On the result hinges not just the outcome of the series,
Stoke Mandeville to the Olympic Stadium. and the right to be called the world’s No1 ranked side, but of
The London 2012 chairman Lord Coe said: “We have created the brave decision to omit Pietersen. Win and the England
a unique identity for the Paralympic Torch Relay which will be a management will feel vindicated. Adversity, further fuelled
celebration of courage, determination, inspiration and equality by the belief that the South Africans slipped Pietersen’s
that every Paralympian represents. “provocative” texts into the public domain, then sat back to
“By creating the four flames through human endeavour at admire the handiwork, can make the whole greater than the
the four highest peaks in the UK we will ensure that the spirit of sum of the parts. In this South Africa may need to be careful
each home nation is represented in the Paralympic Flame. for what they wish. Lose, on the other hand, and they may still
“Today we invite people to show their support for the be vindicated but there will be many more who will argue that
Paralympic Torch Relay, whether it’s taking lanterns along to they have cut off their nose to spite their face.
a Flame Festival or Celebration, supporting a Torchbearer or Maybe this would not have seemed such a furore had it
getting together to line the route of the 24-hour relay and help occurred in the immediate aftermath of England’s disastrous
us lead the way to the Paralympic Games.” Oval Test, in which Pietersen was guilty of flabby thinking in
The Beatles’ Abbey Road crossing, Lord’s, London Zoo and the first innings and then roughed up in the second, or that
Tower Bridge are some of the landmarks that will be visited period from March 2009 to December of the following year
during the overnight relay, which will work its way through where he went without a Test century. But instead it came after
Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire before hitting London. one of the great cavalier innings of our time and on the back of
The full route has been published on the London 2012 website that he was viewed not just as an important player but as the
tinyurl.com/chn9363 . key one, which is more than a little disrespectful to 10 other
members of the team.
England may have lost the player most capable of playing a
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
match-changing innings but that concept is not necessarily the
same thing as match-winning. When Pietersen scores a century,
of which he has 21, there is very nearly a 50% chance that
San Francisco Giants’ Melky Cabrera
England will win, while only once has it resulted in defeat. But gets 50-game drug suspension
beyond him England have a batting lineup which can boast 71
Test-match hundreds. When Alastair Cook (20 hundreds) scores All-Star outfielder ‘deeply sorry’ over
a century England have won half the time while losing only suspension for 50 games without pay after
three times: Strauss has a higher win-per-century ratio than
testing positive for testosterone
Pietersen – 11 to 21 – and only a single defeat, under Pietersen’s
captaincy ironically, when he made a century in each innings Guardian staff and agencies
in Chennai. Five of Jonathan Trott’s seven hundreds have
brought wins and a single defeat; 11 of Ian Bell’s 16 have been
in a winning cause and England have yet to lose when he has
made one.
There are many facets to winning and losing and Pietersen
will be missed as a high-class player, of course, but he is by no
means indispensable. Replacements can flourish immediately
and it is worth noting that four of the England side – Strauss,
Cook, Trott and Matt Prior – marked their debuts with
hundreds.
Pietersen’s place will be filled by the returning Jonny
Bairstow which means England will have two batsmen with
only four matches behind them and it might be wise to split
them in the order with Ian Bell at No5. Bairstow was given a
Melky Cabrera has been suspended for 50 games without pay.
brief battering by Kemar Roach at Trent Bridge and, wisely,
Photograph: Lenny Ignelzi/AP
was pulled from the firing line when South Africa’s pace attack
hove into view, to be replaced first by Ravi Bopara and then The San Francisco Giants All-Star outfielder Melky Cabrera has
James Taylor, whose debut at Headingley produced only 34 been suspended for 50 games without pay after testing positive
prosaic runs in an audacious partnership with Pietersen but was for testosterone, Major League Baseball said on Wednesday.
auspicious for all that. The 28-year-old from the Dominican Republic, who was the
Significantly, though Bairstow made a fine century against most valuable player in this year’s All-Star game, was hit with
Australia A last week at a time when Bopara is unavailable, Eoin the ban for violating MLB’s drug prevention and treatment
Morgan has yet to rehabilitate his technique convincingly, and program.
Nick Compton, a contender perhaps, is injured. Cabrera’s suspension is effective immediately, the baseball
Whether it is Tim Bresnan or Steve Finn who makes up the commissioner’s office said in a statement.
pace triumvirate may not be decided until the morning. Finn In a statement released by the MLB Players Association,
has looked the most likely to discomfit the opposition but the Cabrera said: “My positive test was the result of my use of a
results have been far from conclusive and it is still Bresnan who substance I should not have used. I accept my suspension .�.�.
chips away. The pitch will have much to do with it. and I will try to move on with my life. I am deeply sorry for my
For once Mick Hunt has had excellent conditions in which mistake and I apologize to my teammates, to the San Francisco
to prepare his strip and it would be disappointing if it was not Giants organization and to the fans for letting them down.”
hard and pacy. The problem for England is that, although they The eight-year big-league veteran is batting .346 with 11
have had a run of wins at Lord’s, there has been little sign of home runs, 84 runs scored and 60 runs batted in this season.
deterioration in the pitch, with it tending to play better rather San Francisco is tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers for first
than worse. If it looks to have pace in it, Finn could play. But place in the National League West with a 64-53 record. The
otherwise Bresnan, with the belt and braces of his batting, may Giants have only 45 games left in the regular season.
retain his place with Finn making way for the return of Graeme A Giants statement said: “We were extremely disappointed
Swann. to learn of the suspension of Melky Cabrera for violating
Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment
Program. We fully support Major League Baseball’s policy and
*
its efforts to eliminate performance-enhancing drugs from
our game. Per the protocol outline by Major League Baseball’s
Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Giants will not comment
further on this matter.”
Fantasy League Classic
Manage a squad of 16 players and a budget
of £75 million. £75,000 worth of prizes to
be won in weekly, monthly and overall
competitions. Beat your nearest and
dearest in a friends league.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
US Paralympic cyclist Monica Bascio Kevin Pietersen world Twenty20 hopes
given three-month doping ban fade after Andrew Strauss warning
Test for substance found in over-the- • England captain says problems ‘won’t be
counter medication leads to three-month resolved overnight’
sanction for Paralympian • Pietersen dropped due to ‘issue about
Guardian staff and agencies trust and mutual respect’
Andy Wilson at Lord’s
The American Paralympic cyclist Monica Bascio tested
positive for a prohibited substance. Photograph: Sarah Lee Kevin Pietersen’s belated apology will not ensure him a quick
The American Paralympic cyclist Monica Bascio has been return to the England team, says Andrew Strauss. Photograph:
given a three-month ban after testing positive for a prohibited Paul Thomas/PA Wire/Press Association Images
substance, the US Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) said on Kevin Pietersen has been warned by the England captain,
Wednesday. Andrew Strauss, that he remains some way from being
According to Usada, Bascio accepted a sanction for her anti- welcomed back into the international fold, despite agreeing to
doping rule violation. A Usada statement said: “Bascio’s three- make a public apology for sending texts to South Africa players
month period of ineligibility began on 26 May 2012.” Bascio has that he has finally and reluctantly admitted were “provocative”.
thus been disqualified from all competitive results achieved on Strauss said Pietersen had been dropped for the third Test
and since 25 May, the day before she failed a doping test. against South Africa at Lord’s because of “a broader issue
The London 2012 Paralympic Games begin on 29 August and about trust and mutual respect” than the specific offence
run to 9 September. Bascio, who skied for the US at the 2006 of undermining his captain in texts sent to members of the
and 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, was last month selected for opposition.
the US team. England’s Test captain left no doubt that those issues could
The 42-year-old from Colorado, a 15-time US handcycling not be resolved before next week at the earliest and refused
champion, tested positive for tuaminoheptane during a UCI even to give an unconditional welcome to the prospect of
Para-cycling Road World Cup event in Rome, after taking an Pietersen returning to the team. “I would like Kevin to play for
over-the-counter medication which contained the prohibited England again but only if we resolve the issues that we need to
substance. resolve,” Strauss said. That must make Pietersen’s inclusion in
Usada said tuaminoheptane was classified as a “specified the 15-man squad to defend England’s world Twenty20 title in
substance”. A reduced sanction can be applied when the athlete Sri Lanka next month more unlikely than ever. The squad is due
can “establish the source of the substance and prove there was to be named on Saturday, in the middle of the Test.
no intent to enhance sport performance or mask the use of a “It’s a step forward, it’s a step in the right direction,”
performance-enhancing substance”. said Strauss, who admitted he felt “let down” by Pietersen’s
The USA won 14 cycling medals, five of them gold, at the behaviour. “But this issue hasn’t just been about the text
2008 Paralympics in Beijing. messages. There’s been a bit more of a broader issue about trust
and mutual respect and that issue I’m very keen to resolve. But
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it’s not going to be resolved overnight. If we’re going to resolve
those issues, we need to do it face to face away from the media
spotlight and away from PR companies and press releases.
That’s not helping any of us at this stage. For the next five or six
days my focus has got to be on the game of cricket that we’re
Mystified by mortgages? playing this week.”
