Page 708 - Sports
Egypt to host 2019 African Cup of Nations
Seven-time champions Egypt have won the hosting rights for the 2019 edition of the African Cup of Nations.Egypt beat South Africa by 16 votes to one at the Confederation of African Football's (CAF) Executive Committee, which was held on Tuesday, CNN reported.With just five more months for the tournament, Egypt have got a limited time to prepare for an event where a total of 24 teams will be participating.In December last year, Cameroon were stripped of the right to host the 2019 African Nations Cup by the CAF owing to their failure to meet the "compliance conditions."The confederation, in a statement, has stated that the decision was taken after receiving detailed updates from numerous inspection visits nearly over 18 months."After significant debate and having received detailed updates from numerous inspection visits over nearly 18 months, CAF has noted that a number of compliance conditions have not been met," an official CAF statement read."In addition, after having heard from ...
Australian Foreign Minister attends friendly football match for women empowerment
Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne, High Commissioner to India, Harinder Sidhu and CEQUIN co-founder Sara Pilot attended a friendly football match here by young Indian girls trained by Indian NGO-Centre for Equity and Inclusion (CEQUIN), which is funded by the Australian High Commission.Minister Payne said that the event is a great example to show the hard work CEQUIN is doing. "I feel so proud to be a part of this organisation. It is of immense pleasure to see that these girls are being benefited by this organisation. Girls like them are really making a difference," added Payne.CEQUIN is an organisation which works for women empowerment. It reaches out to government schools to train the girls in football and it has touched around 25 Indian schools in Delhi. Through sports, CEQUIN wants to break gender stereotypes and want to own private and public spaces for girls in the community.Sara Pilot, co-founder of CEQUIN, said: "It is a very big challenge for these girls to
Real Madrid's coach requests clearer use of VAR
Real Madrid coach Santiago Solari said on Tuesday that sometimes he does not understand how the Video Assistant Referee system works and, following the controversy involving his Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior during a recent La Liga game against Real Sociedad, the head coach called for clearer rule application of VAR.
GM Farrukh Amonatov, Levan Pantsulaia to headline Delhi Open Chess tournament
Grandmaster Farrukh Amonatov of Turkmenistan, Gerogia's Levan Pantsulaia and Russian Alexandre Predke will be among the top players participating in the Delhi Open Chess tournament starting here Wednesday. The tournament, that will see participation of 29 Grandmasters in a field of over 300 in the premier Group A, offers an unprecedented prize purse of over Rs one crore. Grandmaster Farrukh, a former winner here, will be the top seed and rating favourite in the premier section but will face stiff competition from the likes of Levan, Alexandre and another Indian star Abhijeet Gupta. Adding the local flavour to the event will be Vaibhav Suri, who starts as the highest ranked Indian. Making it an open event this year, the B and C group, that has a rating cap for below 1899 and 1499 players, has already had 900 and 1200 players register for the tournament. The event will also offer training session for coaches hosted by super coach R B Ramesh along with FI Praful Zaveri and Vishal ...
Sharath-Manika win mixed doubles final in National TT Championship
Asian Games bronze medallists A Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra defeated top-seeded pair of Manav Thakkar and Archana Girish Kamath 3-1 to win the mixed doubles gold in the 80th National Table Tennis Championship here Tuesday. Sharath, who is playing in three events after a long time, won the second title to add to the team events crown that Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) won two days ago at the Nehru Stadium. The last time Sharath competed and won all four titles was way back during the Siliguri Nationals in 2008. Incidentally, it was Harmeet Desai and Pooja Sahasrabudhe who had won the mixed doubles for PSPB at Hyderabad three years ago. Ever since mixed doubles has become a part of the Olympics, Sharath has ventured into it and along with Manika tasted success when the pair won the first Asian Games bronze medal at Jakarta last year. Having set the tone on Sunday in the team final, Sharath shepherded Manika in the final against Manav and Archana. Establishing an early lead,
Pujara has set the benchmark: Gill
Promising batsman Shubman Gill on Tuesday said India's run-machine Cheteshwar Pujara's show Down Under has set a benchmark for the youngsters.
East Bengal beat Indian Arrows 2-1 in hard-fought match
East Bengal beat Indian Arrows 2-1 in a hard-fought I-League match to remain in contention for the title at the Kalinga Stadium here on Tuesday. Laldanmawia (penalty) and Jobby Justin scored for East Bengal in the 26th and 64th minute respectively, while Ninthoi (penalty) was the lone scorer for Indian Arrows in the 90th minute. With the win, East Bengal are at fourth spot with 19 points from 10 matches. Indian Arrows are at ninth place with 10 points in the 11-team league table. The first half saw both teams making equal number of attempts and played being confined to the mid-field. However, it was the Arrows who were the first to get a real chance to score when a long ball pass from Rahul KP was collected well by Vikram Pratap leading to a beautiful cross from the right, but unfortunately, he could not direct his shot properly. East Bengal, on the other hand, were trying to pick opportunities on the counter. Their experience soon came to play when Jaime Santos played a fantastic ...
