Other Sports
21st May
Over 2000 medals to be awarded at the Pacific Games
APIA, 21 MAY 2019 (NEWSLINE SAMOA) – Team Samoa is determined to win most of the medals up for grabs in the upcoming Pacific Games in Apia in July. This is the dream of the...
Weightlifting to be ‘global event’ at Games
APIA, 21 MAY 2019 (SAMOA GOVT) – Weightlifters from around the world will be in Samoa to compete during the XVI Pacific Games, as the event also doubles as Oceania and Commonwealth championships, as well as being a qualifier for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The Director-General of the International Weightlifting Federation, Attila Adamif, said he hoped the...
Hazlewood World Cup snub the right decision, says Langer
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australia coach Justin Langer has defended the decision to leave Josh Hazlewood out of the World Cup squad, saying the paceman lacked match fitness as he recovers from a back injury. Hazlewood, who partnered left-arm quicks Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson during Australia’s 2015 World Cup triumph, expressed his frustration last week...
20th May
Imperious Nadal blows away Djokovic to land ninth Rome title
ROME (Reuters) – Rafael Nadal proved that he would still be the man to beat when the French Open begins later this month after he humbled Novak Djokovic 6-0 4-6 6-1 in the Italian Open final on Sunday to win a record 34th ATP Masters 1000 title. The Spaniard, who had shared the record of...
Koepka survives to win PGA Championship and fourth major
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (Reuters) – A coronation almost turned into a calamity but Brooks Koepka survived to win the PGA Championship for a second consecutive year on Sunday and establish himself as golf’s new big dog. He triumphed at Bethpage Black to secure his fourth major title in less than two years and take over the...
Pliskova ends Konta run to win Italian Open
ROME (Reuters) – Karolina Pliskova ended Johanna Konta’s hopes of landing a first claycourt title with a 6-3 6-4 victory in the Italian Open final on Sunday. The Czech world number seven did not drop a single service game as she secured the third clay title of her career and her first in Rome in...
Australia’s Smith, Warner ready for hostile crowds at World Cup – Langer
(Reuters) – Australia’s returning duo of Steve Smith and David Warner could face hostility from English crowds during the World Cup but can rely on their team mates to cope, coach Justin Langer has said. The pair have returned from year-long bans following a ball-tampering scandal in South Africa and are expected to play vital...
Kaloucava eyes third Pacific Games
AFTER competing in the past two Pacific Games, national elite athlete Ana Kaloucava is confident she is ready for her third outing and grabbing a gold medal from Samoa in July. Kaloucava will be representing the country in the 400m hurdles, 400m sprints and the 4 by 400 metres relay. “Going into my third Pacific...
Sports and health: Level II accreditation for medical officers
THE Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee (FASANOC) in partnership with Oceania Rugby and World Rugby hosted a two-day workshop for pre-hospital immediate care in sports which was held over the weekend in Suva. The workshop which was led by Hong Kong Rugby Union head of player welfare and medical, Lucy Clarke hosted...
Koepka has record seven-stroke advantage after third round at PGA
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (Reuters) – Brooks Koepka said his “tunnel-vision focus” was key to his success in major tournaments as he held onto his record seven-stroke lead going into Sunday’s final round of the PGA Championship. Koepka ended the third round on Saturday with the same lead as he started it, combining the strength of tungsten...
Not-so-smooth Jazz exceeds expectations at PGA Championship
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (Reuters) – Jazz Janewattananond thought he would struggle to break 80 at Bethpage Black when he saw the course on Monday but has exceeded expectations with three rounds no worse than par that has lifted him into a tie for second behind runaway leader Brooks Koepka. In his second major appearance after last...
Djokovic and Nadal to meet in Rome final, Konta faces Pliskova
ROME (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal won on Saturday to set up an Italian Open final meeting, while British number one Johanna Konta booked a final clash with Karolina Pliskova. World number one Djokovic overcame Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman 6-3 6-7(2) 6-3 and will face second seed Nadal for the 54th time on Sunday,...
19th May
Athletics – Lyles pips Coleman in Shanghai sprint photo finish
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Noah Lyles exploded over the final third of the race to win a thrilling men’s 100m in a personal best 9.86 seconds at the Shanghai Diamond League on Saturday, pipping fellow American Christian Coleman in a photo-finish. Coleman, in his first outing of the year, tore out of the blocks and looked...
Nothing better than being in sports: Nemani
“THERE is nothing better than being in sports or getting involved in anything involving sports.” These were the words of Ministry of Youth and Sports permanent secretary Maritino Nemani while addressing officials and guests at the Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee (FASANOC) lottery ticket draw last Friday. An athlete himself and part...
Horse dies at Pimlico day before Preakness race
(Reuters) – A three-year-old filly collapsed and died after racing at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on Friday, a day before the Preakness Stakes. Congrats Gal fell to the track after finishing last in the Miss Preakness Stakes, officials said. “Congrats Gal suffered death after the eighth race,” the Stronach Group, which operates the track,...
