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Nacer Zorgani has had a busy summer. In July at the Paris Games, his captivating baritone voice gained him fans as the announcer at the Olympic boxing. Now, the 38-year-old is preparing to make his mark as a fiercely dedicated Para-judo competitor, training tirelessly for the Paralympic Games that start Wednesday. Zorgani will compete on Sept. 7 in the men's 90-kilogram, J2 classification for visually impaired athletes

village was buzzing with activity on Saturday as athletes from 168 delegations were settling into their temporary home, preparing for their upcoming competitions. The village, nestled in the northern suburbs of Paris, in the Seine-Saint-Denis department, closed its doors on Aug. 13 after the conclusion of the Olympic Games, giving organizers a week to make necessary adjustments for the upcoming Paralympics. Laurent Michaud, head of the Paralympic Village, discussed the rapid yet meticulous transformation. The village had been built with inclusivity in mind from the start, but this final week was crucial for fine-tuning details to ensure that every aspect was perfectly suited to the para-athletes' needs.

Paris will again be the centre of attention when the City of Lights hosts the 17 h Paralympic Games. India have sent 84 para-athletes, who will be aiming for the country’s highest-ever medal haul at the Paralympics. India won a solitary medal in London 2012, a number that went up to 4 in 2016 Rio and 19 in 2021 Tokyo. If the athletes perform to potential, it could cross 25 in Paris. For the record, India’s cumulative medals tally between 1968, when it first participated at the Paralympics, and 2016, was 12. But then numbers don’t tell half the story. In Rio, for example, India had sent just 19 athletes. In Tokyo, the number swelled to 54. In Paris, India is sending its largest ever Paralympics contingent.

Also read: Perfect outdoor escapes: In search of wild greens Trail running has shown gradual growth over the last few years in pockets of the country with plenty of races in the Himalaya and the Western Ghats, while a few runners like Kieren D’Souza and Sannat Sachdev have shifted base to the mountains to train and race internationally— Kieren moved from Bengaluru to Manali; Sannat from Jaipur to Bir. “The standards are very high globally and we are just about catching up. In other countries, there are loads of local races and trail running clubs.

Sumit Antil, left for the Paris Paralympics in advance to get acclimatised to the conditions. The 16 para athletes will stay at hotels in Paris for a few days before entering the Games Village on August 25, three days before the Opening Ceremony. The likes of Antil, who is bidding to become the first Indian to defend his Paralympics gold, will train at facilities near the French capital to acclimatise with the weather conditions there. Para athletics events will be held from August 30 to September 8, the closing day of the Paralympics, at Stade de France, the same venue where the able-bodied athletes competed during the Paris Olympics.

Puma said it continued to be India's largest sports and apparel brand on the back of a 10% increase in sales last calendar year amid top management attrition and slowing demand for discretionary products. For the fiscal year ended December, its revenue stood at ₹3,274 crore, as per filings with the Registrar of Companies, much higher than that of rivals Adidas, Nike and Reebok and Skechers, and fast fashion brands Zara and H&M. Puma said it is shifting its strategy to a sports and performance-first brand instead of just lifestyle and athleisure.

Vinesh Phogat’s dream of winning an Olympics medal was shattered for being a mere 100 gm overweight, at least 15 brands have queued up to sign her on. There is a rush to make the Indian wrestler — and other Indian athletes who stood out at the recent Paris Games — the face of brands across categories such as packaged foods, health, nutrition, jewellery, banking and education, executives in the know said. Phogat’s endorsement fee is up to `1 crore per deal per year, from Rs 25 lakh before the games, they said. Chopra, Bhaker Also Gain “Marketers are approaching us, citing not only her performance but the grace with which she conducted herself, despite being defeated by the system,” said Tuhin Mishra, cofounder of Baseline Ventures that represents the wrestler. Despite not winning a medal, Phogat, who endorsed Nike sportswear and Country Delight dairy before the start of the Olympics, was clearly one of the standout Indian athletes, along with javelin throw silver medallist Neeraj Chopra and shooter Manu Bhaker, who won two bronze medals.

