Germany's main Jewish group has criticized the decision of German international footballer Ashkan Dejagah to refuse to play in Israel.

TEHRAN, Oct. 10--The Central Council of Jews has criticized Ashkan Dejagah, an Iranian-German soccer player, for his decision not to play against Israel, Press TV wrote.
In a press statement the president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Charlotte Knobloch, said Berlin has historic obligations towards the Zionist regime, demanding the withdrawal of Dejagah from the U-21 German national soccer team.
The 20-year old Wolfsburg player had said earlier he would not play in the upcoming Friday match in Tel Aviv. “I have more Iranian than German blood in my veins. I am doing it out of respect,“ Dejagah explained.
However, The German soccer federation has accepted Dejagah’s decision not to participate in the European Under-21 Championship qualifying match against Israel.

Japanese Norifumi Abe died after a 500cc motorcycle he was riding collided with a truck on a road in Kwasaki, near Tokyo, Monday.

TOKYO, Oct. 10--Three-time MotoGP winner Norifumi Abe, 32, has died in a road accident.
The Japanese rider’s motorbike was involved in a collision with a truck near his home in Kawasaki near Tokyo, Reuters wrote.
Known as ’Norick’, Abe began riding motorbikes at the age of five and won the 500cc class at the All-Japan Road Race Championship at the age of 18. He joined the 500cc--later MotoGP--series in 1994, winning the Japanese Grand Prix in 1996 and 2000 and the Brazilian Grand Prix in 1999.
He had a total of 17 podium finishes from his 144 grand prix appearances. His last race in MotoGP was in 2004 at Valencia.
Since leaving motorcycling’s elite series, Abe had been competing in the All-Japan Superbike Championship.

RIO DE JANEIRO,
Oct. 10--Brazil has begun a five-day preparation period ahead of its debut in 2010 World Cup qualifiers, led by its duo stars Ronaldinho and Kaka, reported AFP.
Brazil will visit Colombia on Sunday and play Ecuador three days later at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
Ronaldinho and Kaka arrived at Brazil’s training camp outside Rio along with 20 other players summoned by manager Dunga for the first two matches in the South American qualifying tournament.
“The World Cup starts now,“ Kaka told reporters. “We know it’s a big responsibility and we need to get good results early in these initial matches.“
Brazil will play two other qualifying matches later this year--against Peru and Uruguay in November.

LONDON, Oct. 10--Tennis players are to be given 48 hours to tell the authorities if they are approached about throwing matches and risk punishment if they fail do so.
The new 48-hour rule will be adopted by the board of the ATP Tour at its next meeting in November, and will be backed up by a new ’integrity unit’.
The news comes after Andy Murray told BBC 5live “everyone knows corruption goes on“ in tennis. The ATP has already said it will ask to meet Murray to discuss his comments. Murray said that matches on the men’s ATP Tour are being thrown and that all players are aware of it.
“It is pretty disappointing for all the players, but everyone knows that it goes on,“ said the top-20 ranked Scot. “It’s difficult to prove. They can try their best until the last games in each set and then make some mistakes, hit a couple of double faults and that’s it.“
The ATP confirmed that it would look into these claims as a matter of great importance, and that it was working with the sport’s other authorities on setting up an integrity unit.
“We have asked Andy Murray, through his agent, for a meeting as soon as possible to discuss the claims made public,“ said a tour spokesman.
“Nothing is more important than the integrity of our sport and the ATP has shown that it will act where it has information which requires investigation.
“It will become a sanctionable offence for a player not to provide information that helps the police and the authorities. If a player is approached they need to pass on that information within 48 hours.
“Our anti-corruption program has stringent procedures in place to deal with any suspected corruption. It is the responsibility of everyone, without exception, to ensure we have any information about possible threats to the integrity of tennis.“
In an investigation for 5live Sport, leading betting companies have expressed concern about the results of several games. And Murray believes the chance to make extra money is too much for some players to turn down.
He said: “There are some guys who have to come to tournaments every single week and out of their first-round-loser’s cheque--about 2,500 euros--they have to pay for their air fares.“

New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez watches as his seventh-inning home run sails over the center field wall against the Cleveland Indians during Game 4 of an American League Division Series baseball playoffs at Yankee Stadium.

NEW YORK, Oct. 10--Alex Rodriguez is ready to cash in. Again. Agent Scott Boras hinted Tuesday that A-Rod will opt out of the final three seasons of his contract with the New York Yankees and seek a new deal in the free-agent market that will lock him up through his pursuit of Barry Bonds’ home-run record.
According to AP, Boras negotiated Rodriguez’s record $252 million, 10-year agreement with the Texas Rangers before the 2001 season, a contract the Yankees took over when they acquired A-Rod before the 2004 season. His next deal could last for more than a decade.
“Alex wants to be in one uniform for a long, long time, if not to the end of his career,“ Boras said of the 32-year-old, headed to his third AL MVP Award. “I think Alex could play very reasonably until he’s 45. So you’re talking about a situation where we want this guy to be identified with one franchise and one uniform for a very, very long time.“
Rodriguez enters next year 17th on the career home-run list with 518 and is 242 behind Bonds, who also hopes to play next season. The expected chase will be factored into the negotiation.
“That team is going to be associated with having a player in its organization that has this history, this value,“ Boras said, “and they’re going to be able to market that and go through the varying chases and levels of passing players in his home run pursuits.“
In describing how Rodriguez would benefit from free agency, Boras cited the increase in baseball revenue from $3 billion in 2000 to nearly $6 billion this year.
“The marketplace for negotiating contracts has changed so dramatically from when we negotiated in 2000 to where we negotiate in 2007,“ Boras said.

