Tag: Paris Olympics

Star Tennis player Novak Djokovic, who made history on Sunday at the Paris Olympics 2024 by defeating Carlos Alcaraz to claim a maiden Olympic gold, opened up on his retirement plans.

The 37-year-old Serb added a much-awaited Olympic gold to his 24 Grand Slam titles after an enthralling 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/2) victory in the blockbuster final at Roland Garros.

Novak Djokovic became only the fifth player in the history of the sport to win all four Grand Slam tournaments and Olympic singles gold, joining Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Steffi Graf and Serena Williams.

He also became the oldest singles champion since tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988.

Speaking at the post-match ceremony, Djokovic was asked about his retirement since the Serb has completed Tennis by completing the “Golden Slam”.

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The 37-year-old, in response, shared that he has no plans to retire any time soon and will participate in the 2028 Olympics, scheduled to be held in Los Angeles.

“Look, I still, I want to play in Los Angeles. I enjoy playing for my country in Olympic Games particularly and Davis Cup. It’s something that, being part of a team…”

“He’s [coach Viktor Troicki] making fun of my calendar goals, playing in Los Angeles. I don’t know if he’s laughing because he thinks it’s unrealistic or he’s like, okay, another four years with this guy.”

Djokovic burst into tears after finally getting his hands on an Olympic Gold and celebrated by holding aloft the Serbian flag on the court before clambering into the players’ box to embrace his wife and children.

“We almost played three hours, the final shot was the only moment when I was sure I could win the match,” said Djokovic, who had lost heavily to Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final last month.

For the unversed, Novak Djokovic now has 99 singles titles alongside 24 Grand Slams to his name amid his decorated career, which puts him past the likes of Roger Federer with 20 Grand Slams and struggling Rafael Nadal with 22.

READ: Former England batter Graham Thorpe passes away at 55

PARIS: Pakistan shooter Ghulam Mustafa Bashir bowed out of the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024 as he failed to qualify for the final round of the Men’s 25m rapid pistol event here on Sunday.

Ghulam Mustafa Bashir, a bronze medalist in the World Championships, showcased his talent in the two stages of the shooting qualification event at the Paris Olympics.

However, he failed to a spot in the top six of the 25-meter rapid pistol event, scoring a total of 581 points.

During the first stage of the competition, Bashir scored a total of 292 points. He earned 98 points in the first series, which lasted 8 seconds, 99 points in the second series, which lasted 6 seconds, and 95 points in the 4-second series.

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However, in the second stage, Bashir’s performance fell short of his potential. He scored 97, 97, and 95 points in the three series, which was not enough to secure a place in the top 6.

Out of the seven Pakistani athletes participating in the Paris Olympics 2024, Bashir was the sixth athlete to be eliminated from the competition.

Prior to Bashir, Kishmala Talat was also knocked out of the Paris Games after failing to advance into the next round of the Women’s 25m pistol event on Friday. She finished 22nd with a final score of 579-18x, miles away from sealing a berth in the final round.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s only sprinter competing in the Olympics 2024, Faiqa Riaz, was knocked out of the Games on the same day after failing to progress into the next round of the Athletics event.

READ: PCB to conduct nationwide women trials from August 5

PARIS: Pakistan shooter Kishmala Talat bowed out of the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024 as she failed to advance into the next round of the Women’s 25m pistol event here at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre.

Kishamala finished 22nd with a final score of 579-18x, miles away from sealing a berth in the final round.

Hungary’s Veronika Major led the standings with a 592-27x which equalled the Olympic Record while India’s shooting sensation Manu Bhaker continued to prove her mettle as she secured the second position.

Bhaker registered 590-24x. The 22-year-old is enjoying a dream run in the Paris Olympics.

She claimed the first medal for India in the Games by capturing a bronze in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol before imitating the same feat with compatriot Sarabjot Singh in the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team, a few days later.

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Meanwhile Kishmala Talat, prior to that, featured in two 10m air pistol events in mixed and women’s categories. The 22-year-old failed to advance in each of the competitions.

The Pakistan duo of Kishmala and Gulfam Joseph could only manage 571 points out of 600 and finished 14th out of 17 in the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Doubles.

