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LA Clippers set franchise records in routing of Mavericks, 154-111

Murray, Jokic keep Nuggets alive versus Jazz

PAUL GEORGE and Kawhi Leonard made sure the Los Angeles Clippers had short memories in Game 5 of their Western Conference first-round series against the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night near Orlando.

After blowing a 21-point lead and losing on an overtime buzzer-beater in Game 4, the Clippers responded early and often behind George and Leonard, setting franchise playoff records for most points, 3-pointers and shooting percentage in a 154-111 win.

George bounced back from three straight sub-par performances against Dallas to score 35 points, and Leonard finished with 32 points and seven rebounds for the Clippers, who took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Montrezl Harrell added 19 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for Los Angeles, which shot 63.1% from the floor and 22-for-35 (62.9%) from 3-point distance.

Game 6 is Thursday night.

Mavericks star Luka Doncic finished with 22 points and eight rebounds. He had 43 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists and hit the game-winner in overtime for the Mavericks in Game 4.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 19 points, Trey Burke had 15 and Maxi Kleber finished with 12 for the Mavericks, who were without 7-foot-3 forward Kristaps Porzingis.

Porzingis, who averaged 20.4 points and 9.5 rebounds during the regular season, missed his second straight game due to a sore right knee.

The Clippers shot 16-for-24 from the floor and forced seven turnovers in the first quarter while building a 19-point lead.

Leonard scored 11 points during a 19-0 run during the middle part of the period that turned a 16-9 deficit into a 28-16 lead with 4:46 left.

Dallas never got back within single digits.

Landry Shamet, Reggie Jackson and Maurice Morris Sr. sank 3-pointers during the closing minutes of the opening quarter to stretch the lead to 41-22 entering the second.

Dallas coach Rick Carlisle was ejected for arguing with officials midway through the third quarter.

NUGGETS ALIVE VS. JAZZ
Jamal Murray had 42 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, while Nikola Jokic had 31 points, as the Denver Nuggets stayed alive with a 117-107 victory over the Utah Jazz in Game 5 of their Western Conference first-round series near Orlando on Tuesday night.

Murray scored 33 in the second half alone, while Michael Porter Jr. had 15 points in the game and Jerami Grant added 13 to help the Nuggets rally. Denver now trails 3-2 in the series.

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, while Mike Conley and Jordan Clarkson had 17 each and Rudy Gobert had 11 points and 12 rebounds for Utah. Joe Ingles added 13 and Royce O’Neale scored 10.

The game was tied 101-all with under four minutes to play when Murray took over. He hit a fadeaway off an offensive rebound, drained a 3-pointer and hit two step-back jumpers to put Denver ahead 110-101 with 1:20 remaining.

Mitchell split a pair of free throws and Gobert dunked to pull Utah within six at 110-104, but Murray passed to Jokic in the corner, and his 3-pointer with 23 seconds left put Denver back up 113-104.

Mitchell banked in a 3-pointer with 18.8 seconds remaining, but Grant hit four free throws in the final 14 seconds to seal it.

Down 81-69 in the third quarter, the Nuggets went on a 13-3 run, led by Murray, who had 11 of those. His spinning layup with 35 seconds left made it 84-82, but Gobert’s dunk put the Jazz ahead 86-82 heading into the fourth.

Jokic hit a 3-pointer to open the fourth, and Porter’s turnaround jumper put Denver ahead 87-86 with 10:13 left, its first lead since early in the second quarter.

The teams traded small runs, with the Nuggets taking a four-point lead and Utah responding to go up by two. Grant hit a 3-pointer to put Denver up 101-98, and a layup by Conley and free throw from Gobert tied it with 3:46 left.

Clarkson heated up in the second quarter, scoring 11 of his points and hitting a trio of 3-pointers to help the Jazz take a 63-54 lead at halftime. — Reuters

PBA to strictly monitor conduct of team workouts

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter

OFFICIALLY back to doing activities after being inactive for nearly half a year because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) said it would strictly monitor the teams to make sure that the league’s push to resume is a success.

On Tuesday PBA teams began doing modified team workouts which were done under the guidance of health and safety protocols crafted by the league and approved by authorities tasked to lead the country’s fight against the spread of the coronavirus.

It marked the first time that the teams gathered as a “collective” for on-court training since the PBA decided to suspend its Season 45 on March 11.

