A Latvian-American has lost a bid to be elected a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge, according to results of the June 3 California primary election. Eduard R. Abele, a deputy district attorney for the county since 1987, came in third.

Abele ran against criminal prosecutor Michael J. O’Gara and criminal attorney C. Edward Mack.

Abele received 117,799 votes, or 25.87 percent of ballots. O’Gara got 40 percent and Mack earned 34.13 percent, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar’s Office. Because no candidate received a majority of the total votes cast, O’Gara and Mack will face off in the general election in November.

Abele has successfully prosecuted more than 90 criminal cases, according to his campaign Web site. He had endorsements from a number of officials and organizations, including Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley.

Another Latvian-American judge, Dzintra Janavs, would have been up for re-election if she had not decided to retire. Janavs, who spent more than 20 years on the bench, in June 2006 failed to be re-elected to the Los Angeles County Superior Court. She lost to Lynn Diane Olson, a result several observers saw as unfortunate, including the Los Angeles Times, which had endorsed the Republican judge. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in October 2006 then appointed Janavs to an empty seat on the Superior Court. Janavs would have had to run for re-election again if she wanted to keep the new post.

Ernest Gulbis, the first tennis player from Latvia to make it into the quarterfinals of the French Open, lost June 3 in three sets 5-7, 6-7 and 7-5 to Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in Paris.

The 19-year-old Gulbis was the master of speed, according to match statistics reported on the official Web site of the French Open. His fastest serve was 218 kmh, compared to 208 kmh for Djokovic. Gulbis also recorded higher average speeds for his first and second serves.

But Djokovic, a longtime friend of Gulbis’ and the No. 3 singles player, nonetheless proved more patient. He recorded only one double fault, compared to seven for Gulbis. And the Latvian had 60 unforced errors, while Djokovic had 36.

The game lasted 3 hours and 7 minutes in less than ideal conditions, according to media reports. Play was hampered by wind and rain.

For Gulbis, the French Open is over. Djokovic heads to the semifinals.

Tennis might have a way to go to replace hockey as Latvia’s favorite sport, but now that 19-year-old Ernests Gulbis has reached the quarterfinals of the French Open, the game could well have a higher profile.

Gulbis will face Serbia’s Novak Djokovic on June 3 in the men’s singles quarterfinals. The two players are longtime friends, according to media reports, since the days they trained at a tennis academy in Munich, Germany.

Djokovic is ranked third in singles play, while Gulbis is way back at 80th.

In a victory that surprised tennis fans and sports journalists, Gulbis on June 1 defeated France’s Michael Llodra to advance to the elite eight of one of the premier events in tennis. Gulbis is the first Latvian to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament. (The other Grand Slam tournaments are the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.) Last year, Gulbis reached the fourth round of the U.S. Open.

Gulbis turned professional in 2004, according to his profile on the official Web site of the French Open. The right-hander has earned USD 461,485 so far, including USD 100,560 this year alone.