Balance is the dominant note of the Unirea Urziceni vs. Rapid Bucharest derby that will take place on Saturday at 10 PM on leg two of League I Bergenbier. Four of the eight head-to-head games that the two teams played ended in a draw and each team won two games. The balance sheet is symmetric, with each team winning a game both at home and away. Their latest game, played at Urziceni, was won by the home side, score 1-0. Rapid has not defeated Unirea in the last two seasons, its last victory dating back to April 23, 2008 (1-0 in an away game). Unirea comes after two goalless draws – one against Pandurii in League I and one against Zenit in the Champions League qualifiers – and could suffer from fatigue on Saturday. Universitatea Craiova has not defeated Steaua in a very long time. The team’s last home-side victory dates back to 2002. The last away game that Universitatea won against Steaua dates back to 1989 (2-1). Dinamo vs. Sportul is another traditional derby, set to reach its 61st...

Three Romanian tennis players – Madalina Gojnea, Monica Niculescu (top seed 4) and Cristina Andreea Mitu – have qualified on Wednesday for the last-16 stage of the Ruxandra Dragomir Open, an ITF tournament with prizes worth USD 75,000. The tournament is taking place within Bucharest’s National Tennis Centre. Gojnea easily defeated Elena Bogdan, score 6-0, 6-0. Monica Niculescu eventually defeated Ana Bogdan, score 7-5, 7-5, and Cristina Andreea Mitu defeated Silvia Soler-Espinosa, score 6-4, 6-4. Irina Begu lost to Laura Thorpe and Diana Enache to Zuzana Kucova. Spain’s Eva Fernandez-Brugues delivered the surprise of the day by eliminating top seed Lucie Hradecka, score 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. In the last-16 stage Gojnea will play against Czech Republic’s Zuzana Ondraskova, Niculescu will go against Beatriz Garcia-Vidagany and Mitu will face Maria...

Nicoleta Grasu wins silver at EC

Romanian athlete Nicoleta Grasu has won the silver medal in the discus throw event at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona with a 63.48-metre throw. Grasu chalked up a 63.48-metre throw on her first try. Her second and third throws landed at 61.02 metres and 63.07 metres respectively. Croatia’s Sandra Perkovici won the event with a 64.67-metre throw. Poland’s Joanna Wisniewska was third with 62.37 metres. Grasu, 38, hoped to win the first gold medal in her career. Her record includes two bronze medals won at European Championships in 1998 and 2006 as well as a silver medal (2001) and three bronze medals (1999, 2007 and 2009) won at the World Championships.

Tecau/Lindstedt qualify for L.A. quarterfinals

Horia Tecau (Romania) and Robert Lindstedt (Sweden), the top seed 2 pair, qualified on Wednesday for the quarterfinals of the doubles event at the Los Angeles tournament, a tournament with total...

Ahead of its game against Romania, a game scheduled on Friday in Piatra Neamt and counting for the EURO qualifiers, Albania’s sports press published several statements made by Albanian players that want to take advantage of the bad period Romania is going through in order to deliver the big surprise.

“There is a good atmosphere within the team and I am convinced that we will give everything on the pitch and we will be able to deliver the big surprise at Piatra Neamt,” Andi Lila (SK Tirana) stated for ‘Albania Sport,’ being quoted by Mediafax. “We have to focus only on our issues, not on those of our opponents. We know that Chivu, one of the world’s biggest players, will not play, but one player does not make a whole team. We want to play as best we can against Romania and we hope we will return with a positive result,” striker Hamdi Salihi (Rapid Vienna) stated. Meanwhile, Romania head coach Razvan Lucescu’s problems continue. He was forced to urgently summon Rapid’s Marius...

NEW YORK - Rafa Nadal made a smooth start to his bid to capture the one grand slam that has eluded him when he wore down Russia’s Teymuraz Gabashvili 7-6 7-6 6-3 in the first round of the U.S. Open on Tuesday.

