Sports

MILAN — Real Madrid handed Atletico Madrid another cruel Champions League final defeat when Cristiano Ronaldo’s spot kick saw them beat their neighbours on penalties to win Europe’s top club trophy for a record 11th time on Saturday.

The match ended 1-1 after extra time as Atletico, giving their usual never-say-die performance, conceded an early goal, missed a penalty, clung on by the skin of their teeth and then found the strength to equalise at the San Siro.

But it was all in vain as Juanfran struck their fourth penalty against the post, allowing a previously subdued Ronaldo to stride up and coolly blast home the decisive penalty for a 5-3 shootout win — his third European Cup success.

Real’s former playmaker Zinedine Zidane was left to celebrate winning Europe’s elite club competition five months after starting his first coaching job and become the seventh man to claim the trophy as both a player and a manager.

But it was another demoralising end for Diego Simeone’s Atletico who were within a minute of winning the 1974 European Cup final and 2014 Champions League finals but conceded equalisers and eventually lost them both.

The latter was also against Real when Sergio Ramos scored in stoppage time to set his side up for a 4-1 extra-time win.

This time, Ramos gave Real a 15th minute lead but, after Antoine Griezmann missed a penalty for Atletico at the start of the second half, the Mattress Makers hit back with a superbly taken equaliser by substitute Yannick Carrasco.

Just reward

Real captain Ramos, who converted their fourth penalty, said the title was “just reward” for their hard work. “We knew that it was a unique chance to make history and after an up and down season it is a reward,” he said.

Real were edged to the La Liga title by one point on the final day of the season by archrivals Barcelona.

Match-winner Ronaldo added: “The penalties are always a lottery, you never know what will happen, but our team showed more experience and we showed it by scoring all the penalties. A fantastic night for us.”

Atletico’s shattered coach Simeone added: “It hurts to see the people who paid for the tickets and I couldn’t give them what they wanted. That hurts more than anything else.

“I’m proud of my players, they’ve made an extraordinary effort, to beat Barcelona and Bayern Munich [in earlier rounds]. The effort was really tremendous.”

Atletico, European football’s arch-destroyers, have made a habit of upsetting more technically gifted, financially powerful opponents and once again set out to frustrate and nullify Real.

They showed their intentions with some heavy tackles early on but their plan threatened to unravel when a heavy challenge by Gabi led to a free kick which was floated in by Toni Kroos and headed on by Gareth Bale for Ramos to bundle home.

Real looked supremely confident and there was some premature showboating, but Atletico, initially uncomfortable at having to chase the game, forced their way back into the match.

The second half began dramatically when Pepe clumsily caught Fernando Torres’ ankle in the area to give away a penalty but Griezmann fired against the underside of the bar, possibly distracted by Keylor Navas’ antics on the goal line.

Dramatic escapes

A breathless spell followed as Atletico, leaving gaps at the back, had a series of dramatic escapes.

Karim Benzema had the chance to settle it for Real when he broke clear down the right but Atletico keeper Jan Oblak judged the situation perfectly and blocked the Frenchman’s shot.

Slovenian Oblak also made a superb stop from Cristiano Ronaldo and Stefan Savic cleared Bale’s shot off the line.

Atletico immediately went down the other end where Griezmann lifted the ball to Juanfran, who volleyed the ball across the area for Carrasco to fire home from close range.

That could have been the turning point, but instead Atletico ran out of steam.

The pace of the match slowed and neither side really looked like winning it in extra time, with Ronaldo looking short of full-fitness but with Zidane having already used up his three substitutes.

Real won the toss for the penalties and chose the end where their fans were based.

The first seven penalties were all converted until the hapless Juanfran saw his effort hit the post, leaving the way for Ronaldo to win another European title for his side.

Zidane lavishes praise on ‘team player’ 

Zidane lavished praise on Ronaldo after the three times world player of the year appeared to struggle through the Champions League final.

Ronaldo was subdued for long spells but fired home the winning penalty to give Real a 5-3 success in the shootout following a 1-1 draw after extra time and then performed his shirtless celebration, proudly showing off his muscular torso.

“He wasn’t injured. He gave us the win, he was fine, he fought hard and he ran a lot like everyone in the team,” Zidane told reporters. “He has always helped his teammates.”

