Japan drop table tennis star Mima Ito, could axe Sora Matsushima-Miwa Harimoto partnership

Hong Kong delivered a strong medal haul at the Asian Para Games on Wednesday, with the city winning their first gold after boccia player Vivian Lau Wai-yan beat teammate Cheung Yuen in the final in Nagoya. City athletes also won four silver and four bronze medals during an action-packed day in Japan. The main area of success for the city’s men and women was on the boccia court, where Hong Kong enjoyed a dominant outing, eventually claiming one gold, three silvers and one bronze. Lau and Cheung...

Chinese table tennis star Fan Zhendong has again condemned secret filming after photos of a private trip were leaked online. On Tuesday, a self-proclaimed “superfan” uploaded two photo-slide show videos of Fan onto social media, captioning them: “No more hiding, let’s share.” The images showed Fan walking alone through Shanghai Pudong International Airport wearing a mask and hat, showing his movements on escalators and boarding. In one photo taken from just behind him, the poster claimed Fan was...

LeBron James said the Philadelphia 76ers still had plenty of room for improvement after launching their NBA season with an impressive opening night victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday. James, 41, launched his quest for a fifth NBA championship with 14 points and seven assists in a 106-100 defeat of the reigning champions at Madison Square Garden. But despite an encouraging first win in a Philadelphia uniform, James was keeping his feet firmly on the ground. “It’s going to take some...

Louis Oosthuizen has joined the LIV Golf exodus, saying it was “time to move on” after four years on the breakaway tour. Twice a LIV tournament runner-up, and captain of the Southern Guards GC team, Oosthuizen is poised to return from a two-month injury lay-off in this week’s Link Hong Kong Open from Thursday. The bottom fell out of LIV this year when its Saudi Arabian backers turned off the money taps. Players have until Sunday to declare whether they would commit to a new iteration, after the...

Jay Rooney LOVE TOGETHER - R6 (8) Cracking run on return and can take advantage of a good draw and light weight   Owen Goulding EMBRACES - R9 (9) Drawn well, on a dangerous mark and will get the pace needed to mow them down   Paul Lally PEGAS - R8 (8) Drawn to get the best run in the race from barrier one and can sail through late on   Phillip Woo LOVE TOGETHER - R6 (8) Caught the eye first up and can deliver up in grade off a light weight   Trackwork Spy LOVE TOGETHER - R6 (8) Hit the line well...

Chinese table tennis star Sun Yingsha has warned fans against organising any birthday celebrations ahead of her turning 26 years old, calling on supporters to redirect their attention to the court. In recent years, supporters of prominent Chinese athletes have increasingly mirrored the entertainment industry’s so-called “fan circles” by organising lavish tributes, including commercial LED billboard campaigns in city centres, charity drives, offline promotional displays and drone light...

Hong Kong’s fencers have set their sights on the Los Angeles Paralympics after winning silver in the women’s foil team event at the Asian Para Games on Tuesday. Lam Ka-man, Yu Chui-yee, Tong Nga-ting and Chung Yuen-ping lost 30-12 to China in the final at the Nagoya City Inae Sports Centre, having come from behind to beat Thailand 30-23 in the semi-final. Despite the presence of veteran Yu, who also took women’s foil category A bronze on Monday, Hong Kong were always chasing gold and trailed...

Caspar Fownes is “very happy” with the start of his season and is looking to keep the winners rolling in with the likes of Love Together, Perfect General and Forza Toro at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. The champion trainer secured his fifth title last campaign and has slotted home nine winners so far this season, sitting fifth in the championship standings which are headed by Pierre Ng Pang-chi on 12 winners. Known as the ‘King of the Valley’, Fownes is taking his start at face value and is...

Inigo Calderon has called on local football chiefs to join him in “trying to do my part” to grow the game in Hong Kong. The Spaniard’s easy-on-the-eye Kitchee team delivered “probably the most complete” performance of his 15-month reign to embarrass Lee Man 5-1 on Monday, leaving him to conclude that it was a good time to say his piece because “we won and I’m not making excuses”. Unhappy with kick-off times and routinely poor playing surfaces, head coach Calderon said a 6.30pm start had aided...

Gianni Infantino’s campaign for re-election as Fifa president is set to move this week to Japan and a meeting scheduled for Wednesday with the Asian Football Confederation. This comes after Infantino apologised last week in Zurich, Switzerland, to Fifa’s 37-member ruling council – which he chairs – for “mistakes” he made in assembling a now-scrapped US$4.2 billion sell-off plan for the World Cup. The council is the main decision-making body at Fifa with a global spread of officials. The planned...

A charity football tournament in Hong Kong on Monday allowed some players a temporary release from the “quagmire, anxiety and stress” of their daily lives. The event at Kings Park was staged to raise funds and awareness for Branches of Hope (BoH), the non-governmental organisation that serves refugees, asylum seekers and human trafficking survivors in Hong Kong. Featuring 16 teams and around 250 players, the seven-a-side Home and Away Charity Football Tournament was expected to raise more than...

A charity football tournament in Hong Kong on Monday allowed some players a temporary release from the “quagmire, anxiety and stress” of their daily lives. The event at Kings Park was staged to raise funds and awareness for Branches of Hope (BoH), the non-governmental organisation that serves refugees, asylum seekers and human trafficking survivors in Hong Kong. Featuring 16 teams and around 250 players, the seven-a-side Home and Away Charity Football Tournament was expected to raise more than...