Included in the protocols set for the teams are for players and team personnel to undergo a series of swab testings; players are expected to abide by the “closed circuit” method that has them confining their travel as much as possible to home-to-practice facility and back; and during workouts, to be overseen by a designated health officer, players must observe proper distancing (only four players at a time) and hygiene.

Also, facilities to be used by the teams must undergo hospital standard disinfection and thoroughly sanitized after being used.

Teams that began their workouts on Tuesday were the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings, Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, Blackwater Bossing, Alaska Aces, and San Miguel Beermen.

The TNT KaTropa, meanwhile, were set to drive to INSPIRE Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna, on Wednesday where they would be holed up as a team for three weeks to train.

The rest of the field are expected to begin their team workouts anytime this week.

For PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial, to see the league back in the swing of things is a welcome development, especially since the resumption of activities took a while to happen because of the strict requirements needed to get approval and the varying quarantine conditions.

He was quick to say, however, that getting some activities in was just the start of a long process that the league has to go through if an October restart of Season 45 is to happen.

In relation to this, Mr. Marcial said the league would do everything it can to have the process back as seamless as possible.

“We will be having surprise inspections. We already have teams that will be going around, observing and taking videos of the team workouts. We also have player logs. And if we see any violation they will be fined accordingly,” said Mr. Marcial at the online Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum on Tuesday where he was a guest along with PBA Chairman Ricky Vargas.

A medical committee, led by renowned physician Dr. Raul Canlas, has also been set up to function as the center of information when it comes to the health and wellness of the players.

Also at the forum, Mr. Marcial shared that the league is looking at mounting a bubble like that done in the National Basketball Association to host all the matches if ever PBA Season 45 resumes.

The NBA resumed on July 31 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, after suspending its own season for four months and is proving to be successful as not one case of the coronavirus has been reported to date.

For the planned PBA bubble, among the places being considered for it are the Smart-Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Clark in Pampanga and the Inspire Sports Academy in Laguna.

Also being considered as locations are Batangas and Subic, Zambales.

“We have been talking to different people for possible bubble locations. I will lay everything to the board so we can decide which is the best option to take,” Mr. Marcial said.

UST athletic director steps down amid bubble controversy

RIGHT in the midst of an investigation on the alleged training bubble held in Sorsogon by the University of Santo Tomas (UST) men’s basketball team, the school’s athletic director, Fr. Jannel Abogado, O.P., stepped down from his post.

In a report by The Varsitarian, the official publication of UST, on Wednesday, it was said Mr. Abogado had submitted his resignation as head of the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA) and was accepted by school administration.

Mr. Abogado was at the helm of the institute beginning 2017 and will be replaced by Fr. Ermito de Sagon, O.P., who was UST’s athletic director in the past, holding the post for 16 years.

The resignation of Mr. Abogado came amid ongoing investigation on the alleged training bubble of the Growling Tigers in Capuy, Sorsogon, hometown of coach Aldin Ayo, beginning in June when most of the country was still under stricter quarantine setup.

In the supposed training bubble, the Tigers were reportedly preparing for Season 83 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines targeted to begin early next year.

Mr. Abogado was brought to the fore when a supposed waiver, asking parents of the athletes to allow their children to join the training, bearing his name circulated on social media.

The alleged training bubble, if proven to be true, was in direct violation of government health and safety protocols put out as mitigating measures against the spread of the coronavirus.

As per existing regulations, sports activities, including training, are widely prohibited at this point of the pandemic.

The supposed UST bubble was brought to light as news of former captain CJ Cansino being cut from the team following a disagreement with coach Aldin Ayo in Sorsogon came out last week.

Cansino has since moved on, hooking up with the University of the Philippines while Mr. Ayo has not said much on the issue.

Meanwhile, later on Wednesday, UST officials were set to meet University Athletic Association of the Philippines executives and members of the body created by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to look into the matter.

In the meeting, UST is expected to present the status of its internal investigation from which the UAAP management and government authorities will base their decision from before handing out possible penalties.— Michael Angelo S. Murillo

United City partners with Monte’ Athletics for kits, merchandise

NEW Philippines Football League entrant United City Football League recently unveiled its home and away kits for the 2020-2021 season done in partnership with Monte’ Athletics.

United City, which took the place of three-time champion Ceres-Negros FC in the PFL, will be parading the kits when they plunge into action in the league and in the AFC Cup.

Eric Gottschalk, co-founder of United City, said they are very excited with the newly forged partnership with Monte’ Athletics, which also covers the club’s merchandise, ranging from replica jerseys to branded face masks, through Monte’ Athletics’ online store on Lazada.