Ronaldo scored 16 times in the Champions League campaign to finish as top scorer in the competition for the fourth season in a row, albeit a goal short of the record he set two seasons ago.

He has won the Champions League three times, twice with Real and once with Manchester United, but still one fewer than his great rival, Lionel Messi of Barcelona.

“We’re really happy, finals are always hard,” said Ronaldo. “The side was great and sacrificed a lot. It’s impressive. I knew I was going to score the winning penalty; I was confident.”

Zidane said that work, and more work, was the secret of Real’s success.

“We worked so much,” said the Frenchman, the first coach from his country to win the trophy. “I believe a lot in work, work is the most important thing and everyone has done a good job.”

“We suffered a lot physically and some players had cramp, but it’s normal,” he added.

“Mentally, there is a lot of pressure but you have to fight. We have worked a lot and when you get something as big as the Champions [League], it means a lot for the staff and the supporters.”

OKLAHOMA CITY — Golden State’s Klay Thompson made a play-off-record 11 3-pointers and scored 41 points as the Warriors took out a must-win game at Oklahoma City on Saturday 108-101, sending the NBA Western Conference finals to Game 7.

Stephen Curry bounced back from a slow start to finish with 29 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.

The Warriors, who set the league’s regular-season record with 73 wins, will host Game 7 on Monday. The winner will play Cleveland in the NBA finals.

“We’ve got a lot of belief and a lot of heart, and we’ve given ourselves a chance to win this series,” Curry said. “That’s all we could ask for. There’s obviously a lot of excitement, but we still have one job to do.”

Thompson scored 19 points in the fourth quarter to help the Warriors overcome an eight-point deficit.

“Steph told me before I went out in the fourth, ‘This is your time,’” Thompson said. “’You know, put on a show out there and have fun.’ I took those words to heart, and I just tried to be aggressive.”

The Warriors were well beaten on their previous visits to Oklahoma City in this series, but dominate from downtown in this one, making 21 of 44 3-pointers while the Thunder was a miserable 3 of 23.

“About time we had a stretch in this building where we imposed our will,” Curry said.

Kevin Durant scored 29 points and Russell Westbrook added 28 for the Thunder. But Durant made just 10 of 31 shots and Westbrook was 10 of 27.

Trying to become the 10th team to overcome a 3-1 deficit, the Warriors trailed much of the game and were behind by eight going to the fourth quarter.

Thompson kept them in it with four 3-pointers in just over seven minutes to start the period. Curry then hit two 3s, the second of which tied the game 99-99 with 2:47 to play.

Thompson’s 3 with 1:35 to play put the Warriors up 104-101.

The Thunder, who blew a number of fourth-quarter leads during the regular season, fell apart in the final minutes after Golden State had gone ahead.

“That really wasn’t — hasn’t been us in the last month and a half,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. “We got a little stagnant coming down the stretch.”

Westbrook lost control of the ball, and after Thompson missed a 3, Westbrook turned the ball over again. Curry’s lay-up with 14.3 seconds to play put the Warriors up by five, the Thunder turned it over again, and the Warriors were in the clear.

The Thunder led 23-20 after one quarter, then seized momentum early in the second. Steven Adams’ powerful one-handed dunk on Draymond Green drew a roar from the crowd and gave Oklahoma City a 37-28 lead. Green, who had hit Adams in the groin area twice during the series, was a constant target for the vocal Thunder fans.

Thompson opened the second half with back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Warriors a 54-53 edge, but the Thunder closed the quarter strongly and led 83-75 heading into the fourth.

The Warriors held the Thunder to 18 points in the fourth quarter to stay alive. They expect another tough battle in Game 7.

“To be in this situation — people were doubting us,” Green said. “It will be the hardest game of our lives. It will be way harder than this game. Going back home, everybody will think, ‘Oh, it’s done.’ It will be way harder. But if we come out and do what we did and stick to the game plan, we’ll be fine.”

Curry will get the chance to make up for one of the few disappointments of his career on Monday when the Golden State Warriors take on Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals.

Curry, who became the first unanimous winner of the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award when he picked up the highest individual honour for a second straight season, lost his only previous appearance in a Game 7 in 2014.