CAS) rejected wrestler Vinesh Phogat's appeal against her disqualification, emphasizing that it is an athlete's responsibility to stay within the weight limit, and no exceptions can be made on that basis, it said in its full verdict. However, CAS acknowledged the «draconian» consequences of failing the weigh-in on the second day. Vinesh was disqualified from the Paris Olympics after being found overweight by 100g on August 8, just before competing in the gold medal bout in the women's 50kg category.

Vinesh Phogat's appeal for an Olympic silver medal, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said that athletes will have to ensure that they remain below their weight limit and no exception can be provided under any circumstance. Vinesh was disqualified from the women's 50kg freestyle final for being 100 grams overweight, following which the wrestler appealed against the International Olympic Committee (IOC). CAS published a detailed decision explaining the rejection of Vinesh's appeal on Monday where it emphasized the importance of athletes adhering to the weight limit rules, stating that no tolerance is allowed even for small excesses or circumstances like the weight of the singlet or water retention.

Manu Bhaker, who made history as the first Indian to win two medals at a single Olympic Games since independence, also carries a tattoo that reads "Still I Rise." Interestingly, she discovered this phrase on Pinterest following her disappointing pistol malfunction at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. In an interview with the Times of India, Manu revealed, «I don't know whose words these are, but now they are mine.» This phrase is inspired by Maya Angelou’s iconic poem, «Still I Rise,». The lines, «You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lies, you may tread me in the very dirt, but still, like dust, I’ll rise,» have been a beacon of hope and strength for countless individuals worldwide. After Tokyo, where Manu faced harsh criticism and even lost her spot in the national squad for the 10m air pistol event, Manu felt the need for a constant reminder to stay resilient. In January 2022, she decided to get the words «Still I Rise» inked on the back of her neck—a place where the tattoo would be symbolic.

race cars, the whizzing of air guns screwing in lug nuts, the slinging of 50-pound wheels. For a South Carolina native like the 24-year-old Twitty, the cacophonous scene was just this side of paradise. «I'm ready to make this my home,» Twitty said. He was one of 55 recruits who attended the annual pit crew combine for Hendrick Motorsports. The auto racing team's coaches and trainers use the all-day event in June — and a smaller, three-day minicamp held last week — to find a half-dozen or so athletes capable of jumping onto a track, gassing a car and changing tires in less than 10 seconds. Twitty, a former running back at the University of South Carolina, was in attendance because Hendrick and other teams have learned that former football players often make the best prospects for five-man crews, thanks to their strength, agility and speed. So teams scour college campuses looking for players like Twitty who didn't catch on with an NFL team and want to trade their football helmets for fireproof suits. A few, like Twitty, know about NASCAR — he grew up rooting for driver Denny Hamlin — but most are new to the sport and can barely change the oil on their own cars.

Eric Lamaze owed the plaintiffs more than $786,000.The case lasted 15 years and Lamaze had argued he couldn’t take part because he had terminal cancer – but another judge in the same case ruled the evidence Lamaze submitted to prove he was receiving treatment wasn’t “credible or reliable.”“I’ve carried the weight of this on my shoulders,” Karina Frederiks, the daughter of the plaintiffs, said while growing emotional, minutes after the Aug. 8 ruling.Her family’s stable, Iron Horse Farm, sued Lamaze in 2010, initially claiming he sold them three horses for show jumping who couldn’t perform as promised before narrowing the case down to two horses in question.Lamaze denied any wrongdoing in his defence statement.An Ontario judge ruled in the stable’s favour, noting Lamaze failed to appear in final proceedings.The lawsuit was one of many involving the Olympic equestrian gold medallist.

