By Steve Keating
LAKE LOUISE, Alberta (Reuters) – Canada’s downhill world champion John Kucera is in danger of missing next year’s Vancouver Olympics after breaking his leg in a high-speed fall on Sunday.
Kucera was airlifted from the Lake Louise course to a nearby hospital after crashing into the safety netting during the season-opening World Cup super-G, [...]

HOUSTON (Reuters) – The Indianapolis Colts roared back from a 17-0 deficit to defeat the Houston Texans 35-27 on Sunday and remain one of the NFL’s two unbeaten teams.
Peyton Manning threw for three touchdowns and the Colts (11-0) won their 20th consecutive regular season game to move within one win of tying the NFL record [...]

ANAHEIM, California (Reuters) – James Vandermeer scored his second goal of the game 1:18 into overtime to give the Phoenix Coyotes a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday.
Vandermeer’s game-winner appeared to deflect off Ducks defenseman Nick Boynton and trickle past netminder Jean-Sebastien Giguere on the Coyotes’ only shot in overtime as the visitors [...]

By Barbara Liston
WINDERMERE, Florida (Reuters) – Golf star Tiger Woods took responsibility on Sunday for crashing his SUV outside his Florida house and said his wife acted courageously to help him, but again canceled an interview with authorities investigating the incident.
The world’s top golfer said he wanted to keep details private of the accident in [...]

By Jahmal Corner
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The New Jersey Nets fired coach Lawrence Frank on the same day their nightmare season took a historic turn as they slumped to 0-17, matching the NBA record for worst start to a season on Sunday.
Following their 106-87 defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers, the league’s worst team joined [...]

By John Mehaffey
LONDON (Reuters) – Elite professional sport with its unrelenting demands tests the mind and spirit as much as the body.
When the difference between winning and losing can be a fraction of a second or the unexpected bounce of a ball, encouraging positive thoughts and banishing the fear of failure is a consistent theme [...]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Boston’s Rasheed Wallace, Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire and Charlotte’s Tyson Chandler have been fined by the NBA for violating league rules, the NBA said Sunday.
Wallace was fined $30,000 for criticizing officials following the Celtics’ 116-103 win over Toronto Friday, the league said in a statement.
Stoudemire and Chandler were fined $7,500 each for [...]

TORONTO (Reuters) – Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke has been suspended for two games for a “deliberate check to the head area” of New York Rangers center Artem Anisimov, the NHL said Sunday in a release.
Cooke was assessed a minor penalty for the hit, which occurred during the third period of the Penguins’ 8-3 victory [...]

By Mike Collett
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Ireland have appealed to world governing body FIFA to be allowed to compete as a 33rd team in next year’s World Cup finals, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said on Monday.
Ireland were eliminated from the competition earlier this month by France after Thierry Henry handled the ball in the build-up to [...]

By Steve Ginsburg
BALTIMORE (Reuters) – The Pittsburgh Steelers’ postseason chances suffered a painful blow when the Super Bowl champions were edged 20-17 in overtime by a resurgent Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
Newly acquired Billy Cundiff kicked a 29-yard field goal with 6:42 left in the extra session to energize the Ravens’ playoff push and hand Pittsburgh [...]