Sports

The inaugural Ultimate Pool Professional Series gets underway this week as the sport continues to forge a new era which players and fans alike are getting very excited about. The Ultimate Pool Group only launched last year, but have made an impact already, putting on tournaments every Monday night live on television with FreeSports, pulling in heartening viewing figures. Now comes the Pro and Challenger Series, with 32 professionals competing in the main event and 128 amateurs battling it out with the hope to join them in the next edition. The Pro Series will be played over four weekends from August to December in Newcastle-under-Lyme, with big money on the line and heralding in a new, more professional era in the sport. ‘It’s a one of a kind because we’ve separated 32 professionals,’ Ultimate Pool CEO and England pool captain Lee Kendall told Metro.co.uk . ‘The main problem with 8-ball pool, any professionals there have been have been propped up by amateurs and their entry …

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This article was originally published in The Conversation . Read the original article . It's official: skateboarding is going to become an Olympic sport . At Tokyo 2020, the world of ledge-grinding, ollie-jumping, kick-flipping and bowl-riding will be showcased alongside several other new sports, as well as the usual Olympic fare. On the face of it, this decision seems surprising—some might question whether the largely street-based activity of skateboarding is even a proper sport. Yet given that the Olympics' governing body is seeking to attract younger audiences to bolster their ageing demographic, it's also a sensible move. Still, it's difficult to imagine how this will work in practice. Surely, the implicitly anti-capitalist, subcultural and "alternative" nature of skateboarding —where skaters appropriate urban streets, buildings and plazas for unregulated pleasures – is completely at odds with the training-intensive, performance-measured and medal-obsessed …

[Read more...] about Rio 2016: Why skateboarding as an Olympic sport is a win

Newcastle United are keen on signing Tottenham midfielder Oliver Skipp, with a move for Arsenal ’s Joe Willock appearing increasingly unlikely. Steve Bruce is desperate to sign Willock – preferably on a permanent deal – after the midfielder’s successful loan spell in the north-east during the second half of last season. However, Mikel Arteta appears intent on keeping Willock and the Gunners are yet to entertain the Magpies’ interest in the England U21 ace. That’s frustrated Newcastle and with time running out in the transfer window, Bruce has been forced to shift his targets to elsewhere. Skipp impressed during a season-long loan at Norwich last season and Spurs have high hopes that the midfielder will become a first-team player in north London. However, Spurs are unsure whether to send Skipp back out on loan to continue his development or to retain him in north London this term. Nevertheless, the Daily Mail claim Newcastle have registered their interest in …

[Read more...] about Newcastle United make move for Tottenham star as Joe Willock transfer stalls

This story was originally published on Nine World of Sports and is republished with permission. New Zealand rugby sevens star Ruby Tui is going viral after a larger than life post-match interview at the Tokyo Olympics. Tui was called over for a chat by the BBC's Jill Douglas after the Black Ferns beat Russia Olympic Committee 36-0 to reach the semi-finals. It was magic - pure personality. "BBC - better be clear!" Tui began with a beaming, cheeky grin, before being asked what she thought of the Russian team. She began by speaking Samoan, then gave her thoughts in English. READ MORE: Tokyo Olympics: Black Ferns sevens thrash Russia, face Fiji in last four after Australia's shock exit Tokyo Olympics: Michaela Blyde hat-trick rescues Black Ferns sevens in comeback win over Great Britain Tokyo Olympics: It's 'payback' for Black Ferns sevens after Rio heartbreak against Australia "Russia, they are very cool people, man. We get on with them, very …

[Read more...] about Tokyo Olympics: Black Ferns star Ruby Tui has viewers in stitches in ‘best interview ever’

AARON WOOD/STUFF Considered one of the most technical and artistic of the track and field events, the hammer throw field at the Tokyo Olympics will feature Kiwi Julia Ratcliffe. OPINION : These ethically dubious Olympics had at least been jogging along in a jolly and joyful manner. A particular highlight was the mixed swimming medley relay, a ludicrous race that contrived to be fun and harmonious and magnificently athletic, all at the same time. Oh, and the Americans made a huge tactical cock up, which is always entertaining, with their ultimate macho man thrashing about in hopeless pursuit of seven women at the end. And then it all changed. The athletics arrived, which is normally where the Olympic Games really starts for a lot of people. But we were no longer in an arena of lots of young people splashing and crashing and dashing and having a good time. We entered the Orwellian phase of these Games. We were given a glimpse of what the future could become and it was a …

