TENNIS
Taiwan’s Liang advances
Taiwan’s Liang En-shuo and partner Yang Zhaoxuan of China on Wednesday advanced to the quarter-finals at the Linz Open at Intersport Arena Linz in Austria. The Taiwanese-Chinese duo defeated Irina Khromacheva of Russia and Mexico’s Giuliana Olmos 7-5, 3-6, 10-6 at the 1,049,083 euro (US$1.23 million) indoor, red clay event to set up a match against Maia Lumsden of the UK and Japan’s Makoto Ninomiyae.
Photo: AP
BOXING
Taiwan’s Lin targets gold
Lin Yu-ting’s coach said that the Olympic champion would target Asian Games gold after stepping up in weight and winning bronze in her first event since the Paris Olympics. Lin, who won gold at 57kg at the 2024 Games, was cleared last month by World Boxing to resume competition at the Asian Elite Championships in Ulan Bator after passing a gender test. Lin reached the semi-finals of the 60kg class, but lost to North Korea’s Won Un-gyong. Her coach, Tseng Tzu-chiang, told reporters that Lin would aim for a second Asian Games gold in Japan later this year after a comeback “breakthrough” this week, having won the 57kg class in Hangzhou in 2023. “Changing weight class is inherently a challenge. Having new competitors is a great way to challenge yourself,” Tseng said in a phone interview from Mongolia. “It’s definitely a fantastic opportunity because we’ve never encountered any opponents in this weight class before. It’s a breakthrough.”
SOCCER
Chris Wood to return
Chris Wood is set to return from his lengthy injury spell in a big boost for New Zealand ahead of the FIFA World Cup, as well as for his Premier League club, Nottingham Forest. The 34-year-old has been sidelined since October last year due to a knee injury. He underwent surgery in December last year. His return was confirmed by Forest coach Vitor Pereira in a news conference ahead of the club’s UEFA Europa League quarter-final match against Porto, which was to be played after press time last night. “He’s started training with the team and is available for the game,” Pereira said on Wednesday. Wood is the All Whites’ record goalscorer with 45.
BASEBALL
Soler, Lopez sanctioned
Los Angeles Angels outfielder-designated hitter Jorge Soler has been suspended for seven games and fined an undisclosed amount, while Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Reynaldo Lopez agreed to a reduced five-game suspension and fine due to the fight that led to their ejections in the fifth inning of Tuesday’s 7-2 Atlanta win in Anaheim, California. MLB initially suspended Lopez for seven games, via its announcement on Wednesday, before the discipline was later reduced to five. Soler’s suspension was scheduled to begin with Wednesday’s series finale, but he appealed, meaning it would be paused until the appeal is resolved. Soler, who hit a two-run homer in the first inning and was struck by a pitch on his left hand in the third, took exception to a high and inside fifth-inning fastball that glanced off the glove of catcher Jonah Heim and bounced to the backstop, enabling Nolan Schanuel, who had walked, to advance to second, sparking the melee.
“I don’t remember the moment, but ever since I was a kid, that’s the first thing I loved,” two-time NBA All-Star Isaiah Thomas said of his lifelong romance with basketball. However, that journey unfolded against the limitations of his size in a game where height often dictates opportunity — a reality he confronted throughout his career. At 175cm, Thomas is less than 2cm taller than the average Taiwanese adult male, while NBA players during his career stood at about 200cm on average. Compared with the NBA’s average career length of less than five years, Thomas’ 13-season career stands out as
Dakar and Rabat have longstanding ties, but relations have been strained since the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final, which Senegal won in mid-January before being stripped of the title, which was transferred to Morocco. Now, the AFCON trophy is something of a thorn in the two countries’ sides. On Rue Mohamed V, the street where Moroccan vendors are based in the Senegalese capital, a police van is parked. “The police have been on high alert since the Confederation of African Football [CAF] decided to award the title to Morocco, but there have been no incidents,” a local resident said.
Hans Niemann declares he would become a “stone cold killer” in a Netflix documentary released on Tuesday about his feud with five-time classical world champion Magnus Carlsen, a pledge that injects new edge into the lingering fallout from the cheating scandal that shook elite chess. “I’m gonna be a stone cold killer the rest of my life,” the US’ Niemann says in the film. “I’m going to become the best player in the world, and no one is going to believe that now, but this clip will play over and over again in 10 years — just wait.” “I just
Top seeded Jessica Pegula on Friday once again fought back from a set down to reach the WTA Charleston Open semi-finals with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win against Russia’s Diana Shnaider. Defending champion Pegula has lost the first set in all three of her matches at the tournament so far, but again dug deep to maintain her hopes of retaining the title. The world No. 5 from the US took 2 hours, 10 minutes to defeat 19th-ranked Shnaider, relying on a formidable service game that included eight aces. Shnaider battled well in the first two sets and broke early for a 2-0 lead
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