As a result, both Pakistan shooters Joseph and Kishmala Talat were knocked out of all 10m air pistol competitions.

Kishmala Talat also suffered the same fate in the individual category as failed to qualify for the 10m women’s air pistol final after finishing 31st out of the 44 shooters. She scored a total of 567 points out of across six series.

It is pertinent to mention that Pakistan’s only sprinter competing in the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024, Faiqa Riaz, was knocked out of the Games after failing to progress into the next round of the Athletics event.

READ: Pakistan Street Child Football team reaches Norway Cup semi-final

Pakistan’s only sprinter competing in the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024, Faiqa Riaz, failed to progress in the Athletics event.

Faiqa competed in Heat 2 of the preliminary round of women’s 100-meter race and could finish sixth.

The qualification scenario was such that the top three athletes from each of the Heats were supposed to advance to the first round while five more athletes, boasting next best timings were supposed to join them.

Meanwhile, Faiqa Riaz failed to achieve any of the aforementioned feat to ensure his qualification as she took 12.49 seconds in the 100-meter race.

Prior to that, Pakistan shooters Kishmala Talat and Gulfam Joseph alongside swimmers Jehanara Nabi and Ahmed Durrani failed to progress further in the ongoing Paris Olympics.

The duo of Joseph and Kishmala competed in 10m air pistol mixed doubles but failed to make it into the next round.

The Pakistan shooters could only manage 571 points out of 600 and finished 14th out of 17.

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As a result, both Pakistan shooters Gulfam Joseph and Kishmala Talat have been knocked out of all 10m air pistol competitions.

However, Kishmala will represent Pakistan in the 25m Pistol Women’s qualification on August 2 while Ghulam Mustafa Bashir will partake 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men’s Qualification on August 4.

Remember, Pakistan had an unwanted start to their Paris Olympics 2024 campaign as their shooters Gulfam Joseph and Kishmala Talat failed to qualify for the 10m air pistol finals in respective categories.

The same was the case for the country in swimming as Durrani and Jehanara failed to qualify for the next round in their respective events.

Ahmed Durrani participated in the men’s 200-meter freestyle swimming event and unfortunately finished last in his heat.

Later, he ended up in 25th place out of 25 swimmers. His time was 11 seconds slower than the swimmer who secured the final spot for the semifinals.

In the women’s 200-meter freestyle swimming competition, Jehanara Nabi finished in 26th place out of 30 swimmers. Despite putting up a strong effort, she was unable to break into the top 16.

READ: Weightlifter Nooh Butt blames authorities over Paris Olympics absence

Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz shrugged off crushing humidity on Wednesday to stay on course for a Paris Olympics gold medal showdown as Zheng Qinwen ended the career of former world number one Angelique Kerber.

Djokovic, seeking a first Olympic title at Roland Garros to add to his record-breaking collection, defeated German left-hander Dominik Koepfer 7-5, 6-3, becoming the first man to reach four singles quarter-finals at the Games.

Carlos Alcaraz brushed aside Roman Safiullin, the Russian playing in Paris as a neutral, 6-4, 6-2 to close in on another showdown with Novak Djokovic.

In the women’s singles, Zheng defeated Kerber 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 7-6 (8/6) to become only the second Chinese player to reach an Olympic singles semi-final.

The 37-year-old Djokovic has only ever collected a bronze at the Olympics, at Beijing 16 years ago, but he was rarely troubled by his 70th-ranked opponent.

“I’m soaking wet, honestly,” said Djokovic, who has won three of his 24 Grand Slam crowns on Paris’s famous red clay.

“It’s a very, very humid day as it was yesterday. But you have to accept and embrace the conditions and try to make the best out of it.”

Djokovic, who had breezed past old rival Rafael Nadal in the second round, goes on to face 11th-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Djokovic boasts an 11-2 head-to-head record over Tsitsipas, including a victory from two sets down in the 2021 French Open final.

“I’ve erased it,” said Tsitsipas when asked to recall that heartbreaking defeat.

“I can see he’s motivated for this Olympics but I want to get out on the court and show that I’m a worthy player on the clay courts.”

