Briefs | Columbus, Chicago tie in MLS East showdown

Soccer

Schelotto helps Columbus earn a draw in matchup of MLS Eastern Conference powers: Guillermo Barros Schelotto scored two second-half goals to help the Columbus Crew earn a 2-2 tie Sunday against the host Chicago Fire in a matchup of the top two teams in Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference.

Schelotto scored the tying goal with 11 minutes left when he converted a penalty kick, called after Fire defender Wilman Conde fouled Crew forward Steven Lenhart.

Schelotto, who scored on a header in the 55th minute, is third in MLS with 12 goals.

Defending league champion Columbus (11-4-10) leads the East with 43 points and Chicago (10-6-10) is second in the conference with 40 points. Houston, which leads the West with 43 points, has played two matches more than Columbus.

Peter Lowry scored the Fire's goals.

Manchester United wins a thriller: Michael Owen scored six minutes into injury time to give host Manchester United a 4-3 victory over Manchester City in an English Premier League match.

Man U manager Alex Ferguson noted his team's "three horrendous mistakes" on defense that resulted in City goals and said, "We could have won by six or seven today."

Manchester City's Craig Bellamy scored his second goal of the match in the 90th minute.

Cycling

Valverde excels: Alejandro Valverde, a Spaniard who rides for the Caisse d'Epargne team, won the Spanish Vuelta, a 21-stage event that began Aug. 29 in Assen, Netherlands, and ended Sunday in Madrid, Spain.

"I was missing a big win and now this year I've done it. It's incredible," the 29-year-old Valverde said.

The Vuelta, Giro d'Italia and Tour de France are considered the sport's Grand Tours.

Valverde covered 2,046.6 miles in 87 hours, 22 minutes, 37 seconds. Euskaltel-Euskadi rider Samuel Sanchez of Spain was second overall, 55 seconds behind.

German Andre Greipel of Team Columbia-HTC won the 68.5-mile final stage in 3 hours, 11 minutes, 55 seconds.

Basketball

Gasol leads Spain to European title: Pau Gasol of the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers contributed 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead world champion Spain to an 85-63 victory over Serbia in the European championship final in Katowice, Poland.

Spain, which has finished second six times in the European tournament, won its first European title.

"We just worked so hard to win this championship and I'm just super proud of my teammates," Gasol said.

Spain guard Rudy Fernandez, who plays for the NBA Portland Trail Blazers, scored 13 points.

Serbia coach Dusan Ivkovic said, "The Spanish team was better and they deserved absolutely this title."

Spain lost to Serbia and Turkey earlier in the tournament, but won its last five games by an average of 21.2 points.

Track and field

American Gay wins 100 in 9.69 seconds: U.S. sprinter Tyson Gay won the 100 meters in 9.69 seconds at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in China. The only faster time is the world record of 9.58 set by Usain Bolt of Jamaica at last month's world championships in Berlin.

Asafa Powell of Jamaica was second on Sunday, finishing in 9.85.

American Carmelita Jeter took the women's 100 in 10.64 to become the second-fastest woman of all time. The late Florence Griffith-Joyner of the United States had three faster times in the 100, including her world record of 10.49 set in 1988.

South Africa demands firing of Chuene: South Africa's government received support for its demand the country's top track-and-field official be fired after he admitted lying about gender tests conducted on world champion Caster Semenya.

Leonard Chuene, Athletics South Africa president, apologized Saturday, saying he had lied to protect the 18-year-old Semenya's privacy. The sports ministry called on the ASA to fire Chuene.

Semenya won the 800 at the world championships in Berlin in 1 minute, 55.45 seconds. The IAAF has refused to confirm or deny Australian media reports that Semenya has both male and female characteristics, saying it is reviewing test results and will issue a decision in November on whether the athlete will be allowed to continue to compete in women's events.

Chuene repeatedly lied when he said tests were done abroad, not in South Africa.

Running

Gebrselassie extends Berlin Marathon streak: World-record holder Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia won the Berlin Marathon for the fourth consecutive time. He ran 26.2 miles in 2 hours, 6 minutes, 8 seconds.

Swimming

USA Swimming honors Lochte: Two-time Olympian Ryan Lochte is USA Swimming's athlete of the year for winning five medals — including four golds — at the world championships in Rome.

Horse racing

Ventura triumphs at Woodbine: Ventura, a 5-year-old mare trained by Bobby Frankel, beat Ferneley by a length to win the $954,742 Woodbine Mile in Rexdale, Ontario. Of the 13 Woodbine Mile winners, she is the lone female.

Ventura, ridden by Garrett Gomez, won the turf race in a stakes-record 1 minute, 32.04 seconds. She paid $6.20 to win in the Grade I event.

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