GOLF
Davidse takes Joburg lead
Keenan Davidse on Thursday showed he was over the illness that confined him to a hospital bed for four days by shooting an eight-under 63 to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Joburg Open. The 28-year-old South African missed the cut in Mauritius last week as a flu ran through his family, and he checked himself into a hospital ahead of the Johannesburg event. He said he “didn’t really have any expectations” for the week, but rolled in nine birdies on the Bushwillows Course at Randpark Golf Club, five of them coming in his final eight holes. Among the six players tied for second place were Jared Harvey, Ockie Strydom and Erik van Rooyen — all South Africans.
OLYMPICS
No change to plans: USOC
The US Olympic Committee (USOC) still plans on sending teams to the Pyeongchang Games in February, despite US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley casting doubt on US participation. In an interview on Wednesday with Fox News, Haley was asked if it is an open question about whether the US team will compete at the Olympics in South Korea, given the tensions on the Korean Peninsula. “There’s an open question,” she said. “I have not heard anything about that, but I do know that in the talks that we have, whether it’s Jerusalem, whether it’s North Korea, it’s always about, how do we do protect the US citizens in the area.” USOC spokesman Mark Jones on Thursday said in a statement that the committee had not had any discussions, either internally or with government officials, about the possibility of not sending teams to next year’s Winter Olympics.
SOCCER
Ronaldo gets fifth Ballon d’Or
Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo on Thursday won a record-equaling fifth Ballon d’Or award for the year’s best player. The Real Madrid forward’s second successive win drew him level alongside Barcelona rival Lionel Messi on five Ballon d’Ors, after beating the Argentine and Brazilian Neymar. The 32-year-old was the top scorer in last season’s UEFA Champions League as Real successfully defended the trophy with victory over Juventus in June, and also led the Spanish giants to their first La Liga title in five years. “Of course I feel happy. This is something I look forward to every year,” Ronaldo said at the ceremony at the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two