Sports

AMMAN — Jordan’s Orthodoxi came in third as the 3rd West Asian Women’s Basketball Champions Cup ended in Amman over the weekend. Lebanon’s Riyadi won the title after beating their closest rival Syria’s Wihda 74-58.

Wihda came in second after they beat the hosts 81-52 on the final day of the event. The Syrian team clearly set the pace of the match leading 31-18 at halftime.

Wihda’s Elissa Magarian led her team with 25 points and was chosen the tournament’s best player and top scorer, averaging 24 points per game. Orthodoxi had lost to Riyadi 69-44 and settled for third place after beating compatriots Fuheis 48-42.

Palestine’s Sarriet Ramallah finished fifth. In regional events last year, Orthodoxi finished 4th at the 16th Arab Clubs Basketball Championship for Women in Egypt when Lebanon’s Riyadi retained the title.

AMMAN — The 9th edition of the Women’s Football League kicks off Friday with only four teams, including seven-time League champs Shabab Urdun and Amman Club, who only won once, in addition to Orthodox and Istiqlal. 

The last-placed team will be relegated as the competition will be cut short and played in a two-leg format to allow the regrouping of the national team for Asian and Olympic qualifiers.

Players only recently rejoined their teams after they played Asian qualifiers, causing team coaches and officials to express dissatisfaction as they noted their teams regrouped too late with national team players on duty up to last month.

The women’s national team went up two spots to 54th in the latest FIFA World Rankings. The team is leading Arab teams and 11th in the Asian continent. The latest ranking comes after the squad topped Asian Group A qualifiers and reached Round 2 of the qualifiers — the first phase of the qualifying journey to the 2016 Summer Olympics football tournament.

Jordan beat Uzbekistan 2-0, Hong Kong 1-0 and Palestine 6-0. Group leaders will join Vietnam and Thailand in Round 2, from which the top team will move to Round 3 to play the top-five seeded teams — Japan, Australia, South Korea, North Korea and China — which eventually qualifies the top two to represent Asia at the Olympic Games.

It is Jordan’s second time in the qualifiers after the 2012 London Olympic qualifiers when they advanced to
Round 2. 

Team officials hope the squad will make up for a disappointing 2014 season when the senior women’s team exited Round 1 of the 2014 Asian Games and similarly exited the Round 1 of their first AFC 2014 Women’s Asian Cup where they were also the only Arab team to have ever qualified. The squad is reigning West Asian champs after winning the title with Iran, Lebanon and the UAE missing the event last year.

In age divisions, the U-19 team last year failed to repeat their 2007 qualification to the AFC U-19 Women’s Championship which eventually qualifies the top three teams to the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. The U-16 team also failed to qualify to the 2015 AFC U-16 Women’s Championship after qualifying in 2013. 

Jordanian women’s football team has progressively made its mark in the continent. In 2006, Jordan was the first Arab team to qualify to the 2007 AFC U-19 Women’s Championship finals.

BERLIN — Great rivals Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich clash with even more pride at stake than usual on Saturday after vastly contrasting seasons.

Boasting a 10-point lead with only eight games remaining, Bayern are all but assured of their third successive title after slipping to just two defeats since August.

Dortmund, back-to-back champions in 2011 and 2012, have been preoccupied with their fight against relegation after making their worst ever start to the Bundesliga. Juergen Klopp’s side was bottom in February, but has carved out eight points of breathing space after seven league games unbeaten.

Bayern’s main rival for the past three seasons, Dortmund now find themselves 31 points behind the league leader.

Here are some things to know about “der Klassiker” and the rest of the Bundesliga’s 27th round:

Still eyeing prizes

Only pride at stake? Not quite. A win at home over Bayern would rekindle Dortmund’s hopes of salvaging European qualification from what has been a disastrous season thus far.

“We have to win on Saturday if we want to reach the Europa League,” Dortmund forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang said. Dortmund are five points off sixth-place Augsburg in the last qualification spot.

French-born Gabon attacker Aubameyang has become one of Dortmund’s most important offensive weapons, scoring 12 league goals and setting up five more already in his second season. He scored 13 in his first. 

Bayern problems 

Bayern will be keen to make amends for losing 2-0 at home to Borussia Moenchengladbach before the league’s break for international games.

