Tennis star moves closer in defense of her title
Venus Williams has beaten Naomi Cavaday in the first round of Wimbledon. Williams took out her competition in 77 minutes on Tuesday, moving closer to the defense of her 2007 title at the British tournament. “I felt that my level was good,” says Williams. “I think it’s nice to have a really challenging opponent early on, especially having not played since the French. So it was good to have that challenge early on.” Williams overcame an early distraction to grab the win: “I was about to serve. I felt something on my leg. I looked down. It was a bee, a big old bumble bee. I was trying to get it to go off. I was trying to get it off without getting stung, you know how they usually fly back at you. Then I ended up losing that service game, so I guess the bumblebee got me off to a bad start.”

Sheriff disses Shaq after dis of ex-teammate
Although Shaquille O’Neal insists his “freestyle” against Lakers star Kobe Bryant – circulated widely on TV and the Web – was all in fun, an Arizona cop isn’t laughing. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is demanding Shaq’s law enforcement shields, saying the Phoenix Suns center’s behavior didn’t become his special deputy reserve status. Arpaio promoted Shaq to reserve colonel last year, but he doesn’t approve of the NBA star’s public use of profanity and the word ni**er. Among lyrics Shaq delivered at a New York nightclub this past weekend: “Kobe, tell me how my a** tastes.” The dis followed L.A.’s six-game championship loss to Boston last week, which O’Neal attributed to his trade from L.A. to Phoenix. “I want his two badges back,” Arpaio tells The Associated Press, “because if any one of my deputies did something like this, they’re fired. I don’t condone this type of racial conduct.” O’Neal has said he wants to be a sheriff after retiring from the NBA. For more, go to Playa Hater.

TAGS: Kobe, Shaq, Venus, Williams, Wimbledon

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