Jamaica's beach volleyball teams are set to compete at the NORCECA Beach Volleyball Continental Tour in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic from October 2 – 4, 2024. This is the first NORCECA Tour since the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Jamaica has steadily built a reputation in regional beach volleyball, with the national teams achieving notable results in recent years. Jamaica made it to the final round of Olympic Qualifications in 2016 in the
women’s category. More recently Jamaica’s beach volleyball teams competed at the 2023 Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in San Salvador El Salvador.
The campaign to qualify for beach volleyball at the Olympic Games, Los Angeles 2028 represents a new chapter for Jamaica’s beach volleyball, one that will take Jamaica’s players to international qualifying
events, giving them the opportunity to face world-class talent and gain invaluable experience.
Jamaica’s male team will be represented by Ryck Webb and Mark Blake. Both players were recipients of individual awards at the 2023 CAZOVA Senior Men’s Championship and competed at the 2023 CAC
Games.
Jamaica’s female team will be represented by experienced campaigner Petal Smith and newcomer Kristina Lumsden-Miller who was a member of the Jamaica’s history making Senior Women’s Volleyball Team who created history by winning the 2023 CAZOCA Senior Women’s Championship.
The Jamaica Volleyball Association is calling on corporate Jamaica and fans to rally behind the national beach volleyball teams as they embark on this exciting journey. Sponsorship opportunities are available,
offering companies and brands the chance to align with one of the nation’s most promising sporting campaigns.
Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane remains a doubt for their Champions League clash with Aston Villa on Wednesday, coach Vincent Kompany has revealed.
Kane scored four goals to lead Bayern to a 9-2 demolition of visitors Dinamo Zagreb in their opening game in the competition's new-look league phase, the first time any team had scored nine goals in a Champions League match.
The England captain also moved to 33 Champions League goals in his career in that win, overtaking Wayne Rooney as his country's all-time leading scorer in the competition.
However, he then failed to have a shot in Bayern's 1-1 Bundesliga draw against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday before picking up a knock late on.
"Harry trained today, and things went well. But we need to wait and see until tomorrow and be sure things stay like that," Kompany said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"Then we can calmly make the right decision. Hopefully everything stays fine."
The Bayern coach expects his players to enjoy the challenge against Unai Emery's in-form Villa team.
"Everyone knows it's been over 40 years since Aston Villa last played in the European Cup. What they did last season was extraordinary, they've earned it," Kompany said.
"They're a really organised team with a good atmosphere at home. But Bayern are used to these nights. We want to enjoy it, and the players are hopefully up for playing here."
Forward Serge Gnabry, who played for Arsenal and West Brom before heading back to Germany with Bayern, was upbeat about his return to England.
"England is very special. There's a great atmosphere in the old stadiums," Gnabry said.
"Football is often the biggest thing for people here in England, I'm looking forward to playing here tomorrow. It'll be Villa's first Champions League home game for many years, the place will be rocking."
Jobe Bellingham's stunning goal helped Sunderland go top of the Championship table as they beat Derby County 2-0, capitalising on West Brom's slip-up against Middlesbrough.
Bellingham got off the mark for 2024-25 with a crashing finish from 25 yards out to put Sunderland ahead shortly before half-time at the Stadium of Light.
Wilson Isidor then tapped home following great work from Romaine Mundle after the break as the Black Cats earned their sixth win from eight league games this term.
While Derby – who missed several chances to get back into the game – sit 13th on nine points, Regis Le Bris' side overtook West Brom to go top of the table on 18.
The Baggies relinquished their position due to a 1-0 home defeat against Middlesbrough, with Hayden Hackney netting the only goal after 73 minutes.
No away team had scored at the Hawthorns in almost six months, but Hackney found the bottom corner with a sweeping finish after taking in Riley McGree's pass for the winner.
Carlos Corberan's men slipped two places to third, with Burnley also overtaking them by beating Wayne Rooney's Plymouth Argyle 1-0 at Turf Moor.
The Clarets needed a 26th-minute Josh Brownhill penalty, awarded for Darko Gyabi's foul on Josh Cullen, to get over the line despite Plymouth not attempting a single shot on target.
Fellow high-flyers Blackburn Rovers, meanwhile, suffered their first defeat of the campaign at Coventry City, who recorded a deeply impressive 3-0 win at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
Jake Bidwell, Haji Wright and Brandon Thomas-Asante were on target for last season's FA Cup semi-finalists, who climbed to 16th in the table. Blackburn sit fifth.
