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The Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) celebrated Olympic Day 2026 on Tuesday by organizing a boxing championship for junior, youth, and senior categories (Knockout) at Oasis of Mall of Qatar. The event formed part of the QOC’s ongoing commitment to promoting Olympic values and principles, encouraging physical activity and healthy lifestyles, and raising awareness of sport as a powerful tool for human development and community building.Held in cooperation with the Qatar Boxing and Wrestling Federation, the championship featured competitions across three age categories. Junior boxers competed in the 46kg, 50kg, 57kg, and over-80kg divisions, while youth athletes contested the 55kg, 56kg, 70kg, 80kg, and over-90kg categories. Senior boxers competed in the 55kg, 60kg, 65kg, and 70kg weight classes.The event also included an interactive segment featuring sports and entertainment quizzes for children and young people, adding excitement and engagement to the celebration. The championship was attended by QOC staff members, representatives of the Qatar Boxing and Wrestling Federation, and visitors and shoppers at Mall of Qatar, who enjoyed the vibrant sporting atmosphere.Olympic Day was first introduced in 1948 by the International Olympic Committee to commemorate the founding of the modern Olympic Movement by Baron Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894.Celebrated annually on 23 June, Olympic Day aims to promote sport and physical activity for all while highlighting the Olympic values of Excellence, Friendship, and Respect. It also seeks to strengthen solidarity and mutual understanding among peoples through sport and to emphasize the educational and social role of the Olympic Movement.On this occasion, H.E. Sheikh Fahad bin Khalid Al Thani, President of the Qatar Boxing and Wrestling Federation, said that the boxing event reflects the federation’s strong belief in creating a lasting sporting legacy through meaningful initiatives that leave a positive impact on society and support the continued development of sport in Qatar.He added that the event serves as a platform to inspire young people and strengthen their connection with the noble art of boxing, highlighting its important role in improving physical fitness, developing life skills, and instilling values such as strength, discipline, and mental balance among future generations.Sheikh Fahad concluded by emphasizing that the championship provides an important preparation opportunity for club and national team athletes by enhancing self-confidence, improving focus, and developing physical fitness and combat skills ahead of major upcoming events, including the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games and the Doha 2030 Asian Games.For his part, Abdulla Faraj Al Sultan, Event Director, stressed that the QOC uses Olympic Day celebrations to strengthen a sustainable sporting foundation that helps identify and nurture promising talent, particularly in boxing. He noted that such events play a key role in developing the skills of young athletes and preparing them to compete at the highest levels, thereby enhancing Qatar’s representation in continental and international competitions.At the conclusion of the event, Sheikh Fahad bin Khalid Al Thani and Mr. Abdulaziz Ghanem, Head of Sport Activities section at the QOC crowned the winners and honored sponsors, partners, and volunteers for their valuable contributions. Related Story Source link
Europe’s record-breaking heatwave left around 68,000 households without electricity in northwestern France on Wednesday, authorities said, in the country’s first major power outage of the latest bout of extreme weather.The outage, which involved a transformer on the electricity grid, was related to extreme temperatures and did not injure anyone, the prefecture in the coastal department of Finistere said in a statement.The incident took place around 9:00 pm (1900 GMT) on Tuesday in the commune of Ergue-Gaberic near the city of Quimper in Brittany, the prefecture added.While teams from French grid operators RTE and Enedis had worked through the night to fix the issue, power is not expected to be restored in full until the end of the day at the earliest.Up to 106,000 clients of the French power network were left without power by late Tuesday, as the continent’s sweltering heatwave pushed the country into its hottest day ever.”For technical reasons, RTE will not be able to re-connect the affected households during the course of the day; connections will be made, at the earliest, by the end of Wednesday,” the operator said.Finistere is one of 58 French departments under the highest red alert for extreme heat on Wednesday, with temperatures of 39C to 41C expected on Wednesday from Brittany to the Paris region.The extreme weather is being driven by atmospheric and circulation patterns that keep hot air trapped in place for days, with these factors worsened by global warming, experts say. Related Story Source link
France recorded its hottest day ever since records began in 1947, as a severe heatwave affects much of Western Europe, according to the national weather service.The national heat index reached 29.8°C, based on 30 monitoring stations. Extreme temperatures were reported across western France, including 43.3°C in Cazaux, 42.2°C in Niort, 42.1°C in Bordeaux, 41.3°C in Rennes, and 44.3°C in Biscarosse.Meteorologists warned that high temperatures of 40°C to 42°C are expected to continue through the week, with unusually warm nights as well.Authorities said the heatwave could rival or exceed the intensity of the 2003 event, which caused around 15,000 deaths in France, though its duration is still unclear.France’s previous record was 29.4°C, set in 2003 and 2019. Officials have taken emergency measures, including early closures of landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre Museum. Related Story Source link
Qatar need to produce their best performance of the World Cup against Bosnia to keep their knockout hopes alive. Qatar’s FIFA World Cup hopes will go on the line when they face Bosnia and Herzegovina in their final Group B match in Seattle tonight at 10pm, with victory the only realistic route to the Round of 32.Julen Lopetegui’s side have collected one point from their opening two matches and sit level with Bosnia, leaving both teams locked in a direct battle to keep their campaigns alive. While Canada and Switzerland lead the group on four points each, the expanded tournament format means a win could still be enough for Qatar to progress as one of the competition’s best third-placed teams.The two-time Asian champions began their campaign with an encouraging 1-1 draw against Switzerland, but their momentum was halted by a painful 6-0 defeat to Canada – a result that left Al Annabi with the second-worst goal difference in the group and facing renewed scrutiny over their defensive organisation. Qatar coach Julen Lopetegui wants his…
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo scores against Uzbekistan in Houston. (Reuters) Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to score in six World Cup campaigns and silenced his critics after “a dark week” as the Portugal captain struck twice in a 5-0 annihilation of Uzbekistan on Tuesday.The big win in Houston put Portugal on the brink of the knockout rounds and was a resounding response to the 41-year-old’s doubters. Ronaldo’s goal after six minutes made history — trumping even Lionel Messi — by scoring at six World Cups stretching back to 2006. The former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus ace pulled out his trademark “Siu” celebration and let out a throaty roar in front of 68,777 fans. After Nuno Mendes made it 2-0, Ronaldo neatly got his second with a cool finish six minutes before the break. That took him to 10 World Cup goals, more than any other Portuguese player including the great Eusebio. Ronaldo was seen saying, “I’m back, I’m back”, and told broadcasters: “It’s always nice to break records, but my goal is to help the national team achieve its objectives.”He added: “It was a difficult week, a dark week. It seemed like I was already retired from football. But I held on, as always, because I believe more in hard work than in anything else. It was hard, I have to admit it, but we’re back.” Ronaldo came into the group encounter against tournament debutants Uzbekistan with 143 goals, the most in international men’s football. But once widely regarded as a competitor to Messi for the unofficial title of best player, his powers have been on the wane at the highest level. He had limited service in the disappointing 1-1 draw with the Democratic Republic of Congo to start Portugal’s World Cup title bid. But when he did have two chances he missed the target, igniting calls for coach Roberto Martinez to drop him. His travails in front of goal were in glaring contrast to the likes of Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane, who all made lightning starts to the World Cup. But Martinez has stuck defiantly by his skipper, who was given a rapturous reception when he came out to warm up at Houston Stadium, and again each time he appeared on the big screens.Ronaldo nearly pounced after just three minutes, narrowly failing to make contact at the far post after a cross by Mendes. Ronaldo slapped the turf in frustration. He did not have to wait long for his goal, swivelling on the six-yard box to meet a cross first time from Joao Cancelo and smash the ball beyond goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov. The outclassed Uzbeks, coached by the Italian 2006 World Cup winner Fabio Cannavaro, were perfect opponents for Ronaldo to rediscover his scoring boots. It was 2-0 on 17 minutes when Mendes curled in a free-kick. The Uzbeks thought they had pulled one back, after a screamer by Azizjon Ganiev, but the goal was ruled out after a VAR intervention for a foul on Cancelo. It was Ronaldo’s day, and he rolled in a third for Portugal with only the goalkeeper to beat with a smart, controlled finish. He might have had a hat-trick following an intricate free-kick routine, but Nematov denied him, clattering into the veteran attacker in the process. From the resulting corner it was 4-0, with Ronaldo in the thick of it again before the ball went in off Nematov for an own goal. Substitute Rafael Leao scored an emphatic fifth in the 87th minute. Before this, the evidence against Ronaldo was beginning to stack up. In the previous 10 games at major competitions (World Cup and Euros) before the Uzbekistan match, he had zero goals and one assist. He did though have a successful season with Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, scoring 28 goals in 30 league games. Portugal’s final group match is on Saturday against Colombia, who beat the Uzbeks 3-1. Colombia meet DR Congo later Tuesday in Group K knowing a win will propel them into the last 32. Related Story Source link