Pep Guardiola’s side looked short on ideas against ‘Gladbach, were fortunate not to lose by more, and now have further injury concerns following David Alaba’s left knee injury.

Bayern say the reliable left back tore a ligament while on duty for Austria and will miss around seven weeks. Alaba will likely miss the rest of the season.

Arjen Robben is also out for several weeks after suffering a stomach muscle injury against ‘Gladbach. The Dutch star had just returned from a pinched nerve in his back.

Holger Badstuber (hip) and Franck Ribery (ankle) are also doubtful for Saturday. 

Hamburg’s survival fight 

Hamburger SV’s sports director Peter Knaebel faces a tough debut as interim coach when he takes his relegation-threatened side to Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.

Knaebel took over March 22 from Joe Zinnbauer, the second coach Hamburg has sacked this season after he replaced Mirko Slomka in September.

German media suggests Hamburg — the only founding member of the Bundesliga to have played every season — are keen on hiring former Mainz coach Thomas Tuchel for next season, but first Knaebel will have to avert the club’s first ever relegation.

Hamburg, which haven’t scored in three games, are two points off the bottom in the relegation play-off place.

Stuttgart and strengths

Bottom side Stuttgart breathed life into their hopes of avoiding the drop with a 3-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt before the break and are now looking at causing a major upset at second-place Wolfsburg on Saturday.

“We have to believe in our strengths,” Stuttgart coach Huub Stevens said. “Of course it’s cheeky to say that when you’re bottom, but we’ve shown good phases in certain games. That gives confidence.”

Wolfsburg are also confident after an impressive season in which they have beaten Bayern and Inter Milan.

“In 14 competitive games since the winter break we’ve only had one defeat. That’s strong,” Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking said. 

Bremen’s Selke sale 

A five-game winning run lifted Werder Bremen away from the bottom of the table but assistant coach Thorsten Frings believes the danger is still there despite a nine-point advantage over Hamburg.

Of more immediate concern to Bremen fans ahead of Saturday’s home game against Mainz is the surprise decision to sell highly rated German youth international Davie Selke to ambitious second-division side RasenBallsport Leipzig for next season.

The deal, announced April Fools’ Day, was the best for all sides, said Bremen general manager Thomas Eichin.

The 20-year-old Selke, who has six goals in 26 league games for Bremen, had only extended his contract with the club to 2018 in September.

AMMAN — The 22nd annual run of the International Dead Sea Ultra Marathon “Porto Dead Sea Ultra Marathon” kicks off on Friday with the participation of more than 7,000 runners representing various countries around the world.

The event is organised by Run Jordan, the sole entity dedicated to bringing together different marathon events and races under one umbrella.

According to Lina Kurd, Run Jordan deputy general manager, the marathon will be a special event.

“We are really excited this year since we have lots of new preparations which will result in us having a more professional event with high standards. We are working hand in hand with our strategic partner, the Greater Amman Municipality, to make sure that all the necessary arrangements have been made,” she said.

“This year being the 22nd edition of the Dead Sea Ultra Marathon, we have gathered the past years’ experience to organise an excellent event that provides a shining example on promoting positive lifestyles and a healthy Jordanian society. In addition many runners representing various countries such as Germany, Korea, the US and France will be taking part in the event as the marathon plays a big role in promoting Jordan as a touristic country with sport and healthy lifestyle ambitions,” she added.

According to Kurd, the marathon is a family event.

“There is nothing better than having the whole family participating in one exciting event and this is what Run Jordan provides in all its activates, and as we call it the 3Fs: Friendly, Family and Fun,” she said. 

The marathon consists of three events: Ultra Marathon, Half Marathon and the 10k Fun Run. Registered participants will embark on the 50km journey starting at 6am from the 1st traffic light after 8th Circle, towards Airport Road in front of Total Gas Station; while the half marathon runners will start their 21km run at 7am 3km after the zero point towards the Amman tourist beach near the central vegetable market.

The 10km Fun Run will start the race 2km after the Baptism Site/Dead Sea curve at 10am. Moreover, the 10km wheel chairs and visually impaired race begins 2km after the Baptism Site/Dead Sea curve at 9:50am. All Races end at 1pm with the last whistle to announce the end of the allowed running period.

