War delays showpiece ball games

Major league baseball has cancelled the season-opening series in Japan between Seattle and Oakland because of the threat of war in Iraq.

"Given the uncertainty that now exists throughout the world, we believe the safest course of action for the players involved and the many staff personnel who must work the games is to reschedule the opening series," the commissioner Bud Selig said. "It would be unfair and terribly unsettling for them to be half a world away - away from their families - at this critical juncture."

The teams had planned to leave yesterday for games on March 25 and 26 at the Tokyo Dome, but plans were put on hold on Tuesday. The games will now be played on April 3 and June 30 in Oakland.

The imminent war could also "alter the tone and possibly the size" of a planned protest during the Masters golf tournament, according to its organiser Martha Burk.

However Burk, chair of the National Council of Women's Organizations, said yesterday that war would not stop her from protesting on April 12 at the front gates of the Augusta National - unless the all-male club allows female members, or postpones the tournament.