Perplexes by pensions? Confused about Pietersen’s apology, which followed days of negotiations,
your consumer rights? had been published in an England and Wales Cricket Board
Our experts are on hand to answer all statement less than an hour before Strauss fulfilled his pre-
match media commitments. “I did send what you might
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
call provocative texts to my close friends in the SA team,”
Pietersen was quoted as saying, having refused to make such
an admission when initially requested to do so last Friday,
London 2012 authorities got cyber-
before England selected their team for Lord’s.”The texts were attack warning on eve of Games
meant as banter between close friends. I need to rein myself
in sometimes. I apologise to Straussy and the team for the Security services warned of possible threat
inappropriate remarks at the press conference [after the second against Olympic power supply days before
Test at Headingley] and for the texts. I truly didn’t mean to
opening ceremony
cause upset or tension, particularly with important games at
stake.” Richard Norton-Taylor
But Hugh Morris, the managing director of England cricket
who has led the attempts to secure Pietersen’s apology,
responded: “We are in receipt of Kevin’s apology, but further
discussions need to take place to establish whether it is possible
to regain the trust and mutual respect required to ensure all
parties are able to focus on playing cricket and to maintain
the unity of purpose that has served us so well in recent
years. Critically, those discussions should take place behind
closed doors, rather than in the media spotlight. A successful
conclusion to this process is in everyone’s best interests and is
required for Kevin Pietersen’s potential selection in all forms of
the game to be considered.”
South Africa’s captain Graeme Smith, who will equal Allan
Border’s Test record by leading his country for the 93rd time,
The Olympic authorities were warned about a potential cyber-
expressed his surprise that what he described as “friendly chat”
attack on their power supply days before the Games opening
between Pietersen and a couple of his compatriots – who the
ceremony. Photograph: Getty Images
tourists still refuse to name – had caused such a storm. “I find it
quite amazing it’s still going on,” said Smith, who denied that The security services warned the Olympic authorities about a
his team had been involved in putting the texts into the public potential cyber-attack on their power supply days before the
domain. Games opening ceremony, the Guardian has learned.
“We’ve stayed away from the rubbish,” he added. “I’m The warning is believed to have led to an urgent check on a
amazed how this story got out in the first place.” He did not backup system and test whether it could take the massive strain
offer any suggestions as to how it had. from the Olympics lighting and communications networks.
The home secretary, Theresa May, earlier this year
specifically warned of the possibility of attacks on the Olympics
by terrorists stressing in particular the threat from what she
called “hacktivists”.
A successful attack on the computerised power system
would have caused chaos, stopped the ceremony, and blocked
all communications.
Whitehall sources insist that subsequent investigations
showed the threat was not credible. However, it is understood
to have provoked enough concern to have prompted an
immediate check on the Olympic Park’s backup manually-
*
operated power supply.
A government spokesperson told the Guardian: “We do
not comment on specific threats. The high profile of the
Olympic Games meant that it was a potential target and we put
in measures to help protect against such threats and we are
committed to ensuring every conceivable preparation is made
Follow the ups and downs of in order to deliver a safe and secure Olympic and Paralympic
Games”.
the housing market The home secretary warned in January that there was “a
and get details of the latest strong possibility” of a “threat from cybercrime”.
mortgage deals in our Property She added in a speech to the Royal United Services Institute
(Rusi): “We are aware of the threat from so called ‘hacktivist’
section. groups. These groups may attempt to target the games and may
guardian.co.uk/money also attack the websites of high-profile sponsors associated with
the Games.”
May continued: “We already have our own robust plans in
place to deal with a cyber-attack against Games systems. And
we are now also working with industry to strengthen their
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
Page 10 G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
ability to defend themselves from cyber-attacks.”
Ministers and officials have repeatedly stressed that most
cyber-attacks come from hostile state agencies, and most of
Luca Cumani bidding to win Arlington
those were Chinese or Russian. However, they are unlikely to Million again with Afsare
have attempted any attack on the Olympics, an event in which
their athletes were to come high in the medals table, ending up, • Newmarket trainer won valuable event in
respectively, first and fourth. 1983 with Tolemeo
Any perpetrator of a cyber-attack would more likely have
• Hayley Turner has rides at prestigious
been an individual, or group of individuals, determined to
provoke havoc and demonstrate their ability to hack into
American meeting
powerful and vital computer networks. Will Hayler
“We know we face a real and enduring threat from terrorism
and we know that the Games – as an iconic event – will
represent a target for terrorist groups,” May said in her Rusi
speech. “Our Olympic security plans have been developed
against an assumption that the terrorist threat level at the time
of the games will be severe”.
The parliamentary intelligence and security committee
(ISC) said in its latest annual report that MI5 had “planned on
the basis of an increased terrorist threat during the Games,
resulting in greater volumes of intelligence to be analysed and
responded to, coupled with a shorter turnaround time and a
lower risk threshold than would normally be applied to such
intelligence”.