Egypt to host 2019 Africa Cup of Nations
Egypt will host the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations between June 15 and July 13, Confederation of African Football (CAF) president Ahmad Ahmad announced in Dakar Tuesday. The CAF executive committee preferred Egypt to South Africa as replacements for original hosts Cameroon, who were dropped due to delays in preparations and concerns over security. "I am pleased to announce that Egypt will host CAN (Cup of Nations) 2019," Malagasy Ahmad told reporters. "I want to thank the two countries -- they came to the rescue of the CAF when we saw that the evolution of the work in Cameroon was not developed." A CAF official told AFP that Egypt received 16 votes from the executive committee, South Africa one and there was one abstention. Ahmad made the announcement just hours after CAF said it would not disclose the winner until Wednesday to allow the media to concentrate on the annual awards ceremony in Dakar later Tuesday. It will be the fifth time Egypt stage the biennial showpiece of African ...
Scolari says he's been declining offers to be Colombia coach
World Cup-winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari says he's been declining requests to be the new Colombia coach. Scolari says on Tuesday the Colombian Football Federation keeps approaching him to replace Jose Pekerman, who left the job last year. But Scolari says he wants to stay at Brazilian club Palmeiras. "It seems Colombia do not understand I am not leaving, and they are raising their offering," he says. "But it is not a matter of offerings." Scolari joined Palmeiras six months ago and guided it to the national title last year. That helped to repair his reputation at home, where his second stint as Brazil coach flamed out in the 2014 World Cup. Scolari led Brazil to the 2002 World Cup title. He says he's also had offers to coach clubs back in China, but is happy where he is. Colombia has an interim manager, Arturo Reyes.
Kusal Perera returns to Sri Lanka Test squad against Aussies
Left-hand batsman Kusal Perera has made his way back to the Sri Lankan Test squad for their upcoming two-match series Australia beginning January 24.The 28-year-old is included in the team following a disappointing performance by opening batsman Danushka Gunathilaka during their recently-concluded two-match Test series against New Zealand.In another major development for Sri Lanka, their all-rounder Angelo Mathews, who was sidelined from New Zealand ODI series owing to a left hamstring injury, has been left out from the upcoming Australia Test series as well, ESPNcricinfo reported.Apart from Perera's inclusion and Gunathilaka's exclusion, no other changes have been made in the Test squad that toured New Zealand. Players like Lahiru Thirimanne, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Lakshan Sandakan, and Nuwan Pradeep have successfully retained their place in the squad, despite not playing a Test in New Zealand.Sri Lanka will play their first Test against Australia from January 24 to 28 followed by ..
'Proud' Robben weighs up offers for after his Bayern exit
Veteran Dutch winger Arjen Robben has said he is "proud" of the offers he has received from other clubs since announcing he will leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season. Robben, who turns 35 on January 23, is out of contract in June with Bayern, but has reportedly already been approached by PSV Eindhoven and Inter Milan. The flying Dutchman is tight lipped over the details of the offers he has received since confirming last month that this will be his final season at Bayern, a decade after joining from Real Madrid in 2009. "I have received a few offers and have to admit they have made me somewhat proud," Robben said at Bayern's winter training camp in Doha. "The last few weeks have been quite stressful, especially for my father, who is my agent. "However, what I said before the winter break is still valid - my future's still open. "I don't know when exactly, but at some point I will have to make a decision and I won't wait until the end of the season, because I have family and ...
Yoshida wants Japan to fight Asian Cup pressure
Japan captain Maya Yoshida has called on his side to cope with pressure to perform at the Asian Cup as they look to make up for their flop four years ago. The Southampton defender admitted on Tuesday that several of the Japan team were still smarting from their shock penalty shootout loss to United Arab Emirates in the quarter-finals last time out in Australia. "That was a huge disappointment but this is a new team with a new manager," Yoshida told reporters before the Blue Samurai's opening Group F game against Turkmenistan in Abu Dhabi. "After the World Cup last year expectation is really high," he added, pointing to Japan's surprise run to the last 16 in Russia, where only a remarkable comeback by Belgium from two goals down prevented them reaching the quarter-finals. "But unlike the World Cup the expectation on Japan is different at an Asian Cup, where we are expected to win. That brings its own pressure obviously and we need to be able to cope with that and not freeze up." Japan .
Solari in the dark about VAR after Madrid penalty controversy
Real Madrid coach Santiago Solari on Tuesday called for the video assistant referee rules to be made clearer after admitting he has no idea how the system works following penalty controversy at the weekend. Madrid fell to a limp 2-0 defeat 2-0 at home to Real Sociedad in La Liga on Sunday, and were denied a penalty in the second half while they still trailed by a single goal. Solari was incensed after referee Jose Munuera ruled that Madrid forward Vinicius Junior was not fouled by Sociedad goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli while bearing down on goal in the 65th minute and then decided against consulting the VAR team, which did not refer the incident to Munuera. "The rules have to be clear," Solari told reporters. "If the rules are clear and we know when it can be used, that's going to help everyone's understanding, not just for the players but the fans as well. "It happens to me as a spectator too. I'm not even sure what the process is with VAR." FIFA rules state that VAR can be used in ...
