OLYMPICS
Koreas bid for joint team
The two Koreas are to pursue a plan to form a joint artistic gymnastics team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Seoul’s Korea Gymnastics Association (KGA) said. Yonhap reported that KGA officials are to meet their North Korean counterparts and consider the proposal at the Oct. 25 to Nov. 3 World Championships in Doha. The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) is also keen to help sports exchanges between the neighbors, the report said. “An FIG executive meeting will be held in Pyongyang next January,” Yonhap quoted an unnamed KGA official as saying.
ICE HOCKEY
Lehtera probed in drug ring
The NHL on Thursday said it is investigating Philadelphia Flyers forward Jori Lehtera after a report that he is being questioned in connection with a drug bust in his native Finland. Finnish news agency MTV on Wednesday reported that Lehtera is connected with an investigation into a cocaine ring. Lehtera’s lawyer, Ari Nieminen, said no charges have been filed against Lehtera. Nieminen said he could not comment on specific details of the case, but expected the police briefing to come yesterday. “We have spoken with Jori Lehtera and the league office regarding the reports out of Finland, and will reserve any further comment on the matter at this time,” Flyers general manager Ron Hextall said.
BOXING
HBO cancels boxing
HBO is walking away from professional boxing after 45 years of live fight programming, the network said on Thursday. HBO’s long association with the sport began in 1973, when it carried George Foreman’s knockout of reigning heavyweight world champion Joe Frazier. The network pioneered modern pay-per-view coverage of boxing. “Going forward into 2019, we will be pivoting away from programming live boxing on HBO,” HBO Sports said in a statement. “As always, we will remain open to looking at events that fit our programming mix. This could include boxing, just not for the foreseeable future.”
FOOTBALL
Panthers sign Eric Reid
The Carolina Panthers signed safety Eric Reid, it announced on Thursday, after the player spent more than six months as a free agent. The first player to join then-teammate Colin Kaepernick in kneeling during the national anthem in 2016, Reid in May filed a collusion grievance against the NFL as he remained unsigned. The grievance remains active, despite the Panthers deal, reports said. “This is strictly a football decision,” Panthers general manager Marty Hurney said.
CRICKET
Christmas matches mulled
The last barrier to a 365-day professional sporting calendar in Australia looks set to come down with a report in the Australian yesterday saying cricketers had agreed to play Twenty20 matches on Christmas Day. The paper published a leaked e-mail from the Australian Cricketers Association telling player agents they had agreed to stage Big Bash League matches on Dec. 25. The agreement has provisos for players to opt out of matches for religious belief and Cricket Australia indicated it would definitely not happen this year.
SSC Napoli’s Italian Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale with closest rivals Inter just one point behind. The hosts remain top with 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier on Sunday, with two rounds remaining. To make matters worse for Napoli, midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, struggling with an ankle injury, was forced off just minutes after the match began. Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
INTER AWAIT: Superb saves by PSG ’keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma inspired the victory, as Arsenal were punished for misses, including one by Bukayo Saka Arsenal on Wednesday fell short on the big stage again as their painful UEFA Champions League semi-final exit against Paris Saint-Germain left Mikel Arteta to rue his club’s failure to provide him with enough attacking options. Arteta’s side were unable to reach the Champions League final for the first time in 19 years as PSG clinched a tense 2-1 win at Parc des Princes. Trailing 1-0 from last week’s first leg in London, the Gunners made a blistering start to the second leg, but could not convert their chances as Gianluigi Donnarumma’s superb saves inspired PSG’s 3-1 aggregate victory. Arsenal were punished for
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ￥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ￥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
RSS