Korean captain  gets the boot

South Korea captain Lee Woon-jae has been axed from the Asian Player of the Year shortlist after receiving a one-year ban for a late-night drinking session during the Asian Cup in Jakarta in July.

The Asian Football Confederation said it had decided to exclude Lee from the nominees shortlist. Lee had been was among 15 candidates for the award which will be presented in Sydney on Nov. 28.

The 34-year-old goalkeeper was last week suspended from the Korean team for one year along with three other players. Lee was also banned from games hosted by the KFA for three year.

Armstrong conquers another front

Seven-times Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong reached his New York City Marathon goal on Sunday, by breaking two hours, 50 minutes in his second race over the distance. Armstrong, who retired from cycling after his 2005 Tour victory, ran 2:46:43, nearly 13 minutes faster than his marathon debut here last year of 2:59:36.

"I think I came in better prepared," said the 36-year-old, who fittingly wore a yellow jersey in the race. "For me running is the best type of workout right now because with a busy lifestyle and travel, all you need is a pair of running shoes and you can do it in any city in the world."

Armstrong headed a marathon 'team' of more than 130 runners contributing to support cancer research. He overcame the disease to win the Tour de France for the first time in 1999.

The other way  round this time

The FA took the unusual step of charging referee Danny McDermid with using abusive and/or insulting words towards Leeds United manager Dennis Wise after a fiery English League One match last month.

McDermid sent Wise to the stands at halftime of the match on Sept. 29 as Leeds drew 1-1 at Gillingham and had two players sent off.  The FA said Wise had been fined 5,000 pounds ($10,280) and given a three-match touchline ban for using abusive and/or insulting words towards McDermid at halftime in the third division match.

Bilardo on a different mission

Former Argentina coach Carlos Bilardo, who led his country to World Cup victory in 1986, said he is set to enter politics.

Bilardo, popularly known as Narigon (Big Nose), said in a radio interview that he had been offered a post as sports secretary of Buenos Aires province by governor-elect Daniel Scioli, who won Sunday's election.

Bilardo was in charge of the Diego Maradona-inspired team which won the World Cup in Mexico in 1986 and was also at the helm when the South Americans finished runners-up four years later in Italy. As a player, he was part of the notorious Estudiantes team which won the Libertadores Cup three times in a row.

Bilardo, 68, quit his last coaching job with Estudiantes in 2004 and currently works as a television presenter.

Blank space stares at sumo champs

Japan's historic sumo ranking chart is missing a name for the first time in 134 years, reflecting the turmoil caused by the death of a teenage trainee.

The "banzuke" chart, which has been published since 1757, usually ranks the top 42 wrestlers in the sport, but the most recent version listed only 41. The missing name is that of Tokitsuumi, who resigned as a wrestler and became master of his sumo training stable. His predecessor was expelled from the sport following the death of a 17-year-old trainee, whom he admitted striking with a beer bottle.