Man who kicked Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsdale ordered to pay compensation

Joseph Watts also given four-year football ban after admitting to assault at end of north London derby

A 35-year-old man has been ordered to pay compensation to the Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale after assaulting him at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at the end of the north London derby.

Ramsdale, 24, was kicked in the back shortly after Arsenal beat Tottenham 2-0 in a Premier League match on 15 January.

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Kansas City Chiefs face new call to drop ‘insulting’ name and symbol

Group gathered outside Arizona stadium to protest the team’s name and the insulting gesture and chant performed by its fans

The Kansas City Chiefs may have won the Super Bowl in an epic game, but for some there will be no victory until the football team changes its name and symbol and its fans stop performing an insulting gesture and chant.

A small but loud group protested outside the stadium hosting the Super Bowl in Arizona on Sunday, aggrieved that the team from the city that straddles the Kansas-Missouri border continues to refuse to drop its name and arrowhead symbol, which Native American leaders class as a racist mascot and symbol that devalues Native traditions.

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Super Bowl LVII: Kansas City Chiefs v Philadelphia Eagles – live

Win or lose, this promises to be a huge game for Philadelphia. Well, assuming that the local population actually has a chance to watch the game in question. Reports are currently spreading of a particularly ill-timed cable/internet outage in the area.

Preamble

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‘Wrong side of history’: Ukraine athletes accuse IOC of ‘kowtowing’ to Russia

  • Letter says ‘IOC must choose a side in this war’
  • Ukraine would boycott 2024 Olympics if Russia take part

Ukraine’s athletes have accused the International Olympic Committee of rewarding Vladimir Putin’s aggression and being “on the wrong side of history” in an escalating war of words over whether Russians should compete at the Paris 2024 Games. The IOC recently moved away from having an outright ban on athletes from Russia and Belarus and is investigating ways they can qualify for the Olympics under a neutral flag.

In a letter to Ukraine’s National Olympic Committee, sent last week, the IOC president, Thomas Bach, criticised Ukraine’s threat to boycott the Games, saying it would violate the Olympic charter. That stance has angered Ukraine’s athletes, who have hit back by suggesting the IOC is “kowtowing” to Russia.

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Man dies after fans brawl at Vermont middle-school basketball game

  • State troopers called after fight reported between spectators
  • 60-year-old man dies after seeking medical attention

A man died after a brawl broke out among spectators at a middle school basketball game in northern Vermont, local police have said.

Vermont state troopers were called to the Alburgh Community Education Center just before 7pm on Tuesday after a report of a large fight involving spectators during a seventh- and eighth-grade boys basketball game between Alburgh and St Albans.

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Virginia basketball coach fired for impersonating 13-year-old in game

  • 22-year-old assistant coach stepped in when player absent
  • Two other coaches have been fired from school’s program

A 22-year-old Virginia basketball coach has been fired after being accused of attempting to pass herself off as one of her 13-year-old players during a game.

According to Norfolk’s WAVY TV 10, when one of the members of the Churchland junior varsity girls basketball team in Portsmouth was out of town earlier this month, Arlisha Boykins stepped in and impersonated the absent player in their game against Nansemond River.

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Saudi Arabia to sponsor Women’s World Cup and tighten ties with Fifa

  • Tourist authority joins international brands on list
  • World Cup starts on 20 July at Eden Park, Auckland

Saudi Arabia’s tourist authority is to sponsor football’s Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand this year, despite the country’s history of oppression of women’s rights.

Fifa is expected to confirm that Visit Saudi will join international brands such as Adidas, Coca-Cola and Visa in attaching its name to the 32-team tournament that will kick off in front of an expected 50,000 supporters at Auckland’s Eden Park on 20 July.

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France under fire over fast-track plan for AI video surveillance at Paris Olympics

Ministers say exceptional security needed but rights groups warn new law could extend police powers permanently

The French government is fast-tracking special legislation for the 2024 Paris Olympics that would allow the use of video surveillance assisted by artificial intelligence (AI) systems.

Ministers have argued that certain exceptional security measures are needed to ensure the smooth running of the events that will attract 13 million spectators, but rights groups have warned France is seeking to use the Games as a pretext to extend police surveillance powers, which could then become permanent.

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Georgia’s national champion QB Stetson Bennett arrested after door knocking incident

  • Georgia quarterback arrested near downtown Dallas
  • Helped Bulldogs to second straight national title

Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett, who led the Bulldogs to their second straight national championship, was arrested early on Sunday after police said he was intoxicated in public.

Police said that at about 6.10am, officers responded to reports of a man banging on doors in a community of townhomes near downtown Dallas.

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Novak Djokovic joins calls for Australian Open to address schedule issues

  • Concerns raised over late finishes at Melbourne Park
  • ‘It’s really gruelling,’ says Serbian nine-times champion

Novak Djokovic has added his voice to calls for changes to be made to the Australian Open schedule amid growing concern over player welfare and fairness at this year’s tournament at Melbourne Park.

Andy Murray was forced to back up just a day and a half after a gruelling near-six hour epic against Thanasi Kokkinakis that did not finish until 4am local time, a match that highlighted the issue for the first time at this year’s grand slam.