“I’m very happy to announce that Monte’ Athletics will be the official kit supplier of UCFC for the 2020 season. We chose them as we want to stay true to our mission of supporting football in the Philippines; and this should also include its stakeholders, the local community. We were right away convinced of the premium quality of the high-performance range of the Monte’ products, so it was an easy decision to partner with them for our inaugural season,” said Mr. Gottschalk.

Monte’ Athletics is a sportswear store whose office is located in Antipolo City.

Mr. Gottschalk said much collaboration went into the design of the kits, with the brand and the players coming up with the design while also incorporating a logo which was part of a public design competition voted by the fans.

Since officially coming on board the PFL in July, United City has steadily taken form.

It has re-signed the core of the Ceres squad, led by Stephan Schrock, Bienvenido Maranon, and recently named a new coach in British-Australian Trevor Morgan.

United City said it recognizes that it has big shoes to fill taking the place of Ceres but is determined to make its own mark.

For fans who are interested in purchasing the official United City Home and Away replica jerseys, they will be available at the Monte’ Athletics online store on Lazada starting Sept. 1. The club will also announce additional retail and online partners in the Philippines on a later date. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Antetokounmpo named NBA Defensive Player of the Year

MILWAUKEE Bucks star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year on Tuesday.

Antetokounmpo received 75 first-place votes and 432 points in balloting performed by a panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters. Power forward Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers was second (200 points, 14 first-place votes) and Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (187, six) finished third.

Gobert won the award in each of the previous two seasons. Antetokounmpo finished second in last season’s balloting.

Statistics toward consideration for the award were used through March 11, the night the NBA season was suspended after Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 prior to a game at Oklahoma City.

Antetokounmpo averaged 13.7 rebounds up to that point — including an NBA-leading 11.5 on the defensive end — as well as 1.04 steals and 1.02 blocked shots per game.

“His commitment to defending and his commitment to winning is beyond incredible,” Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said on TNT. “He impacts the game with his blocked shots, his rebounding, his ability to guard all five positions … his talent is beyond special.”

Antetokounmpo joins Sidney Moncrief (1982-83 and 1983-84) as the only Milwaukee players to win Defensive Player of the Year honors.

Milwaukee held opponents to a league-low 41.3% shooting from the field through March 11. The club also had the best defensive rating in the NBA by allowing 101.6 points per 100 possessions. That number was 96.5 when Antetokounmpo was on the floor.

Antetokounmpo also is finalist to win his second straight MVP award.

Only Chicago’s Michael Jordan (1987-88) and Houston’s Hakeem Olajuwon (1993-94) have been named MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. — Reuters

GM Mark Paragua eyes another online chess title in GM Balinas Cup

GRANDMASTER (GM) Mark Paragua will be seeking another online chess title when the Baby Uno Chess Challenge dubbed as Grandmaster Rosendo Carreon Balinas Jr. online chess championship set on Sept. 6, 2020 at 11 a.m. at the lichess.org.

The total cash prize for the event held as part of the 79th birthday celebration of the late Grandmaster Rosendo Carreon Balinas Jr. on Sept. 10 is P35,000.

The organizing committee of Bayanihan Chess Club led by AGM Marlon Bernardino, Genghis Imperial, Jolina and Jenley Icao decided to have a new house rules that if a player violates the lichess terms of service with it (Computer Engine Assistance, Human Assistance, Piloting), his/her prizes will go to Bayanihan Chess Club Welfare Fund.

The “free registration” online tournament will be a 21-round Swiss System, two minutes plus two seconds increment time control format, is open to all Filipino chess players here and abroad.

Organized by Bayanihan Chess Club, the event, hosted by Bethesda, Maryland USA-based Joe Balinas in close cooperation with engineer Antonio Carreon Balinas and Mr. Fernan Donguines of Hybreed Apparel Collections, offers a whopping top purse of P10,000 to the champion, P2,500 to the runner-up, P1,500 to the third placer and P1,000 each to the fourth and fifth placers, respectively.

“We honor too and remember our past chess greats Cardoso, Lontok, Naranja, Reyes,” said Joe Balinas.

“Remember them? And all who molded our chess greats from Eugene, our beloved always faithful to Pinas GM Joey, world class Wesley So and the crop of our current GMs. To all of our young chess talents.” he added.

“We urge revitalization of business and corporate support to Philippine Chess to help too our chairman/president (Prospero) Pichay,” said Joe Balinas.

