BEIJING -- Basketball legend Michael Jordan now owns his Chinese name, after Chinas highest court sided with him Thursday following a yearslong legal battle over a trademark dispute.The former NBA star has fought a Chinese sportswear maker since 2012 over the name Qiaodan, pronounced CHEEOW-dan, the transliteration of Jordan in Mandarin.Qiaodan Sports, a company based in southern China, had registered the trademark under which it was selling its own shoes and sportswear.Jordan has been known by the Chinese characters for Qiaodan since he gained widespread popularity in the mid-1980s. He had previously argued unsuccessfully in Beijing courts that Qiaodan Sports had used his Chinese name, his old jersey number 23 and basketball player logo to make it look like he was associated with their brand.The Supreme Peoples Court on Thursday announced that it was overturning two rulings by Beijing courts against Jordan from 2014 and 2015 that had found there wasnt sufficient evidence to support the athletes allegations over the use of his image, and that Qiaodan was the translation of a common family name as the Chinese company claimed.It also ordered the trademark bureau to issue a new ruling on the use of the Chinese characters in the brand name Qiaodan, effectively awarding the trademark to Jordan. The company can continue to use the Romanized spelling of the name, however.Chief judge Tao Kaiyuan said there was an established link between Jordan and the Chinese characters for Qiaodan, which are commonly used by the public when referring to the former basketball player, meaning that Jordan was entitled to protection under the Trademark Law.The courts judgment was shown live on its website.Jordan said in a statement that millions of Chinese fans and consumers had always known him by the name Qiaodan and that he was happy the court recognized his right to protect his name.Chinese consumers deserve to know that Qiaodan Sports and its products have no connection to me. Nothing is more important than protecting your own name, and todays decision shows the importance of that principle, Jordan said.In a statement after the ruling, the company defended its actions but said it would respect the courts decision.In a twist in the legal saga, Qiaodan Sports successfully countersued Jordan in 2013 for preventing it from pursuing a stock market listing because of the trademark lawsuit.The case reflects the difficulties faced by foreign individuals and companies in protecting their copyrights in China, where domestic firms have long taken a cavalier attitude toward intellectual property.Numerous Chinese companies sell products with names that sound similar to well-known foreign brands, often with only one or two letters changed.Chinese law protects foreign companies in cases where their brand was already famous in China before being registered by a Chinese firm seeking to capitalize on its notoriety.However, Apple Inc. lost a legal battle earlier this year when a Beijing court ruled the company had failed to prove that iPhone was a famous brand in China before a Chinese company applied for the iPhone trademark in 2007. 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Now, with Game 6 set for Fenway Park and an 8:07 p.m. ET first pitch, the Detroit Tigers face the unenviable task of having to beat the Boston Red Sox twice, on the road, to advance to the World Series.ASHBURN, Va. -- Last year, the NFC East was a debacle, with the division-winning Washington Redskins taking the lone playoff spot at 9-7.This year, it is been the best division in football so far.Every team has at least two wins, and the Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys are a combined 10-4.The first real division showdown of the season comes Sunday at FedEx Field where the Eagles (3-1) face the Redskins (3-2). The winner would find itself in first place or tied for first if Dallas (4-1) loses on the road to the Green Bay Packers.Last year, Washington swept Philadelphia, clinching the NFC East in the next-to-last week on the road at Lincoln Financial Field. However, the Redskins will see a far more cohesive Eagles team this time around, with rookie quarterback Carson Wentz and new coach Doug Pederson leading Philadelphia.The Redskins ideal scenario on defense would be bringing pressure from all over to force Wentz into youthful mistakes. However, is proving to be a good athlete capable of making plays on the move. Wentz has completed 67.4 percent of his passes.Washington, meanwhile, has struggled to generate consistent pressure through its first five games. Even so, the Redskins cant treat Wentz like an average rookie. He is making opponents who do so pay for it, and he has thrown just one interception in 135 pass attempts. He has seven touchdown passes.When teams blitz, it takes everybody, Wentz said. It takes the O-line picking up guys, getting their jobs done and then receivers winning. It takes receivers, tight ends, running backs. It takes them winning and getting open early. I think weve done a really good job of that. Were all playing on the same page, playing fast.Wentz will be without left tackle Lane Johnson, who had a 10-game suspension by the NFL upheld this week. He begins serving it and wont play. That leaves Wentzs blindside in the hands of a fellow rookie Halapoulivaati Vaitai, who played college football at Texas Christian.The Redskins likely will try to take advantage of Vaitai. They have rotated pass rushers Ryan Kerrigan, Preston Smith and Trent Murphy at outside linebacker all season, and so far Murphy has produced the most.ddddddddddddMurphy, who gained 30 pounds at the teams request to move to defensive end, had to move back to outside linebacker in training camp after a season-ending injury to pass-rush specialist Junior Galette. Murphy has been dynamite with a team-best 4.5 sacks in his third season. He only had six total in his first two years in the NFL.Kerrigan has 2.5 sacks and is dealing with groin and elbow injuries. Smith has been a disappointment after an eight-sack rookie season. He has yet to record one sack in 2016.Better tackling helped fuel Washingtons win against the Baltimore Ravens last Sunday. That had better continue against an Eagles team that has players such as running back Darren Sproles who can punish teams for missing.Compared to the Cleveland game, I thought it was a major improvement, thats for sure, Redskins coach Jay Gruden said of his linebackers and safeties bringing Ravens players to the ground quickly and consistently. I think they took it all upon themselves to make sure they were more sound in their fundamentals as far as tackling is concerned. I got tired of hearing about it.Washington could be without star tight end Jordan Reed, who has a suspected concussion. That would be a major loss. Reed had two touchdowns in the division-clinching win Dec. 26 in Philadelphia.The Redskins need to get the ball to wide receiver DeSean Jackson, either way. He had just four catches the past two weeks. It doesnt hurt that Jackson often torches for former team. In three games against the Eagles since leaving Philadelphia after the 2013 season, Jackson has 13 catches for 283 yards and a touchdown. However, the animosity he held for former Philadelphia coach Chip Kelly, who cut him unceremoniously, is gone now.Doug Pederson is actually a good friend of mine, Jackson said. We got a good relationship when he was in Philly coaching, so I dont have no bad taste in my mouth versus him. Well just play, and hopefully well get this win. ' ' '
