BADMINTON
Taiwanese exit German Open
Taiwanese badminton players Lin Xiao-min and Wang Yu-qiao on Saturday crashed out of the women’s doubles semi-finals at the German Open in Mulheim. The world No. 68 duo, who were teaming up for the first time this year, lost 21-12, 20-22, 21-17 in a hard-fought match against the No. 63 pairing of Japan’s Mizuki Otake and Miyu Takahashi at the Westenergie Sporthalle.
Photo: CNA
ATHLETICS
Takele wins Tokyo Marathon
Ethiopia’s Tadese Takele yesterday won the Tokyo Marathon in 2 hours, 3 minutes, 23 seconds as Uganda’s double Olympic track champion Joshua Cheptegei finished ninth. Takele broke clear of the pack with about 4km to go in warm conditions to claim his first major marathon title, shaving a second off his previous personal best. Ethiopia’s Deresa Geleta was second in 2:03:51, with Kenya’s Vincent Kipkemoi Ngetich third in 2:04:00. Ethiopia’s Sutume Asefa Kebede defended her title in the women’s race, finishing in 2:16:31. Cheptegei, who won gold in the Tokyo Olympics 5km in 2021 and the 10km in Paris last year, was running his second marathon after making his debut at the distance in Valencia two years ago. The 28-year-old finished in a time of 2:05:59.
Photo: Reuters
RUGBY LEAGUE
NRL rocks Las Vegas
Rugby league returned to Las Vegas on Saturday in its continuing mission to convert Americans to football without pads, drawing 50,000 fans to Allegiant Stadium where the grit of the quintessential Australian sport mixed with the glamor of the entertainment capital. Curious locals mixed with fans from Australia, New Zealand and England to watch the four matches. In the Australian National Rugby League (NRL) matches, the Canberra Raiders beat the New Zealand Warriors 30-8, while reigning premiers the Penrith Panthers delivered a cliff-hanger finale, producing a 75th-minute try to Daine Laurie to clinch a 28-22 win over the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks. The Wigan Warriors beat the Warrington Wolves 38-24 in an English Super League match, and the Australian Jillaroos crushed England 90-4 in the women’s international. Meanwhile, Raiders players Hudson Young and Morgan Smithies were forced to apologize after being temporarily evicted from their hotel over a scuffle involving an inflatable baseball bat. “Obviously things got a little bit out of hand on Thursday night,” Young said. “I’m embarrassed for myself, my teammates, the NRL and the game.”
Photo: AP
SOCCER
Palace’s Mateta hospitalized
Jean Philippe-Mateta on Saturday said he is doing well and hopes to be back soon after being hospitalized by a horrific challenge from Millwall goalkeeper Liam Roberts. Roberts was sent off just eight minutes into their FA Cup fifth round tie, which Crystal Palace won 3-1, after catching Mateta’s head with his boot as he raced out to clear the ball. Mateta received lengthy treatment, including oxygen, on the pitch before being stretchered to an ambulance and transported to a hospital. “Thank you for all your kind messages. I’m doing well. I hope to be back very soon. And stronger than ever,” Mateta wrote on Instagram. Palace said later that Mateta had been discharged from the hospital after receiving 25 stitches due to a severe laceration to his left ear.
Photo: AP
Taiwan’s men’s table tennis team won bronze on Saturday at this year’s International Table Tennis Federation World Team Table Tennis Championships in London, matching the country’s best-ever finish at the regular tournament. Consisting of Lin Yun-ju, Taiwan’s top-ranked player at world No. 7, Feng Yi-hsin, Kuo Guan-hong, Hong Jing-kai and Hsu Hsien-chia, the team won bronze after losing 0-3 to Japan in the semifinals. In the opening match, 24-year-old Lin played the first game against world No. 3 Tomokazu Harimoto 11-5, but ultimately lost the next three closely contested games 9-11, 10-12 and 10-12. Feng then faced world No. 8 Sora Matsushima in
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,
Taiwanese fire dancer Yang Li-wei advanced to the final of Britain’s Got Talent this weekend after receiving a Golden Buzzer during her live semi-final performance. Yang, a member of Taiwan’s Coming True Fire Group, awed judges and audiences with a high-intensity fire performance featuring flaming umbrellas, fire swallowing and spinning metal structures balanced with her legs. Judge Simon Cowell praised Yang as a star, while guest judge KSI reacted with amazement before pressing the Golden Buzzer, sending her to the finals. The dance group wrote on social media that the Golden Buzzer was “the highest honor” on the talent show, adding: “Twenty-three years
As Super Rugby fast approaches its playoff season it finds itself racing toward a reckoning with many issues that threaten the southern hemisphere tournament. A group of stakeholders met in the New Zealand city of Christchurch late last month to address problems that are making the future of the 31-year-old competition increasingly tenuous. The discussion was made more urgent by the decision by the owners of Moana Pasifika to fold the Auckland-based club for financial reasons. That followed the closure of the Melbourne Rebels at the end of the 2024 season, likewise because of financial difficulties. Problems addressed included player retention as more
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