[Read more...] about Mark Reason: Tokyo, the ethically dubious Orwellian Olympics

American Athletic Conference commissioner Mike Aresco denied allegations that his conference and ESPN had "strategically aligned or plotted to influence conference structures," adding that any suggestion otherwise was "a completely unfounded and grossly irresponsible accusation." Last week, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby suggested that ESPN and an unnamed conference had gone after several remaining Big 12 teams and told CBS Sports the American had pursued three to five teams from his conference. Aresco vehemently fired back at that assertion Wednesday. "Our conference has never strategically aligned or plotted with ESPN to influence conference structures," Aresco said during a virtual media day event. "We wouldn't do that, ESPN has never done that and would not do it. We do consult with our television and business partners on issues related to our conference; everyone does. But any suggestions or statements that we colluded with ESPN with regard to the structure of any …

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Tom Brady wrote another chapter of NFL history on Sunday by leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a crucial comeback against the Atlanta Falcons. The six-time Super Bowl champion completed 31 of his 45 passes for 390 yards and two touchdowns as the Bucs erased a 17-point deficit at halftime to win 31-27 in Atlanta and keep their bid for a wildcard berth alive. The win against the Falcons was the fourth time in Brady's career between regular season and playoff games he has led his team victory after trailing by at least 17 points at halftime, the most of any NFL quarterback in the Super Bowl era, as per NFL Research. "Great poise by everybody," Brady said after the game. "Everybody hung in there. We got off to a tough start, but we found a way to win." The Falcons knew all too well the feeling of being on the wrong side of a Brady-inspired comeback, as up until Sunday the veteran quarterback had last erased a 17-point deficit after two quarters when he led the New England …

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The New York Jets won their first game of the season on Sunday, but may have derailed their long-term future. After 13 consecutive losses, the Jets pulled off a surprise 23-20 win in Los Angeles against the Rams, snapping the longest losing streak in franchise history and ensuring they won't join the 2008 Detroit Lions and the 2016 Cleveland Browns as the only teams in NFL history to go 0-16 over the course of a season. Significantly, the win in Los Angeles means the Jets are no longer in pole position to land the first overall pick in next year's NFL Draft and with it presumptive top selection Trevor Lawrence. The Clemson star has long been considered the answer to the Jets' ongoing search for a franchise quarterback and over the last 13 weeks he had looked all but destined to move to New York, as the Gang Green plunged new depths and found themselves 0-13 for the first time in franchise history. That scenario, however, dramatically changed on Sunday and Lawrence looks set …

[Read more...] about Who holds the advantage for the NFL’s first overall draft pick?

Summary Jamaican had posted videos of her gold-medal races in Tokyo Unauthorised content is automatically removed, says IOC TOKYO, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Facebook Inc (FB.O) mistakenly blocked gold medallist sprinter Elaine Thompson-Herah, the fastest woman in the world, from Instagram, the company said on Wednesday. The Jamaican sprinter had tweeted that she had been blocked for posting videos of her victorious 100 and 200 metres races because she "did not own the right to do so." However, a Facebook spokesperson later said that while the content was removed, the suspension was wrongly applied. Thompson-Herah defended her Olympic titles from the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics over the two distances in Tokyo, making it four Olympic gold medals from two Games. But her attempt to share her Tokyo competitions with her 310,000 followers on Facebook-owned Instagram appeared to have backfired. She later posted on her Instagram Stories that the block had been cleared with …

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Team GB ’s medal haul rose to an impressive total of 48 after another frantic day of non-stop action at the Tokyo Olympics , moving them up to fourth in the table behind China, the United States and hosts Japan. The start of Day 12, from a Team GB perspective, undoubtedly belonged to Sky Brown who, at 13, became Britain’s youngest ever Olympic medallist as she claimed bronze in an enthralling women’s park skateboarding final. Swimmer Sarah Hardcastle previously held the record after picking up silver and bronze, aged just 15, at the Los Angeles Games back in 1984. Brown was born in 2008, everybody – the same year Dark Knight was released and Leona Lewis was Bleeding Love. Just let that sink in… feel old yet? Drama continued to unfold as more events got underway and, once again, the athletics did not disappoint with twists and turns at every corner. But it was heartbreak for a distraught Katarina Johnson-Thompson , who was forced to pull out of the heptathlon …

[Read more...] about Tokyo 2020 Day 12 Highlights: Sydney McLaughlin smashes world record, Andre de Grasse wins 200m gold, Team GB sailing success