SOCCER

MATERAZZI ADMITS HE INSULTED ZIDANE Marco Materazzi acknowledged he insulted Zinedine Zidane before the French captain head-butted him in the World Cup final, but repeated his denial that he called Zidane a “terrorist.”

“I did insult him, it’s true,” Materazzi said in yesterday’s Gazzetta dello Sport. “But I categorically did not call him a terrorist. I’m not cultured and I don’t even know what an Islamic terrorist is.”

A Paris-based anti-racism group issued a statement Monday saying Materazzi had called Zidane, whose parents emigrated to France from Algeria, a “dirty terrorist.”

Zidane and Materazzi exchanged words in extra-time of Sunday’s final in Berlin. Seconds later, Zidane lowered his head and rammed Materazzi in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Zidane was ejected from the match.

“I held his shirt for a few seconds only, then he turned round and spoke to me, sneering,” the Italian defender told the newspaper. “He looked me up and down, arrogantly and said: ‘If you really want my shirt, I’ll give it to you afterwards.’ “

The 32-year-old Inter Milan player did not elaborate on exactly what he said to Zidane. “It was one of those insults you’re told tens of times and that always fly around the pitch,” he said.

REPORT: KLINSMANN QUITS AS GERMAN COACH Juergen Klinsmann, who coached Germany to a third-place finish at the World Cup last week, is stepping down, the co-president of the German soccer federation said yesterday.

“I regret his decision, but we have to accept it,” Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder said.

The mass-circulation Bild newspaper and the Sueddeutsche Zeitung first reported in their Wednesday editions that Klinsmann wouldn’t extend his contract that ended with the World Cup. Klinsmann called German soccer federation (DFB) co-president Theo Zwanziger and national team manager Oliver Bierhoff to tell them that he would not be staying in the job, the papers reported.

Klinsmann’s rejuvenated team went beyond expectations by finishing third, after losing to eventual champion Italy 2–0 in the semifinals. Klinsmann, 41, had no previous coaching experience when he took over an ailing German squad two years ago.

TRACK AND FIELD

CHINA’S LIU BREAKS WORLD RECORD IN 100M HURDLES Liu Xiang of China set a world record in the 110-meter hurdles yesterday, breaking the record he shared with Britain’s Colin Jackson. Liu’s time of 12.88 seconds at the Athletissima Grand Prix in Lausanne, Switzerland was .03 better than the record he matched in winning gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Jackson ran 12.91 in Stuttgart, Germany, in August 1993.

Marion Jones won again in the women’s 100, her sixth victory in eight meets this season, leading a U.S. sweep of the top four places in that event. In the men’s 200, American Xavier Carter ran the second-fastest race in history. American Dominique Arnold was second in the hurdles in 12.90, also faster than the previous record.

BASKETBALL

T-WOLVES INK JAMES TO FOUR-YEAR DEAL Desperate for an experienced point guard, the Minnesota Timberwolves went and got the best one left on the free-agent market yesterday, reaching an agreement with Mike James on a four-year deal, according to James’s agent. James, who is coming off a career year with Toronto, will get the Timberwolves’ full mid-level exception, which is worth about $5 million in 2006–07. He averaged a career-high 20.3 points and 5.8 assists last season.

HOCKEY

FORSBERG WON’T NEED SURGERY, COULD PLAY IN OPENER Peter Forsberg doesn’t need surgery on his left ankle and could be ready for the start of the NHL season, more than four months earlier than the Philadelphia Flyers forward was expected to return.The center’s right ankle was operated on two months ago.

– Associated Press