Category Archives: Sport

Qatar World Cup chief insists progress being made on migrant rights

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Gulf state says it plans to end kafala system in response to criticism of migrant workers’ treatment

The Qatari official in charge of organising the most controversial edition of the football World Cup since the tournament’s inception in 1930 has claimed that criticism of his country’s treatment of migrant workers will have a ripple effect that will improve regional labour standards.

The 2022 World Cup has been dogged by criticism of its host’s kafala system, which ties migrant workers to so-called sponsorship by their employer, meaning they cannot move jobs or leave the country without the employer’s approval.

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Serie A anti-racism artwork featuring monkeys condemned as a ‘sick joke’

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• Three paintings of monkeys put on display at league’s HQ
• Anti-discrimination group Fare labels campaign ‘a sick joke’

Serie A has received widespread condemnation after artwork for an anti-racism campaign comprised three paintings of monkeys.

The three works were created by Simone Fugazzotto and will be on permanent display at the league’s headquarters in Milan. The league said the images are intended to “spread the values of integration, multiculturalism and brotherhood”.

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Craven Arsenal abandon Mesut Özil over his stance on China’s Uighur persecution | Sean Ingle

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The midfielder is in tune with a United Nations panel and human rights groups over the imprisonment of millions of Uighurs but the club chose to raise a white flag

Arsenal might not be any good at parking the bus. But they sure know how to throw Mesut Özil under one. Imagine the frantic boardroom conversations on Friday after Özil expressed his horror at the imprisonment of millions of Uighurs in China. The fear of losing profits from shirt sales, commercial deals and future pre-season tours must have choked senior executives like Beijing residents in smog season.

Related: Mesut Özil row: China's Arsenal fans burn shirts in anger at Xinjiang post

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Chess champion Magnus Carlsen moves to top of world fantasy football rankings

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  • The Norwegian says his Premier League success is down to luck
  • ‘His level of knowledge about English football is amazing’

Magnus Carlsen, the world’s best chess player for the last decade, is leading the Premier League’s official fantasy football table, beating over seven million players.

Related: Chess: Ding Liren wins Grand Tour as China’s 1975 domination plan rolls on

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Mesut Özil row: China’s Arsenal fans burn shirts in anger at Xinjiang post

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Player, who has 4 million followers on Chinese microblog Weibo, is called a ‘dirty ant’ for attacking China

Chinese football fans have burned Arsenal football shirts and called on the club to fire star player Mesut Özil after he publicly criticised China’s treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang.

On Friday, Özil, who is usually quiet on social media, posted a message on his Instagram profile describing Uighurs in the far north-western region of China as “warriors who resist persecution”.

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Chinese state broadcaster pulls Arsenal v Man City after Mesut Özil criticism

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• Özil posted message about China’s treatment of Uighur Muslims
• Chinese FA ‘outraged and disappointed’ by German’s remarks

China’s state broadcaster CCTV on Sunday removed Arsenal’s Premier League game against Manchester City from its broadcast schedule following Mesut Özil’s messages that criticised the country’s policy towards its Muslim Uighur minority.

The Global Times Newspaper said on its Twitter account on Sunday that CCTV took the decision after midfielder Özil’s comments on Saturday had “disappointed fans and football governing authorities”.

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‘Let’s do this!’: Megan Rapinoe endorses Elizabeth Warren for president

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  • Soccer star praises Warren for being ‘bold and real’
  • SI Sportsperson of the Year posts video of call with candidate

Two-time World Cup champion Megan Rapinoe has announced her support for the Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren.

“I truly believe the best things in life are a result of being bold and being real,” wrote the soccer star, whom Sports Illustrated this week named Sportsperson of the Year.

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Arsenal distance themselves from Mesut Özil comments on Uighurs’ plight

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• Midfielder highlighted persecution of Muslims in China
• Club says it ‘does not involve itself in politics’ in statement

Arsenal have distanced themselves from comments made by Mesut Özil on Instagram, in which he spoke out strongly against China’s persecution of the Uighur population in the north-western region of Xinjiang and criticised Muslims for not doing more to highlight the issue.

The club sought to limit any damage caused to its business in China, where it has numerous commercial interests including a chain of restaurants, by releasing a statement on Weibo – a leading Chinese social media site – as well as other platforms stressing it is apolitical and does not associate itself with Özil’s views.

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Qatar stadium deaths: the dark side of the glittering venue hosting Liverpool

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Premier League leaders urged to join fight for better working conditions as they prepare for Fifa Club World Cup match

As Liverpool fans stream into Qatar to watch the Fifa Club World Cup next week, it will be easy to forget the thousands of workers from the poorest countries in the region who have toiled for years to construct its glittering buildings.

When they take their seats at the Khalifa International Stadium, where Liverpool will play their semi-final match, they may not realise that scores of workers who refurbished the stadium were housed in filthy, overcrowded accommodation with an ever-present stench of raw sewage.

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Russia banned from Tokyo Olympics and football World Cup

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  • Wada hands Russia a four-year ban for doping offences
  • Individual athletes can still compete under a neutral banner

Russia has been handed a four-year ban from international sporting competition for a doping cover-up that means the country will not feature at the Tokyo Olympics next summer or the 2022 football World Cup in Qatar.

