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KUALA LUMPUR: Japan's Naomi Osaka will return to the spotlight on Sunday, kicking off her Olympic campaign as a home crowd favourite after taking a mental health break two months ago. Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and world number two, has not played a competitive match since pulling out of the French Open in May amid controversy https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/osaka-withdraws-french-open-following-row-over-media-boycott-2021-05-31 over her decision to skip all press conferences at the tournament in an effort to protect her mental well-being. But with all of her

TOKYO: : Michael Phelps' 23 Olympic swimming gold medals is a record that may never be beaten but the Tokyo pool could still see the world's best push the boundaries of human performance to new heights. The number of records from 2008-09, when now-banned bodysuits ruled the pool, has dwindled but some look likely to remain out of reach for years to come. Others, however, are vulnerable. Phelps, now retired, told Reuters last December that disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic meant records

TOKYO: World No 1 Novak Djokovic's road to the Golden Slam is not an easy one, with possible matches against Andrey Rublev and Alexander Zverev in his path at the Tokyo Olympics. Djokovic, representing Serbia, has won the season's first three grand slams and could become the first male player ever to win the Golden Slam if he first captures gold in Tokyo. Then all that's left is winning the US Open in August. Steffi Graf is the only player to ever do

TOKYO, July 23 - Tokyo's Musashino Forest Sport Plaza is a familiar venue for India's P.V. Sindhu - it's where she made it to the quarter-finals of the 2019 Japan Open, dancing to the deafening cheers and chants of spectators. But on Sunday, when the reigning women's singles world champion plays Israel's Ksenia Polikarpova, most of the seats at the stadium that can hold 7,200 people will be empty. "I'm going to miss the spectators, the crowd. The way the crowd motivates the

LONDON: Dani Pedrosa will make a wildcard return to MotoGP at Austria's Red Bull Ring on August 6-8, the KTM team said on Wednesday (Jul 21). The 35-year-old Spaniard retired from full-time racing at the end of 2018 but has since served as KTM's factory test rider. Three times a runner-up in the top category, Pedrosa won 31 races with Honda between 2006-18. The race at the Red Bull Ring will be his first for KTM. "It’s interesting again to go into a

LONDON: Manchester City have cancelled a pre-season friendly in France against Troyes due to British quarantine requirements, the Premier League champions said on Wednesday. Anyone arriving in Britain from France must quarantine at home or in other accommodation for five to 10 days, under British government rules. "Both clubs explored all avenues to be able to play the game, but the recent UK government changes to quarantine rules for travellers returning from France has made the required restrictions too difficult to overcome," City

LONDON: Naomi Osaka will defend her title at the US Open, organisers said on Wednesday (Jul 21), after she withdrew from this year's French Open and Wimbledon on mental health grounds. Japan's Osaka stunned the tennis world when she quit the claycourt major in Paris in May following her first-round match after being fined and threatened with disqualification when she refused to attend mandatory post-match press conferences. The world number two, who said she had social anxiety, also skipped Wimbledon but is scheduled

LONDON: India's build up for its five-test series against England suffered another setback after fast bowler Avesh Khan injured his thumb in a warm-up match in Durham. Khan sustained the injury in his left thumb while fielding in the three-day match at Chester-le-Street on Tuesday and was taken for scans. "Fast bowler Avesh Khan remains under observation of the BCCI medical team," the Indian cricket board said on Wednesday, adding that the 24-year-old would miss the remainder of the match. ESPNcricinfo website said

Gold Cup debutants Qatar defeated Honduras in a tightly contested 2-0 match to decide first place in Group D of the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup on Tuesday at BBVA Stadium in Houston. The win at the BBVA Stadium meant Felix Sanchezs side finished top of Group D with seven points, one ahead of Honduras, with both sides advancing to the quarter-finals. Honduras came into the tie on the back of consecutive victories. At the same time, Qatar playing in the competition on an

You were part of the gold medal-winning team for Cameroon at the Sydney Olympics in 2000. How did it feel to stand on top of the podium? It was an incredible feeling, especially because we had some difficulties during the tournament. I want to take this opportunity to say thank you again to all my teammates, my ”fellow soldiers”, during this tournament. Because it was really tough – but in the end we won the gold medal by beating Spain despite trailing by

Italy's Stefano Travaglia pulled off an upset Monday as the Plava Laguna Croatia Open began in Umag, beating sixth-seeded Jaume Munar of Spain 6-3, 7-6 (1). Travaglia won 73 percent of his first-serve points and converted four of his seven break-point opportunities. Munar won just 58 percent on his first serve and went 2-for-7 on break-point chances. In other first-round matches, Radu Albot of Moldova rallied past Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune of Denmark 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 thanks to a strong performance on return

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MILAN: Outspoken Italian coach Gennaro Gattuso regretted on Monday having been unable to defend himself amid an online campaign by some Tottenham Hotspur fans accusing him of being homophobic and racist. The 2006 World Cup winner had looked set to succeed Jose Mourinho as manager of the Premier League side before the accusations. "I had to accept a story that hurt me more than any defeat or suspension," Gattuso told Il Messaggero. "My regret is that I did not have the opportunity to

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Newcastle United's arbitration proceedings against the Premier League over last year's aborted takeover attempt have been adjourned until early 2022 due to "issues with the disclosure of evidence", the Premier League club said on Monday (Jul 19). The proposed 305 million pound (US$417.06 million) takeover by a consortium which included Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund PIF, PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben Brothers collapsed in July when the group announced they were ending their interest. Newcastle owner Mike Ashley had initiated legal proceedings

MILWAUKEE: Milwaukee Bucks supporters are buzzing about the possible end of a 50-year NBA title drought while star Giannis Antetokounmpo fights to keep his focus with a crown tantalyzingly near. The Bucks lead the best-of-seven NBA Finals 3-2 over Phoenix with game six Tuesday at Milwaukee, where 20,000 fans will fill the arena and 25,000 more will jam the "Deer District" outside to watch on huge videoscreens. "You can feel the excitement in the city. But we got to focus," Greek forward Antetokounmpo

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SILVERSTONE, England: Lewis Hamilton won his home British Grand Prix for a record eighth time on Sunday after battling back from a 10-second penalty imposed for a first-lap collision that halted the race and left Red Bull rival Max Verstappen in hospital. The Mercedes driver, now only eight points behind Verstappen after 10 races, passed Ferrari's Charles Leclerc with two laps to go as a capacity 140,000 crowd rose to cheer him on. Hamilton's team mate Valtteri Bottas finished third after being told

SANDWICH, United Kingdom: Collin Morikawa said his British Open victory on debut was one of the "best moments of my life" after a nerveless display from the 24-year-old American at Royal St George's on Sunday (Jul 18) saw him win by two shots on 15 under par. Resuming one stroke behind overnight leader Louis Oosthuizen, Morikawa fired a bogey-free round of 66 to finish four under par for the day and hold off a late surge from 2017 British Open champion Jordan Spieth.

WASHINGTON: American teen tennis star Coco Gauff will miss the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19, she announced on Sunday (Jul 18). Gauff, coming off a run to the fourth round at Wimbledon, tweeted her sadness at missing out on "a dream come true" at age 17. "I am so disappointed to share the news that I have tested positive for COVID and won't be able to play in the Olympic Games in Tokyo," Gauff tweeted. "It has always been a dream