The Warriors were beaten 126-121 by the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of that year’s play-offs, with Curry scoring 33 points.

“I’ve been in one so far in my career and it didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to,” Curry said. “We have another opportunity to get the job done on Monday.”

On Saturday, Curry bagged 29 points but his performance was overshadowed by that of backcourt mate Klay Thompson, who scored 41 in the Warriors’ 108-101 win in Oklahoma City that sent the best-of-seven series to a decider.

“We’ve got a lot of belief and a lot of heart, and we’ve given ourselves a chance to win this series,” said Curry, who scored just nine in the first half.

“That’s all we could ask for. There’s obviously a lot of excitement, but we still have one job to do.”

After falling behind 3-1 in the series against the Thunder, the Warriors now have history on their side.

Home teams are 100-24 in Game 7s.

“It’s going to be a hard game,” Curry said. “If we thought tonight was hard, Game 7s going to be even tougher. Everybody on both sides of the ball is going to leave it all out on the floor. It’s win or go home.

“So we can’t expect just because we’re at home that we can just show up and win.”

AMMAN — Ayman Najjar on Friday beat all odds and was crowned champion of the third round of the Speed Test Championship held at the Royal Automobile Club of Jordan racetrack with the participation of 55 drivers.

With this win Najjar secured second place in the total standings with 44 points, trailing Mohammed Tayseer, who maintains his lead with 58 points, with still three rounds left for this season.

Najjar clocked 1m 09.08s in his Mitsubishi Proto followed by Tayseer with 1m 09.21s in his Mitsubishi Evo 6 while Yazan Qatan settled in the third spot with 1m 10.44s in his Mitsubishi Evo 8.

Najjar expressed his satisfaction for the strategy he adopted which allowed him to win this crucial round saying: “It took a lot of determination to win this round as it allowed me to be back on my feet and get closer to the first place in the standings and with three rounds left I think I still have a good chance in the coming events.”

“It was really very challenging to be back in the competition but we did well and more is coming,” he added.

Meanwhile, Tayseer said that he did his best but it was not enough.

“You win some and you lose some this is sports. We still have three events coming and I have a good chance to win the title,” he said.

Ihab Shurafa secured fourth place with 1m 10.48s, while Khaled Juma won the fifth place with 1m 10.51s.

Lina Hadidi took the Women’s Cup and Ibrahim Bajeh won the Palestinian Participation Cup.

AMMAN  — Jordan’s national team regrouped on Saturday as those playing abroad joined teammates for the upcoming phase of regional competitions.

The squad will leave to Bangkok on Tuesday where they will play at the King’s Cup, an international football tournament organised in Thailand by the Football Association of Thailand June 3-5. 

Jordan is slated to play the UAE on June 3, while Syria plays Thailand with the winners playing for the $50,000 prize on June 5. The tournament has been played since 1968 with the exception of 1983, 1985, 2008, 2011 and 2014. South Korea won in 2015.

Following the King’s Cup, Jordan will be in the midst of preparations for the 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers starting in March 2017. The Jordan Football Association announced the team will play Iraq on August 31 and Bahrain on September 6.

The Kingdom was eliminated from the 2018 World Cup qualifiers doubling as part of the qualification for 2019 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup after a dismal 5-1 defeat to Australia. The group winners and four best runners-up (total 12 teams) advance to the 2019 AFC Asian Cup finals and the final round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The next best 24 teams from the preliminary stage of the joint qualifiers will compete in a separate competition for the remaining slots (12 slots or 11 slots + one slot for the host) in the 24-team 2019 Asian Cup. 

It has been an inconsistent year for Jordan’s squad with three coaches leading the vital qualifying process. The line-up was led by Briton Ray Wilkins under whom the team failed to advance past the quarters of the 16th AFC Asian Cup in 2015 before Ahmad Abdul Qader took over in the transitional phase under whom the team played the first qualifier. Belgian Paul Put took over in July 2015, but his tenure was also suspended when he was caught in the midst of a court case over match fixing in the Belgian league. Harry Redknapp led the team in the last two qualifiers with a focus on reaching the Asian Championship and keeping World Cup qualifying chances alive.

