SOCCER
Roma fire De Rossi
AS Roma yesterday fired coach Daniele de Rossi in a move that was surprising despite the Giallorossi going winless in their opening four Serie A matches. De Rossi, a former Roma captain, was hired in January to replace the fired Jose Mourinho and impressed so much during the second half of last season that he was given a contract extension in June. “The club’s decision is made in the best interests of the team, to get back on the desired path as soon as possible at a time when the season is still in its early stages,” Roma said. “A heartfelt thank you to Daniele, who will always be at home at the Giallorossi club, for the work done in recent months with passion and dedication.”
RUGBY UNION
Easterby to coach Ireland
Simon Easterby is to take over as interim Ireland head coach from December, the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) announced on Tuesday. Easterby would take charge of the side while head coach Andy Farrell leads the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia next year. “Today’s announcement ensures a smooth transition and continuity as Ireland looks forward to an exciting few months,” IRFU director David Humphreys said in a statement. “Over the past decade, Simon has moved from being a forwards coach to a defense coach and has played a key role in Ireland’s success during that time.”
SPONSORS
Energy spending revealed
Oil and gas companies have spent US$5.6 billion on sports sponsorship through about 205 accords, said a study by research group New Weather Institute released yesterday that describes the outlays as “sportswashing.” The report, entitled Dirty Money — How Fossil Fuel Sponsors are Polluting Sport, said that soccer, motor sports, rugby union and golf are the sports most sponsored by energy firms. The biggest spenders in the industry include Aramco (US$1.3 billion), Ineos (US$777 million), Shell (US$470 million) and TotalEnergies (US$340 million). The study identified 205 still-active agreements signed by firms linked to fossil fuels, of which only 41 revealed financial details. To fill the data gap, the authors made estimates based on similar agreements whose amounts were disclosed. “Air pollution from fossil fuels and the extreme weather of a warming world threaten the very future of athletes, fans and events ranging from the Winter Olympics to [FIFA] World Cups,” New Weather Institute codirector Andrew Simms said. “If sport is to have a future, it needs to clean itself of dirty money from big polluters and stop promoting its own destruction.”
BASEBALL
Player donates to hospital
Colorado Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon and his wife, Natalie, on Tuesday said that they were donating US$1 million to the Children’s Hospital of Colorado. McMahon, whose six-year, US$70 million contract runs through 2027, said that he and his wife, who recently became parents, liked the idea of helping children in need. “I’ve always loved being around kids,” McMahon said. “I think they’re the purest form of human. They’re not messing up like the rest of us.” Part of the donation would go to a hospital endowment that dispenses funds to help families make ends meet as they care for ailing children.
The next generation of running talent takes center stage at today’s Berlin Marathon, in the absence of stars including Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge and Ethiopian world record holder Tigist Assefa. With most of the major marathon stars skipping the event in the wake of the Paris Olympics just more than a month ago, the field is wide open in the men’s and women’s races. Since 2015, Kipchoge has won five times in Berlin, Kenenisa Bekele has won twice and Guye Adola once — with all three missing today. Kenyan Kibiwott Kandie and Ethiopian Tadese Takele are among the favourites for the men, while
Japan’s Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball “superhuman” following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to US sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady. Not since Ruth a century ago has there been a baseball player capable of both pitching and hitting at the top level. The 30-year-old’s performances with the Los Angeles Dodgers have consolidated his position as a baseball legend in the making, and a national icon in his native Japan. He continues to find new ways to amaze, this year becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases
Zhang Shuai yesterday said that she nearly quit after losing 24 matches in a row — now the world No. 595 is into the quarter-finals of her home China Open. The 35-year-old is to face Spain’s Paula Badosa as the lowest-ranked player to reach this stage in the history of the tournament after Badosa reeled off 11 of the last 12 games in a 6-4, 6-0 victory over US Open finalist Jessica Pegula. Zhang went into Beijing on a barren run lasting more than 600 days and her string of singles defeats was the second-longest on the WTA Tour Open era, which
Taiwan’s Tony Wu yesterday beat Mackenzie McDonald of the US to win the Nonthaburi Challenger IV in Thailand, his first challenger victory since 2022. The 26-year-old world No. 315, who won both his qualifiers to advance to the main draw, has been on a hot streak this month, winning his past nine matches, including two that ensured Taiwan’s victory in their Davis Cup World Group I tie. Wu took just more than two hours to top world No. 172 McDonald 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) to win his second challenger tournament since the Tallahassee Tennis Challenger in 2022. Wu’s Tallahassee win followed two years of
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