Driver back for Chinese showdown
Motor racing: Ralf Schumacher will make his Formula One comeback at the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix next week. The Williams driver has missed the past six races after crashing into a concrete wall in the US Grand Prix in June. The German suffered two spinal fractures.
“It’s good to be back in the car again,” Schumacher, 29, said after testing at Silverstone this week. “I didn’t experience any pain in my back at all and I felt OK physically thanks to the training I’d done over the past couple of months.”
Gillings peaks
Advertisement
Snowboarding: Zoe Gillings, from the Isle of Man, will represent Great Britain at snowboardcross — a downhill race in which competitors jump obstacles — at the Winter Olympics in Turin in 2006, after winning the first World Cup event of the season in Chile.
Hopkins fastest
Motorcycling: John Hopkins set the fastest time in the first qualifying session for tomorrow’s MotoGP Japanese Grand Prix in Motegi. The American is riding for his future and beat Valentino Rossi, the world champion from Italy, who was second fastest.
Parke comeback
Squash: Simon Parke fought back from a game down in his qualifying final against Paul Price, of Australia, to claim a place in the main draw of the US Open in Boston. The Yorkshireman won 9-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-7. Peter Barker, the world No 36 from Essex, also qualified.
Advertisement
Petacchi victory
Cycling: Alessandro Petacchi, the Italian rider for the Fassa Bortolo team, won the 172km thirteenth stage of the Tour of Spain from El Ejido to Málaga yesterday. Roberto Heras, of Spain, kept the overall lead but Petacchi won his fourth stage.
Rusedski through
Tennis: Greg Rusedski beat Matias Boeker, a qualifier from the United States, 6-3, 6-4 in the second round of the ATP Millennium International at Delray Beach, Florida, yesterday.
Advertisement
He will play Jeff Salzenstein, another American, in the quarter-final.