OLYMPICS
WADA releases suspect list
The World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) on Thursday gathered chiefs of sports federations and Olympic committees in Lausanne, Switzerland, to pass on information on athletes suspected of benefiting from alleged Russian state-sponsored doping. As investigations are ongoing, WADA has not publicly released the list of suspects. Intelligence from the laboratory information management system database of a former WADA-accredited Moscow laboratory was handed over to 60 international officials at the meeting. The agency has “forensically reconstructed the database; determined its authenticity; uncovered and analyzed its hidden content; and determined what valuable intelligence could be shared,” a news release said.
SOCCER
Lazio advance to quarters
Felipe Anderson on Thursday scored his first goal of the season as SS Lazio cruised into the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia after beating Serie B side AS Cittadella 3-1. Lazio are to face ACF Fiorentina in the quarter-finals on Dec. 27. Brazilian winger Anderson, who has become one of Lazio’s star players since arriving in Italy from Santos in 2013, slotted the home side’s 24th-minute second goal in his second appearance since being sidelined with a knee injury before the start of the season. Anderson raced through to stroke home Lucas Leiva’s fine through-ball 13 minutes after Ciro Immobile opened the scoring and his strike was added to by an Agostino Camigliano own-goal nine minutes before the break and a smart Immobile chip in the final moments.
TENNIS
Hewitt to return for doubles
Former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt is to come out of retirement temporarily and play doubles with compatriot Sam Groth at next month’s Australian Open, local media reported yesterday. Hewitt, a US Open and Wimbledon singles champion, officially retired from top-level tennis after his home Grand Slam last year, when he also played doubles with Groth. However, he did play doubles during the Davis Cup and Wimbledon last year. “It’s going to be a bit of fun. That’s what the Australian Open is about,” Hewitt told News Corp Australia yesterday. “I’m going to really enjoy it. Groth, who is retiring after the season-opening Grand Slam and is hoping for a wild card for the singles draw, is also to play mixed doubles with Sam Stosur.
RECORD DEFEAT: The Shanghai-based ‘Oriental Sports Daily’ said the drubbing was so disastrous, and taste so bitter, that all that is left is ‘numbness’ Chinese soccer fans and media rounded on the national team yesterday after they experienced fresh humiliation in a 7-0 thrashing to rivals Japan in their opening Group C match in the third phase of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The humiliation in Saitama on Thursday against Asia’s top-ranked team was China’s worst defeat in World Cup qualifying and only a goal short of their record 8-0 loss to Brazil in 2012. Chinese President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China to host and even win the World Cup one day, but that ambition looked further away than ever after a
‘KHELIFMANIA’: In the weeks since the Algerian boxer won gold in Paris, national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women In the weeks since Algeria’s Imane Khelif won an Olympic gold medal in women’s boxing, athletes and coaches in the North African nation say national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women. Khelif’s image is practically everywhere, featured in advertisements at airports, on highway billboards and in boxing gyms. The 25-year-old welterweight’s success in Paris has vaulted her to national hero status, especially after Algerians rallied behind her in the face of uninformed speculation about her gender and eligibility to compete. Amateur boxer Zougar Amina, a medical student who has been practicing for a year, called Khelif an
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
GOING GLOBAL: The regular season fixture is part of the football league’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the sport to international destinations The US National Football League (NFL) breaks new ground in its global expansion strategy tomorrow when the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers face off in the first-ever grid-iron game staged in Brazil. For one night only, the land of Pele and ‘The Beautiful Game’ will get a rare glimpse into the bone-crunching world of American football as the Packers and Eagles collide at Sao Paulo’s Neo Quimica Arena, the 46,000-seat home of soccer club Corinthians. The regular season fixture is part of the NFL’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the US’ most popular sport to new territories following previous international fixtures
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