SOCCER
Roma fire De Rossi
AS Roma yesterday fired coach Daniele de Rossi in a move that was surprising despite the Giallorossi going winless in their opening four Serie A matches. De Rossi, a former Roma captain, was hired in January to replace the fired Jose Mourinho and impressed so much during the second half of last season that he was given a contract extension in June. “The club’s decision is made in the best interests of the team, to get back on the desired path as soon as possible at a time when the season is still in its early stages,” Roma said. “A heartfelt thank you to Daniele, who will always be at home at the Giallorossi club, for the work done in recent months with passion and dedication.”
RUGBY UNION
Easterby to coach Ireland
Simon Easterby is to take over as interim Ireland head coach from December, the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) announced on Tuesday. Easterby would take charge of the side while head coach Andy Farrell leads the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia next year. “Today’s announcement ensures a smooth transition and continuity as Ireland looks forward to an exciting few months,” IRFU director David Humphreys said in a statement. “Over the past decade, Simon has moved from being a forwards coach to a defense coach and has played a key role in Ireland’s success during that time.”
SPONSORS
Energy spending revealed
Oil and gas companies have spent US$5.6 billion on sports sponsorship through about 205 accords, said a study by research group New Weather Institute released yesterday that describes the outlays as “sportswashing.” The report, entitled Dirty Money — How Fossil Fuel Sponsors are Polluting Sport, said that soccer, motor sports, rugby union and golf are the sports most sponsored by energy firms. The biggest spenders in the industry include Aramco (US$1.3 billion), Ineos (US$777 million), Shell (US$470 million) and TotalEnergies (US$340 million). The study identified 205 still-active agreements signed by firms linked to fossil fuels, of which only 41 revealed financial details. To fill the data gap, the authors made estimates based on similar agreements whose amounts were disclosed. “Air pollution from fossil fuels and the extreme weather of a warming world threaten the very future of athletes, fans and events ranging from the Winter Olympics to [FIFA] World Cups,” New Weather Institute codirector Andrew Simms said. “If sport is to have a future, it needs to clean itself of dirty money from big polluters and stop promoting its own destruction.”
BASEBALL
Player donates to hospital
Colorado Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon and his wife, Natalie, on Tuesday said that they were donating US$1 million to the Children’s Hospital of Colorado. McMahon, whose six-year, US$70 million contract runs through 2027, said that he and his wife, who recently became parents, liked the idea of helping children in need. “I’ve always loved being around kids,” McMahon said. “I think they’re the purest form of human. They’re not messing up like the rest of us.” Part of the donation would go to a hospital endowment that dispenses funds to help families make ends meet as they care for ailing children.
The NHL postponed the Los Angeles Kings’ home game against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday with several massive wildfires burning across the greater Los Angeles area. The Kings and Flames were scheduled to play on Wednesday night at the Kings’ downtown arena. The NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers were scheduled to host the Charlotte Hornets in the same arena last night. “Our hearts are with our entire Los Angeles community,” the Kings said in a statement. “We appreciate the hard working first responders who are diligently working to contain the fire and protect our community. We appreciate the league’s support in keeping our
Doping fears prevented former US Open champion Emma Raducanu from treating insect bites on the eve of the Australian Open, she said, with players increasingly wary about ingesting contaminated substances. The British player was speaking in the wake of high-profile doping cases involving Iga Swiatak and Jannik Sinner. “I would say all of us are probably quite sensitive to what we take on board, what we use,” the 22-year-old said, recalling an incident on Friday. “I got really badly bitten by, I don’t know what, like ants, mosquitoes, something. I’m allergic, I guess,” she added. The bites “flared up and swelled up really a
TWO IN A WEEK: Despite an undefeated start to the year playing alongside Jiang Xinyu of China, Wu Fang-hsien is to play the Australian Open with a Russian partner Taiwan’s Wu Fang-hsien yesterday triumphed at the Hobart International, winning the women’s doubles title at the US$275,094 outdoor hard-court tournament, while McCartney Kessler lifted the trophy in the women’s singles. Fourth-ranked Wu and partner Jiang Xinyu of China took 1 hour, 15 minutes to defeat Romania’s Monica Niculescu and Fanny Stollar of Hungary, 6-1, 7-6 (8/6) at the Hobart International Tennis Centre, their second title in a week. Wu and Jiang on Sunday won the women’s doubles title at the ASB Classic in Auckland, beating Serbia’s Aleksandra Krunic and Sabrina Santamaria of the US. Their winning ways continued in Australia as they stretched
EL CLASSICO: La Liga champions Real Madrid would face Barcelona in the Super Cup final tomorrow. Barça secured their final spot after a 2-0 win over Bilbao on Wednesday Real Madrid would chase a record-equaling 14th Spanish Super Cup title in the final against Barcelona after second-half goals by Jude Bellingham and Rodrygo helped them to a 3-0 win over Mallorca in the semi-finals on Thursday. England midfielder Bellingham broke the deadlock after the hour mark with a low shot into the middle of the goal before Mallorca defender Martin Valjent’s own goal doubled the lead in stoppage time followed by a Rodrygo strike from close range. Spanish champions Real are to play Barcelona for the trophy tomorrow after goals by Gavi and Lamine Yamal earned Barça a 2-0 win over
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