PARIS, Oct 10--The International Rugby Board (IRB) has backed Wayne Barnes, who refereed the France v New Zealand World Cup quarter-final, following reports that he had received death threats, AFP wrote.
The Englishman yellow-carded All Blacks centre Luke McAlister at a crucial moment of the game and also missed a forward pass in the move that brought France the match-winning try in their 20-18 triumph.
The defeat plunged rugby-mad New Zealanders into despair as their much-vaunted side once again failed to go all the way in the World Cup.
Barnes reportedly received personal abuse and even death threats on internet sites bringing a strong response from IRB referees’ manager Paddy O’Brien, himself a New Zealander.
Later Tuesday, the IRB released a statement to reiterate their support for the under-fire Barnes.
“The IRB believes the standard of refereeing is the highest it has ever been at a Rugby World Cup tournament,“ said the statement.
“The criticism of referee Wayne Barnes is completely unwarranted. All the referees for the knockout stages earned their appointments following outstanding performances in the pool stages. The IRB stands behind the match official selection process, the referees and its Referee Manager Paddy O’Brien one hundred percent.“

MUNICH, Oct. 10--Bolton were drawn in the same UEFA Cup group as German giants Bayern Munich, but Everton and Tottenham will fancy their chances of making progress, AP wrote.
Spurs face a reunion with Anderlecht, the team they beat in the 1984 final, while Everton’s main threat is likely to come from Dutch side AZ Alkmaar. Aberdeen must overcome Greek outfit Panathinaikos and Atletico Madrid.
But it is Bolton, with Portuguese side Braga and Red Star Belgrade joining Bayern, who face the stiffest test. Each team will play two matches at home and two away with the group stage starting on 25 October and the top three going through.
They will be joined by eight third-placed teams from the Champions League groups for the knockout round. Bolton, Everton and Tottenham will play alternate games home and away and all start their campaigns hosting SC Braga, Larissa and Getafe respectively.
Bolton’s second game on 8 November sees them face the tough trip to Bayern Munich and they have to travel to play Red Star Belgrade in a potentially crucial final group game on 6 December.
Bolton striker Nicolas Anelka says his side need to try to win their home games and attempt to earn a point on their travels. He has cited his French international team-mate Franck Ribery as one of Bayern’s main threats.
Anelka told the club’s website: “I would love to go there (Munich) and upset the world of football by winning. It would put Bolton on the map in terms of being a European force.

PARIS, Oct. 10--Japanese driver Kazuki Nakajima will make his Formula One debut for Williams at the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix on October 21, the British team announced on Tuesday, Reuters said.
The 22-year old driver, this year’s GP2 series Rookie of the Year, is the team’s official test and reserve driver and will replace veteran Alexander Wurz who retired from the sport on Monday.
Team principal, Frank Williams, said: “You cannot assess a driver’s capability on the basis of one race but this is an ideal opportunity to develop Kazuki’s experience. I am confident he will approach the race in a very workmanlike
and focused way.“
Kazuki Nakajima is the son of the retired Formula One driver Satoru Nakajima.
“I am very grateful to the team who have given me this opportunity,“ said the rookie. “I hope I now know the car very well and thankfully have done some Friday driving as recently as Shanghai. This is a chance I intend to grab with both hands and repay the faith the team are showing in me with a strong performance.“
The Brazilian Grand Prix takes place at Interlagos.

LONDON, Oct. 10--World Superbike champion James Toseland admits his nerves were tested by his two-point championship winning margin.
The Ten Kate Honda rider from Sheffield beat Noriyuki Haga by just two points to claim his second Superbikes crown.
“Having left Brands Hatch in August with a 66-point lead, I thought I had one hand on the trophy so to win by two was nerve-wracking,“ he said. “To win the title once was a lifetime ambition but to win it again, on a different bike, was really humbling.“
According to BBC, Toseland, who won the 2004 crown on a Ducati and the 2007 title on a Honda, will compete in MotoGP next year for Tech 3 Yamaha, and said it was very important to him to leave the Superbike arena on a high.
“I did the deal to move to MotoGP when I came back from the Suzuka Eight hour race at the end of July, before Brands. It was a fantastic opportunity to take for next year,“ he said.
“But I always said it was my it was number one priority to win title for Ten Kate. I’m very proud--my team were all in tears, and my friends and family were all there on the podium. It was a great day.“