The Fiji Times

Djokovic’s actions could weaken COVID-19 safety adherence – Australia govt lawyer

MELBOURNE (Reuters) -Lawyers argued over what impact Novak Djokovic would have on support for vaccination in Australia as the Federal Court was set to decide on Sunday whether or not the unvaccinated tennis superstar can stay and defend his Open title. Three Federal Court judges will decide the fate of the world number one tennis...

Djokovic ‘extremely disappointed’ with cancellation of visa

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Tennis world number one Novak Djokovic said in a statement on Sunday that he was “extremely disappointed” with the decision to cancel his visa to enter Australia, but would cooperate with the authorities in relation to his departure from the country. The Serbian champion said he hoped the focus would now return...

Djokovic’s court defeat to shake up Australian Open draw

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – A court decision to uphold the cancellation of Novak Djokovic’s visa on Sunday has shaken up the Australian Open draw on the eve of the tournament, handing a boost to his rivals and adding intrigue to the race for the Grand Slam titles record. The world number one had been favourite to...

Absence of Djokovic to echo at Melbourne Park

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – The absence of Novak Djokovic will be keenly felt at Melbourne Park on Monday as a lucky loser takes the place of a 20-times Grand Slam champion when the first round of the Australian Open gets underway. Djokovic had been scheduled to play fellow Serb Miomir Kecmanovic in the late match at...

Australian federal court upholds cancellation of Djokovic’s Australian visa

SYDNEY (Reuters) – An Australian court upheld a government decision to cancel Novak Djokovic’s visa on Sunday, ending the unvaccinated tennis superstar’s hopes of winning the Australian Open and racking up a record-breaking 21 men’s Grand Slam titles. Ruling on a case that has gripped Australia and the sporting world for more than a week,...

Australian Open order of play on Monday

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Order of play on the main showcourts on the first day of the Australian Open on Monday (play begins at 0000 GMT, prefix number denotes seeding): ROD LAVER ARENA Tatjana Maria (Germany) v 5-Maria Sakkari (Greece) Camila Osorio (Colombia) v 13-Naomi Osaka (Japan) Not before 0300 GMT Marcos Giron (U.S.) v 6-Rafa...

Australia dismissed for 155, England set 271 victory target

(Reuters) – Australia were dismissed for 155 in their second innings after dinner on the third day of the day-night fifth Ashes test in Hobart on Sunday, setting England a victory target of 271. Paceman Mark Wood took a career best 6-37 for the tourists. Australia lead the series 3-0.

Third round would be good outcome for Raducanu in Melbourne, says Henin

(Reuters) – Winning a couple of matches at the Australian Open would be a good outcome for Britain’s teenage U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu, according to former world number one Justine Henin. The 19-year-old Raducanu shot to stardom last September when, as a qualifier, she stormed to the title at Flushing Meadows, becoming Britain’s first...

Australia seal 4-0 triumph as feeble England collapse again

(Reuters) – Cameron Green led the way as Australia rode roughshod over England’s hopes of an Ashes victory by skittling the tourists for 124 in Hobart on Sunday evening to clinch the fifth test by 146 runs and seal a 4-0 series triumph. In the ascendant for the first time in the five matches when...

Djokovic’s absence from Australian Open loss for game – ATP

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – A court decision on Sunday to uphold Novak Djokovic’s Australian visa cancellation was an end to a “deeply regrettable” series of events and the Serb’s exit from the Australian Open was a loss for the sport, men’s tennis governing body ATP has said. Australia was set to deport world number one tennis...

Chand: No fans will affect professional boxing program

South Pacific Boxing Promotions has stated that it was not financially viable to proceed with their first professional boxing program in late January without fans apart from the safety and welfare of fighters, officials and the wider boxing fraternity. Promoter Freddy Chand said he would make immense losses if he was to hold the boxing event. “Absolutely, if...

Karatsev outclasses Murray to take Sydney title

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Former world number one Andy Murray’s quest for a first ATP title in over two years ended in defeat at the hands of top seed Aslan Karatsev at the Sydney Tennis Classic on Saturday, with the Russian easing his way to a 6-3 6-3 win. It was a third career title for...

Kohli gives up India test captaincy in surprise move

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Virat Kohli shocked Indian cricket on Saturday by abruptly resigning as the national side’s test captain, after leading the team to several memorable victories in his seven years in charge. The 33-year-old, India’s most successful test captain, took to Twitter to announce his decision a day after India’s 2-1 series defeat...

Detained Djokovic to fight Australian deportation in court

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic was due to hand himself in to immigration officers for detention on Saturday ahead of a court hearing in his battle to overturn new orders by the Australian government to remove him from the country. The world’s top-ranked tennis player was required to surrender to officials in Melbourne for an...

Blockbuster online events for Fijian weightlifters

Weightlifting Fiji is mapping out plans for its elite weightlifters for the coming sporting calendar which includes the Commonwealth Games. Head coach Henry Elder said the window for qualification to the games in Birmingham, England, would start with three important events. “The next preparation phase is another opportunity for the weightlifters to qualify to the...

