Pop star’s space dream fails to take off

’N SYNC singer Lance Bass has been asked to leave Russia’s cosmonaut training programme and will not be the world’s third space tourist, a Russian space official said yesterday.

Sergei Gorbunov, spokesman for the Russian Space Agency, said the decision to end negotiations with Bass was made in connection with “crude violations” of his contract.

Gorbunov said Bass, who had hoped to fly to the International Space Station on board a Russian Soyuz rocket on October 28, would be leaving Russia’s Star City.

“It is over,” Gorbunov said.

The US pop star was granted numerous deadline extensions after failing to come up with the $20 million fare.

But Jeff Manbar, president of Mir-Corp, which had been working on behalf of Bass, continued to express optimism yesterday.

He is not training today, but he will be back there probably tomorrow or the day after.”