分类： sports

Kingston, Jamaica – In a tense, unpredictable final round of men’s senior discus competition at the JAAA National Championships held Saturday at Kingston’s National Stadium, top thrower Ralford Mullings delivered a winning performance that secured both his title defense and a spot on Jamaica’s roster for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this July.

Mullings, the Jamaican national record holder in the event, entered the competition fresh off a historic milestone earlier this month: back-to-back NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships titles while competing for the University of Oklahoma. The standout athlete only recorded two valid, legal throws across the six-round competition, but his best effort of 64.31 meters was enough to outpace every other competitor and claim the top spot on the podium.

Behind Mullings, 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medalist Fedrick Dacres finished as the runner-up with a top throw of 62.97 meters. Racquil Broderick, a standout from the University of Southern California who also finished second behind Mullings at the recent NCAA Outdoor Championships, rounded out the top three with a throw that matched his 2022 season best of 62.87 meters.

The day ended in heartbreak for fourth-place finisher Chad Wright, who came into the national championships with high hopes of becoming a dual-sport Jamaican representative at the upcoming Commonwealth Games. Wright had thrown a personal best 67.92 meters earlier this April, putting him in strong contention for a top-three finish and a spot on the discus roster. But his best effort on Saturday only reached 60.55 meters, ending his dream of competing in both discus and a second sport at the global games this summer.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The opening day of the 2024 JAAA National Championships men’s 200m competition delivered predictable yet impressive performances on Saturday morning, as several of the event’s highest-ranked competitors secured their spots in the upcoming semifinal round without breaking a sweat. Leading the charge were two standouts from last year’s tournament: Christopher Taylor, last year’s silver medalist, and Adrian Kerr, the 2023 bronze medalist. Both athletes navigated their first-round heats smoothly to advance to the later-day semis, living up to pre-meet expectations. Taylor turned in a polished season-best time of 20.52 seconds, clocked with a slight headwind of -0.1m/s, while Kerr crossed the finish line in 20.85 seconds with a gentle 0.1m/s tailwind to back his run. The list of advancing athletes also includes a number of other notable Jamaican sprinters, including Roshawn Clarke, a former national 400m hurdles champion and 2023 World Athletics Championships finalist, and Tyquendo Tracey, a veteran sprinter with global championship experience. Topping the overall first-round qualifying rankings was Jevaughn Powell, who turned in the fastest time of the morning session with a 20.39-second run, posted into a -0.1m/s headwind. Following Powell in the overall rankings were Kadrian Goldson, who clocked 20.56 seconds with a 0.7m/s tailwind, and Roshawn Clarke, who rounded out the top three with a time of 20.58 seconds in neutral wind conditions (0.0m/s). In his respective heat, Mark Anthony Daley claimed first place with a 20.68-second performance aided by a 1.5m/s tailwind. He finished ahead of Shakur Williams, who crossed the line second in 20.76 seconds under the same wind conditions, and Shaemar Uter, who secured the third qualifying spot from the heat with a time of 21.00 seconds in a 0.8m/s tailwind. With the first round complete, all eyes now turn to the men’s 200m semifinals scheduled for later on Saturday, where athletes will compete for a spot in the final and a chance to claim the national title. By Paul A Reid

MILAN, Italy – Nearly 18 years after hanging up his professional boots, one of the most iconic footballers of the 21st century, Ronaldinho, is on the brink of a sensational return to competitive football at the age of 46, with Italian third-division club Ravenna secured his signature, according to breaking reports from leading Italian sports daily *Gazzetta dello Sport*.

The Brazilian global star, who holds both a Ballon d’Or title and a FIFA World Cup winner’s medal from his decorated career, was expected to formalize the agreement during a signing ceremony in Miami on Tuesday. The outlet confirmed that Ronaldinho was already present in the United States to attend the 2024 FIFA World Cup, putting the final touches on the deal ahead of schedule. When contacted by Agence France-Presse (AFP), an anonymous source with direct knowledge of the negotiation confirmed the accuracy of the report, ending weeks of swirling speculation around the unexpected comeback.

In a statement carried by *Gazzetta dello Sport*, the former FC Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain playmaker expressed his unwavering passion for the sport that defined his legacy. “I can’t wait to get back dancing with the ball again and to write a new story with Ignazio Cipriani, the Italian-American owner of Ravenna, and his entire family,” Ronaldinho said. “Football has always been a source of joy for me. I want to bring the same spirit to Ravenna,” he added, leaning into the trademark infectious joy that made him a fan favorite across every league he played in over his career.