China’s ‘father of skiing’ hopes games will attract more ordinary folks to the sport

BEIJING, Jan 14(Reuters) – Shan Zhaojian stretches his arms and legs to warm up as the 83-year-old prepares to ski down a mountain just outside China’s capital of Beijing. The bespectacled skier is technically retired, but thanks to his nickname as China’s “father of skiing”, he has been a prominent icon in the country’s campaign...

Texans fire head coach David Culley

The Houston Texans fired first-year head coach David Culley, he confirmed Thursday. “I’m disappointed, but it’s part of the business,” Culley told SportsTalk 790 in a radio interview. “I understand and I move on.” Culley told the station that he has three years remaining guaranteed on his contract, contradicting earlier reports that he was given...

U.S. turns to college ranks to fill out men’s ice hockey roster

Jan 13 (Reuters) – With the National Hockey League having pulled out of the Beijing Olympics, the United States turned to the college ranks to fill out its men’s ice hockey roster on Thursday, calling up 15 university players for next month’s Winter Games. The U.S. squad that was expected to be packed with high-profile NHLers...

Mazey clears the air

The Fiji National Sports Commission’s executive chairman Peter Mazey has labelled “spectators not complying with the basic COVID-19 measures” as the sole reason for holding future various sporting meets without any fans until further notice. Mazey said all sporting events would be held without any supporters, which were in line with the Ministry of Health’s...

Portugal opens inquiry into Roman Abramovich’s citizenship

LISBON, Jan 13 (Reuters) – The Portuguese authority responsible for nationality matters has opened an internal inquiry into the granting of citizenship to billionaire Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich, the government said on Thursday. Russian-born businessman Abramovich was granted Portuguese citizenship in April 2021 based on a law offering naturalisation to descendents of Sephardic...

Djokovic ‘playing by his own rules’, says Tsitsipas

Jan 13 (Reuters) – World number one Novak Djokovic has been “playing by his own rules” and has put his bid for a 21st Grand Slam title at risk by not following Australia’s COVID-19 vaccination requirements, world number four Stefanos Tsitsipas said on Thursday. Djokovic was included in the Australian Open draw on Thursday, though uncertainty hangs...

In Beijing’s Olympic bubble: police escorts, daily COVID-19 tests, robot chefs

BEIJING, Jan 13 (Reuters) – In a hived-off section of the Beijing airport, arrivals for next month’s Winter Olympics are met by staff in white protective suits and undergo COVID-19 tests and swabs of luggage before being whisked in police-escorted buses to fenced-off hotels. Unlike last summer’s Tokyo Games, which took place in a porous...

Osaka tops Forbes list of highest-earning female athletes

Jan 13 (Reuters) – Japan’s Naomi Osaka, a four-times Grand Slam tennis champion who has helped raise awareness of mental health issues in sport, is the world’s highest-paid female athlete, according to a list published by business magazine Forbes on Thursday. Osaka raked in $57.3 million in prize money and endorsements over the last year, nearly all...

U.N. chief to attend opening of Beijing Winter Olympics

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 13 (Reuters) – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Thursday that he would attend the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics next month with the message that the event “must be an instrument of peace in the world.” His confirmed attendance comes amid a U.S.-led diplomatic boycott to protest China’s human...

Low blow for boxing

South Pacific Boxing Promotions intention to begin a brand new year with its first professional boxing program in late January has been postponed until further notice because of an apparent third wave of a killer virus in the country. Promoter Freddy Chand said it was wise to cancel the event because of the safety and...

Volleyball association defers club games

The Suva Volleyball Association has postponed its club games. The games will be resumed at a later date. The decision comes into place after the association board reviewed its calendar of events for this year. “Some changes have been made to ensure that the clubs continue to abide by the Government’s COVID-19 guidelines through the...

Man charged with supplying performance enhancing drugs to Olympians

United States prosecutors have charged a Texas man with providing performance-enhancing drugs to athletes competing in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, including star Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare. Eric Lira, 41, of El Paso, is the first person to be charged under a new US anti-doping law governing international sports competitions. The US Attorney’s Office in Manhattan...

Shiffrin takes record 47th World Cup slalom win

SCHLADMING, Austria, Jan 11 (Reuters) – Mikaela Shiffrin won the last World Cup women’s slalom before the Beijing Olympics on Tuesday to take her 47th victory in the discipline and smash a record the U.S. skier had shared with Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark. The double Olympic gold medallist, who shed tears at the finish, has...

Djokovic travelled across Europe before Australia trip, at odds with declaration

BELGRADE, Jan 12 (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic was in Serbia in the two weeks before flying to the Australian Open from Spain, according to three Belgrade residents, whose accounts to Reuters backed social media posts that contradict information contained in his immigration declaration on arrival in Melbourne. The accounts from two eyewitnesses and another individual,...

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