“For many years the marathon was linked with charity work especially with the Society for Care of Neurological Patients and we are proud to be part of this drive,” Kurd said.

AMMAN — After a near month-long break, Jordan’s top football teams resume matches in the 63rd Jordan Professional League starting Thursday.

Wihdat still lead with three points, followed closely by Ramtha while Jazira are third. Former Jordan Cup champs That Ras are fourth while Faisali still trail at the lower end of the standings for the first time ever since the League kicked off in 1944. Baqaa, a usual top five finisher, is now 9th after only three wins while former champs Shabab Urdun have also disappointed fans and are 10th.

Ramtha’s Rakan Khalidi, whose injury forced him to miss many League matches, leads the scorers with eight goals while Wihdat’s Mahmoud Zaatara has seven.

The League’s long recess was forced by the agendas of the U-23 and senior national teams as well Wihdat and Jazira’s Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup matches. Many observers criticised the much affected schedule noting it adversely affects teams, player preparedness and strains club budgets further more.

The resumption of the League was prompted by the postponement of the U-23 qualifiers for the second time the Jordan Football Association (JFA) to announce the agenda for Weeks 16 and 17 until the AFC sets a new date and venue. 

“We hope clubs will understand the association’s situation. We tried our best to be fair to the local agenda while giving the U-23 squad all means to be ready for the qualifiers,” JFA Secretary General Fadi Zureiqat told the media after announcing the League’s resumption. 

“The U-23 team has a set agenda and just concluded their training camps. The delay affects them more than anyone else,” Zureiqat said, adding that the qualifiers might be held in mid-April but there was no formal confirmation yet.

In preparation for the U-23 Group B qualifiers against Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kuwait, the team was in high competitive mode after concluding two training camps — beating Bahrain 2-1 and Bseiteen Club 1-0. They also had a training camp in the UAE, where they lost to Iraq 2-1 after they beat North Korea 3-1 and held them 2-2. 

On the other hand, the senior men’s team played two friendlies in the past week, losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia and 1-0 to Syria. The results of the two friendlies were vital in deciding the team’s position among Asian teams ahead of the draw for qualifiers for the 2019 Asian Cup, with the qualifying process doubling as part of the qualification for the 2018 World Cup.

AMMAN — Drivers are eager to take on the first round of the National Rally Championship for the 2015 season that kicks off on Friday with the participation of 13 drivers from Jordan and Lebanon.

The event organised by Jordan Motorsport is the first of five rallies to be held this season.

According to Jordan Motorsport CEO Othman Nasif, the first National Rally is always a challenge.

“The rally, which will be held on tarmac, opens the door for many drivers who installed modest fittings to their cars while taking into consideration safety issues and measurements. The rally present an excellent opportunity for paricipants to rub shoulders with professional drivers,” he said.

“We have listened to drivers and worked on making the move from gravel to tarmac possible. It worked successfully and that is why we have decided to organise two tarmac events this year,” he added.

The rally, according to Nasif, will not be an easy task.

“Drivers will have to cover a total distance of 221.47km with seven special stages [72.07km] taking them to Zara, Mujib and Balata and ending at the Dead Sea area,” he said.

Last year, Lebanon’s Roger Feghali was crowned champion of the first round of the National Rally Championship after clocking 59m37s, followed by Jordan’s veteran driver Marouf Abu Samra (1h01m07s) and Husam Salem (1h05m54s).

Feghali, who won the first round of the Lebanese Rally Championship, will head the Lebanese delegation aiming for a win in Jordan while the Kingdom’s drivers will be headed by four-time rally champion Abu Samra and his co-driver Nicola Fanous in their Skoda. The team is aiming high this season and are looking for a permanent place at the podium.

Lebanon’s Patrick Najm will also create a challenge for Abu Samra, Jordan’s Khaled Juma, Yazan Qatan and the rest of the Jordanian drivers.

Other driver’s taking part are Asem Aref and co-driver Ramzi Mansor, Suhail Abu Rous and co-driver Omar Mousa, Ayman Shishani and co-driver Moath Arja, Basheer Azar and co-driver Mohammad Azarbeh, Raed Habaybeh and co-driver Marena Habaybeh, Ihab Shurafa and co-driver Rakan Khair, Amjad Sheikh and co-driver Abdullah Ibdah, and Fares Tell and co-driver Amar Qaisi.

