Nadal overcomes ailing leg to win (AP)
WIMBLEDON, England (AP)—Even with an ailing right leg, Rafael Nadal can conjure some of his best tennis. The defending champion at Wimbledon returned to the court Saturday and managed to get through two sets against Gilles Muller without committing a single unforced error, winning 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 6-0 in the third round. The match started Friday but was suspended because of rain after the first set. Just before the interruption, Nadal had called for a trainer after falling to the turf while winning the tiebreaker. He said it was a muscle problem, but did not elaborate. Nadal, who has not been defeated at the All England Club since losing to Roger Federer in the 2007 final, said his leg was a “little bit more tired than usual.” “But this is not limiting my game,” he said. “I can play with that without problems.” It certainly didn’t appear to bother him against Muller, the last man other than Federer to beat Nadal at Wimbledon. Both players held serve in the second set when the match resumed on Court 1, and Nadal earned a mini-break at 5-5 in the tiebreaker. He then won the next point on his serve and didn’t lose another game. “The third set, two sets to love, I am able to play with less pressure,” said Nadal, who lost to Muller in the second round in 2005. “I started to return unbelievable and to play at very high level, I think.” After losing to Federer in the 2006 and ’07 finals, Nadal beat the Swiss great in the 2008 championship match. He missed the 2009 tournament because of injury, but won again last year. In the fourth round, Nadal will face 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro. The 24th-seeded Argentine—the only other man to beat Federer in a Grand Slam final—defeated Gilles Simon of France 7-6 (8), 7-6 (5), 7-5. “Of course on Monday I play against the best player in the world in this moment. It will be a big challenge,” Del Potro said, adding he will have to play “unbelievable” tennis to win. “You should play everything perfect, and then maybe you have a little chance.” Nadal is 5-2 against Del Potro, including two wins this year. “When he’s healthy, he must be in the top five … So will be a very tough opponent for me. I know that,” Nadal said. “I’m not lucky to play against Del Potro in the round of 16.”
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Jagr eyes return, maybe Wings or Pens (AP)
DETROIT (AP)—Jaromir Jagr is ready make an NHL comeback. “Quite a few teams are in the picture, but I’ve been talking to Detroit and Pittsburgh the last couple of days,” Petr Svoboda, Jagr’s agent, said Tuesday in an interview with The Associated Press. “He is looking for a one-year deal and I think he will have one in the next week or so.” Jagr was the NHL MVP in 1999, a five-time scoring champion and two-time Stanley Cup winner while he was with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He went on to play for the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers. “They’ve contacted us and we’ve expressed an interest,” Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said. “We’ll continue to stay in touch.” The 39-year-old Jagr hasn’t played in the NHL since the 2007-08 season with the Rangers. He left the league to play for Avangard Omsk in Russia, but he and his agent are working on getting a deal done with a team in North America. The 6-foot-3, 245-pound forward had a hat trick last month in a 4-0 win over the United States in the quarterfinals of the ice hockey world championship, where the Czechs finished fourth. “He’s still got it, for sure,” U.S. captain Mark Stuart(notes) said. “He’s hard to play against. One of the hardest guys ever to take the puck off.” Jagr has 646 goals and 1,599 points in his NHL career, ranking among the game’s all-time best. He had 25 goals and 71 points in his last season with the Rangers three years ago when he finished strong with 15 points in 10 playoff games. The Czech star is one of 25 players with a Stanley Cup and gold medals from the Olympics and world championships.
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Nevada WR seriously wounded in shooting (AP)
RENO, Nev. (AP)—Nevada starting wide receiver Brandon Wimberly was shot and seriously wounded early Saturday in a fight between a group of his football teammates and another group of men. Police say the 22-year-old Wimberly was shot once in the abdomen when he approached the other men in downtown Reno as they fled in a car. He was taken to a hospital, where he was in serious condition. Nevada coach Chris Ault says Wimberly underwent surgery and is fortunate that his injuries aren’t life-threatening. Ault says the players plan to cooperate in the police investigation. Wimberly will be a junior this fall. He was second on the Wolf Pack in receptions last season, with 41 catches for 482 yards. Nevada finished with a 13-1 record and a No. 11 ranking last season.