Despite his confidence, Tsitsipas has not defeated Novak Djokovic for almost five years, with the world number two having claimed the last 10 meetings while French Open and Wimbledon champion Alcaraz has also yet to drop a set in the Paris Olympics and breezed past 66th-ranked Safiullin in 90 minutes.

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Alcaraz broke serve four times and wrapped up victory with his fifth ace of the contest.

“I am really happy with the way I managed everything during the match. The conditions were really tough with the heat and it was really humid,” said Alcaraz.

Up next for Alcaraz is Tommy Paul, the American he defeated in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

Paul made the last eight by seeing off Corentin Moutet, whose defeat ended all French interest in the five Olympic tennis events.

Australian Open runner-up Zheng became the first Chinese woman since Li Na in 2008 to reach the singles semi-finals.

Her three-hour victory, in which she unleashed 64 winners, sent 36-year-old former world number one Kerber, a silver medallist at the 2016 Rio Games, into retirement.

“What can I say? I gave everything,” said Kerber, who has slumped to 212 in the world rankings. “I have loved playing tennis. Now I can leave in peace.”

Anna Karolina Schmiedlova is the first Slovakian player to make the Olympics semi-finals since Miloslav Mecir won the men’s singles title at Seoul in 1988.

The 67th-ranked Schmiedlova stunned Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova in straight sets.

Later Wednesday, Iga Swiatek, the four-time French Open champion, can claim a 25th successive win at Roland Garros by making the semi-finals of the Olympics for the first time when she takes on Danielle Collins of the United States.

In the remaining women’s quarter-final Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk faces Wimbledon semi-finalist Donna Vekic of Croatia.

Defending men’s champion Alexander Zverev, the third-seeded German, plays Australia’s Alexei Popyrin while fourth-seeded Daniil Medvedev, also competing as a neutral, faces Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Nadal, chasing a third Olympic gold medal, plays for the fifth successive day as he and Alcaraz eye a place in the men’s doubles semi-finals.

The Spaniards face a tricky last-eight tie against fourth seeds Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram of the United States.

READ: Urvashi Rautela claims to be “first Indian actress invited” to Paris Olympics 2024

Bollywood star Urvashi Rautela became “the first Indian actress” to be officially invited to the Paris Olympics 2024.

The actress’ fans expressed joy and excitement for her after she revealed that she had become the first actress from India to get an invitation to the prestigious event, Indian media outlets reported.

“Truly humbled & honoured to be the first Indian actress to be invited by Paris Olympic 2024. A magical dream that belongs to 1.4 billion Indians. Today, we salute all the athletes from around the world competing in Paris and send them our compliments and best wishes for the game,” local media outlet quoted Urvashi Rautela as saying.

The actress also shared a couple of snaps with different athletes at the Paris Olympics 2024.

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Taking to Instagram, Rautela shared a photo with former India head coach Rahul Dravid at the Paris Olympics.

#RahulDravid PARIS OLYMPICS 2024… saluting all the athletes from around the world competing in Paris and sending them best wishes & compliments for the game,” she wrote in the caption of the Instagram post.

 

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In another post, she shared two photos with French football player Karim Benzema.

It is pertinent to mention that Urvashi Rautela is ranked one of Forbes’ Top 10 highest-paid global icons and among the youngest on the list.

 

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The Paris Olympics 2024 officially kicked off on July 26 in which thousands of athletes around the world are participating in various sports.

The opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics drew 28.6 million US viewers, according to preliminary data from Comcast’s NBCUniversal, which the company said was the most-watched start to a summer Games since London in 2012.

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Tearful Coco Gauff crashed out of the Paris Olympics at the hands of Donna Vekic on Tuesday after a heated row with the umpire as Rafael Nadal prepared to return to the baking courts.

With temperatures rocketing into the mid-30s Celsius at Roland Garros, officials activated a heat protocol, allowing a 10-minute break between the second and third sets.

In the first match on Court Philippe-Chatrier, Vekic shocked Gauff 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals, but the match was overshadowed by a lengthy row between the US Open champion and the chair umpire.

Coco Gauff, the flag-bearer for the United States at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony alongside NBA star LeBron James, made a fast start but squandered three set points before her Croatian opponent won the first-set tie-break.