The alert before the Olympics opening ceremony underlines
Afsare, left, will attempt to give the Newmarket trainer Luca
a widespread feeling of vulnerability across government
Cumani another victory in the Arlington Million on Saturday.
departments and agencies towards cyber-attacks. GCHQ, the
Photograph: Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images
government’s electronic eavesdropping agency, has a lead role
in cyber “warfare” and staff there have expressed concern about Luca Cumani, who made history while lining the pockets of
the lack of funds and staff to cope with a growing threat. patriotic punters when sending Tolomeo to take the 1983
“Cybersecurity is a fast-paced field and delays in developing Arlington Million, looks to retrace his successful steps on
our capabilities give our enemies the advantage. We are Saturday when Afsare lines up in the same race.
therefore concerned that much of the work to protect UK Cumani had been based in Newmarket for seven years
interests in cyberspace is still at an early stage,” the ISC said. when he broke new ground for a British trainer and took the
Five people were charged with terrorism offences earlier this sport’s first-ever million-dollar prize in its third year. Tolomeo’s
month but they, and other arrests at the time were not related late surge under Pat Eddery stole victory – at odds of 90-1
to the Olympics, security and intelligence sources said. The with British bookmakers – from under the nose of America’s
sources expressed delight that the Olympics passed without an champion John Henry, twice the winner of the race in other
actual attack. years.
These days that sort of prize money is somewhat less
headline-grabbing when set against the payouts offered by
the Breeders’ Cup and Dubai World Cup meetings but it is still
attractive enough to entice regular raids from Europe.
Cumani himself has tried on six further occasions since
Tolomeo to win the race, but this year has particularly high
hopes.
*
“You need a horse with a tough mental constitution and one
with a real turn of speed because the home straight is very short
and there isn’t long to make your move,” he said. “Afsare has
found more consistency this year and, if the ground comes up
Guardian offers fast, that won’t worry him. Kieren Fallon knows him well and
hopefully he is the right horse for the job – we’ve been thinking
For a wide selection of homewares, about the race for some time.”
gifts and gadgets - all at great prices America’s racing bible, the Daily Racing Form, regards
including delivery to your door, this year’s Million as a particularly “mild edition”, which
visit our Guardian reader offers should encourage Cumani and the connections of the other 13
European-trained horses to have travelled out for the meeting.
website Hayley Turner rides Wigmore Hall for Michael Bell, on whom
guardian.co.uk/readeroffers she finished fourth 12 months ago after a luckless passage, while
the injury-enforced absence of Ryan Moore will also see Turner
team up with the David Simcock-trained I’m A Dreamer in the
Beverly D Stakes, one of three Grade One events on the card.
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Page 11 G24 Sport Wednesday August 15 2012 22:00 GMT
“Hayley has ridden her a couple of times as a three-year-
old and knows her well,” said the trainer’s wife and assistant,
Jennie. “Hopefully it will give us a good opportunity of winning
a first Grade One with this mare, as she has been incredibly
tough and consistent and she really deserves one. She was only
narrowly beaten in a similar race at Woodbine last year and it
makes sense to travel when you consider the prize money on
offer.
“Even if you aren’t in the first four, there is an allowance
for travel costs and the owners will be well looked after on the
day.”
Moore’s absence also opens up a connection for the jockey
Colm O’Donoghue, whose boss, Aidan O’Brien, has three
runners at the meeting. With Jamie Spencer riding Treasure
Beach for O’Brien in the Million, O’Donoghue steps in to
ride Crackerjack King for Marco Botti in the same race and
Jakkalberry for the same stable in the inaugural American St
Leger. A new contest, offering over £250,000 in prize money,
the race will be held over the maximum possible trip at
Arlington of one mile, five and a half furlongs.
“The racecourse was looking to stage a new contest and,
when they consulted me as to what sort of a race might attract
runners from Europe, I felt that with the Sussex Stakes and the
Prix Jacques Le Marois, there were enough Group One options
over a mile here, so we took the decision to try something new,”
said the International Racing Bureau’s Adrian Beaumont.
“To some extent it clashes with the Ebor but to get a field of
12 for the first renewal is very encouraging.”
John Gosden, who trained at the track for 10 years, saddles
Zuider Zee in the race, along with Colombian in the Million and
Joviality in the Beverly D. The trio will all be ridden by William
Buick.
Godolphin are unrepresented but found their own cause for
celebration at Deauville on Wednesday when Saint Baudolino
took the Group Two Prix Guillaime D’Ornano for their French
operation. Earning quotes for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe
from bookmakers, the Grand Prix de Paris third beat a fair field
with something in hand and could head next for the Prix Niel,
his trainer Andre Fabre’s favoured route to the Arc.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2012 guardian.co.uk
