Mourinho facing misconduct charge

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Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was charged with misconduct by the FA following comments he made about referee Anthony Taylor.


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London - Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was charged with misconduct by the FA following comments he made about referee Anthony Taylor after last month's 1-1 draw at Southampton in the Premier League.


The Portuguese was furious with Taylor after he booked Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas for diving in the Dec. 28 match.


Mourinho said the referee's failure to award a penalty was a scandal and that he should be ashamed.


He added that his team were being unfairly targeted in a campaign waged against them after Fabregas became the fifth Chelsea player to become involved in a row over diving in a matter of weeks.


The Spaniard, though, appeared to be tripped by Southampton defender Matt Targett in the penalty area.


“In other countries where I have worked, tomorrow in the sports papers it would be a front-page scandal because it is a scandal,” said Mourinho.


“It is not a small penalty, it is a penalty like Big Ben. In this country, and I am happy with that, more than happy with that, we will just say that it was a big mistake with a big influence on the result.


“I will go to the referee and wish him a good year and tell him he will be ashamed,” added Mourinho.


In a statement, the FA said his remarks constituted improper conduct in that they allege and/or imply bias on the part of a referee or referees and/or bring the game into disrepute.


Mourinho has until 1800 GMT on Jan. 13 to respond to the charge.


The FA will not take any action against him following the comments he made before the game against Stoke City on Dec. 19 but gave him a formal warning as managers and players are banned from making pre-match media comments about officials.


Before the game Mourinho said he hoped referee Neil Swarbrick “does his job”.


“I like these matches,” added the Chelsea manager. “It's no problem with a good referee that can understand what is aggressivity or when aggressivity finishes and when the rules of the game start.


“I know it is difficult for every team to play this kind of match but again I'm not worried. The referee is there exactly to judge what is aggressivity. And aggressivity I always welcome, it makes the game much more beautiful and difficult.” – Reuters






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Valdes joins United as De Gea’s backup

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Manchester United signed former Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes as a backup to fellow Spaniard David de Gea.


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Manchester, England – Manchester United signed former Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes as a backup to fellow Spaniard David de Gea.


The 32-year-old Valdes, who has been at United training with the first team since October while rehabilitating from a knee injury, signed an 18-month contract, with the option for a further year.


“He joins the club as the No. 2 goalkeeper and is a great addition,” United manager Louis van Gaal said.


Valdes, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in March before being released by Barcelona, won every major honor with the Catalan giant, and the 2010 World Cup and 2012


European Championship with Spain.


Valdes is preparing to fight for his first-team place at United.


“Now, in the moment, (De Gea) is the best goalkeeper in the world,” Valdes said. “His performances every day and in every game shows everybody that his level is very high. He has had a great year.”


Valdes' signing is likely to increase the chances of the 30-year-old Anders Lindegaard leaving the club in January. United's other goalkeeping options are 21-year-old Sam Johnstone, who is on loan at Doncaster, and 24-year-old Ben Amos. – Sapa-AP






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Time to move on from Gerrard exit

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Steven Gerrard's departure at the end of the season will leave a void at Liverpool but will open the door for others, manager Brendan Rodgers said.


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London - Steven Gerrard's departure to LA Galaxy at the end of the season will leave a void at Liverpool but will open the door for others, manager Brendan Rodgers said.


The 34-year-old captain, who has spent his entire career at Anfield and is worshipped by the fans, agreed this week to continue his illustrious career in California with the Major League Soccer champions.


Gerrard has been quoted as saying he would have stayed at Liverpool had he been offered a new contract in the close season, while Rodgers admits his departure will be a huge loss.


“No doubt Steven is still a top class player and him leaving in the summer will leave a void on the pitch and off the pitch also,” Rodgers told a news conference.


“But we will have to move forward and bring in the best players we possibly can into this wonderful club.


“History shows that great players here have moved on and it's an opportunity for the club and other players to go and grab the mantra and make their presence here felt.”


Gerrard said at the weekend the turning point in his decision to depart came when Rodgers told him he could no longer play every game.


He did not blame the club for effectively making up his mind to leave but said he was ready to commit his future to Liverpool in the summer after they finished as Premier League runners-up.


“If a contract had been put in front of me in pre-season I would have signed it,” Gerrard was quoted as saying by the Liverpool Echo on Tuesday.


“I'd just retired from England to concentrate all my efforts on Liverpool. I didn't want my club games to be tailored.”


Gerrard can still play a pivotal role in Liverpool's season which offers a League Cup semi-final against Chelsea, an FA Cup run and the Europa League as well as trying to climb the Premier League table and grab a top-four spot.


They are currently eighth, seven points behind fourth-placed Southampton.


“It will be tough to qualify for the Champions League but I'm looking forward to the challenge in the second half of the season,” Rodgers said. “Seven points may seem a lot but it can be whittled away.”


Liverpool face an away trip to Sunderland on Saturday. – Reuters






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Blatter facing real challenge

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For the first time since 1998 when he beat Lennart Johansson in a bitterly fought campaign, Sepp Blatter is facing a real challenge for the Fifa presidency this year.


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London - For the first time since 1998 when he beat Sweden's Lennart Johansson in a bitterly fought campaign, Sepp Blatter is facing a real challenge for the Fifa presidency this year.


Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan, who was not even born when Blatter first joined Fifa as its technical director in 1975, declared his candidacy on Tuesday, promising to make the organisation more transparent.


The 39-year-old royal faces a tough battle to beat the 78-year-old Swiss who is expected to formally declare his intention to stand for a fifth term before the Jan. 29 nomination deadline even though Fifa, and Blatter, have been engulfed in one scandal after another for years.


Until Prince Ali, who has some powerful backers including Uefa president Michel Platini, announced his intentions the only other runner was Fifa's former deputy secretary-general Jerome Champagne.


The 56-year-old former French diplomat declared his candidature a year ago and like Ali, is committed to bringing much-needed change to world soccer's governing body which is generally perceived as a corrupt, secretive organisation.


But however well-intentioned Champagne is and despite a series of absorbingly well-argued documents outlining a brighter footballing future if he became Fifa president, it is difficult to see where his votes will come from - especially as Prince Ali has now thrown his hat in the ring.


Because, to all intents and purposes, Prince Ali, Fifa's Asia vice-president perceived as the leading reformist member of the Fifa executive committee, will be regarded as the only credible alternative to the old guard.


The election will take place at the Fifa Congress in Zurich on May 29 and is a one-member one-vote process with an outright winner needing two-thirds of the 209 votes cast.


If the vote was held today, Blatter would probably hold an advantage of around 120-90 and the ageing tyro is probably secure enough to withstand Ali's attack because, as ever, he is the man holding all the aces.


And it almost seems impossible to imagine that the Swiss will not be milking the applause after a fifth election victory following his earlier successes in 1998, 2002, 2007 and 2011.


In those 17 years, he has only faced two challenges - first when he beat Uefa's Swedish president Johansson for the seat left vacant following the retirement of 82-year-old Joao Havelange 111-80, and again in 2002 when he saw off a half-hearted campaign headed by Cameroonian Issa Hayatou, the president of the African confederation by 139 votes to 56.


No-one stood against him in 2007 when he was returned unopposed by acclamation, while in 2011 his rival Mohamed Bin Hammam of Qatar withdrew from the campaign shortly before voting took place after facing bribery allegations.


He was eventually banned from soccer for life.


Since 2011 though, Fifa have come under the microscope as never before following endless allegations of wrong-doing regarding the voting process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups which were awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively on the same day in December 2010.


To this day there have been no satisfactory answers to allegations of Fifa skulduggery in determining those votes and the situation was made worse last month when Michael Garcia, the New York lawyer who spent 18 months investigating the allegations, quit his post, blaming Fifa for a “lack of leadership” and questioning its intention to work as an open, transparent organisation.


Despite all that, Blatter still commands the support of the majority of the 209 member nations and as he clocks up 40 years at Fifa, he certainly knows how to use the system.


In June Blatter was assured of the continuing support of the majority of delegates in five of Fifa's six confederations.


The only one that gave him a frosty reception during a whistle-stop tour of confederation meetings in Sao Paulo just before the World Cup in Brazil was Europe's Uefa.


As one of his long-time executive committee colleagues Michel D'Hooghe of Belgium told Reuters, he retains a steely grip on Fifa's affairs.


“He is powerful, he is untouchable, he is, I would say, the Pope of Football,” D'Hooghe, the president of the Belgian FA said. – Reuters






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Bale’s form worrying Real

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Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti remains loyal to off-form Gareth Bale despite criticism during the team's poor start to 2015.


