Mohajerani (r) at a football match in Iran's Football League accompanied by Ali Parvin, Iranian veteran coach in Dastgerdi Stadium (File Photo).

TEHRAN, Dec. 21--Heshmat Mohajerani, Iran’s Football National Team ex-coach, was named the team’s manager on Wednesday.
The head coach of Iran’s National Team in 1978 World Cup was elected by the transitory board, Mehr News Agency wrote.
Mohajerani, one of greatest Iranian football trainers, founded modern football in UAE over past years and led Emirates Youth Team in Asian Championship.
He will offer his plans to the transitory board which plays key role in choosing the new head coach for Iran’s national team on Sunday.
Mohajerani will propose either French Jacques Santini or Arthur Jorge of Portugal for Iran’s head coach on Sunday.

TEHRAN, Dec. 21--Naft wrestling team ranked first in Iran’s Wrestling Premiere League after defeating Sanaye-o Ma’aden of Hamedan on Thursday.
Naft earned narrow victory of 4-3 over Sanaye-o Ma’aden at Tehran’s Haftom-e Tir Gymnasium, Mehr News Agency reported.
In another match, Rah Ahan( Rail Road) of Khorasan beat 5-2 Gaz (Gas) of Mazandaran and placed third in the league at the gymnasium.
The best wrestlers were awarded by the organizers at the end of competitions.
Also, Abdollah Movahhed, winner of six Olympic and world championship medals, was hailed for his services to Iran’s Wrestling Team on Thursday.

DAMASCUS, Syria, Dec. 21--Manateq-e Naftkhiz (Oil-Rich Regions) of Iran won the Asian Clubs Weightlifting Championship held in Damascus, Syria.
According to IRNA, the team bagged a total of 22 medals (9 gold medals, 7 silver medals and 6 bronze medals) in the tournament. Syrian club and Uzbekistan’s representative finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Hossein Rezazadeh, two-time Olympic gold medalist is a member of Manateq-e Naftkhis, however he did not participate in the competitions because of absence of his rivals.

St. Louis Rams wide receiver Drew Bennett (83) fails to make the catch against Pittsburgh Steelers Ike Taylor (24) in the second quarter of NFL action in St Louis on Thursday.

axNEW YORK, Dec. 21-- Ben Roethlisberger passed for three touchdowns to lead the Pittsburgh Steelers to a 41-24 road victory over the St Louis Rams on Thursday.
The win kept the Steelers (10-5) on top of the AFC North Division, but it proved to be a costly one when running back Willie Parker broke his right leg on the second play of the game meaning he will miss the remainder of the season, Reuters said.
His replacement, Najeh Davenport, rushed for 123 yards and a touchdown and caught a TD pass.
Roethlisberger completed 16-of-20 passes for 261 yards, connecting with Nate Washington for two of the touchdown passes. The second put the Steelers ahead to stay at 17-14 in the second quarter.
Davenport then caught a 12-yard pass from Roethlisberger and the Steelers went 24-14 up with less than two minutes left in the half.
St Louis (3-12) pulled within 31-24 on Marc Bugler’s third touchdown of the game, a 23-yarder to Drew Bennett, but Pittsburgh scored 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter with Ike Taylor returning an interception 51-yards to cap the scoring.

NYON, Switzerland, Dec. 21--Premier League leaders Arsenal have been drawn against holders Milan in a mouthwatering Champions League last 16 tie.
According to Eurosport, Liverpool, the team Milan beat in the 2007 final, must take on the Italians’ city rivals Internazionale while Celtic face a glamour tie against Barcelona.
Manchester United and Chelsea both benefit from topping their respective groups, with manageable draws against Lyon and Olympiacos respectively.
Arsene Wenger’s side has only played one competitive tie against Milan, in the 1995 UEFA Super Cup. The Gunners drew 0-0 at Highbury but went down 2-0 in Italy.
While Arsenal top the table in England, Milan’s fine continental form is in sharp contrast to a dismal run at home that has left them 11th in Serie A, a massive 22 points off the pace set by Inter.
Although the Nerazzurri are less well-known than their San Siro co-tenants, they will arguably pose an even tougher test for Liverpool.
Roberto Mancini’s team were the runaway league champions last season, and have built a seven-point cushion at the top this term, going 16 games unbeaten.
Celtic know all about Barcelona, having faced them in the 2004/05 group stage, a season after beating them in the UEFA Cup.
The Catalans are perhaps the most star-studded side in the competition, boasting star names such as Thierry Henry, Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o and Deco.
Elsewhere in the draw, Roma take on Real Madrid, while Porto tackle Schalke and Fenerbahce play Sevilla.
Matches will be played over two legs on 19/20 February and 4/5 March, although the second leg of Inter’s tie with Liverpool will be played on 11 March 2008 due to a stadium clash with Milan. First-named teams play first leg at home.

ROME, Dec. 21-- If the America’s Cup is the Formula One of sailing, then Russell Coutts is giving enthusiasts the chance to sample being the equivalent of Lewis Hamilton or Fernando Alonso.
The New Zealander has created a new class, RC 44, designed to take amateurs up close and personal with the experience of competing in sailing’s most prestigious event.
“It’s a new concept that combines many of the sport’s different elements into one format,“ Coutts told Reuters in a telephone interview.
“It basically gives people the chance to experience America’s Cup racing in a simpler format. And they seem to enjoy it.“
Coutts was speaking at the end of the maiden season of the RC 44 Championship Tour in which amateur yacht owners raced alongside, and against, America’s Cup big guns such as himself, James Spithill and Dean Barker.
The eight regattas are made up of fleet races with the owners at the helm and one-on-one match races when the pro skippers call the shots.
“The owners can only have four professionals on their team in the fleet racing,“ explained the three-time America’s Cup-winning skipper and Olympic gold medalist. “Then we drive in the match racing, so they can see and learn from us.“

MIAMI, USA, Dec. 21-- Former Super Bowl-winning coach Bill Parcells has agreed to join the Miami Dolphins as executive vice president for football operations, the Miami Herald reported on Thursday.
The Dolphins were not immediately available for comment on the report which comes a day after Parcells pulled out a deal for a similar job with Atlanta.
Miami have had a dreadful season, winning their first game last Sunday to stand 1-13.
Parcells, who coached the New York Giants to two Super Bowl titles and led the New England Patriots to a Super Bowl, has been working as a TV commentator since he left the Dallas Cowboys after the 2006 season.
He coached the Cowboys to a 34-32 record from 2003-06. This year Dallas (12-2) shares the best record in the National Football Conference with the Green Bay Packers.
His job at Miami is likely to involve a major overhaul of the franchise’s scouting and draft operations as the team, currently coached by Cam Cameron, look to rebuild.

UTTARADIT, Thailand, Dec. 21--Iranian bicycle rider Ahad Kazemi of Tabriz Petrochemical Cycling Team clinched victory in the fourth stage of the Tour of Thailand.
According to Preestv, Kazemi rode 214 kilometers and crossed the finishing line in 6 hours 8 minutes 8 seconds (34.88 km/h) ahead of Tonton Susanto (Faeso Denmark) and Hossein Jahanbanian (Tabriz Petrochemical Cycling Team) on Thursday.
“It’s the toughest race in Asia, and I’ve ridden most of them. It was very long and hot, and the hills were really tough. They were very steep and long, and non-stop; there was no rest in between them,“ Kazemi said.
Tour of Thailand cyclists are slated to ride 176 kilometers from Uttaradit city to Phayao on Friday.

DETROIT, USA,
Dec. 21--Pitcher Dontrelle Willis and the Detroit Tigers agreed to a three-year $29 million contract extension on Thursday.
Willis and third baseman Miguel Cabrera joined Detroit earlier in December in a blockbuster eight-player deal with the Florida Marlins, Reuters reported.
“This is the most nervous I have ever been in my life,“ said Willis. “I’m definitely eager to get out here and join an already great ball club and do the best I can to hopefully bring a World Series championship to the club.
“This is an opportunity I never could’ve dreamt of.“
The 2003 National League rookie of the year, Willis struggled early last season posting a career worst 10-15 record, but in 2005 led the major leagues with a 22-10 record.
The 25-year-old lefthander was an All Star in 2003 and 2005 and has a career record of 68-54 with a 3.78 ERA.
Willis joins an imposing Detroit starting rotation that includes Justin Verlander, Kenny Rogers and Jeremy Bonderman.
“They’ve shown a lot of love to take a chance and even offer me a deal,“ said Willis, who according to media reports can earn another $1.5 million in bonuses.
“It shows how much respect they have for me and my abilities.

NEW YORK, Dec. 21-- Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling has called on Roger Clemens to give up four of his Cy Young Awards if he cannot clear his name after allegations in the Mitchell report that he used steroids.
According to Reuters, while Clemens has denied allegations detailed by former Sen. George Mitchell’s report into doping in Major League Baseball, Schilling wrote in his blog that he believes Clemens must take legal action to prove his innocence.
“Roger has denied every allegation brought to the table,“ Schilling wrote.
“So as a fan my thought is that Roger will find a way in short order to organize a legal team to guarantee a retraction of the allegations made, a public apology is made, and his name is completely cleared.
“If he doesn’t do that then there aren’t many options as a fan for me other than to believe his career 192 wins and three Cy Youngs he won prior to 1997 were the end.
“From that point on the numbers were attained through using PEDs (performance enhancing drugs) ... if that is the case with Roger, the four Cy Youngs should go to the rightful winners and the numbers should go away if he cannot refute the accusations.“
Clemens, 45, who was 6-6 last season for the Yankees after joining them midway through the campaign, has won seven Cy Young Awards overall as best pitcher in his league and has a career total of 354 wins, eighth on the all-time list.
Schilling, 41, a 20-year veteran, has compiled 216 career wins and claimed Most Valuable Player honors from the 2001 World Series and from the 1993 National League Championship Series.

MADRID, Spain, Dec. 21-- Barcelona’s French striker Thierry Henry will be available for the weekend match with arch-rivals Real Madrid after almost four weeks out injured, the club said Thursday.
According to AFP, the player “received the green light from doctors and could be one of the big new names on the list“ for the first so-called ’clasico’ match of the season, Barcelona said on their website.
“The therapy done to improve his discopathy has achieved the desired results,“ the statement added.
Henry stopped training on November 25 after suffering a lower back injury.
The 30-year-old, who joined Barca from English Premiership side Arsenal during the summer, has scored five goals in the Spanish league and two in the Champions League this season.
League leaders Real travel to second-placed Barcelona on Sunday.