Algerian Fethi Nourine has been suspended by the International Judo Federation and will be ordered to leave Tokyo after withdrawing from the Olympics to avoid a potential meeting with an Israeli competitor.
Nourine, 30, was scheduled to take on Sudan's Mohamed Abdalrasool in the 73kg division on Monday, ahead of a possible clash with Israel's Tohar Butbul.
Speaking to Algerian media before his suspension was announced, Nourine said he refused to "get his hands dirty", with his political support for the Palestinian cause triggering the decision to pull out of Tokyo 2020.
Nourine also withdrew from the 2019 world championships after being paired with Butbul, and he will be sent home from the Olympics after refusing to compete.
The International Judo Federation (IJF) said Nourine and his coach Amar Benikhlef had both received a temporary suspension, with a disciplinary commission to further examine the case and consider possible further punishments.
"The IJF launched the investigation and notified the Algerian Olympic Committee and the International Olympic Committee," the IJF said in a statement.
"Responding to the information, the Algerian Olympic Committee withdrew both the athlete and coach accreditation and plans to send them home, applying sanctions accordingly.
"These actions were taken based on the official recorded declarations of both Fethi Nourine and Amar Benikhlef, that were published in the media and that are in total opposition to the philosophy of the International Judo Federation. The IJF has a strict non-discrimination policy, promoting solidarity as a key principle, reinforced by the values of judo."
"According to the IJF rules, in line with the Olympic charter and especially with rule 50.2 that provides for the protection of the neutrality of sport at the Olympic Games and the neutrality of the Games themselves, which states that 'no kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas', Fethi Nourine and Amar Benikhlef are now suspended and will face a decision by the IJF disciplinary commission, as well as disciplinary sanctions by the national Olympic committee of Algeria back in their country.
"Judo sport is based on a strong moral code, including respect and friendship, to foster solidarity and we will not tolerate any discrimination, as it goes against the core values and principles of our sport."
Nina Christen of Switzerland finished 16th in the 10-metre air rifle at the Rio Olympics, but she became a footnote to history five years later as the first athlete to secure a medal at Tokyo 2020.
The 27-year-old locked up the bronze medal several minutes before China's Yang Qian beat Anastasiia Galashina of the Russian Olympic Committee to take gold in the first medal event of the Games.
As soon as she was eliminated from contention for the final two, Christen flashed a smile and waved, knowing she had at least won a spot on the podium this time – no small feat on this stage.
After the first medal ceremony of the Tokyo Games, she spoke about the pressure as the competition entered the final rounds.
"You just try to not reach your head out for the medal before you have the medal," Christen said. "That is the worst thing you could do. Having in your mind, 'Oh I could win a medal, or I could be eighth which would be a failure'.
"So you just try not to think about both of them, you just try and think about what your job is like breathing, holding, aiming, balance, triggering, and then follow through.
"It helps to not think about what is behind you and obviously there are a lot of cameras and a lot of people. And it would be even more if COVID would not have hit. So yeah that is the thing you have to do, otherwise you would just crack."
Sixth seed Swiatek rolls in tennis opener
Two seeded players enjoyed easy victories in the women's singles draw as play began at the Ariake Tennis Park.
Sixth-seeded Iga Swiatek of Poland, the 2020 French Open champion, cruised past Germany's Mona Barthel 6-2 6-2 to open her first Olympics.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, the 11th seed representing the Russian Olympic Committee, had an even easier time in a 6-0 6-1 rout of Italy's Sara Errani.
Pavlyuchenkova will face Germany's Anna-Lena Friedsam, who upset Great Britain's Heather Watson 7-6 6-3 in another early match.
In doubles, there was an eye-catching result for Britain's Andy Murray and Joe Salisbury, who took out French second seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut, scoring a 6-3 6-2 victory.
Men's gymnastics gets under way
Nikita Nagornyy turned in the strongest showing in the opening group as men's gymnastics got under way.
Nagornyy, who won the all-around at the 2019 World Championships and was part of Russia's silver medal-winning team at Rio 2016, posted an 87.897 to lead subdivision one, which included gymnasts from the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), China, Ukraine and Spain along with individuals from other nations.
