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Sports Journalists’ Association’s AGM held
The 15th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Bangladesh Sports Journalists’ Association (BSJA) was held on Saturday at its office premises at the Bangabandhu National Stadium here.BSJA general secretary Anisur Rahman Paltu and treasurer Mazhar Uddin Omi presented their reports at the AGM, presided over by BSJA President ATM Saiduzzaman. The AGM gave emphasis on forming a welfare fund to help the BSJA members during crisis situation. Former BJSA Presidents Majurul Haque and Syed Mamun, former Vice Presidents Dilu Khodakar, Kamal Ahmed, Arifur Rahman Babu, among others, took part in the discussion on different issues.
Read: Babu emerges best player in Walton-BSJA Sports CarnivalCountry's leading sports journalists and sports editors of national dailies, news agencies, electronic and online media were present at the meeting.
WWE’s McMahon says he is retiring amid misconduct probe
World Wrestling Entertainment impresario Vince McMahon announced Friday he is retiring amid an investigation into alleged misconduct involving the flamboyant showman who turned a small wrestling company into a worldwide entertainment business.
In a brief statement issued by WWE, McMahon said he is retiring as the company’s chairman and CEO. He noted that he remains its majority shareholder.
McMahon stepped down temporarily as CEO and chairman of WWE in mid-June during an investigation into alleged misconduct. Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported McMahon agreed to pay more than $12 million over the past 16 years to suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.
“At 77, time for me to retire. Thank you, WWE Universe. Then. Now. Forever. Together. #WWE #thankful,” he wrote on Twitter.
There was no mention of the investigation in statement from the company based in Stamford, Connecticut. McMahon said his daughter, Stephanie, who was named interim CEO and chairperson last month, will serve as chairperson and share CEO duties with Nick Khan, who joined the company in 2020.
“Our global audience can take comfort in knowing WWE will continue to entertain you with the same fervor, dedication, and passion as always,” he wrote in the statement, thanking WWE’s generations of fans all over the world.
Read: Japanese marathon runners to miss worlds due to COVID-19
McMahon first stepped aside from the top positions last month after the Journal reported at the time that he had agreed to pay $3 million to a former paralegal who said he sexually harassed her on the job. He was supposed to continue overseeing WWE’s creative content during the companies investigation. But then the newspaper reported that McMahon had agreed to pay the significantly larger sum of $12 million.
Four women — all formerly affiliated with WWE — signed agreements with McMahon that bar them from discussing their relationships with him, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the deals and documents it reviewed. McMahon has said he is cooperating with the company’s investigation.
McMahon has been the leader and most recognizable face at WWE for decades. When he purchased what was then the World Wrestling Federation from his father in 1982, wrestling matches took place at small venues and appeared on local cable channels.
The organization underwent a seismic transformation under McMahon with events like WrestleMania, a premium live production that draws millions of fervent viewers.
Revenue last year exceeded $1 billion for the first time and the company has television deals with Fox and NBCUniversal. Last month it announced a multiyear expansion of its original programming partnership with A&E.
WWE stars have become crossover sensations, including Hulk Hogan, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and John Cena.
National Ranking Open Archery Tournament in Tongi on Thursday
The daylong National Ranking Open Archery Tournament will be held on Thursday (July 21) at the Archery Training Centre of the Shaheed Ahsanullah Master Stadium in Tongi. Some 61 male and female archers will take part in the singles event of the recurve men's, recurve women's, compound men's and compound women's competitions.The ranking tournament will begin at 9 am on Thursday and the final matches will start at 12 noon on the day.
Read: Archery World Cup: Bangladesh to leave for France SundayThe champion and runner-up archers of all the four events will be given a monthly allowance of Taka 7,000 and 5,000 respectively. .Eight archers have already receiving allowances on monthly basis.
2nd Div Chess: Eight teams sharing top slot
Eight teams share the top slot in the Saif Powertec 2nd Division Chess League securing full four points each after the 2nd round matches held at the conference room and chess room of National Sports Council here on Tuesday.The leading teams are: Hamid Sports Academy, Asad Chess Club, Sports Bangla, Bangladesh Police Prime Chess Team, Deshseba Krira Chakra, Nurul Islam Smrity Pathagar, Morning Glory Chess Club (Kushita),and Sadharan Bima Sporting Club.Four Teams sharing 2nd position collecting three points each. They are: Spandan Dhaka, Dabar Troyi Agrojo Sharon Sangha (Green), Bangladesh Chess Arena and Md Shofi Uddin Shah Smrity Sangsad.
