SOCCER
Canada soccer head resigns
The head of Canada’s ruling soccer body on Monday resigned, saying change was needed at the top of the organization in the wake of a gender equity dispute with the Canadian women’s team. Canada Soccer president Nick Bontis said in a statement that while there was “real potential” of agreeing a collective bargaining agreement for Canada’s men’s and women’s teams, it was time for him to go. “While I have been one of the biggest proponents of equalizing the competitive performance environment for our Women’s National Team, I will unfortunately not be leading this organization when it happens,” Bontis wrote in a statement. His announcement came two weeks after the women’s squad threatened to boycott the SheBelieves Cup tournament in the US over pay, funding and contract issues.
TRACK AND FIELD
Olympian Bob Richards dies
Double Olympic pole vault champion Bob Richards died on Sunday aged 97, his family wrote on Facebook. Richards won gold in 1952 in Helsinki and four years later in Melbourne — and remains the only man to win the Olympic event twice. In 1958, he became the first athlete to appear on the front of the US breakfast cereal Wheaties. Richards became an ordained minister in 1946 and ran for US president in 1984 on the Populist Party ticket. “He passed in his sleep peacefully surrounded by loved ones. He is in a better place now and at peace,” his son Brandon Richards said.
SOCCER
France investigates Hakimi
French prosecutors on Monday opened an investigation into alleged rape by Paris Saint-Germain full-back Achraf Hakimi, a source close to the case said. A 24-year-old woman has accused the Moroccan international of raping her at his home in a Paris suburb on Saturday. The source, confirming an article in the Parisien, said that the woman reported the incident at a police station on Sunday, but did not file charges. The public prosecutor’s office handling the case in Nanterre declined to comment, but said that “information already made public” in the media “undermined the necessary investigations to find out the truth.” Hakimi was part of the Morocco team that finished fourth in the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
BASKETBALL
LaMelo Ball breaks ankle
LaMelo Ball’s frustrating, injury-plagued season could be over after the point guard on Monday broke his right ankle in the Charlotte Hornets’ 117-106 win over the Detroit Pistons. Ball has already missed 27 games this season after he sprained his left ankle on three separate occasions, beginning in the pre-season. He and the Hornets (20-43) were playing their best basketball of the season before the point guard fell to the floor on a noncontact play in the third quarter. X-rays revealed the fracture to Ball’s ankle. “It sucks,” Hornets swingman Gordon Hayward said, shaking his head. “Injuries are the worst part of the game.” Ball had entered the game with five straight double-doubles and appeared on his way to another with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists before leaving with 9 minutes, 26 seconds left in the period.
SEESAW CONTEST: The Pistons remain top of the Eastern Conference after battling to a win over the Hawks in a game that saw the lead change 27 times The Phoenix Suns on Monday shrugged off an injury to Devin Booker to end the Los Angeles Lakers’ seven-game winning streak with an emphatic 125-108 victory on the road. Booker exited in the first quarter, but the loss of the star point guard did little to halt the flow of Phoenix points over the remainder of the game. Dillon Brooks led the Phoenix scoring with 33 points, while Collin Gillespie added 28 — including eight three-pointers — as the Suns romped to victory. The Lakers were left ruing a colossal 22 turnovers — at a cost of 32 Suns points — on a
IN-HOUSE BUSINESS: LA Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said that the reason for the team’s poor form was not due to Paul, but the player was not a good fit for them Chris Paul’s return stint with the Los Angeles Clippers has come to an abrupt and stunning end, with the franchise parting ways with one of its greatest players in a late-night meeting on Wednesday that adds another layer of drama to the team’s terrible start this season. The news was delivered in a meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, that ended at about 2am, Clippers basketball operations president Lawrence Frank said. Frank said he made the decision to sever ties with Paul on Sunday then told the franchise’s career assist leader that he needed to see him on Tuesday in Atlanta. Frank did not confirm
Kylian Mbappe on Wednesday scored twice and had an assist as Real Madrid beat Athletic Bilbao 3-0 to end a three-match winless streak in La Liga. Eduardo Camavinga also found the net for Madrid as they moved back within one point of Barcelona, who beat Atletico Madrid 3-1 on Tuesday. Both 19th-round matches were moved forward because Real Madrid, Barcelona, Athletic Club and Atletico Madrid are to play in the Supercopa de Espana semi-finals in Saudi Arabia next month. Real Madrid were coming off league draws against Girona, Elche and Rayo Vallecano. It was their second win in their past six matches in
PINA BRACE: Claudia Pina scored in the 61st and 74th minutes, while Vicky Lopez added one as Spain notched their third victory in a final in the past four tournaments Claudia Pina scored twice and Germany crumbled on Tuesday as Spain retained the UEFA Women’s Nations League title with a 3-0 victory in the final’s second leg. Vicky Lopez also scored after Pina finally broke the deadlock in the 61st minute with Germany stubbornly hanging on as Spain had done in the first leg, a 0-0 draw in Kaiserslautern on Friday. Spain were without three-time Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati, who broke her leg in training on Sunday. Lopez took Bonmati’s place and Spain dominated from the start. Esther Gonzalez swept the ball just past the post and Mariona Caldentey forced a save
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