SPORTS - Page 25

Several major European cycling teams have been exploring plans to create a new competitive league in a move that could reshape the sport’s landscape and allocate more funding for participants, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. External investors could help finance the project, which would amalgamate new and existing races, one of the people said. The move is partly a response to the teams’ frustration that the lion’s share of profits from the world’s top events, such as

Erling Haaland ended a five-game goal drought in Champions League play with a second-half brace. At the same time, Manuel Akanji scored on his return to his homeland as reigning champions Manchester City all but secured their spot in the knockout stage with a 3-1 win over Swiss side Young Boys on Wednesday. The Norway striker made amends for missing a penalty in the previous round against Atletico Madrid as he struck twice, first from the spot and then with

The Vegas Golden Knights are a story taking over the hockey world. Casual NHL fans who haven’t paid much attention in recent years have been captivated by this first-year franchise just four victories away from winning it all in its inaugural season. Meanwhile, diehards of the other 30 teams are bickering not only that a team with so few games under its belt is off to such a fantastic start but that their front offices didn’t do enough to reel

Victor Wembanyama is a talent beyond compare, retired great Yao Ming told Reuters, as the San Antonio Spurs’ first-overall pick makes his highly anticipated National Basketball Association (NBA) regular-season debut on Wednesday. Not since LeBron James 20 years ago has a prospect generated excitement on the level seen for the seven-foot four-inch (2.24-meter) rookie, who will start at home against Texan rivals Dallas Mavericks after a remarkable preseason. Wembanyama, whose combination of height, reach, skill, and smarts has prompted comparisons

American player Jenson Brooksby has been suspended for 18 months by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) after a tribunal found that he committed three whereabouts failures in 12 months. Under anti-doping rules, athletes can be penalized without a positive test if they miss three out-of-competition tests within a year. Athletes in the Registered Testing Pool (RTP) must submit detailed whereabouts information that allows WADA’s drug testers to find them for unannounced out-of-competition testing. A successful test can be the

The streaming services DAZN and Sky will keep the rights to screen live Serie A matches in Italy for the next five seasons after Italian clubs on Monday approved bids worth at least 4.5 billion euros ($4.8 billion), league officials said. The package includes exclusive and co-exclusive options for the league’s ten weekly games and also gives Serie A the option to sell free-to-air broadcasts on Saturday evenings. It will be the second time Serie A has sold its domestic

The mantra echoes the words of French painter Duchamp, who said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” If England’s semi-final against South Africa is like their epic quarter-final clash with France two weeks ago, it will test every nerve. The Springboks are rugby’s equivalent of Mike Tyson’s uppercuts, and England will have to take multiple blows to have any chance of a shock. It will be a stoic and disciplined display from the men in

Even without Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade, the artistic gymnastic all-around final produced one of the Pan American Games’ compelling competitions on Monday. Kayla DiCello took gold, signaling she will be a contender for a U.S. Paris Olympic squad spot. DiCello, the 2021 world bronze medalist, led on the vault and balance beam before a strong finish on the floor saw her score top the leaderboard. DiCello is a former NCAA champion, a two-time national all-around medalist, and a gold

Ben Shelton won his first ATP Tour title on Sunday, defeating Russian Aslan Karatsev 7-5, 6-1 at the Japan Open in Tokyo. The 21-year-old Shelton needed 84 minutes to dispatch Karatsev at the ATP 500 event. He saved the lone break point of the match in the second set, won 80% of the points on his first serve, and converted four of six break chances overall. Shelton also fired three aces in the final, finishing off his opponent with a

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have been disqualified from second place and sixth place in Sunday’s U.S. Grand Prix after their cars were found to be in breach of Formula One rules in post-race inspections. The FIA technical team ruled that the rear titanium skid blocks on both drivers’ floor planks showed excessive wear after the 56-lap race at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas (COTA), meaning they no longer met the required minimum thickness under the regulations. The Mercedes duo