The pair swapped breaks early in the second set but the match came to a standstill at the end of the sixth game as an emotional Gauff pleaded her case with the umpire.

At 30-40, Vekic hit a return deep to Gauff’s forehand, which the American mishit into the net.

Vekic’s shot was called out but the call was overruled by the chair umpire and the point was awarded to the Croat, giving her the break. Gauff argued her shot was compromised by the initial call.

“I have to advocate for myself all the time,” a weeping Gauff, 20, said on court. “I’m getting cheated in this game. You guys are not fair to me.”

Later, a more composed Coco Gauff called for a video review system at Roland Garros to match those in place at other Grand Slam venues.

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“I can’t say I would have won the match if I would have won that point but, for sure, being not a break, whereas maybe replaying that point can make a big difference in that game,” she said.

Vekic, ranked 21, briefly lost her composure, slipping to 0-40 on her own serve before recovering to hold, and she broke again to seal victory.

The Wimbledon semi-finalist said the row over the line call was a “tricky situation”.

“After that, the crowd, it was not so easy,” she said. “I lost my concentration for a couple of points, but I’m happy that I managed to come back in that game because it was an important game.”

Germany’s defending men’s champion Alexander Zverev coasted into the third round with a 6-3, 7-5 win over 39th-ranked Czech Tomas Machac.

In the women’s draw, three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber of Germany progressed to the quarter-finals along with US eighth seed Danielle Collins and China’s Zheng Qinwen.

Women’s world number one Iga Swiatek targets a 24th straight win on the clay courts of Paris against China’s Wang Xiyu in the evening session.

Rafael Nadal, a 14-time French Open champion, was swept off court by old rival Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the pair’s 60th meeting on Monday.

The 38-year-old, immortalised in a statue at Roland Garros, has been plagued by injuries in recent years and is now 161st in the world.

Rafael Nadal said after his painful defeat to Djokovic that he would make a decision on his future after the Paris Olympics.

But the Spaniard, who won singles gold at the 2008 Beijing Games and doubles gold in Rio in 2016, can still collect a medal in the doubles alongside current French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz.

They take on Dutch pair Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof.

Britain’s three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray, playing his final tournament, is in action later alongside doubles partner Dan Evans.

READ: Paris Olympics Men’s triathlon postponed due to Seine pollution

The men’s triathlon at the Paris Olympics was postponed just hours before it was due to get underway on Tuesday after last-ditch water quality tests in the River Seine revealed unhealthy pollution levels, organisers said.

In a blow to Olympic officials who have repeatedly vowed that the Seine would be safe for athletes to swim in, organisers said the men’s event would be delayed by 24 hours and take place immediately after the women’s race on Wednesday.

A joint statement from Paris 2024 and World Triathlon blamed the excessive pollution caused by the heavy rain that deluged the French capital on Friday and Saturday.

“Paris 2024 and World Triathlon reiterate that their priority is the health of the athletes,” the statement said after a meeting held at 3:30 am local time (0130 GMT).

“The tests carried out in the Seine today revealed water quality levels that did not provide sufficient guarantees to allow the event to be held.

“Unfortunately, meteorological events beyond our control … can alter water quality and compel us to reschedule the event for health reasons.”

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Paris Olympics’ organisers had already cancelled training sessions in the Seine scheduled for Sunday and Monday because of unsafe pollution levels caused by last week’s rain.

But they had expressed confidence that the pollution would drop in time for Tuesday’s race given the bright, sunny conditions in Paris this week which helps keep bacteria levels down.

French authorities have invested 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) over the last decade to clean up the Seine, including in major new water treatment and storage facilities in and around Paris.

But heavy downpours still overwhelm the city’s underground drains and sewage system, leading to untreated effluent being released into the waterway.

After an exceptionally wet spring and start to summer, the Seine had been consistently failing water tests until the beginning of July, causing a major headache for Paris 2024 organisers.

Levels of the E.Coli bacteria — an indicator of faecal matter — were sometimes 10 times higher than authorised limits.

The triathlon is the first Olympic event scheduled to take place in the river, before marathon swimming in the second week of the Games.

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Novak Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal at the Paris Olympics on Monday, claiming a 6-1, 6-4 victory in the pair’s 60th and potentially last meeting.