Leeds United are level with Blackburn, but have a superior goal difference and sit fourth, after fighting back to draw 1-1 at Norwich City.
Josh Sargent's early penalty gave Norwich the lead over their former boss Daniel Farke, but Largie Ramazani's goal on the hour earned Leeds a point amid a better second-half display.
Newcastle United saw off AFC Wimbledon with little fuss as Fabian Schar's penalty sealed a 1-0 win in the EFL Cup.
Tuesday's tie was rearranged and moved to St James' Park following flooding damage at the Dons' home ground last week.
And despite relying on a spot-kick from Schar in first-half stoppage time to get over the line, Newcastle never looked in danger of offering the lower-league visitors a sniff of an upset.
Miguel Almiron won the penalty after he was fouled by Joe Pigott, though referee Darren Bond needed a lengthy consultation with his assistant before he pointed to the spot.
Almiron, Sean Longstaff and Harvey Barnes could have added to Newcastle's lead, though Eddie Howe's team were not made to pay for their profligacy, with the Dons not managing to get a shot on target.
Newcastle will host Chelsea in the fourth round later in October.
Data Debrief: A gulf in class
It was as comfortable as it can get for Newcastle, who had 18 shots and finished with 2.05 expected goals (xG) to Wimbledon's 0.07.
Since losing 1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday in 2015-16, Newcastle have now progressed from their last five ties in the EFL Cup third round without conceding a single goal, although they needed a penalty shoot-out in 2022-23 after a 0-0 stalemate with Crystal Palace.
Inter thumped Red Star Belgrade 4-0 for their first victory in the Champions League this season, with Mehdi Taremi among the scorers as he got off the mark for the Nerazzurri.
Taremi also provided two assists as Simone Inzaghi's men cruised to three points at San Siro, building on their goalless draw at Manchester City on matchday one.
It was Hakan Calhanoglu that gave Inter the lead 11 minutes in, curling a sumptuous 25-yard free-kick in off the post to leave Omri Glazer in the Red Star goal with no chance.
Inter had the ball in the net on two more occasions in the first half, but Marko Arnautovic and Denzel Dumfries were adjudged offside, while later Henrikh Mkhitaryan blazed over the bar from close range.
Inter doubled their advantage just before the hour-mark as former Milan midfielder Rade Krunic was robbed of possession just outside his own area by Taremi, who slipped the ball through to Arnautovic to side-foot home from 10 yards.
Lautaro Martinez then came off the bench to make it 3-0 from another Taremi assist, before the former Porto man – who joined on a free agent ahead of this season – got on the scoresheet himself, converting a late penalty after Vanja Drkusic felled Martinez.
Inter go to Young Boys for their next Champions League fixture on October 23, while Red Star travel to Monaco a day earlier.
Data Debrief: Martinez closing in on Adriano
While Taremi was the star of the show for Inter on Tuesday, it was fellow forward Martinez who closed in on a piece of club history with his goal off the bench.
Martinez has now scored 13 Champions League goals for the 2022-23 runners-up, moving level with Julio Cruz for second spot in the club's all-time scoring charts in the competition. Only Adriano, with 14, has netted more such goals for the Nerazzurri.
Robert Lewandowski scored twice as Barcelona thrashed Young Boys 5-0 on Tuesday, bouncing back from their opening Champions League defeat at Monaco.
Hansi Flick's team were beaten 2-1 by Monaco in their first game in the competition's new-look league phase, but there were no surprises when Young Boys visited Montjuic on matchday two.
Lewandowski gave the hosts the lead in the eighth minute by tapping in a low Raphinha cross, following good combination play between the Brazilian and teenage sensation Lamine Yamal.
After the hosts squandered some decent chances, a quickfire double from Raphinha and Inigo Martinez gave Barca a 3-0 lead, the Brazilian netting a rebound in the 34th minute and Martinez scoring with a towering header less than three minutes later.
Lewandowski got his second and Barca's fourth shortly after half-time, nodding a Martinez corner home from inside the six-yard box, then Young Boys defender Mohamed Camara bundled the ball into his own net while trying to clear Alejandro Balde's cross late on.