But his showing was not enough to put the Russians on top, as China earned the top score in the group with a 262.061 to the ROC's 261.945. The top eight ranked teams qualify for the team final, with two subdivisions still to compete Saturday.
"I don't think our team was really good today, but we made our best effort," Nagronyy said. "We have a lot to do."
Brazilians start strongly on the beach
Brazil's two returning beach volleyball medallists are off to a strong start five years later.
Alison Cerutti won gold in Rio and is teamed with new partner Alvaro Morais Filho for Tokyo. They won their opening match 2-0 against Argentina's Nicolas Capogrosso and Julian Amado Azaad.
On the women's side, Rio silver medallist Agatha Bednarczuk, also with a new partner in Eduarda Santos Lisboa, won by the same score against Ana Gallay and Fernanda Pereyra of Argentina.
While she was happy to advance, Agatha found the difference between Rio's raucous crowds and Tokyo's COVID-driven quiet jarring.
"It's so different. In Brazil we have the biggest support there. Many, many people cheering for us, and here, it's silence," she said.
"Here we need to put our emotion (aside) because we don't receive the emotion from the people. For me, this is very important because I like to play with emotions."
Hend Zaza's Tokyo 2020 adventure came to a quick end but the youngest Olympian in almost 30 years told youngsters around the world to "fight for your dreams".
Aged only 12 years and 204 days old, Zaza – who was Syria's flagbearer at Friday's opening ceremony – is the youngest competitor at a Games since 11-year-old Carlos Front and and 12-year-old Judit Kiss competed in rowing and swimming for Spain and Hungary respectively in 1992.
Zaza's story is an inspiring one. Her home city of Hama was destroyed by war and finding facilities in which to train can often be a challenge.
She was beaten 11-4 11-9 11-3 11-5 by 39-year-old Austrian Jia Liu, appearing at her sixth Games – three of which in 2000, 2004 and 2008 Zaza was not even born – in Saturday's preliminary round.
"For the last five years I've been through many different experiences, especially when there was the war happening around the country, with the postponement with funding for the Olympics, and it was very tough," Zaza said.
"But I had to fight for it and this is my message to everyone who wishes to have the same situation. Fight for your dreams, try hard, regardless of the difficulties that you're having, and you will reach your goal."
Zaza conceded the excitement of Friday's ceremony coupled with the effects of jet lag may have been contributing factors in her defeat.
"Yesterday we had to start our journey to the Olympic opening ceremony at six o'clock, which is quite early, standing there, or preparing, till 11 or after 11, which is quite a long time," she added.
"Getting ready for the morning session, plus the jet lag, which is seven hours difference from Syria, both are definitely factors that put me out of my comfort zone."
Opponent Liu revealed how she had some pressure at home from her daughter, explaining: "Everybody knows that losing to someone so young can be a bit embarrassing.
"Yesterday I asked my daughter, 'do you know your mother is playing against someone two years older than you?'
"Her first response was 'then you better not lose!' I said 'don't give me pressure!' I did tell the media though that if I did lose I would jump off my balcony. So my daughter said 'if you really lose, please don't jump. You've got to come home.'"
Liu also spoke of her admiration for her young opponent.
"There's sport and there's life. There are people who have to endure difficulties," she added.
"They are amazing, it hasn't been easy for them. She's a girl, too – to be in an Olympics at 12, in my heart I really admire her."
Organisers of the troubled Tokyo Olympics are facing a new headache with the prospect of an incoming typhoon early in the Games.
Monday's rowing events have already been moved to Sunday, to guard against the possibility of the powerful storm hitting Japan's capital.
Masa Takaya, spokesperson for the Tokyo 2020 organising committee, addressed the threat posed by the tropical cyclone after it was confirmed there was "adverse weather" expected on Monday.
He said the issue had been "discussed in crisis management", with the typhoon currently off shore but heading in the general direction of Tokyo, according to some forecasts.
