BADMINTON
Chou falls in quarter-finals
Taiwanese badminton ace Chou Tien-chen on Friday failed to reach the BWF World Championships men’s singles semi-finals in Switzerland, losing to Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen. The world No. 2 was defeated 16-21, 21-11, 14-21 in a quarter-final that lasted 71 minutes. Chou had defeated Wangcharoen in their previous four encounters dating back to August last year. In the first game in Switzerland, Chou opened up a 6-3 lead before an 8-8 stalemate, but the Taiwanese failed to keep up the pressure on Wangcharoen and finished 16-21. The 29-year-old jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the second game and protected his advantage the rest of the competition before putting his rival away. However, Chou fell behind early in the deciding game, trailing 2-3, and ultimately failed to fend off Wangcharoen. In the men’s doubles, Taiwanese duo Liao Min-chun and Su Ching-heng were ousted in the quarter-finals by Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan of Indonesia 17-21, 19-21.
CYCLING
Kittel announces retirement
German sprint specialist Marcel Kittel on Friday announced his retirement from the sport, saying that he lacked the commitment and drive that was necessary to remain a top athlete. The 31-year-old, who has 19 Grand Tour stage wins, including 14 on the Tour de France, in May terminated his contract with Katusha–Alpecin by mutual agreement to take a break from cycling. He joined the Swiss outfit last year, but never managed to reproduce the form that made him one of the world’s best sprinters, leading him to take some time out of cycling. “The biggest question of the last few months was: Can I and do I want to continue to make the sacrifices needed to be a world-class athlete?” Kittel said in a statement. “And my answer is: No, I do not want that any more, because I have always found the limitations on a top athlete as an increasing loss of quality of life... That is why I am very happy and proud that at this point in my life I can make the decision to follow my heart in a new direction.” Kittel’s last significant victory came last year in the sixth stage of the week-long Tirreno-Adriatico, while his last win on the Tour de France was in 2017.
SOCCER
Jordan lifts Sevilla to victory
Midfielder Joan Jordan on Friday scored in the second half to help Sevilla beat Granada 1-0 on the road and win their second La Liga match in as many rounds. Jordan, one of several summer signings by Sevilla, finished off a shot by Luuk de Jong that was blocked by a sliding defender after Jordan set up his striker in the 52nd minute. Granada, promoted this season, succeeded through their pressure to disarm Sevilla’s attack in the first half, but the hosts’ efforts waned after Jordan’s goal. “We are very motivated and I think we can get a lot better,” said Jordan, a former Sociedad Deportiva Eibar player. The visitors lost rightback Sergio Reguilon when he could not recover from a hard head knock with Granada’s Victor Diaz and was carried off on a stretcher in tears in the 18th minute. Sevilla are coached by former Spain and Real Madrid manager Julen Lopetegui. Elsewhere, Levante UD striker Roger Marti converted two second-half penalties to complete a 2-1 comeback win over Villarreal. Villarreal goalkeeper Andres Fernandez stopped the first penalty, but a video review revealed that Fernandez left his line too early and the penalty was retaken.
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
Bayern Munich on Sunday were crowned German champions for the 34th time, giving striker Harry Kane his first major trophy, after second-placed Bayer 04 Leverkusen drew 2-2 at SC Freiburg. Bayern’s 3-3 draw at RB Leipzig on Saturday, when the Bavarians came from two goals down to take the lead before conceding a stoppage-time equalizer, meant defending Bundesliga champions Leverkusen needed to win at Freiburg to delay the title party. Leverkusen were two goals down before scoring twice in the final 10 minutes, but Xabi Alonso’s side could not find a third, as Bayern reclaimed the title at the first attempt after
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,
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