It was 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic’s 31st win in a rivalry which began on the same Roland Garros clay courts in 2006.

Nadal was largely outclassed in the much-anticipated encounter, only coming briefly to life when he won four games in a row in the second set.

“I’m very relieved,” said Djokovic. “Everything was going my way, I was 6-1, 4-0 up but I played a sloppy service game and gave him chances.”

He added: “I never thought back in 2006 that we’d still be playing each other almost 20 years later.”

In a sign of the wear and tear the pair have endured in recent months, Novak Djokovic wore a protective strapping around his right knee while Rafael Nadal’s right thigh was heavily strapped.

But Djokovic played freely, forcing Nadal to scamper around Court Philippe Chatrier where the Spaniard had collected 14 of his 22 Grand Slam titles.

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The Serb raced to a 4-0 lead, on the back of a double break, and held for 5-0 before Nadal stopped the rot much to the relief of a packed, sweltering crowd.

Djokovic pocketed the one-sided opener when 2008 Olympic gold medallist Nadal ballooned a forehand wide of the mark.

The statistics made grim reading for the 38-year-old who managed to eke out just four points off the Djokovic serve in the first set.

There was no respite for Nadal, playing just his seventh tournament of an injury-plagued season, as Djokovic again carved out a double break for a 4-0 lead in the second set.

Rafael Djokovic, seeking a first Olympic gold medal to add to his 24 Grand Slam triumphs, surprisingly handed Rafael Nadal a lifeline when he served up a double fault to be broken for the first time.

Nadal retrieved the second break to claw his way back from 0-4 to 4-4 as the top seed went suddenly off the boil.

Novak Djokovic responded in style, a drop-shot leaving Nadal flat-footed as the Serb broke for 5-4 on a fourth break point and clinched victory in style with an ace.

Despite his defeat on Monday, Nadal still has hopes of a Paris Olympics gold medal in the men’s doubles where he is playing alongside Carlos Alcaraz.

READ: Pakistan shooters Joseph, Kishmala continue dismal run at Paris Olympics

Pakistan shooters Gulfam Joseph and Kishmala Talat’s dismal run at the Paris Olympics continued as the duo failed to proceed in another event on Monday.

The duo of Joseph and Kishmala competed in 10m air pistol mixed doubles but failed to make it into the next round.

The Pakistan shooters could only manage 571 points out of 600 and finished 14th out of 17.

As a result, both Pakistan shooters Gulfam Joseph and Kishmala Talat have been knocked out of all 10m air pistol competitions.

However, Kishmala will represent Pakistan in the 25m Pistol Women’s qualification on August 2 while Ghulam Mustafa Bashir will partake 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men’s Qualification on August 4.

Remember, Pakistan had an unwanted start to their Paris Olympics 2024 campaign as their shooters Gulfam Joseph and Kishmala Talat failed to qualify for the 10m air pistol finals in respective categories.

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Joseph, one of seven Pakistan athletes competing in the games, had to finish in the top eight to make it into the next round.

But he was left far behind the other competing shooters and could finish 22nd out of 33 with 571 points out of 600.

Notably, Indian shooters Sarabjot Singh and Arjun Singh Cheema also failed to qualify for the next round.

Meanwhile, Kishmala Talat also suffered the same fate as she failed to qualify for the 10m women’s air pistol final after finishing 31st out of the 44 shooters. She scored a total of 567 points out of across six series.

Pakistan contingent for Paris Olympics:

Athletics: Arshad Nadeem, Faiqa Riaz, Salman Iqbal Butt (support staff), Dr. Ali Sher Bajwa (support staff).

Swimming: Mohammad Ahmed Durrani, Jehanara Nabi, Lt Col (retired) Ahmed Ali Khan (support staff).

Shooting: Ghulam Mustafa Bashir, Gulfam Joseph, Kishmala Talat), Col Junaid Ali (support staff), Gennady Solodovnikov (support staff).

Contingent officials: Mohammad Shafiq (chef de mission), Javaid Shamshad Lodhi (deputy chef de mission); Zainab Shaukat (admin officer).

READ: Pakistan swimmers Durrani, Jehanara fail to qualify for next round