For more details, message Genghis Imperial in his facebook account. — Marlon Bernardino

Turkey back on F1 calendar as Chinese GP is axed

LONDON — Formula One (F1) fleshed out its 2020 calendar to 17 races on Tuesday, with the Chinese Grand Prix cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic but Turkey back on for the first time since 2011 and Bahrain handed two rounds.

The sport said in a statement that Turkey’s Istanbul Park circuit would host a race on Nov. 15 before a Bahrain double in late November and early December and Abu Dhabi ending the season on Dec. 13 at Yas Marina.

A limited number of fans, and hospitality, will be able to attend some of the races. Russian Grand Prix organizers are already selling tickets for their race in Sochi in September.

All six grands prix held so far since the delayed season started in Austria in July have been held behind closed doors.

Formula One had confirmed only 13 races until Tuesday, all of them in Europe after those in the Americas were cancelled, but teams and drivers now have a clear idea of how many the championship will have.

The original schedule, published before the pandemic, envisaged a record 22 races, but fixtures such as Monaco had to be cancelled and a new calendar drawn up with a mix of old favorites and new venues.

China’s race in Shanghai had looked doubtful for some time due to the virus.

The first Vietnamese Grand Prix, postponed from April, will not be happening either although its cancellation has yet to be confirmed officially.

“Sadly, we will not be racing in China this season,” Formula One said, adding that it looked forward to returning next year.

Japan, Singapore, Azerbaijan and Australia have already been cancelled.

‘GREAT HAPPINESS’
Turkey will be the only race on this year’s calendar that could be considered a non-European or Middle Eastern round, since the circuit is on the Asian side of Istanbul.

“We feel great happiness and honor to have brought Formula One, the biggest motor sporting event in the world, to Turkey once again,” said Vural Ak, chairman of Intercity, which operates the Turkish circuit.

“One of the most important factors behind the Formula One administration adding Istanbul to the calendar is that in the nine years races weren’t held, the circuit was active and ready at all times as if a race was going to take place.”

Istanbul’s circuit was popular with drivers if not the locals whose attendance was limited. The only current drivers to have won there are Kimi Raikkonen, six times world champion Lewis Hamilton and four times champion Sebastian Vettel.

“It’s an old-school circuit, something I was watching on TV when I was younger. (That) massive left-hander, flat-out, is going to be pretty impressive,” Renault’s Esteban Ocon told reporters recently.

Bahrain’s two races on Nov. 29 and Dec. 6 will be designated the Bahrain Grand Prix and the Sakhir Grand Prix, after the name of the desert circuit.

Sakhir will be the third circuit to host two races this season after Austria’s Red Bull Ring and Britain’s Silverstone. — Reuters

Barca in new turmoil after Messi tells club he wants to leave

BARCELONA — Captain Lionel Messi has told Barcelona he wishes to leave the club immediately, a source confirmed on Tuesday, deepening the turmoil within the Catalan side less than two weeks after their humiliating 8-2 defeat by Bayern Munich.

The source said the club received a burofax from Messi’s lawyers declaring that the player, who has spent his entire career at Barca, wished to leave. A burofax is a service used in Spain to urgently dispatch a document through a certified email, which issues a digital certificate with legal validity.

The club subsequently sent Messi a burofax, stating they wanted him to stay and finish his career at Barca, added the source.

A second source added that the burofax Messi’s lawyers sent referred to a clause in the last contract the 33-year-old Argentine signed with the club in 2017 which allowed him to leave for free, a clause that expired on June 10 this year.

Under the terms of the contract which expires in 2021, the only way Messi can leave without the club’s consent is if a rival side pays his release clause of €700 million ($828 million).

“The club considers that the contract is fully binding until 30 June 2021,” added the second source.

The Argentine’s request to leave Barca comes a day after Spanish media reported that new coach Ronald Koeman told Messi’s close friend and strike partner, Luis Suarez, that he does not wish the Uruguayan to stay at the club.

Other reports said that Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal, Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic and French defender Samuel Umtiti have also been told they are no longer wanted.

Barca are in the midst of overhauling their squad following the 8-2 defeat by Bayern in the Champions League quarter-finals earlier this month, which condemned the club to a trophyless season for the first time in 12 years.

Messi, who has been named world player of the year a record six times, has grown increasingly unhappy in the last 12 months with how the club is being run under president Josep Maria Bartomeu.

In February, he lashed out at then sporting director Eric Abidal on social media and a couple of months later turned his anger on the club hierarchy for the way in which players were forced to take a pay cut to cope with the financial hit of the coronanvirus pandemic.

