BASKETBALL
Lin silent on racism claim
Jeremy Lin said he would not name the person alleged to have called him “coronavirus” on the basketball court, as it would do little in the fight against racism. US media said the NBA’s G League had launched an investigation after the Taiwanese-American made the claim in a Facebook post on Thursday. “I know this will disappoint some of you but I’m not naming or shaming anyone,” Lin wrote on Twitter. “What good does it do in this situation for someone to be torn down? It doesn’t make my community safer or solve any of our long-term problems with racism.” The former NBA guard said there were better ways to support Asian American communities experiencing racism. “Fighting ignorance with ignorance will get us nowhere. Sharing our own pain by painting another group of people with stereotypes is not the way,” he said. “Listen to the voices that are teaching us how to be anti-racist towards ALL people. Hear others’ stories, expand your perspective, stop comparing experiences. I believe this generation can be different.”
MOROR RACING
Tanak holds Arctic lead
Ott Tanak on Saturday won three of the six stages to maintain his lead in the Arctic Rally. The Estonian, who drives for Hyundai, complained of tire issues after finishing second in the last two stages of the day. “It went to plan,” Tanak said. “The tires were quite tired, so it was important to get here without any mistakes.” On the day that it was announced that one of Finland’s greatest rally drivers, Hannu Mikkola, had died aged 78, 20-year-old Kalle Rovanpera climbed to second in his home rally, winning the sixth stage of the day. Tanak leads Toyota’s Rovanpera by 24.9 seconds. Belgian Thierry Neuville won the last stage of the day by 12.3 seconds in his Hyundai to close to 1.8 seconds further back in third. World champion Sebastien Ogier, who started this season with victory in Monte Carlo, drove into a snowbank on the final turn of the day. Ogier and his codriver, Julien Ingrassia, finished the stage, but dropped from sixth to 22nd in the standings.
SAILING
America’s Cup delayed
The first weekend of America’s Cup racing between Team New Zealand and Italy’s Luna Rossa next week has been postponed because of the latest COVID-19 lockdown in Auckland, organizers said yesterday. The first two race days, which were scheduled to take place in Auckland on Saturday and Sunday, have been pushed forward “to provide at least some certainty in planning for all event stakeholders,” America’s Cup Event said in a statement.
SOCCER
US ends kneeling ban
US Soccer on Saturday formally scrapped a controversial policy banning players from kneeling during the national anthem, following a vote of members at the federation’s annual meeting. US Soccer’s board of directors repealed the policy last year, but the decision required confirmation by the full membership of the ruling body. At Saturday’s meeting, the board’s decision to scrap the rule was backed by 71 percent of voters, with 29 percent against. Explaining the decision to repeal the policy last year, US Soccer said the rule was wrong and reflected a failure of the federation to address the concerns of black people and other minorities.
Lin Yun-ju on Thursday handed Taiwan two key victories as they advanced to the semi-finals of the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in London. The Taiwan men’s table tennis team beat Sweden 3-2 in five singles matches. The 24-year-old Lin, Taiwan’s top-ranked player at world No. 7 and nicknamed the “Silent Assassin,” opened the tie by defeating world No. 2 Truls Moregard 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 13-11) before clinching the deciding fifth match with a 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-5) win over Anton Kallberg to hand his team the overall victory. Kuo Guan-hong put Taiwan up 2-0 with a 3-2 (4-11, 11-8, 8-11,
Marta Kostyuk’s maiden WTA 1000 title in Madrid came on Saturday thanks to her power, poise and a pair of unexpected lucky shorts. The world No. 23 beat eighth-ranked Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 in under 90 minutes to secure the most prestigious trophy of her career, her third professional singles title and second in less than a month after Rouen. Yet as the 23-year-old Ukrainian posed for photographs at the Caja Magica, it was not just the silverware that caught the eye. Held alongside her team and her two dogs, Kostyuk showed off a piece of black men’s underwear, prompting
Arsenal stormed six points clear at the top of the English Premier League as Bukayo Saka and Viktor Gyokeres put Fulham to the sword in a 3-0 win, while West Ham United’s defeat at Brentford offered Tottenham Hotspur a lifeline in the battle for survival. The Gunners have stumbled toward the finish line in their quest for a first league title in 22 years, blowing a sizeable lead over Manchester City in a series of nervous displays. However, the return of Saka, making his first start in six weeks, freed up Mikel Arteta’s men in a dominant performance that shrugged
Aryna Sabalenka on Thursday said that she hoped she would be able to play tennis under the Belarusian flag after the International Olympic Committee lifted its ban on the country’s athletes competing in the Olympics. World No. 1 Sabalenka has had to compete under a neutral banner as a consequence of her country’s support for Russia following its ally’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The IOC earlier on Thursday lifted its ban on Belarusian athletes competing in the Olympics, although restrictions on Russian athletes remain in place. Asked whether the women’s tour would drop the ban on her representing her country, Sabalenka said:
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