Sporting briefs

Scottish Cup: Quarter-final draw - St Mirren or Rangers vs Dundee United; Hibernian vs Ross County; Kilmarnock vs Celtic; Dundee vs Raith Rovers or Aberdeen. Ties will be played on Mar 13.

Woman ref: Amy Fearn has become the first woman to referee an English football league match. Fearn's chance to make history came after 71 minutes of Coventry City's 1-0 win over N. Forest on Tuesday, when the original referee, Tony Bates, limped off with a calf injury. Fearn, who had been running the line, took the whistle while the fourth official stood in for her.

Triestina: Daniele Arrigoni is the new coach of Serie B side Triestina after the club parted with Mario Somma earlier this week. Arrigoni hasn't been in the game since he was sacked by Bologna last season. Triestina lost 1-0 at home to Sassuolo last weekend and are just one point above the relegation zone.

Milan: Dubai's Emirates Airlines said yesterday it would sign a sponsorship contract with Milan, without disclosing the value or the duration of the deal. Emirates already sponsors Arsenal, Hamburg, Paris Saint-Germain and Olympiakos.

Jovanovic: Standard Liege forward Milan Jovanovic claims he has agreed terms with Liverpool. The 28-year-old's current deal with the Belgian club expires in the summer and he is free to sign a pre-contract agreement with any foreign side. "We have reached an agreement for three years, with the option to extend for another season," Jovanovic said.

Southend: Southend's winding-up order in London's High Court was adjourned for 28 days yesterday. HM Revenue and Customs has issued a winding-up petition against the League One outfit over an unpaid debt of £200,000.

London 2012: The cost of the London 2012 Olympics could rise by up to £180 million, mainly because of security, but will remain within budget, organisers said. The anticipated final cost is set to rise by £21 million, largely as a result of the poor economic climate, but a further 110 to 160 million could be spent on securing the Olympic Park, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said in its latest financial reports.

Motor racing: A social networking campaign by F1 fans has swayed Singapore GP organisers into creating a new Premier Walkabout ticket, allowing greater access to this year's event for roving spectators on a budget. Instead of paying $767 for a grandstand seat, the $245 three-day ticket will offer fans various viewing points around the circuit, including designated areas right at the heart of the street circuit around the pit lane. The 2010 Singapore GP will take place on Sept. 26.

Basket, NBA: All-Stars Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups returned to the Denver Nuggets line-up to inspire a 127-91 victory over Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday. Anthony scored 19 points after missing eight games because of an ankle injury, while Billups had 16 following a one-game absence, also due to an ankle problem. The defeat was the Southwest Division-leading Mavericks (32-20) worst of the season.

Formula One: Lotus returned to a Formula One track for the first time in 16 years on Tuesday when test driver Fairuz Fauzy gave their car a shakedown at Silverstone. The yellow and green Lotus brand has been brought back to F1 by a Malaysian consortium and the car will be officially unveiled in London tomorrow before entering the third official test session in Spain next week.

Figure skating: A wide-eyed Mark Ladwig could only wonder what it would be like to be an Olympian when he turned up at the 2002 Salt City Games as a volunteer. Eight years on and the 29-year-old American is about to realise his dream as he will be competing at the Vancouver Olympics in the pairs figure skating competition. "It feels really good to have a credential around my neck again, the only difference is that it's now a different colour," Ladwig said.