Lietuvos Rytas (SEB) surprised many on Nov. 16 when it announced that head basketball coach Sharon Drucker would be replaced by Zmago Sagadin, 54. Sagadin coached Slovenia's Union Olimpija Ljubljana for 16 years, claiming eight Slovenian League titles between 1992 and 2001 and another in 2006. The team also claimed an Adriatic League trophy in 2002, but Sagadin's coaching highlight was when his team qualified for the Final Four in 1997. Almost as important, Sagadin built Olimpija's reputation as a team producing players for Europe's biggest clubs and the NBA.
Hungarian soccer Legend Ferenc Puskas who was in the hospital for six years with Alzheimer's disease, died in Budapest on Nov. 17 from a fever and pneumonia. Puskas led Hungary's golden team of the early 1950s, before taking Spanish citizenship and becoming part of Real Madrid. Between 1945 and 1956, the athlete scored 83 goals in 84 games for Hungary and later played for Spain in the 1962 World Cup. In 1952, Puskas earned his country an Olympic Gold medal. After his retirement in 1967, the Hungarian went on to coach club soccer, leading Greek's Panathanaikos to the European Cup final in 1971. Puskas was voted the 20th century's sixth best player by the International Federation for Football History and Statistics.
World tennis champion Roger Federer claimed the Masters Cup title in Shanghai on Nov. 18, beating James Blake 6-0, 6-3, 6-4. Federer claimed his third title within an hour and 37 minutes. He previously won the 2003 and 2004 Masters Cups, with a surprise defeat by David Nalbandian in last year's final. Federer's earned $1.52 million for his unbeaten run through the tournament, becoming the first player to earn more than $8 million in a season. The match was his 29th win in a row and 92nd of the year, with three Grand Slam victories. Federer said he could not have played any better. "I even had to laugh at one stage at how well I was playing," he said. "I always came up with a great answer. I was in control all the time and pretty much everything I wanted to do, I did."
The international boxing tournament, Laimas Balva 2006, which included 57 boxers from across the world, ended on Nov. 20 in Riga. Estonian Jury Klochenok beat his Finnish opponent 5 - 0 in the first round, but had to step out of the tournament due to an arm injury. However, he came back in a heavier weight category (up to 60 kilograms) category with a bronze medal. Fellow Estonians Eugeny Gorbachev and Artur Kendsiko lost to Latvian (1-4) and Lithuanian (0-5) boxers respectively.