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Barcelona - Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti remains loyal to off-form Gareth Bale despite criticism during the team's poor start to 2015 but needs the Welshman to return to his swashbuckling best.


Bale has sometimes been accused of being too greedy by Spanish media and those accusations returned after last weekend's La Liga defeat by Valencia and Wednesday's King's Cup, last 16 first leg loss to Atletico Madrid.


Ancelotti's side were able to relax over Christmas having won the Club World Cup to extend their Spanish record winning streak to 22 matches but their lacklustre displays since have alarmed fans of the club and scapegoats are being sought.


They were out-fought against Valencia and lacked the intensity and cutting edge as they then lost to Atletico.


After both defeats, Ancelotti had to defend the player who was signed for a reported 91 million euros from Tottenham Hotspur in August 2013 and helped the club win the Champions League and King's Cup in his first season.


“I am happy with the way that Bale is playing and he was not at fault for the defeat,” Ancelotti told reporters after the Atletico match.


“The problems were caused by the opposition and generally we didn't have many chances. He scored a goal that was ruled offside but apart from that he was always trying and it was a difficult game for all the players.”


Real president Florentino Perez has publicly backed Bale, who says he is happy in Madrid, but reports of interest from Manchester United are circulating and other big clubs will be monitoring the situation.


Part of the problem appears to be Bale's marauding style that sometimes sees him burst forward alone without looking to link with team mates.


Against Valencia his team mates were visibly irritated after one counter-attack when he failed to pick out Karim Benzema who was through on goal and soon after Ancelotti substituted him.


Despite his influential performances last season the Madrid faithful faithful have more appreciation for ball players.


For that reason Isco has become an immediate favourite at the Bernabeu even though so far he is not a leading figure in the team.


Being greedy was a criticism labelled at Arjen Robben not too long ago and he was sold to Bayern Munich in 2009. – Reuters






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Toure named African Footballer of the Year

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Yaya Toure was named African Footballer of the Year for a record fourth straight time at the annual Confederation of African Football awards.


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Lagos - Yaya Toure was named African Footballer of the Year for a record fourth straight time at the annual Confederation of African Football awards.


The Ivory Coast midfielder joins Samuel Eto'o as the only players to win the continent's top individual award four times but only Toure has done it in successive years, starting in 2011.


His latest triumph came ahead of two other finalists, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Gabon and Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, in a poll of the coaches and captain's of Africa's national teams.


“I've been very blessed all these years,” Toure said at the ceremony. “I want to thank all the football fans and say 'Thank you Africa'.”


Toure's award comes on the back of his stellar performances for Manchester City in the Premier League rather than his achievements with the Ivory Coast.


The Ivorians failed to reach the second round at last year's World Cup in Brazil and struggled through the qualifiers for the 2015 African Nations Cup.


The 31-year-old Toure scored in Manchester City's League Cup final win over Sunderland in March and notched 20 goals in helping his side regain the Premier League title, a feat for a midfielder that only Frank Lampard had managed before him.


However, Toure suffered heartbreak in Brazil when the Ivory Coast were denied progress from their World Cup group by a last minute Greece goal. He captained the Ivorians in two of their three games ahead of Didier Drogba.


Toure will lead the team at this month's African Nations Cup finals in Equatorial Guinea.


He had won the award ahead of Seydou Keita (Mali) in 2011, Drogba in 2012 and John Obi Mikel of Nigeria in 2013. Aubameyang and Enyeama were finalists for the first time at the 2014 awards. – Reuters






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Oldham decline to sign convicted rapist

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Oldham Athletic have pulled out of signing convicted rapist Ched Evans following pressure from fans and sponsors.


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London - Oldham Athletic have pulled out of signing convicted rapist Ched Evans following pressure from fans and sponsors and alleged threats made to the club's staff and their families, British media reported.


Earlier on Thursday, the former Wales international Evans striker issued an apology for the first time since he was released from prison last October after serving half of a five-year sentence for the crime that took place in the Welsh town of Rhyl in April 2012.


In a statement issued through the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Evans, 26, said he was sorry “for the effects that night in Rhyl has had on many people” but continued to protest his innocence.


A director of League One (third tier) Oldham told the BBC that a staff member was warned a named relative would be raped if the deal to sign Evans went ahead. Police are investigating those claims.