The development follows months of hardship and distress for thousands of innocent seafarers and comes on the heels of the memorandum of understanding between Iran and…
US President Donald Trump said Tuesday Iran had agreed to nuclear inspections into “infinity”, despite Tehran’s denials, as the UN began efforts to evacuate hundreds of ships from the Gulf in a tentative return to calm after a fragile peace deal. The UN shipping agency said an evacuation plan to enable some 11,000 seafarers stuck aboard vessels in the Gulf to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran effectively blocked during the war, was underway after the ceasefire deal between Washington and Tehran. “We have now started contacting the ships to start the evacuation,” a spokesperson for the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) said, without providing a timeframe, adding that the agency had secured “the necessary safety guarantees” and verified conditions for safe navigation. IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said the “large-scale operation” would unfold in close cooperation with Iran, Oman, other coastal states, the US and the maritime industry. In another sign of de-escalation, Washington agreed to waive sanctions on Iran for 60 days from Monday after the first round of talks under the nascent peace deal agreed last week on ending more than three months of war. Trump also said unfrozen Iranian assets would be used to buy humanitarian supplies from the USUS Vice President JD Vance said the talks with Iranian officials in the Swiss mountain resort of Buergenstock laid a good foundation for a final accord and that Tehran had agreed to allow nuclear inspectors back into the country.Iran denied it had discussed its nuclear program at the talks, mediated by Qatar and Pakistan, and said it had not agreed to invite International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors back.Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said on Tuesday Iranian officials had not held a meeting with IAEA chief Rafael Grossi in Switzerland and had no plans for the UN nuclear watchdog to inspect Iran’s damaged nuclear facilities.Trump hit back on Tuesday at what he said were Iran’s “protestations and false statements”.”Iran has fully and completely agreed to highest level Nuclear inspections long into the future (Infinity!!!),” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.He also said any Iranian assets unfrozen under the deal would be placed in an escrow account and used to buy food and medical supplies from the US “including Corn, Wheat, and Soybeans from our great American Farmers”.Iran’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, had earlier on Tuesday denied there had been any such agreement.The conflicting statements highlighted the uncertainty facing efforts to halt a war that has upended the Middle East.On Monday, the sides agreed on a mechanism to end fighting between US ally Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, and opened a communications line to help ensure safe passage for commercial ships through Hormuz, an energy chokepoint. In the first of several steps to provide economic relief to Iran, the US Treasury announced a waiver until August 21 on sanctions, allowing Tehran to sell oil and related products and receive payment for them.Bahreini said “good progress” had been made in the talks and that two working groups would be established in coming days to focus on the removal of sanctions and Iran’s nuclear activities.The ambassador said Lebanon was an “unquestionable” part of the interim accord between the US and Iran, and that it included the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon. .Israel and Lebanon began fresh talks in Washington Tuesday, with Beirut determined to press ahead even as the direct negotiations appear to be overshadowed by Iran’s decision to make Lebanon part of its talks with the US While tanker traffic through Hormuz started to pick up on Monday, Iran and Oman suggested there may be costs involved in using the strait, whose closure pushed up global inflation.Iran’s Fars news agency quoted a military source as saying only a limited number of vessels are currently permitted to transit Hormuz in coordination with Iranian forces, adding the number allowed through will vary daily, depending on conditions.The Iran war, which began with joint US-Israeli strikes, is now a political liability at home for Trump and his fellow Republicans in Congress as midterm elections loom in November. Opinion polls have shown public frustration over a rise in gas prices since the war began, and Trump faces pressures from Republicans who want Iran’s nuclear program shut down.Iran has limited IAEA inspections since the US and Israel launched their first airstrikes last year, and suspended them when war broke out. Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful. Related Story Source link
England head coach Brendon McCullum during practice ahead of the third Test at Trent Bridge Cricket Ground, Nottingham, Britain, on June 23, 2026. (Reuters) England coach Brendon McCullum has denied his relationship with Ben Stokes was damaged by the nightclub controversy that forced the captain into exile for the second Test defeat against New Zealand.Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson were dropped after breaking a midnight curfew in an incident at a London nightclub following England’s first Test win at Lord’s.McCullum said he was concerned and worried about Stokes in the aftermath of the all-rounder’s late-night antics, which sparked suggestions he might be stripped of the captaincy or retire from international duty.The pair were largely cleared in two subsequent investigations, receiving only a written warning from the England and Wales Cricket Board for breaking “specific contractual obligations”.Two unprovoked attacks on Atkinson in the nightclub occurred when Stokes was elsewhere, while the Cricket Regulator ruled there was insufficient evidence against them to justify further punishment.McCullum had declined the opportunity to publicly back Stokes while the probe took place, leading to renewed speculation over the pair’s bond after a dismal Ashes defeat in Australia that was marred by drinking controversy surrounding England’s players. SLUMPED TO HEAVY DEFEATEngland slumped to a heavy second Test defeat in the absence of their skipper and one of their key fast bowlers.But Stokes and Atkinson are back in the squad for the third Test, which starts in Nottingham on Thursday, and trained with their team-mates at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.And McCullum claimed he is still on good terms with Stokes after a lengthy chat prior to England’s net session.”I’ve had a good catch-up with him this morning, an hour and a bit talking, and he was outstanding,” he told reporters on Tuesday.”He looks ready to go, he’s enthusiastic about the week and, obviously from our point of view, it’s nice to have the band back together.”Asked if recent events had made their relationship more tense, McCullum said: “Not at all. We talked about that this morning. I said ‘do you know where this has come from, the conversations around our relationship over the last six months?’ ‘I CONSIDER YOU A GOOD FRIEND'”He said ‘no, I have no idea’. I said to him ‘as far I’m concerned, I consider you a good friend’.”Obviously we’ve been through a lot together as a working pair in leadership positions here in English cricket.”In the end, we both want what’s right and what is the best for English cricket and we’re crystal clear on the direction we want this team to take.”Stokes and Atkinson are back in the England line-up for the third Test as the selectors made four changes.Jamie Smith is back following the birth of his second child and replaces James Rew at wicket-keeper.Spinner Shoaib Bashir, who did not bowl a single over in his previous appearance at Lord’s, is picked with extreme heat this week expected to favour slow bowlers.Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Jofra Archer are the fast bowlers, leaving Ollie Robinson on the sidelines.The 32-year-old took career-best figures of 7-77 on a bowler-friendly pitch at Lord’s in his first Test in more than two years.But he withdrew from the second Test due to a knee injury and has been unable to reclaim his place. Related…
Vessels are anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman. REUTERS/File Picture Oman said on Tuesday it had coordinated with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to provide a temporary maritime corridor for vessels seeking to transit the Strait of Hormuz, state news agency reported.The vessels wanting to use the temporary corridor would need to coordinate with the IMO, based on coordinates announced by the organisation and Omani authorities, it added.The measure was aimed at ensuring freedom of navigation through the strategic waterway in line with international law and the law of the sea, which uphold freedom of navigation without imposing transit fees. Related Story Source link
Fifteen-year-old cricket sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi receives the Man of the Match award after the List A Tri-Nation Series final in Dambulla, Sri Lanka, last week. Fifteen-year-old cricket sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi donned his first official India jersey on Tuesday and said he had long dreamed of the moment.Sooryavanshi was named in India’s T20 squad for the tours to Ireland and England, as well as the Asian Games, after sweeping the batting honours in this year’s Indian Premier League.The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) released a video of the moment on Tuesday when the blue jersey was delivered to him, calling it “the moment the nation has been waiting for”.”Ever since I first held a bat and walked onto a cricket field to practise, I dreamed of this moment… I cannot explain this feeling in words,” Sooryavanshi said in the BCCI video.He was shown unpacking the shirt, with his name on the back above the number 03.Sooryavanshi is line to become India’s youngest international player, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar, the batting great who made his Test debut aged 16 years and 205 days in 1989.The spotlight has been on Sooryavanshi since his batting exploits in the IPL, where he amassed 776 runs for Rajasthan Royals to finish as the tournament’s leading run scorer.He struck one century and five half-centuries during the season to pick up the Orange Cap for the leading run-getter. …