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SANDWICH, United Kingdom: The British Open makes an eagerly-anticipated return on Thursday (Jul15) after a two-year hiatus caused by the coronavirus pandemic with Englishman Richard Bland set to fire the first tee shot at Royal St George's in Sandwich, Kent. It is the 149th edition of golf's oldest major championship which was cancelled last year for the first time since 1945. Twelve months on and there will be up to 32,000 fans a day on the course, but there remains a cloud cast

LONDON: The top three finishers in a new Sprint qualifying race that debuts at the British Grand Prix on Saturday (Jul 14) will be awarded old-style laurel wreaths in the absence of any podium celebrations. The 100km Sprint will set the grid for Sunday's grand prix at Silverstone and, although some points will be awarded to the top three, there will be no formal podium to avoid detracting from the main event. None of the drivers will be credited with a podium or

July 15 - The Milwaukee Bucks rallied from nine points down in the fourth quarter to defeat the Phoenix Suns 109-103 in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday to tie the best-of-seven series at 2-2 in front their own elated fans at Fiserv Forum. The teams were tied at the half but small forward Khris Middleton pushed the Bucks over the top, tallying 40 points, six rebounds and four assists. Milwaukee had looked in deep trouble after losing the opening two

Top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece needed a first-set tiebreak but then handled business against Germany's Dominik Koepfer, winning 7-6 (2), 6-3 on Wednesday at the Hamburg European Open in Germany. It marked Tsitsipas' first match since being upset in the first round at Wimbledon by American Frances Tiafoe. He won 86 percent (30 of 35) of his first-serve points en route to securing his tour-best 40th win of the season. Tsitsipas advanced to the quarterfinals to face Serbian No. 6 seed Filip

HE President of Qatar Air Sports Committee Major General Hamad bin Abdullah Al Fetais Al Marri said that Qatar's preparations to host the 44th World Parachuting Championship (CISM) in November 2021 began a year ago, adding more than 40 countries are expected to participate in this tournament, and 21 countries have so far confirmed their participation. In a press briefing today attended by representatives of the Qatari media, the President of Qatar Air Sports Committee added that Qatar's hosting of this championship is

Chris Gayle hit 67 off 38 balls as the West Indies sealed a six-wicket win over Australia in the third Twenty20 international in St Lucia on Monday (Jul 12) to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in their five-match series. Chasing a modest 142 for victory after Moises Henriques (33) and Ashton Turner (24) put on Australia's first half-century stand of the series, West Indies got home in style thanks to Gayle's onslaught that included seven sixes. It was the 41-year-old's first T20 half-century

LONDON: Canada's Bianca Andreescu has decided not to compete at the Tokyo Olympics due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the former US Open champion said on Monday (Jul 12). Andreescu is the latest big-name player to opt out of the Jul 23-Aug 8 Games. Rafa Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Stan Wawrinka, Nick Kyrgios, Serena Williams and Simona Halep have already announced their decisions to skip the pandemic-delayed Olympics. "I have been dreaming of representing Canada at the Olympics since I was a little girl," world

LONDON: Seven times Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has voiced support for the three black England football players who missed penalties in the Euro 2020 final on Sunday (Jul 11), after they were subjected to a torrent of racist abuse on social media. Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka missed their spot-kicks as Italy won 3-2 on penalties following a 1-1 draw after extra time at Wembley Stadium. Hamilton, a vocal advocate for social justice, said on Instagram on Monday that

The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) highlighted the historic participation of the first Qatari team in the Gold Cup for the first time in its career. The tournament is being held in the United States of America during the period from July 10 to August 1. The Asian Cup winner will enter the tournament with a list of a distinguished group of players in order to prepare well for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. In a report

REUTERS World number one Novak Djokovic beat Italian seventh seed Matteo Berrettini 6-7(4) 6-4 6-4 6-3 on Sunday to win his sixth title at Wimbledon. His third straight triumph at the All England Club also earned the Serbian a 20th Grand Slam title, equalling the men's record haul held by Switzerland's Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal of Spain. "It means none of us three will stop," Djokovic said during the presentation ceremony when asked what the milestone meant to him. "I have to

