PARIS: French tennis player Alice Tubello has filed a complaint over online abuse from sports bettors following 300 hateful messages she received after a recent defeat, a source close to the case told AFP on Saturday.
The 23-year-old’s complaint to Paris prosecutors also denounced identity theft after a false Facebook page, now closed, was created in her name and posted slurs targeting her family.
The 219-ranked player said she received a torrent of abuse after losing in the quarter-finals in Arequipa, Peru, last month to local player Dana Guzman.
Tubello claimed the defeat triggered a wave of hatred from sports bettors through her social media accounts.
Contacted by AFP, Tubello slammed “recurring abuses with sports betting, sponsors of the world tennis organization.”
“Whether it’s a victory or a defeat, every time after a match, I receive hate messages,” she said.
“I’ve even had punters come behind the fence on my property.
“Security has increased at tournaments, but there is still this phenomenon of online abuse under the cover of anonymity.”
The content of the fake Facebook page, presenting her father as “a paedophile” or publishing racist messages, were particularly distressing.
“They touched my family, I will not give up,” she insisted, hopeful that investigators can identify and arrest those involved.
Fellow French tennis player Caroline Garcia also recently shared some of the disparaging messages she has received in the wake of defeats, citing “unhealthy betting” as a driver of social media abuse of players.
After her US Open first round defeat, Garcia shared “just a few” of the messages, including one telling her to shoot herself and another saying “I hope your mom dies soon.”
“Tournaments and the sport keeps partnering with betting companies, which keep attracting new people to unhealthy betting,” former world number four Garcia said.
“The days of cigarette brands sponsoring sports are long gone. Yet, here we are promoting betting companies, which actively destroy the life of some people.”
French tennis player takes legal action over online abuse
https://arab.news/rszba
French tennis player takes legal action over online abuse
- The 23-year-old’s complaint to Paris prosecutors also denounced identity theft
- Tubello claimed the defeat triggered a wave of hatred from sports bettors through her social media accounts
Root surpasses Cook’s 12,472 test runs as England reaches 232-2 in first test against Pakistan
- Root is now fifth on the all-time list of test run-scorers behind Sachin Tendulkar’s leading 15,921
- England lost Zak Crawley’s wicket in the first half-hour when he chipped a catch of Shaheen Afridi
MULTAN: Joe Root became England’s highest-run scorer in tests as the tourists continued to score at a rapid pace on the third day of the first test against Pakistan on Wednesday.
Root surpassed Alastair Cook’s 12,472 runs with a straight-driven boundary before lunch to reach 72 at the break and guided England to a brisk 232-2 in 45 overs.
Root is now fifth on the all-time list of test run-scorers behind Sachin Tendulkar’s leading 15,921.
Ben Duckett recovered from a thumb injury which denied him opening England’s first innings on Tuesday afternoon and was unbeaten on 80 off 67 balls as the tourists smashed 136 runs in the first session after resuming on 96-1.
England still trails Pakistan by 324 runs after the home team was bowled out for 556 on a placid wicket of Multan Cricket Stadium.
England lost the wicket of Zak Crawley (78) inside the first half-hour when he chipped a catch of Shaheen Shah Afridi (1-44) after adding 14 runs to his overnight score of 64. Jamal pounced on the opportunity on second attempt at short mid-wicket as Crawley tried to whip the fast bowler on the on-side.
But England continued to exhibit its ‘Bazball’ approach against both pace and spin on a benign wicket. Duckett and Root decoded the mystery spin of Abrar Ahmed with lot of aggression on an unresponsive wicket for the bowlers as the leg-spinner has so far conceded 79 runs off his 12 overs.
In an England-dominated session, Pakistan also lost two of its reviews when it went for a shocking caught behind referral against Duckett soon after the left-hander had completed his half century, but the television replays suggested the bat was nowhere near the ball.
Captain Shan Masood then went for a second referral against Root off the same bowler, but the TV replays showed the ball was missing the leg stump.
Jurgen Klopp to be head of Red Bull football operations
BERLIN: Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has a new role as head of football operations at Red Bull, which owns the Leipzig, Salzburg and New York clubs, the company said Wednesday.
“After nearly 25 years on the sidelines, I couldn’t be more excited to be involved in a project like this,” said Klopp, who left Liverpool at the end of last season after nine years in charge.
Saudi rugby players want ‘taste of international tournaments,’ says coach
- Sami Smara, technical director and head coach of young team, says players gained valuable experience at Asia Rugby Sevens Emirates Trophy event in Nepal
KATHMANDU: Saudi Arabia’s rugby team showed off a fresh and young lineup at the Asia Rugby Sevens Emirates Trophy competition held recently in Nepal’s capital city Kathmandu.
Despite the team finishing last, the tournament was an opportunity for the new-look squad to gain valuable experience.
The two-day tournament saw 16 men’s teams and eight women’s teams from Asia compete, with the Philippines winning both categories.
The tournament was held on Oct. 4 and 5 at the Dashrath Stadium in Kathmandu, which despite being 1,400 meters above sea level was praised for its great natural pitch.
Saudi Arabia fielded one of the youngest teams in the tournament with most of the players under 24 years of age.
Sami Smara, the technical director and head coach of the team, said the association has a plan for the Riyadh 2034 Asian Games.
“We want to join more tournaments to gain experience and build a strong team,” he said. “We have club activities in Saudi Arabia for young players, and this will help us grow.
“This tournament was our consecutive appearance and we wanted to focus on new players getting a taste of international tournaments.”
In Group C, Saudi Arabia faced strong opposition including Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan and Qatar. Although they lost all three matches, the team did well, scoring tries against Kazakhstan and Qatar.