Read: BOA hopes for better Commonwealth, Islamic Solidarity Games resultsIn the day's 2nd round matches, Morning Glory Chess Club (Kushtia) beat Goalanda Chess Club by 3.5-0.5 points, Sports Bangla beat Dipali Memorial Club by 3-1 points, Hamid Sports Academy beat Bangladesh Bank Club (Dhaka) by 4-0 points, Sadharan Bima Sporting Club beat King Chess Club (Tangail) by 3.5-0.5 points, Nurul Islam Smrity Pathagar beat Bangladesh Police Crown Chess Club 3-1 points, Bangladesh Police Prime Chess Club beat Elegant International Chess Academy-Uttara by 3.5-0.5 points, Asad Chess Club beat Bangladesh Police Star Chess Club by 3.5-0,5 points, Deshseba Krira Chakra beat Shawkat Osman Smrity Parisad by 3-1 points, Bangladesh Chess Arena beat Jahangirnagar University Chess Club by 3-1 points, Spandan Dhaka beat Manha’s Castle by 3.5-0.5 points while Dabar Troyi Agrojo Sharon Sangha (Green) drew 2-2 with Md Shofi Uddin Shah Smrity Sangsad .The 3rd round matches will be held on Wednesday from 3: pm at the same venue.
BOA hopes for better Commonwealth, Islamic Solidarity Games results
The Bangladesh Olympic Association (BOA) has hoped that the country would do better in the 22nd Commonwealth Games 2022 in the UK's Birmingham and the 5th Islamic Solidarity Games in Turkey's Konya.
Despite the exclusion of shooting, the discipline which brought all eight medals in the Commonwealth Games for Bangladesh, from the upcoming Birmingham edition, BOA Secretary General Syed Shahed Reza hoped that athletes would put up a better performance in the multi-sport event.
"Bangladesh is doing well in shooting and archery at the international level. But this time, shooting has been excluded from the Commonwealth Games. Also, the discipline has been included in the Islamic Solidarity Games as skeet events, in which Bangladesh is not very strong," Reza said at a pre-games press conference in Dhaka Sunday.
"However, I believe that the athletes will deliver their best in the international sports competitions and bring laurels for the nation."
Read: NZ Rugby calls series loss to Ireland "not acceptable"
A 50-member team will represent Bangladesh in seven disciplines – athletics, boxing, gymnastics, swimming, weight-lifting, wrestling, and table tennis – at the Commonwealth Games, scheduled to be held from July 28 to August 8.
Weight-lifter Mabia Akther Simanta, who clinched gold medals in the last two South Asian Games, will carry the national flag during the march past of the 22nd edition multi-disciplinary sports event.
An 84-member Bangladesh team will participate in the Islamic Solidarity Games 2022, set to be held from August 9 to 18, in 11 disciplines – athletics, archery, fencing, gymnastics, handball, karate, shooting, swimming, table tennis, wrestling, and weight-lifting.
Fencer Fatema Mujib, who won a gold medal in the last South Asian Games, will carry the red and green flag in the 5th edition of the multinational, multi-sport event, to be held during August 9-18.
Bangladesh Archery Federation President Lieutenant General Mohammad Moinul Islam (retired); BOA Vice-President Sheikh Bashir Ahmed and Information, and Media Committee Member Secretary Sirajuddin Mohammad Alamgir were also present at the press conference.
NZ Rugby calls series loss to Ireland "not acceptable"
All Blacks head coach Ian Foster seems safe in his position for the moment though New Zealand Rugby on Sunday described the All Blacks' series defeat by Ireland as “not acceptable.”
Ireland beat New Zealand 32-22 in the third test on Saturday to win a test series in New Zealand for the first time and become the first team since Australia in 1986 to beat the All Blacks in a three-test series at home.
Foster was due to face reporters in a regularly-scheduled news conference on Sunday but the conference was cancelled without explanation. Speaking to reporters immediately after Saturday’s match, Foster refused to discuss his own position, saying he “just wanted to talk about this test match.”
