RIVER QUALITY
Seine training canceled
The Olympics’ triathlon swimming training session scheduled for yesterday was canceled after recent heavy rain in Paris affected pollution levels in the Seine, organizers said in a statement. A lot is riding on Olympic triathletes being cleared to swim in Paris’ central waterway when the competition starts tomorrow, with France investing 1.4 billion euros (US$1.52 billion) in new wastewater infrastructure to cut sewage levels and make the river swimmable for residents as a key legacy of the Games. “We have had some rainfall, but everything that has been put in place has worked, it prevents overflows from occurring, so I think we will reach a satisfying quality of the water very soon, but it will depend on the weather forecast as well,” Pierre Rabadan, the city’s deputy mayor for sports, told a news conference yesterday. Organizers said that, given the forecast for sunshine and higher temperatures over the next 48 hours, they were “confident” water quality would improve again before the triathlon events begin tomorrow with the men’s race.
ACCOMMODATION
Bath leak warps bed
Much has been made about the robustness of the Olympic Village’s cardboard beds, but one did not prove up to the test for top Japanese gymnast Shinnosuke Oka. Oka, who on Saturday produced a solid performance on the first day of the Paris Games in the men’s qualification, said a “water leak” from the bath had caused damage to the cardboard frame of his bed, forcing him to seek a swap. “The cardboard sort of collapsed because of a water leak, from, er, bathwater,” the 20-year-old first-time Olympian said, with an embarrassed smile. Oka said he noticed himself sinking gradually on the bed as he slept, and then realized that the frame was warped. “It kind of messed up my back. Not enough to affect my performance or anything, but I thought: ‘I probably don’t want to sleep this way for the rest of the time.’” The cardboard bed frame was introduced at the Tokyo 2020 Games for sustainability reasons — a central theme for Paris 2024 organizers.
SOCCER
Canada lose points for drone
Canada’s Olympic women’s soccer team have been deducted six points and their coach Beverly Priestman suspended for a year after a staff member used a drone to spy on a rival team at the Paris Games, FIFA said on Saturday. Canada’s soccer association was “responsible for failing to respect the applicable FIFA regulations in connection with ... the prohibition on flying drones over any training sites,” FIFA said. It also handed down a fine of 200,000 Swiss francs (US$226,110). The ruling is a hammer blow to Canada’s hopes of defending the Olympic title they won at the Tokyo Games three years ago. It leaves them on minus-three points in Group A before they played hosts France in Saint-Etienne yesterday. The match started after press time last night. Canada Soccer chief executive Kevin Blue had tried to convince FIFA not to punish the team, saying the players had not seen any footage produced by the drone. “There was a lot of emotion, frustration and humiliation because as a player, it doesn’t reflect our values and what we want to represent as competitors at the Olympics,” defender Vanessa Gilles said.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Marcus Rashford’s first goals for Aston Villa on Sunday inspired a 3-0 win against Preston North End that sent his side into the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 10 years. Rashford struck twice in the second half at Deepdale to end Preston’s stubborn resistance before Jacob Ramsey wrapped up Villa’s long-awaited return to the last four. Villa are to face Crystal Palace — 3-0 winners at Fulham on Saturday — in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium in London. Revitalized since joining Villa on loan from Manchester United during the January transfer window, Rashford is beginning to show the form that
RSS