SCMP Best Bets: Supreme debutant can Win for punters at Sha Tin

Local sports chiefs have defended their decision to include two Russian club teams in next month’s Hong Kong International Lacrosse Sixes. Moscow Lacrosse Club and Phoenix Moscow will compete in the men’s and women’s events in the city for the first time, despite the sport’s world governing body suspending Russian teams, athletes and officials in World Lacrosse events and related qualifiers indefinitely in March 2022 after the country invaded Ukraine. Hong Kong has regularly hosted tournaments...

Son Heung-min and four other South Korean players said Thursday they had put their differences aside after reports of bitter internal divisions at the heart of the national team. South Korean football has been mired in controversy since their hugely disappointing exit in the group stage of the World Cup, after which unpopular coach Hong Myung-bo quit. In the fallout, reports emerged in local media of a split involving the 34-year-old skipper Son and some of the other players, including Bayern...

Caspar Fownes will consider a supplementary entry for Megastar Heart to take on Ka Ying Rising in the Group One Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m) if the rising sprinter makes another big statement at Sha Tin on Saturday. Plagued by lameness since arriving in Hong Kong last year, the Australian import has delivered on his promise with a pair of outstanding Class Three victories this season, prompting Fownes to label him a 100-rater in waiting. While Fownes isn’t getting too carried away, given Megastar...

Life has come full circle for basketball player Adam Xu. Twelve years after returning from his studies in the United States, the sports management graduate is trying his hand at being the modern athlete-executive in Hong Kong: setting foot in the business world while playing competitive basketball with his original club, Winling. Having played three seasons with the A1 Division team following his return from New York University (NYU) in 2015, Xu said returning to where he started his career was...

Hong Kong has shaken off the Lionel Messi fiasco and a bungled 2025 World Snooker Grand Prix to establish an “international reputation” for delivering world-class sporting events. That is the view of one of the key figures responsible for the prestigious Longines Hong Kong International Horse Show, which returns for its third edition at AsiaWorld-Expo in January. Messi infamously did not budge from the bench when his Inter Miami side played a Hong Kong Stadium exhibition game in February 2024....

Alexis Badel continued his sensational form at Happy Valley with a treble on Wednesday night, with his successful mid-race move aboard consistent galloper Pope Cody the highlight. The French jockey booted home Ricky Yiu Poon-fai’s Lovely Miles and the Douglas Whyte-trained Cheerful Wongchoy before sealing his three-timer with a smart ride aboard Pope Cody in the Class Three Fung Mo Handicap (1,800m). “It’s good. I think I’ve had some good rides – some good draws, some bad draws – but we were...

England captain Harry Kane is set to cap his golden year by breaking the Three Lions’ appearance record in Thursday’s Nations League clash with Croatia. When Kane leads his national team out at Wembley to earn his 126th cap, he will surpass the previous record held by former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton since 1990. It will be the latest landmark moment in an incredible 12 months for the Bayern Munich striker, who became the first English player in 25 years to win the Ballon d’Or in...

Jon Rahm has insisted that his three-year stay with LIV Golf was not the reason for ⁠a drop-off in his performance at ⁠golf’s major championships. Rahm, who is leaving ⁠behind LIV to play a full DP World Tour schedule in 2027, said he was tired of what some media members “insinuate” was a connection between playing a lighter, less competitive schedule and being less prepared for the majors. LIV is set to wind down operations after plans to ‌come out of bankruptcy with a so-called “LIV 2.0” model...

Hong Kong prospect Kai Thompson has been told to brace himself for a bruising introduction to professional tennis, but that the short-term pain could result in long-term gain. Judy Murray, whose sons, Andy and Jamie, both won multiple grand slams and ascended to world No 1 in singles and doubles respectively, also encouraged the 18-year-old Thompson’s parents to “learn as much as possible about what tennis will demand from him and his body over the next two years”. Speaking to the South China...

Chinese table tennis star Wang Chuqin has acknowledged he is in a “slump”, taking to social media after exiting the WTT Champions Frankfurt in the round of 16 following a 36-day rest and adjustment period. The tournament, which concluded on Sunday with Japan sweeping both singles titles for a second consecutive edition, marked China’s worst Champions-tier result this year, with none of the mainland’s nine entrants reaching the semi-finals. China claimed just one title across six WTT Champions...

Jay Rooney LEADING AGILITY - R7 (5) Very strong win last start at the Valley and can repeat the dose here   Owen Goulding MASTER PHOENIX - R3 (11) Hugely unlucky when hampered last start and draws much better tonight   Paul Lally GOLDEN ACE - R5 (4) Has shown plenty of ability and should appreciate the step up in distance   Phillip Woo COUNTRY PRIDE - R6 (7) Has run well in his first three starts this term and does finally draw a gate   Trackwork Spy CLOUD NINE - R6 (4) Near misses on both...

Hong Kong jockey Angus Chung Yik-lai faces up to six weeks on the sidelines following a nasty fall on Tuesday, that killed the Tony Cruz-trained United Hua Steed. The three-year-old horse stumbled during morning barrier trials at Sha Tin, sending Chung crashing to the dirt while suffering a fatal injury as a result. While Chung was rushed to hospital, and was later diagnosed with a concussion, fractured ribs and a broken nose, United Hua Steed could not be saved, and the Hong Kong Jockey Club...