In a statement Evans said: “Whilst I continue to maintain my innocence, I wish to make it clear that I wholeheartedly apologise for the effects that night in Rhyl has had on many people, not least the woman concerned.


Oldham were the third club linked with Evans after his former club Sheffield United and then fourth tier Hartlepool expressed interest in taking him on.


More than 60,000 people signed a petition against Oldham signing Evans while other campaigners and politicians condemned the move.


One club sponsor ended its deal with Oldham earlier this week while another said it would do so if Evans was signed. – Reuters






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News sport : San Diego Padres brown uniform mockups look fantastic

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(@johnbrubaker)

Padres general manager A.J. Preller has been busy this offseason, making a flurry of trades to bring in Matt Kemp, Wil Myers, and Justin Upton, but fans in San Diego don't want the makeover to stop with the roster.


Check out these uniforms, designed by Padres fan John Brubaker, that reintroduces brown as the team's primary color. Brown was at the core of San Diego's on-field look from the late '60s to the early '90s and there's a legion of Friar Faithful that would be thrilled to see their favourite ballclub wear it on a daily basis again.



Lee Jenkins of Sports Illustrated, who is a native of San Diego, wrote about the 'Bring Back The Brown' movement for the magazine in July. A September article in U-T San Diego also advocated for the Padres to make the change.


There was no more staunch supporter for a return to the brown uniforms than Mr. Padres himself, the late Tony Gwynn, who said this to ESPN.com in 2012:



Brown is part of who the Padres are. t's definitely unique in baseball, because no one else has brown. How many teams have blue? How many have red? But none of 'em have brown.



Their current outfits are bland and unimaginative. Brubaker's update is clean and classy, something Gwynn would have been proud to sport as he put together another season hitting over .300.


Now it's up to the Padres' decision makers to make it happen.


More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:





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Israel Fehr is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter.






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News sport : UCLA finds a blueprint for salvaging its season in double-OT win

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LOS ANGELES — Midway through the first half of his team's double-overtime victory over Stanford on Thursday night, UCLA point guard Bryce Alford passed up a wide-open mid-range jumper to try to thread a bounce pass to Kevon Looney in the paint.


The play resulted in a turnover, but at least Alford's mindset was correct.


The sooner UCLA realizes feeding its frontcourt players gives it the best chance of winning, the more likely the Bruins are to salvage a season that has been a major disappointment thus far. UCLA had lost five straight games before edging Stanford 86-81 behind monster performances from Looney and center Tony Parker.


Looney, a highly touted freshman forward with pterodactyl-like wingspan, set career highs of 27 points and 19 rebounds by attacking the rim off the dribble, gobbling up offensive rebounds and getting to the foul line. Parker, a 6-foot-9 back-to-the-basket threat, overpowered Stanford's frontline on the low block, scoring a season-high 22 points and adding 12 rebounds.


"Kevon and Tony started playing well right at the beginning," Alford said. "We made a point to get it inside and they did a great job of not only getting buckets but getting to the line. They both shot double-digit free throws and then they were garbage men too cleaning up our misses. They know we like to be aggressive as guards and we know that if we miss a shot, they're probably going to get the rebound."


UCLA needed every last point and rebound Looney and Parker could muster to survive a 3-point shooting barrage from Stanford (10-4) that enabled the Cardinal to build a 14-point second-half lead. Looney and Parker combined for the first 16 points in a 19-4 surge that enabled the Bruins to force overtime and ultimately snap their month-long losing streak.


"The two bigs were definitely the difference" Stanford wing Anthony Brown said.


While it was important for UCLA to avoid its first 0-3 start in league play since 1988, the Bruins (9-7) still face a long uphill climb back to NCAA tournament contention. Stanford was the first opponent ranked in the KenPom top 100 that they've beaten all season, and a home win against the solid but hardly spectacular Cardinal doesn't exactly qualify as a signature win.


Nonetheless, what UCLA did gain Thursday was a blueprint for future success.


In the Bruins' five-game losing streak, Parker averaged 5.8 points, Looney averaged 8.2 points and the two combined to take only 28.4 percent of their team's shots. That's not nearly enough considering they're the strength of a UCLA team that has only three scholarship guards, shoots 33.7 percent from behind the arc and has perimeter players that struggle to create their own shot and are prone to over-dribbling.