Foster’s future as head coach has been the subject of speculation for some time as the All Blacks go through an almost record-breaking spell of poor form. Saturday’s loss was their fourth from their last five test matches, and their fifth against Ireland in their last eight test meetings.
The All Blacks’ only comparable slumps came in 1998 when they lost five tests in a row to strong South African and Australian teams and 1949 when an an under-strength All Blacks team lost all four tests in South Africa.
New Zealand Rugby was forced to respond Sunday to growling public criticism of the All Blacks form and direction under Foster. That criticism has become louder because New Zealand’s consecutive test match losses to Ireland come only 13 months out from the next World Cup.
Read: Rugby proposed to be included in South Asian Games 2023
A statement released after the cancellation of Foster’s scheduled meeting with reporters suggested he will continue as coach through this year’s Rugby Championship.
“Congratulations to the Irish team for their well-deserved win last night but clearly the performance across the series for the All Blacks was not acceptable as we know they have reflected,” NZR chief executive Mark Robinson said. “We all know there is a huge amount of work to do.
“Our focus now is to work with Ian and his team to understand thoroughly in advance of the Rugby Championship what is needed to improve performance and where to from here. We will begin this work immediately.”
Robinson’s statement is unlikely to allay fan concerns. All Blacks supporters will need rapid assurance that Foster, his assistants and his current All Blacks can continue on their current course and somehow produce better results.
Foster is unlikely to have made himself more popular among fans by suggesting on Saturday they lacked insight to recognize the quality of the Ireland team.
“New Zealand has to realize this is a very good Irish team and give them some credit,” Foster said. “It would be disrespectful to not make that the number one item. They’ve come and achieved something pretty special and they deserve a bit of time in the sun for that.
“For us we’re a group working hard. We’ve got a lot of belief in many of the solutions we’ve got but we’ve got to get better at executing them.”
Japanese marathon runners to miss worlds due to COVID-19
Two Japanese marathon runners have tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the race at the world championships.
World Athletics announced Saturday that two of the country's six athletes entered in the marathon tested positive along with the head coach and four members of the support staff.
All will have to be isolated for five days, a period that will run through the men's race Sunday and the women's race Monday.
The federation did not say which of the six Japanese runners entered in the marathons had tested positive.
Gaku Hoshi, Yusuke Nishiyama and Kengo Suzuki are entered in the men's race and Mao Ichiyama, Mizuki Matsuda and Hitomi Niiya are entered in the women's.
Read: Athlete dies completing marathon in Chattogram
Athletes had to be fully vaccinated to be participate at the worlds. Organizers are recommending, but not requiring, masks to be worn in indoor areas during the championships.
Spain´s running of the bulls ends with swift race, 6 hurt
Bulls from Spain´s revered Miura ranch starred in a fast and uncomplicated final running of the bulls at this year´s San Fermín Festival on Thursday.
The Navarra regional government said six people were treated for minor injuries following Thursday’s run that lasted just over two minutes. Initially, the Spanish Red Cross said two people needed treatment.
No horn gorings were reported as the Miuras, known for their alertness and speed of reaction, kept mainly in a pack and took little notice of the runners as they raced to the bullring.
Read: Spain’s running of the bulls: 6 hurt, no gorings in Pamplona
One runner escaped serious injury when one bull´s horn appeared to graze the right side of his head before he fell to the ground.
The festival's eighth and final 8 a.m. run saw hundreds of people, mostly men and far fewer than usual, test their agility to accompany six fighting bulls and their guiding steer along an 875-meter (956-yard) route through Pamplona to the city’s bullring. The bulls are killed by professional bullfighters later in the day.
Tens of thousands of visitors attend the Pamplona festival, which was immortalized in Ernest Hemingway’s 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises.” The festival is also popular for its 24-hour partying.
Also read: Spain, Germany battle wildfires amid unusual heat wave
During this year's festival, which started July 6, four people were gored, none seriously.
Eight people were gored in 2019, the last festival before a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixteen people have died in Pamplona’s bull runs since 1910, with the last death in 2009.