Data Debrief: Lewandowski level with Messi
As well as helping Barca to a crucial victory following their matchday one defeat, Lewandowski's double saw him draw level with Lionel Messi as the most ruthless finishers in Champions League history.
He now averages 0.79 goals per 90 minutes in the competition, a figure only matched by Blaugrana great Messi among all players to play a minimum of 50 matches.
Cristiano Ronaldo (0.77 goals per 90), Ruud van Nistelrooy (0.77) and Karim Benzema (0.59) trail Lewandowski and Messi for that metric.
The Poland star has also now scored 51 Champions League goals after turning 30 years old, becoming just the second player to accomplish that feat after Ronaldo (68).
Jamaica’s team of Tommi Gore and Senna Summerbell produced a creditable showing in the fifth race of the ADAC GT4 Germany series as they secured two top-15 finishes at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Styria, at the weekend.
The Jamaican duo, dubbed the Reggae Racers, displayed their prowess as they drove their Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Club Sport to a 14th place finish after qualifying in ninth position in race one.
They were up with the pace from a strong start but later faded down the track in a fiercely competitive field.
However, the Avia W&S Motorsport representatives improved significantly in the second race, where they went nine places better to place fifth after placing fourth in qualifying.
The team of Jan Marschalkowski and Philipp Gogollok from Eastside Motorsport, finished tops to register their first win of the series. They won ahead of Finn Zulauf and Josef Knopp, also representing Avia W&S Motorsport.
With much positive to take from their performances, Gore and Summerbell will target even more improvements in the final race of the season scheduled for October 18-20 in Hockenheim, Germany.
“I am so happy to be a part of this team and ready to end the year strong. We had a big jump in results from the start of the season with this change, so we can only expect things to get better from here,” Gore said.
The Avia W&S Motorsports team, which currently occupies second position in the team ranking on 179 points, are the defending champions in the ADAC GT4 Series. They are 11 points behind leaders Hofor Racing.
Manchester City got their Champions League campaign up and running with a 4-0 rout of Slovan Bratislava on Tuesday, with Ilkay Gundogan, Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and James McAtee scoring.
The Premier League champions set up camp in Slovan's half and laid siege to their goal for the duration of the contest at the Stadion Tehelne Pole.
They only needed eight minutes to make the breakthrough as Gundogan scored his first goal since returning to the club after a single season at Barcelona, with his shot deflecting in off Kyriakos Savvidis.
Foden then doubled City's lead with his first goal of the season in the 15th minute, latching onto a pass from Jeremy Doku and curling a strike into the bottom corner.
Haaland killed the game as a contest just before the hour mark, sprinting onto Rico Lewis's pass then stepping around goalkeeper Dominik Takac before slotting into the empty net for his 42nd goal in Europe's premier club competition.
Foden then added an assist to his earlier goal in the 74th minute, teeing up youngster McAtee for his first ever City goal with a dinked pass.
City, winners of the 2022-23 Champions League, opened this season's campaign with a 0-0 draw with Inter and now sit fourth in the standings. Slovan, meanwhile, are 35th after also losing 5-1 to Celtic on matchday one.
Data Debrief: City equal United record
City's victory saw them stretch their unbeaten run in the Champions League to 25 matches, with a penalty shoot-out defeat to Real Madrid last season the only blot on their record since the start of the 2022-23 campaign.
It is the joint-longest streak in the competition's history, alongside Manchester United's run between September 2007 and May 2009, which included them lifting the trophy in 2007-08.
City have won 17 and drawn eight of their matches in that run, plundering 64 goals to just 38 by United on their streak.
They will have the chance to overhaul their neighbours outright on matchday three, when they host Sparta Prague.
Karim Adeyemi scored a first-half hat-trick as Borussia Dortmund hammered Celtic 7-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday, scoring their first five goals in the opening 42 minutes.
The 80,000-strong crowd started the celebrations early at the Westfalenstadion, with Emre Can scoring from the spot in the seventh minute after Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel upended Jamie Gittens and was booked.
Celtic momentarily hushed the deafening Yellow Wall two minutes later when Daizen Maeda bundled in a cross from Arne Engels but Adeyemi restored the lead with a shot deflected in off Auston Trusty in the 11th minute.
The Germany winger extended the hosts' lead just before the half-hour mark when he lashed a shot into the top corner past a diving Schmeichel, then won a 39th-minute penalty for Serhou Guirassy to tuck away before completing his hat-trick three minutes later.
Guirassy grabbed his second goal of the night midway through the second half for last season’s Champions League runners-up.
BVB substitute Felix Nmecha then completed the rout with 11 minutes left, with Celtic having Schmeichel to thank for keeping the sobering scoreline to seven.
It is two straight wins for Dortmund to start this season’s competition, while Celtic have been brought emphatically back down to earth after putting five goals past Slovan Bratislava on Matchday One.
Data Debrief: Adeyemi matches Gomez feat
Gittens was Dortmund’s star man in their opening win against Club Brugge, but it was Adeyemi who came to the fore here, becoming only the second German player to score three goals in the first half of a Champions League match.
The only other such player to achieve the feat was Mario Gomez for Bayern Munich in 2011 against Napoli.
Guirassy, meanwhile, has joined Gittens and Adeyemi in making a fine start to the tournament, racing on to three goals with his double.
Dortmund were rewarded for their attackers' accurate finishing, getting 13 of their 16 attempts on target and vastly outperforming their xG total of 2.91.
Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has reiterated his view that players should be punished for provoking fans, after some supporters threw objects at Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in Sunday's derby.
Atleti played out a 1-1 draw with their cross-city rivals on Sunday, as both teams maintained their unbeaten starts to the season in LaLiga.
The match was suspended after Eder Militao opened the scoring in the 64th minute, with fans from ultras group Fondo Sur throwing objects including cigarette lighters at Courtois during the visitors' celebrations.
After the game, which saw Angel Correa net a 95th-minute equaliser, Atletico's players were heavily criticised for applauding the ultras, while Simeone attracted scrutiny for suggesting Courtois' actions contributed to the unsavoury scenes.
Speaking ahead of Atleti's Champions League trip to Benfica on Wednesday, Simeone defended those comments as he said: "The other day I didn't shut up, I said something many see. I received millions of messages thanking me for what I said, many are represented in that situation.
"If it was up to me, I would sanction the one who provokes from the place he has as a protagonist. Now society is very sensitive and we need firmness."
Despite saying some took his comments out of context, the Argentine refused to retract what he said, adding: "I'm calm because I am clear and up front, I like to say what I feel. I wouldn't change anything I said.
"I have said three times that I condemn violence, showed rejection of the aggressors, said that as a club it was a great opportunity to show outwardly what should be done.
"Then I gave an opinion that they twisted and took wherever they wanted. I think it is good for football if that debate is opened up. The other day it was Courtois' turn but it could have been someone else. But people stop at what they want.
"I said one thing and then I gave an opinion and many took the opportunity to have fun between Monday and Tuesday, but now we are thinking about Benfica."
Atletico said on Monday they had banned a person identified as taking part in the violence and were working with police to identify others, who will also be disciplined.
Abdallah Sima scored twice as Brest maintained their perfect Champions League start by thrashing Salzburg 4-0 at the Red Bull Arena, completing an Austrian double.
Brest kicked off their first-ever European campaign with a 2-1 home win over Sturm Graz two weeks ago, and they built on that victory with a clinical counterattacking performance in Salzburg on Tuesday.
Brest had one shot on target in the opening half, and it was all they required to take the lead. The visitors cleared their lines from a Salzburg attack and Ludovic Ajorque's pass found Sima, who held off his marker to slip his finish past the goalkeeper.
Salzburg had spurned chances in the opening half with Amar Dedic and Karim Konate both shooting wide, and in the second half they were completely opened up by the visitors.
A long clearance from visiting goalkeeper Marco Bizot in the 66th minute ended with Mahdi Camara doubling Brest's lead with a superb strike, then four minutes later, Sima pounced on a rebound for his second.
Things got worse for the home side with 15 minutes remaining when Mathias Pereira Lage struck from outside the area to complete the rout and leave Salzburg still waiting for their first point of the campaign.
Data Debrief: Rare feat for Brest
It is fair to say Brest have taken to Europe's premier club competition smoothly.
They are the first team to win their first two matches in the Champions League since Moldovan side Sheriff Tiraspol managed the feat in 2021.
They are also just the second French club to achieve it, after Paris Saint-Germain did so back in 1994.
Stuttgart were held to a 1-1 home draw by Sparta Prague in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Sparta midfielder Kaan Kairinen cancelled out an early opener from Enzo Millot.
His goal came against the run of play in the seventh minute, as Millot connected with an excellent lofted cross from Maximilian Mittelstadt to head home.
Sparta almost responded through Martin Vitik, who hit the post, but they had the goal they had been working towards when Kairinen expertly fired a free-kick into the top-right corner.
Midfielder Veljko Birmancevic had chances to put Sparta in front either side of the break, while Stuttgart had the upper hand throughout most of the second half but could not seal the three points.
It was a step in the right direction for Stuttgart in their first home Champions League game since the 2009-10 season, but they have just one point from their opening two matches, after losing to Real Madrid last time out.
Data Debrief: Free-shooting Millot gets his reward
Millot's goal came from one of his five attempts, which set the record for a Stuttgart player in a single Champions League match.
Of the 1.8 expected goals (xG) Stuttgart accumulated, Millot was responsible for 0.61.
Stuttgart ended up having 26 shots, 12 more than the visitors, and some 47 touches in the opposition box, but could not turn that dominance into a winner.
Real Madrid will make a late call on whether Kylian Mbappe is ready to return to the side for their Champions League clash at Lille, so says Carlo Ancelotti.
Mbappe sustained a muscle injury during Madrid's 3-2 win over Deportivo Alaves in September.
He was subsequently forced to sit out Sunday's derby against Atletico Madrid, which finished 1-1, and was expected to miss around three weeks.
However, the 25-year-old has recovered sufficiently to travel to northern France for Wednesday's Champions League tie.
"Mbappe has recovered very well, very quickly," Ancelotti said.
"He trained yesterday, and today, he will do the full training session with us. Then we'll make the decision together because the last thing we want to do is take risks.
"Mbappe has had an overload... and in less than a week he has recovered well.
"He wanted to travel to play. We'll see what training he does today. If he's at full strength, he can play. If there is no risk, he will play from the first minute."
Madrid are second in LaLiga, three points behind rivals Barcelona after eight matches.
And Ancelotti knows there is room for improvement, especially when they face Lille, who sit fifth in Ligue 1.
"We have to get points, taking into account the value of the opponent. They are a team that plays very well. They like to play with the ball, they have young players with quality," the Italian said.
"Every match has to be fought. That's why we're here. We are doing well. We are convinced we can improve. We are ready. There are a lot of games, but we are pretty good."
Ancelotti was also asked about the heated Madrid derby. On Monday, Atletico permanently banned a fan for throwing an object onto the pitch during the game at the Metropolitano Stadium.
The derby was suspended for just over 20 minutes after home fans hurled objects onto the pitch as the visitors celebrated the opening goal.
"The point is that violent people are not allowed in football. Not at Atletico, but on any pitch. Football doesn't need them," Ancelotti said.
"Let them stay somewhere else, somewhere that is not dangerous. I'm talking in general. Whether it's a violent person from Madrid, Barca, Atleti, Villarreal, it doesn't matter. Let the violent ones leave us in peace."
Juventus are yet to concede a goal in Serie A this season and will face another solid defence when they take on RB Leipzig in the Champions League, but Thiago Motta expects an open game.
The Italian giants have played six Serie A games without conceding while Leipzig have the best defensive record in the Bundesliga, where they are unbeaten after five games and have only shipped two goals.
"The numbers mean a lot, it gives us solidity," Motta told reporters ahead of Wednesday's trip to Germany.
"We are two teams that don't sit back and wait for the opponent's mistakes. I expect an open game, a dynamic match against a competitive team who play good football.
"To do well, we will have to play with quality and maintain a good defensive phase as we have done so far, facing different teams, as well as the offensive phase of course."
The only goal Motta's side have conceded this season came in their opening Champions League game, a 3-1 win over PSV, but the former midfielder has dismissed suggestions the Bianconeri have played differently in Europe.
"It's not a question of the cup or the league. All games are different, when it comes to how we will face the opponent," Motta said.
"One thing is certain, we will not sit back, we will always try to compete for control of the game.
"We have never played defensively, not even in the league, and we will not do it this time."
Motta has no new injury worries and remained tight-lipped regarding his lineup, but he has already made his mind up over who will take to the pitch against Leipzig.
"No doubts about the formation, I am very sure of the choices," Motta said.
"Of course, that's if nothing happens between now and the game. I can't tell you, but the players already know the team."
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