HONG KONG, Oct. 26, 2011 (Xinhua) — Cheng Kwok Fai (R) and Leung Ho Tsun Andy of China’s Hong Kong team compete in Hong Kong Open Windsurfing Championships 2011 in Hong Kong, south China, Oct. 26, 2011. (Photo by Xinhua/Lo Ping Fai)

MOSCOW, Oct. 20, 2011 (Xinhua) — Marion Bartoli of France hits a return against Ksenia Pervak of Russia during their match at the Kremlin Cup 2011 tennis tournament in Moscow. Marion Bartoli won 2-0. (Photo by Xinhua/Li Yong)

GUADALAJARA, Oct. 20, 2011 (Xinhua) — Athletes of Argentina compete in the preliminary synchronized swimming technical team routine during the Pan American Games Guadalajara 2011, Mexico, on Oct. 19, 2011. (Photo by Xinhua/Guillermo Arias)

TOKYO, Oct. 12, 2011 (Xinhua) — Teng Haibin of China performs on the parallel bars during the men’s team final at the 43rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Tokyo. Team China won the title of the men’s team event with 275.161 points. (Photo by Xinhua/Chen Xiaowei)

TEHRAN, Oct. 12, 2011 (Xinhua) — Khosro Heidari (R) of Iran vies for the ball with Ismaeel Latif of Bahrain during the 2014 World Cup qualification match at Azadi Stadium in Tehran, Iran, Oct. 11, 2011. Iran won 6-0. (Photo by Xinhua/Ahmad Halabisaz)

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) — NBA commissioner David Stern announced Monday that the first two weeks of the 2011-2012 regular season will be canceled after failing to reach a new labor deal.

“Despite extensive efforts, we have not been able to reach a new agreement with the players’ union that allows all 30 teams to be able to compete for a championship while fairly compensating our players,” the NBA said in a statement.

Stern said he is canceling all scheduled regular season games through November 14 after several hours of meetings on Monday in effort to reach the deal.

The two sides are not even close on key issues, according to Stern. “We just have a gulf that separates us,” he said.

TOKYO, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) — Andy Murray of Britain dethroned defending champion Rafael Nadal of Spain 2-1 to clinch the men’s singles title of the Japan Open tennis championship here on Sunday.

Without losing a set all the way to the final, the world second-ranking Nadal came into the game with a 6-3 win of the first set. But the Spanish failed to keep his momentum, losing two straight sets to Murray by 2-6 and 0-6. Continue Reading

BEIJING, Oct. 3,2011 (Xinhua) — Peng Shuai of China at the second round of women’s singles against Flavia Pennetta of Italy at 2011 China Open Tennis Tournament in Beijing, China Oct. 3, 2011. Peng Shuai lost 0-2. (Photo by Xinhua/Gong Lei)

BEIJING, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) — World number five Li Na cut a poor figure in the opening round of the China Open on Sunday, slumping to a straight sets defeat to the unknown Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu.

Li, who broke up with her Danish coach Michael Mortenson after staging a string of disappointing results since being crowned as French Open champion, still fell off the pace on home court under the guidance of his husband coach Jiang Shanand lost 6-4, 6-0 in just one hour and 21 minutes. Continue Reading

WUHAN, Sept. 24, 2011 (Xinhua) — Players of Jordan celebrate with their national flag after the semifinal match against the Philippines at the 26th Asian Basketball Championships in Wuhan, capital of central China’s Hubei province on Sept. 24, 2011. Jordan won the match 75-61. (Photo by Xinhua/Meng Yongmin)

MEXICO CITY, Sept. 24, 2011 (Xinhua) — Mexican President Felipe Caldero (L) gives the national flag to Juan Rene Serrano (R) during a meeting with Mexican delegation that will participate in the Pan American Games, in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, on Sept. 23, 2011. (Photo by Xinhua/Pedro Mera)

NEW YORK, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) — The NBA announced the cancellation of 43 pre-season games and the postpone of training camps indefinitely.

The representatives for the NBA owners and players union are still at an impasse over a new collective bargaining labour agreement after a series of talks. Continue Reading