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In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors.
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MLS MVP Ruiz suspended by league for two games
Thursday June 19, 2003
CARSON, Calif. (AP) Los Angeles Galaxy forward Carlos Ruiz,
Major League Soccer's 2002 MVP, was suspended for two games and
fined $1,000 Thursday by the league's Disciplinary Committee.
Ruiz was suspended for the Galaxy's next two contests and fined
because of a play that left Kansas City Wizards defender Carey
Talley with a fractured bone in his face.
According to a statement issued by the Galaxy, a review of
videotape of the June 14 game in Carson showed that Ruiz and Talley
were jostling for position for a ball in flight. As Ruiz prepared
to jump and challenge for the ball, he swung his right elbow back
toward Talley, who sustained a fractured left orbital bone.
The contact was more delivering a blow rather than merely
warding off a challenge, the committee ruled. The committee made
its decision after learning that the incident was not seen clearly
by the game officials, the statement said. Ruiz and Talley both
were interviewed by the committee.
Talley will miss Saturday's game against Chicago and will be
evaluated further next week to determine his future availability, a
Wizards spokeswoman said.
The Galaxy declined comment on the suspension.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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