League of Legends, other esports join Asian Games in competition for the first time

League of Legends, other esports join Asian Games in competition for the first time
Esports League of Legends South Korean (L) and Vietnamese (R) national teams preparing for a friendly match ahead of the Asian Games in Gwangmyeong. (File/AFP)
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Updated 23 September 2023
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League of Legends, other esports join Asian Games in competition for the first time

League of Legends, other esports join Asian Games in competition for the first time
  • The Asian Games has long featured other so-called “mind games” like bridge and chess
  • The competition features five PC games and two mobile games

HANGZHOU, China: The world of online gaming takes its place this year at the Asian Games as an official event for the first time, with gold medals in play across seven top titles.

The Asian Games has long featured other so-called “mind games,” like bridge and chess, so it’s not surprising that extremely popular — and lucrative — esports are being added to the lineup.

Teams from more than 30 countries are taking part, with South Korea and host China expected to dominate what is anticipated to be one of the most watched events of the two-week Asian Games.

The competition features five PC games and two mobile games, covering both multiplayer online battle arena, or MOBA, and single-player genres.

The lineup consists of: League of Legends, Arena of Valor Asian Games Version (also known as Honor of Kings); Peace Elite Asian Games Version (also known as PUBG Mobile); Dota 2; Dream Three Kingdoms 2; Street Fighter V: Champion Edition; and EA Sports FC (also known as FIFA Online 4).

Competition forms vary with the genre but gold medals will be awarded for each game.

There’s even more at stake for the South Korean players, like Lee “Faker” Sanghyeok, known by many as the League of Legends G.O.A.T. — Greatest Of All Time — where winning a gold medal at the Asian Games also wins one an exemption from otherwise compulsory military service for men.

Esports was first featured at the last Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, as a demonstration sport and proved incredibly popular.

Newzoo, a research company that specializes in tracking the global games market, projected in its annual analysis released last month that the number of players worldwide will reach 3.38 billion in 2023, up 6.3 percent year-on-year, with mobile gaming contributing to most of the growth. It expects 3.79 billion players by the end of 2026.

Annual revenues are expected to grow 2.6 percent to $187.7 billion, with 46 percent from the Asia-Pacific region, followed by 27 percent from North America and 18 percent from Europe. The strongest growth, however, was seen in the Middle East and Africa.

There’s more to gaming crossover than esports showing up in the Asian Games competition. Newzoo notes the success of movies and shows derived from video games, like the Super Mario Bros. Movie and HBO’s The Last of Us series.

“Gaming is now fully embedded in the mainstream,” the company said in its report.

“With each younger generation, gaming engagement increases; as current players age and new players enter the fold, player numbers will continue to rise.”

Despite being a competition event at the Asian Games now, however, the possibility of esports making it to the Olympics is still an open question.

The International Olympic Committee has looked longingly at the potential of video gaming and virtual sports to help attract and stay relevant with young audiences. That goal saw skateboarding and surfing debut at the Tokyo Olympics held in 2021 and breakdancing joins them at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

However, some long-established aspects of video gaming culture are not welcome in the Olympic family.

“We have to draw a very clear red line in this respect,” IOC president Thomas Bach has said, “and that red line would be e-games which are killer games or where you have promotion of violence or any kind of discrimination as a content.”

The IOC created a formal esports commission this month and its focus is on virtual sports, such as cycling on a stationary bike that replicates the demands, for example, of riding a mountain stage at the Tour de France.


Everton appeal against 10-point Premier League penalty

Everton appeal against 10-point Premier League penalty
Updated 01 December 2023
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Everton appeal against 10-point Premier League penalty

Everton appeal against 10-point Premier League penalty
  • “Everton Football Club has today lodged with the chair of the Premier League’s judicial panel its appeal,” Everton said
  • “An appeal board will now be appointed to hear the case”