One reason Looney and Parker were more successful Thursday night was because UCLA's guards made a more concerted effort to get them the ball. Another is that Stanford sorely missed top rebounder and interior defender Reid Travis, who is out with a stress fracture. Maybe the biggest is that both Looney and Parker were assertive and played with urgency.


Looney attacked off the dribble from the high post, the wing and in transition and relentlessly battled for second-chance opportunities. Parker studied film of himself from everything from preseason scrimmages to last year's Stanford game, paying special attention to the way he posted up strong and battled for position.


"We did a much better job of getting the ball to Tony, no question, but I think that's twofold," Steve Alford said. "It's the guards looking for him, but it's also Tony posted today like he hadn't been posting."


Between Looney's energy, Parker's aggressiveness in the post and the unselfishness of the backcourt, UCLA discovered a formula that could serve it well in the coming weeks.


The climb back to NCAA tournament contention is steep but at least now the Bruins know the approach they must take.


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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!


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News sport : Robert Swift arrested again in connection with home invasion robbery

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Robert Swift with the NBDL's Bakersfield Jam in 2009. (Photo by Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images) The saga of ex-Seattle SuperSonics center Robert Swift continues to get sadder and more sordid. The 29-year-old Swift, the 12th-overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft straight out of high school, was arrested in mid-November for alleged possession of a sawed-off shotgun after authorities searched his room in the home of his friend, a suspected drug dealer. Swift admitted to being a heroin addict and was thought to have served as muscle for his friend and dealer. It was the latest incident in a series of unfortunate stories involving Swift, who crashed out of the NBA in late 2009 following several injuries.


Swift was arrested again Tuesday for another alleged crime. Amy Clancy of KIROTV.com has the story:


According to sources, the 7-foot-1 former NBA basketball player and 28-year-old Carlos Abraham Anderson of Everett put masks over their faces and attempted to rob a home in broad daylight. Witnesses notified the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

“I believe there were a couple of people who called in, they saw masked subjects on the property, reported that at least one of them was armed with a weapon, one possibly with a baseball bat,” Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Shari Ireton told KIRO 7. “It appeared they were either trying to make an entry or knocking on the door.”

Sources told KIRO 7 that Swift was armed with multiple weapons when he was taken into custody.

The 29-year-old Swift has already been charged in King County Superior Court for possessing an illegal sawed-off shotgun. The weapon was found – along with a cache of other weapons – in the home of his Kirkland roommate late last year.

When Swift failed to show up for his November 26th court appearance in Seattle, a warrant for his arrest was issued. Ireton confirmed that warrant was one of the reasons Swift was booked into the King County Jail in Seattle instead of the Snohomish County Jail in Everett.

Clancy adds that authorities are still searching the suspects' car in connection with the planned invasion. It is possible that Swift will see further charges if that search uncovers anything else, although that is just speculation at this point.


It is hard to imagine a sadder state of affairs for Swift. He refused to and eventually left his foreclosed-upon, trashed home in February and March 2013, suggesting serious issues. November's arrest confirmed those fears. The fact that Swift failed to appear at his court date and has now been arrested yet again only adds to the impression that he needs serious help.


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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at efreeman_ysports@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : 49ers OT Jonathan Martin subdues shoplifter in mall: 'I didn't even think'

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Jonathan Martin (USA Today Sports Images) For San Francisco 49ers tackle Jonathan Martin, his job requires him to protect his quarterback. Turns out he protects and serves in real life as well, even when at a mall.


On Thursday afternoon around 4:15 p.m., Martin and a friend from college were out shopping at the Beverly Center in Los Angeles when he said he noticed a shoplifting in progress at the Versace Collection store just a few yards away.


Martin said one shoplifter had taken three purses and was running out of the store. Martin, whose name might sound familiar since he was in the center of the Miami Dolphins' bullying controversy in 2013, saw a second shoplifter in the process of snatching the items and he sprung into action.


In an exclusive interview with Yahoo Sports, Martin said he ran across the corridor into the store and helped the security guard in corralling the would-be shoplifter. The shoplifter was larger than the security guard so Martin punched the criminal “five-to-eight times” until he went down. He wanted to do just enough to get the man to stop fighting so that he could be subdued. Security was then able to place him in a chokehold until more help arrived.


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The first shoplifter got away but the second one picked a lousy day to attempt his crime, with an NFL lineman just yards away.


