VENICE - LANCE Armstrong is getting a warm reception from the Italian cycling community over his decision to enter the Giro d'Italia.

Perhaps nobody in Italy has a closer bond with Armstrong than Ivan Basso, who still recalls how the American took time away from the pursuit of his 2004 Tour de France victory to help Basso's mother fight cancer.

SYDNEY - AUSTRALIA'S former world number one Lleyton Hewitt is training six hours a day as he bids to recover from hip surgery and make a surprise return to the top 10, reports said on Sunday.

The Wimbledon and US Open champion has slumped to 67 in the ATP rankings after an injury-ravaged year and faces a make-or-break 2009 season, starting with next month's Australian Open in Melbourne.

NAPLES (Florida) - SCOTT Hoch and Kenny Perry came out firing to seize the lead on Saturday in the second round of golf's Merrill Lynch Shootout.

Hoch and Perry combined for a blistering 12-under-par 60 to take a four-shot lead over US Ryder Cup heroes Boo Weekley and JB Holmes at the 2.9 million-dollar (S$4.32 million) unofficial event.