FOOTBALL
Cousins set for move
The first day of the NFL’s legal tampering period was a free-for-all frenzy, with teams making one big move after another, highlighted by Kirk Cousins’ decision to leave the Minnesota Vikings for the Atlanta Falcons. The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback and the Falcons agreed on a US$180 million, four-year deal with US$100 million guaranteed and a US$50 million signing bonus, a person with knowledge of the terms said on condition of anonymity because the deal cannot be signed until the new league year begins on today. Other major moves were Saquon Barkley to join the Philadelphia Eagles and Brian Burns is going to the New York Giants.
COMMONWEALTH
Malaysia given incentive
Commonwealth Games chiefs praised Malaysia’s “fantastic track record” after the country said it had been offered ￡100 million (US$130 million) to host the 2026 edition. The Commonwealth Games Federation is scrambling to find a host after the Australian state of Victoria abruptly pulled out in July last year, citing the cost. On Monday, the Olympic Council of Malaysia said that the federation had “offered Malaysia the opportunity to replace Victoria as hosts of the Commonwealth Games in 2026,” with the offer including “significant financial investment of ￡100 million to support the local delivery and legacy planning of the 2026 edition.” However, a federation spokesperson indicated that Malaysia was not the only country that could potentially stage the Games, as it was “in advanced, confidential discussions with potential hosts.”
RUGBY UNION
Australia fall to 10th
Australia have fallen to an all-time low of 10th in the world rankings after Italy’s victory over Scotland at the weekend bumped the Azzurri up to ninth. The Wallabies won only two of nine Tests under Eddie Jones last season and crashed out of the pool stage of the Rugby World Cup. The All Blacks remained in third place in the rankings behind world champions South Africa and Ireland, despite England’s Six Nations win over the latter at the weekend.
CRICKET
Rishabh Pant fit for IPL
Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is fit to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) starting this month after being seriously hurt in a car crash in 2022, the Board of Control for Cricket wrote on X yesterday. After an extensive 14-month rehab and recovery process, Pant “has now been declared fit as a wicket-keeper batter” for the T20 tournament, it said.
IDITAROD
Two dogs die while racing
Two dogs died over the weekend during Alaska’s annual Iditarod sled dog race, the first deaths during the race in five years. Bog, a two-year-old male on musher Issac Teaford’s team, collapsed on Sunday morning about 60m short of the checkpoint in the village of Nulato, 937km into the race. He died despite a veterinarian performing CPR for about 20 minutes. A second dog, George, a four-year-old male on musher Hunter Keefe’s team, also collapsed and died despite attempts to revive him, a race statement said. George died on the trail about 56km outside the village of Kaltag, which is 1,012km into the race.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
RSS