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.
Taiwanese women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei and Australian teenager Maya Joint on Tuesday eased into the Eastbourne Open quarter-finals in England as Hsieh prepares for the Wimbledon Championships next week. Four-time Wimbledon women’s doubles champion Hsieh and 19-year-old Joint fired two aces and converted five of eight break points to defeat Japan’s Shuko Aoyama and Poland’s Katarzyna Piter 6-3, 6-3 in 58 minutes on the grass court. Hsieh and Joint are today to face fourth seeds Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, who advanced on Monday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Quinn Gleason of the US and
BEAT THE HEAT: A brutal heat wave in the US has made cooling breaks standard. Dortmund’s coach said the weather could shape the destiny of the tournament Chelsea on Tuesday beat Esperance of Tunisia 3-0 to set up a FIFA Club World Cup last-16 tie against SL Benfica, who earlier defeated Bayern Munich 1-0, as furnace-link heat and the threat of thunder and lightning wreak havoc at the tournament. Elsewhere, minnows Auckland City claimed a memorable draw against Boca Juniors, while Los Angeles bowed out of the tournament with a stalemate against Flamengo. In Charlotte, Andreas Schjelderup scored the only goal for Benfica in their Group C clash with Bayern in front of 33,287 fans, finishing first-time from a cutback by his fellow Norwegian Fredrik Aursnes in the 13th
REUNION: Former Barcelona players Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Miami coach Javier Mascherano are to face their former coach Luis Enrique Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi faces a tantalizing reunion with former club Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup last 16 after both sides on Monday progressed to the knockout phase. Miami drew 2-2 with Palmeiras to go through second in Group A, after the Brazilian side fought back from two goals down to seal top spot. They now face an all-Brazil clash against Botafogo, who lost 1-0 to Atletico Madrid, but progressed from Group B in second at the expense of the Spaniards. Champions of Europe PSG won the group with a 2-0 victory over Seattle Sounders, paving the
The New Taipei Kings claimed the inaugural Taiwan Professional Basketball League (TPBL) championship on Sunday, defeating the Kaohsiung FamilyMart Aquas 108-89 in the final. Playing at home, the Kings pulled ahead with Jeremy Lin’s (林書豪) clutch three-pointers, securing their victory over the Aquas in the TPBL final. The Kings came out strong in the first quarter, dominating to build a 35-18 lead. By halftime, they had stretched their advantage to 61-38. In the third quarter, the Aquas narrowed the deficit to 12 points, but Lin stepped up, sinking several tough three- pointers to extend the lead. In the final quarter, the Kings pushed the
RSS