News of the weird

Football: The sport of American Football has been agitated over an incident, captured on television, in which Bill Romanowski, linebacker for the Broncos, unleashed a spray of spit at JJ Stokes, receiver for the 49ers. Romanowski has apologised and described his act as "a bonehead move". He has been defended by Brett Favre, quarterback for Green Bay Packers, who said: "If I was playing a different sport like, say, ice skating or something, then I might consider what he did as kind of lousy. But hey, this is football. Sometimes getting spit on is the least of what happens to you."

Basketball: A judge in Tucson, Arizona, has dismissed as "frivolous" a charge brought by a reporter for an evangelical television channel against a basketball star. When Elizabeth Anderson came to interview Charles Barkley in the men's locker room, he removed his towel - which was all he was wearing - and got dressed while talking to her. She claimed sexual harassment and said he had exposed her to "evil sexual perversion". The Deputy County Attorney said: "She entered the men's locker room voluntarily and knew it was a place where men would be undressing."