■JUDO
No gold for Japan
Japan suffered an embarrassing world championship wipeout on Sunday when for the first time in 59 years their highly regarded men’s team failed to win a title. Their last hope, double world champion Yasuyuki Muneta, missed out on a medal when he suffered a third round loss to Mongolia’s Gankhuyag Dorjpalam in their over-100kg bout. The defeat completed a miserable downward spiral for Japan’s men’s team who until 1973 won all golds on offer at the world championships. France’s Teddy Riner went on to retain his title in the division, beating Cuba’s Oscar Bryson for gold. Uzbekistan’s Abdullo Tangriev and Lithuania’s Marius Paskevicius both took bronze medals. In the men’s under-100kg category, Kazakhstan’s Maxim Rakov took gold by scoring an ippon success over Dutchman Henk Grol with Japan at least picking up a bronze consolation through Takamasa Anai. Japan’s Maki Tsukada picked up a bronze in the women’s over-78kg division with the title going to Olympic champion Tong Wen of China, who beat Karina Bryant of Britain in the final by ippon.
■FORMULA ONE
FIA probes Alonso ‘incident’
Formula One’s governing body is investigating “alleged incidents” from a previous race, believed to be an accident at last year’s Singapore Grand Prix that helped Fernando Alonso secure victory for Renault. Brazilian TV station Globo reported on Sunday that Nelson Piquet Jr was ordered to crash into a wall at the night race so that teammate Alonso could take advantage of an early pit stop. Piquet Jr crashed heavily on the 13th lap and Alonso’s gamble to run a short 12-lap strategy before pitting paid off as the Spanish driver went on to score an unlikely victory. The FIA would not confirm that it was investigating that particular incident, only “alleged incidents at a previous Formula One world championship event.”
■MOTOGP
Lorenzo back in title chase
Spain’s Jorge Lorenzo claimed his third win of the season at the Indianapolis MotoGP on Sunday after championship leader Valentino Rossi and pole sitter Dani Pedrosa crashed. Lorenzo, winner of two of the first four races, crossed first at the famed Brickyard, 9.43 seconds clear of San Marino’s Alex De Angelis to jump back into the title chase as Yamaha team mate Rossi failed to finish for the first time this season. Rossi began the day with a 50-point advantage over Lorenzo but saw his lead slashed to 25 points with five races to run. The Italian rider’s involvement came to end on lap 9 when he hit the ground while battling Lorenzo for the lead.
■CRICKET
Owners angry over IMG split
High-profile owners of team franchises in the Indian Premier League have reacted furiously to the Indian cricket board’s decision to snap ties with event management company IMG, reports said yesterday. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday terminated its contract with the International Management Group which helped it launch the lucrative Twenty20 league last year. Business tycoon Mukesh Ambani and Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan, both owners of IPL franchisees, have shot off angry letters to the BCCI. “I am personally shocked at the unilateral decision of doing away with the services of IMG,” the Times of India quoted Ambani, who owns the Mumbai Indians team, as saying in his letter. “It is also worrying to me that such a significant decision in relation to IPL has been taken without even so much as consulting the franchises.”
Jobe Bellingham on Tuesday admitted to having “anxieties” on following in brother Jude’s footsteps after joining Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Jobe Bellingham, 19, is two years younger than Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in 2023 after three years at Dortmund. A centerpiece of the England national team, Jude Bellingham has emerged as one of the best players in the world in recent seasons. The younger Jobe Bellingham joined Dortmund in June from Sunderland after their promotion to the English Premier League. He admitted he understood what the perception would be ahead of the move to Germany. “It’s something you do think about.
Before Tuesday’s 7-2 win at the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy suggested “most people couldn’t tell you five players on our team.” A look at the standings would indicate more Brewers players soon will be recognized by more fans. After all, it is difficult to overlook a team that not only continues to extend their lead in the National League Central, but also boasts the best record in the majors. “What we’re doing in here right now is special,” right-handed pitcher Freddy Peralta said after allowing only four hits and one run in five innings, while setting a career high with
Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday fought through a second-set slump to post a roller-coaster 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 victory over Damir Dzumhur in his opening match at the Cincinnati Open. The Spaniard, playing his first tournament since losing to Jannik Sinner in the Wimbledon final, raced through the first set, but completely lost his way in the second, dropping his serve twice against the 33-year-old Bosnian. Alcaraz regained his intensity and cut down his errors in the third set as a seventh ace took him to a match point that was converted when Dzumhur fired wide. “It was just a roller coaster,” said the second
A baseball team from New Taipei City won the US Pony Palomino Division World Series yesterday in Laredo, Texas, defeating the US West representative team from Azusa, California, 2-1. Ku-Pao Home Economics and Commercial High School earned the right to represent Taiwan in the Pony Palomino (17 to 18 age group) World Series after winning this year's Wang Chen-chih Cup, a competition named after Taiwanese-Japanese baseball legend Wang Chen-chih (王貞治), also known as Sadaharu Oh. In the championship game against Azusa, Ku-Pao's starting pitcher Luo Yu-yan (羅于晏) was erratic early, giving up two hits in the bottom of the first inning, followed
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