COPPA ITALIA
Atalanta, Lazio in final
Atalanta BC on Thursday reached their first final since 1996, as Josip Ilicic and Alejandro Gomez scored in a 2-1 victory over six-time winners ACF Fiorentina. Their three away goals in the first leg that finished 3-3 in Florence, as well as the two efforts at home, were enough to qualify for the May 15 final, where they are to face SS Lazio. “It’s an enormous feeling. It was our idea, our objective, and when we eliminated Juve [Juventus], the trophy was all we were thinking of. We want to bring all of Bergamo to Rome,” captain Gomez told Rai Sport.
FORMULA E
Real-time game launched
The series yesterday trumpeted a breakthrough with the launch of the Virtually Live Ghost Racing game, enabling fans to compete against the drivers in real time on mobile devices. The game, free to download on iOS and Android, is to be operational from the eighth round of the season in Paris today. Formula E said that the game is the first of its kind and would revolutionize “fan participation and in-play options compared to other sporting disciplines.” The speed, positioning and movement of drivers on the track is mirrored identically in the game using timing data and hyper-realistic scenery. “Gamers will no longer be racing against an algorithm or computer, but live against the most competitive field in motorsport,” it said in a statement.
ATHLETICS
Farah embroiled in disputes
Mo Farah has been accused of taking part in two separate physical altercations at a hotel in Ethiopia, as a public feud between the four-time Olympic champion and retired distance-running great Haile Gebrselassie escalated on Thursday. On a second day of conflicting allegations, Farah was accused of fighting with other athletes in the hotel gym during his visit this year and assaulting a gym instructor there last year. The hotel is owned by Gebrselassie. The feud started when Farah on Wednesday announced that he was robbed while staying there last month and was “disappointed with Haile” because his staff did not take responsibility. One of the athletes involved in this year’s alleged fight, Sisay Tsegaye, said that he was punched by Farah, who accused others of copying his training regimes. However, Sisay disputed Gebrselassie’s claims that Farah also assaulted his wife, adding that he is now on good terms with Farah.
SOCCER
Sterling activism awarded
Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling has been awarded the Integrity and Impact Award at this year’s BT Sport Industry Awards for speaking out on a range of social issues, including racism. Sterling this month said that more players need to speak out when they suffer racism to eradicate it from the game. The 24-year-old earlier this week also signed a manifesto in which he said that clubs should be handed automatic nine-point deductions and ordered to play three games behind closed doors if their supporters indulge in racist behavior. Dow Jones Sports Intelligence, founder of the award, congratulated Sterling for the impact his actions have had in addressing social issues. “He has given new confidence and a voice to other footballers and athletes to speak out when once they may not have done so,” Dow Jones head of sport Simon Greenberg said.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB