Several NFL players joined other stars on Sunday to support the “I can’t breathe” protests sweeping the US demanding justice for black men who have died at the hands of white policemen.
On Saturday, Chicago Bulls NBA star Derrick Rose wore a T-shirt bearing the words, which has become the slogan of demonstrations in major US cities because they were the last phrase uttered by a black father of six in New York when police placed him in a chokehold.
Eric Garner died, but a grand jury on Wednesday last week decided not to charge the white police officer, triggering days of protests in several US cities.
Detroit Lions running back Reggie Bush wore a top with “I can’t breathe” written on it ahead of an NFL game on Sunday, as did Cleveland Browns ace Johnson Bademosi.
Davin Joseph, a St Louis Rams guard, wrote the same words on his cleats and tweeted it, along with the caption: “RIP Eric Garner.”
Five Rams players incurred the wrath of a St Louis police organization a week ago when they entered the field with the same “hands up, don’t shoot” gesture adopted by protesters in the St Louis suburb of Ferguson after a white policeman there shot dead an unarmed black teenager. A grand jury also decided not to indict the officer involved in that case.
Rose’s teammate Joakim Noah said Rose told him he had planned to wear the shirt and Noah supported it.
“I think a lot of people feel that way,” Noah said of Rose’s gesture. “It’s really sad what happened. Police brutality is something that happens. Not every cop is a bad person. Not every black person is a bad person. You can’t judge people. But he definitely made a statement by wearing that T-shirt.”
Four-time NBA Most Valuable Player LeBron James said on Sunday he thought Rose’s shirt was “spectacular.”
“I loved it,” James said as his Cleveland Cavaliers prepared to play the Brooklyn Nets, a game that was to be attended by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in New York. “I’m looking for one.”
Prince William and his pregnant wife Kate were to attend their first NBA game yesterday, during a three-day US visit.
The four-time NBA Most Valuable Player nicknamed “King James” said it would be a “huge honor” to play before the royal couple when he leads the Cavaliers in search of their seventh win in a row at the Barclays Center.
“You read about people like them only in books growing up,” James said. “To hear that they’re coming to town to see me play and they want to see me do what I do best, it’s a huge honor.”
The NBA said on Sunday the royal couple would attend the game as part of a new partnership between the league and the Royal Foundation, a project linking the league’s NBA Cares program with the foundation’s United for Wildlife and Coach Core programs.
The projects will unite NBA players and England’s royalty to promote global wildlife conservation, develop a new generation of conservation leaders and boost the sport of basketball.
“I think it’s great different people from different parts of the world want to come see great stars like LeBron and want to see the great game of basketball here in the United States,” Cavaliers coach David Blatt said.
New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony will take part in a Coach Core graduation event to develop new basketball coaches when his team visits London to play the Milwaukee Bucks on Jan. 14 in a regular-season matchup.
United for Wildlife efforts, led by Prince William, will receive a boost from NBA stars such as Spanish Olympian Serge Ibaka of the Oklahoma City Thunder, retired African NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo and two-time NBA All-Star Al Horford of Atlanta.
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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