LIVERPOOL: Everton submitted their appeal on Friday against a 10-point deduction handed down by the Premier League for breaches of financial sustainability rules.
The Toffees have reacted furiously after being hit with the toughest sporting sanction in Premier League history for breaching loss-making limits in the 2021/22 season.
Clubs in the English top flight are allowed to lose a maximum £105 million ($130 million) over a three-year period after allowable deductions are removed.
An independent commission found that the Merseyside club had lost £124.5 million for the revelant period.
“Everton Football Club has today lodged with the chair of the Premier League’s judicial panel its appeal of the decision by a Premier League Commission to impose a 10-point deduction on the club,” Everton said in a statement
“An appeal board will now be appointed to hear the case.”
The sanction has plummeted Everton into the relegation zone and put their 70-year stay in the English top-flight at risk.
“We were stunned, I think football was stunned, by the outcome of the 10 points so who knows what comes next?” Everton boss Sean Dyche said ahead of Saturday’s trip to Nottingham Forest.
“The way it is sounding from the noise out there it is not just about us, there will be others looked at possibly over time. We will have to wait and see.”
As it stands, Dyche’s men are off the bottom of the table only on goal difference and five points adrift of safety.
Everton supporters staged a mass protest against the Premier League ahead of last weekend’s 3-0 home defeat to Manchester United.
There is skepticism at the severity of such a sanction at the same time that the Premier League is trying to resist the introduction of an independent regulator for football in England.
Manchester Mayor and Everton season-ticket holder Andy Burnham has also raised concerns over the process by which the 10-point penalty was reached.
Burnham criticized the lack of a Premier League sanctions policy before the charges were brought against the club and the attempt to introduce one in August this year, while the Everton case was being held, as “regulatory malpractice.”


Nadal confirms Brisbane return ahead of Australian Open

Nadal confirms Brisbane return ahead of Australian Open
Updated 01 December 2023
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Nadal confirms Brisbane return ahead of Australian Open

Nadal confirms Brisbane return ahead of Australian Open
  • “Hello everyone, after a year away from competition, it’s time to come back,” the 22-time Grand Slam winner said
  • “I think I don’t deserve to end like this”

PARIS: Spanish tennis great Rafael Nadal, absent from the courts for almost a year with a hip injury, announced Friday that he would return to competition in Brisbane next month ahead of the Australian Open.
“Hello everyone, after a year away from competition, it’s time to come back. It will be in Brisbane the first week of January. I’ll see you there,” the 22-time Grand Slam winner said in a post on social media.
Former world number one Nadal has not played since his defeat in the second round of the Australian Open last January, a tournament he won in 2009 and 2022.
“I think I don’t deserve to end like this,” said Nadal, referring to his Melbourne exit last year.
The 37-year-old has undergone surgery twice since and having slumped to 663rd in the world after a year without playing declared in September that the 2024 season was going to be his last.
Nadal will try to return to the highest level in Australia with the aim of competiting at the French Open which he has won a record 14 times.
He has been overtaken in the number of Grand Slam tournaments won by Serbian world number one Novak Djokovic, who now has 24 major titles.
The Spaniard had already experienced a 2021 season undermined by a foot injury, and was eliminated by Djokovic in the semifinal of the French Open.


World Tennis League unveils player roster for season 2 in Abu Dhabi

World Tennis League unveils player roster for season 2 in Abu Dhabi
Updated 01 December 2023
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World Tennis League unveils player roster for season 2 in Abu Dhabi

World Tennis League unveils player roster for season 2 in Abu Dhabi
  • Iga Swiatek, Daniil Medvedev, Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Andrey Rublev, Stefano Tsitsipas all previously confirmed
  • 16 global stars set to take part at Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Arena, latest being ATP world No. 9 Hubert Hurkacz, No. 10 Taylor Fritz

ABU DHABI: Meteora World Tennis League officials have revealed a stellar line-up for the second season of the competition, confirming the final 10 players and the teams they will represent in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi.

Men’s world No. 9 Hubert Hurkacz, Taylor Fritz (No. 10), and Casper Ruud (No. 11), are the latest names to be announced for the tournament, taking place at Yas Island’s Etihad Arena from Dec. 21 to 24. Grigor Dimitrov (No. 14) and Frances Tiafoe (No. 16) will also play.

In addition, the WTL will also see Caroline Garcia (No. 20), Sofia Kenin (No. 34), Leylah Fernandez (No. 36), Spanish star Paula Badosa, and 16-year-old sensation Mirra Andreeva in action.

The latest additions join an already stellar roster that includes women’s world No. 1 and reigning French Open champion Iga Swiatek, and men’s No. 3 Daniil Medvedev. Also taking to the court will be No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina (world No. 4 and 2022 Wimbledon champion), alongside No. 5 Andrey Rublev, and No. 6 Stefano Tsitsipas.

With the full 16 players revealed, the organizers also announced the four teams that the players will be representing.

Sabalenka will play for the SG Mavericks Kites, owned by SG Sports, the sporting arm of APL Apollo Tubes, taking charge for the first time in WTL. She joins Tsitsipas, Badosa, and Dimitrov in a team that will be coached by Robert Lindstedt.