Captain of the team, Mohammed Al-Janoubi, said that playing at a high altitude made it difficult for the players to breathe during their first match, which added to the challenge.
He also highlighted that although the team had been preparing for several months, injuries during the preparation phase hindered their readiness. This combination of factors made their opening game particularly tough.
Saudi Arabia put a up a strong fight against Qatar in their first match despite the final scoreline. They eventually went down 39-7 at the end but conceded only two tries and converted one themselves in the second half.
They then lost 55-5 to Kazakhstan and 52-0 to Sri Lanka.
In the 13th-place playoff match against Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia showed their fighting spirit and led the match briefly. They were down 12-0 in the first half but made a strong comeback in the second.
After two tries, Mohammed Almoalim converted to put the team ahead 14-12. Unfortunately, they conceded a late try and ended up losing 19-14.
However, Al-Janoubi was happy with how the team played.
“The opposition was of high level, but we fought the best we can,” he said. “Most of the players were playing at this level for the first time. Our focus was on gaining international experience, and we succeeded. This experience will help us as we move forward.”
Coach Smara said rugby was getting good support from the Ministry of Sport and the National Olympic Committee.
“The government is very supportive of sports, and rugby is getting the help it needs to improve. We want to encourage local players and make a better team over time.”
He said rugby in Saudi Arabia has grown over the past few years. “The rugby was limited (in the past) to expats and was only played in compounds. But now there is governance of the league too.
“Thanks to support from the national Olympic committee, the (Saudi Arabian Rugby Federation) now has senior and youth competitions. We have rugby in the sports curriculum of the Ministry of Education too. I feel good things are to follow now,” Smara added.
There has been other progress, with the under-18 team playing in Malaysia last month.
And Smara said plans for women to participate internationally are in the pipeline, with a full team ready and preparing back home.
Errani and Paolini among 3 doubles teams confirmed for WTA Finals in Riyadh
- Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe will be making their second consecutive appearance as a team at the prestigious season-ending event
- Katerina Siniakova won the WTA Finals doubles title in 2021, while Taylor Townsend will be making her tournament debut
RIYADH: The WTA has announced the doubles teams that have qualified for the WTA Finals Riyadh, which are Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini, Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe, and Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend.
They are the third, fourth and fifth pairings to secure their participation after Jelena Ostapenko and Lyudmyla Kichenok, and Hsieh Su-Wei and Elise Mertens confirmed their qualification in September.
Over half the doubles field is now set for the WTA Finals Riyadh, with three qualification places remaining on the PIF Race to the WTA Finals.
The WTA Finals Riyadh is a key element of the Saudi Tennis Federation’s plans to grow the sport in the Kingdom and have 1 million participating by 2030.
This is a part of the WTA’s aims to grow the game worldwide.
Paolini will debut at the WTA Finals, while Errani returns, having competed in doubles from 2012-2014 and qualified in singles in 2012 and 2013.
The Italian duo won the WTA 500 Upper Austria Ladies Linz and the WTA 1000 Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome, finished as runners-up at Roland-Garros, and clinched gold in doubles at the Paris Olympics.
This season marks Canadian Dabrowski’s sixth WTA Finals appearance, with her partner Routliffe being the first New Zealand qualifier last year. They went undefeated in the 2023 group stages and won the WTA 250 Rothesay Open Nottingham.
They also reached four finals at WTA 1000 events in Toronto, Miami, Eastbourne, and Wimbledon, where Routliffe became the PIF WTA World No. 1 in doubles.
Siniakova and Townsend, who won Wimbledon in July, have also qualified for the WTA Finals. Townsend debuts, while Siniakova makes her sixth consecutive appearance, having won in 2021 and finishing as runner-up in 2018 and 2022.
The Czech-US duo teamed up in May, reaching the quarterfinals in Rome, winning Wimbledon, and making the semifinals at the US Open.
The 2024 WTA Finals features the top eight singles and doubles teams on the PIF Race to the WTA Finals Leaderboard, with the eighth spot going to the singles player and doubles team that have won a Grand Slam if ranked No. 8 to No. 20.
This showcases the world’s best eight singles players and doubles teams competing in a round-robin format.
The singles champion lifts the WTA Finals Billie Jean King Trophy and the doubles champions earns the WTA Finals Martina Navratilova Trophy.
Beterbiev and Bivol arrive for Riyadh Season’s ‘IV Crown Showdown’
- Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol fight for all 4 light-heavy belts
- Both unbeaten, but Beterbiev has boxing’s only 100% KO record
RIYADH: Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol have arrived here for one of the most anticipated fights of the year, which will see the winner take home all four light-heavyweight belts.
The event on Oct. 12, a part of Riyadh Season 2024, is an intriguing matchup between two unbeaten fighters. Bivol is 23-0, 12 knockouts, while Beterbiev is 20-0, but boasts boxing’s only 100 percent knockout ratio.
Fans and boxing enthusiasts gathered to witness the champions face-off here for their bout at Kingdom Arena, which is expected to garner millions of viewers worldwide.
The night will feature several compelling fights on the undercard.
In the middleweight division, Britain’s Chris Eubank Jr. will challenge Poland’s Kamil Szeremeta, and in the heavyweight category British boxer Fabio Wardley will face fellow countryman Fraser Clarke.
In the cruiserweight division, Australia’s Jai Opetaia will meet Britain’s Jack Massey. And in the light-heavyweight division Britain’s Ben Whittaker and fellow Brit Liam Cameron will square off.
The event will also feature a women’s bout between Australia’s Skye Nicolson and Britain’s Raven Chapman.
Additionally, fans will be treated to Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Al-Aqel facing Mexico’s Jesus Gonzalez in the welterweight division.