LYON, France - Fabrice Tiozzo won the WBA light heavyweight title by edging champion Silvio Branco on points.
The judges scored it 114-112, 114-112, 113-113 in favor of Tiozzo, who won for the 46th time in 48 professional fights.
The 37-year-old Branco from Italy relinquished the title he won in October against Mehdi Sahnoune. He has lost seven times in 58 career fights.
Tiozzo, 34, dominated the early exchanges and survived after being floored in the eighth.
OLYMPICS: Pool roof eliminated
The Greek government called off plans to build a roof over the Athens pool because it would not be done in time for the Summer Games. The cancellation is one of the most serious moves made by planners, who face widespread construction delays but promise most work will be done before the Aug. 13-29 Games.
SAILING: Eric Doyle and crew Brian Sharp won both races during a wind-whipped opening day in the Star class trials in Miami.
SECURITY: Greek Premier Costas Caramanlis promised that his newly elected government is doing everything it can to keep Athens safe for the upcoming Games.
STEEPLECHASE: World champion Saif Saeed Shaheen of Qatar will not compete in Athens because of a conflict over his nationality switch from Kenya last year. The Kenyan-born Shaheen, formerly known as Stephen Cherono, has not received permission from the Kenyan committee to compete for Qatar.
SOCCER: U.S. women triumph
Abby Wambach scored three goals and set up another, leading the United States past Norway 4-1 for its second straight Algarve Cup title in Faro, Portugal. Lindsay Tarpley had the other goal the Americans. France took third place, beating Italy 4-3 in a penalty-kick shootout.
UNITED: Tim Howard's defensive lapses have cost him his job as Manchester United's No.1 goalkeeper before its two most important matches this season. The American was on the bench when United beat Tottenham 3-0 in the English Premier League. Roy Carroll played instead - against American goalkeeper Kasey Keller - and gave United its first shutout in two months.
RECORD STREAK: Arsenal ran its unbeaten streak to 29 to equal the longest such start by a team in England's top division.
WINTER SPORTS: Kildow, Rahlves are super
Lindsey Kildow won the women's super-giant slalom at the U.S. Alpine Championships in Girdwood, Alaska, one day after sustaining a slight concussion in a fall during the downhill. Daron Rahlves won the men's super-giant slalom.
SPEED SKATING: Song Suk-woo won the men's 500-meter sprint at the world short-track speed-skating championships in Goteborg, Sweden, and American Rusty Smith was taken to the hospital with a severe nose injury after getting hit by a skate. American Apolo Anton Ohno was eliminated after finishing third in the quarterfinals.
ET CETERA
BOWLING: Five-time PBA champion Pete Couture and amateurs Mark Lewis and Bob Hanson were inducted into the Hall of Fame in Reno, Nev.
CROSS COUNTRY: Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele won the 4-kilometer title at the world championships for the third straight year, and Australian Benita Johnson won the women's 8K in Brussels, Belgium.