Another new owner, Punit Balan Group, has purchased Team Eagles which will be represented by Medvedev, Andreeva, Rublev, and Kenin. They will be coached by John-Laffnie De Jager.

The Honor FX Falcons, owned by Honor FX features a team line-up of Rybakina, Tiafoe, Fernandez, and Fritz, with Chris Groh aiming to lead them to glory.

For The Hawks, Swiatek, Hurkacz, Garcia, and Ruud will join forces, coached by Simon Aspelin. The Hawks’ team owners will be announced by event organizers in the coming weeks.

Over the course of four days, the teams will compete against each other in men’s and women’s singles, doubles, and mixed doubles categories as they aim to advance and bid to become champions on the final day.

On the competition’s opening day, Hawks will begin their campaign against Honor FX Falcons, with Swiatek taking on Rybakina. The opening matches will be followed by Team Eagles’ encounter against SG Mavericks Kites, with a potential matchup between Medvedev and Tsitsipas on the table.

Day two on Friday will see Rybakina’s Honor FX Falcons meet Sabalenka’s SG Mavericks Kites before PBG Eagles, led by Medvedev, and Team Hawks featuring Ruud close out the action.

Saturday’s final day of group play will see teams looking to book their places in the next round as Rublev’s PBG Eagles take on Tiafoe’s Honor FX Falcons while SG Maverick Kites with Badosa go up against Garcia’s Hawks later in the evening.

Rajesh Banga, chairman of World Tennis League, said: “We’re thrilled to be announcing more star names to our exceptional tennis line-up for season two of the World Tennis League.

“These players are of the highest caliber and prominent names around the world so we’re pleased they will be competing in the unique tournament at our new home in Etihad Arena.”


McIntosh topples Ledecky in US Open 400m freestyle

McIntosh topples Ledecky in US Open 400m freestyle
Updated 01 December 2023
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McIntosh topples Ledecky in US Open 400m freestyle

McIntosh topples Ledecky in US Open 400m freestyle
  • McIntosh, a four-time world champion, handed Ledecky her first defeat in the event in a US pool in 11 years, seven-time Olympic gold medalist Ledecky taking second in 4:02.38
  • Kate Douglass pulled off an impressive double with victories in the women’s 200m individual medley and the 50m free

WASHINGTON: Canadian teen Summer McIntosh clocked a meet-record 3min 59.42sec to win the 400m freestyle at the US Open ahead of American distance great Katie Ledecky.

McIntosh, a four-time world champion, handed Ledecky her first defeat in the event in a US pool in 11 years, seven-time Olympic gold medalist Ledecky taking second in 4:02.38.

McIntosh held the 400m free world record for three months last year. But at the World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, she finished a disappointing fourth as Australian Ariana Titmus regained the world record in winning gold ahead of Ledecky.

“After that race, I learned a lot about how to get back out after it,” said McIntosh, who would go on to win 200m butterfly and 400m individual medley gold at Fukuoka.

“I had so many races after that that I was really happy with. No matter how bad one race is, you really get back up and get back into it.”

McIntosh said she was “pretty happy” with the result in her first long-course race of a season pointed at the Paris Olympics.

“I was just really excited going into it and really didn’t know what to expect ... I’ll just kind of learn through this, learn from this, and kind of start to move forward for the rest of the year.”

Ledecky, who hadn’t lost a 400m free race in home waters since she was third at the 2012 Olympic trials as a 15-year-old, was coming off a victory in the 800m free on Wednesday.

She, too, is gearing up for Paris, with the US Olympic trials to be held in Indianapolis June 15-23.

The two finished comfortably ahead of third-placed Siobhan Haughey of Hong Kong, who clocked 4:06.32.

Kate Douglass pulled off an impressive double with victories in the women’s 200m individual medley and the 50m free.

The reigning 200m medley world champion used strong breaststroke and freestyle legs to seize control of a race led by Torri Huske after the butterfly before Regan Smith gained the lead on the backstroke.

Douglass finished in 2:08.46 to finish ahead of Alex Walsh, whose 2:08.96 gave her silver ahead of Huske (2:09.10).

Less than half an hour later, Douglass returned to win the 50m free in 24.38sec, with Abbey Weitzeil and Huske tied for second in 24.41.

“I’m kind of shocked to win that one. I was pretty focused on the IM today,” Douglass said.

