CYCLING
Cavendish wins final race
Mark Cavendish on Sunday sprinted to victory in the Tour de France Singapore Criterium with a signature surge to the line in his final race. “I really wanted that so bad,” the 39-year-old British cycling great said after the 166th victory of his career. “I’m terribly emotional. I realized in the last five laps that this was the last 15km of my career and I felt that, but I was so much on the limit.” Coming out of the last bend, Cavendish, who holds the record for most stage wins on the Tour de France, briefly latched onto the wheel of defending champion Jasper Philipsen before pulling away and raising his arms in triumph one last time, to deafening cheers from the crowd who had gathered for the race.
Photo: Reuters
SURFING
Surfers mass for record
Three hundred surfers over the age of 50 gathered at the weekend in Sao Paulo to attempt a world record for the most people riding the same wave. Participants, many of whom took up surfing later in life, arrived early, eager to hit the water. “I had a crazy desire to learn [to surf] and when I started, I couldn’t stop,” Christiane Melin said. “It’s an addiction, but an addiction that’s really good.” The event, organized by a local surf school specializing in teaching older adults, emphasized community and well-being. “This is a great example to show the world the importance that, after the [COVID-19] pandemic and beyond politics, we can all be together on the same wave,” organizer Cisco Arana said. With 98 surfers riding a wave together, the group fell short of the 110 achieved in South Africa in 2009.
Photo: Reuters
SOCCER
Israel tells fans to skip match
Israel has urged fans to avoid Thursday’s France-Israel tie, which authorities fear could become a flash point following violence in Amsterdam surrounding a match involving an Israeli team. Despite a large police presence and the expected attendance of French President Emmanuel Macron, Israeli officials on Sunday warned fans to stay away because of fears they could be targeted after clashes at a match in Amsterdam left about two dozen people injured and were condemned as anti-Semitic by Israeli, US, Dutch and European leaders. A right-wing Jewish group has nevertheless announced a rally ahead of this week’s UEFA Nations League tie. Describing the France-Israel fixture as high risk, Paris Police Chief Laurent Nunez said 4,000 gendarmes would be deployed around Stade de France.
SHOOTING
Kim Ye-ji to take a break
Olympic shooting star Kim Ye-ji is temporarily putting down her gun to spend time with family, her agency said on Sunday, saying she was exhausted from competition and the huge public attention her nonchalant cool has generated. The 32-year-old shooter rose to stardom during the Paris Olympics — where she won a silver in the women’s 10m air pistol — after a video of her calmly taking a shot and unloading her gun went viral. The clip, which was actually taken from a competition in May 2024, triggered an Internet frenzy, with people praising her “main character” energy. Kim would “temporarily suspend her sports career ... to have some time together with her young daughter,” her agent Yang Yong-sik said. She would also not renew her contract with her team, which expires in December, he added.
SS Lazio on Monday fired the far-right sympathizer who handles their eagle mascot after he posted online a series of videos and pictures of his erect penis. Falconer Juan Bernabe, who has been present at Lazio home matches with Olimpia the eagle since the 2010-2011 season, posted the footage on social media after having surgery on Saturday to implant a penile prosthesis to improve his sexual performance. Lazio said that they had “terminated, with immediate effect” their relationship with Bernabe “due to the seriousness of his conduct,” adding that they were “shocked” by the images. The Serie A club added that Bernabe’s dismissal
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
‘TOUGH TO BREATHE’: Tunisian three-time Grand Slam finalist Ons Jabeur suffered an asthma attack in her 7-5, 6-3 victory over Colombia’s Camila Osorio Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday cruised into the second round of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Iga Swiatek romped into a third-round women’s singles showdown with Emma Raducanu and Taylor Fritz was just as emphatic in his pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title. Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, the third seeds, defeated Slovakia’s Tereza Mihalikova and Olivia Nicholls of Britain 7-5, 6-2 in 90 minutes in Melbourne. Ostapenko and Hsieh — who won the women’s doubles and mixed doubles at the Australian Open last year — hit 25 winners and converted five of nine break points to set
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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