MELBOURNE (AP) ― Third-seeded Victoria Azarenka won 12 straight games to finish off Heather Watson 6-1, 6-0 in 67 minutes Monday in the opening match on center court at the Australian Open.Azarenka, one of six women who can finish atop the rankings depending on results at Melbourne Park, is coming off a win at the Sydney International last week.“Well, the score is easy. To actually play the match, it’s never easy, especially for me coming here only Saturday,” Azarenka said, adding she was unsett

LONDON (AP) ― Arsenal’s hopes of a late challenge for the English Premier League title took what could be a decisive blow on Sunday with a 3-2 defeat at newcomer Swansea.Robin van Persie put the Gunners ahead early with his 18th goal of the season but Swansea outplayed and outpassed what has long been one of England’s most attractive teams.Scott Sinclair struck a 16th-minute penalty before Nathan Dyer made it 2-1 to the Swans 12 minutes after halftime. Theo Walcott equalized in the 69th but Arse

3-1 win over Thailand bodes well for 2012 LondonSouth Korea’s U23 team manager Hong Myung-bo expressed confidence about the team’s 2012 London Olympics qualification after a 3-1 victory over Thailand in the King’s Cup tournament Sunday.With a decisive match against Saudi Arabia in the Olympics qualifiers next month, Hong included several first choice players in the lineup against Thailand, including Gwangju FC striker Kim Dong-sub.Thailand started confidently, narrowly missing early chances, whi

PORTO SANTO STEFANO, Italy (AP) -- Survivors who escaped a luxury cruise liner that ran aground and tipped over off Italy’s coast recounted a chaotic and terrifying evacuation through the ship’s upended hallways on Saturday, as divers searched the submerged part for any people still unaccounted for in the confusion.Three bodies were recovered from the sea after the Costa Concordia with 4,234 people aboard ran aground hundreds of meters off the tiny island of Giglio near the coast of Tuscany late

Korean institutions vie for students from Central, South AmericaSix years ago, no Guatemalan had ever studied for a full degree in Korea. But now, almost 50 scholars from the Central American country have graduated from universities here and returned to use their Korean degrees to influence politics and business back home.With some new arrivals in February, more than 50 Guatemalans will be studying at Korean universities, and elite colleges are striving to attract more Latin Americans to create

Seoul strives to minimize adverse economic impact  by securing stable oil supply from Middle EastSouth Korea will have in-depth consultations with the U.S. this week over the scope of its participation in toughened Washington-led sanctions against Iran and how to minimize its impact on the local economy.Robert Einhorn, U.S. special adviser for nonproliferation and arms control, will come here on Monday for a three-day visit to explain the sanctions and secure the Asian ally’s support for them. S

A freight ship carrying oil exploded in waters off the port city of Incheon Sunday morning, killing five crew members and causing six others to go missing, the Coast Guard said. The explosion of the 4,191-ton vessel Doola No. 3 took place in waters five kilometers north of Jawol Island near Incheon around at 8:05 a.m., the Coast Guard said. Five people aboard the ship were rescued.A total of 11 Korean and five Myanmarese crewmen were aboard the ship, the Coast Guard said. Doola Shipping, which

Headmaster says Dwight school believes spark of genius in every childAn elite international school opening in Seoul this August looks to harness the academic fervor here to offer students an educational experience beyond the mindless repetition which critics say plagues them.According to the headmaster at Dwight International School Seoul, the school will seek to offer education that follows an internationally recognized curriculum that will not have students learn simply to regurgitate informat

 The Nuclear Security Summit that will open in Seoul on March 26 will bring together heads of states united in their commitment to strengthen the international nuclear security regime and confront the threat of nuclear terrorism. Building on the success of the first summit, held in the U.S. in 2010, the Seoul meeting is well-positioned to ensure that nuclear security remains at the top of the international security agenda. At the same time, the summit participants will have to deal with signific