The Kingdom had the most memorable World Cup qualifying journey in 2013 when they lost a possible chance to play at the World Cup for the first time and advanced to play then World’s 6th ranked Uruguay in an intercontinental qualifying tie for a place in the 2014 World Cup. They lost the home game 5-0 and held the former World Cup champs 0-0 in the away match. Jordan had never reached that far in World Cup qualifying since taking part in the qualifiers in 1985. Round 3 had been the furthest Jordan reached in the past seven times in the qualifiers.

In the Asian Cup, Jordan reached the Championship three times since first taking part in qualifiers in 1972: the pinnacle was at the 13th Asian Cup, when they lost to Japan in the quarter-finals and jumped to the best ever FIFA rank of 37th in August 2004. In 2011 and 2015, Jordan again reached the quarter-finals.

The line-up now includes mainly younger players. Coach Abdullah Abu Zam’eh has included Olympic team players and excluded stats like goalie Amer Shafie, Anas Bani Yasin, Hasan Abdul Fattah and Odey Saifi. Players from Wihdat and Faisali were also set to join the squad after their respective teams were eliminated from the AFC Cup Round of 16 matches. Wihdat lost to Iraq’s Air Force 2-1 while Faisali lost to Bahrain’s Muharraq 1-0.

TORONTO — LeBron James is not just going back to the NBA finals. He’s returning with a team that’s healthy and whole, which makes this trip unlike last year.

Maybe it will lead to a different result.

James scored 33 points while Kevin Love had 20 points and 12 rebounds as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 113-87 in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals Friday night, winning the series 4-2.

Kyrie Irving had 30 points and J. R. Smith added 15 for the Cavaliers, who will face the winner of the Golden State-Oklahoma City series beginning Thursday.

Cleveland would open at home against the Thunder but would be on the road against the 73-win Warriors, who trail 3-2 against Oklahoma City heading into Saturday’s Game 6.

Last year, a depleted Cavs team lost in six games to the Warriors, left to wonder whether things would have worked out differently if Love (left shoulder) and Irving (left knee) had been at full strength.

That’s not a concern this time around.

“There’s definitely a different feeling,” said James, who was emotional during his postgame interview on the court.

“I didn’t appreciate last year, myself personally, getting to the finals. So much was going on in my mind, knowing that Kev was out for the rest of the season and knowing that Ky was dealing with injuries all the way from the first round. Having these guys right here at full strength, having our team at full strength and the way I feel personally, I appreciate this moment, to be able to be a part of it and be there once again.”

Irving, who had battled knee injuries during his first postseason before breaking his kneecap late in Game 1 of last year’s finals, said he’s thankful for the opportunity to be a contributor this time around.

“It just didn’t feel the same hobbling into the locker room, knowing that we were going to the finals but I wasn’t at full strength and Kev was out,” Irving said, recalling the Cavs’ East-clinching victory last year. “Thinking about the steps it took to get back to where we are now, I really have a true appreciation for these guys, my teammates and just a true appreciation of the journey.”

Love and Irving struggled as the Cavs stumbled in Games 3 and 4 against Toronto, their only losses in 14 games this postseason. Both were back in form for runaway wins in Games 5 and 6.

“We wouldn’t be at this point today, going to the finals, without those two,” James said. “Throughout the first three rounds, they’ve been the reason we’ve played at such a high level. They’ve accepted the challenge. They wanted to get back to this moment.”

James will be playing in his sixth consecutive finals, four of them with Miami. This time, however, he’s got perhaps his best shot to end Cleveland’s 52-year championship drought, the longest by any city with at least three professional teams. No Cleveland team has won it all since the Browns beat Baltimore 27-0 to win the NFL championship in 1964.

James, who grew up in nearby Akron, is well aware of what a championship would mean to Cleveland.

“I know our city deserves it, our fans deserve it,” James said. “But that gives us no sense of entitlement. We’ve still got to go out and get it. We’ve still got to go out and prove ourselves.”

James will be the eighth player in NBA history to appear in six consecutive finals and the first who didn’t play for the Boston Celtics.

It’s the third finals appearance in team history for the Cavaliers. In addition to last year’s loss, got swept by San Antonio in 2007.

Toronto’s DeMarre Carroll, who played with Atlanta last season, said this Cleveland team is better than the one that swept aside his Hawks in the Eastern Conference finals.