“I didn't even think,” Martin told Yahoo! Sports via phone on Thursday night. “I just reacted. It wasn't till later when [my friend] said 'He could have had a gun.' I didn't even think about it. I just wanted to help.”


A security officer at the mall said he was unable to comment on Thursday evening. Martin put out a very casual tweet about the event just hours after it happened:



A second-round pick of the Miami Dolphins in the 2012 NFL Draft, Martin became a household name when teammates were accused of bullying him, drawing attention to the culture of professional sports locker rooms. He played in 15 games and had nine starts in 2014, his first season with the 49ers.


Martin says there were no nerves in thwarting a crime in action. He didn't even have time to get scared, he admits.


“It took maybe 30 seconds,” said Martin about subduing the shoplifter. “It all happened so fast you don't really think about it. You just sort of react.”


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Kristian R. Dyer writes for Metro New York and is a contributor to Yahoo! Sports. Follow him on Twitter @KristianRDyer






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News sport : Nicolas Batum wears 'Je Suis Charlie' warmup shirt before Blazers-Heat

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When Nicolas Batum came out to warm up for the Portland Trail Blazers' nationally televised Thursday night matchup with the Miami Heat, the French forward wore a shirt bearing the phrase "Je Suis Charlie" — which translates to "I am Charlie" in English — in a gesture honoring the 12 victims killed Wednesday by masked gunmen in a terrorist attack at the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo, a weekly satirical publication that had caricatured the Prophet Muhammad.



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In the hours after the fatal shootings, the phrase became something of a viral slogan, a touchstone for those responding to the killings by gathering in solidarity, according to Leanne Italie of the Associated Press:


Online, the declaration "Je Suis Charlie," or "I Am Charlie," replaced profile pictures on Facebook while Twitter users showed themselves with the slogan on signs with words of support for the 12 victims [...]

The "Je Suis Charlie" slogan grew into a trending hashtag on Twitter and spread to Instagram, along with an image of a machine gun with the words "Ceci n'est pas une religion," or "This is not a religion."

One user on Instagram sent out a simple black-and-white drawing of the Eiffel Tower with the message: "Pray for Paris." Another wrote: "Islam is a beautiful religion. This is not what we see on TV. Terrorists are not real Muslims. #IamCharlie."

The 26-year-old Batum — who was born in Lisieux and began his professional basketball career in Le Mans, each of which are about a two-hour drive from Paris, and has played for the French men's national basketball team since 2009 — expressed his sorrow and frustration after the shooting on Twitter.


"Increasingly outraged by human stupidity," he wrote, according to a translation. "Big thoughts to all the families and victims of this horror."


Batum briefly discussed his thoughts on the shooting at the Blazers' Wednesday practice:


“I woke up this morning and it was the first thing I saw.,” said Batum. “That’s sad, twelve people killed like this. I have no words to explain what happened. I read that this morning, people came in and shot police. It’s sad for those people who tried to do their jobs. [...]

“We have different opinions, okay,” said Batum. “But you’ve got to respect everybody’s opinion. You can’t shoot those people… You can’t kill someone because you disagree with somebody.”

Batum is the latest in a growing number of NBA players to use the shooting shirts they wear during pre-game warmups as a canvas for social commentary. The Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat wore their shooting shirts inside-out before games during the opening round of the 2014 NBA playoffs to silently protest the incendiary racial comments made by then-Clippers owner Donald Sterling and captured on now-infamous recordings published by TMZ.


More recently, a number of NBA players — from Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose to Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James to nearly every member of the Los Angeles Lakers — wore warmup shirts bearing the phrase "I Can't Breathe," which became a rallying cry after a New York grand jury's decision not to indict New York Police Officer Daniel Pantaleo in the July 17 death of black Staten Island resident Eric Garner. (Pantaleo placed Garner, who suffered from asthma, in a chokehold while placing him under arrest for selling untaxed cigarettes; a video of the incident showed Garner saying "I can't breathe" during the encounter that led to his death.)


NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told Yahoo Sports NBA columnist Adrian Wojnarowski that he supported players speaking their mind on social issues, but would prefer that such statements steer clear of league uniforms.


"I respect Derrick Rose and all of our players for voicing their personal views on important issues, but my preference would be for players to abide by our on-court attire rules," Silver told Yahoo Sports in an email.


