TENNIS
Coach jailed for rape
A coach who raped four girls aged 12 to 17 was on Wednesday jailed for 18 years by a French court. Andrew Geddes, 53, carried out his attacks at two clubs to the north of Paris, from the start of 2000 and from 2009 to 2014. The court heard his first victim was 12 when she met Geddes in 1999. She said she was raped and sexually assaulted nearly 400 times until she was 14 years old. It was a pattern that was repeated with three other victims, aged 15 to 17, when they were coached by Geddes. The victims said Geddes forced them to sever links with families and friends, and subjected them to a series of violent attacks in his car, in changing rooms or during training courses.
BASEBALL
MLB halts political giving
The MLB on Wednesday said it is suspending all political contributions in the wake of last week’s invasion of the US Capitol by a mob loyal to US President Donald Trump. The NFL also said it would reconsider its donations, but did not commit to suspending them. The MLB was the first of the major US professional sports leagues since the riot to say it would halt lobbying through its PAC, which has donated US$669,375 to US Senate and House candidates since the 2016 election cycle, with 52.4 percent of the money going to Republican candidates, according to Center for Responsive Politics data. Among its lobbying successes was a bill in 2018 that exempted minor league baseball players making as little as US$5,500 per season from federal minimum wage laws, pre-empting a lawsuit from three players filed four years earlier.
SWIMMING
Keller charged over riot
American Olympic swimmer Klete Keller was on Wednesday charged in US District Court for his role in last week’s Capitol riot. A former relay teammate of Michael Phelps, Keller was charged with disorderly conduct, entering restricted grounds and obstructing law enforcement, court records showed. In videos posted online, Keller could be seen standing in the Rotunda during the riot on Wednesday last week, wearing a dark jacket with a USA Olympics patch. Keller participated in the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, winning a total of five medals, including two golds.
RUGBY UNION
Top League put on hold
Japan’s Top League was put on hold on Tuesday after scores of players tested positive for COVID-19, the latest setback for sports in the country just six months before the Tokyo Olympics. The postponement of the Top League, which features stars including All Blacks Beauden Barrett and Kieran Read, comes during a surge in cases, which has prompted a state of emergency in Tokyo and other parts of Japan. Sixty-seven cases have been reported by the Top League, which was due to start tomorrow. Officials have not identified those who tested positive, or said how many are players or staff. Officials said they hope to start playing early next month and complete the season as scheduled on May 23, possibly under a new, more condensed competition format. However, they cannot rule out a late finish, which could affect Japan’s national team, who are due to play the British and Irish Lions in Edinburgh on June 26.
SWEEP THE LEG: Poirier, determined to best McGregor, after losing to him in 2014, used low calf kicks to throw ‘Notorious’ off his stand-up game, before dropping him American underdog Dustin Poirier yesterday shook up the world of mixed martial arts, beating up the legs of Irish superstar Conor McGregor before knocking him out at UFC 257 in Abu Dhabi. “I’m happy, but I’m not surprised. I put in the work,” Poirier said, after the referee stepped in after 2 minutes, 32 seconds of the second round to save McGregor from further damage, after he was dropped by a fierce combination of punches. The 32-year-old Poirier was ranked second in the flyweight division going into the fight, but still rated a heavy underdog by bookmakers to beat his fourth-ranked opponent,
LOOKING TO REPEAT: World No. 7 Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin advanced to the round-of-16 at the Toyota Thailand Open, after winning the Yonex Thailand Open on Sunday Taiwan’s world No. 7 duo yesterday eased past the US’ world No. 37 pairing at the Toyota Thailand Open to reach the round-of-16 in Bangkok. Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin beat Phillip Chew and Ryan Chew 21-14, 21-11 in just 24 minutes. Lee and Wang, who won the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Thailand Open on Sunday, next face the world No. 34 pairing, Canada’s Jason Anthony Ho-Shue and Nyl Yakura. In men’s singles, Taiwan’s world No. 2 Chou Tien-chen again beat Thailand’s world No. 45 Suppanyu Avihingsanon, after edging past the Thai player in the opening round of the Yonex
HOLDING STEADY: Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying pushed past Indonesia’s Gregoria Mariska Tunjung to advance to a quarter-finals match against world No. 10 Michelle Li Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen and Wang Tzu-wei yesterday defeated their respective opponents in the second round of the Toyota Thailand Open, setting them up to face each other today in the quarter-finals. In an early match, world No. 12 Wang took 45 minutes to defeat Hong Kong’s Angus Ng Ka-long 21-13, 21-11. Last week, the world No. 8 ousted Wang from the Yonex tournament before defeating Chou in the semi-finals. Chou, world No. 2, defeated France’s Brice Leverdez in 48 minutes 21-19, 21-16. In other men’s singles matches, Indonesia’s fifth seed Anthony Ginting suffered an unexpected defeat to Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk-yiu, who moved into
MARIN REMATCH: Tai Tzu-ying saved six game points in her semi-final against Ratchanok Intanon, who went into the match with a superior head-to-head record Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying reached the final of badminton’s Thailand Open yesterday with a three-set win over Ratchanok Intanon, setting up a rematch against Carolina Marin. Tai won 12-21, 21-12, 23-21 in 59 minutes to set up her second final against Marin in two weeks, while Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin advanced to the final in the men’s doubles. However, Chou Tien-chen was eliminated in the semi-finals of the men’s singles. Tai saved six game points in the win against her Thai opponent Intanon, who went into the match with a superior head-to-head record against the Taiwanese world No. 1. Tai’s best streak was a
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