Sporst digest
State
James selected
CLEVELAND — LeBron James was named Monday as the NBA’s Eastern Conference Player of the Week.
In three games during the week, James averaged 26.0 points on .527 shooting, 6.7 assists, 6.7 rebounds and 2.0 steals in 39.7 minutes per game.
Top harness horses
COLUMBUS — Hambletonian winner Deweycheatumnhowe was voted 3-year-old colt trotter of the year, record-setting earner Somebeachsomewhere was voted top 3-year-old colt pacer and 10 other horses earned Dan Patch awards as divisional champions Monday.
Mister Big, who won 11 of 14 races, was voted top older male pacer for the second year in a row in balloting by the U.S. Harness Writers Association.
Winners of Horse, Pacer and Trotter of the Year will be announced Feb. 4 in Las Vegas.
Deweycheatumnhowe was named on all 158 ballots returned, while Somebeachsomewhere got 155 votes and Mister Big received 153.
Nation
Cabrera gets 1-yr deal
WASHINGTON — Pitcher Daniel Cabrera formalized his one-year, $2.6 million contract with the Washington Nationals after passing a physical Monday.
Cabrera and the Nationals reached a preliminary agreement one week earlier, contingent upon Cabrera proving his health. The 6-foot-7 right-hander underwent MRI exams on his throwing shoulder and elbow as part of his physical.
Cabrera went on the disabled list with the Baltimore Orioles in September after experiencing pain and tingling in his right elbow during a side session.
Speedskating
WEST ALLIS, Wis. — Heather Richardson won the women’s 500 and 1,000 meters and Shani Davis took the men’s 1,000 on Monday, each taking the overall sprint lead at the U.S. Long Track Speedskating National Championships at the Pettit National Ice Center.
Richardson, of High Point, N.C., won the 500 in 39.36 seconds and the 1,000 in 1 minute, 18.49 seconds. She took the overall sprint lead with 78.605 points at the four-day event which determines national championships and slots on the U.S. winter World Cup team.
Davis, a Chicago native ranked No. 1 in the World Cup standings in the 1,000, won the race in 1:09.20. Combined with a second-place finish in the 500, he was the men’s overall sprint leader with 70.220 points.
world
Gerrard arrested
LONDON — Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard was arrested early Monday in connection with an assault at a bar that left a disc jockey with facial injuries.
The England midfielder was celebrating after Liverpool extended its lead atop the Premier League to three points with an emphatic 5-1 victory at Newcastle on Sunday afternoon.
Police arrested the 28-year-old Gerrard and five other men at 2:30 a.m. in Southport, and Gerrard remained in police custody, a person close to the investigation said on condition of anonymity. British police do not publicly identify suspects unless charges are brought.
Cricket crack down
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Cricket’s governing body strengthened its drug policy to comply with a new World Anti-Doping Agency code that takes effect Thursday.
International cricket players will now have to be available for testing at all times and inform the International Cricket Council of their whereabouts. Missing three doping tests during an 18-month period can result in punishment.
“This code means it has just become even harder for drug cheats to get away with doping practices and it is part of our continued battle to ensure fair competition for all,” ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said Monday.
Agent loses appeal
LONDON — Wayne Rooney’s agent lost his appeal Monday of an 18-month ban and $586,000 fine imposed by English soccer authorities on how he came to represent the England striker.
Paul Stretford can still go before an arbitration panel to contest the independent disciplinary commission’s July verdict of improper conduct.
“We are entirely satisfied that the overall penalty was not excessive and was well within the range open to a reasonable regulatory commission considering matters of this seriousness,” the Football Association’s appeal board said in a statement.
Vonn leads World Cup
SEMMERING, Austria — Lindsey Vonn goes into 2009 leading the overall World Cup standings. The best slalom racer, however, is friend Maria Riesch of Germany.
Riesch won a night slalom Monday for her second victory of the season and eighth of her career. Vonn placed third to stay first in the overall standings with 530 points. The Minnesota skier is 23 points ahead of Riesch.
Vonn, the defending overall champion, was 1.18 seconds behind after the opening leg and had the second-fastest time in a solid final run to narrow the gap.
Vindicator staff/wire reports