Lewis Hamilton continued Mercedes' dominant start to the season by capturing pole position at the rainy Chinese Grand Prix on Saturday; his third pole in four races this season.

Hamilton set the fastest time in qualifying at 1 minute, 53.860 seconds at Shanghai International Circuit, ahead of Red Bull drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel in second and third position.

Brazilian football star Neymar said Friday he would be well enough to play in the World Cup in June despite a foot injury that could force him to miss the rest of the club season.

The 22-year-old Barcelona player injured his left foot Wednesday during a 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid in Spain's Copa del Rey final.

Manchester United manager David Moyes will be under the spotlight when he returns to Everton on Sunday for the first time since he left the club for Old Trafford at the end of last season.

Moyes was in charge at Goodison Park for 11 years before leaving when his contract expired to replace Alex Ferguson, British football's most successful manager, at United following his fellow Scot's retirement.

Rafael Nadal won't panic after having his cloak of claycourt invincibility ripped to shreds by David Ferrer, but admits he needs to quickly rediscover his famed Spanish fire.

The world number one suffered just his third career defeat in Monte Carlo when he slumped to a shock 7-6 (7/1), 6-4 quarterfinal loss to compatriot Ferrer on Friday.

Liverpool visit Norwich City this weekend, determined to maintain focus on the task in hand despite growing national excitement about their bid to be crowned Premier League champions.

Last weekend's pulsating 3-2 defeat of title rivals Manchester City left Brendan Rodgers's side two points above Chelsea at the summit and needing four wins to guarantee a first league title since 1990.

Bayern Munich need a convincing win at Bundesliga bottom side Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday to dismiss talk of a mini-crisis ahead of their Champions League semifinal at Real Madrid.

With only two wins in their last six games, Bayern have suffered a dip since winning the Bundesliga nearly a month ago with a record seven games to spare.

Juventus will look to a possible slip-up by closest challengers Roma at Fiorentina as the Turin giants begin the countdown to claiming a third consecutive Serie A title.

Roma's faint hopes of a first scudetto since 2001 were kept in check on Monday when Juve restored their eight-point lead at the top with a comfortable 2-0 win away at Udinese.

Fernando Alonso brought some welcome cheer to Ferrari after a troubled week by setting the fastest time in first practice for the Chinese grand prix on Friday.

However it was a mixed morning for the Italian giants and their new team principal Marco Mattiacci, who was installed after Stefano Domenicali dramatically quit on Monday, as Kimi Raikkonen was unable to complete a timed lap after mechanical problems.

Eight-time champion Rafael Nadal had little trouble reaching the quarterfinals of the Monte Carlo Masters, beating Italian Andreas Seppi 6-1, 6-3 on Thursday.

Fourth-seeded Roger Federer also got through, shaking off a slow start before dispatching Czech player Lukas Rosol 6-4, 6-1 in a little under one hour.

Dozens of Palestinian girls and women, most of them newcomers to the world of running, got a lesson in the basics Thursday from a track and field great — three-time Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee.

The American, considered one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century, came to the West Bank to encourage women to be physically active despite cultural restrictions and lack of opportunities.