Dressed menacingly in an all black outfit, Nadal had to dig deep to see off the stubborn Gabashvili after three hours of intense shotmaking from both men at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Neither player dropped serve in the opening two sets but Nadal’s superior big-match experience came through when it mattered and he won both tiebreakers before Gabashvili finally cracked in the third set. “I prefer to play one hour and 10 minutes,” Nadal said. “Everybody wants to win easier. “(When) you play against (lower-ranked) players they don’t have much to lose, so they play aggressive. I had a difficult match, but I think I did play well.” Nadal’s straight sets win capped another dramatic day when most of the results went according to the script but not before some brutal...

All but two of FC Vaslui’s players boycotted the team’s morning training session on Wednesday, under the pretext that club owner Adrian Porumboiu gave them several days of holiday. Porumboiu is displeased with head coach Juan Ramon Lopez Caro’s performance, the team being 14th in the standings with only 5 points in 6 games, but hesitates sacking him. FC Vaslui finished last season on a prestigious 3rd place. “Let it be clear, contrary to all rumours I have not given up coaching the team. I am not giving up and I want to be allowed to do my job,” Caro stated for Mediafax.

On the other hand, Unirea Urziceni, the team that won the title two years ago and 8 points in the Champions League groups’ stage, is rudderless. Club owner Dumitru Bucsaru signed on Tuesday what is basically the team’s death certificate, allowing all players to leave the team free of contract. Invoking financial difficulties, Bucsaru would have liked to pull the team out of League I, but in that case he...

NEW YORK - Roger Federer served notice he was still a powerhouse at the U.S. Open and punctuated his performance with another sensational shot for the ages in a first-round rout over Argentine Brian Dabul on Monday.

Federer, whose run of five successive U.S. titles was snapped last year in a five-set final against Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro, closed the opening day’s action with a 6-1 6-4 6-2 victory on Arthur Ashe center court.

The Swiss maestro turned master showman when he reprised the between-the-legs winner he hit last year in the semi-finals against Serbia’s Novak Djokovic with an equally spectacular between-the-legs winner that left Dabul stunned on the other side of the net late in the second set. “I’ve only hit a few in my life and two on center court in night session play here in New York,” the second-seeded Federer said in an on-court interview. “It’s amazing to share this moment with you guys. Thanks for the ovation and I love it.” Federer blasted 18...

ANKARA – Leandro Barbosa’s potential game-tying lay-up caught the rim but didn’t go down as the USA survived to beat Brazil 70-68 in a memorable game at Abdi Ipekci Arena on Monday, fiba.com informs.

Marcelo Huertas was fouled in the final seconds, but his first free-throw was short. He missed the second one intentionally and chased the ball down before passing to Barbosa under the basket who shot it high off the backboard and saw his effort hit the rim only to stay out. The USA did enough to maintain a perfect record (3-0) as they barely passed their first real test at the 2010 FIBA World Championship.

In Kayseri, Serbia improved to 2-1 by crushing Jordan 112-69 as team captain Milos Teodosic returned to the line-up and made his presence felt right away, helping his team take a 33-20 first quarter lead to never look back.

Back in Istanbul, Slovenia used a strong second half and some balanced scoring to overcome an early eight-point deficit and see off...

Hagi and Popescu to play again in charity game

The ‘Teodora Georgescu’ foundation is organising on Wednesday evening on Dinamo stadium a charity game between a team made up of Romanian football legends (including Hagi, Gica Popescu, Andone and Adrian Ilie) and a team made up of artists. The funds collected will be donated to the Bucharest-based ‘Marie Curie’ Pediatric Hospital. “When we’re talking about children we should all show sensitivity. Especially when talking about children with problems. We are here to bring into the limelight three important state sectors: health, culture and education. Society, Romania’s future, means investing in children,” Gheorghe Hagi stated before the game. Among others, the artists’ team will include Serban Huidu, Mihai Gainusa, Emil Gradinescu, Robert Turcescu and Virgil Iantu. The team’s goalkeeper will be former Romanian international Florin Prunea.

League I: Victoria Branesti 1 – Astra Ploiesti 1

Victoria...

Romania defeated Spain (world runner-up) on Monday, score 11-10, in its second Group A game at the European Water Polo Championship in Zagreb, Croatia. It was a resounding success against one of the strongest teams in the world. Romania defeat Turkey in its first group game, score 12-6.

Spain had defeated Romania at the World Cup in Oradea, score 14-8.

Things were different on Monday when Romania won a fairly balanced game. By defeating Spain (2-1, 3-2, 3-5, 3-2) Romania chalked up its second win at the European Championships in Croatia. This was Spain’s second defeat in the tournament after previously losing to Italy, score 6-7.

“We lost the last two games against Spain but today (Monday – editor’s note) things were different. We were far more focused and we were also lucky. We won both of our group games but we still have a lot of work to do,” Ladislav Balanov, Romania’s assistant coach, stated for the tournament’s official website.

Romania...

Steaua Bucharest drew against FC Timisoara at home on Sunday evening but the result was enough to put Steaua at the top of the League I standings for the first time in well over two years. Ilie Dumitrescu’s players did well in the first half, having numerous opportunities, but opened the score 8 minutes after the start of the second half. Bogdan Stancu executed a free kick, his shot shook the post and Pacuraru pounced on the rebound from outside the box, his long-range effort finding the net. After scoring Steaua’s players showed signs of fatigue, with Timisoara starting to have important opportunities. Cosmin Contra equalised in the 80th minute. The fullback took advantage of Steaua goalkeeper Tatarusanu’s erroneous placement on the goal line and scored from a free kick. “It was a veritable game. Both teams had very difficult games in the European Cups. We came back into the game towards the end, it’s a pity we didn’t play like that from the start,” FC Timisoara head coach Vladimir...

Turkey stayed undefeated on Day 2 of the 2010 FIBA World Championship by beating Russia 65-56. In front of a 10,000 strong crowd packed in Ankara Arena – including Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan – Bogdan Tanjevic’s side suffocated Russia defensively and got a huge boost from Hedo Turkoglu, who broke out of a shooting slump to hit key baskets down the stretch to stay atop Group C. In Kayseri, Germany caused quite a surprise as they outlasted Serbia 82-81 in a thrilling encounter that went into double overtime. Serb Aleksandar Radic hit two three-pointers in the closing seconds of regulation to force the first extra session and Kosta Perovic’s free-throw with just over a minute left in the first additional period was enough to force the second one. Germany’s Jan Jagla made an unbelievable off balance three-pointer and Dirk Bauermann’s men held on to win by the slimmest of...

Tour of Spain leader Mark Cavendish, battling with bouts of sickness, suffered a surprise defeat in Sunday’s sprint finish in Marbella when he was beaten by Yauheni Hutarovich of Belarus. Widely rated the best sprinter in the world, Cavendish retained the race leader’s red jersey but was unable to stop the FDJ rider claiming the stage by half a wheel. American Tyler Farrar was third. Hutarovich’s victory came on a day of intense heat, with temperatures peaking in the mid-thirties Celsius as the riders made their way over the exposed high sierras of Ronda in southern Andalusia. The Tour of Spain ends on September 19 in...

Contra summoned to national team

Romania’s Cosmin Contra (34), a veteran player that had announced his retirement after the Sunday’s game against Steaua Bucharest, was summoned at the national football team for its Euro 2012 preliminary games against Albania and Belarus. Contra will replace fullback Cristian Sapunaru who is injured. Contra has 72 caps and has scored 7 goals for the national team. Lucescu has also summoned Mihai Roman (Rapid) who will replace midfielder Cristian Tanase (Steaua) who is injured. Romania will play against Albania on September 3 at 9 PM in Piatra Neamt and against Belarus on September 7 at 8.30 PM in Minsk.

Women’s handball: Oltchim wins Sika Cup

Oltchim Ramnicu Valcea won the Sika Cup tournament in Bad Urach, Germany, after defeating Russia’s Zvezda Zvenigorod in the final, score 23-19 (11-11 at half time). Romania’s goals were scored by Neague (6), Ozel (5), Puscasu-Curea (4), Stanca (3), Maier-Farcau (2),...

