Bindra, Narang fail to qualify
New Delhi: Olympic medallists Abhinav Bindra and Gagan Narang failed to qualify for the final round of men's 10m Air Rifle event while Jitu Rai progressed to the qualification round in 50m Pistol on the opening day of the International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup at Fort Benning, United States. Bindra, India's only individual Olympic gold medallist in 2008 Beijing Games, finished 15th in the qualification round with a score of 624.6. Sanjeev Rajput and Narang finished 25th and 26th respectively with scores of 623 and 622.9. In the men's 50m Pistol event, all three Indian shooters — Jitu, Prakash Nanjappa and Om Prakash — survived the elimination rounds and will shoot for a place in the finals on Friday.
Yuki to face Saketh in final
Samarkand (Uzbekistan): India's Yuki Bhambri tamed third seed Adrian Menendez-Maceiras in straight sets to set up a clash against compatriot Saketh Myneni in the singles semi-finals of the $50,000 ATP Challenger event, here on Thursday. The seventh seed Indian did not lose his serve in a 6-4, 6-4 win over the Spanish rival as he saved all the four breakpoints he faced in the one hour 40 minute quarterfinal duel. later in the day, Saketh stunned eighth seeded Brydan Klein of Great Britain 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 in one hour and 58 minutes to set up an all-India clash in the semi-finals.
Iconic 2000 sydney Oly rings sold!
Sydney: The five massive rings from the Sydney Harbour Bridge which were the focal point of celebrations during the 2000 Olympics have been sold for 21,000 Australian dollars ($17,000).The steel rings, measuring 70 by 40 meters (230 by 130 feet) when assembled and weighing 50,000 kilograms (110,000 pounds), had been in a storage shed south of Sydney. When businessman Bernard Maas recently bought the shed, he discovered the rings inside. On the eBay auction site, the lot attracted 17 bids topped by a man in Sydney's Pyrmont, an inner-city suburb near the harbor. "He put a bid in and ended up winning ... he was having a bit of a chuckle and wasn't too sure what he was going to do," Maas said Thursday.
AFC general secy suspended
Kuala lumpur: Asian Football Confederation (AFC) general secretary Alex Soosay has been suspended by the organisation following media allegations that he attempted to tamper or hide documents during a corruption probe in 2012, a statement on the official AFC website said. A video statement conducted as part of a FIFA investigation was passed on to media recently and the AFC has now been able to verify its authenticity, Xinhua reported citing AFC as having said on Wednesday. AFC deputy general secretary Windsor John will take over the role for the interim while an internal investigation is conducted, the AFC said. Malay Mail, a local English language newspaper, reported recently that Soosay had attempted to "tamper or hide" documents during the 2012 internal audit which was triggered by claims of corrupt practices by the then president Mohamad Hammam.
Bolt to run in Brussels
Brussels: Usain Bolt will run at the season-ending Memorial Van Damme Diamond league meeting on Sept. 11. Bolt, the world record-holder in the 100 and 200 meters, will decide after the world championships in Beijing in August which event he will contest in Brussels. It will be Bolt's seventh appearance in Brussels, where he has posted five wins — four in the 100 and one in the 200 — since a third-place finish in the 200 in 2007. Bolt holds the meet record of 9.76 in the 100, set in 2011.
Govt grants recognition to aiscd
New Delhi: The sports ministry today granted provisional recognition to All India Sports Council of the Deaf (AISCD) as the National Sports Federation for development and promotion of sport among deaf athletes. While granting the provisional recognition, the ministry asked the AISCD to conduct elections for its office bearers within three months. For some time, there has been a dispute between two factions regarding who should run the AISCD. The sports ministry has made attempts to resolve the issue by calling meetings of members of both the factions. "The matter has been examined in the Ministry. Keeping in view all the relevant factors including the interest of deaf athletes, it has been decided with the approval of the competent authority to grant recognition to AISCD with Shri R C Santhian as Acting President.
WADA lifts Rio 2016 lab suspension
Rio De Janerio: The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has lifted its suspension of Brazil's drug-testing laboratory earmarked for use at next year's Olympics.The facility had its license revoked in 2013 after failing to meet WADA standards due to outdated equipment, Xinhua reported. Wednesday's announcement comes after nine months of testing in which WADA sent samples to the laboratory for analysis, with results later scrutinised by the agency. "This decision was made after the laboratory completed the required remedial work stipulated in the International Standard for laboratories (ISl)," WADA spokesman Ben Nichols said.