Sports

LONDON: Ryan Lochte grabbed at the edge of the pool, head down, staring at the water. Michael Phelps glared at the scoreboard, trying to digest the first silver medal of his Olympic career. Right beside them, the French celebrated. It was just like 2008 but with the roles reversed. This time, it was France chasing down the United States – …

LONDON: Freddie Evans maintained Britain’s perfect start to its home Olympic boxing tournament with an 18-10 victory over Algerian welterweight Ilyas Abbadi on Sunday. Evans earned a solid victory in the final bout of the afternoon session, delighting the sold-out crowd waving dozens of Union Jacks and giving repeated standing ovations. Custio Clayton earned Canada’s first Olympic boxing victory in …

BEIRUT: Real Madrid are believed to have agreed a 36-million-pound ($56.69 million) fee with Tottenham for Croatian midfielder Luka Modric. Modric has already revealed a desire to join the Spanish champions and has just been waiting for the two sides to agree on a price. The playmaker was fined two weeks wages last week after refusing to train with the …

LONDON: Britain’s teenage star Tom Daley is hoping China’s divers will crack under pressure at the London Olympics as he seeks to break the dominance of the “Dream Team” on home soil. The 18-year-old kicks off his London programme alongside partner Peter Waterfield in the men’s synchronised platform on Monday, and follows up with the individual platform on August 10 …

BEIJING: China’s top diplomat told the country’s Olympic athletes to behave in a “modest and unassuming” way in London, state media reported on Friday, as the country tries to manage expectations for a team which topped the medals table in Beijing in 2008. By the time the Beijing Games closed on Aug. 24 2008, China had earned 51 golds, leapfrogging …

LONDON: Women’s rights campaigners called on Wednesday for an end to sex discrimination at the Olympics, urging the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ensure there are equal numbers of sports and medals for men and women. Representatives from various European women’s groups met in London for a symbolic burial of the Olympic Charter, saying its principles of condoning any form …

NEWCASTLE, England: South Korea wasted a number of scoring chances against Mexico as the two teams opened Group B at the Olympics with a 0-0 draw Thursday. With forward Giovani Dos Santos on the bench from the start, Mexico showed little promise of being a medal contender as its opponent dominated at St. James Park. Both teams struggled to find their rhythm on the slippery turf, …

LONDON: The Olympics kick off on Wednesday with a women’s football match between Britain and New Zealand in Cardiff, and Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, hero of the Beijing Games and the fastest man on earth, vowed to win again, declaring: “This is my time”. The match in the Welsh capital comes two days before Friday’s opening ceremony at the main …