WASHINGTON: Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo and NBA scoring leader Joel Embiid lead a record-tying four international starters in Sunday’s 71st NBA All-Star Game.
Greek star Antetokounmpo, last year’s NBA Finals MVP after leading the Milwaukee Bucks to their first title in 50 years, will spark Team LeBron James in the elite talent showdown at James’s home area of Cleveland, Ohio.
Antetokoumpo averages 29.4 points a game, second in the NBA, just ahead of Los Angeles Lakers superstar James at 29.1 per contest.
James called Antetokounmpo “the hardest playing player in All-Star history” upon taking him in a player draft and the “Greek Freak” has the Bucks contending for another crown.
“I just try to play as hard as I can, play for the team and always play to win,” Antetokounmpo said.
“We’re happy we won the championship last year, but we’re not satisfied. We’re trying to put ourselves in a position that we can be one of those teams that play down the stretch in June.”
Embiid, the Cameroonian forward who leads the NBA with 29.6 points a game for Philadelphia, will ignite Team Kevin Durant, whose namesake captain is injured and will not play.
The Sixers star could be the first center to win the scoring title since Shaquille O’Neal in 2000.
“You have to do whatever it takes to win,” Embiid said. “I know my role and it’s to go out there and dominate. I’m going to get the ball a lot and I’m going to make things happen.
“It’s all about making the right plays, finding my teammates, looking to score and just being aggressive.”
Serbian center Nikola Jokic, the 2021 NBA MVP, will also start for Team LeBron while Canadian forward Andrew Wiggins of the Golden State Warriors is also in the opening lineup for Durant’s squad in his first All-Star appearance.
Memphis standout guard Ja Morant, averaging 26.4 points a game, makes his first All-Star Game appearance as a starter for Team Durant, which also features Boston swingman Jayson Tatum in Durant’s place and Atlanta guard Trae Young, who ranks fifth in the NBA with 27.8 points a game and fourth in the league with 9.3 assists a contest.
LeBron’s other fellow starters include eight-time NBA All-Star Stephen Curry of Golden State and five-time All-Star DeMar DeRozan of the Chicago Bulls.
Each team has a global big man among the reserves with Utah’s Rudy Gobert, a Frenchman who leads the NBA with 14.8 rebounds a game, on the bench for Team Durant and Slovenian playmaker Luka Doncic of Dallas among Team LeBron substitutes.
This becomes the fifth consecutive year that James has served as captain of an All-Star team since the format changed from an East versus West matchup and he is trying to stay unbeaten.
Team LeBron beat a Curry-captained squad in 2018, another guided by Antetokounmpo in 2019 and 2020 and defeated Team Durant 170-150 last year with Antetokounmpo taking All-Star MVP honors.
Philadelphia guard James Harden is injured and will not play for Team LeBron while Team Durant lacks injured Golden State forward Draymond Green.
Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra will coach Team Durant while Phoenix’s Monty Williams coaches Team LeBron.
Among veteran All-Star reserves are 12-time All-Star Chris Paul of Phoenix and six-time All-Star Jimmy Butler of Miami for Team LeBron and Team Durant’s three-time All-Star Devin Booker of Phoenix and two-time All-Star Zach LaVine of Chicago.
First-time All-Stars include Charlotte guard LaMelo Ball for Team Durant and Cleveland guard Darius Garland and Cleveland center Jarrett Allen for Team LeBron.
Global talent powers LeBron v. Durant at NBA All-Star Game
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Global talent powers LeBron v. Durant at NBA All-Star Game
- Greek star Antetokounmpo will spark Team LeBron James in the elite talent showdown at James's home area of Cleveland
- Embiid will ignite Team Kevin Durant, whose namesake captain is injured and will not play
Inaugural Kidzink Pearl Cup wraps up at Dubai Offshore Club
- Sailors aged 8-18 competed in the Optimist Coached, Optimist, ILCA 4, 29er and RS Feva classes
DUBAI: The inaugural Kidzink Pearl Cup wrapped up in Dubai after welcoming more than 100 youth sailors from 17 countries for one of the Middle East’s first international open youth sailing regattas.
Held from Dec. 15-21 at Dubai Offshore Sailing Club with the support of Dubai Sports Council, the Kidzink Pearl Cup brought together sailors aged 8-18 to compete in the Optimist Coached, Optimist, ILCA 4, 29er and RS Feva classes.
Backed by global educational design company Kidzink as title sponsor and strategic partner, the event combined four days of competitive racing with ideal windy conditions, with three days of Olympic-level coaching delivered by an international coaching team, giving young sailors the chance to train and race in competitive and challenging conditions alongside peers from different countries and sailing cultures.
The young sailors also took part in interactive onshore sessions developed with Kidzink’s research team, with the event putting the focus on leadership, inclusivity and clean-water awareness.
Charlotte Borghesi, founder and general manager of Kidzink, said: “The energy throughout the week was incredible. You could see learning happening in real time, friendships forming on the dock and young sailors growing in confidence every day.
The Kidzink Pearl Cup is about more than racing, it’s about creating an environment where young people feel inspired, supported and excited to learn.”
A two-time world champion sailor herself, Borghesi brings first-hand experience to the event, having made history in 2023 as the first female helmswoman to win the SB20 World Championship, followed by her team’s victory at the SB20 Women’s World Sailing Championship in Singapore in 2025.
Alongside the racing program, sailors took part in Kidzink’s interactive learning sessions. The UAE sessions built on work first piloted at the Kidzink-supported 29er Class European and World Championships earlier this year.
Local talent featured strongly throughout the week, with members of the DOSC racing squad lining up alongside international competitors. Among them were 14-year-old Chloe Montanet and 12-year-old Edward West.
In the Optimist Coached fleet, first place was claimed by Lev Ryashin (RUS), followed by Matteo Bertucci (ITA) in second and Gonzalo Montero (ESP) in third.
In the Optimist class Jean-Luc Herve (UAE) topped the podium, followed by Xuan Ya Tong (KSA) in second, and Miquel Rossello-Collinge (ESP) rounding out the podium.
The ILCA 4 title went to Fynley Britton (GBR), with Indraneel Roy (IND), and Katyayani Kaushik (IND) completing the podium.
In the 29er fleet, Dominic West and Fynley Britton took top honours, followed by Lily Britton and Matteo Gardenghi in second place with Noah Fisk and Alex Simmonds third.
The RS Feva Coached podium consisted of Ameya Rahul Nair and Arya Khanna in first, Miles Wilson-Brown and Noah Kahlon second, and Finlay Henderson and Rayan Abdallah third.
“Our work in sailing reflects our broader mission to design and create educational environments and experiences where young people thrive,” Borghesi added. “The Kidzink Pearl Cup is just the beginning of much more to come.”
