SOCCER
‘Player tip-off’ on fixing
La Liga president Javier Tebas on Thursday testified in a match-fixing trial, saying it was a former player who told him a result had been fixed. The case involves a top-tier game between Levante UD and Real Zaragoza at the end of the 2010-2011 season. Prosecutors say there is evidence that 965,000 euros (US$1.07 million at the current exchange rate) was paid to Levante’s players to lose the match in the final round of the season. Zaragoza won 2-1 to secure their spot in the first division. Tebas did not reveal which player made the allegation, but said he played for Zaragoza and did not want to be linked to the investigation out of fear of retaliation from other players.
TENNIS
Osaka fires second coach
Naomi Osaka has sacked her second coach in seven months, splitting with Jermaine Jenkins in the wake of her disappointing US Open title defense. Jenkins, a long-time hitting partner of Venus Williams, replaced Sascha Bajin in February, weeks after Osaka’s Australian Open triumph. “I’m super grateful for the time we spent together and the things I learned on and off the court, but I feel like now is an appropriate time for change,” the Japanese 21-year-old wrote on Twitter. Her early exit from New York has seen her ranking slide to fourth.
FOOTBALL
US$3m for safer helmets
In a quest for a safer helmet, the NFL is starting a US$3 million program aimed at the development of new headgear. Manufacturers, engineers and entrepreneurs are welcome to submit prototypes in the NFL Helmet Challenge, with the goal of reducing head trauma. The league is to provide US$2 million in grant funding to support development, with as much as US$1 million awarded for a prototype that would be used to help reduce concussions. “Helmet technology is advancing at an impressive rate, yet we believe that even more is possible,” NFL executive vice president for health and safety Jeff Miller said in a news release. The challenge is to culminate in May 2021. Participants would have access to the NFL’s video review data on helmet safety, as well as models of modern football helmets.
COACHING
Panel talks women burnout
Female coaches play a key role in inspiring achievement in girls and young women, but their numbers are few and they often burn out and quit, sports leaders said on Thursday. Women coaches need better support to stay in their jobs, said participants at a Beyond Sport conference, held ahead of meetings at the UN this month on development goals. Fewer than one in 10 registered soccer coaches is female, according to FIFA. “We need more women in leadership positions in sport,” said Courtney Levinsohn, founder of Growth Through Sport, an organization that supports girls’ access to sports. Coaches play a formative role in building the confidence of young players and set an example of what leadership looks like, she said. A dearth of female coaches means they struggle with isolation and have to fight negative cultural stereotypes on their own, she added. “You could go months without seeing another female coach,” she said. “You burn out because there’s no collective.”
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
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is 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