BASEBALL
Ohtani cramps again
For the second game in a row on Friday, Shohei Ohtani added to his major league-leading home run total, then later exited early due to cramps. He was to be re-evaluated yesterday, but is not expected to land on the injured list, Los Angeles Angels manager Phil Nevin said after the game. The Friday cramping was in Ohtani’s legs, Nevin said. Ohtani hit his 39th long ball of the season in the first inning of Los Angeles’ 4-1 loss to the host Toronto Blue Jays. In the second game of a Thursday doubleheader at Detroit, Ohtani homered twice, but then left because of cramps.
TENNIS
Prague refuses players entry
An unnamed Russian tennis player, arriving to play in qualifying for the WTA Prague Open, was refused entry, the Czech Ministry of the Interior tweeted on X on Friday. It said that police in Prague “checking a Russian citizen at the airport found reasons to end her temporary stay. She has already left the Czech Republic.” Czech officials added that no other Russian and Belarusian players would travel to the country “according to the information available.” Czech news agency CTK reported that three Russian players had been scheduled to take part in tournament qualifying this weekend. Due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Czech government last month banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing on Czech territory. The WTA said that the actions of the Czech authorities contravened its policy.
SOCCER
Juventus barred from Europa
Juventus were on Friday kicked out of next season’s UEFA Europa Conference League for breaching financial fair play rules, UEFA said. The Italian giants were also fined 20 million euros (US$22.1 million) with half that amount suspended. “Juventus violated UEFA’s regulatory framework … and it was decided to exclude Juventus from the 2023/24 UEFA men’s club competition,” UEFA said in a statement. Juventus said in a statement that they would not appeal the sanction.
FENCING
IOC backs Ukrainian
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Friday awarded Ukrainian fencer Olha Kharlan a place in next year’s Paris Olympics after she was disqualified at the world championships for refusing to shake the hand of her Russian opponent. The International Fencing Federation (FIE) also said it was reinstating Kharlan, allowing her to take part in the team competition at the world championships in Milan. Kharlan, the first fencer to face a Russian or Belarusian since the former’s invasion of Ukraine, won 15-7 against Russia’s Anna Smirnova on Thursday. The 32-year-old four-time Olympic medalist refused Smirnova’s handshake afterward, instead offering her sabre to tap blades. Kharlan was disqualified, saying afterward that FIE president Emmanuel Katsiadakis had even assured her that it was “possible” not to shake hands and offer a touch of her blade. On Friday, IOC president Thomas Bach, a former Olympic fencer himself, sent Kharlan a letter saying the she would be guaranteed a place at next year’s Olympics in Paris regardless of whether she gained the qualification points.
‘SOURCE OF PRIDE’: Newspapers rushed out special editions and the government sent their congratulations as Shohei Ohtani became the first player to enter the 50-50 club Japan reacted with incredulity and pride yesterday after Shohei Ohtani became the first player in Major League Baseball to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. The Los Angeles Dodgers star from Japan made history with a seventh-inning homer in a 20-4 victory over the Marlins in Miami. “We would like to congratulate him from the bottom of our heart,” top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “We sincerely hope Mr Ohtani, who has already accomplished feat after feat and carved out a new era, will thrive further,” he added. The landmark achievement dominated Japanese morning news
When Wang Tao ran away from home aged 17 to become a professional wrestler, he knew it would be a hard slog to succeed in China’s passionate but underdeveloped scene. Years later, he has endured family disapproval, countless side gigs and thousands of hours of brutal training to become China’s “Belt and Road Champion” — but the struggle is far from over. Despite a promising potential domestic market, the Chinese pro wrestling community has been battling for recognition and financial stability for decades. “I have done all kinds of jobs [on the side]... Because in the end, it is very
No team in the CPBL can surpass the Taipei Dome attendance record set by the CTBC Brothers, except when the Brothers team up with Taiwanese rock band Mayday. A record-high 40,000 fans turned out at the indoor baseball venue on Saturday for Brothers veteran Chou Szu-chi’s first farewell game, which was followed by a mini post-game concert featuring Mayday. This broke the previous CPBL record of 34,506 set by the Brothers in early last month, when K-pop singer Hyuna performed after the game, and the dome’s overall record of 37,890 set in early March, which featured the Brothers and the
With a quivering finger, England Subbuteo veteran Rudi Peterschinigg conceded the free-kick that sent his country’s World Cup quarter-final into extra-time before smashing his plastic goalkeeper on the floor in frustration. In the genteel southern English town of Tunbridge Wells, 300 elite players have gathered to play the game they love. “I won’t say this is the best weekend I’ve ever had in my life, but it’s certainly in the top two,” said Hughie Best, 58, who flew in from Perth, Australia, to compete and commentate at the event. Tunbridge Wells is the “spiritual home” of Subbuteo, which was invented there in 1946