“They’ve got a lot more weapons,” Carroll said. “They’ve got a lot better veterans from Channing Frye to [Richard] Jefferson. They’ve got a complete team.”

A shot at the NBA title is just what Cavs owner Dan Gilbert had in mind when he signed Love to a $113 million contract last summer and gave Tristan Thompson $82 million. Cleveland has a $175 million payroll this season.

AMMAN — The third round of the Speed Test Championship kicks off on Friday with the participation of 54 drivers including six from Palestine and one Jordanian woman driver at the Royal Automobile of Jordan (RACJ) racetrack.

With 40 points under his car’s hood, Mohammed Tayseer is topping the standings after a clean win in the first and second rounds followed by Ghaith Wraikat (30) and Ayman Najjar (24).

Tayseer clocked 1m16.700s, followed by Yazan Qatan (1m18.150s) and Ayman Najjar (1m18.650s) in the second round which was held at the RACJ.

The only woman driver Lina Hadidi is taking part in the event which is expected to draw a huge crowd.

“Being the only female driver in the event puts a lot of pressure on me as I will be competing against male participants. I consider Speed Tests as the core of my participation in auto sports and I am planning to do my best to continue working to gain more experience and participate in international events,” she told The Jordan Times.

“The list of participants is really impressive and shows the huge interest in such events, I hope we will see more female drivers in future events,” she added.

Hadidi won the Women’s Cup three times in 2015: Women’s Cup at Al Hussein Rumman Hill Climb, Women’s Cup in Jordan Rally Champion and the MERC Jordan Rally.

Meanwhile, Othman Naseef, Jordan Motorsport CEO, said that the event will be a crucial one.

“There is a 10 point difference between the first and second places and this can be changed easily so we have to wait. We are happy that the number of participants is always great and shows that there is a wide fan base for such events,” he said.

“Safety issues are always our main focus and we hope everyone will enjoy thier time,” he added.

In little more than four months in charge, Zinedine Zidane has pulled Real Madrid back from the brink to where they feel they belong: the European Champions League final.

Guiding Real to victory over Madrid rivals Atletico from the dugout on May 28 would earn Zidane another place in the club’s record books to go with his history on the pitch.

Zidane’s success may owe more to his manner and aura than his abilities as a coach. He succeeded Rafael Benitez in January after just 18 months in charge of the club’s reserve team — with unconvincing results — and a season as assistant to Real’s previous coach, Carlo Ancelotti.

He stood out only for his legacy as a player, above all his winning volley against Bayer Leverkusen in the 2002 Champions League final. But it did not take Zidane long to get results.

Not only is he taking Real to their 14th European Cup final — he has also picked up more points over the first 20 league games than any other coach in the club’s history — winning 17, drawing two and losing one.

That gave Real more points over the period than eventual La Liga champions Barcelona. Real fans were left wondering what might have been had Zidane and not Benitez succeeded Carlo Ancelotti last summer.

Zidane’s era began with an impressive 5-0 thrashing of Deportivo La Coruna and big wins over Sporting Gijon and Espanyol. But he was forced to rethink his approach after a derby defeat to Atletico.

Since that day, Real have won their final 12 league games, although they rarely matched those early performances.

Their path to the final gave them little to brag about — they survived a potential elimination to Wolfsburg and only got past Manchester City in the semifinals thanks to an own goal.

Just as Benitez did, Zidane looked to Brazilian midfielder Casemiro to provide greater balance in midfield, curbing the influence of flair players James Rodriguez and Isco. But he has managed to avoid the criticism that dogged Benitez for the same moves, which says a lot about his enduring appeal.

“He’s a legend of the club and that makes you more motivated when you train with him,” said Sergio Ramos, Real’s captain.

Zidane has also won over the player that matters the most at Real — Cristiano Ronaldo.

“We’ve always been behind Zidane because he is a humble person who likes to listen, and that always makes things easier,” Ronaldo said.

Zidane has often underplayed his achievements. He highlights the work of the players and has said more than once he will earn the right to stay at the club only by winning trophies.

Delivering the club’s 11th European Cup would assure both his immediate future and his place in Madridistas’ hearts.

He will still have a way to go, however, before he is considered among the coaching elite.