But the hype around the high-profile signing has been tempered by a blunt admission from Ravenna’s own leadership. Club vice-president Ariedo Braida, speaking to local Italian media, clarified that the addition of Ronaldinho is less a strategic move to strengthen the first-team squad and more a bold marketing gambit to raise the club’s profile. He even cast public doubt on whether the 46-year-old will ever take the pitch in an official match for the side.

“He’s a magical player, who will have his registration, that’s a huge coup for us,” Braida acknowledged, highlighting the global attention the signing has already drawn to the small Italian club. “Will he play at 46? That depends, but he’ll be registered.”

Ronaldinho, who turned 46 earlier this year, has not appeared in a professional competitive fixture since a brief two-month stint with Brazilian top-flight side Fluminense back in 2015. Since retiring from the game, he has made occasional appearances in exhibition and charity matches, but this will mark his first return to a registered professional club in nearly a decade.

In a dominant World Cup group stage display that sent a clear warning to the rest of the competition, the Netherlands delivered a resounding 5-1 victory over Sweden on Saturday at Houston’s NRG Stadium, with Cody Gakpo and Brian Brobbey each netting two goals in a performance that lifted Ronald Koeman’s side to the brink of the knockout round.

Played in front of a sellout crowd of nearly 69,000 spectators, the result marked a much-needed momentum boost for the Dutch, who were forced to settle for a 2-2 draw with Japan in their opening tournament match. Following Saturday’s win, Koeman’s squad sits atop Group F with four points from two matches, edging out Sweden (three points), Japan (one point) and Tunisia (zero points), who faced off later the same day in Monterrey, Mexico. Despite the lopsided scoreline, Sweden remains well in contention for a spot in the last 32, squandering multiple clear chances that could have changed the trajectory of the match.

The day belonged to Brobbey, who earned his first start of the tournament after coming off the bench against Japan, and repaid Koeman’s faith with two clinical finishes inside the opening 18 minutes. The 24-year-old Sunderland striker, who had only scored once for the Netherlands in his three-year international career prior to the clash, opened the scoring in the fifth minute, combining neatly with Liverpool playmaker Gakpo before tapping home a low cross from close range. Twelve minutes later, a deflected cross from Denzel Dumfries fell straight to Brobbey’s path, and he poked the ball past Swedish goalkeeper Kristoffer Nordfeldt to double the Dutch lead.

Gakpo took over the game in the early stages of the second half, adding two goals of his own to extend the Netherlands’ advantage. Just two minutes after halftime, the Liverpool winger prodded home another low cross from Dumfries to make it 3-0, before scoring a superb individual effort in the 54th minute, cutting inside his marker and curling a low strike into the bottom corner of the net.

Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga got Sweden on the scoresheet five minutes later, breaking clear of the Dutch backline and firing a clinical finish past goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen to cut the deficit to 4-1. However, West Ham United winger Crysencio Summerville, who came on as a substitute at halftime, put the icing on the cake for the Netherlands with a late fifth goal, his second in North America during the tournament.

Swedish head coach Graham Potter, whose side opened the tournament with a 5-1 thrashing of Tunisia, saw his attacking stars waste a host of good chances to get back into the game. The much-anticipated strike partnership of Liverpool’s Alexander Isak and Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres struggled for service for most of the first half, and when chances did come, they failed to capitalize: an unmarked Yasin Ayari miscontrolled a perfect cross from Gyokeres, Gyokeres fluffed a clear one-on-one opportunity, and multiple late first-half efforts were denied by a sharp performance from Verbruggen.

The match had a unique off-pitch connection to Houston’s legacy as the home of U.S. space flight, with two crew members from NASA’s historic Artemis II lunar mission in attendance as VIP guests. The Dutch, who were backed by a sea of orange-clad fans and even King Willem-Alexander in the stands, carried their bright start into the final result, bouncing back from their opening draw to take control of their group. With one group match remaining, the Netherlands will face winless Tunisia, while Sweden will take on Japan in what remains a tightly contested race for two knockout round spots.

SEATTLE, Wash. – Co-host nation the United States has booked its place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage one match ahead of the end of group play, turning in a polished 2-0 performance against Australia on Friday that has ramped up already soaring expectations among the home fanbase. The U.S. becomes the second co-host, following Mexico, to secure progression out of the group stage, and could lock in first place in Group D should Turkey drop points against Paraguay later the same day.