New record in women’s quarter mile drag race
THE national record in the women’s category was broken at the Pacific Energy Quarter Mile Drag Race in Pacific Harbour today. Sindhu Prakash broke her own record of 14.48 seconds. She finished the race in a time of 14.12 seconds. In the men’s category, Ravin Nath came in first with a time of 10.37 seconds...
Brumbies’ Speight to spearhead new hand-washing campaign
BRUMBIES winger Henry Speight will spearhead a new hand-washing campaign designed to reduce contamination at public health facilities in the country. This was revealed by Fiji Hospital Project CEO Paul Dyer at the Fiji Medical Association conference at the Lautoka Hospital yesterday. “Getting people to wash their hands is a big thing,” Mr Dyer said....
Double Olympic champion Dahlmeier retires at 25
BERLIN (Reuters) – Double Olympic biathlon champion Laura Dahlmeier announced her retirement from the sport on Friday after a rollercoaster season that saw her miss out on gold at the world championships. A multiple world champion, the German, who became the first female biathlete to achieve a sprint and pursuit double at the same Olympics...
Sanchez Vicario says world No. 1 Osaka facing pressure of instant fame
BENGALURU (Reuters) – Naomi Osaka’s fluctuating form before the French Open is a sign that the newest star in women’s tennis is struggling with the pressure of being number one, Spanish tennis great Arantxa Sanchez Vicario said. Osaka, 21, took the tennis world by storm when she beat Serena Williams in the U.S. Open final...
18th May
Roy ton helps England seal ODI series win over Pakistan
NOTTINGHAM, England (Reuters) – England’s Jason Roy hit a superb century and Ben Stokes carried them home as they beat Pakistan by three wickets at Trent Bridge on Friday, surviving a middle-order wobble to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series. Babar Azam’s century helped Pakistan reach a respectable 340-7 in their 50 overs,...
Woods pays price for being inadequately prepared for PGA Championship
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (Reuters) – Tiger Woods acknowledged after missing the cut at the PGA Championship on Friday that he had paid the price for not being adequately prepared for another major quest so soon after winning the Masters. A month after claiming his 15th major title at Augusta National, Woods crashed back to earth in...
Fijian Latui ready to fly against Kagifa Samoa
THE Fiji team that will be playing its first match in the Global Rapid Rugby competition today against Kagifa Samoa is called the Fijian Latui or the Fiji goshawk, a native bird of Fiji and one of our most prized predators. Scientifically known as the Accipiter rufitorques and the Reba or Tuitui in other local...
Team Fiji’s men’s volleyball team to lift fitness
THE Fiji men’s volleyball team is focusing on its fitness ahead of the Samoa Pacific Games in July. Men’s team head coach Peni Ratumaiyale believes fitness within the team will take the team a long way in grabbing a gold medal at the Pacific Games. “Right now we are focusing on fitness before we can...
Teams set for Pacific Games in Samoa
WITH only two months left for the much anticipated 2019 Samoa Pacific Games, the Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee (FASANOC) is finalising logistics and preparations for July. In a speech during the FASANOC lottery draw last night at the Asco Motors Showroom in Nabua, Suva, Team Fiji chef-de-mission Patrick Bower said the...
17th May
Boxing officials urged to promote local talent
AUSTRALIAN Boxing trainer Lincoln Hudson has called on the Fiji Boxing association officials to promote local talent. Hudosn who is here for a one week workshop has urged coaches and trainers to promote their fighters. “I am here just to educate and promote boxing,” he said. “Fiji had great fighters like Sitiveni Rabuka in the...
Testing the waves
THE Fijian Va’a team aims to win six gold medals during the Samoa Pacific Games which is scheduled for July 7 to 20 in Samoa. The team of 26 paddlers is training every morning at the Fiji Sailing Centre at Laucala Bay, Suva. Head coach Duane Reiher said the team had made its goal of...
16th May
Fiji Times supports swimming championship again
THE Fiji Times is once again supporting the National Swimming championship tournament that will take place on the May 31 to June 1, 2019. Fiji National School Swimming association president Patrick Bower said Fiji Times play an important role in this tournament. “Fiji Times has always been a wonderful supporter of this event,” he said....
15th May
Suva bodybuilders dominate event
AFTER a successful participation at the iCompete Bodybuilding Championship in Nadi last month, the Charman’s Gym bodybuilders are focusing on expanding their club members. The Charman’s Gym fielded a team of 13 athletes to the championship and victoriously returned with 12 medals. Gym manager Pauliasi Bunoa said the club was proud of the growing number...
Samoa 2019 claims Village on track for Pacific Games
APIA, 15 MAY 2019 (INSIDE THE GAMES) – Samoa 2019 says the Games Village is on track to be delivered in advance of this year’s Pacific Games. The Faleula Methodist Compound was confirmed as the Games Village in November. Construction and renovation efforts are ongoing in preparation for the Games, with more than 3,500 athletes...
Shapovalov earns Rome meeting with Djokovic
ROME (Reuters) – Canadian Denis Shapovalov set up a clash with world number one Novak Djokovic when he beat Pablo Carreno Busta in straight sets in his first round match at the Italian Open on Monday. The 20-year-old, who last year became the youngest player to reach the top 30 since 2005, put a four-match...