Lebanese drivers are taking part in the event after the FIA, the governing body of motor sports worldwide, decision to divide the Middle East Rally Championship into zones.

The first zone consists of Lebanon, Syria, Cyprus and Jordan while the second consists of Dubai, Qatar and Oman.

GENEVA — Europe’s top clubs have agreed to a new deal with UEFA which gives them more money and a bigger say in how European football is run.

The European Club Association (ECA) said Tuesday it renewed a working accord through May 2022 which guarantees clubs at least 200 million euros ($214 million) from UEFA’s Euro 2020 income. The current deal is for a flat fee of 150 million euros ($161 million) for the 2016 European Championship.

The new deal tops the $209 million that FIFA agreed to with the ECA two weeks ago to share among clubs worldwide from each of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

Including other considerations, UEFA is likely to give even more than the promised $214 million euros in 2020.

“Clubs will receive 8 per cent of income from broadcast, commercial and ticketing [and] hospitality [for Euro 2020],” the ECA and UEFA said in a statement.

UEFA will also give the 214-member ECA two seats on its policy-making executive committee.

“These achievements are an extraordinary success,” said ECA chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who is likely to take one of the executive committee places.

Rummenigge, the Bayern Munich chairman, said the new accord “will strengthen the solidarity among the clubs and our sense of responsibility for football”.

UEFA President Michel Platini said in a statement that Rummenigge “has been a pleasure to work with”.

The deal, announced at the clubs’ assembly in Stockholm, also confirmed increased revenue of 2.24 billion euros ($2.4 billion) for the Champions League and Europa League combined over the next three seasons.

The 32 Champions League group-stage clubs will share 1.2 billion euros ($1.29 billion) each season, up from 957 million euros ($1.03 billion) this season. Each is guaranteed a 12 million euro ($12.9 million) entry payment instead of 8.6 million euros ($9.2 million).

Key to the deal was making the second-tier Europa League more lucrative and giving bigger shares to teams eliminated in the qualifying rounds.

The 48 clubs in the Europa League groups next season will share 381 million euros ($409 million) and be guaranteed 2.4 million euros ($2.58 million). This season, the figures are 232 million euros ($249 million) and 1.3 million euros ($1.4 million).

The ECA was created in 2008 in a peace deal between UEFA and FIFA and top clubs. The governing bodies gave official recognition and a share of major tournament revenues, and clubs dropped legal actions relating to players injured on national team duty and threats to form a breakaway European league.

MEMPHIS, Tennessee — Mike Conley scored 18 points and Jeff Green had 16 as Memphis Grizzlies ended a three-game losing streak and moved back into the second spot in the Western Conference play-off race with a 97-83 win over Sacramento Kings on Tuesday.

Grizzlies are now a half-game ahead of the Houston Rockets, who lost 99-96 at Toronto.

Zach Randolph scored 15 points for Memphis, and Marc Gasol had eight points and 11 rebounds. Kosta Koufos grabbed a season-high 12 boards as Grizzlies outrebounded the Kings 45-41.

In Toronto, DeMar DeRozan scored a career-high 42 points and tied his career best with 11 rebounds as Raptors earned their eighth straight home victory over Rockets.

Jonas Valanciunas scored 15 points for Toronto, and Lou Williams had 13.

James Harden scored 31 for Rockets, who had won four in a row. Houston has not won in Canada since March 2007.

In other games, Boston beat Charlotte 116-104 to move back into the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, Portland secured a playoff berth with a 109-86 win over Phoenix, and East-leading Atlanta maintained its rhythm heading into the playoffs with a 101-88 win over Milwaukee.

Boston’s Avery Bradley had 30 points and eight rebounds and Evan Turner scored 15 points as Celtics won for the 10th time in the last 16 games.

Celtics are now a few percentage points ahead of Brooklyn in the battle for the East’s final playoff spot.

Charlotte’s playoff hopes have dimmed after dropping four of its last five games.

In Portland, Oregon, Damian Lillard scored 19 points for Blazers, who have won four straight to edge closer to their first Northwest Division title since 2008-09.