At the end of last week Steaua Bucharest spectacularly qualified for the Europa League groups’ stage by winning its away game against Switzerland’s Grasshopper Zurich (0-1 after 90 minutes, 4-3 after penalty kicks). Steaua won the first leg too, score 1-0. Steaua goalkeeper Ciprian Tatarusanu parried two penalty kicks, many observers comparing him with Steaua legend Helmuth Dukadam, the goalkeeper that parried all penalty kicks in the Champions Cup final that Steaua won against FC Sevilla in 1986. Moreover, Razvan Lucescu, head coach of the national football team, announced after the game that he will include Tatarusanu in the team’s extended lineup.

The day after its win Steaua found out its group opponents following the draws that took place in Monte Carlo. Gigi Becali’s team will be part of Group K where it will face three formidable teams – Liverpool, Napoli and FC Utrecht.

Steaua head coach Ilie Dumitrescu expressed his satisfaction with the result of the...

Dinamo Bucharest is increasingly surprising with each passing leg. After spectacularly winning its away game against Targu Mures last leg, this Saturday Dinamo surprisingly lost at home against newly-promoted Universitatea Cluj, score 3-4. U Cluj, a team that uses a large group of former Dinamo players, defeated Dinamo after a 30-year break, three of its goals being scored by former Dinamo players – Claudiu Niculescu (double) and Valentin Lemnaru. At the end of the game Niculescu applauded with tears in his eyes the Dinamo fans that kept chanting his name for minutes on end. Dinamo head coach Ioan Andone took full responsibility for the failure but harshly criticised the team’s defence. “The head coach is always guilty for this kind of games. I am guilty for not making the players understand that you have to focus a lot at home after scoring six goals in an away game. The errors were childish. I don’t know what other solution to come up with in the defence,” Andone said. In another...

Kayak-canoe: 6 Gold medals for Romanian students in Poznan

Romania has won 6 gold medals, 2 silver medals and 1 bronze medal at the World University Sprint Championships in Poznan, Poland last week end. In the first 1,000-metre finals that took place on Saturday, C2 and C4 teams won Gold, while K4 team won Silver. World and European champions Silviu Dumitrescu and Victor Mihalachi won the C2 race in 3 minutes, 38 seconds and 74 thousands of a second. Florin Simion, Nicolae Bogdan, Florin Comanici and Gabriel Gheoaca won the C4 race in 3 minutes, 19 seconds and 239 thousands of a second.

Tennis: Tecau wins in New Haven

Romanian tennis player Horia Tecau and Sweden’s Robert Lindstedt have won the doubles event at the New Haven tournament in Connecticut, a tournament with total prizes worth USD 663,750, after defeating India’s Rohan Bopanna and Pakistan’s Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi in the final, score 6-4, 7-5. Tecau will receive USD 18,250 and 250...

MONACO - Inter Milan playmaker Wesley Sneijder and Atletico Madrid striker Diego Forlan can strengthen their cases to be World Player of the Year with more stellar performances in Friday’s European Super Cup.

Sneijder was inspirational in Inter’s Champions League, Serie A and Italian Cup treble last term before helping the Netherlands to the final of the World Cup, where Uruguay’s Forlan was named Player of the Tournament.

The winner of the new combined FIFA Golden Ball award for 2010 will be announced in January and both players are in the running despite their modesty.

“At the moment I’m not thinking about what I can win, just the match with Atletico,” Sneijder told Inter’s TV channel. “Personal awards are great but you can’t win them without having a solid team at your back.”

Ominously for Inter and then La Liga, Forlan is fired up for the new season despite his exertions in leading Uruguay to the semi-finals in South Africa. “After my holiday I...

BERNE - Peter Crouch struck a hat-trick to help Tottenham Hotspur complete a great comeback against Young Boys and reach the Champions League for the first time while Luis Suarez led Ajax Amsterdam back to the elite in a 2-1 win over Dynamo Kiev.