"Unlike an earthquake, we are able to predict the path of a typhoon, therefore we can prepare in advance," Takaya added.
"Especially when it comes to rowing, as a preventative measure we have decided to change the schedule.
"For the athlete we understand it is going to be a substantial burden; however, this is a case that has been experienced in past Olympics Games as well.
"But of course we are looking very closely at the path of the typhoon to ensure there are decisions made as a preventive measure."
Already delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and taking place largely behind closed doors, the Tokyo Games got under way in unprecedented circumstances.
A major storm, particularly one that might cause damage and even a threat to human life, would be another daunting hurdle that organisers would need to be ready for.
Sailing and surfing are among other sports on Monday's schedule.
Takaya added: "Should a typhoon make landfall there could be damages both human and also physical damages. When that should be the case, we would take responsible measures.
"As to what will happen in the days ahead, we are not able to accurately predict. At this point, I will not be able to inform you exactly as to what [action] precisely will be taken."
Yang Qian is the first gold medallist at Tokyo 2020.
The Chinese shooter won the women's 10-metre air rifle despite saving her worst shot of the competition for last.
The 21-year-old trailed Anastasiia Galashina, competing for the Russian Olympic Committee, by 0.2 points entering the final shot at the Asaka Shooting Range, but Galashina missed badly, scoring 8.9.
Yang had scored at least 10 points on every shot up to her last, but her 9.8 was still enough to take gold with an Olympic record 251.8 as Galashina finished with 251.1.
Nina Christen of Switzerland took bronze with a final score of 230.6.
In just two days, team Jamaica has received news of two unexpected injury blows to start the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
2018 Commonwealth Games steeplechase champion, Aisha Praught Leer, has revealed via social media that she injured her left knee in training on Sunday, which later turned out to be a torn meniscus.
The athlete will, however, still attempt to compete at the Games after taking an injection to the joint.
"I will line up in Tokyo. When I arrive I will get fluid drained from my knee and take a cortisone injection (this is legal, and my surgeon understands and supports me in this)
The unfortunate injury occurred during what she described as one of the ‘best workouts’ of her life. The athlete explained that she felt excruciating pain as if something had torn.
“I tore my meniscus (a complete, off the bone root tear) on Sunday at training—a freak, shocking accident. I heard and felt a painful pop doing a drill but then proceeded to do one of the best workouts of my life. On Wednesday I got an MRI, then sat in quiet disbelief with Joe Bosshard as the doctor told us I need surgery ASAP.”
The always-smiling athlete is scheduled to compete in the 1500m that is set to get underway on Sunday, at 7:35 pm. Naturally, she is heartbroken because she will not be able to compete at her maximum ability.
“I want to keep believing in the possibility of achieving the wild dreams I store deep in my heart. The reality is they will not happen in Tokyo—running to my ability is simply not possible on a knee without stability. This is the most challenging reality I have faced in my career,” Praught Leer said.
“We did nothing wrong. As I said, this was a freak accident. But now all of my silent work, the beautiful, hard-earned fitness, does not have a chance to see the light of day. The triumph I have visualized so vividly is—poof—gone in one step,” Leer lamented.
Although she understands that unexpected injuries are a part of sports, it is still a tough reality for her to accept.
“I understand this is sport—just sport. I know the truth that I am more than an athlete. But this sport means everything to me. This is my life’s work, my purpose, and my first true love. I am heartbroken.”
The athlete, who created history, being the first Jamaican to win gold in the steeplechase event at the Commonwealth Games, insists she will be proud to represent the country despite not being in top shape.
“You will see me smiling in Tokyo with Jamaica on my chest because the honour of representing my country is one of the greatest I’ve had in my little life.”
On Thursday, news broke that gymnast Danusia Francis had suffered an injury to her left knee, which later turned out to be a torn ACL. Francis will not be able to compete in her events. She will, however, symbolically take part in the Uneven Bars event but will not attempt a dismount.
Jamaica gymnast Danusia Francis is unsure of when she sustained a competition-ending knee injury, and will only be able to symbolically compete in Saturday’s competition, but insists she remains proud to represent the country regardless.
