TENNIS
Spain takes top 2 rankings
No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and No. 2 Rafael Nadal are the first countrymen to top the ATP rankings in 22 years. The two players from Spain are also the first men from somewhere other than the US to sit at one-two since the tour introduced computerized rankings in 1973. Alcaraz, 19, rose to the top spot by winning the US Open last month, becoming the youngest man ever to be No. 1. Nadal rose from No. 3 to No. 2 on Monday, swapping places with US Open runner-up Casper Ruud. Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras were the last two compatriots to hold the top spots in August 2000. “Proud to share this historic moment with @RafaelNadal, the best player of all-time,” Alcaraz wrote on Twitter in Spanish.
BASEBALL
Albert Pujols tops Babe Ruth
Move over, Babe Ruth, Prince Albert is the new No. 2 on a big baseball list. Albert Pujols on Monday night hit his 703rd home run, breaking a tie with Ruth for second place in career RBIs. The 42-year-old slugger connected for the St Louis Cardinals off Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Mitch Keller, pulling a two-run shot into the left field stands to snap a scoreless tie in the sixth inning. It was Pujols’ 35th home run at PNC Park, his most at any visiting ballpark. The drive pushed Pujols’ total to 2,216 RBIs, surpassing Ruth on the all-time chart. Hank Aaron holds the record with 2,297. “Passing Babe Ruth is a big deal,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said after his team’s 3-2 loss. “Seeing him hit a home run in that situation was fun to watch. You feel pretty good about where you’re at whenever he swings, and his home runs have been very meaningful.” Pujols plans to retire after the season.
SOCCER
Ukraine plans World Cup bid
Ukraine is set to join Spain and Portugal in their bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, the Times reported on Monday. Ukraine would host one of the groups in the tournament under the plan which is understood to have been sanctioned by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the governments of Spain and Portugal, the Times said. The new partnership is due to be announced by the Spainish and Portuguese soccer chiefs during a news conference at UEFA’s headquarters today, the report added. Meanwhile, several major French cities including Lille, Strasbourg and Bordeaux said they would not organize fan zones or put up giant outdoor screens to show this year’s Qatar World Cup soccer matches in protest against the loss of immigrant workers’ lives during construction of the stadia in Qatar and the energy that would be wasted to cool the sports arenas.
SOCCER
Indonesia probe begins
An Indonesian police chief and nine elite officers were on Monday removed from their posts and 18 others were being investigated for responsibility in the firing of tear gas inside a soccer stadium that set off a stampede, killing 131 people including dozens of children in one of the deadliest disasters in soccer history. Witnesses say the crush in the city of Malang started when officers fired tear gas into packed stands to quell a pitch invasion. The death toll jumped again yesterday, with local health official Wiyanto Wijoyo saying that six more victims had succumbed to their injuries.
Taiwan’s participation in the Olympic Games has been a story of politics as much as sports, with the name it has competed under since 1984 — Chinese Taipei — drawing as much attention as its athletes. However, with the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad set to begin in Paris on Friday, the exploits of Taiwan’s athletes past and present who have won 36 medals since the country’s debut in Melbourne in 1956 deserve a nod. Many of Taiwan’s medal winners have gained considerable name recognition, but only two have achieved legendary status — Maysang Kalimud and Chi Cheng, the only medal winners
Shohei Ohtani on Sunday hit a 473-foot (144m) home run as the Los Angeles Dodgers went deep six times in a 9-6 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, Gavin Lux, Austin Barnes and Jason Heyward also connected as Los Angeles swept the three-game series. “Going into the break, we weren’t playing good baseball, and then to come out fresh against a really good ball club and to play the way we did — the offense came to life,” Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said. It was the 25th time the Dodgers launched at least six homers in a game
Canada women’s soccer coach Bev Priestman on Wednesday said she would step away from the team’s opening game against New Zealand at the Paris Olympics in the wake of a drone scandal. New Zealand complained to the International Olympic Committee’s integrity unit after it said drones were flown over closed practice sessions earlier in the week. As of press time last night, Canada, the defending Olympic champions, were set to open the Paris Games against New Zealand in Saint-Etienne. In the fallout of the complaint, two staff members — assistant coach Jasmine Mander and analyst Joseph Lombardi — were sent home, the
Conventional wisdom dictates that the average retirement age for elite female players in the intense and physically demanding sport of badminton is well under 30 years old. Five female shuttlers are set to turn that on its head when they make their fourth Olympic appearances at the Paris Games, a feat never accomplished before. Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying, 30, Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon, 29, Belgium’s Lianne Tan, 33, and Hong Kong’s Tse Ying Suet and Canada’s Michelle Li, both 32, are to compete for Olympic glory at Porte de La Chapelle Arena from Saturday to Aug. 5. “These achievements get missed because they’re women,” said