War-torn Yemen look ahead after Asian Cup mauling
Yemen coach Jan Kocian was left scratching for positives after the war-torn country's first-ever Asian Cup outing ended in a 5-0 thrashing by Iran. Hopelessly outclassed, Yemen went into halftime down by three goals in Abu Dhabi on Monday night and Kocian's players were out on their feet by the time substitute Saman Ghoddos volleyed home Iran's fifth 12 minutes from time. "We have to live with this result but we have two more games to play and we can play better," said the Slovakian, striking a defiant tone despite their Group D mugging. "Iran were physically superior to us -- they are a team that plays at the World Cup. We have no such experience." Given the parlous state of football in Yemen, where players have been kidnapped by extremists or gone off to fight in the civil war, just qualifying for the Asian Cup was an astonishing achievement for Yemen. The local league has been suspended and stadiums reduced to rubble, forcing players to work as taxi drivers or in supermarkets to ...
Brahim Diaz attends 1st Real Madrid training session
Midfielder Brahim Diaz on Tuesday completed his first practice with Real Madrid, a day after his presentation as the Spanish football giant's newest acquisition.
Muguruza drops out of Sydney International tourney due to illness
Spanish-Venezuelan tennis player Garbiñe Muguruza has dropped out of the Sydney International tournament despite beating Carla Suarez Navarro owing to acute gastroenteritis, according to her press manager on Tuesday.
Khelo: Haryana bank on world cadet champions wrestler Anshu
With international players like world cadet champions Anshu and Sonam in the fray, wrestling powerhouse Haryana will be looking to continue their domination at the second edition of the Khelo India Youth Games, which officially begins here from Wednesday. Last year, Haryana had won 11 gold medals, out of which eight came from the girls category. Maharashtra manged just one gold but finished second overall with seven medals. Anshu (U-21) became world cadet champion at Athens in 2017 and continued her medal spree by winning the Asian Cadet championship in Uzbekistan in May and a bronze at the Junior World in Slovakia in September 2018. She will be participating in the 62kg category, while Sonam, a 16-year-old from Madina village in Sonepat, will be another attraction in the Under-17 65kg category, a media release issued here said Tuesday. Sonam has won the 56kg world cadet championship and continued to win medals at the National School Games and Khelo India. "Of course, ...
Pujara has set the benchmark for youngsters: Gill
The 19-year-old Punjab opener Shubman Gill, who is seen as a future India player, is inspired by Cheteshwar Pujara's marathon innings in Australia and said the India No. 3 has set a benchmark for the youngsters. Pujara faced over 1200 balls and slammed three hundreds to help India win their maiden Test series on Australian soil. India won 2-1 in the four-match Test series. "There are very few batsmen who can bat through the day and look to play out the balls. He (Pujara) played over 1200 balls in one tour, which is really phenomenal. To score 500 runs in a tour looks possible. But to face so many deliveries is setting a benchmark for the youngsters," Gill told reporters on the sidelines of a Ranji Trophy Elite Group B fixture at the Jadavpur University Saltlake Campus ground. "There is a lot to learn seeing the way Cheteshwar Pujara bats, his patience at the crease. Australia had the world's top bowlers and to score against them on the those tough pitches is phenomenal. I love ...
Khelo: Mahak and Zeel's rivalry to be highlight in tennis
Budding tennis players Mahak Jain and Zeel Desai lead a host of teenage stars that line-up at the Khelo India Youth Games to be held later this week at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex here. Both Mahak and Zeel have lead by example on court and also share a healthy on-court rivalry among themselves. While 17-year-old Mahak, a two-time national women's champion, remains a stand out by beating opponents older and more experienced than her, Gujarat's Zeel has been her challenger in waiting, a media release issued Tuesday said. It is this rivalry that exemplifies the games purpose and will make the tennis event a treat to watch out for. The Mahak-Zeel clash is a big rivalry in the making for tennis fans. Among the others who line up as challengers are national junior champion Humera Shaik (Telangana), Shrivalli Rashmikaa Bhamidipaty, Shivani Amineni, Kaavya Sawhney, Vaidehi Chaudhari and Salsa Aher (Maharashtra), it said. In the men's section emerging players in Manish ...
Khelo: Jeremy to be star attraction in weightlifting
Youth Olympics gold medallist weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga from Mizoram will be one of the star attractions at the second edition of the Khelo India Youth Games, which will officially begin here from Wednesday. Sixteen-year-old Jeremy, who was training with the Army Sports Institute here had bagged a gold medal in 62kg weight category, representing Maharashtra, in the first edition of these Games held last year. However, this time Jeremy will be representing his state - Mizoram and will be competing in the 67 kg weight category. His event will take place on Thursday, a media release issued Tuesday said. Jeremy will be joined by his statemate and ASI trainee Jacob Vanlaltluanga, who had won a bronze medal in Asian Youth and Junior Championship held in Uzbekistan in April 2018. Jacob will be taking part in U-21 in weight category 61 kg. Meanwhile Maharashtra's hopes are pinned on Abhishek Nipane (U-21, 67kg), and in the girls' category, Khushali Gangurde (U-21, 45kg) is