BADMINTON
Hsu Wen-chi ousted in India
Taiwan’s Hsu Wen-chi made it as far as the women’s singles semi-finals of the BWF Syed Modi India International in Lucknow yesterday, before losing 21-14, 17-21, 16-21 to world No. 21 Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt of Denmark. The world No. 25 beat Malaysia’s Wong Ling-ching 19-21, 21-17, 21-15 in the quarter-finals on Friday. Taiwanese shuttler Chi Yu-jen, ranked 48th in the world, was later to compete against world No. 31 Priyanshu Rajawat of India in the men’s singles semi-finals, after beating compatriot Lee Chia-hao 21-12, 13-21, 21-13 on Friday.
SOCCER
Famous fan thanks Sinclair
International soccer’s all-time leading goalscorer, Christine Sinclair, who helped Canada to three Olympic medals, is calling time on a glittering career after a second friendly against Australia in Vancouver on Tuesday. The 40-year-old made her penultimate appearance for Canada in a 5-0 win over Australia at Langford on Friday. Sinclair has scored 190 goals for Canada over 23 years. As the 40-year-old prepares to take her final bow, tributes have been pouring in, including one from Canadian Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds, who joked that her next soccer job could be with Wrexham, the club he owns with fellow actor Rob McElhenney. “Moving on in your career to Wrexham, it’s huge for the town, the club,” said Reynolds, smiling in a video to Sinclair played during an interview with CBC. “I think that you are going to be probably the key difference maker going forward up there in North Wales.” Caught off guard, a wide-eyed Sinclair played along, saying: “For the right amount of money I could go.” Reynolds, who like Sinclair is from Vancouver, also had a serious message. “What I really wanted to do is thank you,” Reynolds said. “I wanted to thank you for inspiring me, my kids, kids all over Canada and the world, young, old, middle-aged... You’re incredible and you deserve all the applause that hands could possibly give.”
FORMULA ONE
Bottas’ backside sells out
Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas has raised US$150,000 for men’s health charity Movember after a “Bottass 2024” calendar featuring photographs of him baring his backside sped off the shelves. An initial run of 10,000, with 5 euros (US$5.45) from each going to prostate cancer research, swiftly sold out with more printed. “Thank you so much for all the support in November. With the donations and with the calendars we have together raised a substantial amount for @Movember,” Bottas said on social media on Thursday. “Final figures to be calculated in the next days, but we are talking around $150k of funds raised!” Bottas had the calendar idea with photographer Paul Ripke after his partner and Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell took a picture of Bottas lying naked in a stream in Aspen, Colorado. That shot proved a hit on Instagram and was sold for charity. Bottas told speedcafe.com at the Las Vegas Grand Prix this month that his mother had some initial reservations. “She doesn’t really understand English that well, and she had seen some videos I had posted. She was quite confused and protective, asking me: ‘Are you sure that’s the path you want to go?’ So I explained the charity thing, and it’s fine.”
‘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