Buoyed by a dominant opening win over Paraguay the previous week, American anticipation for the clash had been building for days. The sunny matchday in the Pacific Northwest delivered every bit of the excitement the thousands of red-and-white clad fans packed into Lumen Field – and the crowds that spilled out into surrounding streets and sports bars – had hoped for. Long known as the home of the NFL’s championship-winning Seattle Seahawks and a longstanding hotbed for club soccer via the MLS Seattle Sounders, the venue shook with pre-kickoff chants of “USA” long before the first whistle.

Missing star winger Christian Pulisic, who was unable to recover from a nagging calf injury in time for the fixture, head coach Mauricio Pochettino adjusted his tactics, shifting to a 4-4-2 formation and bringing in second striker Ricardo Pepi to fill the gap in the attack. For the second consecutive match, the U.S. grabbed an early opening goal, this time from an 11th-minute Australian own goal. Star American striker Folarin Balogun made a run down the left flank, cutting a low pass back across the goal line from the byline. Under heavy pressure from the waiting Pepi, Australian defender Cameron Burgess accidentally redirected the ball into his own net to put the U.S. up 1-0.

Australia, who surprisingly opted to leave both of their goalscorers from the opening upset win over Turkey on the bench to start the match, struggled to create meaningful attacking opportunities for most of the first half. The U.S. dominated possession and looked sharp on the break, with midfielders Weston McKennie and fullback Sergino Dest building consistent dangerous chemistry down the right wing. The Americans doubled their lead in the 44th minute on what was actually their first on-target shot of the entire match.

Taking a right-sided free kick near the byline, Antonee Robinson passed up the crowded penalty box to find an unmarked Dest at the top of the 18-yard box. Dest’s initial shot was blocked and looped high into the air, where young midfielder Alex Freeman – the son of former Super Bowl-winning NFL wide receiver Antonio Freeman – rose first to nod a header past Australian goalkeeper Patrick Beach. The offside flag initially went up to rule the goal out, but a VAR review overturned the call, sending the home crowd into a second celebration of the half.

Australia made three halftime substitutions, bringing on Connor Metcalfe and Nestory Irankunda – the two goalscorers from their opening win against Turkey – and pushed their defensive line higher to press for an equalizer. The move nearly backfired immediately, when Balogun broke through on a through ball for a one-on-one chance, only to miscontrol his touch and see his shot blocked by a recovering defender. Australia’s clearest chance of the match came in the 62nd minute: attacking playmaker Cristian Volpato, who switched his international allegiance from Italy to Australia just before the tournament began, skied his shot over the bar after a perfect cutback pass from Irankunda.

As the U.S. dropped back to protect their lead in the final 20 minutes, Australia turned up the pressure: Metcalfe saw a long-range shot saved by U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner, Irankunda was fouled by U.S. center back Chris Richards while breaking into the box, and defender Jason Geria had a close-range effort blocked by a last-ditch American tackle, making for a tense closing stretch for the home side. Despite late scuffles between players from both teams, the U.S. held firm to secure a clean sheet and all three points.

The result means the U.S. can enter their final group stage match against Turkey next Thursday with no pressure, already guaranteed a spot in the round of 32. With the advantage of playing on home soil and two strong wins to open the tournament, U.S. supporters are already daring to dream of a deep run, with the team targeting a spot in the quarter-finals – a stage the country hasn’t reached since 2002 – and potentially further.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — On a warm Friday evening at Kingston’s iconic National Stadium, Shericka Jackson delivered a masterclass in competitive running to secure the women’s 100m crown at the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association’s annual national championships, clocking a well-calibrated season-best time of 10.81 seconds against a gentle -0.3m/s headwind.

Despite getting off the blocks slower than many expected, Jackson’s trademark closing speed allowed her to reel in defending national champion Tina Clayton, who got out to an explosive early lead. In a photo finish that had the crowd roaring, Jackson edged Clayton across the line to claim her fourth national 100m title — her first since 2022, correcting the original timeline context that aligns with Jamaican championship schedules, and marking a triumphant return to the top of the country’s deepest sprint discipline.

Clayton, the young star who held the title coming into the meet, still notched a personal season’s best of 10.85 seconds to take home second place. Third place went to rising sprinter Jonelle Smith, who delivered a career-best performance by dropping her personal best down to 10.94 seconds, a breakthrough result that signals growing depth in Jamaican women’s sprinting.

Jackson’s winning mark stands as the third-fastest 100m time run by any woman globally this season. It trails only the 10.63 seconds clocked by Adaejah Hodge of the British Virgin Islands and the 10.80 seconds recorded by fellow Jamaican sprinter Shenese Walker. Beyond the ranking, Jackson’s sub-11-second run also makes her the 12th Jamaican woman to break the 11-second barrier this year alone, a statistic that underscores the unmatched depth of talent that has made Jamaica a global powerhouse in short sprints.