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Fire at Rebekah and Jamie Vardy’s house destroys home gym

Wife of Leicester City footballer posts picture on Instagram praising ‘brilliant’ Lincolnshire fire service

A gym at the home of Rebekah and Jamie Vardy has been destroyed by fire.

The wife of the Leicester City footballer posted a picture on Instagram of two of her children smiling at the camera having climbed inside a fire engine as she praised the “brilliant Lincolnshire fire and rescue service”.

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Kurtley Beale: Wallabies winger granted bail and denies Bondi sexual assault allegations

Beale was ordered to surrender his passport, not contact witnesses and to report to police daily after appearing in Parramatta local court

High-profile rugby union player Kurtley Beale has denied sexually assaulting a woman in Sydney’s eastern suburbs last year after he was charged over the alleged incident.

The 34-year-old Wallabies winger was ordered on Saturday to surrender his passport, not contact witnesses and to report to police daily after he was granted bail in Parramatta local court.

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Wallabies star Kurtley Beale arrested over alleged sexual assault at Sydney hotel

Rugby union player is being questioned over report a 28-year-old woman was sexually assaulted at a Bondi Beach venue

The rugby union star Kurtley Beale has been arrested over an alleged sexual assault.

The 33-year-old Wallabies winger was taken into custody by police on Friday over an alleged incident in Sydney’s east on 17 December.

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Head of Indian wrestling federation accused of sexual harassment

Wrestlers including Olympic medallists stage sit-in demanding federation is disbanded

Two Olympic medal-winning wrestlers in India have accused the head of their sport’s governing body and its coaches of sexually harassing female players and have vowed to protest until the federation is disbanded and its leader investigated.

Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, who have Olympic bronzes, Vinesh Phogat, a Commonwealth Games gold medallist, and other athletes began a sit-in protest in the capital, Delhi, on Wednesday.

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Flags and Wallies: Melbourne Park fans spark player anger at Australian Open

  • Djokovic rails at ‘drunk’ spectator on Rod Laver Arena
  • Russian player Rublev barracked by Ukraine supporters

Spectators at the Australian Open were in the spotlight on Thursday after separate incidents sparked player anger on the court at Melbourne Park and the crowd stayed until 4am watching Thanasi Kokkinakis play Andy Murray.

In his second-round match against France’s Enzo Couacaud on Rod Laver Arena, Novak Djokovic complained to the umpire after appearing to be barracked by a supporter, one of several dressed in a Where’s Wally? costume.

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Usain Bolt lawyers say $12.7m is missing from Olympic champion’s account

  • Jamaican authorities investigating after alarm is raised
  • Firm says several clients may be missing large sums

A lawyer for Usain Bolt said on Wednesday that more than $12.7m is missing from his account with a private investment firm in Jamaica.

Linton P Gordon, a lawyer for Bolt, provided the Associated Press with a copy of a letter sent to Stocks & Securities Limited demanding that the money be returned. Gordon said the Olympic champion’s account once had $12.8m but now reflects a balance of only $12,000.

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‘We need him here’: Djokovic comeback melts Melbourne hearts … almost

  • Serb roundly cheered despite fears of abuse from crowd
  • Detractors remain as some fans question his character

In the moments before Novak Djokovic returned to Rod Laver Arena, many fans were unsure whether he would be welcomed back as the nine-time Australian Open champion or rebuked as an unvaccinated Covid-era villain.

Even his vocal supporters, like Peta Kovitch, draped in a Serbian flag and a string of lights that lit up the name Novak around her neck, expected some abuse from the Melbourne crowd. “If they want to boo, well they can go to the football. I’m sorry, that’s where it belongs,” she said before the match.

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Nick Kyrgios’ withdrawal affects the Australian Open more than him | Emma Kemp

Happy slam’s return to normality suffers another blow with late loss of its most sellable product

The time was 4pm, 27 hours before Nick Kyrgios was due to play his opening match and three minutes before he confirmed he would not. The announcement on the PA that “Nick Kyrgios is on his way to the main media conference room” was so unanticipated that journalists had to run to get there before he did.

You never know what you will get with Kyrgios, but 11th-hour withdrawals have become a theme of his non-existent 2023 season. It started with the United Cup, when his Australia teammates were informed 10 minutes before their joint press conference in Sydney that not only would he not be there but would not be playing any part in the competition.

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Alabama basketball player Darius Miles charged with murder after shooting

  • Jamea Harris, 23, was shot dead near university’s campus
  • Crimson Tide say Miles is no longer part of team

Alabama basketball player Darius Miles and another man have been charged with capital murder after a fatal shooting near campus.

Captain Jack Kennedy of Tuscaloosa Police said that the shooting occurred early on Sunday morning near the university’s campus. He said Jamea Harris, 23, of the Birmingham area was shot and killed.

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Painful and invasive racing greyhound breeding technique should be banned, vets say

‘Horrific’ technique which involves removing the uterus is unnecessary and outdated, animal welfare activists say

Vets want an invasive and painful greyhound breeding technique, which involves removing the uterus, banned across Australia.

About 80% of racing greyhounds in NSW are bred using surgical artificial insemination. The Australian Veterinary Association has released a new policy declaring SAI “must not be performed in dogs”.

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