(This story originally appeared in on Aug 17, 2024)

Court of Arbitration for Sports' (CAS) verdict, Vinesh Phogat might have hinted at a comeback and a larger goal of 2032 Olympics through a social media post on Friday. Phogat shared an emotional message two days post CAS dismissing her appeal for a joint silver medal at the Paris Olympics 2024 after being disqualified for being 100 grams overweight moments before her gold medal bout. Following a disheartening disqualification from the wrestling final, Vinesh announced her retirement from the sport, citing a loss of strength and the inability to continue.

Olympics medalists Neeraj Chopra and Manu Bhaker has increased significantly after companies reach out to them to tap into their popularity and connect with a wider audience. Hockey goalkeeper P R Sreejesh, shuttler Lakshya Sen and shooter Arjun Babuta too are seeing an increased demand from the companies. Post Chopra’s silver medal, his brand value has seen an appreciation of 40-50 per cent. This was his second consecutive Olympic medal after having won a gold medal in Tokyo Olympics 2024. The Ambala boy’s endorsement fees were already at a premium, estimated at Rs 4 crore annually per brand, reported TOI. The 26-year-old Javelin thrower is already endorsing a raft of products across 21 categories, including sports lifestyle, audio and smartphones, he is now being approached by more brands across segments – from automobiles to financial services, real estate, logistics and quick commerce, Divyanshu Singh, COO at JSW Sports which manages Chopra’s portfolio told TOI.

ESPN fired NFL studio host Samantha Ponder and football analyst Robert Griffin III, The Athletic reported Thursday. Ponder and Griffin were dismissed for financial reasons and were the only two on-air personalities to lose their jobs as ESPN prepares to close its fiscal year next month. Both Ponder and Griffin earned seven-figure annual salaries, according to The Athletic. Ponder joined ESPN in 2011 and initially served primarily as a sideline reporter. She became host of «Sunday NFL Countdown» in March 2017, becoming just the third person to hold the job in the show's first 32 years and working alongside, most recently, a panel of former NFL head coach Rex Ryan and retired players Tedy Bruschi, Randy Moss and Alex Smith. Potential replacements for Ponder include «NFL Live» host Laura Rutledge and longtime ESPN personality Mike Greenberg.

Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address from the Red Fort was accompanied by an unusual focus on Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi. Seated in the second last row, Gandhi was positioned next to Olympic hockey forward Gurjant Singh. This seating arrangement, which deviated from traditional protocol, has generated considerable social media discussion. Seating Protocol and Changes Typically, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, whose rank is equivalent to that of a Cabinet Minister, is given a seat in the front row during Independence Day celebrations. However, this year’s front rows were allocated to Olympic medallists. Olympic gold medalists Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh, as well as members of the bronze-winning hockey team, including captain Harmanpreet Singh and PR Sreejesh, occupied these prime seats. According to sources from the Ministry of Defence, which organizes the Independence Day event, Rahul Gandhi was placed in the fifth row as the front rows were reserved for the athletes. The Ministry stated that Gandhi did not request any special arrangements.

Jordan Chiles became a major part of the Paris Olympics headline after being stripped off a sure-shot bronze medal in the floor exercise event. Chiles was on the verge of attaining her third position and this was already reflected in the final standings, as being shown on-screen at the Olympics venue. However, she was left in tears as the final standings somehow changed and she was dethroned from her third position, losing out on her bronze medal.

BCCI secretary Jay Shah on Wednesday visited TOI’s Mumbai office for an interaction. Apart from announcing former South Africa pacer Morne Morkel as team India’s new bowling coach, he also said that the board was not in favour of hosting pink ball tests because “they end in a couple of days.” «You buy a ticket for a five-day match, but the game ends in 2-3 days… There is no refund. I am slightly emotional about this,» Shah said on day-night Test matches.

NFP is extending its reach into Southern California’s high-net-worth space with its latest acquisition.

Paris Olympics 2024 is one of the biggest sporting events this year around, and there have been some amazing contest and competition this time, with some some superb medal hauls for Team USA and other countries, who are perched right on top of the Paris Olympics medal tally. This Olympics has been riddled with a lot of controversy but it has been superseded by the amount of competitive intensity that has enthralled fans and followers of the Paris Olympics 2024.