OLYMPICS
Tokyo ‘best prepared’ city
A year before hosting the Olympics, Tokyo is better prepared than any other city in that has hosted the Games, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said yesterday. Bach came to Tokyo to attend several events marking one year until the opening ceremony in the almost-completed National Stadium. Only three Olympic venues remain to be finished. About 3.22 million tickets were sold during the first domestic sales phase last month, while more than 200,000 people have applied to be volunteers in an indication of the building excitement.
Photo: EPA-EFE
BOXING
Changes to Hall of Fame
The International Boxing Hall of Fame is making changes to its voting process, shortening the retirement time for consideration and creating two categories for female fighters. The categories for female boxers are Trailblazer, boxers whose last bout was no later than 1988, and Modern, those whose last contest came no earlier than 1989. Female and male boxers must be retired for at least three years before the end of the calendar year in which voting takes place, meaning that boxers who last fought in 2016 are now eligible for consideration.
MANAGEMENT
Cowboys top richest list
The Dallas Cowboys top Forbes’ list of the world’s most valuable sports clubs for the fourth straight year as English Premier League giants Manchester United slipped four places to sixth. In figures released on Tuesday, Forbes pegged the value of the Cowboys at US$5 billion. The NFL club generate twice as much sponsorship and seating revenue at their AT&T Stadium than any other team, the publication said. The MLB’s New York Yankees jumped from fifth to second, their value coming in at US$4.6 billion. Twenty-six of the NFL’s 32 teams appear on the list of 50, while the Yankees are among seven MLB teams to feature. La Liga giants Real Madrid (US$4.24 billion) and Barcelona (US$4.02 billion), and the NBA’s New York Knicks (US$4 billion) round out the top five. Manchester United saw their value drop from US$4.12 billion to US$3.18 billion.
SOCCER
Player reverses coming out
A Twitter user who claimed to be an anonymous English Football League Championship player intending to come out as gay has reversed his decision, saying he is “not strong enough to do this.” Having previously declared his intention to hold a news conference yesterday at which he would reveal his identity after a series of tweets about his experiences, @FootballerGay on Tuesday posted two messages before deleting the account that had amassed more than 50,000 followers. Former England striker Gary Lineker and Burton Albion forward Marvin Sordell were among those to publicly express their support for the player, who is believed to be under the age of 23 and currently playing in a Championship club. Justin Fashanu remains the only British male player to have publicly come out while playing in the Football League, in 1990.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
Rafael Nadal on Tuesday lost in straight sets to 31st-ranked Jiri Lehecka in the fourth round at the Madrid Open, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the semi-finals in the women’s doubles. Nadal said that he was feeling good about his progress following his latest injury layoff. Nadal called it a “positive week” in every way and said his body held up well. “I was able to play four matches, a couple of tough matches,” Nadal said. “So very positive, winning three matches, playing four matches at the high level of tennis. I enjoyed a lot playing at home. I leave here with
A soccer jersey carrying a national map including disputed Western Sahara has become a hot commodity in Morocco after a diplomatic dispute with Algeria. Retailers said RS Berkane jerseys have been flying off the shelves after a Confederation of African Football (CAF) Cup match against Algerian club USM Alger was canceled last month over the jerseys. “We are overwhelmed by the influx of messages and requests,” said Brahim Rabii, representative of the official RS Berkane jersey distributor. Algeria broke off diplomatic relations with Morocco in 2021, partly over the issue of Western Sahara. The former Spanish colony is largely controlled by Morocco, but claimed
When 42-1 underdog James ‘Buster’ Douglas shocked ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson 34 years ago at the Tokyo Dome, the result reverberated worldwide. Spectators at the 45,000-plus seater venue witnessed one of boxing’s biggest upsets as unbeaten heavyweight champion Tyson was knocked out in the 10th round by the unheralded Douglas in February 1990. Boxing returns to the famous venue on Monday for the first time since that unforgettable encounter when Japan’s undisputed super-bantamweight world champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue puts his belts on the line against Mexican Luis Nery. The 31-year-old Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs) is a huge star in Japan and is just