The 27-year-old was diagnosed with a torn ACL on Friday and will now only take part in the Athletics Gymnastics Uneven Bars event at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Even so, the gymnast will not be able to fully compete as she will be unable to do a dismount routine.
“I hope to do some sort of bar routine just to get a score on the board but without a dismount, it won’t be a competitive score, but I’ll be happy to see Jamaica represented at the Olympic Games and I still feel very proud to be wearing the Jamaican flag,” Francis told the press.
“The knee, I think, is getting worse and worse, so I can’t really tell you the exact time when the ligament damage occurred, but I found out today what it actually was and it will drastically affect my competition, unfortunately.”
The Artistic Gymnastics competition is set to start tomorrow with the Uneven Bars finals for women taking place on Sunday. The athlete will miss out on competing on the Balance Beam, Floor Exercise, and Vault.
The gymnast admits the injury had come as a huge blow.
“I’m really upset to have hurt myself. I have been so prepared for this competition mentally and physically up to this point so to, at the last hurdle, be injured is disappointing. Luckily, the medics have taken really good care of me and I’m sure they will continue to do so.”
Jamaica sprinter Yohan Blake will have his hands full at the Tokyo Olympics not just taking part in two events on the track but also serving as a panelist for India Broadcasters Sony Sport.
The 31-year-old, who will be competing in his third Olympics, will participate in the 100m and 200m sprints. Blake was once thought to be the heir apparent to illustrious compatriot Usain Bolt and holds the seconnd fastest times ever recorded over both events.
Following hamstring injuries in 2013 and 2014, however, he has failed to replicate that kind of form in recent years. In fact, in Tokyo, he will be looking to make it on the podium at major games for the first time in nine years. Whether he gets among the medals or not, however, the sprinter could already be considering what’s next.
“I am very excited to associate with Sony Sports as an expert panelist on their live wrap-around studio show, SPORTS EXTRAAA, and take fans closer to the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020. Not only will the viewers in India watch me proudly represent my country at the Games but they will also watch me provide insights on the performance of the world's finest on the grand stage,” Blake told South Asian news agency ANI.
The programs will be broadcast all across India.
Jamaica gymnast, Danusia Francis, will be unable to compete in the majority of her scheduled events for the Tokyo Olympics after suffering a torn ACL.
Francis, the country’s lone competitor in Artistic Gymnastics, was scheduled to take part in the four-event Women’s All-Round competition on Sunday.
After suffering a knee injury, however, the 27-year has had to alter those plans. The results of an MRI, taken in the Olympic Village on Friday, showed that the damage to the joint was worse than hoped for.
As a result, Francis will only be able to compete on the Uneven Bars, which is the apparatus that is least likely to cause further damage to the injured joint. That means the athlete will skip the Vault, Balance Beam, and Floor exercises.
Francis is the second female gymnast to represent Jamaica at the Olympic Games following in the footsteps of Toni-Ann Williams, who at the 2016 Rio Olympics, was the first female gymnast to compete for Jamaica at the Olympics.
The gymnast was able to qualify for the Games based on her performance at the 2019 World Championships. She finished among the top 20 athletes who were not on a qualifying team. She ranked ninth in the group of competitors.
Naomi Osaka will make her playing entry to the Olympic Games a day later than expected after her first-round tennis match was put back to Sunday.
Japan's big hope for gold will play China's Zheng Saisai in her opener at the Ariake Tennis Park.
The match was billed to be first on the centre court at 11:00 local time on Saturday, only for Games organisers to announce it has been moved back by a day.
The move came amid mounting expectation that Osaka would have a prominent role to play in Friday's opening ceremony, meaning she would have little time to rest between taking part in that event and playing Zheng.
Osaka abandoned her French Open campaign after one match, having been warned she risked expulsion for refusing to take part in news conferences during the tournament.
The reigning US Open and Australian Open champion, who has spoken of struggling with anxiety and depression, then elected to skip Wimbledon.
The quarantine experience has become routine for those travelling the world to play or watch sport during the coronavirus crisis.
It has been that way in Japan for the Tokyo Olympics. Depending on which country you arrive from, there may be a period of isolation to tolerate before being allowed to participate in the Games.
This has been the case for Stats Perform's journalist on the ground, Peter Hanson, who is approaching the end of a three-day quarantine at his hotel in order to comply with the rules for UK residents working in a media capacity in the Japanese capital.
Here, he provides five tips on how to survive quarantine…
Tip 1: Binge on Netflix
Admittedly this isn't a particularly novel idea but when you're pretty much confined to a hotel room for three days what better way to pass the time than with some easy watching?
It doesn't have to be Netflix…there are plenty of other streaming services available of course. But, right now I'm powering through the US version of The Office (even if that makes me feel a little traitorous towards the original UK edition, which – sorry folks – remains the significantly better show).
Tip 2: Reading
It's good to come prepared. Having undertaken a 12-and-a-half-hour flight to get to Tokyo before the three days of isolation even began, having a good book (or even a bad one really) just made good sense.
I'm a big fan of Harlan Coben's work, so with me in Tokyo is his thriller 'The Boy in the Woods', and also a book about the world's greatest football team…Sheffield Wednesday, penned by Sheffield Star journalist Alex Miller.
Tip 3: Bring out the bangers…
Admittedly this tip comes on the back of a bit of a head loss…but when in the moment, you have to fully embrace it folks!
Crack on with your Spotify, your Apple Music, or wherever you get your tunes from and let the music take control! Friday's morning get-up song for me belonged to Ronan Keating because, well, life is a rollercoaster right now…
Tip 4: Sick tricks!
This one is inspired by one of my best friends back home, who will often yell "sick tricks!" before doing something pretty juvenile or a very basic skill with the confidence and gusto of a trapeze artist… and it gets a laugh from me pretty much every time.
Luckily, just before I left my house in Sheffield I spotted a tennis ball to take with me and – recalling the feats of skills posted by several ATP and WTA stars online during their own Australian Open quarantines – decided to have a go at some of my own tennis-ball tricks…it did not go particularly well.
Tip 5: Work, work, work...
No, not the Rihanna song... although playing that on repeat would absolutely be a great way to spend your time in quarantine.
What I'm alluding to is the fact that at some point during a three-day quarantine, some work will have to be done.
Only, in this case I got distracted by my Football Manager save and decided that was also a pretty decent way to kill some time…
Joe Ingles is coming off the sort of disappointment with the Utah Jazz that perhaps only an Olympic medal could soothe.
Ingles, runner-up for the NBA's Sixth Man Award in the 2020-21 season, could not prevent the top-seeded Jazz losing to the Los Angeles Clippers in the second round of the playoffs.
He scored 19 points in three successive games against the Clippers but twice in a losing cause, meaning a season that he packed with career-bests ended on a painful note.
Ingles is now chasing gold with Australia at Tokyo 2020, with an opening game against Nigeria scheduled for Sunday.
Australia have never won an Olympic medal in men's basketball, finishing fourth on four occasions, most recently at Rio 2016.
They were also fourth at the 2019 FIBA World Cup, but Ingles says the time has come to get hold of a medal.
Gold is the obvious target, and when Ingles was asked whether silver or bronze would be a disappointment, his verdict was that anything but top step on the podium would feel like a letdown, at least initially.
"In the moment, yeah; in the long run, no," he said. "We don't talk about anything else – there's one goal in mind and that's to win a gold medal in Tokyo.
"If we wait and look 10 years down the track we'll think different but we're here to make history."
Australia's women have fared better on the big stage, winning three Olympic silvers and two bronze medals.
Ingles had an NBA career-best 34 points against the Washington Wizards in March, while in January he passed John Stockton to set a new Jazz record for the most three-pointers in a career with the franchise. Stockton made 845 and Ingles is now on 993.
He set career highs in field-goal percentage (48.9 per cent), three-point success rate (45.1 per cent) and free-throw hit rate (84.4 per cent) in the regular season, along with a points-per-game average of 12.1 that matched his 2018-19 best.