How Cricketers Celebrated Eid-ul-Adha 2022
Muslims observe Eid al-Azha on the tenth day of Dhu al-Hijjah, commonly known as the "Festival of Sacrifice," which lasts for four days. The millions of adherents of Islam slaughter halal animals in honor of the Prophet Ibrahim's readiness to sacrifice his son Ismail as an act of allegiance to God. Nowadays, most people post their "Eid moments'' on social media, and celebrities are no exception. Let's look at some of the noteworthy Eid-ul-Adha 2022 wishes made by Muslim cricketers throughout the world.
The Cricketers' Celebration of Eid-ul-Adha 2022
In today's digital world, athletes have a stronger connection to their fans than they had in the past. Fans may engage with their favourite celebrities through social media platforms. The athlete's followers are kept informed of his or her everyday endeavors, including how they observed this year's Eid-ul-Adha. Athletes from all around the world gave special greetings for the celebration of Eid-ul-Azha 2022. Let's look at some notable Eid-ul-Adha 2022 wishes by the cricket players.
Bangladesh National Cricket team
The majority of the Bangladesh national team players are presently taking part in a bilateral series against the Windies national team in the Caribbean Islands. Therefore, the members of the Bangladesh national men's team observed Eid-ul-Adha in the West Indies in 2022. The BCB shared some images of the players having supper together on the day of Eid on its official Facebook page.
Mushfiqur Rahim
Veteran middle-order batter Mushfiqur Rahim is performing Hajj this year. Therefore, Mushfiqur celebrated his Eid-ul-Adha 2022 in Saudi Arabia. Muhfiqur Rahim wished everyone a happy Eid Mubarak by posting a photo from the holy city of Mecca.
Rubel Hossain
Pacer Rubel Hossain is another Bangladeshi player who hasn't played for his country in recent matches. Rubel wished everybody by posting a photo of himself on social media.
Also Read: BCB's Facebook page fills gap left by sports channels
Babar Azam
Pakistan’s Captain Babar Azam posted a picture with his fellow teammates and wished everyone a happy Eid Mubarak.
Irfan Pathan
Former India national team fast bowler Irfan Pathan wished everyone on the occasion of Eid-Al-Adha 2022 by posting a family picture on his verified Twitter account.
Jahanara Alam
Bangladesh’s female cricketer, Jahanara Alam, wished everyone a happy Eid by posting some pictures of herself.
Also Read: Shakib uncertain for West Indies ODIs
Usman Khawaja
Top-order batter from Australia, Usman Khawaja wished everyone a happy Eid-ul-Adha 2022 Mubarak by posting a picture of himself.
Mohammad Shami
India’s pacer Mohammad Shami is currently in England to take part in a bilateral series with the host. Shami celebrated this year’s Eid-Al-Adha there and wished everyone a happy Eid by posting a picture of him.
Aftermath
Eid al-Adha customs require the slaughter of an animal and the distribution of the meat in three equal portions to the family, relatives, and poor people. The objective is to ensure that every Muslim has access to meat and receives favor from the All-Merciful Allah (SWT). Eid-ul-Azha is very significant to Muslims all across the world. Therefore, Athletes from various sports with large fan bases have a special obligation to motivate society to understand the ethical teachings of the "Feast of Sacrifice".
At Wimbledon, Jabeur 1st woman from Africa in pro Slam final
Ons Jabeur’s steady progress from year to year — up the tennis rankings, through the draws of various tournaments and, now, at Wimbledon — has carried her to a Grand Slam singles final, the first Africana or Arab woman to make it that far in the professional era.
The No. 3-seeded Jabeur, a 27-year-old from Tunisia, got past her good friend Tatjana Maria 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 in an up-and-down semifinal at a sun-splashed Centre Court on Thursday.
On Saturday, Jabeur will face another player making her major final debut, No. 17 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, for the championship. Rybakina overwhelmed 2019 Wimbledon champion Simona Halep 6-3, 6-3 in the second semifinal.
Read: Djokovic 2 sets down, rallies for 26th straight at Wimbledon
After a surprising first-round loss at the French Open in May, Jabeur is on quite a run right now: She has won 11 consecutive matches, all on grass courts, and 22 of her past 24. Since pro players were first admitted to major tennis tournaments in 1968, never had an African or Arab woman been to a final.
“I’m a proud Tunisian woman standing here today. I know in Tunisia, they’re going crazy right now. I just try to inspire, really, as much as I can,” she said. “I want to see more and more — not just Tunisian — Arab, African players on tour. I just love the game and I want to share this experience with them.”