Ronaldo says he will be “100 per cent” as he attempts to fire Real Madrid to a record-extending 11th European Cup and further torment their city rivals, Atletico.

The prolific Portuguese set alarm bells ringing on Tuesday when he ended training prematurely with a knock but was fit to train again the following day.

“Cristiano always appears in the games that matter. I’ll be at 100 per cent. On Saturday, I’ll be in better form than I was in Lisbon,” Ronaldo told Spanish television channel La Sexta.

“In Lisbon, my hamstring was hurting me. It was pretty bad. It was terrible because you know that in certain moments you could give more but you can’t because your body doesn’t respond.”

Ronaldo has scored — and been on the winning side — in both the Champions League finals he has played in, having also won in 2008 with Manchester United.

He is top scorer in this season’s tournament with 16 goals and is one strike away from equalling the record tally of 17 he set in 2013/14.

Real’s all-time top scorer also gave the club a lift before the final by declaring he wants to stay at Real for the long term.

MONACO — One winning streak ended with a bang for Nico Rosberg in Spain but Monaco’s tight, metal-fenced streets could see the continuation of another remarkable run for the Formula One championship leader on Sunday.

Only one man — triple world champion Ayrton Senna — has won more than three times in a row in the Mediterranean principality’s showcase race but Rosberg is on the cusp of stepping up alongside the late Brazilian.

The Mercedes driver, whose hopes of an eighth successive win ended at the previous race in Barcelona when he and triple world champion team mate Lewis Hamilton collided on the opening lap while fighting for the lead, completed his hat-trick last year.

Four wins would still be one behind the Brazilian, who won five in a row and six in total, but still a sequence that multiple champions like Graham Hill, Alain Prost and Michael Schumacher never managed.

Monaco is a home race for most of the drivers but even more so for Rosberg, the German-born son of Finland’s 1982 world champion Keke, who grew up and went to school there and this time returns in the form of his life.

“I have memories from every corner going right back to my school days and I always have great support there from my family, my friends and the fans, which gives you that extra boost through the weekend,” he said.

“It’s been amazing to win there for the past three years — but I know it will be tough to repeat that with Lewis, the Ferraris and the Red Bulls all so strong now.”

Hamilton has not won since he took his third world championship in Texas last October, and the collision at the Circuit de Catalunya left him 43 points behind the German with 16 races remaining, but he is still the bookmakers’ favourite.

Monaco — the glamour highlight of the season — is also special for him, a race the boyhood Senna fan has always loved, and he needs to start reeling in Rosberg as soon as possible.

“Barcelona was the worst feeling but, like I always say, the true test is how you get back up when you’ve been knocked down,” said the Briton, who won in Monaco with McLaren in 2008.

“It was a tough moment for all of us after the race but it’s now chapter closed and looking ahead to Monaco. It’s an incredible feeling making a car dance through those streets, one of the purest thrills you can have in a racing car.

“I’m approaching this weekend with only one result in mind.”

Ferrari and resurgent Red Bull can hope to be contenders as well at a track where outright engine power matters less than driveability. The new ultrasoft Pirelli tyres, making their debut, could also help.

Both the current Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen — second in the standings and 39 points off the pace — have won in Monaco before, but not for the Italian team, whose last victory there was with Schumacher in 2001.

Red Bull, whose Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo set the race lap record last year, had already targeted Monaco as their best chance of a victory before 18-year-old Dutch driver Max Verstappen won in Spain on his debut with the team.

“The trend now is we’re coming stronger and stronger,” said Ricciardo. “Monaco is for me the best circuit to drive one... there’s no circuit on the calendar that gives me that same feeling, that same adrenaline and that feeling of wanting more.”

Meanwhile, the family of the late French Formula One driver Jules Bianchi are planning legal action against the sport’s governing body, his former Marussia team and Bernie Ecclestone’s Formula One Group, they said in a statement on Thursday.

“We seek justice for Jules, and want to establish the truth about the decisions that led to our son’s crash at the Japanese Grand Prix in 2014,” his father Philippe said in the statement issued by British firm Stewarts Law.

“As a family, we have so many unanswered questions and feel that Jules’ accident and death could have been avoided if a series of mistakes had not been made.”

