SOCCER
Sampdoria defeat Bologna
Italy internationals Eder and Roberto Soriano scored second-half goals as UC Sampdoria on Monday beat 10-man Bologna 2-0 in a Serie A match that was postponed for a day due to bad weather. The win moved Sampdoria level second with five other clubs, two points behind leader Inter. Promoted Bologna are still looking for their first points. Brazilian-born Eder opened the scoring in the 75th with a shot that banged in off the post and Soriano doubled the lead four minutes later with a powerful effort from beyond the area. Bologna substitute Luca Rizzo was sent off after picking up his second yellow shortly after the hour mark.
CYCLING
Thomas pulls out of worlds
Geraint Thomas has joined Team Sky colleague Chris Froome in pulling out of the UCI Road World Championships in Richmond, Virginia, starting this weekend, saying he is not physically up to it. “It’s been a hard decision to make, but the season has taken its toll on me and I don’t feel physically up for a good worlds,” Welshman Thomas, 29, wrote on Facebook. “I don’t want to go there just to make up the numbers, I’d want to be competitive or at least do a good job for the boys.” Thomas, who helped Froome win this year’s Tour de France, is targeting a big year next year with the Olympics and the Tour de France both being priorities. Froome was forced to pull out of the worlds after fracturing his foot in the Vuelta a Espana.
FRANCHISES
Cowboys top Forbes list
The Dallas Cowboys have dethroned Real Madrid as the most valuable sports team in the world, according to a Forbes survey of the richest teams in the NFL. The Cowboys, often described as “America’s Team” despite not having won the Super Bowl since 1995, topped the Forbes list with a value of US$4 billion, fueled in part by the NFL’s gargantuan domestic TV deal. The valuation puts them ahead of Real Madrid, who were valued by Forbes at US$3.26 billion, according to a global list released earlier this year. Two other US sports franchises, the NFL’s New England Patriots and baseball’s New York Yankees, were next with an estimated value of US$3.2 billion. Reigning European champions Barcelona came in at fifth with an estimated value of US$3.16 billion. Premier League giants Manchester United were valued at US$3.1 billion according to the most recent Forbes estimates.
SWIMMING
Magnussen preps for Rio
It was tough viewing for James Magnussen to see his 100m freestyle crown nabbed at last month’s World Aquatics Championships, but the convalescing Australian drew comfort from the relatively slow times at the Kazan meeting. Magnussen is back training with the national squad in Canberra after missing the worlds due to shoulder surgery. His four-year reign as 100m world champion was broken by China’s Ning Zetao, who swept to victory with a time of 47.84 seconds. Magnussen’s personal best of 47.10 would have blown all challengers out of the water at Kazan, and the Australian is eager to reassert his authority at the Rio Olympics next year after being pipped for gold at the London Games. Magnussen underwent surgery on his troublesome left shoulder in May, having lost 70 percent of his strength in it. He lost his 100m national title to teammate Cameron McEvoy, who was pipped for the world title by Ning, the first Asian swimmer to win the blue ribbon event.
The Taoyuan Pauian Pilots on Sunday fell short in their bid for a first East Asia Super League (EASL) title after a 90-81 loss to Japan’s Utsunomiya Brex in Macau. The defeat marked the second straight year the defending P.League+ champions missed out on the EASL crown, but they remain the first team to reach back-to-back championship games in the league’s three-year history. The outcome was largely decided by long-range shooting. The Pilots struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just five of 20 attempts, while the Brex converted 19 three-pointers, shooting 46.3 percent from long range. Seven of the eight Brex players
Taiwanese boxer and Olympic gold medalist Lin Yu-ting has been approved to compete in the Asian Boxing Elite Championships, the Chinese Taipei Boxing Association (CTBA) said yesterday. The championships start on Saturday next week in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Lin became entangled in a gender controversy, despite the International Olympic Committee confirming her eligibility to compete as a female boxer. In August last year, World Boxing mandated a new regulation that required all athletes to undergo a polymerase chain reaction. genetic test to determine their sex at birth and their eligibility. Since the introduction of the test, Lin has missed several
ONE MORE CHANCE: While North Korea denied Taiwan in Australia, Taiwan, who last played in the World Cup in 1991, could still qualify via inter-confederation playoffs Taiwan yesterday lost 4-0 to a dominant North Korea in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup playoffs, closing off an avenue to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Hong Song-ok scored a hat-trick in the match to determine the last of the confederation’s qualifiers from the tournament for next year’s World Cup in Brazil. With their victory over Taiwan, North Korea has qualified for the first time since a doping saga in 2011 led to their long absence from top-tier international tournaments. Angela Beard and Jaclyn Sawicki scored in a six-minute span to help the Philippines secure a World Cup spot with a
Audi, who are just two races into their Formula One journey, have parted company with team principal Jonathan Wheatley “with immediate effect,” the German team said on Friday. The 58-year-old Briton, who spent almost two decades with Red Bull, joined Sauber in April last year. Sauber were subsequently taken over by Audi. “Due to personal reasons, Jonathan Wheatley will depart the team with immediate effect,” Audi said in a statement. “The team thanks Jonathan for his contribution to the project and wishes him the best for his future endeavors. “Mattia Binotto, head of Audi F1 Project, will continue leading the team while taking over
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