SWIMMING
Mack Horton retires
Australian champion swimmer Mack Horton, a fierce anti-doping campaigner, yesterday called time on his career just months ahead of the Paris Olympics. The 27-year-old, who famously refused to stand on the podium alongside China’s Sun Yang at the 2019 world championships, said the passion had left him. “I dearly wanted to swim in Paris, but the hunger wasn’t there,” he said in a statement. Horton won gold in the 400m freestyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics ahead of Sun, but is best remembered for the 400m silver he won at the 2019 worlds in South Korea. He refused to shake the Chinese athlete’s hand or even stand on the podium alongside him, reigniting a row from Rio, where he labeled Sun a “drug cheat.” Three-time Olympic champion Sun was subsequently slapped with an eight-year ban after refusing to give samples during a surprise doping test.
CRICKET
Pakistan beat NZ, lose Test
Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi yesterday said it was “very important” his team avoided a whitewash series loss to New Zealand after winning the fifth and final T20 international by 42 runs. The Black Caps capitulated for 92 in the face of some quality Pakistan spin bowling, having been favored to chase down the tourists’ 134-8. Pakistan lost the five-match series 4-1, but Shaheen was pleased his first stint as captain had ended on a winning note, after being outplayed through the first four games. “Today’s game was very important for us. We needed that as a unit to step forward,” Shaheen said. “In the first four games, there were a lot of collapses, as a fielding unit, as a batting unit, but I think today we played as a team and we needed that win.”
ICE HOCKEY
Oilers extend streak to 13
Sam Gagner on Saturday broke a tie with a fluke goal early in the third period and the Edmonton Oilers beat the Calgary Flames 3-1 to break the Montreal Canadiens’ record for the longest winning streak by a Canadian team at 13. Stuart Skinner made 26 saves to help Edmonton break the tie with the 1967-’68 Canadiens for the record. The Pittsburgh Penguins set the NHL mark of 17 in 1992-’93.
SOCCER
United appoint Berrada CEO
Manchester United have appointed Omar Berrada as their new chief executive officer, the club said in a statement on Saturday. Berrada’s start date would be confirmed in due course, while Patrick Stewart would continue as interim CEO. “The Club is determined to put football and performance on the pitch back at the heart of everything we do. Omar’s appointment represents the first step on this journey,” the club said. Berrada, regarded as one of the most experienced executives in European soccer, currently holds the position of director of soccer operations at City Football Group, where he oversees 11 clubs across five continents. He previously held senior positions at Barcelona. United, who currently sit seventh in the Premier League table, bolstered their squad in the summer transfer window, with new signings including Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta, Mason Mount from Chelsea and Andre Onana from Inter.
‘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