Sport Briefs

EDINBURGH – Scottish officials are campaigning to have cycling’s premier event, the Tour de France, come to Scotland within the next few years.

The summer marathon on two-wheels staged a major success this year with huge crowds turning out to see the time-trial prologue in London followed by a first stage down to the Channel coast. And with cycling a boom sport north of the border, the National events agency Event-Scotland believes the time is ripe to lure the Tour.BEIJING – China’s domestic golf tour is to offer total prize money of more than one million dollars for the first time next season, organisers said yesterday.The China Tour will grow to 10 events in its fourth year, with purses totalling 1.1 million dollars, they said.Liang Wenchong, a three-time winner on the tour, proved its worth by becoming China’s first Asian Order of Merit winner this year.BEIJING – Injury-hit Chinese tennis star Li Na will re-launch her Olympic ambitions at two events in Australia next month, state media reported yesterday.China’s top-ranked women’s player, who has been sidelined since May, will play the Australian Women’s Hardcourts tournament and the Australian Open as she sets her sights on Olympic glory, the China Daily said.”I am more motivated now and I feel my desire for the Olympics is bigger than ever before,” the 26-year-old was quoted as saying.Li was 16th in the world last January, her best ever position and the highest by a Chinese player, but suffered a rib injury during a pre-Wimbledon warm-up event.BALTIMORE – Two-time all-star Brian Roberts, who was named in Major League Baseball’s investigation into steroids use by its players, admitted using steroids on Tuesday.The Baltimore Orioles second baseman broke his silence on the inclusion of his name in the Mitchell Report in an interview with the Baltimore Sun.”In 2003, when I took one shot of steroids, I immediately realised that was not what I stood for or anything I wanted to continue doing,” Roberts said.”I never used steroids, human growth hormone or any other performance-enhancing drugs prior to or since that single incident.”Nampa-Reuters-AFPAnd with cycling a boom sport north of the border, the National events agency Event-Scotland believes the time is ripe to lure the Tour.BEIJING – China’s domestic golf tour is to offer total prize money of more than one million dollars for the first time next season, organisers said yesterday.The China Tour will grow to 10 events in its fourth year, with purses totalling 1.1 million dollars, they said.Liang Wenchong, a three-time winner on the tour, proved its worth by becoming China’s first Asian Order of Merit winner this year.BEIJING – Injury-hit Chinese tennis star Li Na will re-launch her Olympic ambitions at two events in Australia next month, state media reported yesterday.China’s top-ranked women’s player, who has been sidelined since May, will play the Australian Women’s Hardcourts tournament and the Australian Open as she sets her sights on Olympic glory, the China Daily said.”I am more motivated now and I feel my desire for the Olympics is bigger than ever before,” the 26-year-old was quoted as saying.Li was 16th in the world last January, her best ever position and the highest by a Chinese player, but suffered a rib injury during a pre-Wimbledon warm-up event.BALTIMORE – Two-time all-star Brian Roberts, who was named in Major League Baseball’s investigation into steroids use by its players, admitted using steroids on Tuesday.The Baltimore Orioles second baseman broke his silence on the inclusion of his name in the Mitchell Report in an interview with the Baltimore Sun.”In 2003, when I took one shot of steroids, I immediately realised that was not what I stood for or anything I wanted to continue doing,” Roberts said.”I never used steroids, human growth hormone or any other performance-enhancing drugs prior to or since that single incident.”Nampa-Reuters-AFP