After Barca surrendered the La Liga title to Real Madrid in July, Messi slammed the team as being “weak” and “vulnerable” during an uncharacteristically fiery post-match interview.

BACKED BY PUYOL
Former Barca captain Carles Puyol backed Messi’s wish to leave the club by writing on Twitter: “Respect and admiration, Leo. You have all my support, friend.”

Ex-Barca president Joan Laporta blamed Bartomeu for the stance taken by Messi.

“Bartomeu and his board should quit immediately. They have undermined Messi to save them from the sporting and financial mess they have created. If they quit there might be some hope that Messi stays at Barca,” he tweeted.

Catalonia’s regional leader Quim Torra appeared to accept that Barca’s best ever player, who in 2019 was given the Creu de Sant Jordi award for services to the region, was about to leave.

He tweeted: “Catalonia will always be your home. Many thanks for all the happy moments and for your extraordinary football. We have been so lucky to share so many years of our lives with the best player in the world and a noble sportsman.” — Reuters

Djokovic rolls on at Western and Southern Open; Murray eliminated

TOP SEED Novak Djokovic made quick work of Tennys Sandgren at the Western and Southern Open on Tuesday, never dropping serve en route to a 6-2 6-4 win over the American, while big-serving Milos Raonic enjoyed a straight sets win over Andy Murray.

Djokovic broke Sandgren thrice to reach the quarter-finals and extended his win-loss record to 20-0 this year.

“All in all it was just a great performance,” said the Serb.

“I felt better and I played better than I did last night. Everything is going in the right direction.”

Sandgren’s hapless plight was summed up during an exchange in the first set when he turned his back to the net to signal he had surrendered a point as Djokovic readied an overhead smash.

Djokovic’s thunderbolt smash came down anyway, however, knocking the racket out of the American’s hand.

An apologetic Djokovic immediately held up his hand while a bemused Sandgren leaned over to pick up his racket.

Next up for Djokovic is German Jan-Lennard Struff, who outlasted David Goffin 6-4 3-6 6-4 earlier on Tuesday.

Murray had an impressive win over fifth seed Alexander Zverev on Monday but never found his rhythm against Raonic.

The Canadian dominated on serve, firing 10 aces and winning almost 90% of his first-serve points, to advance to the quarter-finals 6-2 6-2 in a rain-interrupted match that marked his first win over the Briton since 2014 at Indian Wells.

Defending champion Daniil Medvedev looked sharp in his stress-free 6-3 6-3 dismantling of qualifier Aljaz Bedene to reach the quarter-finals.

The Russian did not face a break point and committed just nine unforced errors in the 68-minute contest in hot and humid conditions.

Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated John Isner 7-6(2) 7-6(4) and Reilly Opelka beat sixth seed Matteo Berrettini 6-3 7-6(4). Roberto Bautista Agut and Filip Krajinovic also advanced.

The ATP Masters 1000 event is being played at Flushing Meadows in New York instead of Cincinnati due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

No spctators are present at the event, which is the final tune-up before the U.S. Open Grand Slam, which begins on Aug. 31. — Reuters

NBL and WNBL now professional leagues

THE Games and Amusements Board (GAB) has approved the application of the National Basketball League (NBL) and the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) to turn professional.

GAB chairman Baham Mitra made it official on Wednesday during a virtual press conference that was also joined by NBL officials in chairman Celso Mercado, executive vice-president Rhose Montreal, and commissioner Edward Aquino.

The NBL becomes the first men’s professional league that will cater to homegrown talents from the provinces, cities, and municipalities they are representing.

Meanwhile, the WNBL is set to become the first-ever women’s professional league established in the Philippines.

“Basketball is not just only for males. The NBL is also advocating gender equality. If there is a men’s league there is also for women,” said Mr. Mitra.

NBL officials thanked the GAB for approving its application which will give more opportunities to men and women players.

“Just like we envisioned from the beginning, we are now reaping the results,” said Mr. Mercado in Filipino.

“The concept of the league is clear, which is to grow homegrown talents and with us turning professional we believe we can take it further,” he added.

The NBL was created in 2018 with the Parañaque Aces and the Taguig Generals winning the first two seasons. The third season is currently on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic but the league is planning to stage a bubble in San Fernando, Pampanga.

The WNBL, meanwhile, was established in 2019 with the PSI Lady Air Defenders winning the inaugural season and national team standout Janine Pontejos capturing the most valuable player award.

