DRESSAGE
Dujardin ‘deeply ashamed’
Three-time Olympic gold medalist Charlotte Dujardin of Britain repeatedly whipped a horse while coaching another rider in a video that was published by multiple media outlets on Wednesday. The video is part of an official complaint filed against Dujardin with the International Federation for Equestrian Sports. It shows Dujardin repeatedly striking the horse, walking closer and swinging the whip again after it moves away. Dujardin was set to compete in the Paris Games, but withdrew after word of the video emerged. She said on Tuesday in a statement that the video is from four years ago, and it “shows me making an error of judgment during a coaching session.” She said it “was completely out of character” and she was “deeply ashamed.”
RUGBY
France struggle
Antoine Dupont scored a brilliant individual try as France kept alive their medal hopes despite a stuttering start to the Rugby Sevens tournament in front of a passionate home crowd at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday. Reigning champions Fiji, Australia, Argentina, New Zealand and Ireland secured spots in the quarter-finals with two wins out of two at the Stade de France in Paris. France, who have looked like genuine title contenders since Dupont made the switch to Sevens after last year’s Rugby World Cup, had been expected to make light work of Pool C, but were held 12-12 by the US in their opener. They were trailing 7-5 to Uruguay at halftime of their second match, but Dupont broke through a series of tackles to touch down under the posts and set the hosts on their way to a 19-12 victory. As of press time last night, France were to play against Fiji.
BMX
Olympian’s items stolen
Reigning Olympic BMX freestyle champion Logan Martin had some of his equipment stolen by thieves who broke into a team van in a “crazy start” to the Australian’s title defense. Martin posted video on Instagram on Wednesday showing the passenger side window of the vehicle smashed. “Our van got broken into last night,” he said. “Luckily my bikes weren’t in there, although my bike bags were in there with some things in it. What a crazy start to the trip.” Martin, who won gold in Tokyo ahead of Venezuela’s Daniel Dhers, also lost his wallet. The incident occurred in Brussels, where the Australian team was at a training camp before leaving for Paris on Wednesday.
TENNIS
Sinner withdraws
Top-ranked tennis player Jannik Sinner pulled out of the Paris Olympics on Wednesday because of tonsillitis, meaning Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will be the top-seeded men, setting up a potential gold medal rematch of the Wimbledon final. Sinner, a 22-year-old from Italy, posted on social media that a doctor advised him that he should sit out the Games. Sinner won the Australian Open in January for his first Grand Slam title and moved up to No. 1 in the ATP rankings last month after reaching the French Open semi-finals. Tennis matches in the Olympics are to begin tomorrow. “Missing the Olympics is a big disappointment, given that it was one of my main goals this season,” Sinner wrote in Italian. “I couldn’t wait to have the honor of representing my country in this extremely important event.”
The New Taipei Kings claimed the inaugural Taiwan Professional Basketball League (TPBL) championship on Sunday, defeating the Kaohsiung FamilyMart Aquas 108-89 in the final. Playing at home, the Kings pulled ahead with Jeremy Lin’s (林書豪) clutch three-pointers, securing their victory over the Aquas in the TPBL final. The Kings came out strong in the first quarter, dominating to build a 35-18 lead. By halftime, they had stretched their advantage to 61-38. In the third quarter, the Aquas narrowed the deficit to 12 points, but Lin stepped up, sinking several tough three- pointers to extend the lead. In the final quarter, the Kings pushed the
In an unlikely Ethiopian outpost of one the most French of pastimes, four men are leaning over their petanque balls, arguing over who is winning. Petanque, the bowling game also known as boules, is more readily associated with French village squares where locals launch metal balls at a jack while enjoying an afternoon drink, but for decades, it has also been a beloved pastime for members of a club near the iconic Meskel Square in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. It was founded in the early 20th century to cater to French railway workers, who built a line connecting Addis Ababa
Taiwanese women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei and Australian teenager Maya Joint on Tuesday eased into the Eastbourne Open quarter-finals in England as Hsieh prepares for the Wimbledon Championships next week. Four-time Wimbledon women’s doubles champion Hsieh and 19-year-old Joint fired two aces and converted five of eight break points to defeat Japan’s Shuko Aoyama and Poland’s Katarzyna Piter 6-3, 6-3 in 58 minutes on the grass court. Hsieh and Joint are today to face fourth seeds Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, who advanced on Monday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Quinn Gleason of the US and
BEAT THE HEAT: A brutal heat wave in the US has made cooling breaks standard. Dortmund’s coach said the weather could shape the destiny of the tournament Chelsea on Tuesday beat Esperance of Tunisia 3-0 to set up a FIFA Club World Cup last-16 tie against SL Benfica, who earlier defeated Bayern Munich 1-0, as furnace-link heat and the threat of thunder and lightning wreak havoc at the tournament. Elsewhere, minnows Auckland City claimed a memorable draw against Boca Juniors, while Los Angeles bowed out of the tournament with a stalemate against Flamengo. In Charlotte, Andreas Schjelderup scored the only goal for Benfica in their Group C clash with Bayern in front of 33,287 fans, finishing first-time from a cutback by his fellow Norwegian Fredrik Aursnes in the 13th
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