WORLD OF SPORT

▷▷▷ O’Sullivan: I am not going away despite loss Ronnie O’Sullivan has vowed to play until at least the age of 50 and accepts he will never get a break from the snooker spotlight. The 42 year old landed his fifth world title in 2013, but his wait for a sixth goes on for at least another year after he was knocked out in the second round of the World Championship by Ali Carter in a testy match on Saturday. Their encounter exploded when the players clashed physically and verbally in the 19th frame, O’Sullivan appearing to barge into Carter at one stage and calling him “Mr Angry”. It was the latest in a long line of controversies for O’Sullivan, but he still plotting more chapters in his storied career. “I’ll keep pitching up, I’ll keep playing, and I’ll probably be here until I’m 50 so get used to me,” he added of his career aspirations. “I’m here to stay. I’d rather be like a John Higgins and go under the radar, but it just isn’t possible. I embrace it as much as I can, I try to carry it as well as I can, and that’s all you can do.”

▷▷▷

Sumo organisation to look at rules on women The Japan Sumo Association says it will consider outside opinions from experts and the public over its policy of banning women from entering the sumo ring. The association held an extraordinary meeting of its board on Saturday. It did not reach a decision regarding the ban on women but did clarify that women can enter the ring in times of an “emergency” as an exception. The association came under fire in early April when it ordered female-first responders to leave the ring as they attempted to revive an official who collapsed at an event in northern Kyoto. The 67-year-old mayor of the city of Maizuru collapsed during a ring-top speech, and two women, apparently medical experts, rushed in and started performing first aid on the man. But a sumo official demanded that the women get out of the ring due to it being in breach of their regulations. The mayor was then taken to a hospital and survived what was diagnosed a stroke. Youth coach asked to keep Chievo up Serie A strugglers Chievo fired coach Rolando Maran yesterday with the team in the middle of a relegation battle and only three matches to play. Chievo have won only two matches since the start of the year and are two points and one place above the drop zone following their 4-1 defeat at Roma on Saturday. Youth team coach Lorenzo D’Anna will replace Maran for the rest of the season, the club said. Maran, the 10th coaching victim of the season, had been in charge for three-and-a-half years.