- - - - - - -


Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!



Stay connected with Ball Don't Lie on Twitter @YahooBDL, "Like" BDL on Facebook and follow Dunks Don't Lie on Tumblr for year-round NBA talk, jokes and more.






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News sport : Barry Trotz bloodied by Capitals player’s stick (Video)

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The Washington Capitals recently bid farewell to the EPIX cameras that followed the team through the Winter Classic; which is a shame, because we’d love to have heard what was spewing forth from coach Barry Trotz’s mouth after taking a stick to the head from his own player.


At the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night, Capitals forward Marcus Johansson was sent over the boards by defenseman Luke Schenn.


MoJo’s stick swung wildly and conked Trots right on the forehead, cutting it open. Trotz immediately brought his hand to his head in pain, or to make sure that none of the candy fell out.


The Capitals trainer came out to the bench, stitched up a surly looking Trotz, and the coach continued coaching. Because NHL coaches are tougher than NBA coaches OBVIOUSLY.



Johansson was then traded to Edmonton during the first intermission. JUST KIDDING! Accidents happen.


s/t Jenn for the Vine






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News sport : USOC names Boston as its representative for 2024 Olympic bid

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Sep 21, 2014; Foxborough, MA, USA; General view of the downtown Boston skyline. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports ) The United States Olympic Committee has named Boston as the United States' bid city for the 2024 Olympic Games.


Boston has never hosted an Olympic Games. The city will require construction of an Olympic stadium, and projected costs run to more than $7 billion, according to the AP.


Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, and Washington D.C. had all been seeking the opportunity to represent the United States in bidding for the 2024 Games. The International Olympic Committee is expected to name the host city in 2017. The United States has not hosted a Summer Games since Atlanta in 1996.


Los Angeles based its bid on a series of "clusters" scattered around Southern California. San Francisco sought to make use of iconic backdrops such as the Golden Gate Bridge and the Coit Tower. Boston intended to use university facilities for a compact Olympic experience. Washington's odds for hosting seemed dubious at best because of the city's polarizing nature.


While hosting the Olympics has long been deemed an honor, in more recent years local governments have understood that it's been the IOC doing the deeming and the citizenry doing the paying. Costs for hosting Olympic Games have soared past $50 billion, and while most governments will not go to the ridiculously lavish (and, by all accounts, corrupt) extremes of Russia with Sochi, the price of entry now is a substantial one for a two-week event.


In fact, the prestige of hosting an Olympic Games is so dimmed that four cities have already dropped out of the bidding for the 2022 Winter Games, leaving only Kazakhstan and China as the bidding nations. Many nations don't want to bear the crushing expense of trying to meet the IOC's demanding standards only to see their facilities plunge into disuse or even ruin within months after the Games' end.


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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter.



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News sport : Ohio State gets extra practice time because of its academic calendar

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When Ohio State coach Urban Meyer learned of Oregon’s 39-point victory against Florida State in the College Football Playoff semifinal, he faked getting up from his press conference seat and made a comment that he needed to get to work on the gameplan right away.


He probably didn’t realize at that moment that he’d have more time to prepare than the Ducks.


Because of Ohio State’s academic schedule, the Buckeyes, who are still on winter break, are not held to the 20-hour practice limit that is instituted when classes are in session, according to ESPN. Ohio State’s spring semester begins on Monday.


Oregon, however, started its spring semester this past Monday and is subject to the NCAA rules that limit practice hours. Practices, weightlifting, meeting and film sessions all count toward the 20-hour limit as do any other meetings that are mandated by coaches. And Oregon players also have to keep on top of their classwork, but with the semester just starting, the pressure probably isn’t too great.


The one benefit for Ohio State could be the extra time for film study, but in terms of actual practice time, the extra hours might actually be a hindrance. Both of these teams are about to embark on their unprecedented 15th game of the season. It stands to reason that neither of these teams were going to go too hard in practice this week, especially Ohio State, whose semifinal game was hard fought and went down to the wire. Oregon had the luxury of resting its starters in the fourth quarter because of the big lead.


If Ohio State isn’t in shape to keep up with Oregon’s pace of play — and few teams are — already, a few extra hours of practice this week probably won’t rectify that.


For more Oregon news, visit DuckSportsAuthority.com.


For more Ohio State news, visit BuckeyeGrove.com.


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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter!


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