AFP England's Football Association said it was "appalled" and "disgusted" after racist trolls targeted Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka following Sunday's Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy. All three players missed from the spot as Italy clinched the penalty shoot-out 3-2 after the tense final finished at 1-1 after extra time. "We're disgusted that some of our squad –- who have given everything for the shirt this summer –- have been subjected to discriminatory abuse online after tonight's game," the England

With five goals to his name, Cristiano Ronaldo won the Golden Boot award for the top goal-scorer at the 2021 European Championships (EURO 2020) on Sunday. Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo claimed his first European Championship Golden Boot as EURO 2020 concluded on Sunday with Italy emerging as the champion. Ronaldo had scored in every single group stage game for Portugal, bagging a brace against both Hungary and France. However, he had failed to find the back of the net during the 0-1 loss

British police said on Sunday they had arrested 45 people while policing the Euro 2020 final between Italy and England, after fans clashed with each other and officials near Wembley stadium. "A number of officers remain on duty, helping fans leaving Wembley or central London. We are there to look out for your safety," the Metropolitan Police said on Twitter.

REUTERS Italy claimed the European Championship for the first time since 1968 as penalties came back to haunt England at Wembley on Sunday, Gianluigi Donnarumma saving twice as the Azzurri won a shootout 3-2 after the game finished 1-1 following extra time. The giant goalkeeper saved from Jadon Sancho and, decisively, Bukayo Saka after Marcus Rashford hit the post, as Federico Bernardeschi, Leonardo Bonucci and Domenico Berardi all scored for the Italians in the shootout. Luke Shaw had given England a dream start

SINGAPORE: Four more athletes, including Singapore's first representative in para-powerlifting Nur 'Aini Mohamad Yasli, have been selected to compete in next month's Paralympic Games. Equestrians Laurentia Tan, who is a silver medallist at the Games, as well as Gemma Foo and Maximillian Tan, have also been chosen to represent the country, the Singapore National Paralympic Council announced on Friday (Jul 9). Nur 'Aini, who is the first woman on Singapore's national para-powerlifting team, thanked her mother for being her "main pillar of support"

TOKYO: The Olympic flame arrived in Tokyo on Friday (Jul 9) but with the public kept away at a low-key welcoming ceremony because of coronavirus fears, the day after a "heartbreaking" announcement that spectators would be banned from most Games events. On a rainy morning exactly two weeks before the opening ceremony of the biggest sporting event since the pandemic began, the flame was brought on stage in a lantern and handed to Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. Tokyo 2020 organisers and government officials

RIO DE JANEIRO: Former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi and Neymar will line up opposite each other in Saturday's (Jul 10) Copa America final looking to end a hoodoo that has also affected some of their countries' greatest players. Like Brazil's Pele and Diego Maradona of Argentina before them, neither Messi nor Neymar has ever won the Copa. That statistic will change for one of them in the dream final at Rio de Janeiro's iconic Maracana stadium. For six-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi, this

PHOENIX: Devin Booker scored 31 points and Chris Paul added 23 on Thursday (Jul 8) to spark Phoenix over Milwaukee 118-108 and give the Suns a commanding lead in the NBA Finals. Phoenix's Mikal Bridges scored a playoff career-high 27 points for the Suns, who seized a 2-0 edge in the best-of-seven series, which shifts to Milwaukee for games three and four on Sunday and Wednesday. "It's a 0-0 mindset for us," Booker said. "It's a game-seven mentality for us. Every game is

Nick Kyrgios will not represent Australia at this year's Olympics in Tokyo because he does not want to compete if there are no fans in the stands, he said on Thursday (Jul 8). Earlier in the day, Olympic organisers said the Games would take place without spectators in host city Tokyo as a resurgent coronavirus forced Japan to declare a state of emergency in the capital that will continue throughout the event which starts on July 23. "It has been my dream to

MADRID: Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has prolonged his stay with a three-year contract extension after leading them to a second La Liga title under his tenure, the club said on Thursday (Jul 8). Simeone, who took over Atletico in 2011, has won eight trophies so far in the Spanish capital - more than any other manager in the club's history. "With this contract extension, we continue our exciting project with Diego Pablo Simeone. Fantastic news for the Atleti family," Atletico said in