CRICKET
Stokes blasts tragedy report
England’s Ben Stokes on Tuesday described a front-page article in that day’s Sun about a family tragedy 31 years ago as “disgusting” and “immoral.” In a statement on Twitter, Stokes said that the newspaper’s decision to publish the story would have “grave and lifelong consequences” for his mother in particular. He claimed that the story contained a number of serious inaccuracies. “It is hard to find words that adequately describe such low and despicable behavior, disguised as journalism,” he wrote. Stokes said that a reporter had turned up at his parents’ home in New Zealand “out of the blue” to ask them about the tragedy. A spokeswoman for the paper said: “The Sun has the utmost sympathy for Ben Stokes and his mother, but it is only right to point out the story was told with the cooperation of a family member who supplied details, provided photographs and posed for pictures. The tragedy is also a matter of public record and was the subject of extensive front-page publicity in New Zealand at the time.”
FOOTBALL
Fart allegation clouds Brown
A former doctor for New England Patriots wide receiver Antonio Brown said that the NFL star repeatedly farted in his face and laughed about it during an appointment where he turned up three hours late and never paid US$11,500 in fees. Victor Prisk said he admitted Brown for an initial consultation despite his “flighty” reputation during a nine-year stint with the Steelers and has since filed a lawsuit seeking compensation for the unpaid bill, according to an SI.com investigation published on Monday. TMZ obtained footage of the visit in August last year where Brown could been seen laughing while passing gas as Prisk tests his body fat. The SI.com report comes one week after a civil complaint filed in US district court for the southern district of Florida alleging Brown sexually assaulted Britney Taylor, a gymnast he met at Central Michigan University.
WEIGHTLIFTING
Egypt banned from Worlds
Egypt has been banned from participating in the World Championships for doping offenses, state media said on Tuesday, as the Egyptian Olympic Committee fears the suspension could extend to next year’s Tokyo Games. A number of Egyptian weightlifters were included in the entry list for the Worlds, which began in Thailand yesterday, but all of them were missing from the competition’s start book. “We have not received any official letter regarding this case,” committee secretary-general Sherif el-Erian told al-Ahram. “Once we receive an official letter regarding the ban, we will do our best to solve the crisis.”
OLYMPICS
Panda to be 2022 mascot
China has chosen the panda to be the official mascot of the 2022 Beijing Olympics, the Winter Games organizing committee announced on Tuesday. The mascot, named “Bing Dwen Dwen,” is a chubby giant panda wearing a suit of ice. The animal has a “heart of gold and a love of all things winter sports,” tweeted the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. For the Paralympic Games, the mascot is a blushing red lantern named “Shuey Rhon Rhon.”
Shaquille O’Neal is staying with TNT Sports on a new contract worth more than US$15 million per year, Front Office Sports reported on Friday. The news means the cast of Inside the NBA is staying together even as TNT is set to license out the show to ESPN starting next season. TNT was the odd network out in the NBA’s recent TV rights negotiations, as NBC and Amazon joined previous rightsholder ESPN in inking deals for basketball games. That left TNT without a need for pregame and postgame NBA shows. In a trade with ESPN, TNT is licensing Inside the NBA to the
Eugenie Bouchard already has her own signature pickleball paddle. She is No. 17 in the pickleball rankings and constantly appears on the main court at events because she is always a big draw. However, just to be absolutely clear, she is not retired from tennis. The 2014 Wimbledon finalist still practices on the tennis court, still competes at tennis events and still has a Women’s Tennis Association ranking (No. 1,288). The Canadian standout just has a new sport that has caught her attention. Bouchard is one of several familiar tennis names — like Jack Sock and Donald Young — crossing over to
Starting with three fights in the first nine seconds and ending with a celebration and a spot in the 4 Nations Face-Off final, the US on Saturday delivered exactly what Matthew Tkachuk hoped for by beating Canada. “We needed to send a message,” Tkachuk said. “The message we wanted to send is ‘It’s our time.’” Tkachuk fought Brandon Hagel off the opening faceoff, brother Brady tussled with Sam Bennett the next time the puck dropped, J.T. Miller dropped the gloves with Colton Parayko next and the Americans followed those fisticuffs with a 3-1 victory over their biggest rival. “That was one of the
Aaliyah Edwards on Monday pulled off the stunner of the opening round of the Unrivaled one-on-one tournament, beating top-seeded Breanna Stewart 12-0. The tournament to be played over three days featured 23 of the WNBA’s 36 players. A few had other commitments and a couple others were out with injuries. Stewart got the ball first against Edwards and missed a contested layup. Edwards then hit a three-pointer from the corner and a jumper from the elbow to go up 5-0. The player who scores keeps the basketball. Edwards hit two layups and a three-pointer to seal the win. Stewart, a two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player,