“Absolutely wild”: Philippine curlers win historic Asian Games gold
Philippines on Friday bagged a historic and unlikely gold medal by stunning South Korea 5-3 in men”s curling at the Asian Winter Games in China”s Harbin..The team and about two dozen supporters erupted in cheers after winning the tropical country”s first medal in the 39-year history of the Games..”We wanted to go for a medal, but the gold medal, this is overwhelming,” said Alan Frei, one of the quartet..This is so weird, isn”t it?.The Philippine heroes upset China 7-6 in the semi-finals a day earlier, guaranteeing them a spot atop the podium one year before the Milan-Cortina Olympics..The South Koreans were after their third Winter Asiad gold in men”s curling — winning previous editions in 2003 and 2007 — along with exemption from mandatory military service awarded to Asian Games champions from their country..But just two years after the launch of the Philippines” curling federation, the men”s team — who were all born in Switzerland to Filipino mothers — won a place in the folklore of the archipelago..They have already secured a place at 2026 Olympic pre-qualifiers later this year..Their story is a sort of encore of the Jamaican bobsleigh team who were immortalised in the movie “Cool Runnings” after taking part in the 1988 Winter Olympics..”It”s just absolutely wild,” said Frei, who only started curling in 2023..But he said the win doesn”t guarantee they will make it to the ultimate stage, the Winter Olympics..”We were also lucky, and maybe we wanted it a bit more,” he said..”It”s day one again. Back to the beginning. Back to the gym.”
Source: AFP
Pakistan speedster breaks silence on heated altercation with Breetzke
Karachi: Shaheen Afridi broke the silence about his heated verbal exchange with Matthew Breetzke during the One-Day International tri-nation series match against South Africa on Wednesday. .The incident occurred in the 28th over of the first innings when Shaheen deliberately got in the way Breetzke, who ran for a single. Shaheen’s action caused inappropriate physical contact, which led to a heated argument..Leaving behind the rivalryThe Pakistan speedster admitted that he had teased the South African batter in an attempt to unsettle Breetzke and take his wicket. He also clarified that the tension was confined to the field as both players met and shook hands after the match. .“For the first time, Matthew didn’t say anything. I kept teasing him to get a wicket. Whatever happened on the field stayed there. Matthew and I met, shook hands, and became good friends,” Shaheen said during an interview as quoted from Geo News..Shaheen was fined 25 per cent of his match fee for breaching ICC Code of Conduct. Apart from his heated exchange with Breetzke, Shaheen spoke about Pakistan’s ongoing woes in the death overs of an inning recently exposed in the ongoing tri-nation series. .In the first game of the series against New Zealand, Shaheen and Naseem Shah were handed the responsibility of seeing off the death overs. Glenn Phillips went all guns blazing and hammered 71 runs in the last four overs. .Death overs: An issue for Pakistan.It was a similar story for Pakistan pacers against South Africa. Naseem, Mohammad Hasnain, and Khushdil Shah were asked to wrap up the last four overs. The trio combined to give away 46 runs, which lifted South Africa to a mammoth 352/5. .“We admit that we haven’t been performing well in the final overs,” Shaheen said on Pakistan’s performance with the ball in death overs.
Source: ANI
المسيبي يُهدي «طاولة الإمارات» برونزيتين في «دولية تركيا»
معتصم عبد الله (أبوظبي)
حصد محمد سعيد المسيبي، لاعب المنتخب والشارقة لكرة الطاولة، ميداليتين برونزيتين على التوالي ضمن بطولة «تركيا الدولية لكرة الطاولة»، والمقامة بمدينة كابادوكيا، ليكون أبرز إنجازات المنتخب الذي ضم 6 لاعبين.وشملت القائمة السدادسي علي الحواي، يوسف الحواي «النصر»، أحمد سعيد المسيبي، ومحمد سعيد المسيبي «الشارقة»، ناصر المري، راشد سعيد «الوصل»، إلى جانب المدربين شاو لي، وشان كي، والإداري خالد صقر.وحصد المسيبي بالبرونزية الأولى في منافسات «الزوجي المختلط تحت 15 عاماً»، بالمشاركة مع حنين عليوة، بطلة مصر وإنبي، بعد مشوار متميز للثنائي في الأدوار التمهيدية والرئيسة، وثمن النهائي، وربع النهائي قبل حصولهما على المركز الثالث.وأضاف المسيبي، إلى سجل إنجازاته «برونزية» في «فردي تحت 13 عاماً»، بعدما تخطى التركي تونا كاردينز «3- صفر»، والتركي ألراس آيدين و«3-1» في دور المجموعات، قبل الفوز الثالث على التوالي أمام التركي علي سيرين في ربع النهائي، 3-2 بنتائج الأشواط «11-5 و11- 5 و8-11 و6- 11 و11- 4»، وصولاً إلى مباراة نصف النهائي، والتي خسرها 0-3 أمام الإسباني لاديمير مايروف المُتوج بالذهبية.وتدعم النتائج الإيجابية في بطولة «تركيا الدولية لكرة الطاولة»، استمرار تقدم النجم المسيبي في تصنيف الاتحاد الدولي، بعدما احتل المركز الخامس عالمياً في تصنيف فبراير الجاري برصيد 236 نقطة، وسبق إعلان التصنيف الأخير فوز المسيبي ببرونزية بطولة قطر الدولية لكرة الطاولة، والتي استضافها الاتحاد القطري لكرة الطاولة، بالتعاون مع مؤسسة كرة الطاولة العالمية من 27 إلى 31 يناير الماضي.
Source: مركز الاتحاد للأخبار