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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On the ice, he has been Ottawas best player since returning from a leave of absence to be with Nicholle, going 4-2-1 with a 1.54 goals-against average and .955 save percentage.There was an initial shock. It was emotional for everybody, coach Guy Boucher said. But to be honest with you, right now its every day a normal day. He wants to be all about hockey when he comes to the rink, and thats how we leave it.The Senators have, for the most part, done a good job of limiting shots on Anderson, a recipe to help him play like the elite starter they believe he is. Defense, not scoring, has to be the hallmark of Ottawas game.We want to make his game a normal game, not a game where he has to every game live with 35 shots and above, Boucher said. That really wears out a goaltender, and we certainly dont want to have that.Off the ice, teammates are rallying around the Andersons by going about their daily jobs.Hes here, his wife wants him to be here, forward Mark Stone said. Were taking it normal, and were just trying to play and win hockeey games.ddddddddddddOLYMPICS DECISION LOOMINGOfficials from the NHL, NHL Players Association, International Ice Hockey Federation and International Olympic Committee are meeting Wednesday in New York to discuss participation in the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The primary issue is paying for NHL players travel, accommodations and insurance, which has been the IOCs responsibility for the past five Olympics but something it has said it wont do this time.For us I think thats the big problem, American-born center Ryan Kesler of the Anaheim Ducks said in September. We got guys going over there and the NHLs stalling the season to go over and play in the Olympics. We dont see any revenue from that or anything, so I think the least that they can do is pay for our insurance.IIHF president Rene Fasel volunteered to pay those costs, but NHL commissioner Gary Bettman argued it would take away from grassroots programs around the world. Bettman would like a decision by January.STREAKINGA 2-1 overtime victory over the Capitals on Tuesday night was the Blue Jackets sixth in eight games. Columbus has scored 33 goals in eight games, so add some more powder to the cannon.SLUMPINGThe Capitals have lost three of four, and six-time Maurice Rocket Richard Trophy winner Alex Ovechkin has no points in four games, a rarity given his consistent production. He played a season-low 14:12 in Washingtons OT loss at Columbus.LEADERSGoals, Patrik Laine (Winnipeg), 12; Points, Mark Scheifele (Winnipeg) and Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay) 21; Time on ice, Dustin Byfuglien (Winnipeg), 28.30; Save percentage, Carey Price (Montreal), 0.948; Goals-against average, Tuukka Rask (Boston), 1.54.GAME OF THE WEEKThe red-hot New York Rangers visit the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night. Additions Mika Zibanejad, Michael Grabner and Jimmy Vesey make New York much stronger than it was during a first-round loss to Pittsburgh last spring.---AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow contributed to this report.---Follow Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/SWhyno ' ' '