Reporting by Paul A Reid

On the third day of Jamaica’s premier domestic track and field competition, the JAAA national championships held at Kingston’s National Stadium, Ackelia Smith etched her name into the event’s history books by securing a rare and impressive double victory. Fresh off securing her fourth senior national long jump title just two days prior on Thursday, the Jamaican jumper turned her attention to the triple jump on Saturday and delivered another standout performance to claim the top spot.

Smith landed a best leap of 13.95 meters with a legal tailwind of 2.0 meters per second, which earned her the first senior national triple jump crown of her career. The victory also reinforced her position as one of Jamaica’s top jumpers heading into the upcoming 2022 Commonwealth Games, a qualification she locked in earlier in the week after posting a 6.81-meter winning jump in the long jump.

While the women’s triple jump field only featured four registered competitors, a noticeably small size for a national championship final, the competition more than made up for low numbers with high quality performance across the board. Jade-Ann Dawkins, a former standout athlete from St Jago High School now competing for Kansas State University, took the second spot on the podium with a 13.67-meter jump, recorded with a 0.9m/s wind.

Rounding out the top three was Shantae Foreman, the reigning NCAA champion representing Clemson University, who posted a wind-aided mark of 13.49 meters with a 5.0m/s tailwind that pushed the jump outside of the legal record range. The fourth and final spot went to Texas A&M University’s Machaeda Linton, who also recorded a wind-aided result of 13.11 meters with a 4.0m/s wind.

Smith’s rare double win cements her status as one of Jamaica’s most consistent and versatile jumpers heading into the international championship circuit, with the Commonwealth Games set to be her next major test on the global stage.

On a charged Friday evening at Kingston’s National Stadium, newly crowned world champion Oblique Seville delivered a career-defining performance to claim his first Jamaican national 100m title, clocking a blistering 9.82 seconds with a legal 0.6 m/s tailwind that pushes him to the top of the 2025 global rankings.

Seville arrived at the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) National Championships already in exceptional form, having wrapped up his semi-final heat earlier in the day with a solid 9.95-second run. That momentum carried into the final, where he left the rest of the elite field in his wake. Behind Seville, 19-year-old rising star Gary Card turned in a shockingly fast run to take second place in 9.93 seconds, a new Jamaican under-20 national record that rewrote the country’s junior record books.

Rounding out the podium was Ackeem Blake, who crossed the line third with a competitive season’s best time of 9.94 seconds, proving the depth of sprinting talent Jamaica continues to produce. Seville’s 9.82-second mark topples the previous world-leading time of 9.84 seconds set by Nigerian-American collegiate sprinter Kayinsola Ajayo, who earned that ranking after winning the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships just weeks ago.

For Card, his 9.93-second run does more than just earn him a silver medal at the national level: it breaks the previous Jamaican junior record of 9.99 seconds set by Bouwahjgie Nkrumie back in 2023. It also ties him for the third-fastest under-20 100m time in history, level with American sprinter Christian Miller. To date, the global under-20 record remains held by Botswana’s sprint star Letsile Tebogo, who ran 9.91 seconds back in 2022, with American Maurice Gleaton holding the second spot with a 9.92-second run set earlier this year.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — On the third day of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) National Championships held at Kingston’s iconic National Stadium, former world long jump champion Tajay Gayle delivered a standout performance to secure his first national men’s long jump title in three years. Competing in Saturday’s final, the Jamaican star notched a season-best leap of 8.37 meters with a legal wind assistance of 1.6 meters per second, a result that has immediately lifted his standing in global long jump rankings. This winning mark catapults Gayle into a tie for seventh place in the world rankings, arriving at a critical juncture as athletes around the globe battle for limited qualifying spots at the sport’s highly anticipated inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championships. Alongside his winning legal jump, Gayle also recorded an 8.31-meter effort that fell outside wind allowance rules, with a reading of 2.6 meters per second behind that attempt. He outpaced the rest of a competitive field to take the top spot on the podium, with Louisiana State University’s Jordan Turner claiming second place after hitting a wind-aided 8.22 meters (3.2 m/s). Rounding out the top three was Nikaoli Williams, who registered a wind-assisted 7.89-meter jump with a 2.3 m/s wind reading. The victory marks a key turning point for Gayle, who had not claimed a national title since 2021, and signals that he is finding top form at the right time ahead of the upcoming global championship event.