Bianchi, 25, died in a hospital in his home town of Nice last July after suffering serious head injuries when he crashed into a recovery crane at Suzuka during the October 2014 race.

He was the first Formula One driver to die of injuries sustained during a race since Brazilian triple world champion Ayrton Senna in 1994.

Stewarts Law, representing the family in the English legal system, said formal pre-action letters of claim had been sent this week ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix.

The recipients were the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA), the defunct Marussia team who are racing under new ownership as Manor, and the Formula One Group.

Stewarts said errors were made in the planning, timing, organisation and conduct of the race and the family felt the actions of one or more of the named parties may have contributed to the fatal accident.

“The Bianchi family are determined that this legal process should require those involved to provide answers and to take responsibility for any failings,” said Stewarts partner Julian Chamberlayne.

“This is important if current and future drivers are to have confidence that safety in the sport will be put first. If this had been the case in Suzuka, Jules Bianchi would most likely still be alive and competing in the sport he loved today.”

There was no immediate response from the FIA, whose report into the accident said that the Frenchman had not slowed sufficiently under warning flags before crashing.

The report found Bianchi’s car hit the tractor at 126 kph and said medical services were not at fault in their handling of the aftermath.

Chamberlayne said it had been “surprising and distressing to the Bianchi family that the FIA panel in its conclusions, whilst noting a number of contributing factors, blamed Jules”.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Suddenly, the Golden State Warriors team that a short time ago were being favourably compared to the all-time great teams of NBA history is now on the brink of elimination from the Western Conference finals.

Oklahoma City beat Golden State 118-94 on Tuesday to take a 3-1 lead in the series and move within one win of prematurely ending the Warriors’ record-breaking season.

Russell Westbrook had 36 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his first triple-double of the play-offs after posting 18 in the regular season, and Kevin Durant added 26 points and 11 rebounds for Oklahoma City.

Golden State, who won a league record 73 games in the regular season, lost consecutive games for the first time this season. The Warriors must win Game 5 on Thursday in Oakland to keep their season alive.

“We all have to bounce back,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “The idea now is to go home and get one win. Do that, and we put some pressure on them and we’ll see what happens.”

Klay Thompson led Golden State with 26 points. Two-time league MVP Stephen Curry was limited to 19 points on 6-for-20 shooting, but Kerr insisted he was not still being affected by the knee injury that troubled him in the late stages of the regular season.

“He’s not injured,” Kerr said. “He’s coming back from the knee, but he’s not injured. He just had a lousy night. It happens, even to the best players in the world.”

Oklahoma City got a boost from an unlikely source. Andre Roberson, a player the Warriors have ignored at times during the series, scored a career-high 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.

Kevin Durant added 26 points and 11 rebounds and Serge Ibaka added 17 points and seven rebounds.

Nine teams have rallied from 3-1 deficits in NBA play-off series to win 4-3.

“We’re in a good place, but like I said, this game is over,” Westbrook said. “We’ve got to move on to the next game. Every game is different.”

The Thunder led 30-26 at the end of the first quarter, then gained control in the second. In the most unlikely of connections, Adams threw a bullet pass to Roberson near the basket for a dunk that gave the Thunder a 56-43 lead with just over four minutes left in the first half.

Oklahoma City finished with a flurry and led 72-53 at halftime. The Thunder matched the most points they have scored in a first half in franchise play-off history, a mark they set the previous game against the Warriors. It also matched the most points Golden State has allowed in a half this season for the second straight game.

Westbrook had 21 points, nine assists and five rebounds in the first half, and Durant had 18 points and six boards.

Thompson tried to keep the Warriors in it, scoring 19 points in just over seven minutes to start the third quarter. But the Thunder maintained their composure, led 94-82 at the end of the period and remained in control in the fourth.

“This is a tough situation to be in, but the series isn’t over,” Curry said.

The Warriors are fast becoming a pale shadow of the 73-win team that stormed through the regular season and there is no shortage of theories as to why the league’s most dominant team are now on the verge of play-off elimination.

After Oklahoma City pummeled the Warriors 118-94 to take a commanding 3-1 lead in their best-of-seven Western Conference Finals series on Tuesday, questions poured in like Thunder fast-break points.

Is the team’s talismanic MVP Stephen Curry healthy? Did Draymond Green buckle under the pressure of his near suspension? Is Golden State finally being crushed by the burden of fulfilling a record campaign?

Following their latest setback, the first consecutive losses of the season for the Warriors, the defending NBA champions did their best to deflect questions demanding an explanation for their demise.

“We had a tremendous season and did something no one has done before. We’re proud of that. But in the play-offs, everyone starts 0-0, so there’s no extra pressure,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr told reporters.

On the court, however, the fun-loving Warriors of the regular season appear to have been transformed into a struggling unit, devoid of form or fluidity against a highly motivated opponent.

Curry buried half-court shots on command as he claimed a second consecutive MVP award but he has been outplayed by Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook in the conference finals, prompting inquiries about the right knee he sprained last month.

“I’m fine,” said Curry, who has made just 13-of-37 shots in his last two games.

“In our locker room it’s frustration and trying to figure out how we can get back to being ourselves.”

LONDON — English football’s biggest club seems to have secured the services of the sport’s most colourful manager after Jose Mourinho, according to Sky TV reports, agreed personal terms with Manchester United on Tuesday.

After a trophy-laden career with Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid, Mourinho is set to replace Dutchman Louis van Gaal, who was sacked on Monday, with a remit to bring back the glory days the club once took for granted under Alex Ferguson.

The 53-year-old, sacked by Chelsea in December seven months after winning his third Premier League title at the London club over two spells, had been constantly linked with the United job as Van Gaal struggled to make an impression at Old Trafford.

The Dutchman was dismissed two days after steering United to their first FA Cup success in 12 years when they beat Crystal Palace 2-1 after extra-time in Saturday’s Wembley final.

Van Gaal’s preferred possession-dominated playing style at a club more readily associated with fast, direct attacking, was widely criticised, and it appeared to take his players time to adapt.

Mourinho is also known for pragmatism, however, relying on a strong defensive foundation and hard-working midfielders and strikers.

He has a history of success wherever he has managed and a proven track record in the English game.

Mourinho won the UEFA Cup and Champions League as well as the domestic double twice in his two seasons at Porto and led Chelsea to their first top-flight title in 50 years in his first campaign, retaining it the following season.

He also won the League Cup and FA Cup before moving to Inter where he won Serie A as well as the Champions League and Italian Cup.

Mourinho helped Real to their first La Liga crown in four years and on returning to Chelsea, he again won the Premier League before an unexpectedly poor start to the 2015-16 season led to his sacking.

His imminent appointment at Old Trafford, touted in the media for months, will divide opinion but while some have voiced concern over playing style and potentially explosive personality clashes, he is widely considered to be as close to a guarantee of silverware as a manager can be.

The challenge will be not only to deliver success but to do it in style.

Van Gaal’s FA Cup triumph was not enough to allow him to see out the final year of his contract on the back of a season in which the club’s fans routinely voiced their frustration with the safety-first football being served up.

Mourinho is not known for throwing caution to the wind but fans will hope that under his leadership United will at least not again be ranked top in the Premier League for the number of backwards passes made as they were under Van Gaal.

There will also be pressure for the new man to continue the good work of his predecessor in bringing young players such as Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard to the fore, something else Mourinho has singularly failed to do at most of his previous clubs.

However, after three seasons without a league title and with no Champions League football for a second time in three years, the United hierarchy are evidently prepared to accept potential downsides if the “Special One” gets the club back to what they consider to be their rightful place at the sport’s top table.

Former Old Trafford goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel believes the Portuguese “could save” the club while Hull City manager Steve Bruce, who used to play in front of the Dane in central defence, said the chance to bring in Mourinho was “too good to miss”.

Former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti, who will coach Bayern Munich next season, said Mourinho would be a “fantastic signing”, adding United had “lost its identity last year”.

Former Old Trafford great Eric Cantona, however, said his old team should have gone for incoming Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola instead, saying he “loved” Mourinho but that his style of play is “not Manchester United”.

Retired Dutch international Ronald de Boer, who worked with Van Gaal at Ajax Amsterdam and with both men at Barcelona, said of Mourinho: “Sometimes it is not pretty but he knows how to grind out wins. That is what you get”.