“Today is a special day for all our homegrown players. Today is the day for women’s players who have been dreaming of playing in a professional women’s league,” said Ms. Montreal.

“I’m lost for words because in our three seasons of handling this homegrown league, we’ve seen athletes from the countryside and the provinces who actually tried their luck to play in Manila but after three or four years, they went back to their respective provinces to play for barangay leagues or governors’ cup. This is a big day not for the NBL but for the player,” she added.

COVID-19 re-infections raise immunity concern

AMSTERDAM/BRUSSELS — Two European patients are confirmed to have been re-infected with COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), raising concerns about people’s immunity to the coronavirus as the world struggles to tame the pandemic.

The cases, in Belgium and the Netherlands, follow a report this week by researchers in Hong Kong about a man there who had contracted a different strain of the virus four and a half months after being declared recovered — the first such second infection to be documented.

That has raised fears about the efficacy of potential vaccines against the virus, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people, though experts say there would need to be many more cases of re-infection for these to be justified.

Belgian virologist Marc Van Ranst said the Belgian case was a woman who had contracted COVID-19 for the first time in March and then again with a different coronavirus strain in June. Further cases of re-infection were likely to surface, he said.

Van Ranst told Reuters TV the woman, in her 50s, had very few antibodies after the first infection, although they might have limited the sickness. Re-infection cases were probably limited exceptions, he said, although it was too soon to tell and many were likely to surface in coming weeks.

He added that the new coronavirus appeared more stable than the influenza virus, but it was changing.

“Viruses mutate and that means that a potential vaccine is not going to be a vaccine that will last forever, for 10 years, probably not even five years. Just as for flu, this will have to be redesigned quite regularly,” he said.

Van Ranst, who sits on some Belgian COVID-19 committees, said vaccine designers would not be surprised.

“We would have loved the virus to be more stable than it is, but you can’t force nature.”

GENETIC TESTING
The National Institute for Public Health in the Netherlands said it had also observed a Dutch case of re-infection with a different strain of the virus.

“It is clear there has been a first and a second infection with a substantial quantity of virus. Enough to be able to determine the genetic code of the virus, that is what showed they were indeed different,” said Marion Koopmans, a leading virologist in the Netherlands and a member of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) scientific advisory group.

She added the elderly Dutch patient had a weakened immune system, which explained the patient’s situation. “People are worried and ask if re-infection is ‘standard.’ I don’t think it is,” she added.

WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris told a UN briefing in Geneva regarding the Hong Kong case that, while there were anecdotal reports of re-infections, it was important to have clear documentation.

Some experts say it is likely that such cases are starting to emerge because of greater testing worldwide, rather than because the virus may be spreading differently.

Still, Dr. David Strain, a clinical senior lecturer at the University of Exeter and chair of the British Medical Association’s medical academic staff committee, said the cases were worrying for at least two reasons.

“The first is that it suggests that previous infection is not protective. The second is that it raises the possibility that vaccinations may not provide the hope that we have been waiting for.” — Reuters

China protests US spy plane incursion during military drills

HONG KONG — China has lodged “stern representations” with the United States, accusing it of sending a US U-2 reconnaissance plane into a no-fly zone over Chinese live-fire military drills on Tuesday, further ratcheting up tensions between Beijing and Washington.

China has long denounced US surveillance activities, while the United States has complained of “unsafe” intercepts by Chinese aircraft. While such missions happen regularly, for China to talk about them publicly is unusual.

China’s Defense Ministry said the U-2 flew without permission over a no-fly zone in the northern military region where live fire drills were taking place, “seriously interfering in normal exercise activities.”

This could easily have caused a misunderstanding or misjudgement or an “unexpected incident,” the ministry added.

“It was an act of naked provocation, and China is resolutely opposed to it, and have already lodged stern representations with the US side.”

In a statement, the US military said a U-2 flight was conducted in the Indo-Pacific region and it was “within the accepted international rules and regulations governing aircraft flights.”

“Pacific Air Forces personnel will continue to fly and operate anywhere international law allows, at the time and tempo of our choosing,” the US military said in the statement.

The U-2 aircraft can fly at over 70,000 feet and carry out reconnaissance activity from afar and would not necessarily have had to enter a no-fly zone.

While China did not say exactly where the incident took place, it is currently carrying out drills in the Bohai Sea. Other exercises are also happening in the Yellow Sea and South China Sea.

“China demands the US side immediately stop this kind of provocative behavior and take actual steps to safeguard peace and stability in the region,” the ministry added. — Reuters

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