Tottenham’s 4-0 win at White Hart Lane on Wednesday took them through 6-3 on aggregate — a prospect that had looked highly unlikely when they trailed 3-0 after less than half an hour of last week’s first match, which they eventually lost 3-2. They were given a helping hand in a play-off second leg played in pouring rain when Jermain Defoe clearly used his arm to control the ball before firing a second goal that effectively put the game out of the Swiss team’s reach.

Uruguay World Cup striker Suarez got the first goal as four-times European champions Ajax overcame Dynamo 3-2 on aggregate to reach the group stage for the first time since 2005-06 — the last occasion their Ukrainian opponents failed to qualify. Slovakian...

The draws for the 2010/2011 Champions League season took place on Thursday evening, after the closing of this edition. Romanian title holders CFR Cluj was in bowl 4, alongside Twente, Hapoel Tel Aviv, Rubin Kazan, Auxerre, Partizan Belgrade, Zilina and Bursaspor. The draws took place within the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco and included teams from 18 countries. Six of the teams reached the CL group stage for the first time....

Piturca signs for Universitatea Craiova

Former Steaua head coach Victor Piturca signed on Thursday a three-year contract with Universitatea Craiova and led the team’s first training session that very evening, club owner Adrian Mititelu announced, Mediafax informs. Adrian Mititelu pointed out that Victor Piturca’s staff will consist of Florin Marin, Ovidiu Costesin and Gabriel Boldici. Silvian Cristescu will be the club’s new president. Piturca will coach Universitatea Craiova on Saturday during its leg 4 game against Sportul Studentesc. Piturca coached Steaua in the first three legs of this season but left the club because of disagreements with club owner Gigi Becali.

Mirel Radoi scores for Al Hilal

Former Steaua skipper Mirel Radoi has scored again for Al Hilal. The Romanian player opened the score in the 56th minute with a 20-meter shot in a game that his team went on to win, score 5-1. The result keeps Al Hilal on top of the standings after...

BERNE - Sevilla, who reached the last 16 of the Champions League last season, were handed a shock playoff defeat by unfashionable Braga on Tuesday while Werder Bremen pulled off a spectacular escape act to oust Sampdoria.

Substitute Lima, 27, a Brazilian journeyman forward, came on to score a second-half hat-trick to give Braga a 4-3 win in Spain and send the Portuguese outfit into the group stage for the first time 5-3 on aggregate.

Werder, leading 3-1 from the first leg, went 3-0 down at Sampdoria before substitute Markus Rosenberg scored in the third minute of stoppage time to set up extra-time.

Claudio Pizarro then netted as the Bundesliga team lost 3-2 on the night but qualified 5-4 on aggregate to leave Spain and Italy with only three teams in Europe’s top club competition.

There was further drama as Partizan Belgrade knocked out Anderlecht 3-2 on penalties after drawing 2-2 in Belgium where the visitors let slip a two-goal lead in the last...

Unirea Urziceni, Steaua Bucharest, FC Timisoara and FC Vaslui, the Romanian teams still present in European Cups, will play the return legs of their Europa League playoffs this evening.

Ahead of its game in Bucharest, Hajduk Split head coach Stanko Poklepovic stated on Tuesday during a press conference that his team has to put aside the euphoria occasioned by its 4-1 victory in the first leg and to withstand the offensive force of Unirea Urziceni, a team that finished last season on second place, ‘Slobodna Dalmacija’ daily informs, quoted by Mediafax.

Grasshoppers and Steaua will play in Zurich at 8.30 PM. Steaua won the first leg, 1-0. Grasshoppers lost two crucial players ahead of the decisive game on Thursday, namely striker Rennella and goalkeeper Konig. Vincenzo Rennella (22) suffered a muscle injury, while goalkeeper Swen Konig (25) suffered a concussion in the groin area.

Manchester City will play against FC Timisoara in Manchester on Thursday at...