American Michael Andrew won the men’s 50m free in 21.80sec. Josh Liendo was second in 21.90 and Aruba’s Mikel Schreuders was third in 21.93.

Seven-time Olympic gold medalist Caeleb Dressel, continuing his return to the sport after a lengthy break, won the “B” final in 21.99sec.

Chase Kalisz, fresh off altitude training in Colorado, won the men’s 200m medley in 1:57.43 with Hungary’s Hubert Kos second in 1:57.88 and Trenton Julian third in 1:58.46.


Thunder rally to beat Lakers, Bulls stun Bucks in overtime

Thunder rally to beat Lakers, Bulls stun Bucks in overtime
Updated 01 December 2023
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Thunder rally to beat Lakers, Bulls stun Bucks in overtime

Thunder rally to beat Lakers, Bulls stun Bucks in overtime
  • The short-handed Bulls held off Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks 120-113 in overtime
  • Miami’s Jimmy Butler returned from a two-game injury absence and scored 24 of his 36 points in the second half to help the Heat rally for a 142-132 victory over the Indiana Pacers

LOS ANGELES: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points to propel the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 113-110 NBA victory over LeBron James and the weary Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday.

Gilgeous-Alexander connected on 11 of 18 shots from the field and made all 10 of his free throws.

Jalen Williams scored 21 points and rookie center Chet Holmgren added 18 for the Thunder, who had seven players score in double figures.

Anthony Davis led Los Angeles with 31 points and 14 rebounds. James had 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for the Lakers, who led by as many as 14 points in the first half but couldn’t keep the pressure on in the second night of a back-to-back and with a bevy of players nursing injuries.

Oklahoma City out-scored Los Angeles 42-23 in the second quarter to lead 72-60 at halftime and never trailed the rest of the way.

“I thought we played really good ball the first quarter,” James said. “But after that you could start seeing the three in four (nights), back-to-back, the bodies that we don’t have started to wear on us... especially versus a young team like OKC.”

In Chicago, the short-handed Bulls held off Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks 120-113 in overtime.

Nikola Vucevic scored 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Bulls, who were without injured Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan.

Alex Caruso drained a three-pointer at the buzzer to send it to overtime, and Caruso’s steal set up Patrick Williams’s dunk that capped the scoring in the extra session.

A dunk by Antetokounmpo had put Milwaukee up 110-109 with 2:41 left in overtime, but Vucevic answered with a dunk that put Chicago up for good.

Antetokounmpo shook off a slow start — he scored just four points in the first half — to lead the Bucks with 26 points and 14 rebounds.

Brook Lopez scored 20, Malik Beasley added 19 and Damian Lillard had 18 for the Bucks, who trailed by 12 early in the fourth quarter but grabbed a 106-103 lead with 5.2sec left in regulation.

Miami’s Jimmy Butler returned from a two-game injury absence and scored 24 of his 36 points in the second half to help the Heat rally for a 142-132 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

Butler grabbed 10 rebounds and rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr scored 24 points off the bench as the Heat withstood a 44-point performance from Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton.

The Heat trailed until the fourth quarter, but out-scored the Pacers 45-32 in the final frame.

The Charlotte Hornets, who confirmed Thursday that LaMelo Ball will miss significant time with a sprained right ankle, got a morale-boosting 129-128 victory over the Nets in Brooklyn.

Terry Rozier scored 37 points for the Hornets, his step-back basket with 39.9sec remaining putting Charlotte up 129-126.

Nic Claxton managed to cut the deficit with a layup, but Cam Johnson came up empty on a three-point attempt in the waning seconds and the Hornets escaped with the win.

Elsewhere, Jalen Brunson starred for the New York Knicks, scoring 42 points in a 118-112 victory over the reeling Detroit Pistons at Madison Square Garden.

The Pistons have now lost 16 straight — including all 15 of their games in November.

San Antonio’s skid continued, too, the Spurs dropping their 13th straight — 137-135 to the Atlanta Hawks.

Trae Young scored a season-high 45 points for the Hawks. Jeremy Sochan scored 33 for San Antonio and rookie Victor Wembanyama added 21 points 12 rebounds and four blocked shots in the defeat.

The Portland Trail Blazers, trailing by as many as 16 points in the first half, came alive after the break to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-95.

Shaedon Sharpe scored 20 of his 29 points in the second half, Jerami Grant added 13 points and rookie Duop Reath chipped in 13 off the bench to help Portland mount their comeback.