sport

RIYADH: The Arabian Football Federation has released the schedule and confirmed the venues for the group stage matches of the 2023 King Salman Club Cup. The Saudi cities of Taif, Abha and Al-Baha will host the tournament, with the matches being played between July 27 and Aug. 12, the federation said on Thursday. Before then, Sudanese club Al-Hilal will face Aymen Sfaxi of Tunisia in a delayed second qualifying round tie on July 4 and 7, the winner of which will join Saudi side Al-Ittihad, Iraq’s Al-Shurta and Al-Taraji of Tunisia in Group A

MANCHESTER: UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin admitted on Thursday that there were problems with this year’s Champions League final after fans were caught up in gridlocked traffic around the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul. There were reports that some supporters had to get out of buses and walk for miles ahead of Manchester City’s 1-0 win against Inter Milan in European club soccer’s biggest game on June 10, with problems after the final as well.

JEDDAH: Saudi Olympic athlete Kariman Abuljadayel has donated her Rio 2016 Olympic running attire to the International Olympic Committee to be a part of the Olympic Museum in Switzerland. In 2016, Abuljadayel was the first Saudi woman athlete in history to take part in the Olympic 100 meters sprint competition in Rio de Janeiro. She has now turned her attention to rowing.

In the last week, three major international cricket tournaments commenced. The much-anticipated five-Test-match Ashes series between England and Australia opened on June 16 at Edgbaston, Birmingham. In Zimbabwe, the final qualifying stage for the 2023 ODI World Cup started on June 18 and on June 22 the women’s Ashes between England and Australia started at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.

NEW YORK: Victor Wembanyama dismissed the soaring hype swirling around him on Wednesday as he prepares to become the most sought-after No.1 pick in the NBA draft since LeBron James. The 19-year-old French talent is a lock to be chosen by the San Antonio Spurs in Thursday’s NBA Draft in New York, widely viewed as a once-in-a-generation talent capable of transforming a franchise. The 7ft 4in (2.24m) Wembanyama arrived in the US on Monday to be greeted by autograph hunters and San Antonio fans as excitement builds ahead of the Draft.

SPRINGFIELD, N.J.: After stunning women’s golf by winning in her first event as professional, Rose Zhang will try to take the next big step when she goes for her first major victory in the Women’s PGA Championship at Baltusrol. And it’s been just a month in the making for the 20-year-old Californian, who many believed was going to be the next big celebrity in her sport, similar to when Annika Sorenstam and Lorena Ochoa returned in a two-year span ending in 2010.

LONDON: Frances Tiafoe’s winning run on grass was ended by Sebastian Korda in an all-American second-round match at the Queen’s Club Championships on Wednesday. Korda won 7-6 (2), 6-3 to end the fourth-seeded Tiafoe’s bid to follow up his title in Stuttgart last week with another grass-court trophy ahead of Wimbledon. Tiafoe arrived in west London in a career-high spot of No. 10 but was beaten by a compatriot 22 places lower in the rankings, with Korda’s big serve coming to the fore on Center Court.