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Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson to skip women’s 100m race at Paris Olympics 2024
Shericka Jackson of Jamaica will not run in the 100 metres when Olympic track events start, saying that the injury she suffered at a tune-up race earlier this month played a part in the decision.
Jackson said on Wednesday she will run in her better race, the 200 metres, where she is the only woman other than the world-record holder, the late Florence Griffith Joyner, to finish in under 21.5 seconds.
The Olympic track meet starts on Friday, highlighted by the opening round for the women’s 100, where Jackson had been listed as the second favourite behind world champion Sha’Carri Richardson.
Jackson’s announcement does come in the wake of her pulling up with an apparent injury late in a race in Hungary three weeks ago.
The Jamaican was leading the race entering the home straight before abruptly slowing down, grimacing and putting her head in her hands as she eventually walked across the finish line.
“It was a combination of things,” Jackson said. “I got hurt, and me and my coach felt like it was a good decision to only run one event.”
Jackson won national titles at both distances earlier this year and was expected to be part of a typically strong pool of Jamaican sprinters.
Now, she joins another Jamaican, two-time defending champion Elaine Thompson-Herah, on the sidelines. Another Jamaican, 37-year-old Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, is in the mix in her fifth and final Olympics; Fraser-Pryce won the 100 in 2008 and 2012.
Earlier this week, Jackson’s coach, Stephen Francis, told the Jamaica Gleaner website that Jackson “appears OK to me”.
Jackson, however, described the decision to pull out as coming from both herself and Francis.
“It was a combination of so much stuff that I personally don’t want to talk about,” she said. “Sometimes, you have to go through a rocky road to get where you’re trying to go. And my rocky road has happened to me.”
The 30-year-old took bronze in the 100 at Tokyo and won a silver medal behind Fraser-Pryce at the world championships in 2022. She has won the last two world titles at 200 meters.
Last year’s win came in a time of 21.41 seconds. It was only .07 seconds off Flo-Jo’s 36-year-old world record and after that win, the discussion turned to when, not if, Jackson or a rival – possibly American Gabby Thomas – would break that hallowed mark.
While Thomas has the three best times of 2024, headed by a 21.78, Jackson’s best time this year is 22.29, with which she won Jamaica’s national title in June. She insists she is ready for the 200, which starts with qualifying Sunday.
“I always felt good. I felt good about both the 100 and the 200,” she said. “I’m definitely healthy, and I’m definitely OK.”
At the last Olympics, Jackson misjudged the field in an opening-round race of the 200, decelerated too quickly and ended up finishing fourth and not advancing for a shot at the title.
She had called it a devastating moment, though on Wednesday she said that despite what happened, being at the Olympics was still a great experience. She went on to team with Fraser-Pryce, Thompson-Herah and Briana Williams to add gold in the 4×100 metre relay to her 100-meter bronze.
Round one of the women’s 100-metre at the Paris Olympics is scheduled for Friday at the Stade de France.
The semifinals and final are programmed for Saturday.
The opening round for the 200m is due on Sunday, with the semifinals a day later and the final on Tuesday.
(BBC)
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Ronaldo apologizes for Portugal walkout; says Jesus broke promise
Cristiano Ronaldo has accused Portugal coach Jorge Jesus of twice breaking his word, saying a failed agreement to publicly explain his omission against Norway drove him out of the camp, but insisting he remained available after any punishment.
In a lengthy statement, the 41-year-old gave his account of the dispute that prompted his departure from Copenhagen before Portugal’s Nations League match versus Denmark last week.
Ronaldo said Jesus had agreed a plan under which the forward would miss the Norway and Denmark matches to manage his fitness. However, on the day of the Norway game, the coach told him he would play for 30 minutes.
“Everyone knows the rest. I warmed up from halftime onwards, watched the minutes tick by and wasn’t called on,” Ronaldo said.
“The manager had broken his word to me.”
Portugal’s captain and all-time leading scorer said a subsequent meeting with Jesus, attended by his club side Al Nassr’s sporting director Simao Coutinho, produced an agreement for the coach to clarify events at his next news conference.
According to Ronaldo, an eight-point document was prepared saying he had never demanded playing time, had respected Jesus’s decisions and that the coach asking him to warm up without bringing him on had been a mistake.