Now the 33-year-old small forward heads into his fourth Olympics seeking that elusive medal, and a familiar face in Brian Goorjian is leading the team.
Coach Goorjian was in charge of Australia when Ingles made his Games debut in 2008 at Beijing, and he returned to the role in November of last year.
"He's a lot older. We're both a lot older," Ingles said. "So awesome to have him back.
"I was interested to see if there would be any differences in him. He moves a bit slower and his fingers are a bit more busted up but he's the same coach."
The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees have faced each other more than 2,000 times dating back to 1901, but they have never had a game end quite like Thursday's.
Four wild pitches by New York reliever Brooks Kriske in the 10th inning brought home the tying run and set up the winning run as Boston prevailed 5-4 at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox had trailed 3-1 with two outs in the ninth inning when Kike Hernandez ripped a two-run double to left-center off Chad Green to tie the game and send it to the 10th.
Thanks to MLB's second-year rule that puts a runner on second base to start each extra inning, New York was able to take a 4-3 lead on a groundout and a Brett Gardner sacrifice fly in the top of the inning, but Boston did them one better.
Two wild pitches by Kriske brought Rafael Devers home from second to make it 4-4, and after Xander Bogaerts drew a walk, two more wild pitches moved him to third.
After J.D. Martinez struck out, Hunter Renfroe lifted a sacrifice fly to right field to drive home Bogaerts with the winning run – all without benefit of a hit.
According to Stats Perform, Kriske is the first pitcher in MLB history to throw at least four wild pitches in one extra ininng.
"There's a lot of guys battling their butts off and it sucks to be the one to blow it for the team," Kriske told reporters.
The Yankees sent him to the minor leagues after the game.
Giants stun Dodgers late
The San Francisco Giants scored four runs in the ninth inning for a shock 5-3 victory over the rival Los Angeles Dodgers as they opened up a three-game lead over LA in the National League (NL) West division.
Down 3-1 with two out in the ninth, the Giants loaded the bases and earned a reprieve when video replay overturned a call at second base that would have been the final out of the game. Darin Ruf then walked on a controversial checked-swing call to force in the tying run before LaMonte Wade's two-run single off Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen broke it open.
The Tampa Bay Rays pulled out another late victory, scoring twice in the ninth inning and again in the 10th to defeat the Cleveland Indians 5-4. Entering the ninth trailing 4-2, the Rays got a leadoff homer from Yandy Diaz and a two-out double by Brandon Lowe to tie the game, then brought home the go-ahead run on Austin Meadows' single in the 10th.
The Detroit Tigers remain undefeated since the All-Star break, getting a three-run first-inning homer from Eric Haase and going on to beat the Texas Rangers 7-5 to complete a four-game sweep and extend their winning streak to seven games. The Tigers were 9-24 on May 7 but are 38-27 since.
Sean Manaea struck out a career-high 13 for the Oakland Athletics in a 4-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
Braves get to Moore
After allowing six earned runs over his last four outings combined, Philadelphia Phillies starter Matt Moore gave up six in the first four innings of a 7-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves. Dansby Swanson's third-inning grand slam was the big blow for Atlanta.
Another robbery by Bader
St Louis Cardinals center fielder Harrison Bader made a maximum-effort play to end the top of the seventh inning, robbing Nico Hoerner of a bloop single to help the Cardinals hang on to a lead and eventually defeat the Chicago Cubs 3-2.
Thursday's results
Detroit Tigers 7-5 Texas Rangers
Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 Cleveland Indians
Atlanta Braves 7-2 Philadelphia Phillies
Boston Red Sox 5-4 New York Yankees
San Diego Padres 3-2 Miami Marlins
St Louis Cardinals 3-2 Chicago Cubs
Los Angeles Angels 3-2 Minnesota Twins
Oakland Athletics 4-1 Seattle Mariners
San Francisco Giants 5-3 Los Angeles Dodgers
White Sox at Brewers
The Chicago White Sox (58-38) and Milwaukee Brewers (56-41) both have healthy leads in their divisions heading into a week-end showdown in Milwaukee.
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