FORMULA ONE
Hamilton sets pace in US
Lewis Hamilton set the early pace for the US Grand Prix, punching in the fastest time of Friday’s afternoon practice session ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. A distant eighth in the morning session, Hamilton’s best lap in the afternoon was 0.301 seconds faster than Leclerc. Hamilton is chasing a sixth career Formula One championship on a track where he has won five times since 2012 and clinched the championship in 2015. The opening practice sessions were marked by cool temperatures and a bumpy track at the seven-year-old Circuit of the Americas. The track is built on clay soil that expands with rain and contracts when dry. Drivers spent the morning session dealing with noticeable bumps that bounced the cars around several areas of the course. Some of the most notable bumps were heading into the first turn as cars sped through the straight at the starting grid in front of the main grandstand and as they pulled out of pit lane. “This must be the bumpiest track in the world,” Hamilton radioed to his garage in the morning session.
SOCCER
Big MLS crowd expected
The MLS Cup final is to be played before one of the largest crowds in league history. The Seattle Sounders on Friday announced that the final on Sunday next week at CenturyLink Field against Toronto is sold out, with more than 69,000 fans expected. The team had sold more than 50,000 tickets to season-ticket holders through a presale before tickets went on sale to the public on Friday.
OLYMPICS
US wait on 3s basketball
The US men’s and women’s teams were not among the eight qualifiers announced on Friday for the Tokyo Olympics in three-on-three basketball. The US teams needed to be one of the top four teams in the FIBA Federation rankings to earn the automatic berths to next year’s Olympics. The men were fifth and the women 12th. Russia led the way with its men’s and women’s teams qualifying, joined by Serbia, China and hosts Japan. The Russian women’s team are joined by China, Mongolia and Romania.
UFC
Jones adds to reward
A reward has risen to US$80,000 for information about Aniah Haley Blanchard, the missing stepdaughter of Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Walt Harris. Media reported that UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones on Thursday announced on Instagram that he would donate US$25,000 in the case of 19-year-old Blanchard. The money is in addition to two US$25,000 donations from UFC president Dana White and an anonymous donor, along with a US$5,000 donation from the state of Alabama. An Auburn police statement says evidence found inside Blanchard’s vehicle indicates she was a victim of foul play. The Southern Union State Community College student was last seen on Oct. 24.
GOLF
McIlroy leads by one
Rory McIlroy held a one-stroke lead over Louis Oosthuizen after the third round at the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai yesterday. McIlroy put on a driving clinic for most of the day, his accuracy and prodigious length off the tee an impressive sight at Sheshan International. He carded a bogey-free five-under-par 67. South African Oosthuizen threw down the gauntlet with birdies at the first five holes en route to a 65, the day’s best score in ideal conditions.
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
If all goes well when the biggest marathon field ever gathered in Australia races 42km through the streets of Sydney on Sunday, World Marathon Majors (WMM) will soon add a seventh race to the elite series. The Sydney Marathon is to become the first race since Tokyo in 2013 to join long-established majors in New York, London, Boston, Berlin and Chicago if it passes the WMM assessment criteria for the second straight year. “We’re really excited for Sunday to arrive,” race director Wayne Larden told a news conference in Sydney yesterday. “We’re prepared, we’re ready. All of our plans look good on
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
When details from a scientific experiment that could have helped clear Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva landed at the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the leader of the organization’s reaction was unequivocal: “We have to stop that urgently,” he wrote. No mention of the test ever became public and Valieva’s defense at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) went on without it. What effect the information could have had on Valieva’s case is unclear, but without it, the skater, then 15 years old, was eventually disqualified from the 2022 Winter Olympics after testing positive for a banned heart medication that would later