LaMarcus Aldridge added 17 points and seven rebounds, and Portland led by as many as 31 points. Blazers rested their starters in the fourth quarter after building a 92-65 lead.

Atlanta has already clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference but is trying to maintain its playing edge while staying healthy for the final two weeks of the regular season.

DeMarre Carroll scored 23 points to help Atlanta improve to 56-18, one win away from tying the team record.

Elsewhere, Jordan Clarkson made the tiebreaking basket with 0.7 seconds left in overtime, lifting Los Angeles Lakers past Philadelphia 113-111 in a matchup of two of the NBA’s worst teams.

Utah’s Gordon Hayward scored 22 points as Jazz topped Minnesota 104-84.

LONDON — Manchester United defender Chris Smalling hailed manager Louis van Gaal as the reason behind his upturn in form and believes he is now playing the best football of his career.

Smalling has struggled for consistency since joining United from Fulham in 2010 but the 25-year-old has flourished under Van Gaal this season, making 22 Premier League appearances.

Smalling, part of England’s squad to travel to Turin to play Italy in a friendly on Tuesday, gave an assured performance alongside Phil Jones in United’s 3-0 win over Liverpool last weekend and is now targeting a successful end to the season.

SEPANG, Malaysia — An ebullient Sebastian Vettel spoke at length about the importance of his first win for Ferrari when addressing reporters after his Malaysian Grand Prix triumph on Sunday, yet his beaming smile pretty much said it all.

He was back, Ferrari were back and most importantly, Formula One was back.

Vettel upset the odds with a stunning drive at Sepang, overhauling pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes thanks to Ferrari’s ability to get the best out of the faster medium-compound tyres in Malaysia’s sweltering heat.

The team tactics were also superb, opting to keep the four-time world champion out on track during an early safety car period as rivals dived into the pits for new tyres, and he rode the advantage all the way to the chequered flag.

Not only had the German and Ferrari claimed their first victories since 2013 but, by finally finding a way to beat the dominant Mercedes “fair and square” as he put it, the series can now hope for a proper title race.

The 2015 season is only two races old, yet before Malaysia Formula One was awash with negative storylines and feared Mercedes could win everything at a canter.

Red Bull’s Christian Horner, principal of Vettel’s once-dominant but now troubled former team, had suggested Mercedes needed to be reined in by the authorities to level things out.

Vettel’s own German Grand Prix had been axed due to a lack of finances and the confusion surrounding Fernando Alonso’s winter testing crash and withdrawal from the Melbourne opener all added to the negative tone.

A Ferrari victory was the shot in the arm that the sport needed. As Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg said on the podium at Sepang: “All I can say now, on behalf of our team is: Game on, Ferrari.”

Vettel, following in the footsteps of seven-times champion compatriot Michael Schumacher, fulfilled a dream when he joined Ferrari at the end of last season but there remains plenty of work to do.

The Italian outfit, rebuilt after failing to win a race in a season for the first time since 1993, have no illusions about that even if Mercedes felt they had received a ‘wake-up call’.

“Since I joined Ferrari I felt incredibly welcome and together we have worked to improve things. The potential, as I always said, is huge, it’s good to see what a step forward we did over the winter,” Vettel said.

“This is a special day, it has been a while since both I and team won for the last time.

“I’d like to be in the same position at every race but we must be realistic, Mercedes struggled today but have a great package and our target is to make the gap smaller at every Grand Prix and make sure that we are the team right behind them.”

Mercedes, who had romped to a one-two finish in Australia, recognised the danger Ferrari posed following the first practice session in Malaysia and were taking the threat seriously.

“We were not expecting them to be as quick as they were. Vettel is up there with us,” said world champion Lewis Hamilton, runner-up on Sunday.

“Ferrari and Sebastian were the best today so they are a title contender — both Ferrari drivers,” added third-placed Rosberg.

Vettel’s teammate Kimi Raikkonen was perhaps the unluckiest driver of the weekend, yet the Finn overcame a qualifying setback and early puncture in the race to finish fourth.

The next Grand Prix is in Shanghai on April 12 and the cooler conditions are likely to put Mercedes back in command.

But Malaysia left no doubt that Ferrari are back in business.