Ronaldo said the agreed notes did not require Jesus to apologise to him but said the coach’s public remarks bore no resemblance to their private discussion.
“It was the second time he had broken his word to me,” Ronaldo said. “I decided to leave the training camp without waiting for any further broken promises.”
The statement provided Ronaldo’s account, but on Sunday, after Portugal’s win over Norway, Jesus denied he had made any agreement with the player, nevertheless leaving the door open for his return.
The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Ronaldo’s statement.
Ronaldo apologised for failing to greet supporters after the Norway match and for leaving his teammates, accepting that his captaincy made his conduct more serious.
“The consequences of my actions must be assessed and punished by the Portuguese Football Federation,” he said.
Despite the rupture, Ronaldo said he was not limiting his international ambitions to a farewell appearance.
“If I’m physically fit, playing for my club – scoring goals, I hope – after serving whatever suspension is imposed on me, I’ll be available, as I’ve always been until now, to compete and win for our national team,” he added.
(Aljazeera)
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M. M. D. J. Senarathne, appointed Director General of the Department of National Botanical Gardens
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Environment to appoint M. M. D. J. Senarathne, who is the senior most officer in Grade I of Sri Lanka Scientific Service se
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Harmanpreet Kaur steps down as India captain
Harmanpreet Kaur, who led India to their first women’s global title at last year’s ODI World Cup, has stepped down as captain from all three international formats. She announced her decision via an Instagram post on Tuesday morning. Having given up the captaincy and left the team in a “good place”, she has said she’s now “ready to play for the love of the game again”.
Harmanpreet, 37, led India in five Tests, 51 ODIs and 155 T20Is. Her last act as captain was leading India to their second successive Asian Games gold medal, in Nisshin last month.
The decision came a day after Harmanpreet, India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana and head coach Amol Muzumdar met BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia in Guwahati to discuss the roadmap of the women’s team going forward.
“This is not an easy decision,” Harmanpreet wrote. “It carries years of memories, emotions, sacrifices, and moments that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
“I have given everything I had to this team and to Indian women’s cricket – my blood, my sweat, my time, and many times, a part of my own game and personal ambitions. There were moments when I had to put my individual performance, my own growth, and what I wanted for myself aside, because I believed the team had to come first.
“As a captain, I have had to make difficult decisions. Decisions that were not always understood, not always easy, and sometimes came at a personal cost. But every decision I made was with one intention – to make this TEAM better and to give other players the opportunity to grow, believe in themselves and become the best versions of themselves.”
Murmurs about a possible change in captaincy had been on for a while, especially after India’s second successive group-stage exit from the T20 World Cup in June this year. The selection committee, chaired by Amita Sharma, is understood to have been divided, but Harmanpreet had indicated a desire to lead India at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
“I leave the captaincy today with a heart full of emotions , but also with PEACE,” Harmanpreet said. “Because I genuinely believe My team is in a good place. A team with talent, character, belief and a future that I am incredibly excited to watch and be a part of.
“I feel I have done my duty. I gave this team everything I had. I carried the responsibility with pride, and I will always be grateful for the privilege of leading Indian women’s cricket.
“Now, it is time for me to turn the page. Captaincy may end today, but my love for Indian cricket never will. Thank you to every teammate, coach, support staff, management , BCCI , family members every single fan who stood by me through the highs and lows.”
The noise for Smriti Mandhana to take over has been getting louder in recent months. In the past six months, Mandhana has been vocal about her readiness for the top job, and has given evidence of her credentials by leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru to twin WPL titles (in 2024 and 2026).
Harmanpreet first captained the T20I team in 2012, but it wasn’t until after India’s group-stage exit from their home T20 World Cup in 2016 that she was considered a serious candidate for the role.
In 2018, she led the team to the T20 World Cup semi-finals in the Caribbean after having taken over the role in a full-time capacity from Mithali Raj, and followed it up with a runners-up finish at the T20 World Cup in Australia in 2020.
Harmanpreet’s stepping down as India captain will not, however, change her stance as far as playing the shortest format goes. She is expected to continue leading Mumbai Indians in the upcoming WPL edition as the team chases their third title.
[Cricinfo]
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