Sharapova ousted early in Australia

Former champion Maria Sharapova has lost her first-round match at the Australian Open to fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko 7-6 (4), 3-6, 6-4 in Melbourne.

The 14th-seeded Sharapova, who won the Australian Open in 2008 but missed last year's tournament because of shoulder surgery, fell behind 4-1 in the third set, rallied to get back to 4-5, but had her serve broken in the final game.

Second-seeded Dinara Safina won 6-4, 6-4 over Magdalena Rybarikova while Andy Roddick beat Thiemo de Bakker in his first-round men's match 6-1, 6-4, 6-4.

Vonn loses World Cup lead Kathrin Zettel of Austria won a women's World Cup slalom in Maribor, Slovenia, for her second victory in as many days, and Maria Riesch of Germany took the overall lead from Lindsey Vonn by finishing third.

Zettel, who won Saturday's giant slalom, used the fastest second-run time to vault from ninth to first. Riesch finished 1.28 seconds back, while Vonn failed to qualify for the final run and finished 46th. Riesch leads Vonn by 28 points with 13 races left.

Kohn makes Olympics in bobsled Mike Kohn of the United States secured a four-man bobsled spot at the Vancouver Olympics, after finishing sixth in a World Cup race at St. Moritz, Switzerland. Kohn's result means the Americans will have three sleds in the Olympic four-man competition; Steven Holcomb and John Napier already have secured bids

Kohn won a bronze medal at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics with Brian Shimer's team.

• Andi Langenhan led a German sweep of the top three places in a men's luge World Cup race in Germany. Armin Zoeggeler missed a chance to clinch the overall title by finishing sixth. Tony Benshoof of White Bear Lake placed 11th.

• Magnus Moan of Norway won a Nordic combined World Cup event in France, edging overall leader Jason Lamy Chappuis of France by a second. Billy Demong of the United States was fourth.

Soccer: American Clint Dempsey suffered a knee injury playing for Fulham in a 2-0 loss to Blackburn in a Premier League match in London, a possible blow to American preparations for the World Cup. Fulham manager Roy Hodgson said Dempsey may have injured a posterior cruciate ligament.

Soccer coaches win national honors Chuck Scanlan of Apple Valley and Paul Beggin of Mahtomedi pulled off a rare feat for Minnesota boys' high school soccer coaches, sweeping national coach of the year honors at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/Adidas awards banquet Friday in Philadelphia.

Scanlan was the recipient in the large school division. Beggin was honored in the small school division.

Scanlan, the state's winningest coach with 518 victories, won his eighth state championship with the Eagles (24-0) this past fall. Beggin, who has been coach at Mahtomedi since the program started in 1982, guided the Zephyrs to their first Class 1A state championship.

RON HAGGSTROM

• Antonio Vega of Team USA Minnesota, a former cross-country All-America for the Gophers, was the top overall finisher in the Houston Half-Marathon, in a personal-best time of 1:01:54.

Shalane Flanagan, who won the bronze medal in the 10,000 meters in Beijing, won the women's half-marathon in a course-record 1:09:41 in her first attempt at the 13.1-mile distance.

• Ryan Dungey of Belle Plaine raced to his first career AMA Supercross class victory Saturday night in Phoenix. Dungey also took the series lead after two events.

STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS