Football - Ljajic suspended from

Serbian national team

Midfielder Adem Ljajic has been suspended from the Serbian national team for failing to sing the national anthem before a friendly against Spain, Serbia’s football association said yesterday. It said in a statement that Serbia’s new coach, Sinisa Mihajlovic, “sent Ljajic home” because he did not comply with his set of rules that stipulate players have to sing the anthem before all international matches. Ljajic, who is a Muslim unlike most of the players who are Christian Orthodox, did not sing the anthem “because of his personal reasons,” the statement said. “The coach had a meeting with Ljajic,” the statement said. “After getting the information that because of his personal reasons he did not sing the anthem, Sinisa Mihajlovic told the player to return home.” Serbia lost 2-0 to Spain in St. Gallen, Switzerland, on Saturday. Serbia, which did not qualify for the European Championship, is to play France in another friendly match later this week.

Football - Swansea close

to signing Gylfi Sigurdsson

Swansea is on the verge of signing Gylfi Sigurdsson from German team Hoffenheim on a permanent basis after agreeing a fee and personal terms for the Iceland midfielder. The Premier League club says Sigurdsson will move for a club-record £6.8 million if he passes a medical examination this week. The 22-year-old Sigurdsson spent the second half of last season on loan at the Welsh club and scored seven goals in 18 appearances. Swansea says "the club are delighted to have agreed terms with both player and club following Sigurdsson's hugely successful loan spell last season."

Football - Alex Morgan scores

twice as US girls beat China 4-1

Alex Morgan scored twice as the US women’s football team beat China 4-1 on Sunday in its second-to-last home friendly before leaving for the London Olympics. Abby Wambach added a goal, and the United States also scored on an own-goal in front of a capacity crowd of 18,573 fans at PPL Park. Zhang Rui scored for China. After China took the lead in the 22nd minute, Morgan equalized in the 34th and the US pulled ahead on the own-goal in the 36th. Morgan stuck again in the 50th, and Wambach capped the scoring in the 83rd.

Football - Mexico beat Wales

2-0 in friendly

Aldo de Nigris scored a goal late in each half as Mexico beat Wales 2-0 late on Sunday in an international friendly. De Nigris put Mexico ahead with a header, and the Monterrey striker sealed it in the 89th by converting a pass from Edgar Andrade. A crowd of over 35,000 saw Mexico open a three-match tour that includes games against Bosnia-Herzegovina in Chicago on Thursday and Brazil next Sunday in Arlington, Texas. Mexico will host Guyana in a World Cup qualifier on 8 June. Wales plays its first qualifier for the 2014 World Cup by hosting Belgium in September.

Triathlon - Jonathan Brownlee

keeps Madrid triathlon in family

Jonathan Brownlee of Britain won his second successive world series triathlon to keep the Madrid title in the family on Sunday. Brownlee, the winner in San Diego two weeks ago, made his break at the start of the run and won by 38 seconds. Alexander Bryukhankov led a Russian 2-3-4 finish, followed by Dmitry Polyanskiy and Ivan Vasiliev. Brownlee’s older brother Alistair won in Madrid in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Motor-racing - Franchitti wins

Indianapolis 500, his third 

Dario Franchitti won the Indianapolis 500 for the third time Sunday after Takuma Sato crashed on the final lap. The Japanese driver went for the lead going into the first turn, pulling even with Franchitti. But he went in too low, and the crash sent him into the outside wall. Sato’s car barely missed Franchitti, who coasted across the line under a yellow caution flag to become the 10th driver to win at least three Indy 500s. Franchitti’s teammate, Scott Dixon, finished second. Tony Kanaan, who had the lead off the last restart with six laps to go, settled for third on a blistering day at the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. The official race temperature was 91, one degree shy of the record set in 1937.

Rally - Rally car strikes Irish

crowd; two killed, seven wounded 

A race car went out of control on a rural Irish road and crashed into a crowd of about 30 spectators on Sunday, killing two people and seriously injuring seven, authorities said. Witnesses said the car crashed through a fence and into the onlookers before coming to rest on its side beside a home near Bailieborough, 50 miles northwest of Dublin. Police said two people - a 29-year-old woman from Cork, southwest Ireland, and a 50-year-old male photographer from the western city of Galway - were declared dead at the scene. Seven others, including the car’s driver and navigational co-driver, were hospitalised because of unspecified injuries. The accident highlighted the dangers posed to drivers and viewers alike by Ireland’s annual high-speed contests on hedge-lined, narrow country roads. At least four other people have been killed during races over the past decade as hundreds of miles of unmodified local roads are blocked off for use by souped-up rally cars.

Gymnastics - Russia finishes

Europeans with four more medals

Russia won four medals at the European gymnastics championships on Sunday, including golds on the high bar and still rings, to add to the silver medal it had already won in the team competition. Aleksandr Balandin won the title on the still rings while Emin Garibov took the high bar gold. Denis Ablyazin won bronzes on both vault and still rings. A day after winning its first European team title, Britain added to its medal haul with Louis Smith’s silver medal on the pommel horse. World champion Krisztian Berki of Hungary took the gold, finishing less than two-tenths of a point ahead of Smith, the reigning Olympic and world bronze medalist. Germany salvaged what had been a tough championships with Marcel Nguyen’s gold on the parallel bars.