Latest – National cycling champion Olivia Ray has responded to a report that she has been dropped by her US Pro team.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The Cycling Tips website says Ray has been released by Human Powered Health team following an alleged code of conduct violation.
Ray won the national road title in Cambridge last month.
The website suggests that the US Anti-Doping Agency is also involved in an investigation.
On social media the 23 year old Aucklander responded:
“The truth about my situation will come out eventually, but I will do so on my timeline and not in response to stories planted by people who care nothing about me or my loved ones and know nothing about what I’m going through.”
“My story will come out when I tell it, and you will see that it is very different from the story that is currently being spread by people who care nothing about my welfare.”
Ray’s name does not appear on the Human Powered Health team list on their website.
Chelsea get home
Kai Havertz scored an 89th-minute winner to give Chelsea a 1-0 Premier League victory over Newcastle United in their first home match since Britain’s government sanctioned Russian owner Roman Abramovich with an asset freeze.
Kai Havertz
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The visitors, seeking to move further clear of the relegation area, had frustrated the European champions for much of the game with their harrying.
But with the match seemingly heading for a draw, Jorginho launched a long pass over the Newcastle defence to Havertz and the German controlled the ball with his left foot before firing past Martin Dubravka.
The win left the Blues in third place in the table, 10 points behind leaders Manchester City who play tomorrow, while Newcastle are 14th, nine points clear of the relegation zone.
West Ham beat Aston Villa 2-1.
Watford beat Southampton to move up to 18th, just behind Everton on goal difference…. Southampton are tenth.
Everton lost 1-0 to Wolverhampton Wanderers to stay 17th.
Leeds scored in stoppage time to beat fellow strugglers Norwich City 2-1.
-Reuters
Big ask for Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka ended day two on 28-1 in their second innings after India set them a mammoth target of 447 for victory in the second and final test in Bengaluru.
Jasprit Bumrah struck in the first over to trap opener Lahiru Thirimanne lbw for a duck but skipper Dimuth Karunaratne (10) and Kusal Mendis (16) saw out the final few overs of the day, with the tourists still 419 runs behind.
Having bowled out Sri Lanka for 109 in the first session, India batted 69 overs before declaring on 303-9 with Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant notching up half-centuries while other Indian batsmen failed to go on from solid starts.
Earlier, Sri Lanka had resumed day two on 86-6 but their resistance lasted only 27 minutes as Bumrah (5-24) and Ravichandran Ashwin (2-30) cleaned up the tail.
Bumrah claimed his eighth five-wicket haul and his first on home soil on a pitch heavily favouring spinners.
India won the first test by an innings and 222 runs.
-Reuters
Osaka in tears
Former world women’s tennis number one Naomi Osaka was rattled by a heckler early in her second round match against Veronika Kudermetova and never recovered as she fell 6-0 6-4 at Indian Wells.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
After being broken in the first game, a fan shouted “Naomi, you suck” and Osaka could later be seen wiping away tears.
After the match, the event’s 2018 champion addressed the crowd on center court, saying the incident reminded her of when Venus and Serena Williams were booed at the tournament in 2001.
“I’ve been heckled before and it didn’t really bother me,” Osaka said while holding back tears.
“But being heckled here. I’ve watched video of Venus and Serena get heckled here and if you’ve never watched it, you should watch it. And I don’t know why, but it went into my head and got replayed a lot.”
“I just want to say thank you and congratulations,” she concluded.
Osaka has been open about her struggles with mental wellness in the past and took a break from the sport following her upset loss at last year’s U.S. Open. She said she was in a great place emotionally coming into the tournament.
-Reuters
Australia rack up the runs
Usman Khawaja’s marathon 160 and Alex Carey’s career-best 93 helped Australia rack up 505 for eight against Pakistan on day two of the second test in Karachi.
Usman Khawaja
Photo: Photosport
It was a day of painstaking accumulation at the National Stadium where the Pakistan bowlers kept the run rate under check but only five wickets fell in three sessions for all their hard work under a harsh sun.
Mitchell Starc saw off 95 deliveries for his dour unbeaten 28 and Australia captain Pat Cummins was unbeaten on nought at the close.
Earlier, after Australia resumed on 251-3, Shaheen Afridi subjected Nathan Lyon to a bouncer barrage but the nightwatchman did not flinch and went on the attack with the pull shot.
Lyon hit five fours in an entertaining 38 before he had his stumps rearranged by an express delivery from Faheem Ashraf, ending a 54-run stand with Khawaja.
Islamabad-born Khawaja’s third century in four tests included 15 fours and a six.
In his haste to reach the 100 mark before close of play, Carey went for a slog sweep but lost his stump to a delivery from part-time spinner Babar that kept low.
His stellar knock included seven fours and two sixes.
-Reuters
Spain qualify for World Cup
Spain hung on to beat Portugal 33-28 in Madrid and seal a place at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, only the second time they have qualified for the global showpiece tournament.
The Spanish, who took part in the 1999 World Cup, will be in Group B alongside holders South Africa, Scotland, Ireland and a team from the Asia/Pacific region.
Roared on by more than 6,000 fans at the Complutense University on a sunny morning in the Spanish capital, hooker Marco Pinto led the way for Spain with two first-half tries.
Portugal threw everything at the Spaniards in the closing stages of the match but the hosts held firm and when their long overdue return to the World Cup was confirmed, the supporters invaded the pitch to celebrate with the players.
Spain climbed to 29 points in the qualification group with six wins and three losses, behind Georgia who have secured their place in France with eight wins and one draw after defeating Romania 26-23 in Bucharest.
Spain will play Georgia in their final match of the campaign on March 20.
Portugal are third in standing with 25 points but Romania have 23 points and a game in hand against the Netherlands next weekend. The team finishing third will go into the final qualification tournament in November.
-Reuters
Candy keen on Chelsea fan input
British property developer Nick Candy will give Chelsea fans a seat on the board if he buys the club from Roman Abramovich and also provide short-term funding after Britain sanctioned the Russian billionaire.
Chelsea fans
Photo: Photosport
Anyone interested in buying Chelsea can make a proposal to the government, Britain said after it hit Abramovich with sanctions in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The announcement halted Abramovich’s plans to sell the club, which he had expected to fetch more almost $6 billion.
The 49-year-old Candy, a Chelsea supporter since boyhood, said he was interested in making a bid.
Sky News reported the proposal to offer a seat to fans on the board was a central part of Candy’s pitch to buy Chelsea and he was in talks with financiers about joining his bid ahead of a deadline for offers at the end of the week.
He will also offer short-term funding if Chelsea face a cash crunch, the report added.
Abramovich bought Chelsea in 2003 for a reported $268 million and his investment resulted in the most successful era in their history, with the club winning five Premier League titles, five FA Cups and the Champions League twice.
-Reuters
Ko tests positive
Lydia Ko will not defend her title in Saudi Arabia this week after testing positive for Covid-19.
Ko, who won the Aramco Saudi Ladies International last November, withdrew from this year’s event after testing positive following last week’s HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore.
Replacing Ko in the field is Angel Yin, who will join Anna Nordqvist, Georgia Hall, Carlota Ciganda, Bronte Law, Pauline Roussin-Bouchard, Anne van Dam and Emily Kristine Pedersen in the field.
The tournament, which was moved to a spring date on the Ladies European Tour calendar this year, will be played March 17-20 at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City. The purse is $1.5 million.
Ko is currently ranked number three in the world.
