Power surge ousts Ryan

Squash: Top seed Jonathon Power brought an end to Derek Ryan's superb run at the Tournament of Champions in New York last night, beating the Dubliner in straight sets in their semi-final at Grand Central Station, reports Mary Hannigan.

The Canadian, who was world number one until disposed by Scotland's Peter Nicol on Monday, made just four unforced errors in the entire match, helping him to a comfortable 158, 15-4, 15-5 victory after 47 minutes on court.

However, Ryan's success in New York, the highlight of which was his second round win over the world number four Simon Parke, means he should regain considerable lost ground in the next Professional Squash Association ranking list, following Monday's fall from 10 to 22.

Golf: Despite missing the cut in Hawaii three weeks ago by the narrowest of margins, Keith Nolan is positive as he prepares for today's first round of the AT & T Pro-Am at Pebble Beach.

With unusually fine and sunny weather blessing the area for two days in succession, Nolan has been able to get in some much needed course practice after spending a couple of weeks back in his adopted home of Knox ville, Tennessee.

"I am using the same driver I have used for the last year and a half but I keep switching the shafts. We are always looking for something that little better."

With reference to his lacklustre performances in his rookie season in America two years ago, Nolan said: "I think I am a better player and my short game has improved a lot and that's what counts. My putting is decent but this week it's going to be difficult, as the greens will get very bumpy."

Sailing: There was more high drama verging on low farce in Auckland's Hauraki Gulf yesterday when AmericaOne levelled the first-to-five America's Cup final eliminator series at 3-3 - despite the best efforts of an intrepid Luna Rossa crewman dangled over the side of the Italian boat frantically trying to haul its shredded £36,000 spinnaker clear of the keel and rudder, reports Bob Fisher. Perhaps irritated by the previous day's mutterings of dirty doings when a high-tech weather buoy used by the Americans was vandalised, Francesco de Angelis had launched the Prada syndicate's challenger into an immediate lead. Luna Rossa led over the first two of the six legs of the 18.5-mile course and was pulling away in the 15-20-knot winds when poor crew work put the spinnaker in the sea.

Prada rounded the second mark 17 seconds ahead but, with a piece of the spinnaker snarled up, De Angelis had little control.

The Italians put Michele Ivaldi upside down over the side with two crew-mates holding him by the feet as he struggled with little success to free the cloth. Meanwhile Paul Cayard charged AmericaOne past to open what proved a decisive lead of 16 seconds by the third mark. To add insult to injury, Cayard flew a protest flag against the Italians for having a crew member outside the rails of the boat.

Cycling: Ciaran Power, who finished a creditable eighth on Tuesday, experienced the flipside of bunch sprinting yesterday when he was involved in a 40-miles-an-hour pile-up with 30 riders at the end of the eighth stage of the Tour of Langkawi in Malaysia.

Although Power crossed the line almost three minutes behind stage winner Ivan Quaranta, the 23-year-old Irishman was credited with the same time as the bunch, as the crash occurred in the final kilometre. Power now lies 40th overall.