An emergency meeting of the World Anti-Doping Agency on Monday unanimously voted to exclude Russia and also prevent it from hosting or bidding to host any global tournaments. The ban was imposed by Wada’s executive committee after Russia was found to have tampered with laboratory data handed over to Wada as a condition for ending a previous three-year ban for state-sponsored doping.

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More than a million viewers paid to watch Joshua regain titles

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Eddie Hearn, the boxer’s promoter, said fight ‘almost certainly’ broke UK pay-per-view record

Criticism of Anthony Joshua for boxing in Saudi Arabia does not appear to have affected his popularity with the British public, with more than a million people paying at least £24.95 to watch the heavyweight regain his world titles on Saturday – a figure that is likely to be a UK record.

Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, said: “We are waiting on the final number but it has almost certainly broken the UK pay-per-view record.”

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Anthony Joshua v Andy Ruiz: world heavyweight boxing rematch – live!

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Ruiz has said he expects Joshua to go for it in the opening rounds, so I wouldn’t take too much from the Briton edging the first two. “I think he will box around nicely for four or five rounds until I take the pressure to him, start hitting his body and mixing it up,” said Ruiz this week.

The stats say, Joshua has landed 18 punches to Ruiz’s nine. Joshua looks almost skinny and he’s able to leap back from Ruiz’s jabs. Joshua gets a hook to Ruiz’s body at the end of the round. Not as emphatic from the Briton, but he edged that round.

The vaseline goes on Ruiz’s cut. He doesn’t look too worried, but even though Joshua won that first round, the Briton was a lot more cautious than he was in the first fight when his aggression got him in trouble. Two nice jabs from Ruiz, his best shots of the fight. Joshua focusing on that area with the cut and it’s reopened early in the round. And then a right from Joshua from close range, but Joshua is bleeding now too.

Guardian’s unofficial score: Joshua 10-9 Ruiz (Joshua 20-18 Ruiz)

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Croatia wrongly deports Nigerian table tennis players to Bosnia

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Organisers of competition students travelled to attend demand their return to Nigeria

The organisers of an international student sports competition have called for two Nigerian table tennis players to be returned to their own country after Croatian police wrongly deported them to a Bosnian refugee camp.

Abia Uchenna Alexandro and Eboh Kenneth Chinedu, students at the Federal University of Technology Owerri in Nigeria, arrived in Zagreb on 12 November, on their way to participate in the fifth World InterUniversities Championships, held this year in Pula, Croatia.

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Israel Folau and Rugby Australia settle unfair dismissal claim over social media post

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Former Wallabies star had sought $14m in compensation saying he was wrongfully dismissed over anti-gay Instagram post

The long-running legal dispute between Rugby Australia and Israel Folau has ended with a settlement reached over the former Wallaby’s sacking in the wake of an anti-gay social media post in April.

RA apologised to Folau in a joint statement issued on Wednesday that draws a line under the bitter affair, although the exact terms of the settlement will remain confidential.

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Brad Gobright, renowned US rock climber, dies after fall in Mexico

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The American was abseiling in El Potrero Chico near Monterrey when he plunged about 300m to his death

One of the world’s most renowned rock climbers, the American Brad Gobright, has died after falling off a mountain in Mexico.

The fall occurred on Wednesday on an almost sheer face known as El Sendero Luminoso on the El Toro mountain in the El Portrero Chico area near the northern city of Monterrey, civil defense officials said.

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Southeast Asian Games in chaos as players go hungry and athletes sleep on floor

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Philippines organisers admit ‘inconveniences’ have seen teams stranded at airports and players underfed

The organisers behind the Southeast Asian Games have apologised after complaints emerged of football teams sleeping on floors, airport delays and athletes complaining of going hungry.

The organising committee said sorry for the “inconveniences” including hotels not being ready and teams waiting at the airport for hours, ahead of the competition, which starts this weekend.

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New Zealand v England: first Test, day two – live!

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40th over: New Zealand 130-4 (Nicholls 16, Watling 2) Just a smear by Watling and a single off Leach’s over.

39th over: New Zealand 128-4 (Nicholls 15, Watling 1) Golden arm Curran strikes again with his variations and unexpected fizz. Enthusiastic as a puppy but tenacious and wise as a, um, police dog? Williamson’s wicket totally against the run of play, and just after he’d reached fifty with a four down to the third man boundary. England now on top.

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Japan’s rising sun flag is not a symbol of militarism | Letter

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Ohtaka Masato of Japan’s foreign affairs ministry says his country’s flag should not be banned at the 2020 Olympics

Alexis Dudden’s opinion piece presents an argument on the rising sun flag based on the misunderstanding of Japan’s sincere dealings with the past (Japan’s rising sun flag has a history of horror. It must be banned at the Tokyo Olympics, 1 November).

Looking at Prime Minister Abe’s statement on the 70th anniversary of the end of the second world war – issued by cabinet consensus – it is clear that Japan has squarely faced the facts of history and repeatedly expressed feelings of deep remorse and heartfelt apology for its actions during the war, which this opinion piece fails to recognise.

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YouTuber KSI wins boxing rematch against rival Logan Paul

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Briton wins six-round cruiserweight bout in LA against fellow YouTube personality

Britain’s KSI has won his six-round cruiserweight boxing fight against fellow YouTube personality, the American Logan Paul, in Los Angeles.

The fight at the Staples Centre was won by the Watford man in a split decision by 55-56, 57-54, 56-55. The pair first fought last year in Manchester but a “majority draw” was declared after six rounds.

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