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Burress admits emotional toll in report (AP)
NEW YORK (AP)—Plaxico Burress(notes) wants another chance to play in the nfl The former New York Giants wide receiver told The Wall Street Journal in a story posted Friday that spending nearly two years in prison on a gun charge took “an emotional toll.” Burress was released Monday from Oneida Correctional Facility in New York. In his first extensive interview
Burress told the newspaper “there’s nothing pleasant about prison
” from the food to the meager weight room to the wasted time. Burress said he wants a clean slate now and plans to “get right back into it” with workouts beginning next week. His agent
Drew Rosenhaus
has said he expects several NFL teams to have interest in Burress once the lockout ends and teams resume doing business with players.
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Not all plain sailing at 2012 venue (Reuters)
(Repeats feature first moved at 0002 GMT) By Avril Ormsby WEYMOUTH
England
June 9 (Reuters) – The English coastal resort of Weymouth
once popular with the British monarchy and Royal Navy
is struggling to embrace its new status as an Olympic town. Selected with its neighbour Portland as the venue for the 2012 sailing regatta
it has received 250 million pounds ($411 million) of investment and been given the chance to showcase its dramatic Jurassic coastline. More than 100 million pounds of that investment has gone on a new traffic system which Weymouth and Portland Borough Council says will draw in new businesses
holidaymakers and sailors. Locals agree it will put their town
214 kilometres southwest of London
on the map but are critical of the new system and say more basic facilities and attractions are needed to keep people interested. “It (the Olympics) will leave Weymouth as a ghost town after building up false hopes
” said Chrissy Johnson
61
a retired hairdresser
sunning herself on the newly painted esplanade. “Because of the traffic it will blow up in our faces
it will be embarrassing. We will be a laughing stock.” Officials said the London Olympic Games were expected to rejuvenate sleepy Weymouth after the Royal Navy pulled out of Portland in the 1990s. King George III’s 18th-century summer dips have long been forgotten. The council has devised a strategy to attract a younger
more adventurous visitor
taking advantage of the second-deepest man-made harbour in the world to bring in divers
and promoting its natural environment to kayakers and mountain bikers. “We are a traditional
Georgian-fronted seaside destination
but we have got to keep moving with people’s aspirations
” said Jacqui Gisborne of the council’s 2012 operations team. GOLDEN SANDS The bulk of the tourists currently are pensioners and families drawn to Weymouth’s golden sands
or yachting enthusiasts lured by the old harbour with its pretty
pastel-coloured houses. The former Royal Naval air station in Portland has been transformed into a sailing academy
a 580-berth marina and business park. Nearly 80 homes will be built for competing sailors and will be converted after the Games into homes. “Inspirational money has come into the area because of the Games
” Gisborne said. However
plans for a major
150-million-pound development in Weymouth
which would have included a five-star hotel
a new town marina
ferry terminal and revamped pavilion fell through. Only one of the two former sailors’ accommodation blocks at HMS Osprey earmarked for renovation has been developed. House prices which initially received a 15 percent boost from the Olympics have since collapsed. Public support for the Games has dropped by 13 percent to 76 percent since 2007
a survey by Bournemouth University showed. The local population of 64
000 is expected to be boosted during the Olympics by 60
000 visitors a day. However
guest houses which received enquiries within minutes of Weymouth being chosen
still have vacant rooms as some regular holidaymakers have decided to keep away next year. COE UPBEAT Members of the Royal Dorset sailing club
whose patron is Queen Elizabeth’s husband the Duke of Edinburgh and whose previous commodores include a Prince of Wales
are not known to have applied for tickets
preferring to watch events on a big screen. “This is one of those things experience has taught us over many years that yachting is not a spectator sport
at whichever level
” Andy Alcock
secretary of the Weymouth and Portland Fishermen’s and Licensed Boatmen’s Association
told Reuters. “You’re talking about a race that is potentially 3.5 miles away from the nearest piece of land. So who’s going to pay for a chair for 50 pounds and look at 50
60 little boats going around in circles? Nobody is going to know what is going on.” Sailors on the south coast of England and France might want to sail in Olympic wate
rs but they tended to eat and sleep onboard rather than go ashore and spend lots of money
Commodore Graham Castell said from his home overlooking Portland Harbour. “It is not unusual mid-term to have people focusing on other things
” said Seb Coe
London organising committee (LOCOG) chairman
before predicting an upturn in interest next year. Robert Wilson
partner at local estate agent Wilson Tominey
warned: “I am sure it will be terrific and brilliant
and I am sure it will help the economy for entrepreneur businessmen looking to come down here and settle here or perhaps for second homes but not as much as was first hyped
and I think that is realised.” (Editing by Clare Fallon; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
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