Newsmakers

Elected To her nine U.S. and five world championships, Michelle Kwan can now add the title of Hall of Famer. The most decorated figure skater in American history, Kwan was elected to the U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame on Thursday, the only selection for the class of 2012. Kwan had an amazing career, winning 43 championships, including eight straight national titles. She also won the silver medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics and bronze at the 2002 Games.

• Former top-ranked tennis player Marat Safin won a seat in Russia’s lower house of Parliament and will represent the pro-Kremlin party United Russia. The 31-year-old Safin will be one of the youngest members in the 450-seat legislature. Safin retired from tennis in 2009 after winning two Grand Slam titles.

Agreed The Minnesota Twins welcomed Josh Willingham to the team, a move that had many bracing for a wave goodbye to Michael Cuddyer. Willingham agreed to a $21 million, three-year contract, giving the Twins a player with strikingly similar offensive numbers to Cuddyer’s over the past six seasons.

Honored Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy was honored as the national coach of the year by the Football Writers Association of America. Gundy was chosen as the winner of the Eddie Robinson Award. The other finalists were Michigan’s Brady Hoke, LSU’s Les Miles, Kansas State’s Bill Snyder and Clemson’s Dabo Swinney.

Extended Utah State’s first trip to a postseason bowl in 14 years earned coach Gary Andersen another one-year contract extension. School officials announced the deal two days before the Aggies (7-5) square off against Ohio in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise. The extension keeps Andersen under contract through 2017.

Hired Liberty brought in Turner Gill as its new football coach and the school also hired a firm to help it study the feasibility of moving up to the Bowl Subdivision.

Signed Major League Soccer’s Portland Timbers signed 19-year-old forward Jose Adolfo Valencia, son of former Colombia national team star Adolfo Valencia. The younger Valencia, nicknamed “El Trencito (The Little Train),” helped Colombia reach the quarterfinals of this year’s FIFA Under-20 World Cup.

Appealed British boxer Amir Khan appealed the scoring in his split-decision loss to American Lamont Peterson in their light-welterweight title fight. The 25-year-old Englishman lost his WBA and IBF titles in the defeat in Washington on Saturday after points were deducted on two occasions for pushing.